"What is this grandson Zhu Ping'an trying to do? Why did he call the assassin from the East Factory to protect the emperor? Do you think he has found out something?"
The Taicang group suffered a setback at the hands of the Bloody Sword and did not even get to see Zhu Ping'an, so they had to return to Zhang Guanku's office. As soon as they entered the room, Liu Siku could not help but look solemn and worried.
"Manager Liu, why are you worrying about nothing again? Every year the inspectors come, and when has a problem been found? Those who should drink should drink, and those who should eat meat should eat meat. Stop being suspicious." Doctor Zhao stretched out his hand and patted Manager Liu's shoulders a few times, looking indifferent.
"But don't you think it's strange? People from the East Factory wouldn't come here for no reason, right? They must have found out something..."
Although Doctor Zhao consoled him, the worry on Liu Siku's face continued to grow. He kept turning around in circles like a headless fly. Whenever he thought of the Bloody Sword's feminine and sneering look, Liu Siku felt like a thorn in his back and got goose bumps all over his body for no reason.
"Sir Liu, you are worrying too much. You know who does the accounts for Taicang. It's the famous 'Ghost Hand Zhang' in the accounting world. There has never been a mistake in any account book that has passed through his hands. Not a single one. Even if all the accountants in the capital were called in to check carefully for ten days or half a month, they would never find any problems with any account book that has passed through his hands." Treasurer Qian smiled and shook his head, sneering at Treasurer Liu's worries.
"That's right, Lord Liu. You flatter Zhu Ping'an too much. Didn't you go to see it yesterday? He didn't even touch the abacus. Zhu Ping'an can't even use an abacus. How do you expect him to check the accounts? Haha, let alone checking the accounts. I'm afraid Zhu Ping'an can't even understand the account book, otherwise he wouldn't have checked the accounts all day yesterday and only left with a blank..." Another treasurer disagreed.
"That's true..."
When talking about ***, a burst of cheerful laughter rang out in the room, and the worry on Liu Siku's face gradually dissipated under their persuasion.
"That being said, we can't let our guard down. Doctor Jia, you are well-informed. Go and find out what's going on with the people from the East Factory."
Zhang Guanku leaned back in his chair, and when the laughter stopped, he quietly told Jia Langzhong to go outside and find out why the people from the East Factory suddenly came to Taicang. The Blood Sword was so notorious that Zhang Guanku had to be more cautious.
Doctor Jia was a sociable and capable person, and he was also a member of the Yan Party. He could communicate with Yan Shifan and had many officials in the court on his side. He had extensive personal connections and was the most up-to-date on news in Taicang.
"I guess too many people from the inspection team ran away, leaving Zhu Ping'an as the only one left. The higher-ups are probably afraid that Zhu Ping'an will also quit." Doctor Zhao said with a smile.
"Haha, what Lord Zhao said makes sense. I guess the people from the East Factory are here to monitor Zhu Ping'an, fearing that he will run away."
"Yeah, that makes sense. We are here to monitor Zhu Ping'an."
After Doctor Zhao finished speaking, Treasurer Qian and others in the room responded with a smile. In their opinion, the people from the East Factory went to great lengths to come to Taicang, it must be because the Taicang Inspection Group had just been established for a few days, and five inspectors were in mourning, had a stroke, were beaten with a stick in the court, or fell off a horse, leaving Zhu Ping'an alone. The higher-ups were worried that Zhu Ping'an would also quit, so they sent people from the East Factory to intimidate him.
After thinking about it, everyone felt that this was the most reliable reason.
"Don't take it lightly. As the saying goes: Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will not be in danger in a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, you will win or lose. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will be in danger in every battle..." Zhang Guanku shook his head slightly, took a sip, and recited softly.
Zhang Guanku was a cautious person, and he was worried about the sudden visit of the East Factory to Taicang. Although he had seen the results of Zhu Ping'an's audit yesterday and felt much more relaxed, he still felt a little worried, and he couldn't tell why.
"Don't worry, sir. I will go and ask around right away." Doctor Jia nodded, bowed to everyone, and turned to walk out.
After Doctor Jia left, Zhang Guanku ordered Qian Siku to call the accountant "Ghost Hand Zhang" and others to confirm the matter of the account book again.
Then he ordered Liu Siku and others to pay close attention to the movements of Zhu Ping'an. Although they could not get close to the courtyard, they could still get a general idea from a distance.
After Zhang Guanku gave the order, everyone acted according to the order. Since it concerned their own interests, everyone was very concerned.
Seeing everyone's attentive looks, Zhang Guanku nodded with satisfaction and felt much more relieved.
While everyone in Taicang was acting separately, Zhu Ping'an's audit was already going well. With people from the East Factory on duty outside, Zhu Ping'an let go and used all his strength.
Zhu Ping'an, working at full speed, checked the accounts more than 30% faster than yesterday.
There was already a thick stack of sorted account books on the table, and there were only about ten account books left in the second box.
Under the double-entry bookkeeping table, all the tricks in the account book are exposed.
The account books checked today found a lot more problems than those checked yesterday.
After a rough estimate, Zhu Ping'an found a deficit of more than 3,000 taels of silver in just this morning.
"This bunch of parasites... ... they stole from their employers..."
Every time Zhu Ping'an found a deficit, he couldn't help but curse under his breath. It seems that corruption is an issue that cannot be avoided whether in modern times or ancient times.
Greed will lead to ruin, there is no recovery!
The fall of the Ming Dynasty is closely related to this group of parasites!
As time went by, Zhu Ping'an checked the accounts faster and faster. By noon, he had checked nearly one-third of the account books in the third box.
The Bloody Sword and others from the East Factory who were on duty outside also watched Zhu Ping'an checking the accounts silently through the window.
Gradually, the look in his eyes when he looked at Zhu Ping'an was filled with a bit of respect from the bottom of his heart.
Since they arrived in Taicang in the morning, they saw Zhu Ping'an checking the accounts. Until now, Zhu Ping'an has not even had a moment's rest. He has been flipping through the account books and making records on a table that they cannot understand. Occasionally, he would write some formulas that they cannot understand on a piece of rough paper, as if he was doing calculations.
However, when checking the accounts, Zhu Ping'an never used an abacus, which made them a little confused.
During the audit, Liu Siku and others from Taicang sent tea, snacks and other refreshments to the yard several times and asked the East Factory guards to bring them to Zhu Ping'an.
The guards from the East Factory did not let Liu Siku and others in, but they still brought tea, snacks and other food to Zhu Pingan. After all, people are made of iron and steel, and there is no one who does not eat or drink.
However, Zhu Ping'an did not touch a single sip of the tea, desserts and snacks sent from Taicang.
When he was thirsty, Zhu Ping'an would take out a gourd from the cloth bag he carried with him. The gourd contained water from home, and he would drink the water in the gourd.
At noon, Zhu Ping'an also took out two fried cakes from the cloth bag and ate them with a stack of pickled vegetables.
You should not have the intention to harm others, but you must be on guard against others.
There are examples in history of officials who checked accounts being poisoned or assassinated, and Zhu Ping'an does not want to be "silenced".