Dugu Jingyao is reborn as Li Chu's beloved

Chapter 339: Expert in Accounting and Household Management

After returning home, the two walked together until they reached their bedroom. They didn't undress, but lay side by side on the couch, fully clothed, to rest for a while. The afternoon was quiet and beautiful, and before they knew it, they had fallen asleep.

After the nap, Li Chu slowly opened his eyes and stood up gently, afraid of waking up Dugu Jingyao who was still sleeping beside him. After tidying his clothes, he walked to the study, where there was a mountain of official business waiting for him to deal with.

Meanwhile, Dugu Jingyao, who stayed in the room, was still deep in sleep. Not long after, she slowly woke up and stretched.

At this moment, there was a slight sound of footsteps outside the door, and then the door was pushed open, and Shi Jian came in and reported: "Princess, Chief Steward Zhang is here."

Dugu Jingyao quickly regained consciousness after hearing this, got up from the couch, walked to the desk and said, "Please ask Manager Zhang to come in!" Upon hearing this, Shi Jian went out to invite Zhang Deyu.

Shi Jian returned soon, followed by Zhang Deyu, who walked in with a thick stack of account books and a detailed list of the people in the mansion. It turned out that before leaving, Li Chu had specifically instructed Zhang Deyu to bring these things to Dugu Jingyao so that she could familiarize herself with the affairs of the mansion as soon as possible.

Dugu Jingyao ordered someone to take the account book and personnel details, expressed her gratitude, and asked Shi Jian to send Zhang Deyu out safely. Then she began to read it carefully.

Although there are not many masters in this huge Guangping Palace, the daily expenses are indeed not small, and there are a large number of servants, so it is not easy to manage.

Time passed by minute by minute, and Li Chu was concentrating on handling various government affairs in his study. When the sun set, he finally finished the work at hand, stood up and left the study, and walked towards Wangyue Pavilion.

When he stepped into the room, he saw Dugu Jingyao sitting at the table, flipping through the account book intently. There was a pile of account books on the table that had not been read yet.

Li Chu stood quietly at the door, gazing at Dugu Jingyao's focused expression. She would sometimes frown, as if she were faced with a difficult account, and sometimes smile, as if she had solved a long-standing mystery. Dugu Jingyao, completely absorbed in the accounting, was completely unaware of Li Chu's return.

Li Chu's lips curled up slightly, and he thought to himself, "I didn't expect this woman to be so charming when she's seriously settling accounts." He stepped lightly and slowly approached Dugu Jingyao. Shi Jian, who was concentrating on grinding ink nearby, was the first to notice Li Chu. Just as he was about to greet him, Li Chu quickly waved his hand to signal him to be quiet.

Shi Jian understood what he meant and quickly stopped what he was doing and moved quietly to the side to make room for Li Chu.

Li Chu tiptoed to Dugu Jingyao's side and sat down gently. Dugu Jingyao was so absorbed in the account book that she was oblivious to everything that was happening around her. She only vaguely sensed that Shi Jian had stopped grinding ink.

So he said, "Shijian, why don't you sharpen it?"

Shi Jian didn't say anything and wanted to go forward to continue grinding the ink, but Li Chu stopped her and personally helped Dugu Jingyao grind the ink.

At first, Dugu Jingyao didn't notice it. When she dipped the ink again, she found that the hand grinding the ink was not Shi Jian's, but a man's. As expected, she looked up and saw Li Chu.

Dugu Jingyao was delighted and asked, "You finished your business so quickly?"

When Shi Jian saw that she had nothing to do here, she quietly slipped away, closing the door behind her.

Li Chu and Dugu Jingyao both stopped what they were doing. He walked behind Dugu Jingyao, pinched her shoulders and said, "It's not that I handled it quickly, but you, Yao, are too serious. It's almost time for dinner now."

Dugu Jingyao glanced at the clepsydra and realized that it was indeed the case. She leaned back in her chair and said, "I don't feel anything. It's been so long."

Li Chu massaged her shoulders, and she couldn't help but sigh in comfort: "Ah~ It feels so good, Donglang, I didn't expect that you, a prince, have such good shoulder massage skills!"

Li Chu smiled and said, "Ayao likes it. I'll give it to you more often when I have the chance."

Dugu Jingyao straightened up immediately: "Don't do that! If others knew that the famous Prince Guangping was always massaging the princess' shoulders, how could that be acceptable?"

Li Chu was startled by her sudden upright movement. Upon hearing this, he pushed her back on the chair and said, "What are you afraid of? Unless the servants in the mansion spread the news, or you go out to show off, otherwise, when we are together, I will give you a massage. Who will know?"

Dugu Jingyao also thought it made sense, so she started enjoying herself with peace of mind. As she enjoyed herself, she sighed, "Although we don't have that many masters in this house, the expenses are quite high!"

Li Chu said: "The main expenses are still the servants of the mansion. Because they are arranged according to the regulations of the Prince's Mansion, there are more people."

Dugu Jingyao thought for a moment and said, "Can these servants be trusted? If so, why not let some of them help out in the shop Yue'er and I run? Since the shop is about to expand, and they need to recruit staff, why not transfer some maids and servants from the mansion to help with hawking and entertaining? The shop will pay for it, so we can reduce the expenses of the mansion, right?"

Li Chu thought it was a good idea, so he smiled and said, "My A Yao is really smart, but can the shop afford the expenses if this is the case?"

Dugu Jingyao looked up at Li Chu and said, "I have to say, Yue'er really has a good business mind. Boss Liu followed Yue'er's method, and as expected, new customers kept coming in, and old customers continued to buy from us. The main reason is that our formula was Yue'er's, so other places don't have it, and those female workers have all signed contracts with us. So far, we have made a profit every month."

Li Chu then said, "If you assign them to the shop, won't it reveal that the shop is yours?"

Dugu Jingyao thought about it and it seemed that what Li Chu said made sense. However, she suddenly thought of a solution: "Just like with the female workers, sign a non-compete agreement and a confidentiality agreement. If there is any breach of contract, either pay a high penalty or be arrested by the government."

Li Chu clapped his hands and laughed out loud: "Haha, you are worthy of it, A Yao, I'll do as you say!" After that, he left a kiss on Dugu Jingyao's forehead.

Dugu Jingyao smiled happily, and after a moment, she continued, "It just so happens that the female workers used their savings to buy a yard a while ago. I'll tell them that the people who are sent there will live there. If their place can't accommodate them, we'll buy them a small house, which will also be our own private property."

Li Chu nodded and said, "Okay, I'll do as you say! But it's time for dinner, let's go eat first. As for the bill, it's not too late to settle it after dinner!"

When Li Chu mentioned eating, Dugu Jingyao felt her stomach was empty. She nodded slightly and said, "Let's go. I'll put the account books away and we'll go have dinner first." After that, she picked up a stack of account books and put them in the cabinet. Then the two of them went to the flower hall of Wangyuexuan to have dinner.