The fool has become a spirit, and she can speak

As they were talking, Fifth Brother brought a few account books and placed them in front of Shang Xi, along with an abacus. Shang Xi looked at the pile of account books in front of him, and couldn't help but widen his eyes and asked in surprise, "Fifth Brother, what do you mean? I thought you were going to cook noodles for us, why did you bring out these account books? Are you asking us to look at the account books before eating noodles? To tell you the truth, we are all hungry, and we are just waiting for this bowl of spicy noodles."

The fifth brother said with a smile: "Wait a moment, the noodles will be cooked for you soon. Since you are here, I will ask someone not to send the account books to the prefectural government. You can take a look here. These are all the rents we collected. In addition, there are account books for the noodle shop, the steamed bun shop, and the incense shop."

Shang Xi said: "Fifth brother, I am not responsible for looking at the account books."

When the fifth brother heard this, he asked in surprise, "If you don't look at this account book, who will? Cheng Feng is away on a long journey. Aren't you the one who looked at the account books that I sent to the prefect's mansion this year?"

Shang Xi blinked her eyes twice and explained, "When Cheng Feng was here, he was in charge of the Wan family's account books, and Cheng Youning did the hard work for him. After Cheng Feng left, the Wan family's account books were in the charge of the accountant and Cheng Youning. I don't care about this. I guess Cheng Youning will come in the next two days. You can let him take a look at it then, or you can send someone to deliver it to your house."

The fifth brother was unable to react for a moment: "Cheng Youning is here? Cheng Youning is doing the accounting? After all this time, those account books were looked at by that little kid Cheng Youning?"

Shang Xi nodded as a matter of course and said, "Cheng Feng said that the job of looking after the account books will fall into Cheng Youning's hands sooner or later, so we have to teach him to look after the account books from a young age, and we can't let Cheng Youning eat idle meals at home."

Yuhua burst out laughing when she heard this: "Only you two can say that. It's obvious that you adults are too lazy and order the children to work, but how can you two make it sound so righteous? Only Cheng Youning is sensible, otherwise who would help the family with the account books?"

Shang Xi said shamelessly: "We have to use him, otherwise he is too energetic and always gets into trouble. There are so many account books of the Wan family. If they were handed over to me, I would not be able to finish reading them even if I didn't eat or drink. Cheng Youning read the account books because they were handed over by his uncle, Mr. Qian, and they were also instructed by Mr. Hu, the accountant of Mr. Qian, so he is better at reading the accounts than me, and he is the most suitable person to read them."

The fifth brother asked: "Will there be no mistakes if we give so many account books to a little kid to look at?"

Shang Xi said: "His grandfather and the accountant are keeping an eye on it. It is said that Cheng Youning has not missed any of the accounts he has handled so far."

The fifth brother exclaimed: "He is indeed the descendant of a wealthy merchant family. He is more talented in accounting than ordinary people."

Shang Xi said: "With such a big mess, someone has to take over. His grandparents are old, so this job can only fall on him and his father. They just have to do it."

The fifth brother said, "It is really hard to maintain such a large family business. Shang Xi, you are smart and clever. You can learn how to manage accounts and help Cheng Feng share the burden. Don't count on a little kid. It will not be worth it if the child becomes sick due to exhaustion."

Shang Xi didn't know whether to laugh or cry when he heard this: "Fifth brother, it's not that I'm lazy. I've been working for the Marquis for the past two years. Do you know how many brick houses I have built this year? Tens of thousands."

The fifth brother laughed, "Do you think this Shang Shanren is called that for nothing? But the people in Fengying all remember the kindness of your Wan family. It's not like when you and Cheng Feng set up a stall to sell alum in Mochun County. Everyone thought that you and Cheng Feng were using the name of the Marquis to make up rumors and sell alum. Now the alum in our shop sells the best, and they all believe that you didn't make money from them with this alum. But now that the water conservancy in Mochun County has been repaired, there are places to get water nearby, which is very convenient, and the water is much better than before, and it doesn't have any smell. People can use a bag of alum for a long time. The people here will no longer have to worry about drinking water. Everyone is grateful to your Wan family, respects the Marquis, and thanks the Marquis for his selflessness."

Shang Xi laughed, "A journey of a thousand miles tests a horse's strength, and time reveals a person's true character. There is not a single bad person in our Wan family, and what the Marquis has done is good for the country and the people. Apart from anything else, the water conservancy project is a century-long project, and it has completely solved the problem of water supply for the people of Fengying, so the Marquis should indeed be respected."

The fifth brother said, "That's right. The Marquis has done more than one good thing for the people. In the whole of Dalang, only the people in Fengying do not have to perform labor and pay taxes. This is all thanks to the Marquis. And when there was a battle at the border, your fifth sister-in-law was scared. She was afraid that the people from the Southern Yan Kingdom would come in and massacre the people. Later, it was the Marquis who took action and drove away the people from the Southern Yan Kingdom, and then fought all the way to the Southern Yan Kingdom. What kind of person is Zou Sanduo? In the end, it was the Marquis who protected us ordinary people. Don't blame everyone for burning incense and worshiping the Marquis. The Marquis can bear it. Your fifth sister-in-law goes to the City God Temple twice a month."

"The City God Temple here also enshrines the Marquis?" Shang Xi was obviously surprised that not only his fifth brother and his wife could follow the local customs and worship Wan Lianxing so quickly.

The fifth brother said, "In the entire Fengying, which city god temple is dedicated to our Marquis? There have been notices posted on the streets these past two days, saying that on the eighth day of next month, the Marquis will pray for the people of Fengying. Everyone is preparing to go, including your fifth sister-in-law."

When Shang Xi heard that her fifth sister-in-law was going to Fengying City, she was happy: "We will go back to Fengying City in a few days, you and your fifth sister-in-law will go with us."

The fifth brother said, "I can't leave with such a big mess, so let your fifth sister-in-law go with you."

The fifth sister-in-law said, "If all the people go to see the Marquis pray, there won't be any business here. Besides, the scene of the Marquis praying must be rare in a hundred years. If you miss it, you don't know when the next time will be. You should go too."

The fifth brother chuckled, "I really want to go and see. It is said that the last time he prayed for rain, it was miraculous. I heard that the marquis held the petition in his hand and made an impassioned speech. After he finished speaking, the petition in the marquis's hand instantly caught fire. Then there was a crackling sound and a lightning bolt fell from the sky. Then a strong wind blew, and it rained for three days and three nights. The whole Fengying was filled with rain. Since then, Fengying has never lacked rain. Is this true, Shang Xi?"

Shang Xi was also stunned by what Fifth Brother said. She could only bite her thumb and nod frequently. This was indeed the scene.

The fifth brother asked again: "If you saw it with your own eyes, the scene must be very exciting, right?"

Shang Xi hummed and groaned, "It's pretty much the same as Fifth Brother's description. Your story is really brilliant. It's like recreating the scene of that day. You told it so well."