Zhou Bapi was completely lost in the quick shift of the conversation. Wasn't he just hearing this little demon praise the boy a moment ago? Why was Jin Baba suddenly acting like someone stepped on his tail with a heavy boot?
Li Yuetian's brow furrowed in thought. Was Jing Shu trying to threaten Jin Baba through this daring move? She hadn't directly offended Jin Tianci or the formidable Madam Jin yet, but going after Jin Baba like this was basically the same thing as attacking the family.
Still, if she wanted her stolen supplies back, she would have to offend someone in this house anyway. The fact that she had only upset two people so far was already beyond his expectation. What Li Yuetian didn't expect was that Jing Shu would open her lion's mouth this wide.
Young and lacking experience in these matters, Jin Baba started pacing anxiously across the redwood floor. He glared down at Jing Shu and barked, "What is in it for you doing this? You think pulling this stunt will get your stuff back? Wrong! Even if you exaggerate things to my father, the worst I will do is adjust the data to cover it up later. But you? You will still have to hand everything over, and you will get jack shit! At worst, I will just tell him the truth."
He wasn't wrong in his assessment. Jing Shu hadn't accused him of exploiting everyone when Jin Tianci fell ill, only said Jin Baba had collected five times more supplies and earned everyone's praise. Those supplies were supposedly destined for Wu City's public granary and for the relief of the people.
Now that Jin Tianci wanted to audit the accounts, even if the act became real, everything still had to go into the public granary—it had nothing to do with Jing Shu. With such a big loss of her own goods, what was the point of doing all this?
Having spent half his life rolling around in the complex bureaucracy of the city, Jun Jia sighed and shook his head. It was too late now. They had walked right into her open trap, but damn, the pie this girl painted for them was just too tempting to resist.
"Oh? You're really willing to come clean and watch the disappointment in your parents' eyes? You would give up all the supplies you have hoarded in your private storage? Even if you have already used some of it, you think your father won't empty the house to replace them, just to set things right? I do have a solution that works for both sides."
Jing Shu's triple strike of logic hit Jin Baba so hard he couldn't breathe properly for a moment. For the first time, a flicker of genuine fear appeared on that arrogant face. If his mother found out about his greed, it wouldn't be the end of the world—but if his father found out, those supplies would be gone in an instant, and he would even have to repay every bit he had already used. Jin Baba glared at Jing Shu, fear and hatred mixing in his dark eyes, but he couldn't bring himself to lash out.
Jun Jia, dressed in his usual sleek suit, wiped the beads of sweat off his forehead and forced a small smile. "President Jing, if you have something to say, please, say it directly to us."
This was typical official speech. He was always circling around the point instead of just begging for mercy outright.
Jing Shu smiled lightly and stepped forward on the rug. "First, I want all my supplies returned intact to me. For anything that's been used or lost, I want triple compensation in kind."
Jun Jia nodded quickly. "Of course, that's no problem at all."
Jin Baba gritted his teeth so hard his jaw began to ache. "Fine, wait until this blows over. Let's see how I deal with you later, you little vixen. Daring to take meat right out of my mouth, you must be tired of living."
Jing Shu ignored the murderous look on his face and continued, remaining calm and composed. "Second—"
Her voice echoed slightly in the spacious hall, but that didn't stop Li Yuetian from swallowing nervously every few seconds as he watched. He hadn't expected her goal to be just reclaiming her stuff—she was gutting both Jin Baba and Jun Jia at once, slicing each of them right where it hurt most, yet somehow keeping them from snapping entirely.
Jun Jia's face flushed a bright red, while Jin Baba's fury simmered behind his clenched teeth. After weighing the pros and cons of the situation, he caved again. Even Zhou Bapi, who had been watching from the sidelines with interest, looked like he had suddenly seen the light. "So she wasn't here to treat Lao Jin at all?"
"Ahem, that's all. Don't forget to take me to the armory later so I can pick out some weapons for myself. If we're putting on a show for your father, we might as well do it right," Jing Shu said casually.
Li Yuetian glanced at Jin Baba, half-worried the guy might pass out from pure rage right there on the spot.
Meanwhile, Jin Tianci, looking frail and old, slowly crawled back onto his bed after returning. Jun Jia presented the latest report with trembling hands, forcing out a bitter smile for his brother-in-law. "Brother-in-law, these are the red nematode patties worth four million virtual coins that Jin Baba collected yesterday from Captain Li Yuetian's second squad, along with other materials worth another million. The red nematode patties have been logged into the Xishan Reserve, and the rest are in the public granary."
Jin Baba lowered his head toward the floor, clenching his fists tight at his sides. Those one million coins' worth of goods he had taken from Li Yuetian hadn't even had time to warm his hands before he had to turn them in officially. Worst of all, to compensate that vicious woman, he now had to exchange the red nematode patties at a low rate for other, more valuable supplies of equal worth from his own stash.
In short, that damn woman didn't spend a single coin, yet she walked away with credit for contributing four million in supplies—and got even better materials in return for her trouble. He was the one who had taken the loss, yet he couldn't say a single word. He had given everything and got nothing, while she had gotten everything without lifting a finger. And still, he couldn't refuse the deal, because refusing meant losing everything to his father's scrutiny.
"Li Yuetian's commendation report is ready for submission and approval," Jun Jia continued weakly, his voice thin. "And his squad won't need to contribute supplies or raise sponsorships for the next four months. As for the commendation ceremony..."
That, of course, couldn't happen in the city. If word got out, everyone Jin Baba had cheated would riot against them, and the fallout would be disastrous for the family.
Li Yuetian kept his head down, looking at his boots and trying so hard not to laugh that his stomach actually hurt. The supplies he had turned in yesterday were already meant for the warehouse. Sure, Jin Baba had skimmed off extras meant for next month, but now he had ended up covering four months' worth of quotas in advance.
Basically, Jin Baba had just sponsored him for four months, donated four million worth of food to the city granary, and Li Yuetian got the merit credit for it. The man's next promotion was practically guaranteed by this audit. He looked at Jin Baba with genuine sympathy in his eyes. "Talk about roles flipping in an instant."
"Coincidentally, the red nematode patties worth four million were provided by President Jing," Jun Jia said, forcing another bitter smile. "Of course, we used fair trade terms and met all her conditions in exchange for these valuable supplies. She just told me, though, that she doesn't want her name on any public commendation, worried it might draw unwanted hate from others."
As long as it was in the official records, it was real and traceable for the administration. Every department reconciled their accounts monthly, and no one dared fake the numbers—not even Jun Jia had that kind of authority. At most, he could only 'delay the entry' for a short time.
Earlier, he had patched the paperwork before the supplies officially went in, and since there really had been a collection mission yesterday, the total of five million now matched up perfectly. Since Jing Shu's red nematode patties had always been stored in the Xishan Reserve, it was just a matter of transferring the numbers. If Jun Jia had tried to fill the books with Jin Baba's private stash, it would have been exposed instantly. Jing Shu had caught that thirty-minute gap perfectly, knowing Jun Jia couldn't finish the adjustment in time. And when that happened, everything would move according to her plan.