Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 155: All Within Calculations_1

Chapter 155: Chapter 155: All Within Calculations_1

Lady Li looked at the key in her hand with tears that wouldn’t come. She had finally realized that her mother-in-law had schemed this long in advance, "Mother, I can’t take this. There is no mother-in-law in the village who lets her daughter-in-law manage the grain. Mother, you can’t let your daughter-in-law be criticized behind her back."

Zhulan looked at Lady Li, full of the will to survive, truly not lacking in intelligence – it was a pity it wasn’t enough, "With your Aunt Zheng as a role model, Mother is simply following her lead. You won’t face criticism, but instead, the younger daughters-in-law in the village will envy you. Besides, the daily tasks still require your consideration before I make the final decisions, so it’s not a complete transfer of power, and you don’t need to worry."

She hoped to counteract some of the bad reputation of the original vicious mother-in-law. This time she was sure to clear her name completely!

Lady Li, "...."

How did Aunt Zheng become the common enemy of the village mothers-in-law? Didn’t mother have any clue? It was she who started the grudge in the first place! Lady Li couldn’t help shivering, her mother had trapped Aunt Zheng and could still use her shamelessly. It would be best to humbly hold on to the keys.

Zhulan watched Lady Li leave dejectedly to cook, feeling not the slightest ping of conscience. She was long tired of managing a whole household. At first, she had not integrated well and hadn’t fully grasped control over the Zhou family, but now things were different. After teaming up in mixed doubles with Zhou Shuren, she had the Zhou family completely in her grip.

She was finally able to delegate her powers, and in the future, she would only need to control the big picture and manage the Silver Coin, which brought back a sense of modern management.

Upon seeing her sister-in-law manipulated by Mother to the bone, Zhao’s heart lifted with anxiety. Her intuition told her that she wouldn’t be getting back the tasks in her hands, either. She couldn’t help swallowing spit; anxiety turned her eyes red, but remembering the eunuch’s stern face, she held back the tears, "Mother, here are the account books I’ve kept track of."

Zhulan took them and flipped through. Zhulan had never instructed Zhao on how to do accounting. The accounts were clear, and the handwriting was good – the character of the person shown through her writing. Zhao was not only intelligent but also had a stubborn nature. The second son had struck it lucky. She calculated the Silver Coin and found no errors, "Have you studied accounting?"

Zhao shook her head, "I don’t know about accounting. The head of the household used the Silver Coin given by my father to buy gifts and also took a piece of cloth to learn from Uncle Shujie."

Zhulan, since returning to the Zhou clan, had memorized everyone listed in the family genealogy and thoroughly inquired about what each person had done previously and what they currently do. Hearing this, she knew who Shujie was. Shujie belonged to the same generation as Shuren, but since Shuren was born later, Shujie was twenty years his senior. Shujie had previously worked as an apprentice and studied accounting under a Shopkeeper before the chaos of war drove him back to Zhou Village.

The ability to keep accounts was a valued skill within the Zhou clan, holding a lot of prestige. Many younger generations wanted to learn, but unfortunately, apart from their own family, lessons weren’t offered to outsiders. Now, they had taught Chang Yi, which was when Zhou Shuren had not yet passed the Scholar examination. It seemed everyone had high hopes for Zhou Shuren.

Zhulan hadn’t planned to teach Zhao modern accounting methods. She always remembered the character set for the original owner, being literate could be claimed as self-taught, but introducing new accounting methods was absolutely out of question, "You’ve remembered it well. Later I’ll give you the money for tipping the Government Official and for the banquet expenses. From now on, you’ll manage the household expenses. Let the second son handle the purchasing; you just need to show me the accounts at the end of the month."

Zhao, having been prepared, took over the role naturally, "I will definitely keep the accounts well and not let you down, Mother."

Lady Li walked in just in time to hear this and was filled with an intense sense of crisis. The second son’s wife was cunning; wasn’t this making her appear reluctant? Even though she actually was reluctant, she feared Mother’s retribution, "Mother, I will also manage the food well and absolutely not cause you any worry."

Zhulan was very satisfied, especially with Zhao, who knew how to adapt. The Silver Coin she had left behind was not a lot, and she had not left any for tipping and banquet expenses, which served as a test for Zhao. Zhao had handled it well, moving her own Silver Coin, and also noted clearly in the ledger how much was compensated.

After about a quarter of an hour, not only were the noodles served, Lady Li also fried two plates of eggs and cut up all the leftover sausages, placing them on the table with an ingratiating look towards Mother. She couldn’t let the wife of the second son outshine her. Seeing Mother nod, she felt even happier than if she had eaten the meat herself, lifting her chin and glancing at Zhao – she was still the most important daughter-in-law in Mother’s heart.

Zhao, "....."

She thought her sister-in-law would finally use her brain and was fully ready for a crisis. Yet, her sister-in-law was still very much the same!