Xue Cong briefed the new servants on the rules of the clan, and they nodded while trying very hard to remember it all.

They had understood now why they were tested on their memories earlier.

After she was done briefing them on the rules, she glanced at them and said, "Who has skills in handiwork like sewing and cooking?"

Many of them raised their hands.

It was common for most that lived in the city to know sewing and cooking compared to those who had lived on farms and in poor areas.

"Does anyone have any preference for helping out in the kitchen?" Xue Cong decided that it would be best if she let them choose.

That was what Lin Xuan Qi had always done for them.

Letting them choose and suffer from the consequences, hoping that they would learn a lesson from it.

Most of the hands dropped and a few were left raised.

Being in the kitchen was oily and tough work after all.

"Great, all of you shall work under Auntie Sue over there. If you have anything that you are unsure of, ask her," Xue Cong said, and Auntie Sue gave her new helpers a nod with a smile.

It wasn't too long ago that Auntie Sue was in a similar situation to these new servants, and she was ready to make them settle in comfortably, like what Mei Jiao and the others did for her.

Her smile relieved the stress from the new servants, and they nodded back at her.

"For those skilled in sewing, you shall work with Mistress Yue Jie," Xue Cong introduced Yue Jie to the others that were skilled in sewing.

They glanced over at Yue Jie and gave her a nod too.

After that, the rest were allocated to work under Yue Xin to help in the other miscellaneous chores in the mansion.

There were ten new servants that would be working in the kitchen and fifteen new servants working under Yue Jie.

The other five would be working under Yue Xin.

When it was done, Xue Cong released the new servants so that the senior servants would bring them to the workers' quarters and have a tour around the mansion.

"It seems like I can retire soon," Lin Xuan Qi said to Xue Cong after everyone else left.

He was impressed with how Xue Cong handled everything.

"Master Lin, stop teasing me... I only copied what you did," Xue Cong shook her head and said.

Lin Xuan Qi wanted to tease her further, but a guard had entered the main hall.

"Master Lin, the Governor seeks to visit," the guard bowed and cupped his hands to him and said.

"Let him in," Lin Xuan Qi said, and he sat up straight, getting ready to meet the Governor.

Xue Cong glanced at the teapot and said, "I shall get them to make a pot of hot tea."

He nodded and she picked up the teapot and left.

When the Governor arrived and entered the main hall, he was all smiles.

"Good news for me, Governor?" Lin Xuan Qi asked, and he bowed to the Governor.

The Governor chuckled and said, "Good news indeed."

Lin Xuan Qi helped him to take a seat, and the Governor glanced over at his men after he sat down.

His men were carrying a few wooden chests with them.

They placed some of the wooden chests on the ground and opened them.

A golden glow immediately filled the main hall when they did so.

Inside the chests were taels of gold ingots and many other pieces of jewelry.

"How much are these?" Lin Xuan Qi couldn't help but ask.

The Governor shook his head and said, "I'm not sure how many.

"My men haven't counted them yet.

"The only thing I'm sure about is that I have funds for many things now.

"Magistrate Ho is more corrupted than I had imagined.

"And those rice merchants...."

Lin Xuan Qi saw the annoyance the Governor had with the rice merchants, and he had an idea.

"We can make things much worse for them," he said, and the Governor looked at him with anticipation.

"How?" The Governor was always eager to learn about ideas that he had.

"Now that Magistrate Ho is gone, the Rice Merchant Association needs someone to lead it.

"But this time, that someone would be what is called a committee."

"A committee?" The Governor frowned and asked.

"A committee would be a group of representatives from you, the Governor, the rice merchants and the rice suppliers.

"They will have to make decisions on the price and supplies of the rice based on their votes.

"And the votes can be weighted differently.

"For example, the representative sent by you might have more weight or things can't be approved if any of the committee members casts a rejected vote.

"There are many ways to go with it."

Lin Xuan Qi said, and the Governor went into deep thought.

There were indeed many ways to decide.

And his mind started to come up with all the pros and cons of each.

Lin Xuan Qi saw him pondering and stopped him.

That was not important right now.

"Governor, you can thrash out the details later, but for now, you can send your men to all the rice merchants to inform them of this committee.

"Let them know what's coming, and these rice merchants would be interested in getting onto the committee.

"And that's when you let them know that those who aid in suppressing the price of the rice would be preferred over those who didn't."

The last point was the main thing that needed to be done.

It served two purposes, one was to entice the rice merchants, and the other was for Hun Xiong Kun to be automatically qualified.

Lin Xuan Qi wasn't about to give up the chance to have a seat on the committee when it was formed.

When he finished speaking, the Governor stood up from his seat excitedly.

"Yes… yes… that would entice some of them to release their rice stock, and when they do, the price of rice will tumble as the others follow suit."

The Governor turned his head and glanced at Lin Xuan Qi with fresh eyes.

Lin Xuan Qi was even more capable than he had ever imagined.

He didn't want to stay any longer and said to Lin Xuan Qi, "I shall get it done now."

Seeing that he was leaving, Lin Xuan Qi added, "Expect an increase in the rice supplies of three hundred kilograms tomorrow."

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