Keys and Promissory Notes

An Ziran returned to the An Family's main residence. He had only been sitting in the study for a short while when Steward Su came looking for him.

The moment he entered, he saw Steward Su's worry-lined face. "Young Master, are you really going to do this?"

He had already heard about what had happened at the grain shop that morning. He had served by An Changfu's side for more than twenty years and knew the An Family's affairs better than anyone. The An Family's promissory notes had been accumulating for over a decade. Nearly ninety percent of Anyuan County's farmers had borrowed grain or silver from the An Family. Altogether, the debts were no small sum. If they were simply given up all at once, the An Family would suffer a tremendous loss.

"Steward, I've already made my decision." An Ziran set down the ledger in his hand.

"But... if the late master knew in the afterlife... And they're only a group of rioters. There's really no need for you to..." Steward Su hesitated. He knew how much the late master valued those promissory notes. With them, the An Family had a firm grip on Anyuan County's farmers, who could bring the family even greater wealth.

An Ziran raised a hand to stop him. He understood what the steward meant. "Even without them, I would have decided to do this long ago. You needn't say any more." The moment he had seen the An Family's disastrous accounts, he had known this had to be done.

Which would last longer: a ruthless merchant hated by the people, or one supported and praised by them?

Without question, the latter!

An Ziran came from the twenty-first century. He understood this perfectly well. Besides, there were countless ways to create wealth. Now that the An Family had fallen into his hands, there was no need to continue down An Changfu's old path, nor would he allow it.

On the contrary, he felt that An Changfu ought to be grateful he had died early. Otherwise, his eventual fate would certainly not have been pleasant. Da Ya's national conditions already made that clear. The An Family had to change.

"Steward, bring out all of the An Family's promissory notes. I want to take stock of them. Also, call Su Zi over." An Ziran put away the ledger and gave his instructions. The promissory notes were stored in the basement.

Seeing how resolute he was, Steward Su knew he could not persuade him. Although he had tried to dissuade him just now, the young master's decision actually made him feel relieved. Over the years, he had seen far too many farmers persecuted by the late master, and his conscience had never been at ease. He had once tried to advise the late master, but after being warned, he had fallen silent.

Father and son quickly carried over a chest. It was large and heavy, requiring both of them to lift it.

Steward Su then said, "Young Master, the key to this chest was kept by the late master. Only he had it. This old servant does not know where he put it."

Before he had even finished speaking, he saw a key in An Ziran's hand.

The study had been An Changfu's forbidden ground. Even his several concubines had not been allowed inside, which showed that important items were generally hidden there. For An Ziran, finding a key in an ancient man's room was far too easy. He had found it while the steward was away moving the chest of promissory notes.

An Ziran unlocked the chest. Inside were stack after stack of promissory notes—an enormous quantity. The An Family truly deserved its reputation as a landlord. There were more notes than could be counted, enough to squander away for years on their own.

"Sort these promissory notes by category. Put the grain loans together and the silver loans in another pile. Also, I need..." Holding a stack of the black-and-white notes, An Ziran placed them on the desk as he instructed Steward Su and his son, who were standing dumbly to one side.

Only then did father and son come back to their senses.

There were too many promissory notes, and An Changfu had not bothered to organize them by category. It took them more than two hours to finish sorting them. However, beyond separating them, An Ziran also carefully examined the details of every note.

Before long, Steward Feng sent someone over to report on the situation.

After An Ziran had left the grain shop that morning, the rioters had eventually dispersed.

Although most of them did not believe his words, they were also afraid of ending up in prison. Despite the short man's constant fanning of the flames, they were ultimately just a group of timid farmers who could not afford to gamble.

The short man had no choice but to leave as well, unaware that he had already been marked. Steward Feng's men followed him all the way and finally confirmed that An Changde was the one behind it all.

An Changde had intended to stir up a major disturbance, only for An Ziran to ruin his plans. Three days, was it? Then he would wait and see whether An Ziran was truly willing to give up so many promissory notes. Those were all gleaming silver coins. He refused to believe anyone in the world could be so generous!