Shouldn't Even the Greatest Debt Be Paid Off by Now?

In less than half an hour, the trees under the Old Scholar Tree's command had returned from the various stewards' residences.

Boxes of silver, ingots of gold, stacks of house deeds and land deeds, and bundles of silk and jewelry were carried into the courtyard.

Zhou Wanwan coldly looked at the head steward and said:

"The restaurant you manage occupies the most prime location and is always packed with customers. It should be making tens of thousands of taels of silver a year."

Yet you dare to write in the ledger that you have been losing money every year, actually owing several thousand taels.

But what about your family? You own over a dozen fine houses, seven or eight shops, hundreds of acres of fertile land, and your silver and gold combined are enough for an ordinary person to live on for several lifetimes!

She then glanced at the second steward, the third steward, the fourth steward...

Every household harbors astonishing private wealth: silver buried under the kang (heated brick bed), treasures hidden in the walls, gold hoarded in cellars, and deeds concealed in secret compartments.

Only the last minor official knelt there, neither servile nor arrogant.

The Old Scholar Tree said softly:

"This junior manager oversees the smallest restaurant, which earns a little over five thousand taels a year."

His personal assets amounted to only a little over one hundred taels of silver.

Zhou Wanwan looked at the junior manager and said, "Starting tomorrow, you will be the head manager."

The junior steward was clearly taken aback and said, "Head steward? Isn't that inappropriate?"

Zhou Wanwan smiled faintly and said, "If I say it's suitable, then it's suitable. As for the other managers, you can handle it."

Zhou Wanwan looked at Long Aotian, Long Aotian shook his head and said, "Their life contracts are now with you; you have the final say."

Zhou Wanwan thought for a moment and said, "Then let them go farm! Anyway, there's no way we can finish farming all the land here."

The head steward cried out, "Long Da, my mother has always been good to you. She even brought you food when you were little. You can't treat me like this!"

The second steward cried and begged for mercy, "Long Da, I'm your nephew! You can't treat me like this!"

The third steward also cried, "Long Da, I'm your own uncle! I treated you very well when you were little!"

The other managers also began to complain.

Long Aotian frowned, remaining silent.

Zhou Wanwan finally understood that these people were using these small favors to morally blackmail her.

Zhou Wanwan looked at Long Aotian and asked, "Long Aotian, are all these things true?"

Long Aotian nodded and said, "Yes, they were... alright with me when I was little."

Zhou Wanwan nodded and said, "You treated them well after that, right?"

Long Aotian was silent for a moment before saying, "It's indeed quite good, fifty taels of silver per year, plus food and clothing."

Zhou Wanwan chuckled:

"Shouldn't even the biggest debt be paid off by now?"

Long Aotian, I think you shouldn't carry too much of a burden in your heart. These people are just taking advantage of your soft heart to bully you!

Since you don't want to farm in the resort, fine, just kick them all out.

The managers were furious, but there was nothing they could do.

Soon they and their families were kicked out.

Long Aotian frowned and said, "Isn't this punishment a bit too harsh?"

Zhou Wanwan chuckled:

"Is it serious? I don't think so. People like that would be beaten to death outside. That's betraying their master."

Besides, this is a warning to others; if it's not severe, those people won't learn their lesson.

Next came the personnel reshuffle. Almost all the stewards in the inner and outer courtyards were dismissed. Of the more than 60 stewards, only 6 remained.

Long Aotian's lips twitched. "Master, isn't this going too far? Without those managers, our estate probably wouldn't be able to operate properly."

Zhou Wanwan sighed and said:

"It is because of these people that our village cannot function properly."

The vast majority of these managers were greedy, and some were even utterly wicked.

These five actually laid a hand on those girls, do you think they should be allowed to live?

Several girls knelt on the ground, weeping bitterly. "Thank you, Miss. If it weren't for you, we would have been violated by them, sob sob sob..."

Long Aotian was dumbfounded. These managers were quickly taken away and eaten by several large trees.

Zhou Wanwan was exhausted. The villa was indeed nice, but it was too troublesome to manage.

Fortunately, she had many subordinates, and soon a list was compiled. Zhou Wanwan promoted more than twenty managers.

Only then did she have time to check on the fields; the medicinal herbs Long Aotian planted were indeed of quite good quality.

However, the grain yield was pitifully low. Zhou Wanwan frowned and said:

"This whole area has been planted with sweet potatoes, and I've already had the sweet potato seedlings delivered."

Have someone plant these sweet potatoes.

Okay, I understand.

Zhou Wanwan looked at the villa and said, "I need to find some people to protect our villa, so that no one will come and cause trouble."

She had barely finished speaking when she heard someone outside say, "Master, those managers have brought a lot of people with them. What should we do?"

Zhou Wanwan frowned and asked, "Have those in charge rebelled?"

The steward below nodded and said, "They brought two experts from the Earth Ranking, one Earth Ranking 86th and the other Earth Ranking."

Long Aotian explained, "These two are a married couple, and I have no dealings with them. How did those in charge find them?"

When Zhou Wanwan walked outside the villa, she saw the couple standing at the door. The man was dressed in black, and the woman was dressed in white. They were none other than the Black and White Twin Fiends, who were feared throughout the martial arts world.

The woman said coldly, "Long Aotian, you have no backbone at all! You actually submit to a little girl."

The man sneered, "Since you don't want this wealth, then my wife and I won't be polite."

Long Aotian shouted, "How dare you! Are you trying to rob my manor?"

The head steward, standing not far away, sneered, "Useless trash. Since you can't be the head of the manor, then step down and hand over the position to someone more capable!"

"The Black and White Twin Fiends said that if you die, the restaurant will be ours."

"Long Aotian, you've finally met your end! Prepare to die!"

Long Aotian looked at them and said:

"You guys are really something. I was going to spare your lives, but you ended up letting the wolf into the house."

Then don't blame me for being ruthless.

Long Aotian was extremely fast, and soon all the managers were lying on the ground.

The Black and White Twin Fiends exchanged a glance and charged directly at Long Aotian.

For a moment, the field was filled with figures moving so fast that only afterimages remained, and ordinary people couldn't even tell who was who.

The two, one on the left and one on the right, coordinated perfectly, each move aimed at vital points.

Long Aotian was fighting the couple alone, but he soon found himself struggling to keep up, his movements gradually slowing down, and he was clearly at a disadvantage.

He had already taken several blows, his breathing was erratic, and beads of sweat were forming on his forehead. He could only barely defend himself and had no way to retaliate.

Anyone with eyes could see that if the fighting continued like this, Long Aotian would soon be unable to hold on.

The Black and White Twin Fiends sneered:

"Looks like this manor is ours now, Long Aotian, you're really stupid."

We've been looking for you for a long time. If it weren't for these managers, my husband and I really wouldn't have been able to find you!

Long Aotian lowered his head. Who told him to trust the wrong person?