Settling Accounts and Setting a Schedule: The Black Shores Seaside Plan
Standing in front of the Changli Councilor's Mansion was Zhou Yu, who was already holding a thick list of expenses. It was the morning after the Moon-Chasing Festival, Jinzhou City still had the scent of osmanthus and fireworks.
He was wearing slippers, the same white tank top and floral shorts he was wearing today, but the booklet in his hand was neatly wrapped in a canvas bag, with a red paper with four large characters pasted on the corner.
Settlement for field operations.
The doorman, who reached out to block the door, glanced at his clothes and then at the booklet.
"Manager Zhou, um... the Councilor is having morning tea right now; the residence is not receiving guests today."
Zhou Yu solemnly shoved the booklet into the gatekeeper's hand.
"Go and inform Changli that if she doesn't see me today, the Jinzhou will immediately have another partner who is chronically behind on fieldwork fees. At that point, the collection, review, and public commendation processes will all start immediately."
The gatekeeper, who eventually turned around and entered the courtyard, touched the cover twice.
Holding a cup of hot tea, Changli emerged from the end of the corridor. She was dressed in light-colored casual clothes, and the jade ornaments in her hair made a soft rustling sound with each step, clearly indicating that she had just left the morning tea table.
"Coming here so early in the morning, Manager Zhou must have had a very good night's rest last night."
"Thanks to your office, I only slept for a total of three hours last night."
The person who turned to the first page and handed it to her was Zhou Yu, who had taken the booklet back.
"The psychological support expenses for Jinhsi after returning to the city, the emotional counseling for Lingyang before his performance, and the safety maintenance of the high platform at the Moon-Chasing Festival site. Oh, and the late-night snack the whole team had to celebrate completing the mission last night—all of these should be included in this fieldwork settlement."
The corners of Changli's lips, which had just been smiling, stopped at a very slight curve as she glanced down at the pages.
Even the booklet that appears a few pages later is about psychological counseling fees for auspicious beasts. At the top of the booklet is a subsidy for the high-altitude cold of Mt. Firmament, followed by emergency response fees for the Tacet Discord elephant tide and coordination fees for the activation of the old-style sluice gate, as well as temporary hot spring recuperation fees and hot pot delay compensation fees.
The fingertips lingered on the rim of the cup for a Changli before lifting the teacup.
"What exactly is this 'auspicious beast psychological counseling fee' all about?"
"Lingyang had a mental breakdown before the performance. He was so self-doubting that he almost slid off the high poles."
Pointing to the explanation behind it, he turned to the corresponding page number for Zhou Yu.
"I brought him milk tea and barbecue, plus on-site safety assistance to help him regain his confidence, and in the end, I managed to ensure the performance was a complete success. This kind of added emotional value service is what I charge for."
The smile in Changli's eyes froze slightly as he looked at the Changli of words.
"Manager Zhou's understanding of the concept of emotional value is truly extraordinary."
"The service recipients couldn't find any fault with it, the audience enjoyed it immensely, and the Festival Department didn't even issue an incident report. With these results, the fees naturally have to be calculated."
She casually turned the page again, and saw Zhou Yu handing her a pen.
"And these items also need to be checked: Dania's special calorie expenditure allowance for the Moon-Chasing Festival, Chisa's overtime pay for nighttime guard duty, Sigelica's equipment wear and tear depreciation, plus Linnai and Aimis's appearance fees for livening up the atmosphere."
Finally, I looked up and saw the last item, Changli.
"How could such trivial matters, like keeping the atmosphere lively, be counted as part of the mission to escort Jinhsi?"
"Jinhsi is back safely, Lingyang's performance wasn't ruined, and the public's spirits are incredibly high. There wasn't even a hint of panic throughout the entire Moon-Chasing Festival. All of this is the result of our team's hard work and sacrifice on site."
With a calm tone, as if he were about to be audited, came Zhou Yu as he capped his pen.
"Changli, you hired an all-around field team. Don't just focus on how many monsters we killed; you should also consider how much extra business value we created for Jinzhou."
The maidservant beside the corridor, who was bowing her head and serving tea, trembled slightly on her shoulder.
Walking to the stone table in the courtyard was Changli, who had closed the booklet. She placed her teacup on the table, which already contained the red seal and blank documents, and sighed as she reopened the thick stack of expense lists.
"The final total amount was seven times higher than the initial advance payment."
"The sluice gate crisis in the middle was an extra task added at the last minute, and then there's the forced collection of black talismans and the security for the Moon-Chasing Festival. The workload is off the charts, so it's only fair that the pay goes up."
"So, does that mean the hot spring resort on Mt. Firmament counts as part of your workload?"
"It's freezing cold up there, you lose energy so quickly. Soaking in a hot spring is a proper medical treatment for workplace injuries."
With a completely calm expression, he pointed to Zhou Yu in one of the columns.
"Ever since Qiu Yuan touched that black talisman on the inn's roof, the whole team has been on edge. With this mental pressure, how can we not need some repairs? This expense is supported by professional data provided by Chisaki."
Looking to the side of the courtyard gate, one sees Changli, and standing there is Qiu Yuan, who was obviously dragged there by Zhou Yu to be Qiu Yuan witness.
Then, without any expression, Qiu Yuan nodded and touched the Qiu Yuan of his sword.
"While soaking in the hot spring... I did see the black talisman, and I never dared to let my guard down."
Finally, Changli seal, shifting from Qiu Yuan back to the list.
The red seal pressed the entire page clearly. It was after a moment of silence that Chang Li picked up the seal, dipped it in Changli, and pressed it down, accompanied by a crisp, muffled sound on the document.
Huanglong paid for all the additional expenses incurred for this fieldwork.
What was pushed in front of Zhou Yu was a bank draft that Changli had taken out from his sleeve.
"The money exchange has everything ready. This amount is more than enough to buy half a street of shops in the south of the city. Manager Zhou, please take a close look."
The one whose expression finally relaxed was Zhou Yu, who held the bill up to the morning light to examine the markings and patterns.
"Changli is so straightforward in his dealings; this collaboration was a perfect experience."
"I'm actually hoping that before I take on the next job, Supervisor Zhou can show me a complete breakdown of all the charges."
"If everything had been clearly written down beforehand, would you have been able to sign it so readily?"
There was no answer; only silent observation as he Changli.
Peeking out from behind the door was Dania, carrying a huge box of osmanthus cakes that a maid had just brought. Her short pink hair was a little messy from the morning breeze, and half of her face was completely hidden by the wooden box.
"Sister Changli, this... this whole box is for me?"
Zhou Yu said you got cold on the mountain, so take these pastries back and enjoy them slowly.
Changli's tone softened considerably at this moment.
Dania, her face beaming with smiles, immediately hugged the wooden box even tighter.
"Thank you, Sister Changli! I'll definitely share it with everyone when I get back!"
The one who added the details earnestly was Dania, who, after speaking, looked down at the box lid and swallowed hard.
"Um... I'll eat two pieces first, and then I'll share the rest with them."
The one who lightly tapped the teacup with his fingertip was Changli, watching her satisfied smile. All the words he had prepared to say to Zhou Yu vanished without a trace.
"Okay, you can have two pieces first."
The one holding Dania's hand was Zhou Yu, who was stuffing the draft into his canvas bag.
"Did you hear that, you little glutton? The special allowance for dim sum has arrived in your account."
Dania, who was nodding and turning around forcefully, almost tripped over the wooden box. Zhou Yu pulled her back, and Sigelica, who was next to her, quickly stepped onto the stairs and steadily supported the bottom of the box.
"I mean, you two dared to rush forward with your eyes closed while carrying such a behemoth? If this pastry falls on the ground and gets dirty, are we supposed to pick it up, wash it with water, and then eat it?"
"It's unhygienic to drop it on the ground, let's walk slower."
It was Dania handed the box directly to Zhou Yu after careful consideration.
In the end, it was Sigelica who hugged the box to herself, staring at her free hands with a hint of helplessness.
"What are you looking at? Don't even think about eating much when you get back. Everyone's only getting one piece of food. Zhou Yu won't get a single piece. His responsibility is to settle my equipment maintenance fees!"
The group sat in a circle around a round table, which was a guest room in Clear Radiance Courtyard. Cut pastries and hot tea were laid out on the table. The huge sum of money approved by Changli had already been skillfully divided by Zhou Yu into equipment costs, bonuses, and the amount of paid annual leave to be paid.
Sigelica's eyes were gradually reddening as she stared intently at her personal terminal account balance.
"Waaah... I've endured these past six months, and finally I don't have to worry about those huge repair bills anymore!"
It was Linnai, who was standing next to her, who handed her a piece of osmanthus cake.
"Hurry up and have something sweet to calm your nerves. If your tears drip into the cup, Zhou Yu might just charge you a 'tea contamination fee'."
"Who would be as greedy as that heartless manager, thinking about money even when they're breathing?!"
Sigelica, who was muttering to herself but kept her hand tightly covered on the terminal screen, didn't even bother to eat the osmanthus cake.
The bells jingled softly as Chisa sat by the window counting winter supplies, while Chisaki on the other side had already prepared data charts for the upcoming schedule.
"There's still some paperwork to be done in Changli. I need to submit a field investigation report when I get back. This whole thing will take two days at most."
The one resting her chin on her hand, looking at Zhou Yu, was Linnai was still humming a tune.
"Now that the report is finished, are we just supposed to obediently go back to the Flamebearers' Academy and listen to the old man's sermons?"
The one who slammed the bank draft onto the table with an air of authority was Zhou Yu, who was helping Dania tear open the wrapping paper.
"What classes? I went through all that trouble to get this huge sum of money; now it's time to immediately activate the highest-level vacation plan for everyone!"
What he circled heavily in red pen was the southernmost blurry sea area on the map he had pulled out of his canvas bag and spread out on the table; the morning light illuminated the mountain ranges marked on it.
Chisaki, her fingertips resting on the edge of the sea, leaned closer to check the coordinates.
"There isn't even a proper flight path here. The only thing recorded in the archives is the name 'Black Shores,' and the surrounding area is full of undecipherable anomalous wavelengths."
The one who tapped the map with the red pen was Zhou Yu, who had already made his decision.
"Our next stop is the Black Shores."
Dania, who had hurriedly swallowed the pastry in her mouth, immediately stood up from her chair.
"The Black Shores sounds amazing. Do they have seafood hot pot with lots of shrimp paste there?"
"That place is surrounded by water, so seafood hot pot is definitely a basic perk served in large quantities."
The one who picked up the pen and wrote down the first line of dates was Zhou Yu, who spread out the new schedule.
"Everyone outside says the sea view in that lousy place is different from other places. This time, I'm taking our Dania to the end of the world to feel the sea breeze, consider it a vacation, and while we're at it, we'll dig out all the secrets about that guy Aleph One."
The one who knocked the osmanthus cake box off the table and slid halfway across it was Dania, who cheered and rushed over to hug his arm.
Sigelica's eyes twitched slowly as she looked at the bonus she had just warmed and then at the Black Shores on the map.
"Hey Zhou, are you crazy? I haven't even had a chance to enjoy this money, and you're already planning to drag us to some backwater to burn it all?"
The one who raised the pen to point at her was Zhou Yu, who had just finished marking the last item on the schedule.
"This is called accelerating positive asset flow, and while we're at it, we'll also treat you to a fully-funded, luxurious team-building trip to the beach."
Holding the box with a beaming smile, was a happy Dania. The colorful lights from the Moon-Chasing Festival still hung outside the window. The departure date was firmly set on the new schedule, while a line of green light appeared next to the Black Shores circle on the map, visible only to Zhou Yu.
[The abnormal frequency band has been locked.]
[Target association: Aleph One.]