Chapter 116: Reforming the Household

Lia woke up in her own room.

The sunlight filtered through the window, spilling across the clean and tidy wooden floor.

Everything in the room had been replaced with new items: expensive carpets, soft bedding, and a lingering, faint scent of incense in the air.

This had been meticulously prepared by Rowden to welcome her—or rather, to welcome a puppet he was about to control.

But unfortunately for him, she was now the true master here.

She got up, dressed herself, and opened the door.

Two maids stood waiting in the hallway with their hands at their sides; the moment they saw Lia emerge, their bodies stiffened, and they hurriedly lowered their heads, even softening their breathing.

“Good morning, Eldest Miss.”

Lia lowered her head, said nothing more, and walked straight toward the dining room.

The entire atmosphere of the Farrien estate had changed.

The bustle and hypocritical warmth of yesterday had vanished, replaced by a cautious silence.

The servants walked on their tiptoes, their eyes darting away, not daring to meet her gaze.

They had all seen their master’s despondent state yesterday, and they had seen the noble Master Mathis’s respectful attitude toward this young lady.

No one was a fool.

The breakfast was simple but prepared to the highest standards.

Lia sat alone at the head of the dining table, eating quietly.

Rowden did not appear, and she did not ask.

After finishing her breakfast, she wiped the corners of her mouth and instructed the butler standing nearby: “Bring all of the family’s account books from recent years to the study.”

A flash of hesitation crossed the butler’s face, but he still bowed and complied: “Yes, Eldest Miss.”

Lia arrived at the study.

This place had once been where her father handled business, later occupied by Rowden.

The desk was made of high-quality dark sunken wood, and the chair was upholstered in soft magical beast leather.

She sat down behind the desk and lightly ran her fingers across the surface; the cold touch refreshed her spirit.

Before long, the butler entered followed by two servants, carrying a pile of heavy account books.

The books were stacked haphazardly in front of Lia’s desk in a high pile, emitting a scent of old paper mixed with dust.

“Eldest Miss, they are all here,” the butler said in a low voice.

Lia’s gaze swept over the pile of books.

The colors of the covers varied in depth, and some corners were worn beyond recognition.

She casually picked up the top one and flipped it open.

The pages were yellowed, the handwriting was scrawled, and the ink varied in shade.

After reading a few lines, her brow furrowed.

“March 5th, paid three gold coins to the stonemason shop in the west of the city for warehouse wall repairs.”

“March 8th, received seventeen gold coins from the southern caravan for spice purchases.”

“March 9th, Master purchased a new set of formal wear, five gold coins.”

“March 12th, paid one gold coin for this month’s management fee to the pier guards.”

Lia flipped through a few more pages; the situation was largely the same.

There was no discernible pattern here.

Income and expenses were mixed together, and the family’s business costs were recorded in the same place as Rowden’s personal expenditures.

There was no connection between the entries; it was just a chronological log of cash flow.

She set that book down and picked up another.

The situation was even worse.

Some entries had annotations written in a different colored ink, while others were simply crossed out with a new number scribbled beside them without any explanation.

Lia flipped through them one by one.

Her expression grew increasingly grim.

These weren’t accounts.

This was a pile of disorganized numerical trash.

She even found records of purchasing high-end wine and jewelry in a ledger marked “Magical Potion Material Procurement.”

“Butler,” Lia’s voice was cold.

“I am here, Eldest Miss,” the butler said, stepping forward and lowering his head even further.

“Have these accounts always been kept this way?”

“In response to the Eldest Miss, ever since the Master took over, they have been managed by the accountant he appointed; it has always been like this.”

Lia looked at the pile of waste paper, and the slight sense of satisfaction from reclaiming her family estate vanished.

What she was facing now was a mess.

A mess hollowed out by parasites, leaving only a magnificent shell.

From these accounts, she couldn’t tell at all whether the Farrien family’s current businesses were profitable or losing money, where the funds were flowing, which ventures were making money, and which were losing it.

This was how Rowden had “managed” the family legacy left by her father over the past few years.

“Go and call that accountant here.”

“The accountant… he submitted his resignation in the middle of the night yesterday, saying he was too exhausted after organizing the books all day, and has already taken leave and departed.”

The butler answered cautiously.

Lia’s eyes grew sharp.

He certainly fled quickly.

She closed the account book, stood up, and paced in the study.

The business models of this world were still in a relatively primitive stage.

Disorganized accounting methods were a common phenomenon.

But Rowden’s books were clearly rotten far beyond the average standard.

There were surely many unsavory things hidden within.

“Butler.”

“Please give your orders, Eldest Miss.”

“Go to the best stationery shop in the city and purchase a brand-new blank account book. Then go to the best printing workshop in the city and have them print a batch of forms according to my requirements.”

Lia returned to the desk, spread out a sheet of white paper, and used the writing tools she had brought to quickly sketch several form templates.

One sheet for recording daily income, and one for daily expenditures.

Columns for date, item, handling person, and amount were clearly demarcated.

Then she designed another set of general ledgers.

She categorized all income and expenses under different headings such as “Raw Material Costs,” “Labor Costs,” “Transportation Costs,” “Shop Rent,” “Taxes,” and “Sales Revenue.”

This was merely the most basic accounting reform, but in this world, it was a subversive innovation.

The butler looked at those forms with their distinct lines and clear structures, his eyes filled with blank confusion.

He didn’t understand the use of these grids at all, but he could feel the rigor and order contained within them.

“Print a thousand copies based on this template first.”

Lia handed the drawings to him.

“Additionally, go and post a notice to hire all literate and mathematically capable accountants in the city at a high salary. I will interview them personally.”

“Yes, Eldest Miss,” the butler took the order and hurried away with the drawings.

Silence returned to the study.

Lia looked at the pile of old account books, her gaze icy.

She didn’t expect to uncover anything from them; Rowden and that accountant must have already destroyed all the key evidence.

But it didn’t matter.

From today on, the flow of every copper coin in the Farrien family would be under her control.

Following this, Lia devoted herself entirely to reorganizing the family businesses.

She personally interviewed all the accountants who came to apply, selecting several with quick minds and solid arithmetic skills.

She gathered these people in the study and personally taught them how to use the new account books and forms.

Everyone was familiar with basic bookkeeping—after all, they had been doing related work for many years.

But Lia’s new method was more precise and detailed than anything they had used before.

These methods surpassed their understanding in many ways.

Lia provided them with a large number of arithmetic problems to strengthen their skills.

Initially, everyone struggled to adapt.

They were used to recording accounts in descriptive language, but now they had to dismantle every transaction into cold numbers and fill them into different boxes.

“Eldest Miss, why must we divide it so finely? Income is income, and expenditure is expenditure; why bother separating costs and expenses?” an older accountant asked in confusion.

Lia looked at him and picked up a summary sheet.

“Look, through this sheet, we can clearly see how much money was spent on the material ‘Dragon’s Saliva Grass’ and how much revenue was gained from the ‘Dragon’s Saliva Grass’ potion.

By comparing the two, we can know whether this business is making a profit or a loss.”

“We can also see how much the transportation team’s expenses account for in the total expenditure. If this ratio is too high, we need to consider whether we should form our own caravan or find cheaper transportation channels.”

Under her explanation, the confusion on the accountants’ faces gradually faded, replaced by shock and sudden realization.

“So, accounts can be used this way.”

It was no longer just a simple record; it was a tool that could be analyzed and used to guide operations.

Just as Lia was buried in establishing the new order, an unexpected visitor interrupted her work.

Master Mathis had arrived.

Wearing a low-profile deep blue long coat, he stood respectfully at the door of the study, not daring to enter uninvited.

“Your Excellency Lia, I apologize for the intrusion.”

“Mr. Mathis, please come in.”

Lia set down her pen. “Is something the matter?”

Mathis entered the study; his gaze swept over the busy accountants and the brand-new account books on the desk, a hint of amazement flashing in his eyes.

Though he didn’t understand business, he could sense that some profound transformation was taking place here.

“Your Excellency, I have come to report something to you.”

Mathis lowered his voice. “The news of your arrival in Leo City has leaked out somehow. This morning, the butler from the City Lord’s manor found me.”

“The City Lord?” Lia’s movements paused.

“Yes. The City Lord of Leo City, Count Valerius.”

Mathis’s expression was somewhat serious.

“He confirmed your identity through me, as well as… your relationship with Master Klein.”

“What does he want?”

“He hopes to visit you personally at an appropriate time to pay his respects.”