Chapter 459: Chapter 459

Zhou Bapi was thoroughly perplexed. Hadn’t they just been praising this Demon Lord of Mayhem? Why was Gold Dominator reacting so strongly now? Li Yuetian contemplated whether Jing Shu was trying to threaten Gold Dominator with this method. Although she hadn’t directly offended Jin Tianci and Mrs. Jin, she had still managed to offend Gold Dominator.

But to retrieve the supplies, offending someone was inevitable. Offending two fewer people now was an unexpected outcome, but Li Yuetian had never imagined that Jing Shu would make such a huge demand.

Young and inexperienced, Gold Dominator paced back and forth anxiously, looking down at Jing Shu as he spoke,

"You... What good does this do you! Do you think you can get those things back by doing this? You’re wrong! Even if you exaggerate the situation, at most I’ll just alter the records to cover it up. And you all, having surrendered everything, will end up with nothing! If need be, I’ll just confess."

Indeed, Jing Shu hadn’t said that Gold Dominator had extorted everyone’s possessions by taking advantage of Jin Tianci’s critical illness. Instead, she claimed Gold Dominator had collected five times the supplies and received everyone’s praise, stating these supplies were for the Wu City granary and the civilians. Now, with Jin Tianci auditing the accounts, even if this charade were to be taken as truth, the items could only go to the granary. This had nothing to do with Jing Shu. Given she would suffer such a loss, what was the point of her doing this?

Having navigated bureaucratic circles for half his life, Jun Jia sighed and shook his head. They had fallen into her trap. It was an overt scheme they had no choice but to follow; this young woman’s promises were simply too enticing!

"Oh? Are you really willing to see the disappointed look in your parents’ eyes after you confess? Can you bear to return all the supplies you’ve gathered during this time? Even if you’ve used some of them, do you think your father wouldn’t empty the family coffers to compensate and return everything, setting you right back to square one? I, however, have a solution that benefits everyone." Jing Shu’s triple blow left Gold Dominator breathless. This update ıs available on 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✦𝘧𝙞𝙧𝙚✦𝕟𝕖𝕥

He finally felt a pang of fear, his once arrogant expression now tinged with dread. If his mother found out, it might not be a huge deal, but if his father learned of it, he would undoubtedly demand the return of everything immediately and insist on compensating for whatever had been used!

Dressed in a suit, Jun Jia wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, managed a strained smile, and said, "President Jing, please, tell us your thoughts directly." These Government officials certainly loved to beat around the bush, disguising pleas for mercy with such convoluted phrasing.

Jing Shu chuckled softly and took a step forward. "First, return all my supplies, untouched. If any have been used, you will compensate me at three times their value."

Jun Jia nodded. "Of course, that’s not a problem."

Gold Dominator clenched his teeth in hatred. Just you wait, he fumed internally. Once this is over, I’ll deal with you. Trying to snatch meat from my, your lord’s, mouth? You must be tired of living!

Jing Shu completely ignored the seething Gold Dominator and continued smoothly, "Second..."

The spacious hall created a slight echo, amplifying Jing Shu’s voice, but it couldn’t mask Li Yuetian’s occasional, shocked gulps. He hadn’t imagined Jing Shu’s goal was not merely to retrieve her supplies, but to also brazenly make exorbitant demands of both Gold Dominator and Jun Jia. She had struck their vulnerabilities with precision, yet skillfully managed the pressure, careful not to push them into complete desperation.

Jun Jia’s cheeks flushed as he held back his words, while Gold Dominator, after grudgingly weighing his interests, caved in once more. Even Zhou Bapi wore a look of profound realization. It seemed he was finally grasping something: Jing Shu hadn’t come to treat Old Jin’s illness at all, had she?

"COUGH. COUGH. That should be all for now. Don’t forget to take me to the armory later to choose weapons. After all, we need to make this charade convincing," Jing Shu said calmly.

Li Yuetian observed Gold Dominator’s expression, deeply afraid Jing Shu might provoke him into fainting. How would he explain that if it happened?

Like an old man in his twilight years, Jin Tianci slowly climbed back into bed. Jun Jia handed him the latest data and said, his smile bitter and his heart feeling as if it were dripping blood, "Brother-in-law, these are the items collected yesterday from Li Yuetian’s unit in the Second Team: red worm cake valued at four million Virtual Coins and other supplies valued at one million Virtual Coins. The red worm cake has been logged into the West Mountain Reserve, and the other supplies into the granary."

Gold Dominator lowered his head, his fists clenched. The supplies worth one million Virtual Coins had been procured from Li Yuetian, but before he could even properly register them as his own, they had to be transferred to the public warehouse. What was hardest to accept was that to cover for the red worm cake this malicious woman supposedly contributed—which he was effectively paying for from his own pocket—he now had to reimburse her with other supplies of equivalent value, likely at a disadvantageous conversion rate for him.

To put it bluntly, this malicious woman hadn’t spent a single Virtual Coin yet had earned the esteemed reputation of contributing four million. Plus, she was receiving supplies far more valuable and superior to the red worm cake. He had suffered a massive loss, like a mute tasting bitter herbs—all suffering, no words to express it. He had given everything and received nothing, while this woman had contributed nothing yet gained a hoard of benefits! Still, he couldn’t disagree. Agreeing meant he could at least keep some things; disagreeing meant he would...

"The official commendation for Li Yuetian has been drafted and is awaiting approval," Jun Jia continued. "Additionally, the Second Team will be exempt from soliciting sponsorships and submitting supplies for the next four months. As for public commendation for Jing Shu, well..."

Of course, there could be no public commendation for her, he thought. Otherwise, those previously extorted by Gold Dominator would undoubtedly explode in fury and rush forward with complaints. The consequences would likely be far worse.

Li Yuetian also lowered his head. He wanted to laugh but couldn’t; restraining himself was incredibly difficult. The supplies he’d turned in yesterday were destined for the public warehouse anyway. Gold Dominator had extorted far more than that—supplies originally meant for next month’s quota—but now, in return, his team wouldn’t have to secure sponsorships for the next four months.

In effect, Gold Dominator had personally sponsored his team for four months’ worth of supplies and had contributed four million Virtual Coins’ worth of grain to the granary. His ’over-fulfillment’ of the task would also be officially recognized, paving the way for a future promotion. Li Yuetian glanced at Gold Dominator with a touch of sympathy; their positions had completely flipped in an instant.

"Conveniently," Jun Jia elaborated, "the red worm cake, valued at four million Virtual Coins, was actually contributed by President Jing. Of course, we acquired these valuable red worm cakes from her through a perfectly fair exchange, which included providing weapons and satisfying all the conditions she stipulated. So, during the short time you were away, President Jing subtly indicated to me that if she were publicly commended, she’s worried it might attract some unwanted resentment..."

As long as this transaction was recorded in the readily verifiable central database, it signified the existence of tangible goods, which would be audited monthly. Otherwise, everyone in the relevant department would be held accountable. No one dared to make careless errors or fraudulent entries in these records. Jun Jia didn’t have enough authority to tamper with such things; at most, he could ’delay an item’s official entry into storage.’

Moments ago, they had quickly prepared a supplementary docket before officially logging the items. Combined with yesterday’s records of collecting and depositing supplies, the total ledger value of five million Virtual Coins and the timing of the deposit could now be made to match the warehouse’s official logs.

Since Jing Shu’s red worm cake had always been physically located in the West Mountain Reserve, transferring ownership was a simple matter of adjusting the accounts, much like a bank transaction. If Jun Jia had tried to use the supplies Gold Dominator had actually confiscated to create the new record and then log them, he would have certainly been exposed. Jing Shu had perfectly exploited this narrow half-hour window, correctly calculating that Jun Jia wouldn’t be able to complete all the necessary paperwork and official transfers for Gold Dominator’s actual haul within that timeframe. And at that critical juncture, wasn’t everything effectively dictated by her terms?