"They haven’t given them military pay?!" He Jinseng was shocked, he couldn’t believe the court would do such a thing: "How could it be possible? San Lang is a Company Commander, and he and the soldiers at the Military Office receive their silver every month."

Young Master Dou glanced at He Jinseng, pointed at him with the ledger in his hand, and said, "Tsk tsk, now I understand why you couldn’t pass the scholar exam, because you’re too foolish."

He Jinseng had taken the exam twice but failed to become a scholar, and already felt very upset. Hearing this, his eyes reddened with anger: "Young Master Dou, there’s no need to bring up my shortcomings, even if I’m wrong, you shouldn’t rub salt in my wounds, right?"

Young Master Dou: "Ha, what’s wrong with revealing your flaws? If you go to a foreign land and encounter rascals and spendthrifts, they might not just expose your flaws but even kill you."

He continued, "Company Commander Qin and the others do receive their military pay every month, but do you know how this pay comes about? It’s General Guo who finds ways to distribute it to the soldiers; the soldiers in other prefectures aren’t as fortunate."

"The court started cutting military pay for the southern prefectures as early as when the Northwest drought began, reducing it by thirty percent, then by half, and finally by seventy percent. In addition, various military supplies like horses, weapons, medicines, clothes, shoes, and food were halved; what used to be solid meals are now watered-down gruel."

"This is still considered good, as Jianghuai and Jiangnan are wealthy and can still feed the soldiers, but Central State is different. I have businesses in Central State and know that since last winter they haven’t been distributing silver; they’ve been eating two thin meals a day, and during this year’s New Year, they couldn’t even afford meat. It was the soldiers who went hunting on the mountain, only eating meat during the holiday."

Young Master Dou spoke of many things outside Jianghuai, frightening He Jinseng into silence and causing him to fall to the ground.

Gu Dexing helped him up, with a pale face, asking Young Master Dou: "Is the situation really that bad in Central State? How come even the soldiers in the barracks can’t get enough to eat? Does the Emperor and the officials not know this could lead to major incidents?"

If something were to happen in the prefecture barracks, it wouldn’t be a joke; Great Chu might thus...

Gu Dexing didn’t dare to think of those two words; he had been through famine, terrified of those days of running hungry without knowing where to settle.

Young Master Dou said, "The Emperor and officials are naturally aware, which is why they did not cut the military pay for regions like Northwest, Northeast, and Zhili. As for why the South was cut, it’s because the South is wealthy and has no major battles, so the Emperor and officials believe that as long as the southern soldiers don’t starve to death, it’s fine."

Central State is more miserable, being neither north nor south, originally shouldn’t have its military pay cut, but now the national treasury is empty. The Emperor and officials think that if something happens in Central State, soldiers from Jianghuai can be sent to suppress it, so they cut the pay in Central State, resulting in the current situation.

He Jinseng, being a scholar, couldn’t accept this, crying, "Why is it like this? It’s just a drought, years have passed, why hasn’t it recovered yet?"

"Ha, fool, who told you it’s all because of the drought?" Young Master Dou mocked, "Why don’t you join my people and deliver goods to foreign places once? After traveling through it once, you’ll know where the problem lies. But you’re so weak, you’d probably die on the road."

The reason Young Master Dou knew about the prefecture barracks is because the soldiers needed to make a living, they took his silver to help escort goods where mountain bandits lurked.

He Jinseng cried even more, asking, "Then will something happen to Jianghuai?"

Young Master Dou: "The two prefectures near Central State are already in chaos. It’s hard to say for Hushan Prefecture, but He’an Prefecture has a new bank. As long as farmers have silver to pay taxes, they should be able to survive this. Linhe Prefecture is near Jiangnan, a natural barrier that’s relatively wealthy, and with some noble families and local noble ones there, if they want to live, they won’t let Linhe Prefecture fall into chaos."

That’s why when they set up the new bank, they included Bagu County near He’an Prefecture. As long as there’s enough silver, they’ll build a new bank in Bagu County, lending money to the people there.

As long as Bagu County remains stable, He’an Prefecture can have a "natural danger city wall," keeping all turmoil outside of Bagu County.

But now silver is tight, and it’s unknown whether He’an Prefecture can hold, let alone Bagu County.

He Jinseng kept silent after hearing this, quietly shedding tears.

Gu Jin’an saw this and didn’t comfort him; if he wanted to pursue an official career, knowing these dangers in advance is good.

He said, "Stop crying, quickly calculate all the accounts and see how much silver needs to be set aside for the farmers in Tianfu County and the three nearby counties? Once you have it figured out, Young Master Dou can set the silver aside. After ensuring enough silver is reserved, the rest must be transported to the new bank in Luchang County."

"Transport it to the bank in Luchang County, not to the prefecture first?" He Jinseng wiped his tears and asked confusedly.

Young Master Dou laughed, "You fool, why transport it to the prefecture? Have the Old Masters in the prefecture died? With all that silver, are they waiting for us to save them? It’s time for them to bleed a little."

Dou Ou Bank is just a beacon and bait, used to attract other wealthy people; with just the Ouyang Family, the Gu Family, and my money, it’s impossible to complete this task even by exhausting everything.

After hearing this, He Jinseng realized he truly was a fool, and today he knew he was far behind Brother An and the others; outside of Tianfu County’s affairs, he knew nothing about the outside world.

He Jinseng stood up and bowed to Young Master Dou and the others, saying, "Jin Sheng thanks all brothers for their instruction."

Young Master Dou snorted, "Stop with these pretentious formalities, get to work!"

With that, he slammed a stack of name lists in front of He Jinseng: "This is the register of farmers borrowing silver from our bank. Calculate how much interest they’ll pay next month according to the register. Then prepare the receipts for collecting the interest; they’ll be needed next month, don’t slack off!"

They’re not only busy opening a new bank lately but also busy collecting interest for next month, truly so busy they barely have time to drink water.

"This, so much?" He Jinseng’s face turned pale, already exhausted after several days. Seeing this huge stack of name lists and thinking about the work to be done next, he felt like fainting.

"Exactly, so hurry up and get to work, don’t dawdle." Young Master Dou said, drinking a cup of soothing warm tea, then started getting busy as well.

"Young Master, Elder Xu’s grandson has arrived, says he’s looking for you for some matter." Dou Zhi stood at the door, telling Young Master Dou.

Young Master Dou heard this, glanced at Gu Dexing, and said: "Elder Xu? What’s that old fox here for? I’m busy, not seeing him."

Damn, of all times he could come, he chose to do so after they’ve almost stabilized Tianfu County.

Coming to take advantage of the situation, does he think Dou’s cheap benefits are so easy to get?