After hearing Xi Qingyue’s words, Lu Jinshuang couldn’t help lightly tapping her on the forehead with one finger. “No one left to do the work? That’s because you killed them too ruthlessly. It would’ve been better to leave a few alive for the time being.”
Xi Qingyue shook her head. “No, that won’t do. I hold grudges more than anyone. They tried to kill me, so I can’t let them live even one day longer. I certainly won’t spare them just because I might have some use for them first. At worst, we’ll take care of the other matters slowly. As long as I’m here, the city won’t fall into chaos.”
Xi Weilan, nestled in Lu Jinshuang’s arms, nodded repeatedly. “Mmhmm, Sister Jinshuang, Big Sis is right. They ambushed us with so many people. If we hadn’t been strong enough, they could have claimed that even our Commandery Princess status was fake and killed us.”
A layer of frost spread across Lu Jinshuang’s face. She hadn’t expected the local officials here to be so brazen—this was downright outrageous.
At the thought of it, she sighed. “If every local official in Great Jing is like this, then the kingdom is not far from destruction. I wonder if it can still be saved.”
Xi Qingyue calmly spoke from the side. “Don’t worry. If the kingdom is destroyed, we can just change the name of the country. I’ll definitely support Big Sister Lu in taking the throne. The realm will still belong to your Lu family.”
Her casual tone made Lu Jinshuang roll her eyes. “Do you think changing a country’s name is like changing clothes? You only know how to kill people. Ninth Sister would surely work herself to death, and I’d have to suffer alongside her.”
Xi Qingyue beamed brightly, then rose into the air until she was a head taller than Lu Jinshuang.
Putting on the air of a big boss, she patted Lu Jinshuang on the head. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect all of you. I’ll take care of the killing. I’ll kill those officials until they’re terrified of doing evil, until they honestly get to work. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”
Lu Jinshuang looked at the girl hovering beside her, a full head taller than herself, and felt utterly speechless.
She might speak with great authority, but no matter how high she flew, she was still only eight years old. No matter how powerful she was, she couldn’t grow that quickly. In front of Lu Jinshuang, she was still just a child.
Thinking of this, the corners of Lu Jinshuang’s lips curved upward, and her mood improved considerably.
Mu Jin watched from the side, struggling not to laugh. She couldn’t understand why the Xi sisters were so obsessed with height. It was perfectly normal for children not to grow tall for a while.
In Lu Jinshuang’s arms, Xi Weilan’s eyes darted around. She wrapped her left arm around Lu Jinshuang’s neck and tugged on Xi Qingyue’s sleeve with her right hand, her eyes shining brightly.
“Big Sis, when will I become as powerful as you?”
Xi Qingyue smiled and patted her head. “Lan’er, you’ll definitely become very powerful one day too.”
Then she turned to Lu Jinshuang. “Sister Jinshuang, let’s take a walk around the streets and look for a good residence.”
Lu Jinshuang smiled and shook her head. “There’s no need to look. Every city has some fine residences left vacant for official use. Since you’re managing this fief, you naturally have the authority to decide what to do with them. Just go over and choose one.”
She knew the workings of the local government well. The residences kept in reserve by the authorities were all excellent properties, most of them left vacant for the reception of honored guests. They were usually unused. As the master of the fief, Xi Qingyue could live in one of them—or even sell it, if she wished.
She gave Dongxue a glance. Dongxue immediately left, and before long she returned with a thick stack of property deeds.
“Princess, Commandery Princess, these are the deeds to the vacant residences in Xin’an City. They weren’t seized from anyone and are completely legitimate. There are several adjoining properties on the main street, though they aren’t very large. There are also several spacious estates in the outskirts of the capital with beautiful surroundings, but they’re rather far away. Which would you like to see first?”
Xi Qingyue took the deeds and examined the locations. Then she smiled with satisfaction. “Let’s start with the ones on the main street. If they’re too small, we can connect two of them and turn them into one. We can look at the estates outside the city later and stay there occasionally.”
Afterward, the Xi sisters and Lu Jinshuang left the county office. Dongxue and Mu Jin followed behind them, along with more than a dozen guards from the Commandery Princess’s residence.
Qi Xin watched them leave and scratched his head. “Did the Princess forget about us? She didn’t mention our situation to the Commandery Princess.”
Beside him, Dazhuang thumped his chest with a confident look. “Big Brother, don’t worry. The county office is short-handed right now. As long as we work honestly, we’ll definitely be allowed to stay. Once the Princess finishes with everything, she’ll remember us. Even if she doesn’t, it’s fine—as long as they don’t drive us away.”
Qi Xin chuckled. “You’re right. Then we’d better work harder and get more done.”
Outside the county office, Xi Qingyue and the others had just stepped out when they saw a crowd of townspeople gathered at the entrance.
The moment the townspeople saw them, they all knelt and bowed gratefully.
“Your Highness, Princess! Commandery Princess! Thank you for standing up for us!”
The kneeling crowd was incredibly excited. They had all seen the notices posted outside the county office and knew that, besides the Xi sisters, a Seventh Princess had also arrived. Once they learned that they would be able to reclaim their money in three days, they practically regarded the three women as living Bodhisattvas of Xin’an City.
As for the corpses being carried out of the county office, they conveniently ignored those.
Holding Xi Weilan in her arms, Lu Jinshuang smiled and raised a hand toward the crowd. “Rise, everyone. From now on, everything in Xin’an City will be managed by the two Commandery Princesses. With them here, you’ll be able to live good lives.”
Xi Qingyue also smiled and nodded at the crowd. “That’s right. As Sister Jinshuang said, with me here, you don’t need to worry about being bullied at will anymore. Come to the county office in three days and line up to collect your money. Everything the authorities overcharged you before will be returned in full.
“If you have any grievances, you may come forward and report them starting tomorrow. No matter who the other party is, you need not be afraid. This Commandery Princess will stand behind you.
“Also, I plan to hire cooks for my residence. Men and women of any age are welcome, and there are no restrictions on the type of food. Anyone interested may come and register. Seven days from now, bring the food you’ve prepared. As long as it tastes good, you can stay.”
The first part of her announcement filled the townspeople with gratitude. The latter part left many of them pleasantly surprised.
Someone couldn’t help asking, “Commandery Princess, can we really make anything we want?”
Xi Qingyue nodded. “Yes. As long as it tastes good, anything is acceptable. Even if you make sugar figurines, that’s fine—as long as you do it well.”
At those words, many people grew eager to try. The eyes of those who usually sold snacks from street stalls lit up.
There were no restrictions on the type of food, so even they could apply. If they joined the Commandery Princess’s household, they would receive a steady income and no longer have to worry about being bullied. An opportunity this good was almost impossible to find.
Lu Jinshuang pursed her lips from the side, thinking to herself, What a glutton. She never forgets about food wherever she goes. She probably hasn’t even finished eating all the food she stockpiled before.
Seeing how excited everyone was, Xi Qingyue waved her hand. “All right, everyone, disperse for now. Spread the word about this. I’ll need even more people in the future, so everyone will have a chance.”
She did not directly state how much they would be paid each month. In any case, she would never treat her own people unfairly.
As they walked away, Lu Jinshuang asked, “Yue, how many cooks are you planning to hire?”
Xi Qingyue smiled and shook her head. “I don’t know, Sister Jinshuang. I haven’t decided yet. Anyway, as long as the food tastes good, that’s all that matters. Besides, I’m not short of money.”
She hadn’t touched the Xin’an County Office’s public coffers. Besides returning the people’s money, she had also arranged for porridge to be distributed outside the city—both of which had cost no small sum. Now that this was her own territory, she couldn’t exactly empty the county office’s treasury. She had only confiscated the county magistrate’s private coffers.
Once she dealt with the troubles at hand, she could use the goods in her space to make money. Even if she hired a hundred cooks, she could still afford to support them all.
Just then, Lu Jinshuang suddenly remembered Qi Xin and the others.
She reminded Xi Qingyue, “By the way, Yue, Duke Anguo and the others should be arriving soon.”
