Chapter 169 Compiling Textbooks And Thomas'S Situation
After finishing the first textbook planning meeting, Thomas returned to Sir Jeffrey's mansion with his students, and it was already dinner time.
With the Hunting Tournament approaching, opportunities to dine at Grandchester Castle were becoming scarce. However, Scott and Blaze were learning their table manners, and their conversation skills were improving, although they still needed some more training. They were no longer making awkward mistakes.
'It's because of Miss Sara's presence that these two are doing so well, isn't it?'
But Thomas couldn't say that about others. He was also trying too hard with the textbook compilation, and it was undeniable that he wanted to impress Sara.
After finishing dinner, they were relaxing in their room when the butler brought a package addressed to Thomas. The sender was Rebecca.
When Thomas opened the small wooden box, he found a bundle of papers and a letter inside.
----
Permission has been granted for the textbook's partial publication and illustration insertion.
However, regarding the range of publication in the textbook, it is desired to include up to the point necessary for learning the new accounting method (henceforth referred to as "double-entry bookkeeping").
Therefore, I would like to request your reference for the textbook compilation, and a textbook on double-entry bookkeeping will be offered to Mr. Thomas as well.
However, it's just a manuscript written by Ms. Sara, so the printing and binding will be done later.
Rebecca Orson
----
"Hmm. It seems this is the rumored new accounting textbook. Not only bureaucrats but also His Excellency the Marquis has praised it highly, but what exactly is this new accounting method?"
Thomas sat on the sofa by the window, driven by curiosity, and began to read the manuscript.
"What in the world... This could change history... This 'double-entry bookkeeping'..."
He couldn't help but let out a voice of shock in the small room. Until now, many bureaucrats, especially accountants, had struggled to calculate profits and losses from various documents, and had been troubled by inventory management and asset management. The high-level ability to perform such complicated calculations was what justified the existence of accountants.
But with this double-entry bookkeeping, even without exceptional accountants, it would be possible to grasp the assets and profits of a country or territory. What's needed is only the ability to read and write, simple calculation skills, and knowledge of double-entry bookkeeping. Of course, it's not something that can be learned overnight, but compared to the existing methods, it's incredibly simple and comprehensive.
In double-entry bookkeeping, all transactions are recorded without omissions, and assets are managed in astonishing detail. Faced with such strictness, even the most skilled accountants would flee barefoot. Although, as it's human work, it's not impossible to commit fraud.
"However, the fact that I'm already thinking of ways to exploit loopholes in accounting fraud shows that my old occupational disease still hasn't been cured."
Until he came to Grandchester as a tutor, Thomas had worked as a bureaucrat in the capital. Moreover, he was an accountant in the department responsible for national tax-related audits. It's equivalent to the tax authority's inspection department in Sarasa's world.
Sara didn't know, but when it came to accounting, he was even more of an expert than she was. When Jeffrey introduced Thomas, he initially intended to recommend him to the Grandchester domain's bureaucrats. However, upon learning that Thomas was an accountant in the auditing department, he feared that Thomas might leak information about the embezzlement case to his former colleagues. So, he decided to hire Thomas as his son's tutor and observe his character.
'Haha, she can create textbooks on reading, writing, and arithmetic necessary to cultivate talents who can master double-entry bookkeeping with her own hands. This is truly exhilarating. Miss Sara has indeed captivated me.'
Thomas put away the documents he had finished reading and gazed out the window. A considerable amount of time had passed, and the moon's position had shifted significantly. However, in his still excited state, he couldn't fall asleep immediately, so he resumed working on the textbook.
But then, Thomas paused and strongly felt that "the creation of this textbook absolutely requires the cooperation of Amelia the Pharmacist Girl and Cordelia."
To begin with, Thomas had no memories of being an "ordinary" child. As a result, he couldn't grasp the level of a textbook that an "ordinary" child could understand.
Thomas's grandfather was a viscount, and his second son father was a knight, so they were quite a wealthy family. Since he shared a room with his older brother, he often played quietly nearby even when his brother was receiving lessons from their tutor. Thomas wasn't a noisy or troublesome child, so neither his brother nor the tutor paid much attention to him.
That day, 3-year-old Thomas saw his brother struggling to answer a question from their tutor, so he decided to help his brother out and said, "Big brother, the answer is 5!" The tutor thought it was just a coincidence, but to be sure, asked, "Why do you think that?" Thomas then explained the entire thought process behind his answer, and the tutor was so impressed that they reported it to his parents.
After that, Thomas entered a prestigious academy at the age of 10 and obtained his graduation qualifications at 13. He then spent 2 years researching economics and became the youngest bureaucrat in the royal palace at 15.
However, his overly handsome face brought him misfortune, as multiple women began to have one-sided feelings for him.
A certain baron's daughter, who already had a fiancé, began to confess her feelings to Thomas and clung to him. Of course, Thomas clearly rejected her. But the woman was so in love with Thomas that she thought, "He's just pretending to be cold towards me because I have a fiancé," and even went so far as to break off her engagement.
Naturally, her fiancé became furious with Thomas. Thomas tried to explain that he had done nothing to tempt her, but the other party refused to listen. They even went so far as to challenge Thomas to a duel.
In the end, Thomas had to gather the baron's daughter, her family, her ex-fiancé, and his superior (who was acting as a mediator) to talk things over. However, it was a huge miscalculation on Thomas's part to involve his superior in the matter.
This person is excellent, but they're the type who can't read the atmosphere, and when Thomas told them the situation, they simply accepted it, thinking "That Baron lady is misunderstanding, isn't she?" And, as a mediator, they thought they should make the Baron lady recognize the facts as they are, so they gathered multiple women who had feelings for Thomas as "witnesses" to join the discussion.
When the Baron lady spoke passionately about her feelings, the women who had the same feelings as her towards Thomas showed no mercy. "Delusional girl. Poor Sir Thomas," they criticized the Baron lady, spreading rumors about her in high society and making her a laughingstock.
Not only the Baron lady, but also the Baron family, her ex-fiancé, and the mediator's superior were all affected. Moreover, there were many noble men in high society who didn't like the fact that Thomas was so popular, and they started rumors that "there's a noble family that's been shamed because of that guy."
As a result, Thomas's work was greatly hindered, and he decided to give up and quit his job as a palace bureaucrat, leaving the capital. His superior, who had caused the trouble, felt responsible and asked Jeffrey, an acquaintance, to find him a new job.
"It's been a while, but Grandchester territory is really comfortable. And most of all, there's the goddess-like Milady Sara."
Thomas remembered the Sophia-like Sara he had seen a few days ago. Eight-year-old Sara was angelic and lovely, but 18-year-old Sara was truly a goddess.
Up until he came to Grandchester, he thought women were just "troublesome creatures". But after meeting Sara, Rebecca, the maidens, and Cordelia, he, Thomas, have come to realize the narrowness of his perspective.
Moreover, after learning about the ideal environment of the Maiden's Tower, he has become a 19-year-old young man again, dreaming about the future and thinking, "What kind of job should I do if Scott and Blaze leave my hands?"
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