Reborn and returned, sisters swapped

Chapter 128 They're quite bold.

Her tone was calm yet carried an undeniable authority: "This bag of grain doesn't seem to be marked. Has the quantity been recorded?"

The soldier's body visibly stiffened, and his previously steady steps suddenly became disordered.

He looked up at Gu Jinyan, his eyes darting around, and beads of sweat glistening on his forehead.

He hesitated for a moment, then stammered, "It's already been registered, sir, there's no need to check again."

Gu Jinyan's gaze sharpened slightly, revealing a hint of coldness, as if he had seen through the other person's thoughts.

Her tone remained calm, yet it carried an undeniable resolve: "Since it's already registered, why not open it and take a look?"

She then beckoned to the cellmate standing nearby to come forward and inspect the bag: "Open the bag."

The soldiers guarding the granary dared not delay and quickly stepped forward to untie the knots in the grain sacks.

As the burlap sack was loosened, the smell of dry rations wafted out—the sack contained significantly more rations than the normal allowance, with some grains even stuffed to the brim, clearly indicating that extra was secretly added.

Upon seeing this, the once composed porters turned pale and lowered their heads, not daring to look Gu Jinyan in the eye.

The soldiers watching also turned their heads, some showing surprise, while others seemed thoughtful.

Gu Jinyan stared coldly at the soldier, his gaze sharp as a knife.

Her voice was not loud, but every word was firm and resolute: "Every grain of food is a matter of life and death for the soldiers. If we relax here, how can the front line have the courage to fight the enemy?"

The soldier looked embarrassed, and the beads of sweat on his forehead were particularly noticeable in the setting sun.

He apologized in a low voice: "Sir, it was my fault. I shouldn't have... I shouldn't have taken the liberty of adding extra details."

Gu Jinyan was not softened by his apology, but continued to give a serious lecture: "Food and supplies are the livelihood of everyone and the foundation of city defense."

Any selfish motive will weaken our defenses and cost our comrades their lives.

She then turned to the prison guards and ordered in a deep voice: "Deduct half a month's salary from his pay and circulate this throughout the army."

Upon hearing this order, the soldier carrying the load turned even paler, but he was powerless to object. He lowered his head and silently accepted his punishment.

This scene deeply shocked the other soldiers present.

Everyone understood that Gu Jinyan's strictness was not unreasonable, but truly aimed at ensuring the fair distribution of grain and the stability of the city's defenses.

As Gu Jinyan's reprimand gradually subsided, the soldiers inside and outside the warehouse began to speed up their work, unloading the goods with increasing caution and standardization.

Some soldiers who had originally planned to take advantage of the situation began to be more cautious, making it increasingly difficult for them to secretly embezzle funds.

Gu Jinyan stood at the warehouse entrance, watching bags of grain and fodder enter the warehouse. Her eyes were still sharp, but they also showed more control and reassurance over the situation.

In managing the grain and provisions in Hesha City, Gu Jinyan always attached great importance to discipline and strict control over supplies.

As the war continues, the pressure on military supplies is increasing, making the management of food and provisions even more important.

However, during several inspections, Gu Jinyan discovered that despite the warehouse having a strict supervision process, some problems still occurred from time to time.

She noticed that some of the soldiers in charge of supervision had close relationships with warehouse managers and porters.

There is often a tacit understanding between them and some unconventional behaviors, such as whispering during shift changes and turning a blind eye to minor details in the accounts.

These phenomena made her realize that relying solely on fixed supervisory positions was insufficient to eliminate personal connections and collusion.

Especially when warehouse guards are stationed at the same post for a long time, they are prone to forming alliances with specific managers and engaging in clandestine operations.

To prevent this situation from spreading, Gu Jinyan decided to implement a more flexible management approach—a rotation system for supervisory positions.

The core idea behind the rotation system is to prevent fixed supervisory soldiers from staying in the same position for too long and to prevent them from developing personal relationships or conflicts of interest with warehouse managers and handling soldiers.

Gu Jinyan designed a detailed job rotation plan, including the following key measures:

Random assignment of duties: At the beginning of each month, the quartermaster is responsible for shuffling all the supervisory posts and determining the duty location and shift of each soldier by drawing lots.

This random assignment method effectively avoids fixed assignments, greatly reducing the likelihood that any two supervising soldiers will work together for an extended period of time.

Standardized handover records: Gu Jinyan requires all supervisory positions to keep detailed handover records at each rotation.

The two supervising soldiers, one new and one old, jointly checked the inventory and accounts to ensure that there were no omissions or discrepancies.

At the same time, any abnormalities during the handover must be reported immediately.

Increase patrol frequency: In order to cooperate with the implementation of the rotation system, Gu Jinyan also arranged irregular patrols.

She would personally or send trusted confidants to conduct surprise inspections of each warehouse to ensure that every warehouse supervisor was fulfilling their duties in their new position.

This allows for the timely detection of potential problems and makes everyone understand that regardless of their assigned position, they may be subject to inspection by their superiors at any time.

The implementation of isolation measures: She also stipulated that no supervising soldier may have private contact with soldiers in the same post within one month after leaving office, especially during critical periods of food and supplies transportation.

If there are special circumstances requiring contact, it must be approved by the quartermaster or she herself.

This regulation effectively prevents the continuation of old relationships.

Before announcing the rotation system, Gu Jinyan summoned all the soldiers and quartermaster officers in charge of warehouse management and gave a detailed explanation in the lobby.

Standing on the high platform, she surveyed the crowd with a serious expression and said bluntly, "We are in wartime, and food supplies are the lifeline of every soldier."

Any negligence or collusion could breach our defenses.

Therefore, I have decided to implement a rotation system for supervisory positions, effective immediately.

She then made the details of the system public and explained: "The purpose of random rotation is to prevent anyone from taking advantage of being stationed in a position for a long time to form cliques for personal gain."

Afterward, each supervising soldier will be randomly transferred between various warehouses, and all handovers must be transparent and clear; any abnormal behavior will be seriously investigated.

After announcing the regulations, she emphasized: "I will personally conduct unscheduled inspections to ensure that every soldier performs their duties. Anyone who violates the rules will be severely punished."

When the rotation system was first implemented, some soldiers felt uncomfortable, especially those supervising soldiers who were stationed in a warehouse for a long time.

They were used to their familiar work environment and colleagues, and the sudden rotation left them feeling lost and helpless.

In response to this situation, Gu Jinyan specifically arranged a handover model where veterans mentored new recruits to help the newly appointed supervising soldiers quickly familiarize themselves with the situation.

At the same time, she also set up a special advisory group to answer questions that the supervising soldiers encountered in their work after their rotation.

Over time, the rotation system was gradually accepted and adapted to by the soldiers.

The supervision of the warehouse has been significantly strengthened, and some potential problems in the past have gradually disappeared.

Due to the random transfers between positions, the practice of seeking personal gain through long-term relationships has become unsustainable.

Warehouse management has thus become more transparent, and the distribution of grain and fodder has become more equitable.

During the implementation of the rotation system, the management of grain and fodder in the warehouse was greatly improved, and some previously existing unexplained losses were significantly reduced.

At the same time, the soldiers' work enthusiasm and discipline have also improved, because everyone knows that their work may be changed at any time, and others may take over and check the previous records at any time.

After Gu Jinyan implemented a rotation system for supervisory positions, warehouse management was once well-organized, but she soon realized that these systems were not entirely foolproof.

During several inventory checks, she discovered that although the quantity of food and fodder in the warehouse was not obviously missing, some high-quality dry food and supplies were always being lost silently.

These problems were difficult to detect in the accounts, but based on her years of experience, she judged that someone was exploiting loopholes in the system to embezzle or secretly hoard funds.

She immediately strengthened supervision, not only increasing the frequency of patrols but also ordering the guards in the cell to submit detailed handover records for each shift.

However, even so, these anomalies still occur from time to time.

The behavior of the soldiers also made her suspicious; they always seemed to be in too much sync.

Especially during shift changes, several soldiers in charge of supervision would sometimes talk in hushed tones and occasionally exchange knowing glances.

The turning point came on a dark and stormy night.

That night, just as Gu Jinyan was preparing to go to bed, a loyal veteran—who had been Gu Jinyan's personally promoted assistant in the cell—rushed over with a solemn expression.

After waking Gu Jinyan, he whispered his report: "Sir, I suspect that the supervising soldiers on duty colluded with the porters to release a batch of grain out of the warehouse."

These provisions were supposed to be distributed tonight, but several bags had already been sent away ahead of time.

Gu Jinyan's expression darkened; she immediately realized the seriousness of the situation. She pressed, "How did you find out?"

The veteran replied, "During today's handover, I noticed that several entries in the supervising soldiers' ledgers had been recorded earlier than expected, but the actual items had not yet left the warehouse."

Furthermore, their evasive remarks during the handover made them appear highly suspicious.

I dare not alert the enemy, so I came to report to you first.

Gu Jinyan nodded slightly, already having made his judgment: "You did a good job. If this is true, they are quite audacious."

She immediately decided to go to the warehouse that night to check the situation in order to prevent more supplies from being released without permission.

Gu Jinyan led several trusted men, fully armed, to the warehouse.

To avoid alerting her target, she ordered her soldiers to disperse and lie in ambush around the warehouse, while she herself, cloaked, quietly approached the warehouse entrance.

In the firelight, she noticed several soldiers standing in a corner of the warehouse, whispering to each other.