There were many things to prepare and sort out before the time that a disaster would strike.
Right now her most important piece in this whole scenario to boost her name would be a certain gift from old man Bernard.
However the biggest issue right now was that although she had ownership of the businesses and the right to speak or order her subordinates, there was in fact a couple of individuals that had grown to be too proud or greedy for their own good.
Looking over many very detailed documents from information from different parts of the central lands and from spies within the many businesses that she had planted, lots of insider information was before her which detailed the daily ongoings over the years.
Dissatisfaction towards her inheriting Bernard's business, some others making profits on the side or dipping their hands into the medicine halls profits and even some individuals replacing herbs with unusable leaves and selling them to other competing businesses at cheap prices.
Many managers or skilled doctors who had been left in charge of the herb pavilions in the past had remained in their position for many years because Ki did not wish to change too much but that did not stop her from sending in some of her own people to keep an eye on their actions.
With a change of employer, there would always be some friction and difficulty adjusting for many involved.
There may even be dissatisfaction over the fact that she had been given the rights to the many businesses when they are the ones that have served Bernard and kept his businesses profitable.
Some of them may have encountered him and even personally taught by him during his travels, he would teach them and then give them a place to settle down as he continued on his way.
Such people would see themselves as his student or heir that would have the opportunity to inherit his legacy.
How could they accept a young girl with an unknown background as their boss who had appeared out of nowhere.
Although the Bombyx family had come into the spotlight over the years and seemed to have the ability to produce gold with everything it touches, the daughter was still an unknown entity to many.
There are those that were unhappy and chose to leave early but those that stuck around were beginning to cause problems over the years and forming a group with ill intentions.
This had been ongoing for many years now but with the upcoming disaster, Ki could no longer afford to ignore these problems that were going on out of her reach.
Ki looked at the large pile of information and evidence of their crimes so she said in a cold voice. "First.. let the law handle those that have gone too far and fire them. Replacements will be needed to fill in their positions so some pavilions will need to be closed down for a little while. In some places where I have less control and will suffer heavily from outside forces or competitors, it would be best to sell the store and transport the loyal workers along the the materials to a pavilion in another location."
In some cases selling the building would prove to be the easier option.
If she loses the managers or doctors there and does not have a suitable replacement but also has to endure the existing pressure from her rivals attacks then the pavilions would continue to suffer damage along with her own name.
She knew that in some places they had already been working with some of the managers or doctors in secret to damage the reputation little by little while profiting from it all.
Once the pavilions were on their final moments of survival, they would all be poached by the other rival herb or medicine stores.
By getting the law involved, many rumours can be spread about their misconduct and poor ways of doing business but also it gives her a way to retreat from the power struggle in some places.
During the disaster… she could not afford to split her attention between the aide of the masses and petty rivalries or power struggles that would be difficult to win if her attention is elsewhere.
How could her people remain loyal to her while her rivals are busy poaching the longest and most skilled people but also pointing the finger that she was unfit as a leader.
How could her people handle the pressure when they try to assist the masses during their time of their need but are faced with doubt and hostility?
How long would they last before they just gave up completely?
Ki looked at the documents again. "As for the so called 'heirs', they will not gain a thing. If they still put up resistance then I have no need for them. There will also be a need to establish a set of rumours that can paint my actions in a good light and counterattack anything that they may wish to push onto me after closing down several herb pavilions."
In order to deal with the tactics of her rivals, she needed to control the narrative and make the rival businesses and those who had been working against her that were within her own businesses out to be the villains.
In some places there would be closed stores for renovation and replacements being made but in other more dangerous places where she did not have much control and the backlash would be too heavy, she would have no choice but to abandon it some of the smaller pavilions but leave behind some of them in some key locations that can still run smoothly and offer aide to those who need it.
In a far away place, there were many people grouped together for a private meeting.
Many of the students of Bernard that had joined together because of their unwillingness to serve Ki as their master and wanting to gain ownership of everything.
After many years, they put their heads together so that they can come up with a solution to their problem but each time they could not do so.
The law was in Ki's favour as she had the certificates of ownership, the deeds and anything else of value that was included in the pavilions.
Even if they could prove that Ki was not his blood relative or student, they did not even know his true name since he always used an alias so how could they possibly prove that Ki should have no rights to his things after his death?
Everything was handled so well before his death so that such problems would not be an issue and there was never a mention of any of their names in any kind of will or documents that he had left behind.
They could not pin the death of him on Ki or her family and say that they were involved in his death for his inheritance because there had been no contact between them for more than ten years and there was no evidence to support it.
If anything such a family with their reputation would not do such a thing so the plan would backfire on them.
Finally they discussed the possibility of assassination but the problem was that Ki did not venture out of the mansion that often and when she did she was always with a guard.
Even if the assassination was successful they would not gain a thing from her death but gaining a little more control of the business from the inside without a boss to give them orders for sometime…. legally speaking they had no actual rights to any of it.
Eventually there would be someone else who would inherit her position and be out for blood after her death.
They who had been acting strangely and taking advantage of Ki's fall would become one of the suspects and have to face what comes next.
Sadly they did not know their opponent…
It was already too late.
With a simple movement of her pen, a couple of orders here or there and a couple of sent documents or letters to the right places set off a chain of events that would cripple their group.
For now though they could enjoy their time plotting together and indulging in their pleasures and fantasies of a future that would never come for them.