Chapter 720 The carriage broke down

Shen Wantang ignored her, turned around, and walked out of the government office with her umbrella.

Along the way, we encountered several familiar faces.

They were either in a hurry or at ease, either impatient or calm.

Without exception, they all wore expressions of pride, as if their busy work for the nation and its people had transformed their spirits.

The future of Dafeng depends entirely on them, and the happiness and well-being of the people are all protected by them. They are all pillars of the nation, and their names may be recorded in history in the future.

Compared to that, the struggles in the inner quarters became insignificant.

Shen Wantang walked in the rain, sighing softly.

She didn't want to get involved in these pointless struggles, but the tree may wish to be still, but the wind will not cease. If she wanted to be more comfortable, she couldn't just keep enduring and remaining silent.

Otherwise, even her husband's lowly guards wouldn't take her seriously, and would dare to act arrogantly and mock her.

If this continues, her subordinates will not be able to survive in the Duke's mansion; they will be bullied and ostracized.

She couldn't let those who were loyal to her suffer such injustice, and of course, she herself couldn't either.

She suppressed her surging emotions and boarded the carriage expressionlessly.

Qiao Zhiyu followed closely behind and climbed up.

Du Juan and Granny Yan hurriedly served Shen Wantang. One of them used a soft, dry handkerchief to wipe her face and hair, while the other wiped her hands and clothes.

After wiping away the water droplets, they quickly set out snacks, fruit, and hot tea.

After a flurry of activity, the two of them took meticulous care of Shen Wantang.

Qiao Zhiyu looked at Shen Wantang with envy, her desire to become Gu Qianling's concubine growing stronger.

Since her father passed away, almost all of the Qiao family's servants had been dismissed, leaving only a rough old woman who cooked and cleaned, and a maid who didn't need wages but only needed to be fed.

But neither of them could go out with her.

The old woman was very old, with failing eyesight and severe hearing; you had to shout to talk to her.

That little maid was only eleven years old, didn't understand anything, and had a lively personality. Moreover, because she wasn't paid, she wasn't very obedient. If she was taken out, she would run off to watch the excitement on her own after a short while. She wouldn't serve Shen Wantang like her maid did.

To put it bluntly, it's all because we're too poor.

If she can't afford to pay the wages, the maids naturally won't work diligently.

"younger sister."

Qiao Zhiyu's mind raced, and she asked, "Your maid is named Dujuan, right? She seems very well-behaved and clever, and quite well-mannered! Is she one of the maids assigned to you by the Duke's mansion? How many like her have been assigned to you in total?"

Shen Wantang took a sip of tea and said calmly, "This is my dowry maid, not from the Duke's mansion. I have four maids like this."

"What?!"

Qiao Zhiyu was shocked: "You have four maids like this?! Did you bring them all from the Shen family?"

"yes."

"But can you afford to support so many maids?"

"We can afford to raise them naturally."

"How much do you pay each maid? Or do you mean they don't get paid for their work?"

"How can we let them work for free? Of course, we should give them a monthly allowance, and the better they do, the more they should be paid. Otherwise, how can we retain them?"

As for how much silver she gave the maids, Shen Wantang didn't say.

Since she didn't say anything, Qiao Zhiyu didn't press her further, otherwise it would seem like she was being too rude.

She changed the subject: "Besides your own maids, how many maids did the Duke's mansion assign to you?"

Shen Wantang glanced at her, knowing that she was asking these questions because she wanted to join the Duke's mansion.

This is the result she wanted.

So she chuckled and said, "The Duke's Mansion originally intended to assign me two first-class head maids, four second-class inner courtyard maids, four third-class rough maids, and four rough old women."

"The monthly allowances for these maids and servants are all paid from the public funds; I don't need to pay for them myself."

"However, I don't need that many people. I already have four first-class maids, so I didn't need any from the Duke's mansion. I took two second-class and two third-class maids, and two old women."

"In addition, I asked my mother-in-law to appoint Granny Yan as my head nanny. Now all the maids and servants are managed by Granny Yan, so I don't need to worry about them."

After hearing this, Qiao Zhiyu couldn't help but look at Granny Yan, who was respectfully serving Shen Wantang, with newfound respect.

She originally thought she was just an ordinary nanny, but she never expected that she was actually the head nanny of Shen Wantang, and also the nanny of Madam Gu.

If only she had a head maid like that to take care of everything for her!

What she lacks now is experience in handling various matters, and she urgently needs someone to guide her.

Unfortunately, Granny Yan had a fierce look, with deep nasolabial folds that looked like they could trap mosquitoes, and extremely sharp eyes. She would look at people with her chin raised, scanning them from top to bottom, and her whole being exuded an arrogant aura.

She instinctively didn't dare approach someone who looked unapproachable, so she didn't dare ask Granny Yan for guidance at all.

She couldn't help but envy Shen Wantang again: "Sister, you are so lucky. Not only did you marry a perfect husband, but you are also loved and favored by your mother-in-law. She gave you such a good nanny. With Nanny Yan by your side, I'm afraid no monsters or demons would dare to come near you."

When Granny Yan heard her words, she didn't even lift her eyelids, clearly not taking her seriously at all.

Shen Wantang smiled faintly: "Sister is right. I am indeed quite lucky. I have met a good mother-in-law and a good nanny. Otherwise, I would not be able to control those people under me at such a young age."

As soon as she finished saying she was lucky, the carriage crashed loudly, followed by a violent shaking.

Shen Wantang and the others staggered and nearly fell out of the carriage.

Granny Yan immediately shielded Shen Wantang and demanded sharply to the outside, "What happened?! You almost hurt the young mistress!"

The coachman said in a panic, "Granny, our carriage has broken down!"

"Can we still walk?"

"It looks like we won't be able to leave anytime soon; it needs to be repaired."

Granny Yan looked at Shen Wantang: "Young Madam, why don't you rest at a nearby shop for a while? I'll have someone go back to the Duke's Mansion and send another carriage to pick you up."

Shen Wantang remained calm, seemingly unconcerned about the broken carriage. She nodded and said, "Then I'll trouble you, Granny. Sister, let's get off and find a place to take shelter from the rain!"

Qiao Zhiyu never expected that such a luxurious and sturdy carriage would break down, so she was completely unprepared and bumped her head hard, almost leaving her dazed.

She rubbed her sore head as she lifted the curtain, her eyes wide as she asked, "Go down? To avoid the rain? Where can we find shelter from the rain here? Won't our clothes get soaked?"

This is brocade!! Are you really going to let it get soaked in the rain like this? Is it even usable anymore?