Chapter 352 Rescue

Since Jia Lian and his wife officially took charge of the household affairs, Madam Wang had not been involved in such matters for a long time.

The situation inside the mansion is visibly much better than before when they were living beyond their means. The servants are also much less likely to make excuses or take advantage of others like they used to.

But none of this concerned her. In the past, she had embezzled public funds for personal gain.

Now, such an opportunity no longer exists.

Today, Lady Wang had to use her own private funds to reward the eunuch who came to deliver the imperial edict. She couldn't very well make him wait for her to withdraw the money from the public funds before he left.

After dismissing the eunuch who delivered the imperial decree, she instructed her maid to retrieve the money from the public treasury.

Unexpectedly, the accountant asked her for a receipt, saying that if the money was withdrawn to the second wife in such an unclear manner, they would have to use their own wages to make up for the amount. All of them combined for three years' wages would not amount to that much money.

He also told the second wife not to make things difficult for them.

Where would Madam Wang get receipts for the silver she gave as tips?

If it had been a eunuch from Yuan Chun Palace who came today, Lady Wang would have gritted her teeth and given away the reward money.

But today, it was a eunuch from the Empress's palace who came, and it was still for Wang Xifeng!

How could Madam Wang possibly pay this sum of money!

When the maid went to collect the money, she made sure that if there was no receipt, three witnesses would be needed to vouch for it. These three people had to see the amount of money with their own eyes. If they were found to be lying, they would be fined half a year's wages, and the fined wages would be divided equally among the other maids.

In addition, such a large sum of money requires the signatures of the old lady, the first wife, and the master of the house to confirm the withdrawal of the money before it can be received.

Similarly, if the eldest son's family encounters this situation, the signatures of the old lady and the second master and second mistress are required.

Madam Wang vaguely remembered Caixia mentioning this matter, but she didn't take it to heart. However, when she actually encountered them, she felt too embarrassed to ask the three people for their autographs.

Aunt Xue, hearing Madam Wang's angry words through gritted teeth that Wang Xifeng had come up with so many rules that made everything so restrictive, quickly tried to comfort Madam Wang.

"Oh dear, I thought it was a lot of silver! It's only two thousand taels. Sister, don't worry about it. I'll have someone bring it to you later!"

After hearing Aunt Xue's words of comfort, Madam Wang's expression changed repeatedly. When did her sister, who was married to a merchant, start to feel superior in front of her?

"There's no need for that. I'm not short of money. It's just that I feel I'm too old to manage things properly, and it's unfair to send someone to get the money and have them treated like this!"

“Sister, your household is large and prosperous, with many people, so naturally there are countless things to manage. We are a small family, with fewer affairs, and therefore fewer rules.” Aunt Xue, oblivious to Madam Wang’s expression, continued speaking.

“Pan’er usually takes care of things outside, and when it comes to coming up with ideas, his sister does. The two of them really hold the family together. I don’t have to do anything; I just wait for them to give me pocket money every month. Chai’er says it’s my share of the profits. It’s quite a lot every month!”

Upon hearing this, Madam Wang wished she could kick Aunt Xue out. Was she trying to show off her good children in her own home?

She was thinking about her eldest daughter, Yuan Chun, in the palace. Every month, a lot of money had to be sent to her. Originally, it could be paid through the public account, but now the public account was no longer used for this money, and it was all paid from her private savings.

As for Baoyu, although most of his monthly expenses came from the public funds, how could Lady Wang not allow her son to spend money, having cherished him like a phoenix egg since he was a baby?

There was also Li Wan, who had her grandson Jia Lan with her. Jia Lan was the widow of Zhu'er. The government usually provided them, a widow and her son, with a considerable amount of subsidies, and she would also contribute some herself.

In previous years, if she hadn't occasionally taken some money from the public funds, her dowry would probably have been insufficient to make ends meet long ago.

Having lost control of the household management for the past two years, I've really been short of money.

Fortunately, since Yuan Chun was promoted, she no longer needs so much silver.

"I'm not as fortunate as my sister, who had a wonderful son and a daughter." Madam Wang's expression remained impassive, but she still showed great interest in Aunt Xue's family affairs.

"What has Pan'er been busy with lately? Did the matchmaking attempt the other day fail?"

Upon hearing this, Aunt Xue's smug expression vanished instantly.

"Stop talking about him! If a girl is good-looking, he looks down on her family background; if a girl comes from a good family, he looks down on her looks... He's been on dates with more than a dozen girls in the past six months, but he hasn't gotten together with any of them!"

Madam Wang thought to herself: "They only know how to pick out the good things. I bet they didn't even like Xue Pan, who's a cripple..."

The two were chatting intimately when Caiyun suddenly came in. "Second Madam, Lord Yuan has arrived. He's wearing his official robes and went straight to the ancestral hall with his guards!"

Lady Wang stood up in a panic. When Aunt Xue heard Yuan Hongqu coming over, she wondered if Xue Baochai, who had gone on a study tour with them, had also returned.

She couldn't wait to go home and see.

Therefore, despite Madam Wang's repeated attempts to persuade him to stay, he still left through the side door.

She was afraid of running into Yuan Hongqu on the road. Now she both respected and feared Yuan Hongqu, and she would rather avoid contact with her altogether.

As for the affairs of the Rongguo Mansion, Aunt Xue was unwilling to interfere.

Yuan Hongqu did not go to the reception room, but led the people straight into the ancestral hall.

Along the way, servants tried to stop her from time to time, but the guards dealt with them without her having to lift a finger.

The ancestral hall was heavily guarded, but this was not a problem for Yuan Hongqu.

Pushing open the ancestral hall door, one sees a figure sitting half-sitting on a cushion, their back to the viewer.

"Feng'er, are you alright?" Yuan Hongqu recognized the figure at a glance as Wang Xifeng.

Upon hearing that familiar voice, Wang Xifeng quickly turned around.

"Sister, if you don't come soon, I'm afraid I'll starve to death here..." Wang Xifeng said excitedly.

It turned out that they had also noticed Laiwang's disappearance. Fearing that something might happen to him, they cut off Wang Xifeng's food and drink, and even Yingchun could no longer sneak over.

She hasn't eaten or drunk anything for two days now.

Yuan Hongqu looked at her chapped lips and took out a small water pouch from her bosom.

"Wipe your throat first, then we'll talk when we get back."

Since she met Wang Xifeng, she had never seen Wang Xifeng in such a disheveled state.

Those who were blocking the way outside were all beaten down by the men brought by Yuan Hongqu. She had a sedan chair brought over for Wang Xifeng to ride in before returning to Rongyue Courtyard.

Upon arriving at Rongyue Courtyard, Ping'er and her servants prepared a large meal. Wang Xifeng sat down, about to eat, when Yuan Hongqu stopped her. Although she had hastily checked Wang Xifeng's pulse earlier, Yuan Hongqu was worried it might not be accurate and wanted to examine it again carefully before she felt at ease.

“You’ve been eating a lot of highly nutritious food lately. If it weren’t for these things, you probably wouldn’t have made it this far.”