Chapter 442: Pretending to be something you haven’t done
Aunt Liu was shrouded in a deep sense of powerlessness. She originally thought that she should have a good life following Tao Yiran to the Marquis' Mansion, but the marriage exchange gave her a surprise and made her become the housekeeper aunt beside the Crown Prince's wife. If nothing unexpected happens, she will be the first housekeeper beside the mistress of the Marquis' Mansion in the future.
Apart from the master, she is the most powerful and glorious one in the whole mansion.
It's a pity that such a good start has come to this day. Not only is she trapped in the mansion and unable to leave, but the second young master's wife next door has created such a situation, and she is still here thinking about how to govern and seduce men.
"You said before that we couldn't let the Second Young Master's wife go that smoothly. Was the message sent out because of this?"
Tao Yiran had changed her mind a long time ago. "Let her enjoy her glory for a while longer. It's not useless. Wasn't it her who spent money and effort to settle the rumors this time?"
"My letters have other places."
She once planned to poison the princess's son, but the risk was too great. The key point was that rumors were spreading outside, so she had to suspend the plan.
Xin's is still somewhat useful.
Seeing that she was obviously brainless but still pretended to be shrewd, Aunt Liu felt that all the strength in her body was drained away, "The Marquis and his wife are both in poor health, the Crown Prince is thousands of miles away, the Second Young Master's wife is in charge of the household affairs, and the Second Young Master is in charge of the affairs outside the palace. If we let them continue like this, I'm afraid it will shake the Crown Prince's position."
"Are you really not going to do anything?"
Anyone with a discerning eye could see that she, the wife of the prince, had been sidelined, but she was the only one who thought everything was fine.
Tao Yiran curled the corners of her lips and smiled indifferently, "My mother-in-law is not my biological mother-in-law, my grandmother is partial to the one next door, and my father doesn't care about the backyard affairs. Even if I go to fight, I have no chance of winning. If that's the case, why bother?"
"Before he left, the prince told me that my father would not allow anyone to replace him, nor would he dare to do so. The succession to the Marquisate is set in stone."
Although she didn't know why Tang Rong was so sure, judging from his expression at the time, she knew that he must have some leverage over her father.
Come to think of it, how could such a huge mansion not have some shady things going on? How could Tang Rong not know about it?
"When the prince inherits the title, everything will be fine. No matter how capable the second branch is, it can only rely on the first branch. Since Xin likes to spend money and effort to manage the mansion, why not give her a chance?"
"She's got the money so she's suitable."
This sounds reasonable at first, but is it really that simple?
Less than a year after his marriage, the eldest son of a marquisate went to work in a remote village thousands of miles away. To put it nicely, it was for experience, but to put it bluntly, he couldn't make it in the capital anymore, so he went to hide outside for two years.
Aunt Liu was powerless and helpless and could only follow her wherever she went.
Nothing in Chunhua Courtyard escapes Wang's eyes. When it comes to controlling the courtyard, Tao Yiran's ability is average.
Wang Shi showed disdain when she heard what Tao Yiran said, and once again felt lucky that her son did not marry her. As for the rest, "Keep an eye on the people in Chunhua Courtyard, and report immediately if there is any movement."
Xin An also had her eyes on Chunhua Courtyard. After hearing what Nanfeng said, she was asked to keep an eye on where Tao Yiran's letter went to, to see what she wanted to do and who else outside the mansion was worth her contacting.
Early that morning, Tang Mo went to Cihang Temple to pick up the old lady. He was supposed to go early in the morning, but was delayed for a few days because of the rumors in the city.
The old lady of the Zhang family often comes here because she misses her grandson. She was amused and sad when she learned that her grandson was not used to living at home. Now she comes to have meals with her grandson whenever she is free. The relationship between the two is growing stronger day by day. I believe that Zhang Yanrui will follow her back to the Zhang family soon.
"Madam Zhang is here again today?"
Mrs. Xu came again today, and did not send a visiting card in advance. She told Xin An that she had just visited the Second Prince's wife, and went directly to the Marquis' Mansion after leaving the Second Prince's Mansion.
"Grandma Zhang comes every other day. The relationship between the two is getting better and better. If the young master wasn't so attached to his bed, he would have returned to the Zhang family long ago."
Madam Xu said, "Luckily you are lucky to have met the young master of the Xin family. You are also very lucky."
"It is indeed the Xin family's good fortune to meet the young master."
This was said last time when Madam Xu came. Today, it was just a topic for a few pleasantries. Xin An led Madam Xu into the main hall and sat down to drink tea. "Aunt, do you have anything to tell me today?"
"That's not an order, I just want to ask you something."
Mrs. Xu came for charity fundraising. Tang Gang and his son brought back seven or eight million taels of silver from the Huai River. If Tang Gang said that he did not get any benefit from it, no one would believe it. Those who spread rumors that Tang Gang took over a million taels of silver really thought that he was greedy for so much.
Those people were jealous, and the Second Prince was naturally jealous too. He had the Xu family's help and was not short of money, but even if he was not short of money, he could not let his rivals get rich. You know, the Crown Prince was also determined to win.
"I know everything Auntie wants to know."
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Xin An told her the general situation and explained the role played by the Yao and Xin families. "I don't know about other places, but merchants in Huaijiang have always been generous in making charitable donations. Salt merchants in particular have a lot of dealings with court officials, so they are naturally more willing to donate generously."
"In my humble opinion, we should still contact the local Chamber of Commerce. To put it bluntly, a powerful dragon cannot suppress a local snake. Every place has its own way of doing things."
Tang Gang was able to succeed in Huaijiang because of the great efforts of the Xin family and Tang Mo, with the full cooperation of the Yao family. If someone else had gone, the result might not have been the same.
This is what Madam Xu wanted to know. "Everyone in the court thought this was a lucrative job, but they didn't think about the difficulty of this matter. It is not that easy to raise charity funds with the willingness of the people."
"If you were to come and see, under what circumstances do you think those merchants would be so generous, other than the plaques and books and biographies last time?"
Xin An thought that if the emperor was willing to expand his harem and give the girls from the heads of the chambers of commerce a chance, then she could have as much money as she wanted. If she wanted money, she had to pay for it. As long as she paid the right amount of money, she could buy the emperor's body.
But she would not say this thought out loud, and just shook her head, "My father taught me that the Xin family's wealth all came from the gifts of our ancestors and the court. If the family and the country need it, we must do our best."
"As for the rest, I don't have any idea."
Madam Xu sighed and talked about the difficulty of this job, and asked about Tang Gang's health. Xin An said, "The imperial physician said that after a few more days of rest, he will be able to go to court and continue to share the emperor's worries."
"If your father is in good health, he will be the one to raise the charity."
This was a test, Xin An smiled and said, "Father never told us about the affairs of the court, and my husband has no qualifications to attend the court. I just heard that many families want to share the worries of the emperor, which is also a good thing."
(End of this chapter)
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