Jiang Yao said angrily.
After saying that, she glanced at Song's wrist and said, "Mother, don't think I don't know. As soon as I got out of prison, you gave your dowry bracelet to Jiang Shuwan."
"That bracelet is of such good quality. I asked you for it before but you wouldn't give it to me. But you gave it to Jiang Shuwan without hesitation."
"Get this straight, I'm your real daughter!"
"Well, I did it all for you. Your older sister saved your life, so you should thank her... Alright, alright, I won't say anymore. Look at your face, I won't say anything more, okay? Honestly, I don't know why I always find fault with your older sister. Others would be so eager to curry favor with such a capable older sister, but you're always trying to go against her. Alright, alright, I really won't say anything more. But, your older sister is still the Crown Prince's wife, so you still have to go and offer her a toast. After all, the imperial decree mentioned the soup kitchen and medicine kitchen, so she deserves some of the reward..."
"Ha, she's quite clever. As soon as she took power, she used the Marquis's money to enhance her own reputation. Not only did she gain a great reputation, but she also became known to His Majesty because she helped me distribute the prescription. How hateful! I'm such a blockhead that I let her ride on my coattails!"
"I'm so angry! If I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have opened an ice shop at all. I would have presented the recipe to His Majesty much earlier and maybe I could have gotten a much better deal."
"Who can argue with that? At the time, I was only thinking about making money; I really didn't think about anything else."
Madam Song was also filled with regret, especially Jiang Yao. The prescription was gone, but the thought of Jiang Shuwan riding on her coattails made the wine in her hand suddenly lose its appeal.
Moreover, as Song said, she was able to escape danger entirely thanks to Jiang Shuwan's idea.
Both out of courtesy and reason, we should go and thank Jiang Shuwan.
hateful!
She actually had to thank Jiang Shuwan! How infuriating!
Jiang Yao was extremely depressed, especially after seeing Jiang Shuwan eat and drink heartily, finishing two bowls of bird's nest in one go, which made her even angrier.
Eat, eat, eat!
I'll eat you to death!
So you're just eating like crazy even though it's not your money you're paying for it...
Waaaaaahh ...
It breaks my heart.
With tears in her eyes, Jiang Yao was truly heartbroken to see the Earl's mansion's wealth dwindling.
"Second sister, what's wrong?"
Seeing Jiang Yao looking at her with red eyes, Jiang Shuwan was a little confused.
The imperial edict praised Jiang Yao and her, and she didn't try to steal the limelight from Jiang Yao's banquet, so why was she looking at her with such red eyes?
"It's nothing, big sister, do you think the food is good?"
"It's pretty good, but there's not enough bird's nest."
Jiang Yao: "..."
Qingxing: "..."
Qingxing awkwardly tugged at her young mistress's sleeve and whispered, "Miss, this isn't how you treat the rich. The Earl's mansion is very poor right now."
Jiang Shuwan: "..."
After Qingxing's reminder, Jiang Shuwan also felt that asking for more bird's nest was a bit excessive.
"Big sister, thank you so much this time. I'd like to toast you."
"OK!"
The two sisters drank a glass of wine with forced smiles, and the banquet came to an end.
Jiang Shuwan helped Old Madam Pei into the carriage, followed by Pei Shushu, the third wife, and the fourth wife as they walked back.
The next day, General Sun returned to the capital to report on his duties. His entourage of 500 cavalrymen entered through the east gate. Although the number of people was small, they exuded the imposing presence of a thousand troops.
Many people came to watch the spectacle, crowding the city gate.
Jiang Shuwan, along with the general who had helped her transport the glass for the first time, was talking in a teahouse very close to the city gate.
“Young Madam, General Sun originally brought a thousand soldiers, but the process of suppressing bandits along the way inevitably took a long time, and many soldiers were injured and had to stay behind to rest.”
"Is the injury serious? Soldiers are in the army to make a living. If the injury is too serious, I'm afraid you won't be able to serve anymore."
"Don't worry, young mistress. We can let it go in the past, but now that we have our glass workshop, even if we can't join the army, the general can still support us."
The team leader who said this felt both proud and heartbroken.
Haomai is a name that the glass workshop can visibly bring immense wealth, allowing them to elevate their lives to a higher level.
What saddened him was that in recent years, the military pay allocated to them by the imperial court had been decreasing, and ordinary soldiers were barely able to get enough to eat.
Those wounded soldiers were unlucky; they were injured and could no longer serve, and without money, they couldn't even afford to eat.
Missing limbs and unable to find work, they could only survive by relying on General Sun's assistance.
However, over the years, even General Sun could not sustain it.
"To be honest, young mistress, there used to be some wounded soldiers who felt that they were a burden to General Sun and refused to accept his aid, so they starved to death."
"During the Battle of the North, General Sun was worried that so many soldiers had died or been wounded, and now the court couldn't even pay their pensions."
"If it weren't for the young mistress's glass workshop, the soldiers would have had absolutely no hope."
"On behalf of the soldiers, I thank you, young mistress."
"General, you are too kind. Our soldiers are guarding the border for the country. How can we let their families not even receive compensation? As for the wounded soldiers, if they can't be soldiers, we can just arrange for them to work in the glass workshop. They will always have a way to make a living."
Jiang Shuwan listened to these words with great emotion, and her determination to distribute the shares became even stronger.
After all, the old emperor was so poor, how could she possibly make money under his nose?
Besides, although the old emperor was a bit of a thug, he was still a good ruler overall. He spent most of the money in the national treasury and the private treasury wisely.
He's just unlucky. In recent years, not only has his health been poor, but he's also suffered from various natural and man-made disasters, leaving him penniless.
"Young mistress, General Sun is here."
The general leading the group pointed downwards, and Jiang Shuwan looked down and indeed saw General Sun riding his horse closer and closer.
"Where is the Fourth Prince?"
"In the Battle of the North, the Fourth Prince led troops to provide support. Shouldn't he have marched forward with General Sun to be awarded a title?"
"Replying to the young mistress, the Fourth Prince returned to the capital last month. Although the Fourth Prince has been guarding the border for many years and has covered the entire border of our Great Jing, he is still a prince and cannot get too close to military officers. After the rebellion in the north was quelled, the Fourth Prince packed up and returned to the capital."
"Speaking of which, why did you suddenly bring up the Fourth Prince, young mistress? These days, the most sought-after princes are either the Crown Prince or the First Prince. They're fighting tooth and nail over who is the legitimate heir and who is the eldest. We've all heard about it in the North."
"So that's how it is..."
Jiang Shuwan was slightly surprised. She was wondering why the most fiercely contested contests were between the First Prince and the Crown Prince, while the Fourth Prince was nowhere to be seen. It turned out that no one had any faith in the Fourth Prince.
Moreover, even the old emperor was wary of the fourth prince.
It's ridiculous that the emperor sends his fourth prince out to do dirty and tiring work, but he's also afraid that the prince will associate with military officers and roam around like a dog.
The Fourth Prince made outstanding contributions in the Battle of the North, but he was summoned back early without being rewarded and left to languish.
It's a pity that despite all the scheming, the fourth brother still had the last laugh.
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