"I see you're just worrying about nothing. You asked my mother to look after your wife before, and I secretly saw her today. Not only does your young and beautiful wife have Madam Yun taking care of her, but she is also quite capable herself."
"Today my mother invited those noble ladies to a banquet. One of the ladies mocked her for her humble origins. She actually said that it was precisely because of her humble origins that she had to catch up, which is why she married into a marquis's family. She also said that the woman's husband did not hold any real position, but was from a military family. He had fought alongside Emperor Yuan to conquer the country, and she could not disgrace Emperor Yuan. She should strive for advancement."
"Hahaha, did you see that lady's face? It's absolutely hilarious."
Yao Zhijie slapped the tea table and burst into laughter. After laughing, he noticed that Pei Yanzhi's eyes were not friendly.
"A man spying on a women's gathering?"
"That's my house, how could I be spying? Besides, there weren't any unmarried women there. I was just pretending to be passing by. After all, I was quite curious. The eldest daughter of the Jiang family has been married to you for more than half a year, and you never mentioned her before. But now that you've returned from your studies abroad, you're eager to help. That's really not like you. By the way, I heard that a cousin of yours has come to visit. Goodness, you're quite the ladies' man."
"Fight back!"
Yin Quan grabbed him by the collar and dragged him out.
A scream rang out from outside, and Yao Zhijie, clutching his backside, cursed him from the window.
"So fierce? You won't even listen to reason! Inhuman!"
Yao Zhijie left, cursing and swearing.
The rain has stopped, it's quite cool outside, and it's getting dark.
It was already curfew time when Xiao Wu came running in.
"Young Master, the young mistress has gone out."
The boy paused slightly as he drank the tea, then finished the remaining half-cup of tea in his cup.
"They brought guards?"
"No."
"Take a few people with you."
Just as Yin Quan was about to agree, he heard the young master change his mind.
"Forget it, she's delivering silver to His Majesty tonight, so there's no need to worry about some blind fool trying to harm her."
Jiang Shuwan's courtyard.
Qingxing peeked around outside the courtyard for a while before returning to the house.
"Miss, the Marquis sat in the young master's room for a while and then went back. The young master didn't go out either, and the old lady has already gone to bed."
"Where are the old women and servants who guard the back gate?"
"Don't worry, Miss. Granny Tao took them out for a drink, using the excuse of Little Sister Tao's promotion."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shuwan nodded.
Sister-in-law Xiaotao was among the first to start making milk tea with her; previously, the milk tea business was managed by Brother Milk.
After Brother Nai was transferred to Donglai Street, Sister-in-law Xiao Tao became the general manager of the milk tea business, essentially the project manager.
The master and servant each donned a black cloak and walked out under the cover of night.
It had just rained, and the road was a bit wet. Qingxing followed carefully behind her.
“Miss, do we need to be so secretive? We are delivering money to His Majesty, not doing anything else. So what if the manor finds out? Besides, we are all working for His Majesty. Maybe the old lady will even reward you.”
"Fool, do you really think that officials bribing the emperor is a good thing? If the historians and censors find out, not only General Sun, but even His Majesty will be condemned. Of course, His Majesty may not do anything, but my family and I will definitely be in big trouble."
Jiang Shuwan lifted her sleeves and walked out.
The greater the potential reward, the greater the risk.
With the old emperor's support, no one dared to cause trouble on Donglai Street.
In fact, not only the business on Donglai Street, but also the glass workshop in the north, and the perfume workshop under construction, are all safe and secure as long as the old emperor is alive.
Sending money to the old emperor was definitely the decision with the highest return on investment she ever made.
However, the risks are also very high.
After all, this was not something to be proud of. It was only because the old emperor was really poor that he was so desperate for money. Otherwise, the day the silver was brought into the palace would have been the day she was beheaded.
Nowadays, besides General Sun, only the Empress, Consort Gao, and their son know that she sent money to the old emperor.
For the sake of the two princes, the Empress and Consort Gao would naturally not reveal this matter. In fact, if she accidentally let the news slip, the two consorts would even help her cover it up in order to please His Majesty.
However, she should still be careful.
After all, leaking the news meant she hadn't done things thoroughly enough. As for General Sun, in the old emperor's eyes, she was just a glass seller, at best a sales director.
The glass business can thrive whether she's there or not.
No one cares about the life or death of minor characters.
If I had known this would happen, I should have said that glassmaking was her business.
Thinking about all this, Jiang Shuwan couldn't help but feel a little regretful. When she first started doing glass business, she just wanted to make some money and gain the support of the merchants on Donglai Street, so as to win the position of president of the Beijing Merchants Association.
Little did anyone know that Jiang Yao would reveal her ice-making technology, and within half a month she was thrown into prison and suffered endless torment.
Moreover, it was two empresses who took action, striking with lightning speed, leaving no time for anyone to react.
It was only because Jiang Yao stubbornly refused to reveal the prescription that she survived until she was rescued.
After this incident, she realized that the Sun family's authority in the north was insufficient and that she needed to find a higher patron, which led her to devise the plan of sending money.
It would be a nightmare for someone with a technical background to get involved in politics.
Now she can't tell the old emperor that the glass business belongs to her, that would be deceiving the emperor.
However, the perfume business can be directly attributed to her, once the perfume starts selling well.
Hehe, I'm not worried that the old emperor won't look at her with new respect.
As their position becomes more secure, they won't need to be so cautious anymore.
At the back gate of the Marquis's residence, Xiao Tao was already waiting. Seeing them approaching in the dark, she quickly brought a lantern to light their way.
The maids and servants guarding the gate were all coaxed into the house by Granny Tao to drink. Through the half-open window, Jiang Shuwan could also see the banquet in the small house next door.
The atmosphere was lively, with people clinking glasses and exchanging toasts, but why were there children as young as four, five, or six?
They were dressed in patched, coarse clothes, and all of them were emaciated from hunger, showing how poor they were. Some of them didn't even have shoes and were running barefoot on the ground.
Such a child is clearly not a servant of the Marquis's mansion.
“Miss, they are all relatives of the gatekeeper from her hometown. It took them more than ten days to travel from her hometown to the Marquis’s mansion.”
“A country folk, he set off with only half a steamed bun, eating grass roots and sleeping in dilapidated temples along the way. He finally arrived at the Marquis’s mansion and wanted to sell himself to the Marquis’s mansion as a servant.”
"But we're not hiring anyone for our household this year."
“They are all pitiful people, their eyes are green with hunger. It’s curfew now, so we can’t let them leave. My mother decided to let them stay here at the gatehouse and have some food. Tomorrow, we’ll let them apply for jobs at our shop. I heard from Brother Nai that our shop is short of some cleaning and tidying servants.”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shuwan nodded, "Children from poor families learn to be independent early."
Since they came here seeking refuge, it must be because they have no way to make a living back home. Giving them a way to survive is a good thing.
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