A group of fierce eunuchs immediately rushed forward, grabbed the group of palace maids, and slapped them several times across the face.
"You lowly woman, how dare you speak ill of the Crown Prince's wife, who is of such high status!"
After saying that, he covered the person's mouth and dragged them away.
So swiftly, striking someone happened in an instant; Jiang Shuwan didn't even have time to react.
The daughter of her father's boss just died like that?
The female official smiled ingratiatingly at her, "Call me Madam. Please forgive my rudeness, Lady of the Heir Apparent. Currently, it is Consort Gao who is in charge of the six palaces. If it were our Empress, she would never allow you two to hear such foul language."
"..."
So it wasn't to vent her anger, but purely to strike at her political enemies.
Concealing her inner thoughts, Jiang Shuwan smiled politely, "How dare I, a humble woman, speak of matters concerning the inner palace?"
After saying that, she lowered her head and fell silent. The smile on the female official's face froze on her face, but the old lady patted Jiang Shuwan's hand with satisfaction.
The old man became increasingly satisfied with Jiang Shuwan.
Running a successful business and managing the household affairs well are not particularly remarkable skills for a noble family.
The real skill lies in being able to navigate the various open and covert attacks within the palace with composure and eloquence.
This is how a woman from a prominent family should be.
"Grandma, let me help you, please be careful."
Jiang Shuwan helped Madam Pei continue walking forward.
Of course, she wouldn't say a word. She had just entered the palace, and by sheer coincidence, she overheard people talking badly about her.
Who knows if the female official deliberately lured her over to listen?
After turning who knows how many bends, we finally arrived at the mourning hall.
The old emperor valued filial piety, and the Dowager Consort was the only surviving consort of the late emperor, so the old emperor always respected her.
Even though he had no money, he managed to scrape together funds to hold the funeral, making sure the Dowager Empress had a dignified and respectable funeral.
Jiang Shuwan helped the old lady into the mourning hall, which was covered with white mourning clothes. There, she saw that the imperial concubines, as well as other ladies of high social standing, had all come.
Jiang Shuwan mingled in the crowd. The positions were arranged according to rank, and she was at the very end. With so many people in the room, she shouldn't have been conspicuous, but she still attracted a lot of attention.
Their gazes held a myriad of meanings.
Jiang Shuwan remained calm and composed.
Madam Yun took her out to social events twice, and the attitudes of these ladies towards her were nothing more than looking down on her, suppressing her, and trying to win her over.
Nothing new.
She just needs to focus on doing her own job well.
Soon the appointed time arrived. The master of ceremonies first read out the imperial edict posthumously conferring the title of Dowager Empress, and then everyone kowtowed before the Dowager Empress's coffin.
The Empress and Consort Gao knelt at the very front.
As soon as Jiang Shuwan helped Madam Pei in, they saw her, especially the Empress. Before Jiang Shuwan even entered, a female official told her what had happened on the way, including the line, "How dare a subject like me speak of matters of the inner palace?"
"Ha!" The Empress snorted coldly. Her plan had failed, so she had no choice but to put it aside for the time being.
Consort Gao was in charge of managing the six palaces, and the entire harem was filled with her spies, so she received the news a little later than the Empress.
She sneered, then glanced at the Empress beside her, who was also looking at her.
Their eyes met, and they both smiled.
Then they all turned their heads away, their smiles gone, replaced by murderous intent.
Looking at Jiang Shuwan again, the two of them had suffered a loss at her hands last time because of the ice shop incident. Now, Jiang Shuwan was making money for the old emperor. The empress and Consort Gao saw the various changes in her eyes.
I don't know what he's thinking, but on the surface he treats everyone like a junior.
"Disgusting! They'll do anything for money, and now they're putting on this act."
Hearing a familiar voice, Jiang Shuwan turned around and found that it was Jiang Yao.
Jiang Yao was also dressed in mourning clothes, clearly representing the confined aunt.
Jiang Yao hasn't been going out socially lately, focusing solely on Pei Lingyu's studies. She's never been involved in such a high-end circle of wealthy women and aristocratic families before.
However, a great many people know her.
"That's Mrs. Xiao?"
"The most talented woman in the capital since Liu Yunyan of the Liu family?"
"She is quite good-looking, but she can't compare to her older sister. She even made a big fool of herself with the young master before. The Jiang family is a family of scholars, so how could such a filthy affair of secretly having an affair with a man have occurred?"
"..."
You're the one who's engaging in illicit relations!
I call this free love!
A bunch of old-fashioned people who arrange marriages without consent dare to laugh at me?
Upon hearing these whispered words, Jiang Yao immediately flew into a rage, but Jiang Shuwan quickly grabbed her.
"what you up to!"
"..."
Jiang Yao's lips moved slightly, but she knew this was not a place where she could act recklessly. She could only secretly memorize the face of the woman who spoke those words.
Just wait and see.
When her son, Yulang, becomes the top scholar in the imperial examination and parades through the streets on horseback, who will still laugh at her?
Thinking about it this way, she felt happy.
Seeing that Jiang Yao was behaving properly, Jiang Shuwan breathed a sigh of relief.
Jiang Yao is like a time bomb.
She even thought that even if she couldn't make it in the Marquis's mansion one day and had to divorce and go home, as long as Jiang Yao was in the Earl's mansion, she wouldn't be able to get a peaceful night's sleep.
After all, they all share the surname Jiang. If Jiang Yao causes trouble, the Jiang family and she are both inevitably involved.
Therefore, it is even more important to establish a foothold in the Marquis's residence.
Thinking about all this, Jiang Shuwan wasn't too worried. In her previous life, Jiang Yao died, and Liu Yunyan never became her official wife.
She refused to believe that if she were in Liu Yunyan's shoes, she wouldn't be able to control her.
In any case, she will not lose her position as the young mistress of the Marquis's mansion unless absolutely necessary.
"His Majesty has arrived."
A eunuch's shrill voice rang out, and the old emperor, dressed in mourning clothes, walked in.
This was the first time Jiang Shuwan had seen the old emperor, as was Jiang Yao. She secretly craned her neck to look and saw that the old emperor was frail and needed eunuchs to help him walk. It was clear that his health was indeed severely deteriorated.
He spoke weakly and his face was pale.
The Empress and Consort Gao, the two women with the highest status in the Great Jing Dynasty, burst into tears the moment they saw the old emperor.
"Your Highness, how could you leave like this!"
In order to show the most grief in front of the old emperor, the two empresses cried until their eyes were swollen.
The old emperor certainly fell for this.
But as soon as the old emperor left, the two empresses started talking back and forth, their words laced with barbs.
"Her Majesty the Empress looks very tired after not seeing her for a few days, and she has a few more gray hairs."
"The Imperial Concubine is indeed younger than me, but I've noticed that His Majesty has recently been frequenting the room of the Concubine who danced with the glass hairpin at the last victory banquet. Oh, I shouldn't call her Concubine anymore, His Majesty just promoted her to the rank of Consort the other day. Consort Li enjoys exclusive favor in the Pepper Chamber, which was the Imperial Concubine's previous treatment."
At the funeral, the two men mocked and ridiculed each other, which only made the old lady grit her teeth in anger.
"They have lost all virtue; judging from their appearance, they are incapable of raising a crown prince with both talent and virtue."
"..."
Grandma, you have such keen insight.
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