Even if she wanted to cause trouble, she would need to obtain a permanent position first, since she was not a tenured employee.
Ultimately, her current status as the wife of the heir apparent is merely an honorific title; she has no rank whatsoever.
If you act rashly, you will only humiliate yourself.
However, once commercial taxes are collected, everything will be different...
She had checked beforehand and found that there were very few wives of officials with the title of Imperial Decree in the entire Great Jing Dynasty.
Even the old lady's title was due to the fact that the Yun family, to which she belonged, was one of the most powerful aristocratic families in the previous dynasty.
The marriage between the old lady and the Marquis's family, seemingly a joyous occasion for both families, actually represented the submission of the former dynasty's aristocratic clans to the new dynasty.
It was of such extraordinary significance that the late emperor bestowed upon the old lady the title of First-Rank Imperial Noblewoman.
Apart from this, there are so many officials' wives who hold the title of Lady of the Imperial Decree that they cannot be counted on one hand.
This shows how cautious the Li imperial family was about this matter.
However, she had amassed so much money for the old emperor; even if he were stingy, he should at least have bestowed upon her the title of a concubine…
Thinking about it, Jiang Shuwan felt relieved.
She calculated the days and figured that all the commercial taxes should be collected by the end of the month.
Two weeks left...
She can wait.
Thinking it over, Jiang Shuwan's steps became more determined. She led Qingxing outside, knowing that Pei Yanzhi was injured and probably wouldn't go to the outskirts to pick up Wen Shi.
Pei Yanzhi wasn't going, but she couldn't not go.
It's getting late, so we should go and come back as soon as possible.
"Miss, it's the second young lady."
As she was thinking, Qingxing suddenly nudged her.
Jiang Shuwan looked up and saw Jiang Yao and her personal maid talking under a cedar tree at a secluded corner ahead.
The cedar tree was exceptionally tall, but its branches were bent low by the heavy snow.
Layers of white snow piled up on the vigorous branches, as if they were draped in a silver coat.
The thick branches, unable to bear the weight, bent slightly downwards, and the pine needles were completely covered by snow, each one resembling a white icicle, crystal clear.
As the wind blew, the accumulated snow fell in a soft rustling sound.
"Miss, why are you helping the eldest young lady today?"
Jiang Yao's personal maid's voice sounded somewhat faint in the wind and snow, yet it clearly reached Jiang Shuwan's ears.
The girl's face was full of confusion, and her eyes were full of bewilderment.
"Miss, haven't you and the eldest young lady always been at odds? Are you finally willing to listen to Madam and get along well with the eldest young lady?"
The girl's expression was filled with surprise, and her eyes even lit up with joy, sparkling with anticipation.
Having served as Jiang Yao's maid for so many years, she had come to realize that her young mistress was no match for the eldest young lady.
Jiang Shuwan is now in a prestigious position, with money and power. If Miss can understand this and get along well with Jiang Shuwan, it will also bring many benefits to us servants.
Jiang Yao sneered, then gently raised her right hand and gracefully tucked a stray hair behind her ear.
Her eyes flashed with coldness as she said in a chilling tone:
"Which eye of yours saw me help Jiang Shuwan?"
"..."
“I just can’t stand seeing others laugh at her. Remember this: in this world, anyone can laugh at Jiang Shuwan for being illiterate, but I can’t.”
“Miss, I really don’t understand. You’ve always wanted to surpass the eldest young lady. Now you are the most talented woman in Dajing, but the eldest young lady can’t even write a single poem. If you despise her, shouldn’t you mock her and make her feel ashamed?”
"madness!"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yao glared at her fiercely.
"What if I join others in mocking her, and she eventually realizes her mistake and decides to start studying? Wouldn't that be a nightmare for me?"
"I already find Liu Yunyan annoying enough, I don't want Jiang Shuwan to get involved and compete with me for the title of talented woman..."
after all.
She has basically forgotten all the poems she used to memorize.
This time it was only by divine favor that I was able to come up with a poem.
Waaaaah...
I should have studied harder back then.
Jiang Yao wiped away her tears, feeling incredibly wronged.
No one knows how happy Jiang Shuwan felt when everyone looked down on her!
But ironically, she couldn't kick her while she was down; she had to save her.
"hateful!"
"I'm so angry!"
Jiang Shuwan: "..."
Jiang Shuwan was speechless.
No wonder Jiang Yao helped her; that's what she was planning.
She's still here, indulging in wishful thinking.
Tsk tsk tsk...
Shaking her head and sighing, Jiang Shuwan took another route. When she left the villa, she heard a servant report that Liu Yunyan had gone back first, and that Liu Yunyan's expression was not good.
After all, she didn't achieve any of her goals today.
Of course I'm in a bad mood.
"Let her go. The young mistress will be out soon. Prepare a carriage to take her back."
After giving her instructions, Jiang Shuwan had the coachman drive the carriage to the outskirts of the capital.
After all, Jiang Yao came with her, so she had to send someone to take her back.
And she still had to go pick up the Wen family.
"etc."
The carriage had only taken two steps when Jiang Shuwan called for it to stop.
Holding Qingxing's hand, she jumped down from the carriage and looked with a smile at Yao Zhijie, who was limping out of the door.
Yao Zhijie was surprised to see her and instinctively tried to hide, but was scolded by his sister Yao Jinshu.
"Why are you running? Did the princess just kick you? Doesn't your butt hurt anymore?"
"..."
Yao Zhijie looked embarrassed.
Jiang Shuwan raised an eyebrow with amusement.
"Sister Jinshu, Lord Yao was beaten by the princess?"
"That's right. I don't know what he did to offend the princess. When he was leaving, the princess called him over and kicked him, sending him sprawling to the ground. He couldn't get up for a long time. Why did you have to provoke the princess for no reason!"
Yao Jinshu said with heartache and grumbling, while Yao Zhijie was so embarrassed that he wanted to crawl into a hole.
Jiang Shuwan chuckled softly, but remained silent.
However, Yao Jinshu could tell something from the smile on her face.
She had wondered before why Yao Zhijie didn't utter a sound when so many people in the palace were attacking Jiang Shuwan.
It should be noted that her friendship with Jiang Shuwan was at the behest of her younger brother, Yao Zhijie.
Now her brother and Pei Yanzhi are serving in the same court, working together to fight against those who oppose the new commercial tax.
Jiang Shuwan was being targeted, and her brother had no reason to stand idly by.
"Zhijie, did you orchestrate the princess's actions today?"
Yao Jinshu looked at his younger brother with a suspicious expression.
Yao Zhijie: "..."
Would you believe me if I said no?
Born of the same mother, Yao Jinshu could easily read his expression.
She immediately became furious.
"It really is you! Are you out of your mind? Didn't you want me and Jiang to..."
Before Yao Jinshu could even say anything about befriending Jiang Shuwan, he saw his servant Yao Zhijie running over from the side.
"Young Master, something terrible has happened! The whole capital is now spreading rumors that His Majesty's decision to increase commercial taxes was the Crown Prince's idea."
"!"
Yao Zhijie's face changed drastically. Ignoring the pain in his buttocks, he scrambled to the Marquis's residence.
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