Chapter 169 A Tiger in the Heart
Jiang Wan bent down and pulled the man up.
"Uncle Yang, you are not a slave. You are a hero who shed blood for the people of Dayu on this border battlefield. The prince told me yesterday that you were very brave and skilled in fighting when you were young!"
"Master, you are too kind. I, an old man, am ashamed of my words. If I were truly brave and skilled in fighting, I wouldn't be a crippled man living alone."
Butler Yang smiled somewhat bitterly, then raised his hand and bowed with gratitude.
"Princess, thank you for not looking down on us, the old, weak, and disabled. To be honest, when you weren't here, we were all so worried, afraid you'd chase us away.
The borderlands were impoverished and lacked any means of livelihood. Those who survived served in the military camps with limited salaries. Those who died on the battlefield left their families with even greater difficulties in making ends meet.
If it weren't for the prince's generous support over the years, I don't know how miserable we would have been. The little money the prince had was spent on the families of the fallen soldiers, which is why our Qiwang Mansion is just an empty shell.
Thank you, Princess, for not despising me."
Butler Yang was in tears as he spoke, not really knowing what he wanted to say. But he was truly grateful to the princess, grateful that she wasn't as high and mighty as he'd imagined a daughter of a wealthy family to be.
He had no descendants in this life, so these little kids in the mansion were his children. He was expressing gratitude and acknowledging his master on behalf of these poor people.
He knew what this meant, and Jiang Wan also knew it.
"Don't say that. My father was also a general who rose from humble beginnings. He understands the difficult situation of the soldiers best. Although my prince doesn't have any great abilities, I'm really happy that he can protect his men so well."
"Yes, the Duke has done us a favor."
I said this completely from the heart.
When the new dynasty was first established, poverty was everywhere.
Does this mean that the people of Dayu are really out of money?
have.
But the money was not in the hands of the emperor, nor in the hands of the people, but in the hands of the aristocratic families, big and small.
The emperor couldn't just confiscate the property for no reason, right? That would be like declaring war on the noble families, saying, "I'm going to start robbing you openly."
Oh, unless he is tired of sitting on the throne.
So the emperor himself was also very poor. The finances had been very tight for so many years. Where in the court, inside and outside, did everyone need money?
The money and food allocated to the Ministry of War is limited, and the Ministry of War distributes it to various border areas, so the amount allocated to these hard-working soldiers is even more limited.
If it weren't for Duke Ling who argued for his rights in front of the Emperor, the Ministry of War might not have been able to win over the other ministries!
Alas, that’s why Li Chengxiu didn’t get much of the family fortune when he was struggling in the capital. In the final analysis, it’s not that the emperor was stingy and didn’t care about his son, but that he really had nothing in his pocket.
After sending everyone away, Jiang Wan sat in her study, looking through the household accounts. Lying on the small table beside her were her two hands.
Hongxiu was holding an account book and looking at page after page of deficits, and couldn't help complaining.
"Princess, we're about to suffer a loss! How come the annual output of the farm in this mansion is not enough to cover the expenses?
No wonder Steward Yang smiled so guiltily when he handed over the accounts just now. After all this time, the entire Prince Qi's Mansion is a huge hole, just waiting for your dowry to fill it up!
Jiang Wan sighed.
"The Prince Qi's Mansion hasn't had any legitimate way to make money these days, and they have to support so many people, so it's normal for their expenses to be insufficient to cover their income."
Hongzhu also interjected.
"That's right. Our prince's annual salary is limited, and he has to feed countless mouths. It's almost natural that the accounts would be in deficit.
But Princess, although you brought a lot of dowry, it can at least support you for a while. But this is not a long-term solution after all, we must find a way. "
Jiang Wan nodded and lowered his eyes in deep thought.
Hongxiu raised her hand and suggested.
"How about we save some money?"
Jiang Wan shook his head.
"Saving money can only solve a temporary problem. Money is earned, not saved. Living off the savings is not a good idea, so we must find a way to increase our income."
Hongzhu was also thinking about what to do.
"How about opening a shop? Or buying some land and renting it out? If all else fails, why don't we just join the prince's team and let Ma Fei and the others go out with us to rob, or rather, help others?"
"That's an idea, but it still needs some careful planning. Also, there are some things I need to discuss with the prince."
Jiang Wan picked up the pen and made some marks on the account book.
"You two should stop trying to do anything shady. First, sort out all the accounts. I'll make arrangements once I've finalized a solution."
"yes."
The two head maids kept flipping through the accounts and copying them.
It can be seen that Jiang Wan still has certain potential to be a leader, and he makes full use of his close assistants.
After a busy morning and a simple lunch, she sat alone by the window, looking at the raindrops dancing on the windowsill with her eyes lowered in thought.
In all the years since she came to this world, she has almost never done anything particularly out of line or attempted to challenge the rules and etiquette of this world.
The mother was like a gentle lock, trying her best to lock the unruly soul in her body, and then using her gentle maternal love to persuade her little by little to surrender to the world.
He had originally thought that he would live a peaceful and obedient life according to his mother's wishes, and that his life would be fine. But now, the tiger in Jiang Wan's heart, which he had coaxed to sleep, seemed to be itching to burst out again.
In the past, as the eldest daughter of the Jiang family, she lived under the Emperor's watchful eye, so she couldn't help but be afraid to make any changes. But now, the Emperor was far away, and in this small piece of land in Dongling Prefecture, as long as she could deal with Li Chengxiu, she should be able to try many things.
What if it works?
What if?!
A bright light suddenly flashed in her eyes, it was something called hope.
She stood up and went to sit at the desk in the outer room. She took out a piece of paper and spread it out in front of her. She picked up a pen, dipped it in ink, and wrote line after line. In this gentle spring rain, her heart was suddenly filled with an inexplicable sense of pride.
It was five days later that Li Chengxiu returned.
Although it was obvious that he had cleaned himself up, the scars on his face clearly showed what good business he had done while going out these days.
"Wife, I'm back. Look, I brought you a gift! Take a look and see if you like it. If you do, I'll get it for you next time."
Carrying a small package, this guy looked excited like a big wolfhound that won a fight outside. He ran home wagging his tail at his wife, trying to show off and ask for reward.
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