Chapter 260 The Person Awarded by the Emperor and Empress

Chapter 260 The Person Awarded by the Emperor and Empress

Xie Wanniang was not a very class-conscious person. She not only sat down with Jiang Yuan, but also invited Haitang, Xiaomei, Xiaoyang and others to sit down as well.

Xie Wanniang also arranged for the male servants who were not suitable to follow the carriage driver and guards into the flower hall to have rooms to rest in, and sent them hot tea to warm them up and cakes and fruits to fill their stomachs.

This scene was unexpected for the twelve people who remained at the county magistrate's residence, but as expected of those bestowed upon them by the emperor and empress, each of them possessed remarkable adaptability.

The lady-in-waiting immediately sent one of the palace maids out to deliver a message. Upon hearing this, the lady-in-waiting's son, who was staying in the courtyard, immediately brewed two full pots of hot tea in a large copper kettle and delivered them to the two rooms where the coachman and guards were warming themselves by the charcoal fire.

They didn't prepare too many high-class cakes and fruits, since they had only prepared enough for the masters. But that didn't matter, since the county princess's mansion was planning a banquet, they would also prepare food for the guests' servants.

Take some of the ingredients originally prepared for guests and send them to the rooms where the coachman and guards are staying as a temporary measure. They can then replenish the ingredients later.

Xie Wanniang, who was in the main hall, was completely unaware of their quick thinking and was chatting idly with the two female officials.

The two female officials asked her if she was cold and tired on the way, while Xie Wanniang asked them if they were getting used to staying at the county princess's residence.

She wasn't one to beat around the bush, so her words implied, "If you don't want to stay here and work for me, I can return your contracts and let you leave freely."

Both female officials were shrewd; they not only understood Xie Wanniang's meaning but also realized that Xie Wanniang was sincere and not trying to test them.

The two exchanged a glance, and the more outgoing Lady Wang spoke on behalf of everyone, "To be honest, Your Highness, we all came here voluntarily. Before we came, Her Majesty the Empress asked us if we were willing."

Xie Wanniang raised an eyebrow. She hadn't expected that the Empress, the most noble woman in the country, would inquire about the personal wishes of the candidates before making a selection.

Lady Wang keenly noticed Xie Wanniang's surprise, and explained with a mixture of nostalgia and pride, "Her Majesty the Empress is wise and benevolent, and has always been kind and generous to her subjects."

Xie Wanniang nodded. In an era where servants were generally regarded as objects and private property, this Empress was indeed quite extraordinary for respecting their personal wishes as much as possible.

As she was thinking, she heard Lady Wang say again, "Lady Jiang and I are getting old and won't be able to stay in the palace for many more years. Being able to come to Baoding Prefecture to serve you is the best way out for us."

She was alright; she was a former servant of the Yuan family, and she had a son and a husband outside the palace. Even if she left the palace, she wouldn't be all alone and have nowhere to go.

Lady Jiang spent her entire life in the palace and never got married or had children.

She had finally made it to the point where she could leave the palace, and it seemed like her hard times were finally over. She could finally retire comfortably with her savings. But she had no sense at all. That's why she went back to her so-called maternal family, where her parents who had sold her were dead, her brother and sister-in-law were only interested in profit, and her nephew was nothing special but very good at bullying his own family. She let them exploit her to the bone.

But she couldn't find a place to stay all by herself, since the world wasn't very kind to single women.

Her best option would be to find a suitable family to serve as a stewardess for the ladies or grandmothers, or as a etiquette instructor for the unmarried young ladies.

Although the Empress had never met Xie Wanniang, judging from her past behavior, the Empress felt that she would be a good candidate for head of the household, so she sent Lady Jiang over.

As for why Lady Wang was willing to bring her son and husband to Baoding Prefecture, the reason is actually quite simple.

The emperor and crown prince had long since stopped personally overseeing the Yuan family's original businesses, and now the person in charge of those businesses has been replaced by the second legitimate son of the emperor's half-brother.

The emperor's half-brother was a complete wastrel who was neither good at literature nor martial arts. He had no other pursuits except for indulging in debauchery, cockfighting, and horse racing. In fact, he ruined himself at a young age.

Because his death was not honorable, even his biological father, the late emperor, always disliked him.

Fortunately, his widowed legal wife had no major flaws, except for a heartless stepmother who used her stepdaughter to secure her son's future and a scumbag father who married a second wife, had a son, and then abandoned his first wife's daughter to be mistreated.

After her scumbag husband died, her life became comfortable and happy.

Her husband's mistresses had no children and were soon sent away, leaving only her and her twin sons, living a peaceful life under the care of her husband's elders.

As for her family, once the war broke out, they were either killed or scattered, and could no longer disturb her peaceful life.

Because it was extremely difficult for her, a widow, to raise two children alone, her mother-in-law, the late Empress Dowager, always took extra care of her.

She was also sensible and would never do anything inappropriate because of her husband's mother's instigation.

Therefore, although neither of her two sons were the type to fight on horseback or be ennobled through military achievements, the emperor did not mistreat them.

Her eldest son is quite talented in water conservancy and has now been appointed as a river management official. Although he is only a fifth-rank official in the Department of Water Conservancy, he has put his knowledge to use and achieved his goal.

Her youngest son was not very talented, but she did not want him to be idle and irresponsible like her dead husband. So she asked the emperor and empress to let him help manage the household affairs.

The emperor and empress agreed without much hesitation.

Firstly, the Yuan family's original substantial assets had already been mostly sold off by the late emperor, since war is very expensive.

Secondly, as the eldest son of the emperor, His Majesty has already inherited the largest share of the legacy left by the late emperor, and he no longer cares about the remaining private property of the Yuan family.

His sister-in-law went to the Empress for help. After the Empress spoke to him, he simply asked the Empress to send people to take stock of all the property from beginning to end, and then distributed it to his half-brother's two children.

As for his own younger brother, he was capable enough to have already been granted the title of Prince based on his military achievements and had gone to his own fiefdom in the south.

Because he enjoyed the emperor's deep trust, although he, like other vassal kings, did not have the right to govern his fiefdom, he held the command of 50,000 elite troops guarding the southern border, making him a truly powerful vassal king.

He never even considered that he had a share of the family fortune left by his ancestors, the little bit that his father had managed to keep from being sold off.

Of course, even so, the emperor still set aside a small portion from his private property to make up for his rightful share.