Chapter 262 Another Reliance

Chapter 262 Another Reliance

These people were specifically for families who needed servants but did not have any successful sons with official positions or academic achievements. Although their abilities and loyalty could not compare with the servants they kept at home, they could still be used in emergencies if they were carefully selected.

Although Lady Wang and Lady Jiang did not quite agree with Xie Wanniang's approach, since their master had said so, they seemed to have no other choice but to follow suit.

To their surprise, just as Lady Wang was delivering the invitation to the Marquis's residence, the Marquis's wife offered to lend them a group of servants for emergency use.

Clearly, Lady Hou understood Xie Wanniang's temperament well and knew that she wouldn't buy a large number of servants just for a mere banquet, letting them idle around in the mansion most of the time.

Compared to hiring someone temporarily, it would be more appropriate to borrow someone directly from the Marquis's residence. After a brief consideration, Lady Wang quickly accepted the Marquis's kind offer.

Of course, she reported this to Xie Wanniang immediately afterward.

When Xie Wanniang received the letter, she was not dissatisfied with Xie Wanniang's unauthorized actions. Instead, she personally prepared a generous gift and had someone send the gift and reply to the prefectural city so that she could hand the gift over to the kind-hearted Lady Hou.

Xie Wanniang also treated the servants who were sent here by the Lady Hou to help out well.

As per Xie Wanniang's request, the female official Wang gave each of them a red envelope and casually mentioned that their county princess would give everyone another reward after the banquet.

The servants who were borrowed to help were overjoyed. They would continue to receive their monthly wages from the Marquis's mansion, and the county magistrate's mansion, which had lent them the work, also gave them two bonuses. Their income for the month could easily double.

Because of the money, everyone worked extra hard, and the two female officials, who were able to do everything very smoothly, were once again very pleased that their new master was a generous person.

Many of the guests at the banquet were people who frequently interacted with the Marquis's household. Seeing that Xie Wanniang was hosting a banquet and greeting mostly servants of the Marquis's household, they couldn't help but start to wonder.

Xie Wanniang's background is now widely known throughout the court and the public. The officials and powerful families living in Baoding Prefecture have naturally also heard the news. Most of them have even dug up Jiang Yuan's background.

In truth, both of them came from very good backgrounds, but they were like two stubborn people cut from the same mold. They knew that acknowledging their kinship would bring them benefits, but neither of them was willing to take advantage of the situation.

Of course, these seasoned veterans knew very well that there was no such thing as a free lunch, but in their view, even if the pie was poisoned, Jiang Yuan and Xie Wanniang could simply put in more effort to remove the poisonous parts.

Their unequivocal rejection was hardly a wise move. After all, a marquis's estate and a prince's estate could yield considerable benefits, and it would be a real shame to let them go.

But now it seems that these two young people don't really intend to remain aloof to the end.

Although they do not acknowledge their biological parents, they have long since firmly clung to the powerful and influential family of Baoding Prefecture—the Marquis of Dingbei's mansion.

Considering the kinship between the Marquis of Dingbei's family and the Empress and Crown Prince, as well as the Emperor's protection and trust in the Crown Prince, most of the officials present couldn't help but secretly criticize Xie Wanniang and Jiang Yuan for their cunning and sharp insight.

Xie Wanniang and Jiang Yuan, who knew nothing about this, wore professional fake smiles and politely busied themselves for most of the day.

In addition to hosting a banquet to thank those who congratulated Xie Wanniang on being named a county princess, Xie Wanniang also prepared a lot of things and held a small-scale "first birthday celebration" for her daughter.

The participants in the ceremony, besides Xie Wanniang and Jiang Yuan, were only the female relatives of various families who were truly on good terms with Xie Wanniang, such as the Lady of the Marquis, the Lady of the Heir Apparent, Miss Chang Qi, the wives, sisters and daughters of some of Jiang Yuan's colleagues, the Chen family mother and daughter who came from Yi County, and Haitang, Xiaomei, Xiaoyang and others who had always been by Xie Wanniang's side.

Originally, Xie Wanniang had also invited Wang Xiaozhi and others from Mingfu Village, but they only sent gifts and did not personally come to the county princess's mansion in the prefectural city.

Although their excuse was "it's cold and inconvenient to travel," Xie Wanniang felt that they were probably lacking confidence and timid.

This is not a problem that can be solved overnight. Although Xie Wanniang felt helpless, she couldn't force others, so she simply prepared generous return gifts for them.

As for their lack of confidence, the only thing Xie Wanniang, an outsider, can do is to provide them and their children with opportunities as much as possible, allowing them to gradually strengthen themselves and become more confident in the process.

She funded the construction of the school, hired martial arts instructors, and Wang Xiaozhi's daughter, Chen Yuan, has been receiving remote embroidery instruction from her. She couldn't provide any more help for the children's future.

But the adults still have room to maneuver. For one thing, the girls' school has already been opened, and she can let all the women, including Wang Xiaozhi, go in and learn a skill.

Once they are able to support their families on their own, their husbands will be able to free up their time to learn something new.

By taking one step at a time, they will one day be able to change their fate and leave the mountain village.

Even if they don't achieve great success, at least they can provide for themselves and their families, and their happiness index will continue to improve.

After a busy day, seeing off all the guests, whether invited or uninvited, Xie Wanniang rubbed her aching back and said, "I can't go on anymore, I need to go back and lie down."

She truly hadn't expected that greeting guests would be an even more physically and mentally demanding task than practicing martial arts or gathering herbs.

Still full of energy, Haitang reached out and took her daughter's arm, saying, "I'll take you home."

Xie Wanniang nodded. "How come you still have so much energy?"

Haitang smiled at Xie Wanniang, "With Lady Wang and Lady Jiang around, I have plenty of free time."

The two ladies-in-waiting were far more adept at cultivating relationships with servants from other households and engaging in witty banter than she was.

Throughout the entire banquet, she was so busy eating and listening to gossip that she didn't feel mentally or physically exhausted.

Xie Wanniang couldn't help but feel envious, but she also knew that, as the saying goes, "If you want to wear the crown, you must bear its weight." For special groups like her who do not have the support of their husband's elders or female relatives of the same generation, while enjoying the power and convenience brought by the identity of "head of the family," they must also bear the responsibilities and obligations represented by this identity.