Chapter 271 Donations from Others

Chapter 271 Donations from Others

Because she hired a tutor for her daughter, this wealthy woman successfully established a relationship with Xie Wanniang and became a frequent visitor to her home. This shocked and made the female relatives of officials in Zijing Pass, who originally looked down on her, unable to hide their contempt.

Of course, this disdain was directed at Xie Wanniang. Many people said in private that Xie Wanniang was really wasting her good background. Her biological father was a prince, her adoptive father was a great scholar, and her biological mother and adoptive mother were both daughters of officials. Yet, she was so indiscriminate in making friends.

Those who were close to her, upon hearing the rumors, anxiously went to her door to probe and offer gentle advice, but Xie Wanniang only smiled and said, "Actually, Madam Liang is a very nice person."

As for the fact that her husband's family was nouveau riche and that her husband was just a common soldier who had climbed to the rank of low-ranking military officer by chance because of his bravery in battle, Xie Wanniang said, "If we really talk about it, I am also just a nouveau riche, and my husband is just a common soldier who has slowly climbed to his current position because of his repeated meritorious service in battle."

The other person was rendered speechless by her smiling words, unable to offer any further advice. If you wanted to get angry or criticize her for being ungrateful, she would be sincere and gentle, acting as if she were open and honest with you, making it impossible for you to find fault with her, even if you felt aggrieved.

After successfully shooing away three people who came to persuade her, Xie Wanniang was finally able to continue her daily life in peace and quiet.

As for Madam Liang, she wasn't lying. Although Madam Liang was a bit insecure, didn't know how to dress herself, and was somewhat lacking in manners, she was genuinely kind and of good character.

If she lived in the Xie family, it would be one thing for the Xie family's relatives and friends to criticize Madam Liang, since they certainly had the right to do so.

But how different are the families of these military officers at Zijing Pass from Madam Liang?

It's just a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

At the very least, even if Xie's relatives and friends looked down on Madam Liang, they would never be so rude as to deliberately ostracize her, or speak ill of her behind her back just because someone was willing to befriend her.

Etiquette and manners are not something that can be achieved by mere formalities; the elegance and refinement of aristocratic families are ingrained in their very bones.

It's one thing to feel that someone is inferior to you, but in interpersonal interactions, you still need to be polite and courteous, making others feel comfortable and at ease.

Besides, Xie Wanniang herself was a little orphan with unknown parents in her previous life, so if we're really talking about her background...

Well, ever since she first heard the word "female," she felt very uncomfortable, as if it were about nitpicking the bloodline or teeth of livestock.

I don't know how those guys who claim to be superior because of their "origins" can say such derogatory and smug things while being like cattle, horses, pigs, and sheep.

In any case, she would never look down on someone because of something as trivial as their background. What she could never tolerate was someone who was malicious, morally corrupt, and shameless. In short, someone whose core was rotten. Other aspects, such as background, wealth, confidence, or whether someone was reserved or shy, were not things to be despised.

After all the ladies who had tried to persuade her to keep her distance from Madam Liang dispersed, Xie Wanniang happily used all the 9,500 taels of silver that Madam Liang had given her on the grassroots women of Yi County and Tang County.

Her girls' school not only toured the villages and towns under the jurisdiction of Yi County, but she also sent it to Tang County, starting from Mingfu Village, to continue mobile teaching in the villages and towns under the jurisdiction of Tang County.

The magistrates of Tang County and Yi County were very grateful to Xie Wanniang, as the improved lives of the people under their jurisdiction were a significant achievement for them.

Of course, some of their subordinates also privately lamented to their county magistrate that it would be even better if Xie Wanniang were willing to take out this money to support the county school and the private schools in various villages and towns.

Fortunately, they weren't completely confused and didn't dare to shamelessly dance in front of Xie Wanniang.

After all, it's fine for them to say such things in private, but if they dare to say them to Xie Wanniang, that girl won't tolerate their greedy and unreasonable behavior.

Don't even mention that she's a county princess now. Even back when she was just an orphan girl starting from scratch, she wasn't afraid to confront her biological father's family head-on.

Everyone asked themselves honestly: if they were in Xie Wanniang's position, even if they weren't tempted by the wealth and glory of the Nanyang Prince's Mansion, they would surely choose to be pragmatic and shrewd because of their own weakness, instead of being like Xie Wanniang, who clearly accumulated strength and expanded her network step by step, choosing to confront the Nanyang Prince's Mansion head-on.

Women with such strong personalities and the ability to uphold those strengths are not to be trifled with.

Their superiors, the two county magistrates, were much more sensible than they were. While they would gossip behind each other's backs, the two magistrates never even considered such a thing.

To put it bluntly, Xie Wanniang earned the money herself through her own abilities. How she spends it has nothing to do with us outsiders.

It would be strange if they wanted to tell others how to spend their money.

As for the Xie clan members who share the same surname as Xie Wan Niang, there's no need to mention the very few shameless ones, since they can't possibly get close to Xie Wan Niang anyway. The vast majority of the rest don't have the face to interfere with Xie Wan Niang's spending habits.

Even if Xie Wanniang were still unmarried, she was a young girl who earned her own money. They didn't have the nerve to try and take a share of it.

After all, they were a distinguished family with a long tradition of scholarship and poetry, and the people in power in the family were all upright and of good character. Only someone who had been kicked in the head by a donkey would have gone to such lengths for money, handing over ready-made dirt to the clan leader and the elders, and eagerly letting them be dealt with.

Because everyone had their own considerations, not only did no one in the Xie clan criticize Xie Wan Niang's actions, but many of her female relatives, such as her adoptive mother Hu, her aunts and cousins, and her sister, all contributed their private savings to support Xie Wan Niang in expanding and strengthening her girls' school.

Xie Wanniang didn't stand on ceremony with them; she accepted all the money. But in return, after spending the money, she returned a ledger to each of them, some thin and some thick.

Along with the letter, she also sent a handwritten letter and a pile of gifts for her relatives.

The gifts weren't particularly expensive, but they were all carefully selected by her to reflect her sentiments, and were either embroidered items, fabrics, furs, pastries, tea, wine, or local specialties.