He Shuijin went ahead and did it. Two days later, there was news that she got so mad that she imposed heavy punishment on a dozen stewards. Of course, the reason was that they made major mistakes that had resulted in huge losses.

“It is no exaggeration to say that our family is now rolling in money every day. You and the stewards have earned so much for the family over the years, haven’t you? But we all make mistakes. You can punish them for their occasional mistakes. Why be so angry?” When Madame Tao found out about this, she called He Shuijin over and advised her, “Don’t make them feel chilled in their hearts. It is okay to make up for the mistakes in other ways. You need to take care of such a big family. Even though you are young, it’s no good for your health if you always get angry!”

“My grandmother, the thing you don’t know is that I have got a plan to make a good deal of money. They didn’t get things wrong before while at this point, they made mistakes. As such, I’m afraid that we won’t make much this year!” He Shuijin told Madame Tao gloomily, “According to my calculations, our family has lost all the money we earned in the past few years. And we may have to pay more for cleaning up the mess!”

Madame Tao was shocked at her words, “How could this happen?”

“I am to blame for being greedy. I had the intention to set up this trap a few years ago. But I didn’t expect that I would get myself into trouble!” He Shuijin was ashamed and apologized, “Although it was the stewards who made mistakes, I am also responsible for the lack of discipline. I have decided to put in my dowry to make up for it. But this is not enough… Please punish me, my grandmother!”

“Don’t say that! Why are you going to use your dowry? No matter how much we lose in business, the Jiang Family will never come to use the dowry of my granddaughter-in-law! Just take your dowry away! If I find out that you dare to use your own private property to fill the gap in the public accounts, I will not spare you!” Madame Tao pulled a long face instantly, “Let it go at that! In business, it’s normal to lose or win. When you made money for the family in the early years, it went into the public accounts and was divided among all of us. It did not all go into your personal pocket. Now that there is loss, you’re going to fill it with your own money. It doesn’t make sense.”

Madame Tao passed on the message to all the branches. Before He Shuijin spoke, she offered, “Our family was spending a lot of money over the years. I have thought that we should cut costs somewhere in this family. But I have never remembered to ask! Now that we’ve lost a lot of money on the business, I think we should take this opportunity to cut back on spending, except for your grandfather.”

All branches had long been informed by He Shuijin. They knew that it was to prevent the Kui Xiannan’s branch from squandering the funds belonging to the Marquess’s Mansion after they arrived in Jing City. So, they all readily agreed. And they also said, “It is, of course, reasonable to reduce our spending. But how could our grandmother’s spending be curtailed?”

Madame Tao could not make the juniors change their minds. So, she had to promise that her spending and that of Marquess Qin would remain unchanged. Only the expenses of each branch would be reduced. It was also in accordance with the generation. The expenses of the generation of Jiang Tianqi were reduced less and basically remained unchanged.

After all, Jiang Tianju and Jiang Tianjun were already at this age. As there was Madame Han in Kui County, the two brothers couldn’t leave their mother behind and come to Jing City after they observed their mourning, right?

So, it was the grandchildren who were really cut down more on the expenses. After confidential discussions between the branches, the amount of money set for the grandchildren was less than half of what it was before…

Let alone the great grandchildren.

“The two junior young masters are still young. If their expenses are deducted like this all of a sudden, won’t their future food and accommodation be downgraded as well?” When Mrs. Zhou and Mrs. Qu heard the news, they were both a little worried.

“Nope!” Qiu Yelan waved her hand, “While our spending is going to be reduced in public accounts, we can live the same life as before. If we need extra money, just take it from my dowry!”

In fact, Qiu Yelan did not care how much property she could get from her husband’s family in the future. The main reason why she was standing with He Shuijin was that she was worried that the second branch and the fifth branch would affect the interests of the fourth branch politically when they came to Jing City.

So, despite giving He Shuijin the idea of cutting back on expenses, she had no intention of making her branch condemned to a life of hardship. Whatever, she had a large dowry!

When Jiang Yashuang knew that, he said, “I am kind of a kept man, aren’t I?” At that time, the rule was that no one was allowed to acquire private property before the family was divided even though everyone would break this rule in private. Otherwise, how could they set up their own forces? But in order not to be discovered, the size of the private property was not that big!

And the earnings from the private property were needed to gather subordinates. His salaries were also used for that. He had always relied on the public accounts to support his family. As the public accounts were cutting back on expenses now, the people in this branch would have to lower their living standards if Qiu Yelan did not take the dowry to make up for it.

“There are conditions to be a kept man. If someone is not handsome enough, he cannot be a kept man even if he wants!” Qiu Yelan touched his lips with her fingers with an evil grin, “Yashuang, don’t you think so?”

Jiang Yashuang looked at her with a smirk. Suddenly, he stretched his arm and pulled her into his arms. And he said slowly, “It is not enough to be handsome. He also has to…” He abruptly turned around and carried her into the bed net, and murmured in her ear, “Be good at serving his woman, right?”

The second day, Qiu Yelan got up with her back aching. She irritably pushed the arms holding around her and said darkly, “Serve… Do you serve me? Or do I serve you?”

Jiang Yashuang pulled her into his arms again with a smile and said lazily, “The husband and the wife are one flesh. Isn’t it the same for us?”

“It is not the same!” Qiu Yelan snorted and tried to get out from his arms, “Stop it! Let me go! Empress Dowager’s birthday is coming in a couple of days. I’ve asked someone to come and make some new clothes! I can’t get up late!”

“You look good in any outfit. Why put any effort into dressing up?” Jiang Yashuang kissed her on the cheek. And then he released her with fondness and teased, “Everyone else will be out of style by then and will surely hate you!”

“If they hate me, they should hate you as well!” Qiu Yelan bickered with him while she was getting dressed.

Jiang Yashuang laughed out loud and said smugly, “There are many people who hate me as I have a beautiful wife and lovely kids. Do you think it only starts on Empress Dowager’s birthday?”

The two of them got up, laughing and joking. It was the day to pay respects to Madame Tao. So, after Qiu Yelan helped her husband dress up and sent him out on his errand, she asked the wet nurses to carry the two children and together they went to the yard of Madame Tao.

Madame Tao was always considerate. If there was nothing important, she never detained her juniors. She would basically let them go after greetings. Of course, she also liked it when her juniors were free and willing to spend more time with her.

But today Madame Tao sent the others away except Qiu Yelan, “Yesterday your youngest grand aunt sent someone over to our mansion to tell me about something. You may need to do an errand!”

Qiu Yelan said rapidly, “Grandmother, just tell me!”

“Your thirteenth brother has finished his mourning. Madame Mi Junior was not virtuous. And she didn’t have a baby for him! So, he was still all alone after all the years since he got married!”

Madame Tao sighed, “Your youngest grand aunt saw how pitiful he looked all alone. Now your sixth uncle and sixth aunt are still in their mourning. And there is a rift between your thirteenth brother and your sixth aunt over the matter of Madame Mi Junior. So, your youngest grand aunt thinks she should deal with it! She has found a girl for your thirteenth brother. She is the youngest lady of the Feng Family, who is said to be very close to your cousin Ruan Ciyi of your maiden family. So, your youngest grand aunt wants you to find out more about her from your cousin lest she ends up like Madame Mi Junior, who was said to be so good. But after she married your thirteenth brother, they found that they got screwed!”

When Qiu Yelan heard Madame Tao say this, she vaguely recalled something. When Ruan Ciyi had just returned to Jing City, Qiu Jinglan was annoyed with her ex-husband Fang Nongyan who bullied the Ruan Family as it had been declined, spoiling his mistresses and dishonoring his wife. In order to end the matrimonial relationship between Ruan Ciyi and Fang Nongyan, Qiu Jinglan begged Madame Sun of the Xue Family to come forward and invited a number of noblewomen to check on Ruan Ciyi’s injuries. At that time, Madame Feng was the first to come forward and cried foul for Ruan Ciyi. Madame Feng was said to be the closest friend of Ruan Ciyi’s mother, Madame Tan, when she was a girl.

Could it be that this Miss Feng was the junior of that Madame Feng?

Although Jiang Yalan was not such a dedicated person, he was not a bad person. If it were not for Mi Yinyin who was obsessive, the two of them would not come to divorce. All in all, Cousin Yalan was no match for the top of the noble sons. He was neither as good as the real heirs like Jiang Yashuang who had been carefully educated, nor as bad as the fops represented by Jiang Yadan who had been completely abandoned by the family.

If he was given an overall score… Qiu Yelan thought for a while and felt that it was not a pitfall for Miss Feng. So, she agreed.

She sent a message to Ruan Ciyi that day and came to the door the next day. “This is what happened. Please talk to me about it so that I can go back and tell my grandmother!”

Ruan Ciyi was a bit surprised, “Feng Hanyan? I didn’t have a lot of contact with her before. Otherwise, you would have met her. But she is very fond of Shan’er. After seeing him at the one-month birthday banquet with her aunt, she came over every other day. And that’s how I get to be familiar with her.”

Shan’er was exactly Li Shan, the son of Ruan Ciyi and Li Qianzhi.

Qiu Yelan made a note of this and asked her to elaborate on Feng Hanyan’s appearance, talents, and personality.

Ruan Ciyi pondered for a moment and said, “She looks quite similar to her aunt, whom you should have met, the closest friend of my mother in her early years.”

Sure enough, it was that Madame Feng’s own niece!

“If so, she is a beauty too!” Qiu Yelan recalled. She didn’t remember much of what Madame Feng looked like. But it seemed to her that although Madame Feng was a little older, her beautiful face could still be recognized. Furthermore, as Feng Hanyan had been listed as a candidate of Jiang Yalan’s wife, Madame Tao’s trusted subordinate must have seen her. How could Madame Tao not consider the appearance when she was choosing a new wife for her grandson?

“As for the talent… I think it’s similar to that of an ordinary lady. She can do a few things that a lady should master. I don’t find her particularly outstanding. But she has got a great personality. Shan’er is at the age when he likes to cry. The fact is that you can find a lot of people unless they are parents or wet nurses, who just like children when they are not crying. When children make a fuss, they want to hide away!” Ruan Ciyi said, “She is patient. Every time she comes to see Shan’er, not only does she not hide when he cries, but she often offers to coax him for the wet nurse.”

And with that, she laughed softly, “Don’t worry. To be honest with you, Shan’er is now even closer to his Aunt Feng than you, the real aunt.”

“When she gives her heart, she gets something in return!” Qiu Yelan was not jealous. She covered her mouth and smiled, “Didn’t Shan’er call out to me just now? He is not too distant from me, either!”

After laughing and listening to Ruan Ciyi’s specific story about Feng Hanyan, Qiu Yelan stayed at the Li Family for lunch before she left.

When she returned to the Marquess’s Mansion, she told Madame Tao all about it. After listened that, Madame Tao nodded, “I’ll send Mom Hu to tell your youngest grand aunt. If things work out later, I’ll ask her to reward you with her personal fortune!”

“It’s my duty to share my elders’ worries, not to mention that I had a gathering with Cousin Ruan. How can I ask for my youngest grand aunt’s reward?” Qiu Yelan smiled and refused it. After having a few words with Madame Tao, she excused herself and went back to the yard. When she entered the room, Mumian served the drink Fufangyin as usual for her. When Qiu Yelan took a sip of it, she suddenly felt a feeling of retching. Before she could call someone to get a spittoon, she vomited violently, causing everyone around her to be shocked!