The cousin's family is extremely wealthy; she deserves to be a concubine.

Everyone present understood this principle, but the old lady, the housekeeper, set rules that some money could be accepted and some could not.

For example, the Marquis's mansion absolutely could not touch usurious loans.

As for merchants who wanted to make money by relying on the Marquis's mansion, there were even more who submitted their pledges of allegiance.

But if you take the money, you have to take responsibility.

Do they really think the Marquis's family is some kind of extraordinary, high-ranking figure? In this capital city teeming with nobles, a brick falling from the city wall could easily hit an official or someone with a title.

There are plenty of people watching you, afraid you won't make a mistake.

Minor mistakes can be tolerated, but major mistakes, if they happen to be targeted by the emperor, will leave you utterly helpless and deprived of your life of wealth and honor.

Master Hua is a businessman, but he's reliable. The Hou family and the Shen family receive their money every year without any worries or risks.

But who can guarantee that if it were someone else?

"Let's wait and see. Our family has accumulated wealth over several generations. There's no reason why it shouldn't be worthless in our generation." Actually, when Madam Shen first married into the Marquis's family, the old lady was still in charge of the household, and the family wasn't as respectable as it is now.

It wasn't that the Marquis's mansion had already begun to decline at that time. Not to mention that the old Marquis was still holding an important position in the court and wielded real power.

However, the old lady felt that her family was already quite wealthy, with no shortage of food, clothing, and daily necessities, so there was no need for extravagance or waste to save face.

Overall, they have maintained a relatively low profile.

After Shen entered the household, she successfully gave birth to the eldest grandson. When the child turned two years old, she smoothly took over the management of the Marquis's mansion from the old lady.

The young wife had just gained power and was constantly going out to socialize, as she was surrounded by daughters of high-ranking families. Because of her background, she felt somewhat inferior.

However, she had a generous dowry and received a subsidy from her third sister's husband every year, which increased year by year. This inevitably fueled her competitive spirit.

Naturally, things became a bit more relaxed, and the old rules left by the old lady were broken one after another. As a result, the entire Marquis's mansion became more extravagant than it had been during the years when the old lady was in charge of the household.

"At worst, we can use the excuse of frugality to reduce some of the extravagance, just like when the old lady was in charge of the household. That should be enough to get by." If it were the young Madam Shen, who cared about her reputation, she certainly wouldn't have said such a thing.

But now her position in the Marquis's mansion is secure, and her son is the next heir. Every needle and thread saved in the mansion belongs to her son.

On the contrary, now that she's in charge, no matter how much money she spends, it all benefits outsiders.

The only people in this household who are truly close to her are the two children she gave birth to.

“What you say is very true, Madam. No matter how much we reduce it, there will definitely be no change for the young master and the seventh young lady.” Granny Zhang had been with Madam Shen for a long time. There were some things that the younger girls like Qin didn’t understand, but this old woman could see them clearly at a glance.

“What you say is true, nanny. We’ll see when we can find an opportunity to take advantage of it.”

The Shen family, master and servant, understood each other perfectly and were in good spirits.

Wang's mother and the others were also in a good mood.

Today, Chunyan went to the main kitchen to get her food as usual. The kitchen staff were much nicer than usual, but unfortunately, Chunyan is a bit oblivious and didn't notice anything special.

They only noticed the difference when the food was placed on the table.

Forget about being reserved, Mrs. Wang's face beamed with a joyful smile, "Girl, isn't this the perfect opportunity you were talking about?"

Hua Sirong was also happy, as her aunt's anger had finally subsided somewhat. "Yes, Mom, I'll trouble you to take the things to see Aunt tomorrow."

"Aren't you going, young lady?"

"Mother has probably forgotten that I'm still under house arrest. Although my meals are back to normal, my aunt hasn't announced that I'm out of confinement." As long as she's in the Marquis's residence, she's under her aunt's control, and she has to follow the rules.

Chunyan ignored the subtle banter between the girl and Wang Mama; she was just happy that she could finally have a full meal again.

As Hua Sirong ate the vegetarian dishes in her bowl, she couldn't help but sigh, "Living in a grand mansion must be really not easy."

But then she thought, she had no parents, and life was just as difficult for her in her hometown in Xishan.

At least in the Marquis's mansion, she had no worries about food and drink, and no one forced her to do anything she didn't want to do.

The next day, Wang's mother arrived at the main courtyard early to deliver the items.

Lady Hou had just finished dressing and knew that only Wang Mama had come, so she didn't make things difficult for her and simply called someone in to ask questions.

"This old servant greets the Lady Hou." Wang Mama entered the room, not daring to look around, and earnestly greeted the Lady Hou.

"Wang Mama has come so early, is there something you need?" Madam Shen seemed to be in a good mood today.

"Replying to Madam Hou, this old servant was sent by my young lady to deliver things to you. She had just arrived a few days ago and was busy settling in and getting familiar with the mansion. These past few days, she has had some free time and has tidied up the household items before asking this old servant to deliver them to you."

Shen nodded and then took the box from Qin.

While having someone offer Wang Mama a seat, Madam Shen glanced at the box that Wenqin had opened.

I glanced at it once and then looked away; the box sat quietly on the table.

Seeing that Wang Mama was sitting on a third of the small stool, Shen started chatting with her.

"Isn't Madam Wang from the Shen family? She's been serving the Hua family ever since she came along with my third sister?"

"Yes, I used to be a kitchen helper in the Shen family. Later, when the third young lady of the manor got married, I was assigned to be her dowry."

"Since the Third Miss left, I have been taking care of Miss Rong without daring to slack off." The Lady of the Marquis is the legitimate daughter of the Shen family, and to Mama Wang, she is also considered half of her former mistress.

“You are a good person. It hasn’t been easy for you to take care of your daughter all these years. Now that you’ve come to the Marquis’s mansion with your daughter, you should treat this place as your own home. You can also talk to your old acquaintances from the Shen family.”

"Yes, I left the Shen family more than ten years ago. I never thought I would see my old friends again in this lifetime." Wang Mama sighed with emotion. The three of them, mistress and servants, finally had the opportunity to slowly integrate into the big family of the Marquis's mansion. Tears welled up in her eyes.

Looking at Wang Mama's tearful eyes and graying temples, Madam Shen sighed at the fleeting nature of youth. She then looked at Wenqin and said, "Find out my gold-inlaid jade ruyi hairpin and give it to Wang Mama as a reward."

"Thank you for your generosity, Madam." Mama Wang quickly stood up and thanked her profusely.

Lady Hou waved her hand, saying, "As long as you serve your young lady well, I have many good things to reward you with."

Mrs. Wang kept praising it, thinking to herself that the returns from giving away such a good thing would be obvious, but she didn't know how long it would last.

"Come with your daughter tomorrow and have breakfast with me," Madam Shen added as Madam Wang took her leave.

Overjoyed, Mrs. Wang readily agreed.

As she walked into the large garden that connected to the main courtyard, she inadvertently turned her head and saw a richly dressed woman being helped into Yimei Garden. Judging from the woman's appearance, she was neither Madam Zhan nor Madam Jin from the mansion.