After receiving the waterway designs and irrigation method given by Yao Zhi, Xue Ya’er didn’t send them to her husband. After all, the White Tiger Army had no farmland, and the soldiers couldn’t be dispatched without permission.

Since the Xue family’s elders were present, she invited them for dinner and showed them the drawings and instructions as she explained what Yao Zhi told her before.

The moment the elders saw the irrigation method and the waterway design, their eyes lit up. Although they were from the branch families, their families were still able to own one or two medium-sized estates.

Due to the uneven ground, it cost them a lot of money to hire people to take care of their estates. Not only did they need to fertilize and control pests, but they still had to water them manually.

If they could apply this irrigation method, it would save them a lot of manpower and money. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

Reaching this conclusion, the Second Elder asked, "Eldest Miss, what do you plan to do with these?"

Hearing this, Xue Ya’er smiled. "Second Elder, although the design and irrigation method look credible, we still have to try them out first and see if they are as effective as Young Master Lei claimed."

After a moment of pause, she continued, "So, I was thinking if the elders would be willing to try them out first?"

Although the elders were more than willing to try them, they didn’t show it on their faces.

Instead, the Third Elder asked, "Eldest Miss, what if this method doesn’t work? Not to mention that we will waste a lot of money and manpower, we will suffer a huge loss if the harvest fails."

Xue Ya’er knew that for them to become the Xue family’s elders, they must be a group of shrewd old men. Saying that was nothing but asking her to give them some benefits or guarantees to cover their losses.

They really thought so highly of themselves. They wanted to get all the benefits but were unwilling to shoulder the risk. There was no such good thing in this world.

Isn’t it just acting poor and pitiful? Who can’t do that?

With those thoughts, Xue Ya’er let out a long sigh and replied with a troubled expression, "Third Elder, I will be honest with you."

"Everyone knows that the northern border is often harassed by barbarians. My husband, as the General of the army, has to dispatch the soldiers to guard our kingdom. The continued war caused the weapons and armors to be repaired and resupplied very often."

"I believe that everyone has already heard from my father about the situation in the Capital. With how messy the political situation is, the soldiers’ stipends and military supplies have been delayed. For years, I have used my dowry to cover the stipends and supplies."

Before the Second Elder could rebuke her words, she continued, "Elders, don’t think that my dowry was a lot when I married the General."

"In the past years, it has almost been emptied out since I not only had to subsidize the entire General’s mansion but also the White Tiger army."

"Lately, the locust plague caused the estates to suffer great losses, and I need to allocate more money to buy grains. Adding to the recent winter disaster and plague, where they need a lot of medicine, clothes, and grains, I have already used the last bit of my dowry."

After she finished her words, tears rolled from Xue Ya’er’s eyes as if they were free, and she used her handkerchief to wipe away her tears.

She took a deep breath and added, "If not for thinking about the benefit this marriage could bring to the Xue family, I would have long packed up my belongings and divorced my husband."

"Everyone thinks that I’m enjoying glory and wealth, but no one knows how hard it is for me to survive. My husband is rarely at home, and I guard the empty room all year round."

"I have no children, work harder than a servant, wake up earlier than a chicken, and sleep later than a dog. Not only that, I still need to subsidize the family and use up all of my dowry."

When the elders heard this, their hearts sank, and a bad feeling surged in them. As expected, Xue Ya’er’s words made them regret their earlier righteous claims of supporting her.

"Elders, you see how hard my life is. Can you please lend me some money? I don’t need much, 800,000 taels of silver is enough."

As soon as they heard this, their faces turned pale, then turned red, before it became blue. Their faces were so colorful that Dong Mei almost cried from holding back her laugh.

While she was enjoying the show, the elders almost fainted from Xue Ya’er’s outrageous demand.

She asked for 800,000 taels of silver, and still said it was not much?!

Seeing how bad their expressions were, Xue Ya’er sobbed and complained softly. "Didn’t the elders say that you would support me? I didn’t ask for much, just to lend me some money. Is it that hard to do?"

Fearing that she would press them further, the First Elder interrupted her, "Eldest Miss, it’s not that we don’t want to help, but the amount you are asking for is really too much for us. Even if we sold all of our family’s assets, it wouldn’t even cover half of it."

When Xue Ya’er heard this, she let out a dramatic, long sigh and replied in a helpless tone, "First Elder, I understand."

Before the elders could even let out a sigh of relief, she continued, "Since the elders can’t lend me 800,000 taels of silver, then I will accept any amount."

After she said this, she stared at them with her red, teary eyes.

Under her gaze, the elders broke out in a cold sweat. When they came, they were eager and excited because the Patriarch said that his daughter had made a connection with a powerful figure.