@Podi125 When you say "Ultimately, basic work doesn't benefit her unless she can get the kids off the street" you're wrong. Just because it isn't the perfect solution doesn't mean it isn't the better solution than the current solution. The important part is that this source of income doesn't run her into trouble with the law, which means that's one less organized group-and the most important one in the area-that she runs the risk of getting into trouble with. Can't really feed the children if you're thrown in prison, lose your hands, or are executed for stealing a loath of bread. But what you can do is teach the children to look out for themselves, and funnily enough, necessity tends to make people mature faster. She can hold on to the money herself and just send groceries their way if she's afraid for them, sooner or later, she can start teaching them to carry the money as well. Life's not fair, but you make what you can out of it.
I'm fine with her shit talking the nobility.
I'm not fine with author allowing her bullshit to go unchallenged.
Beggars can't be Choosers, people in her shoes don't have the luxury to sit around and say "I'm worth more than pocket change". They either get off their ass and work to make themselves a better life at the given opportunity, or they spiral into becoming the scum of society that blames everyone but themselves. She doesn't have to know that the MC is a nice guy, she just needs to understand that he will pay. It doesn't need to be the end of all her financial problems, it just has to ease her struggles.