A long queue immediately formed in front of the Treasure Pavilion as people eagerly selected the items they needed.

A woman, who was just passing by to watch the commotion, bought two soaps on a whim to use for washing clothes at home.

Seeing so many people ahead of her heading for the Renewal Gift Box but none of them winning, she didn't hold out much hope either. She casually pulled a crumpled piece of paper from the box, opened it, and found the words "Renewal" written on it.

Meng Jianqiu, with her sharp eyes, immediately announced loudly, "Congratulations to this customer! You have won the opportunity to purchase the Renewal Gift Box! Would you like to buy it now?"

Everyone around immediately turned their attention to the woman. She was taken aback, and said with a hint of embarrassment, "Oh dear, I just grabbed it on a whim. Your gift boxes are so expensive, how could I afford them? Never mind, here you go."

As soon as she finished speaking, a man next to her immediately became anxious and stepped forward, saying, "Hey, what are you saying! You went through so much trouble to win this, why are you giving it back to them? Here, I'll give you ten coins, you give me this thing."

The moment he uttered those words, the man beside him immediately retorted, "Pah! Have you no shame? You think you can get such a big advantage for just ten coins? You're dreaming!" With that, the man turned to the woman and looked at her obsequiously, his tone laced with flattery, "Young lady, I'll offer you a hundred coins, would you mind giving me this note?"

Upon hearing "one hundred coins," the woman's eyes lit up. She went out to buy two bars of soap, spending less than fifty coins in total.

If I sell the note, I'll not only get two bars of soap for free, but I can also earn fifty coins. That would be an incredible opportunity!

Just as she was about to agree, another young maidservant called out, "I'll offer two hundred coins! Madam, please let me have this!"

This young maid is from the Jin family in the west of the city. Today, she used the excuse of shopping to come out and listen to storytelling, but who knew she would see such a fine item. If she takes it back and presents it to the madam, who knows how much reward she might get!

Before long, people around started bidding up the price of the note in the woman's hand, and it was eventually sold for 350 coins.

The woman, still dazed, walked out of the shop with 350 coins and two bars of soap. She never expected to encounter such a stroke of good fortune.

Following the "National Beauty and Heavenly Fragrance Gift Box" and the "Snowy Plateau Skin Rejuvenating Cream", the "Renewal Gift Box" has set off another wave of trends.

Jiang Liuniang, who lived in the east of the city, returned home today carrying a box wrapped in cloth. She sneaked out of the door and ran into her mother-in-law in the yard. She quickly slipped back into the house with the box.

Her mother-in-law noticed her furtive behavior and immediately found it strange. She sternly called out to her, "Stop! What are you carrying? Show it to me!"

Jiang Liuniang had no choice but to reveal the contents. When her mother-in-law saw it, she recognized it as the "Renewal Gift Box" that had been making headlines in the county recently. She was so angry that she stomped her feet and started crying and wailing.

"My God! What sins have I committed to marry such a spendthrift wife! You buy such expensive things without even consulting me! That's all money I'm saving for my grandson's wedding!"

No matter how much Jiang Liuniang tried to persuade her, her mother-in-law refused to listen. It wasn't until everyone in the family returned and sat together that the family forced Jiang Liuniang to return the item.

Jiang Liuniang refused no matter what, and finally couldn't help but shout, "Father-in-law, mother-in-law, husband, I have always been frugal since I married into our family. When have I ever bought anything useless? There is a reason why I bought this!"

Her father-in-law slammed his fist on the table, angrily saying, "What you're buying now is useless stuff! What kind of family do we have? Who do you think you are, a lady or a young mistress? What's the use of such expensive things for your face!"

Jiang Liuniang's husband quickly stopped her, "Father, please let Liuniang finish speaking."

Jiang Liuniang took a deep breath and continued, "My parents-in-law know that I used to be a maid in a wealthy household, and I often combed and dressed the ladies of the house."

Her mother-in-law interrupted impatiently, "What does this have to do with you buying this gift box? You left the mansion a long time ago. Do you mean to sell this gift box to your former master's family?"

Jiang Liuniang also lost her temper, raising her voice eight octaves, "Let me finish what I have to say! A few days ago, my eldest uncle's daughter got married, and you all asked me to do her makeup, do you remember? When the bride came out that day, who didn't praise how beautiful she was? On the spot, many people said they also wanted me to do their daughters' makeup when they got married!"

"I saw this at the Treasure Pavilion today, and it's absolutely amazing! It can completely transform a person's appearance when used for makeup! If I had this, I could specialize in doing makeup for brides in the future, and then I'd have earned back the money I spent!"

Her mother-in-law was somewhat skeptical, "That's too expensive. How many times can you paint like that?"

“I’ve checked them all. Each time I do makeup, I don’t use many of these things. I also asked the shop assistant, and he said that even if I use them every day, they can last for four or five months. Once I learn how to do makeup, I can charge her two hundred coins each time, and I can earn the money back in no time.”

"Two hundred coins? That's so expensive!" Jiang Liuniang's father-in-law exclaimed in surprise.

“Father-in-law, you don’t understand. A wedding is a big day, probably only once in a lifetime. I can not only do your makeup, but also do your hair. The fee is not expensive at all.”

Everyone recalled that Jiang Liuniang's skills in combing hair and applying makeup were indeed quite good, and thought it was a good idea.

Five taels of silver is expensive, but they are people from the county, and they won't starve because of this amount of money. It wouldn't hurt to give it a try.

So, Jiang Liuniang often went to the Treasure Pavilion to learn makeup skills. She gradually became a regular at doing makeup for brides and later became quite famous in the county. She traveled back and forth between villages and the county every day, and even gained a reputation in other counties, with people coming to invite her to do makeup.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!