After thinking for a while, Jiang Yimian still couldn't figure out what Xie Yu was thinking, and decided to ask him in detail next time she saw him.
Aunt Yun looked at the people in the room and asked curiously, "Where's Xiaochun?"
She hadn't seen him every time she came these past few days, and initially thought he was resting. But now she realized something was wrong; surely Xiaochun wouldn't be resting every time she came?
This girl isn't the type to slack off.
The girls looked at each other, and after a while, one of them, who had a pretty face, pointed to the inner room and whispered, "Make incense in the small room."
Aunt Yun frowned, then immediately understood, "She's gone to make 'Spring River Moon' again?"
The other girls just lowered their heads and didn't say a word, looking like wilted eggplants.
Aunt Yun could only sigh helplessly and asked, "How long has that girl been inside?"
The pretty girl hesitated for a moment before saying, "These past few days, I've been inside except for eating and sleeping. Aunt Yun, Xiaochun just wants to help the shop and doesn't want the business to get any worse. Please don't blame her."
Ever since Qiu Niang took away the best incense maker in the shop, they have regretted not learning more incense-making techniques from her.
They also regretted not discovering Qiu Niang and the others' intention to leave from the beginning; otherwise, Bao Xiang Fang would never have fallen into such a state.
Aunt Yun looked at the girls in front of her and didn't know what to say for a moment. She could only say helplessly, "Never mind, let's wait until Xiaochun comes out."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a deliberately suppressed gasp came from the inner room, "Ah!"
Aunt Yun was startled and quickly went into the inner room.
Jiang Yimian followed closely behind.
As soon as the door was opened, thick white smoke filled the room, and a mixture of various fragrances wafted out, which was not pleasant and refreshing, but instead made people frown.
Jiang Yimian waved the white smoke in front of her, and it took her a while to see clearly the person squatting on the ground next to Aunt Yun.
The girl looked to be about seventeen or eighteen years old, with delicate and charming features. Like the others in Baoxiangfang, she was wearing a light green dress, but her clothes were covered with all sorts of colors, making it difficult to recognize her original appearance.
Xiaochun was clearly frightened by the two of them. After a while, she stammered with red eyes, "Aunt Yun, I, I can't make Spring River Moon. There won't be any more Spring River Moon in the shop in the future."
There isn't much inventory in the warehouse right now, and the Spring River Moon Festival won't be over for another few days. Baoxiangfang's business will probably get even worse.
She had been with Aunt Yun since she was a child, and she didn't want to see Baoxiangfang, which Aunt Yun cared about, end up with no business.
I don't want people in the capital to sigh when they mention Baoxiangfang in the future.
Aunt Yun simply reached out and patted Xiaochun's head, comforting her, "It's alright. You've been working hard these past few days. Go back and change your clothes and rest. You don't need to worry about Baoxiangfang's business; I have my own ways."
Xiaochun shook her head with red eyes, "No, I'll try again. I'm sure I can do it. I've seen Qiu Niang do it so many times before, I'm sure I can succeed."
She has always been a quick learner, but she just kept failing at "Spring River Moon" and never succeeded, and she didn't even know why.
Unlike other incense balls, this one doesn't allow you to pinpoint whether the problem lies with the heat or the ingredients if it fails.
If the incense pills fail, they will not have the original fragrance of "Spring River Moon" at all, but instead have an indescribable strange smell.
She tried all sorts of cooking methods, and confirmed that the recipe came from Qiu Niang, but she just couldn't make Spring River Moon.
She had tried lighting the Spring River Moon in her workshop for the past few days to see what was different about the incense pills, but she still couldn't make them successfully.
Seeing Xiaochun cry, Aunt Yun's eyes also reddened, but she quickly suppressed them and said with a smile, "Yes, Aunt Yun believes you can do it. The most important thing now is for you to rest first. You can't let your body collapse before you even finish making the incense."
These days, the people in Baoxiangfang have been in a bad mood, especially the incense makers. She wanted to comfort them, but everyone could see the situation in the shop, so her attempts to calm them down were ineffective.
Seeing Xiaochun cry, she couldn't help but feel sad too.
She bears some responsibility for Baoxiangfang becoming what it is today.
Seeing that everyone was somewhat disappointed, Jiang Yimian hesitated for a moment before saying, "Actually, it doesn't necessarily have to be Spring River Moon."
Even if we could make it now, it wouldn't be as good as Yan Yuege's. Since Qiu Niang is so skilled at making incense, she must know more than just "Spring River Moon".
Baoxiangfang has the Spring River Moon, and she has the Autumn River Moon, Summer River Moon, and Winter River Moon.
"But your knowledge of 'Spring River Moon' is useless; Baoxiangfang will never return to its original state."
Xiaochun swayed for a moment, and the determined expression on her face gradually disappeared. She lowered her head in frustration. "You're right. I'm too useless. After following Qiu Niang around for so many years to learn how to make incense, I still only know how to make some ordinary incense balls."
"I could never do what those ladies of the capital adored."
She knew perfectly well that even if she made a "Spring River Moon" performance, it would be useless. She just didn't want to admit defeat like that, and she didn't want to be mocked by the person who left.
Jiang Yimian said helplessly, "That's not what I meant. I just wanted to tell you that if Baoxiangfang wants to return to its former glory, it can't rely solely on what it used to have."
You're all just imitating Qiu Niang now. No matter how well you imitate her, it can never be the real thing.
Everyone at Baoxiangfang wanted to return to its former bustling state, but the only solution they could think of was to find someone skilled in incense making, or someone who could barely match Qiu Niang's skill.
How could such a method possibly improve Baoxiangfang's business?
Moreover, since Spring River Moon is Qiu Niang's signature skill, it is naturally impossible for anyone to learn it easily. Even if Xiao Chun tries a hundred or a thousand times, she will not be able to make Spring River Moon like Qiu Niang.
These words stunned not only Xiaochun and Aunt Yun, but also the others who had come with them.
They never considered any other method, because Baoxiangfang had established itself in the capital by relying on its incense pills. They naturally felt that to revive Baoxiangfang's business, they should use the same incense pills as before.
Aunt Yun took a while to speak before asking, "What are your thoughts?"
Jiang Yimian simply said, "Although I don't understand incense, you do."
Since it's already good that someone is making incense, why should we force ourselves to do it? Let's try something new instead.
Can you add various medicinal herbs to the scented pills without damaging their medicinal properties, and still maintain their fragrance?
Instead of all the same old fragrances, why not make fragrant pills that can cure diseases? Surely some people will like that kind of fragrance.
Xiaochun hesitated for a while before nodding and saying, "I can give it a try."
Having made incense for so many years, she only knew that some medicinal herbs could be used to extract fragrance, but she never thought of actually adding medicinal herbs into incense pills without destroying their medicinal properties.
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