Chapter 9 Exploration
When we returned to Cuiwei Garden, it was already dusk. The golden sun had set in the west, and only the setting sun remained in the sky, leaving behind a large expanse of purple and red sunset glow.
It will be a sunny day tomorrow.
Yun Wan sat cross-legged on the square couch, looking at the sky outside the carved window and thought to herself.
Thinking of more important things, she picked up a pen and wrote a few lines on a blank piece of rice paper, then called her maid Yuezhi.
After handing the incense recipe to Yuezhi, Yunwan gave detailed instructions: "Please stop making other incense for now. Tell the incense shop to purchase the above spices as soon as possible, mix them according to the recipe, and then send them to Yunxiang Shop."
Yunxiang Shop was originally one of the dowry shops that Yunmu brought with her when she married into the Yun family. Later, when Yun Wan got married, this shop naturally became her dowry.
The shop was located in the city's East Market, near Zhuque Street, in a very prosperous and bustling area. However, before Yun Wan took over, the shop was poorly managed, with average profits and barely surviving.
It was not until Yun Wan's careful management that the incense products were updated and several types of incense were released that were highly sought after by women in the capital. Only then did Yunxiang Shop turn losses into profits and become one of the famous incense shops in the capital.
"As usual, wait for the incense shop to prepare the incense formula and send it to me for review. If there are no unexpected problems, I will first make 300 incense balls, 100 carved incense balls, 50 incense corners, and 1 zhu of powdered incense."
After finishing speaking, Yun Wan paused for a moment, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "The incense pills are priced at 20 strings of cash per box, and the carved incense pills are priced at 10 strings of cash per box, and as for the incense horns and powdered incense, let Hu Niang decide."
Yuezhi, who had been quietly following instructions and taking notes, was surprised when she heard this: "Madam, is this too expensive? What if it doesn't sell well..."
Wouldn’t that be a loss?
Especially the carved incense balls, which are the same size and weight as ordinary incense balls, but have some more complex carvings on the surface, making them more expensive by more than one or two taels.
The lunar branch is worried.
Yun Wan shook her head: "No."
Her tone was firm, as if she was confident.
Yuezhi has always believed in her wife. She is the wife's maid who came with her as a dowry. Her main responsibility, in addition to taking care of the wife, is to convey the wife's words to the shop owner outside.
It is not easy to turn a shop that has been making losses for many years into a profit. She has seen all the difficulties the lady has gone through over the years.
Seeing this, Yuezhi was no longer worried. She glanced at the incense recipe in her hand and asked, "Madam, what is the name of this incense?"
Yun Wan curled her lips: "Yun Yin, it was a name bestowed by His Majesty."
"The name was given by His Majesty?" Yuezhi was dumbfounded and almost suspected that he had heard it wrong.
After explaining the incident that happened in the palace that afternoon in a few words, Yun Wan's face looked thoughtful, and he said thoughtfully:
"Take some time to go to the shop and tell Hu Niang about this matter. Ask her to find a few people to spread the news."
Hu Niang, also known as Hu Niangzi, is the owner of the incense shop. Yun Wan has been able to manage the Yunxiang Shop in an orderly manner over the years, and this is inseparable from Hu Niang's ability.
"The Emperor bestowed the name Yunyinxiang"
This gimmick alone is enough to make people stop and take a look. After all, everyone would be curious about what the incense named by the emperor himself looks like and how rare it is.
Once it arouses people's curiosity, the incense will be sold smoothly.
Especially for the high-ranking officials in the capital, it was inevitable that they would follow the emperor in all aspects to show their loyalty. If the emperor liked the incense, it must be good, and buying more would be a good idea.
Even if the officers and scholars were too shy to go and buy the things themselves, or else they might be criticized for fawning on their superiors, they would definitely send their servants or instruct the women in their families to buy them for them.
Logically speaking, Yun Wan should have priced her product higher, but unfortunately the spices used in Yun Yin Xiang were not too expensive. Considering the reputation of Yun Xiang Shop, she took a compromise price.
Just think of it as using Yunyinxiang to make the reputation of "Yunxiangpu" even higher.
Yuezhi obviously understood the reasoning and immediately smiled happily: "Madam, don't worry, I will definitely take care of this matter!"
Yun Wan curled her lips and said, "Remember to reveal the 'name bestowed by the Emperor', but also be careful not to make random inferences."
The more you talk, the more mistakes you make. Maintaining a certain level of mystery will have the opposite effect.
Yuezhi nodded heavily, full of energy.
She folded the incense recipe and put it carefully in her arms, then went out.
The room became quiet, and the sunset glow in the sky gradually faded away, replaced by twilight.
Yun Wan lit a candle, and the surrounding brightness slowly swallowed up the darkness.
In an instant, the look of Emperor Jingxuan today suddenly appeared in her mind.
No one knew that even though it was just a simple question, Yun Wan felt a chill running down his spine.
Fortunately, no one noticed anything.
Putting aside irrelevant thoughts, Yun took the hand and picked up the books and copybooks that Asui had not put away when he left, and folded them carefully one by one.
.........
The imperial palace, the emperor's bedroom.
Jiang Fusheng walked hurriedly into the hall. His round body seemed a little heavy, and a thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead under the brim of his hat.
"Your Majesty, I have already found out."
Emperor Jingxuan did not look up, his attention was on the book in his hand.
Jiang Fusheng took a breath and continued, "Mrs. Lu San is from the Yun family. She is the legitimate daughter of the Yun family and the original wife of Minister Yun, surnamed Cen. Her ancestors were skilled in making incense and wrote the 'Cen Family Incense Recipe'. This book was later brought to the Yun family by Mrs. Yun."
"Rumor has it that the Yun family's eldest daughter is indeed skilled in blending and making incense, and that she owns an incense shop on Suzaku Street called 'Yunxiangpu'. I think it's named after Madam Lu San."
"After finishing my shift at twilight hour, I left the palace and went to the Yunxiang Shop. They do sell a variety of incense. The shopkeeper said most of these incense were made by their master, Madam Lu San."
“.........”
He briefly explained what he had found, then brought up the key point: "I have smelled all the incense sold in Yunxiang Shop, but I haven't found the incense on the handkerchief."
I thought that the matter had made some progress, but it turned out to be nothing. Jiang Fusheng was a little discouraged, and then he heard Emperor Jingxuan ask:
"Similar?"
Emperor Jingxuan had already closed the book. He raised his eyelids to glance at Jiang Fusheng and casually threw a handkerchief to him.
Jiang Fusheng burst into tears of gratitude: "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
After wiping the sweat off his face, he shook his head: "I haven't found any similar servants either."
Emperor Jingxuan said nothing, staring at the sachet lying alone on the table in front of him.
The candlelight illuminated that deep, clear and imposing face, and the indifferent expression was difficult to understand.
His knuckles, which had been tapping the table carelessly, curled up, and he picked up the sachet and placed it under his nose.
The familiar fragrance he smelled in the afternoon seemed to be an illusion, and Emperor Jingxuan's lips became flat.
Jiang Fusheng asked anxiously, "Your Majesty, do you still want to continue investigating Madam Lu?"
"No need."
Rather than having vague suspicions, Emperor Jingxuan believed that it was just a momentary illusion.
I got a headache from all the noise from that group of people in the afternoon and almost had a relapse of my old illness.
However, he became suspicious as soon as he smelled a hint of fragrance, and there was a mocking look in Emperor Jingxuan's eyes.
Since it was confirmed that the sachet was useless to him, Emperor Jingxuan did not want to bother to continue investigating irrelevant people.
The sachet between his fingers was casually placed on the table, rolled a few times, and fell into the hollow book tube.
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