Chapter 53 Chapter 53
The servant brought water for washing. Jiang Huai got out of bed shivering, washed quickly, and climbed back into bed.
"I heard that they have a new lip balm with good moisturizing effect. I'll bring it over later and you can try it." Xiao Jingzhao turned his head and saw that Jiang Huai still had some reluctance on his face. He knew what he was concerned about.
"New lip balm?" Jiang Huai's attention was suddenly diverted, and he looked at Xiao Jingzhao with sparkling eyes. "What flavor is it?"
Speaking of lip balm, the herbal scent was the first to be created, or it can be said that this is the original flavor of lip balm. Although the effect is good, when applying it on the lips, Jiang Huai felt a little dizzy when he smelled the herbal scent.
After the improvement, it became a light and refreshing fragrance, but what Jiang Huai wanted most was the fruity fragrance, because lip balm is usually used in autumn and winter, and at this time, fresh fruits are rare. It’s okay in autumn, but in winter, the stored fruits are not fresh and the fragrance is much weaker, but the rarer they are, the more people want them.
"It tastes like sweet orange, and it's said to be very sweet." Xiao Jingzhao took the breakfast brought by the servant from outside the door and turned around to reply.
"It smells like orange!" Jiang Huai smiled happily. Although it was not the apple scent he was most looking forward to, he also liked the orange scent.
After putting the breakfast on the table, Jiang Huai noticed a packaged paste next to it. He picked it up with surprise and smelled it. A faint orange fragrance wafted out, which was sweet and made Jiang Huai want to apply it immediately.
"Aren't you going to eat first?" Xiao Jingzhao asked.
Jiang Huai looked at the steamed buns and a small bowl of porridge that were brought to him. The steamed buns were fine as he could avoid touching his lips while eating them, but it was difficult not to lick his lips while drinking porridge. He had put on lipstick now and would eat it later. Although this orange-flavored lipstick smelled very sweet, it would definitely not taste good.
Jiang Huai withdrew his restless hand, picked up the bun honestly, and took a bite. The custard filling was sweet and delicious, and the dough was soft and fluffy. Especially since the bun was neither too big nor too small, Jiang Huai finished one in four or five bites, and then moved on to the next one.
Seeing that Jiang Huai had a good appetite, Xiao Jingzhao, who was already full, couldn't help but pick up a bun and started eating.
Jiang Huai was happy that Xiao Jingzhao helped him with part of his breakfast. He didn't know if it was because there was a time when he felt that he ate too much and wanted to control his food intake, and then Xiao Jingzhao found out. Since then, Xiao Jingzhao would urge him to eat more and stuff him with a few bites from time to time.
This breakfast was naturally no exception. There was only enough for Jiang Huai to eat, and there was absolutely no portion that he wanted to eat but was not enough.
After rinsing his mouth after dinner, Jiang Huai couldn't wait to try the lip balm. However, because he didn't apply it in front of a mirror, Jiang Huai's hand was crooked and the lipstick was applied outside the area where his lips were.
"Is it painted crookedly?" Jiang Huai noticed something and looked up at Xiao Jingzhao.
The warm winter light shone through the translucent glass, and a layer of lipstick was applied on the rosy lips, giving them a faint luster and a bit glaring.
Jiang Huai wanted to ask Xiao Jingzhao to help him take down the mirror so that he could wipe off the lipstick.
Xiao Jingzhao suddenly leaned over, his eyes fixed on Jiang Huai's face.
"Is there something dirty?" Jiang Huai thought there was food on his face from his previous meal, so he subconsciously raised his hand to touch his face.
But before Jiang Huai could touch his face, the cold fingers had already brushed past the corner of his lips, causing a slight itch that made Jiang Huai shiver unconsciously.
"The lipstick is rubbed out. I'll wipe it off for you." Xiao Jingzhao avoided Jiang Huai's sight and explained softly.
Before Jiang Huai could continue speaking, a servant came over and told him that General Wei and Lord Meng had arrived, so Xiao Jingzhao got up and left.
Jiang Huai breathed a sigh of relief only after Xiao Jingzhao left. He felt the atmosphere just now was quite normal, but for some reason, his whole body was tense, making him inexplicably nervous.
Jiang Huai subconsciously touched the place where Xiao Jingzhao had touched him. He didn't know if it was because his hand was a little cold, but until now, he still felt a little numb and itchy there, as if he had been electrocuted.
Jiang Huai had never experienced this feeling before, but even if he hadn't eaten pork, he had seen pigs run.
Jiang Huai suddenly remembered his modern roommate talking about his secret crush. He said that when he handed a pen to the other person, his finger accidentally touched the other person, and his whole body felt like it was electrified, numb and tingling. If he described it this way, it seemed like he had been electrified just now, although not as exaggerated as the other person described.
Jiang Huai fell into deep thought. Could it be that he also had some feelings for Xiao Jingzhao?
However, Jiang Huai suddenly remembered something. The static electricity in winter is very strong. The drier the air, the stronger the static electricity. Could it be that he was hit by static electricity just now?
The little bud that had just sprouted in Jiang Huai's heart was suddenly extinguished by the sudden speculation. After finding a suitable reason, Jiang Huai stopped thinking about it, pulled the quilt, and continued to sleep. Winter is a good time to sleep.
…
In the main hall, Wei Xuan, Meng Yuan and Xiao Jingzhao were talking. Xiao Jingzhao lowered his eyes and listened quietly, but his fingers unconsciously rubbed each other. A faint orange fragrance lingered on his fingertips. Because the room was warm, the fragrance spread quickly. Even Wei Xuan, who was sitting on the side, noticed this faint fragrance.
Although he didn't care, Wei Xuan couldn't help but follow the fragrance to find its source: Xiao Jingzhao's fingertips.
Does Xiao Jingzhao like this kind of fragrance?
Questions popped up in Wei Xuan's mind and he paused unconsciously. Meng Yuan was so perceptive that he naturally noticed Wei Xuan's little movement. He followed Wei Xuan's gaze and noticed the faint orange scent lingering on Xiao Jingzhao's fingertips.
"This is the orange-scented lip balm made yesterday. I was just about to tell Lord Wei about it, but I didn't expect that Lord Wei had already got it." Meng Yuan was Wei Xuan's aide and should not have known about the trivial matter of the lip balm. But after all, the lip balm was related to the tax revenue of Anyuan Prefecture. As soon as the pharmacy finished it, he received the news.
"There's a new product coming out?" Wei Xuan also became interested. "How is it?"
If possible, Wei Xuan hopes to sell this lip balm as soon as possible. Lip balm has existed since ancient times. Jiang Huai once let the people in the pharmacy accidentally make lipstick, and then made some lip balm. At first, Wei Xuan didn't care much. After all, in his opinion, this is just something to be applied on the lips. Even if the amount of a lipstick is not much, it is not easy to use it up, so naturally he can't make much money.
But soon, the market response gave him a loud slap in the face and let him know the charm of lipstick and lip balm.
At the beginning, only lipstick sold well. After all, lipstick is usually only useful when your lips are dry. But later, lipstick and lipstick became a set, because some women felt that their lips were not so dry after applying lipstick and then lipstick, and they felt smoother when applied. The lipstick was also easier to apply and did not hurt the lips.
Now, lipstick has taken advantage of the popularity of lipstick and has directly transformed from an autumn and winter limited product into a best-selling product all year round.
If it were just that, it would be fine. Even if you apply lipstick every day, your lips are so small that it is difficult to use them up. However, new products have appeared. Change the color, change the packaging, change the lipstick or the scent of the lipstick. They have been warmly welcomed since they were launched.
Even some lipsticks and lip balms with exquisite packaging and unique colors, even if few people use them, are bought and collected by many people.
However, most of the scents I have smelled before were floral, and this sweet orange scent is the first time I have seen it.
As Wei Xuan spoke, he looked at Xiao Jingzhao's face. In his opinion, the sweet orange scent left on Xiao Jingzhao's hands must have been left when he applied lipstick. It was just a good opportunity to see how effective the lipstick was.
Just by looking at it, Wei Xuan was stunned. Xiao Jingzhao's lips didn't look like they were covered with lipstick at all. Even after applying lipstick and wiping it off again, there was no residual fragrance.
Since it wasn't Xiao Jingzhao who applied the lipstick, then where did this little bit of lipstick on his hand come from?
Wei Xuan was a little confused, but he didn't want to ask directly, so he and Meng Yuan skipped the topic and talked about other business instead.
To be honest, Anyuan Prefecture has been becoming more and more prosperous in recent years, because Ding'an Guards have to attack the grassland barbarians every year, forcing the barbarians to flee in panic. The reason why some barbarian tribes gathered to attack the Great Zhou is that they want to take advantage. They are all fence-sitters, and they will side with whichever side is stronger. Before, when the grassland barbarians were strong, they followed them, but now it is obvious that the Great Zhou is stronger, so they naturally changed their flag.
Of course, sweaters also play a significant role in this. Raising sheep, shearing their wool and selling it for money, or hand-spinning yarn and knitting sweaters are more or less a way out.
Especially in recent years, Anyuan Prefecture has seen a booming business, with occasional trade with the grasslands. With money to be made and a guaranteed way out, these tribes have naturally become lazy. Now they are the ones who most hope not to have a war. After all, without a war, they can make money and buy what they want.
Even though the two sides seem to have a good relationship now, once a war breaks out, all business will be cut off. Even if their relationship with the Great Zhou is good, they cannot give up the grassland, otherwise they will still be caught up in the war. Therefore, it is best not to start a war.
Apart from these, Jiang Huai's contribution was also not small. Wei Xuan didn't know why Jiang Huai had so many ideas in his mind. With some ideas, he improved Jiang Huai's life by tinkering with them, and he could make money after taking them out. Even if some of them were small amounts of money, these small amounts of money actually improved the lives of the local people in Anyuan Prefecture.
Of course, Anyuan Prefecture’s good life is also inseparable from the emperor’s "help".
One is the emperor's support for Xiao Jingzhao. When Wei Xuan first learned about this, he was completely dumbfounded. He almost thought that the emperor had discovered Xiao Jingzhao's problem and was testing him. Until later, in order to improve Xiao Jingzhao's status, the emperor still delayed but actually gave him some food and grass. This made Wei Xuan believe that the emperor really did not recognize Xiao Jingzhao.
Such assistance has indeed alleviated the economic pressure on Anyuan Prefecture. After all, no matter how much they earn, there are always more places to spend money. Being able to get some silver and food from the emperor can save them some money.
Secondly, there are civil servants sent by the emperor. Anyuan Prefecture has many military generals, but not many civil servants, let alone capable civil servants. However, in the past few years, the emperor demoted many officials, and Anyuan Prefecture was able to take advantage of the situation and suddenly got a lot of capable civil servants.
Originally, some civil servants should not have been demoted to Anyuan Prefecture, but because of the emperor's actions, there was actually some chaos below. As long as Anyuan Prefecture was cautious, no one except the civil servants themselves and other people who paid special attention would know where these officials ended up.
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