Jingyi took it, and only after she felt better did she look around. Seeing Yuejiang's interested expression, she felt as if she had discovered a huge secret.
While walking up to the second floor with Yue Jiang, she chattered incessantly, following closely behind.
"Sister-in-law, I thought you were really going out of the palace to do something important. I didn't expect that as soon as my brother left, you came out to look at cosmetics."
"You wanted to wait for my brother to come home so you could dress up and show him off, right?"
“Actually, like my brother, she definitely wouldn’t just marry you. Think about it, taking other women is the same as taking women. Cousin Suyun is really devoted to my brother, much better than Zheng Yutong.”
"Her aunt, Consort Zheng, has dominated the Emperor for most of her life. Zheng Yutong is definitely not someone to be trifled with. If you let your cousin Suyun enter the Eastern Palace, she will surely help you!"
Yue Jiang chuckled and said, "Who taught you that? Zheng Yutong is no good, but Princess Cheng is? If Princess Cheng is so good, why didn't Father and Mother arrange her marriage earlier?"
"It's all to give face to the Longevity Palace. Besides, you weren't here, so it'll definitely be settled," Jingyi said confidently.
Yue Jiang shook her head and sighed, saying with emotion, "Jing Yi, no matter who is better or worse between them, you are the Empress Dowager's daughter and His Highness's sister. Your life is already incredibly fortunate."
"Hmph, you just want to say that I'm unreasonable and not as well-behaved as Jingning over there, don't you? I thought she was more favored by the Longevity Palace, but in the end, her life wasn't as good as mine," Jingyi said with her hands on her hips.
She lived in Zhaoluan Palace, not far from Jingning's Qingluan Palace. Ever since the news of Jingning's marriage alliance spread, there had been no laughter coming from there.
Jingyi disliked Jingning, but when she suddenly learned that Jingning's marriage was orchestrated by Empress Dowager Zheng, her dislike for her seemed to vanish.
Yue Jiang sensed a hint of sympathy in Jing Yi's words, seemingly understanding that while Jing Yi might be annoying at times, she was completely naive when it came to scheming.
Empress Dowager Cheng used the dye of hatred to paint wildly on Jingyi's blank canvas, but she absolutely forbade any blackness on this blank canvas that Empress Dowager Cheng could not control.
The hatred in Jingyi's body all stemmed from Empress Dowager Zheng's bias, but she also felt sorry for Jingning's misfortune, and her hatred even seemed to fade away.
If Jingyi were to one day realize that she was merely a pawn used by Empress Dowager Cheng to anger Empress Dowager Zheng, wouldn't she be more sensible?
Yue Jiang doesn't know for the time being, nor does she want to worry about it. Right now, her top priority is to invest her cinnabar in making money.
This cosmetics shop, called Wanzhuang Nong, is the largest cosmetics shop in Jing Kingdom, and nobles of Jing Kingdom love to come here to buy things.
Even though cinnabar is poisonous, people in this era were so fond of it that they even dared to make medicine from it and eat it directly.
Vermilion is vibrant, and the rouge in the shop also needs to be mixed with a small amount of vermilion to add color. However, Yue Jiang does not plan to open a rouge shop; she plans to open a channel to sell vermilion.
If cinnabar is supplied to rouge shops, bookstores, pharmacies, and other places, and if all channels for cinnabar are opened up and unobstructed within the Jing Kingdom of Pingkang, then the entire Jing Kingdom can be developed.
The two cinnabar mines continuously generated wealth for her.
The only thing missing is someone to pave the way for her. However, cinnabar is scarce in Jingguo and is very expensive to purchase. Alternatively, she could buy it from other countries, which would be time-consuming and laborious, and wouldn't save her much money.
Among the people brought by Yue Jiang for marriage alliance were business people. A while ago, she hired a couple to work at Wan Zhuang Nong. Their excellent business skills were greatly appreciated by Xiang Niangzi of Wan Zhuang Nong.
Since Yue Jiang owns such a large mine, it's inevitable that she can't hide her identity. When Xiang Niangzi learned that Yue Jiang wanted to cooperate with her, she immediately acted as if she couldn't refuse.
"I had long heard that the Yue Kingdom was full of talented people. When Sister Hu and her husband came to me looking for work, they said they were from the Yue Kingdom. I assumed they were just ordinary people who came out to make a living, so I thought I'd test their skills."
"I never expected them to be so tight-lipped, keeping it from me so well. Only today did I realize that they have such a powerful background. If the Crown Princess is truly willing to cooperate with me, I would be more than happy to do so."
"However, the question remains whether the price of this cinnabar is acceptable..."
Xiang Niangzi was around thirty years old. She wore a dark red chrysanthemum-patterned top and a light honey-patterned skirt. She wore a single ruyi lily hairpin in her hair. She looked shrewd, but not unpleasant.
Yue Jiang arranged for Hu Ding and Hu Man to not only inspect the shop with heavy makeup, but also to learn more about Xiang Niangzi.
While it's impossible to guarantee that she's honest and upright in her business dealings and doesn't prioritize profit, she's certainly not a dishonest merchant who overcharges or cheats customers. Yue Jiang is willing to give her a discount.
“It was my instruction to make the Hu couple do that, and I am willing to apologize to Xiang Niangzi for that. Since Xiang Niangzi feels that we can talk, I am not heartless and inflexible.”
“Cinnabar is expensive, costing 400 wen per tael on the market. The cinnabar mine I control is located in Jingguo, which can shorten the journey by more than half. The customs and transportation costs all the way to Pingkang City are tentatively set at 50 wen, and we will discuss any changes later.”
"Besides promising to deliver the cinnabar to Xiang Niangzi every month, how about giving her some money for taxes and travel expenses?"
Cinnabar is not something easy to obtain; it can easily take a person's life. In the past, Xiang Niangzi had to go through a lot of trouble to make rouge with cinnabar, and she had to manage some relationships every six months.
Having someone to rely on is more meaningful in the long run than saving money, and the Crown Princess is not someone who is difficult to talk to or someone who needs to be flattered.
Xiang Niangzi readily agreed to Yue Jiang's request: "This humble woman agrees."
Afterwards, the two discussed some paperwork matters. The Hu family couple took care of the trivialities, and Yue Jiang managed to close the deal. As for the other aspects of the cinnabar business,
Xiang Niangzi's cosmetics shop has a wide customer base, so she must have connections in various places. Yue Jiang can have the Hu couple work with Xiang Niangzi to deal with other shops in the city.
Fortunately, cinnabar was hard to come by in Jing Kingdom, and Yue Jiang did not have a monopoly on this business, so she could not make enemies.
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