Chapter 200 Successfully Hitching a Hit
For other merchants in the Qing Dynasty who wanted to become imperial merchants and suppliers to the Imperial Household Department, it was extremely difficult. Not only did they need to produce high-quality goods, but their businesses also needed to have a good reputation and a great name in order to stand out from thousands of competitors and catch the eye of the imperial family.
But Yin'e and the Ninth Prince were different. They were princes, sons of Emperor Kangxi. The Imperial Household Department, which served the royal family, was like "our door is always open" to them.
It wouldn't be difficult for their businesses to make deals with the Imperial Household Department—even though the current head of the Imperial Household Department, Lingpu, is the Crown Prince's man, Yin'e and the Ninth Prince could easily use back channels to become imperial merchants, which was equivalent to having a cheat code.
The Thirteenth Prince's birthday is on October 1st. Because the date is too close and the time is too rushed, he was unable to receive the knock-off White Rabbit candy sent to Yonghe Palace by Yin'e and the Ninth Prince on his birthday. The birthday gift he received was still a calligraphy book and a writing brush.
It was just too rushed. The Thirteenth Prince's birthday was too close, and he didn't get to receive "gifts of love" from his brothers or eat sweet, milky candy on his birthday. These days, there are no additives, and every candy is made with real, high-quality ingredients.
However, just two days later, on the Empress Dowager's birthday, lured by the bonus, the palace servants worked at full speed to produce the first batch of milk candy. At the family banquet held in Ning Shou Palace that day, Emperor Kangxi, his concubines, and princes and princesses all tasted the milk candy, witnessing the first step in the career of Yin'e and the Ninth Prince.
On the Empress Dowager's birthday, the milk candy was provided free of charge by Yin'e and his family. But this was not a windfall; it was just bait that Yin'e had thrown out first.
Once the masters and concubines of all ranks in the palace had tasted the milk candy and found it to be better than maltose and honey, and more to their liking, there were no more free samples available. The Imperial Household Department had to purchase the milk candy from the shops run by Prince Yin'e and the Ninth Prince, and then add it to the allowances for each palace.
Of course, the production process of milk candy is not sophisticated, and perhaps the princesses who like to eat milk candy can use their money to have the Imperial Household Department make it for them.
But this doesn't affect anything, as the production process of candy wrappers is still quite complicated.
Without candy wrappers, the candies made cannot be preserved for long periods. If the princes want to eat them, they have to make them fresh and eat them immediately, which is both troublesome and time-consuming. I believe that the smart people in the Imperial Household Department will do the math. Purchasing from the shops run by Yin'e and his family is the most cost-effective and convenient option. Moreover, it would also give face to Yin'e and the Ninth Prince. Why not do it?
Having ascended the throne at the age of eight and successfully assumed personal rule at the age of fourteen, Kangxi gradually took power back from the regents. Now holding absolute power, Kangxi was extremely astute and a first-rate intelligent and shrewd man.
With Yin'e and the Ninth Prince's current level of influence, and with the few people they can currently mobilize, there is almost nothing in the palace that can be hidden from Kangxi, and nothing can be kept under Kangxi's nose.
Kangxi soon learned about the recent activities of Yin'e and the Ninth Prince. He knew that they had come up with something new, not only by recruiting people and opening shops outside the palace, but also by trying to get in touch with the Imperial Household Department to "sell" the thing called milk candy to the Imperial Household Department as a tribute to the royal family.
Kangxi said nothing about it, nor did he scold Yin'e and the others. He even tacitly approved of their "business." He not only secretly gave them the green light, but also found an opportunity to hint to Lingpu, the chief steward of the Imperial Household Department, to help Yin'e and the others complete the official procedures and go through the entire process of selecting imperial merchants.
The reason why Emperor Kangxi tolerated his two sons' private antics was twofold. Firstly, Yin'e and the Ninth Prince were still young and had some hobbies. They wanted to tinker with some new things. As long as it didn't affect their studies or cause a big fuss, Emperor Kangxi wouldn't stop them. On the contrary, he was happy to see them succeed.
Emperor Kangxi was not a completely feigned loving father; he genuinely cared for his children. Although he favored the Crown Prince the most, his other children were not insignificant to him, nor did they hold no weight in his heart.
Secondly, Yin'e and the Ninth Prince were born later in the order of birth. When they were born, Kangxi already had several sons who had already established themselves, and he no longer cared much about newborn children. The "dividend of the times" that Kangxi enjoyed when many of his children died young and his children were highly valued had already passed.
Before Yin'e and his sons, Kangxi had seven sons who were capable and entrusted with important responsibilities. Unconsciously, Kangxi did not have high expectations for his later-born sons. He did not value the princes who were later in the order of birth as much as he valued the older princes, and he wholeheartedly hoped that they would become successful.
Regardless of how much consideration Kangxi might have given in private, Yin'e was still grateful for the favors he had received. For one thing, with Kangxi's endorsement, Lingpu, the head of the Imperial Household Department, dared not cause any trouble, and all procedures were completed quickly and efficiently, saving them a lot of trouble.
Having successfully secured a position with the Imperial Household Department through connections, Yin'e and the Ninth Prince temporarily set aside their business ventures, no longer closely monitoring them. They simply sent messages to those outside the palace, instructing them to develop the business according to plan. Building a trading company from scratch is no easy feat; it cannot be rushed.
Just as Yin'e and the Ninth Prince's milk candy business was on track, Yin'e, who had been studying in the Imperial Study for almost a year, also celebrated his birthday.
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