Chapter 252 Know Yourself and Your Enemy
The shopkeeper enthusiastically recommended: "Young lady, to be honest, our shop is the largest soap shop in the capital. You can't go wrong by choosing from us. Tell me what you like or what you use often, and I'll help you choose."
Jiang Mi asked curiously, "What? Do you have many kinds of soapberries here?" You know, back in Shushan County, there were only two kinds of soapberries, one slightly better and one slightly cheaper. After all, everyone's only need was to wash themselves clean, and they didn't have many other requirements. Especially when everyone was starving, most people didn't even buy soapberries. Sometimes when they had spare money, it was already quite good to buy a usable one.
Upon hearing Jiang Mi's words, the shopkeeper knew that although she was dressed very well, she was probably not pampered from childhood. At least she was different from the young ladies in the capital. She didn't even know the different types of soap, something that even some maids knew.
"Is this your first time here? Let me introduce it to you. See which one you like and you can buy it to try it out yourself. If you like it, you can come again next time."
Jiang Mi followed along out of curiosity and discovered that this shop had many varieties of soapberries, but the main difference was in the ingredients. They all tasted basically the same, with a strong soapberry smell and no fragrance at all. The only difference was in their shape.
"Young lady, look, this is the best soapberry we have here. It's made from the finest materials. After you use it, your skin will not only become white and smooth, but also more moisturized. I see your skin is already very good, and it will only get better after using this."
Seeing that the shopkeeper's words were somewhat frivolous, Siqin stepped forward and said angrily, "How can you talk like that? Watch your words."
The shopkeeper quickly nodded and bowed, "Yes, yes, I was just introducing things to you, Miss. I didn't mean anything else. If you don't like them, you can look at other things. They're all good. The prices are a bit high, but I can tell you don't lack money, so the price shouldn't be a concern for you, right?"
Jiang Mi nodded: "That's right, I'm not short of money, but I have high standards when it comes to buying things. Your ingredients may be okay, but the smell... isn't very pleasant."
The shopkeeper was taken aback. Isn't this the kind of soapberry that everyone uses? Everyone has always used it and is used to it. This is the first time he has seen someone who has a particular preference for the smell of soapberry.
"Miss, what you're saying is true. The scent of this soapberry is from its ingredients, which further proves that we didn't use any other ingredients for you. Besides, isn't this the typical scent of soapberry? If you want something fragrant, you can check out our rouge. We also have a rouge shop right next door."
Jiang Mi shook her head. She never used rouge. Before, it was because she didn't want to use it, and now she doesn't need to anymore. Her lips are naturally red without any rouge, so there's no need to add anything extra.
"I'll go take another look later. Give me one box of each of these two types of soapberries, please."
Upon hearing this, the shopkeeper smiled even more broadly and quickly had it packed up. This box was quite expensive, but Jiang Mi didn't mind. She didn't know how to use it anyway, so she planned to take it back for the servants at home.
After visiting several other soapberry shops, I found that they were similar to this one, except that they didn't have the most expensive one.
Mo Hua said, "I heard that the largest soapberry shop supplies soapberries to nobles in the palace, and they only have a limited quantity each year. Miss was able to buy some this time probably because they just received a new shipment."
Siqin shook her head: "No, although Miss bought some very good soapberries, it seems that this is not the kind that is used by the nobles in the palace. How could the nobles in the palace sell them to us commoners? Besides, even if we have money, we can't buy them."
"Is that so? I didn't expect this soapberry to be so good. Is it because the ingredients are very expensive?"
Siqin said, "Yes, it seems that the high price is due to the scarcity of the ingredients, which is why it caught the eye of noblewomen in the palace. The rumors are quite fantastical; they say that the noblewomen in the palace improved their skin after using their soap, so many young ladies from aristocratic families also like to buy soap from their shop. Although..."
It's different from what the noblewomen in the palace use, but it's still quite good.
Jiang Mi nodded knowingly. Whether the effect was really that good, only the nobles in the palace would know. When she returned home, Jiang Mi kept only a few pieces for research, and had Siqin and Mohua take the rest to distribute to the servants.
Mo Hua stared in shock, her eyes wide: "Miss, this soapberry is so precious! How can we possibly use such a fine item? It's such a waste to give it to us. Why don't we keep it for the Second Young Master and the Third Young Master?"
Jiang Mi makes her own soaps for her family, so no one in the Jiang family uses soap pods bought from outside anymore.
"No need. They won't want it or use it. You can keep it. It was originally meant for you anyway. If you feel unworthy of it, just do your best in the future."
That was the only way. Siqin and Mohua happily accepted the gift and then shared a piece with everyone else in the family, including the cooks in the kitchen. Everyone was grateful to Jiang Mi, and their daily work became a little happier.
After studying it, Jiang Mi found that the soapberry was not much different from the ordinary soapberry. The reason it was expensive was because it contained an extra ingredient. Although this ingredient was a bit rare, it was not worth the exaggerated praise. It was just that the soapberry shop was exaggerating the quality of its own products. In addition, scarcity increases value, which is why it sold so well and why the people in the palace liked it so much.
"Once my soaps are sold, they definitely won't like this brand of soap pods anymore."
Jiang Mi decided to price her soaps higher. For wealthy and powerful people, things are valued for their rarity, so if the price is low and everyone can have it, it will no longer be rare.
For ordinary people, she could make some slightly cheaper soaps, so she could earn money from both sides.
Having made her decision, Jiang Mi prepared to buy a shop. Over the past year, she had already bought quite a few shops and had gained some experience in this area. After running around for two days, she found a shop in the center of the capital city that she liked.
The shop wasn't small; it had two floors. She decided to sell more expensive soaps upstairs and more affordable soaps downstairs.
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