Chapter 278 Empress Dowager
“Then our family can be reunited,” Jiang Zhi also said.
Jiang Mi was overjoyed to hear the news. It had been a while since they had seen their mother and the others. At night, Jiang Mi would think of her family as she fell asleep, since it was the first time she had been so far from home. Fortunately, her second and third brothers were by her side.
"This is really good news. I need to go buy some things for them. My third sister-in-law has a child, so she will definitely need some things for the child. Also, my parents' room needs to be tidied up."
Jiang Zhi was also very happy: "You don't need to go to so much trouble. Just have someone tidy up the room. How would you know what a child needs? Let's wait until they arrive. Besides, Yin Di will definitely prepare it herself, so don't worry so much."
Jiang Mi thought about it and felt that Jiang Zhi made a lot of sense. Children grow up very fast these days, and she didn't know if the things she bought were suitable. But she still bought some toys that the children liked and prepared them at home. She was sure Su Yindi would be happy to see them.
Huo Ran, on the other side, received the soap personally selected by Jiang Mi, and was somewhat reluctant to give it away.
Liu Min understood his master's meaning and offered a suggestion: "I think the Empress Dowager might prefer a more subtle scent. Before the New Year, she had smelled all kinds of fragrances, even exotic ones from abroad. Now that she's older, she probably prefers simple and elegant items."
Huo Ran thought so too. He smelled all the soaps one by one and found that each one had its own unique characteristics, so he simply let someone take them all.
"She is so outstanding, I naturally have to let the Empress Dowager know about her, otherwise all her intelligence will be wasted."
Liu Min nodded, knowing that his master meant to let Miss Jiang make an appearance before the Empress Dowager. As long as the Empress Dowager liked Miss Jiang, then the matter between his master and Miss Jiang would most likely be settled.
"I imagine Her Majesty the Empress Dowager would really like these. These things aren't commonly seen, so Her Majesty would definitely cherish them."
Huo Ran was quite happy to hear this. As long as the Empress Dowager was pleased, everything would be fine.
He excitedly took the things to the Empress Dowager's palace. As soon as he entered, he saw Consort Jing sitting inside. He was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously handed the things to Liu Min first, and went in alone.
"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager and Consort Jing."
Consort Jing has a beautiful appearance. Although she is almost forty years old, she looks no different from a young woman in her late teens. She must take good care of herself to maintain her beauty. However, if you look closely, you can still see some fine lines, which is to be expected given her age.
Consort Jing was dressed in gorgeous clothes, her head full of pearl hairpins, which was very gorgeous. Her eyes were slightly upturned, and she was full of charm.
"Oh, isn't this the young master of the Ning Prince's mansion? You've managed to come to the palace. I heard it's very difficult to get you here."
"Your Highness is too kind. I am a man, how can I freely enter and leave the inner palace?" Huo Ran said sternly, his face cold.
The Empress Dowager said gently, "Alright, stop joking with him. He's a good boy who knows his place."
Huo Ran then noticed that the Empress Dowager was holding a black object and asked curiously, "What is that in Your Majesty's hand?"
The Empress Dowager said "Oh" and explained, "This was given to me by Consort Jing. She said that a new soap shop has opened in our capital, and this is something from that shop. It smells quite unique. I don't know how it will be to use. After all, it's something made by ordinary people, not a tribute item used in our capital. If it causes any problems, it would be a loss."
Huo Ran thought it looked familiar, and felt it resembled the soap Jiang Mi made. Hearing them say that, he was certain it was also Jiang Mi's.
Consort Jing looked disdainful: "Yes, this was a gift from Eunuch Zhang. He said he went to present imperial edicts to the top two scholars today. Other families would give them some reward money, but this family gave me this. It does smell quite nice, though I don't know how good it is to use. I thought Your Majesty the Empress Dowager was very knowledgeable, so I sent it to her."
The Empress Dowager snorted: "It seems this..."
That girl is quite cunning; aren't all merchants like that? The taste is good, but it's probably not anything of value. I'll just leave it for now.
Consort Jing chimed in, "That's right, just throw it away. I don't know what they put in it, it smells so good, but it might not be good. I heard that girl is very beautiful, some say she's a hundred times prettier than me. I really want to see what kind of stunning beauty she is that she's been praised so highly."
Huo Ran fell silent. What he had brought was not something he could easily present, and judging from Consort Jing's words, it seemed as if she was deliberately praising Jiang Mi to her detriment. This was not a good thing.
"Where did Consort Jing hear this rumor? Hearsay is not necessarily true."
The Empress Dowager looked at him curiously: "Have you heard about it too? Have you seen that woman? Is she really that beautiful?"
Mentioning Jiang Mi, Huo Ran's eyes softened considerably: "She...is indeed very good. She saved me once before. She's a kind woman. She started her business because she wanted her family to have a better life. After all, they are just ordinary people, unlike us who are well-off. In their eyes, living a good life is the most important thing."
The Empress Dowager nodded knowingly: "You're right. Ordinary people have it very hard. We don't need to worry about making a living, so we really need to be understanding of them. Besides, you just said that they saved you, so we should be even more grateful."
Huo Ran nodded: "I didn't help them in any way. On the contrary, the sweet potatoes they grew helped our border soldiers, allowing them to have enough to eat, which is why we won the battle."
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager became even more curious about Jiang Mi: "So it was her? I've heard the Emperor mention this before, saying that he wanted to thank the people who provided help. Well, it's good that she came to our capital, and her family has produced two talented scholars. What a coincidence!"
Upon hearing this, Consort Jing's expression turned somewhat displeased, but having spent many years in the harem, she had long since learned to conceal her emotions.
"Such a coincidence! It feels like listening to a storyteller. I can hardly believe it. Is this family really that innocent? What if they have ulterior motives?"
The Empress Dowager was easily swayed.
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