Forced to stop, she looked up at the spice vendor in front of her.
He was around forty years old, wearing a large hat, with strong features, which inexplicably made Jiang Mingwei think he looked somewhat like a mixed-race person.
"I need to buy the spices for making rouge and face powder. Do you have all of these here?"
"Of course! Madam, rest assured, my little shop has the most complete selection on Fragrance Street. If I don't have it, no other shop will. Why don't you come in and take a look?"
As he spoke, he made way for Jiang Mingwei, while gesturing for her to enter.
Jiang Mingwei looked at the spacious environment inside the room, and without hesitating for too long, nodded and went inside.
Stepping into the room, the overwhelming scent of face powder was so strong it made one dizzy.
Although it smells nice, I can't stand smelling it too much, and it gets a little unsettling.
Jiang Mingwei raised her hand and covered her face with her sleeve.
The flowers were also constantly fanning themselves.
Looking at the spice vendor beside her, whose face was full of smiles, Jiang Mingwei couldn't help but ask.
"Don't you feel... the air in this room is suffocating?"
“Look at what you’re saying, Madam! We’re all counting on this spice business to make money, so why would we complain about it being too pungent? We’re just worried it’s not fragrant enough!”
Jiang Mingwei remained silent and pursed her lips.
This fragrance might not be unusable for making ordinary rouge and face powder, but she planned to give the first batch to the noble ladies, including the Duchess of Huaiguo and her group of ladies, after it was successfully developed.
Send them first, let them help you build brand awareness, and then it will be much easier to distribute the goods.
Why not make use of the existing resources?
She had at least audited some business classes in college, so she understood what resource integration meant.
Since we've already come all this way, and we can't leave the Wei family anytime soon, it would be a huge waste if we didn't do something about it!
Thinking of this, she simply asked, "Do you have any fragrances that are fresh and elegant, and that smell like expensive spices? I'm afraid I wouldn't be interested in those."
The spice vendor was taken aback, then his smile widened, revealing his teeth.
"Yes, yes, madam, you should have said so sooner! Please come upstairs with me. The spices upstairs are all the finest, but the price..."
He stopped mid-sentence, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
Jiang Mingwei waved her hand.
"Just take me to see it, and you'll definitely get your share of the price."
"Okay!"
Upon arriving on the second floor, the space was also extremely spacious.
There wasn't as much face powder as on the first floor, but once you went upstairs, you could clearly feel that the pungent smell had become much milder.
Hua Cui quickly took a deep breath and couldn't help but complain.
“Miss, I’ve never been to a spice shop before. I never knew the scent of these perfume powders could be so cloying! I could hardly breathe! It’s so much more comfortable up here…”
"But Miss, are you really planning to make rouge and face powder?"
Hana-Cui blinked and asked uncertainly.
Jiang Mingwei nodded and looked down along the scented powder.
"Of course! Is that even a lie? My grand undertaking has only just begun. How could your young lady give up? Don't worry, you'll definitely be proud of her!"
Hua Cui pursed her lips and remained silent.
What should she do if she still has some doubts?
After all, Xingxianglou's business is too big; no one can compete with it, and it's even difficult for anyone to get a share of the pie...
If there are other rouge shops in the capital that are doing well, if you inquire carefully, you will find that they are definitely supported by Xingxianglou.
It can be said that the Imperial Concubine Yang monopolized the cosmetics business in Bianjing.
How could my young lady possibly win against that?
Seeing the young lady's enthusiastic expression, Hua Cui hesitated to speak, and could only sigh helplessly as she followed her to continue selecting items.
The two spent a long time choosing, and finally selected seven or eight kinds of face powder and other materials needed for rouge and face powder before leaving.
The spice vendor escorted Jiang Mingwei to the door, his face still bearing a warm smile, and watched her leave.
The spice merchant's smile gradually faded only after her figure disappeared from sight.
He then snorted coldly and walked back into the house.
A moment later, a woman with a slight limp walked in from the backyard of the shop.
A hint of impatience flashed in the spice vendor's eyes, and he smacked his lips all over himself.
"Who gave you permission to come to the front? Get back here! Without my permission, you're not allowed to get in my way again! Now get out of here!"
The lame woman's face was filled with fear and dread; she murmured, unable to speak.
He could only nod and prepare to return to the backyard.
But just as she turned to leave, she heard the spice merchant's cold laugh.
"After a few days of preparation, I've spotted a new item that I'm sure I can sell for a good price to its owner!"
Upon hearing this, the woman paused slightly, turned her head in shock to look at the spice merchant, who was toying with a jade pendant in his hand.
He wanted to say something, but when he met his sinister gaze, he shrank back in fear and quickly limped back to the backyard...
Back at the general's mansion, as he was walking towards the courtyard, Hua Cui suddenly exclaimed in surprise.
Jiang Mingwei stopped and turned back to look at her, puzzled. "What's wrong?"
"Miss, your jade pendant is missing. Didn't you notice?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Mingwei followed Hua Cui's gaze and landed on her waist.
A bluish-white jade pendant did fall today, but it's gone now.
Thinking back carefully, it seems that the spice shop was still there when I entered it.
It must have been left in the store.
The jade pendant is of excellent quality; it's clearly not something an ordinary family could own. It was part of the original owner's dowry, so the shop owner probably wouldn't dare sell it.
"It's alright, it should have been left at the spice shop. We'll retrieve the jade pendant after we finish using this batch of spices in a few days."
Jiang Mingwei shook her head, lifted her foot and continued walking forward, with Hua Cui following her with a helpless expression.
"Miss, you're really open-minded. That jade pendant is quite expensive. Aren't you afraid the shop owner will pocket it?"
“If I remember correctly, that jade pendant seems to have the Jiang family’s private seal engraved on it. If he were to sell it, it would be easy to find out the truth! The shopkeeper seems like a shrewd person and shouldn’t make such a foolish mistake.”
Jiang Mingwei shook her head.
She had already thought it all through; otherwise, she wouldn't be so at ease.
Seeing that the young lady had made up her mind, Hua Cui could not say anything more and could only acquiesce.
Further on, Jiang Mingwei encountered Wei Jing, who was about to leave the mansion.
She smiled, intending to say something to Wei Jing, but then suddenly remembered everything they had experienced at the bottom of the cliff...
At that time, their world consisted only of each other, so it didn't matter how intimate they were.
But right now, in the general's mansion, they mustn't forget that they should keep their distance...
Otherwise, Wei Jing might misunderstand.
Therefore, what was originally a joyful desire to share with Wei Jing ultimately turned into a faint smile on her face, and she nodded to him.
Wei Jing was slightly taken aback, a look of surprise on his face.
Jiang Mingwei didn't quite understand, but she didn't think much of it and quickly brushed past them, continuing on her way.
After she walked past, Wei Jing slowly stopped.
His gaze was fixed on the direction she had left, his eyes swirling with emotion...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
