My Lady Always Lacks Ambition
Chapter 265 - 264: Clearing Trouble for Her

Chapter 265: Chapter 264: Clearing Trouble for Her

"To speak of the rise of Changsheng Hall, it actually took no more than six or seven years. In Li City, a medicinal shop called Changsheng Hall suddenly emerged. At first glance, it didn’t seem all that remarkable. After all, it wasn’t the only shop selling medicinal herbs. However, Changsheng Hall first introduced a golden sore medicine that stopped bleeding exceptionally fast, followed by Yangrong Pills for protecting one’s health and Angong Pills for critical emergencies, gradually establishing its reputation.

What truly catapulted Changsheng Hall to prominence was a fragrance they produced called Jade Snow Skin.

To be honest, aside from the iron, tea, and salt mines that the Imperial Family tightly controls, the most profitable business in the world is catering to women. Many women are willing to spend big for beauty, especially those well-off noble ladies and noble women secluded in their boudoirs.

Jade Snow Skin has miraculous effects; it can make a woman’s skin tender and smooth as mutton-fat jade, beautiful as a young girl, with a lingering fragrance, and it can also remove scars and marks. Naturally, it will make women flock to it like ducks to water.

However, Changsheng Hall doesn’t run its medicinal herb business like others, chasing after any profitable opportunity. Take Jade Snow Skin for example; regardless of the high price, they don’t have much stock to sell. Some may think they are creating scarcity to drive up the price, but the truth is that the medicinal herbs required for Jade Snow Skin are rare and difficult to prepare, and due to the laziness of the alchemist, it has become scarce in the market.

No matter what others say, when Changsheng Hall claims to be out of stock, they are out of stock, though occasionally it can be acquired at the Jiuxuan Auction. Of course, not every auction features it, but whenever there is Jade Snow Skin available, the auction is guaranteed to be packed with people.

Besides Jade Snow Skin, the efficacy of the other medicinal herbs from Changsheng Hall is also superior, and naturally, the prices are higher. But if it works, it’s worth the price. The wealthy and powerful who don’t fret about money are not afraid of the high costs, they only fear that it won’t save their lives.

In just a few short years, Changsheng Hall has risen to prominence. It is said that the identity of the owner behind it is extremely mysterious. Some, envious of the profits brought by Changsheng Hall and attempting to conspire against it, haven’t even been able to lay their hands on a single herb and instead found themselves ruined.

Over time, although many are envious and wary of Changsheng Hall, since the identity of the owner remains unclear and Changsheng Hall has always conducted its herbal business honestly, and moreover, it has always been charitable with medicine during times of disaster and the harsh winter, winning over the hearts of the people, leaving the powerful of Da Feng with no choice but to turn a blind eye.

For nothing else, because the owner of Changsheng Hall has declared that if this line of business ever causes them discomfort, they would simply close their doors and call it quits.

Listen to this, who in the world of business dares to be so defiant? The owner of Changsheng Hall dares.

They can afford not to engage in this business, not to seek these profits. But where would those wealthy merchants and powerful people eager to protect their lives go to purchase top-quality medicinal herbs and life-saving medicine?

It is said that other medicinal shops have them, but the effects are not the same, which makes acceptance in people’s hearts difficult to achieve.

And so, Changsheng Hall, following its own style, didn’t say it expanded all over Da Feng, but it indeed has a branch in every Prefecture City, which is something it dares to claim.

Changsheng Hall conducts business in its own way. No matter who it is, nobody can use their power to force a sale. If they want to sell, they will sell; if they don’t, even forced buying is out of the question.

Yet, Qin Liuxi got her hands on the Jade Snow Skin so easily; if you say there is no connection between them, who would believe it?

Prince Wang thought, Qin Liuxi is merely a Daoist doctor from a Daoist Temple, yet she has such a good relationship with Changsheng Hall. Could there be some connection between the two?

He stroked his fingers together and said to his grandson, "Third Grandmother Tu comes from the Meng Family, and after suffering such humiliation, she is unlikely to let things rest. We need to give her something to worry about."

"What does grandfather mean by that?"

Prince Wang stroked his beard and said, "Master Buqiu cured your grandfather’s hysteria, truly a miraculous act of kindness. Now that I think about it, only giving a box of golden beads as the consultation fee seems somewhat vulgar."

Qin Liuxi: Absolutely not vulgar, the more the better!

"She is from the Mystic Sect and probably won’t care about such trivial and worldly matters stirred up by Third Grandmother Tu. But trouble is trouble, if it can be avoided, it should be. Girls from the Meng Family often have a temper like Noble Princess Consort Meng." In other words, they are overbearing and prone to flights of fancy.

Such people, when angered, are unpredictable, and Qin Liuxi might not necessarily be afraid of her, but trouble is trouble, why invite it if it can be avoided, to save oneself from the headaches.

Prince Wang, with the intention of teaching his grandson, said, "Think about it, is there a way to keep her away from this trouble and wrap things up?"

Wang Zheng fell silent, then spoke softly, "Grandson has read the recent court newspapers, they say that Holy Emperor greatly favors a concubine titled Noble Lady Xue. Recently, as the weather turns cold in the capital, Noble Lady Xue had a dream about heavy snowfall on the border, leading to soldiers lacking warm clothing and being so stiff they could not wield their weapons. Fearing an enemy invasion due to the inability to defend themselves against the cold, she generously donated from her private funds for the soldiers’ winter garments, which greatly pleased the Emperor, and he promoted Noble Lady Xue to Noble Concubine."

"The birthday of Noble Princess Consort Meng is approaching, and if extravagant birthday celebrations are held and expensive gifts are accepted while Noble Concubine Xue is donating for military needs, I’m afraid Holy Emperor may get displeased," Wang Zheng continued. "If Third Grandmother Tu really uses her power or means to acquire the Jade Snow Skin for the birthday gift, it’s hard to say whether it will be a blessing or a curse. I think, we could use this incident to influence her through public opinion; she wouldn’t dare to risk such impropriety."

If Third Grandmother Tu truly utilizes her power to oppressively acquire the Jade Snow Skin and the matter escalates, reaching the ears of the Imperial Censor, and she gets impeached, Noble Princess Consort Meng may very well cause Holy Emperor to be displeased. After all, the newly favored concubine is willing to personally economize to provide for military needs, whereas you are allowing your family to bully others over a bottle of fragrance, causing public dissatisfaction. Clearly, it’s apparent who really has the Emperor’s favor.

Prince Wang nodded with a smile, "Using public opinion to your advantage is good. Only thing is, mere fear of reproach in Qing State might not be enough; the news needs to spread further, reach the ears of the Tu Family’s political rivals, so they wouldn’t dare to publicize it too much. This young man from the Tu Family truly takes lives lightly, gathering some evidence and having the Imperial Censor teach Minister of the Ministry of Imperial Stables Tu and his grandson a lesson wouldn’t be amiss. When you take on official duties next year, you will encounter such matters. Handle this personally, it will give you a baseline of how well you handle it, and should you come across it again in the future, you’ll be more at ease."

Using this insignificant member of the Tu Family as a teaching example for the grandson is not a bad idea.

Even more importantly, if this could earn Qin Liuxi a favor, that would be absolutely splendid.

"Yes," Wang Zheng bowed in acknowledgement.

Prince Wang waved his hand, letting him withdraw.

Manager Wang then stepped forward and said, "Old Master, do you want me to support Fourth Young Master from behind?"

"No need, let him handle it. Whichever people he needs or how he wants it done, just follow his orders. Always feeding a young eagle would never give way to a predator; it must hunt on its own. It’s time to push him out of the nest, so he learns about the world. That’s how he’ll be able to govern effectively and manage affairs properly in the future."

If he doesn’t handle it well, then we’ll just wrap up the loose ends.

"You’re truly patient and meticulous in your guidance, Fourth Young Master will understand," said Manager Wang with a smile.

Seeing his soup bowl empty, Prince Wang passed it over, "Another bowl. This soup is quite delicious, savory and sweet. Add two more pieces of Cordyceps and stew another pot for tomorrow."

"Yes."