Jin Feng and Tang Xiaobei’s voices were very low, and Qing Mu Lan did not hear them.
Seeing Jin Feng turn to look at her, she touched her nose and asked: “Why are you looking at me?”
“Mu Lan, I remember the Marquis told me that you have an aunt who is the Noble Consort, right?” Jin Feng asked.
“What are you trying to do?”
Qing Mu Lan immediately became alert.
Marriage alliances were a common method for ancient aristocratic families to form alliances, and they were also one of the ways emperors expressed trust and loyalty to ministers.
To show trust in a certain family, the emperor would either marry a princess to them or select a girl from that family to enter the palace as a consort.
Qing Mu Lan’s aunt was the marriage alliance between the Qing family and the emperor.
Not only the Qing family, but basically every Duke’s household had women in the palace as consorts.
Although these women were merely sacrificial pieces to balance the court, and the emperor might not even like them, the consorts were the emperor’s absolute forbidden possessions. Anyone who touched them would die.
So the usually carefree Qing Mu Lan became so tense upon hearing Jin Feng mention her Noble Consort aunt.
“Why are you looking at me with that kind of expression?”
Jin Feng smiled and said: “I was just thinking, Zhou Wen Yuan traveled thousands of li from the capital to Guangyuan to buy soap, which shows that our soap should be quite popular in the capital too. Such a good thing, should you not present it to the Noble Consort as a filial gift?”
Hearing this, Qing Mu Lan had not yet reacted, but Tang Xiaobei’s eyes lit up instantly.
She understood what Jin Feng meant.
The main customer base for soap was women. Tang Xiaobei had already verified in Guangyuan that going through the ladies’ route was extremely effective for promoting soap.
The Prefecture Governor’s wife had casually recommended it a few times, and those ladies became the main customers for soap.
Although each household bought less than the brothels, how many brothels were there in Guangyuan combined?
The amount of soap purchased by all the ladies together was several times that of the brothels.
The most powerful woman in the prefecture city was the Prefecture Governor’s wife, so the most powerful women in the capital were naturally the emperor’s consorts.
Moreover, the circle of ladies in the capital always took the imperial palace as their model.
If a certain consort styled her hair in a way the emperor liked, as long as it did not violate etiquette, within a month, the ladies of the great families in the capital would all compete to copy that hairstyle.
If soap could be sent into the palace, the influence would be absolutely enormous.
At the very least, the Zhou family would have to weigh their options before trying to block it.
“Send soap to Little Aunt?”
Qing Mu Lan also felt somewhat tempted.
The court was the battlefield for ministers, and the rear palace was equally the battlefield for consorts.
The emperor’s attitude toward consorts could also affect the families behind them.
If Consort Qing could win the emperor’s favor, then the emperor would naturally lean a bit more toward the Qing family in court affairs.
But Qing Mu Lan still had some doubts about Jin Feng and reminded him: “Sir, given our relationship, if you are worried about the Zhou family retaliating and want to use soap to contact the imperial family, I advise you to drop that idea right now.
The grudge between you and Zhou Wen Yuan is, to those Dukes, perhaps just a squabble among the younger generation.
Besides, we are in the right in this matter. With my brother in Xichuan, the Zhou family cannot do anything to you.
But once the imperial family is involved, the nature of the matter changes.
If you have any other intentions, you had better tell me now. Otherwise, if something goes wrong later, no one can save you.”
Qing Mu Lan understood these principles, so Jin Feng naturally did too.
There were various rules constraining the noble families, but in feudal times, the imperial family was heaven itself, and the emperor was not subject to any laws.
As the saying goes, accompanying the monarch is like accompanying a tiger. If the emperor was pleased, a word could make a poor scholar rise to prominence. If displeased, a wave of the hand could instantly bring down a once-thriving family.
In fact, as a noble, albeit the lowest rank of baron, Jin Feng could directly offer tribute to the emperor.
Precisely because he did not want to get too deeply entangled with the imperial family, Jin Feng asked Qing Mu Lan to handle it, going through Consort Qing’s route.
“If I must say there are other purposes, it is that I want to sell soap in the capital, but the Zhou family will definitely block it. I have no foundation in the capital, so I want you to send some to the Noble Consort to help open the market for soap in the capital.”
Jin Feng said honestly: “This way, even if the Zhou family wants to block it, they cannot.”
This matter benefited Jin Feng, the Qing family, and Consort Qing, so there was nothing to hide.
“So that is how it is…”
Hearing Jin Feng say this, Qing Mu Lan finally relaxed: “I can send some to my aunt, but whether she will like it or whether it can achieve the result you want, I cannot guarantee.”
“I do not need your guarantee.”
Jin Feng said confidently.
Before coming to the prefecture city, Wan Niang had already stayed in Xihe Bay for a while. Under Jin Feng’s guidance, she had learned to use the distiller.
To Jin Feng’s surprise, Guan Xiaorou was very interested in blending fragrances and had great talent. Ever since Wan Niang arrived, the two had been holed up in the laboratory and actually managed to produce essential oils.
Essential oils were equivalent to the three primary colors in pigments. Different combinations of essential oils could produce different scents.
Moreover, soap made with essential oils had a richer and more lasting fragrance. In the fragrance-less Great Kang, Jin Feng believed it would definitely have a market.
As time went on, Guan Xiaorou and Wan Niang would surely blend more scents, enriching the varieties of soap.
This was also Jin Feng’s confidence in using soap to knock open the gates of the capital.
The three chatted as the mounted group reached the city gate.
Waiting for Jin Feng were not only Tang Xiaobei but also Deputy Xiao.
It was just that he had not run over to greet them like Tang Xiaobei.
“Mr. Jin, did you catch the bandit?”
Deputy Xiao asked anxiously as soon as they met.
As the commander of the garrison troops, with so many subordinates brutally killed at the city gate, Deputy Xiao was naturally furious.
But the Prefecture Governor would not let him lead troops to pursue, so he could only pin his hopes on Jin Feng.
“The main culprit who struck has been caught, but that young master got away.”
Jin Feng pointed to the bodyguard’s corpse and said helplessly: “We chased him over a hundred li, the warhorses were all worked to death. We nearly had him, but the guy got a boat and escaped by water.”
“I heard from the surviving brothers that the main killer was the young master’s bodyguard. Catching him is enough!”
Deputy Xiao clasped his fists toward Jin Feng: “Thank you, sir, for avenging my brothers. In the future, if sir has any needs, just say the word. As long as Xiao can do it, I will never refuse.”
“Thank you, sir, for avenging our brothers!”
The garrison troops behind Deputy Xiao also clasped their fists toward Jin Feng one after another.
“Brothers, you are too kind. Maintaining the safety of the prefecture city is not only your duty but also the inescapable responsibility of every citizen of Guangyuan.”
This was a perfect opportunity to win hearts, so Jin Feng naturally would not miss it.
With a solemn expression, he said: “I am deeply grieved by the sacrifice of the garrison brothers. To express my respect, I decide to donate twenty taels of silver to the family of each fallen garrison brother, to comfort their spirits in heaven.”
In just a few short sentences, not only did it make the garrison troops revere him, but their sense of identification with Jin Feng also rose another level.
