Although she was no longer worried about money for the time being, three million taels was still far from enough for her—it merely solved the immediate crisis.
"Ying Tao, after we return, bring me the revenue account books for those three shops in the capital over the past few years. Also, what kind of businesses are those three shops?"
"Miss, Zhao Momo has been urging you to learn how to read account books, but you never did. Are you finally interested now? Hehe, I’ll bring them all to you when we get back! One of the shops sells fabrics, another is a bookstore, and the last one is a jewelry shop."
"Let’s go, take me to see them!"
Buying maidservants could wait. First, she wanted to inspect these three shops. She had been worrying about how to start a business without money, influence, or shops, and now, just as she was dozing off, someone handed her a pillow. The original owner truly didn’t know how fortunate she was. Her mother had been very wise, planning for her future with great foresight… and she even had two such loyal companions as Zhao Momo and little Ying Tao by her side.
Yun Li felt a warmth in her heart, silently vowing that she would ensure Ying Tao and Zhao Momo lived a good life in the future!
Yun Li visited each of the three shops in turn. To put it simply, their locations were excellent—all situated in the heart of the capital’s commercial district.
Especially the bookstore and the jewelry shop, one in the east of the city and the other in the south, connected by a street that ran through the most bustling area of the capital. They were adjacent to the largest restaurant, Xiangyun Lou, and the teahouse, Yayun Pavilion.
It was a pity that despite such prime locations, the shops were poorly managed. Well, it wasn’t Zhao Momo and Ying Tao’s fault—they had done well just to keep the shops running…
These three shops definitely needed restructuring. What was the point of selling books in such a great location? How much money could books possibly make? She noticed the bookstore was even a two-story building—it would be perfect for opening a skincare shop!
The jewelry shop’s designs were outdated, and the variety was limited. With the resources from the Space Supermarket, she planned to sell glass products, such as glass ornaments, glass cups, glass tableware, and glass crafts…
She had discovered that glass was called liuli here! Liuli was worth a fortune and incredibly hard to come by… As for glass items on the shelves of her Space Supermarket, was she afraid she couldn’t find them? There were more than enough! The space even automatically restocked them. This stuff was cheap in modern times, but here, it was a treasure. And the glass products made with modern craftsmanship were simply exquisite…
She could already envision endless streams of money waving at her… Haha, she was going to get rich, get rich…
Ying Tao looked at her young mistress in confusion, wondering why she was standing there grinning foolishly.
"Miss, what are you laughing about?"
Yun Li snapped back to reality. "Ahem~ Nothing, just thinking about something!"
As for the last shop, the fabric store, she didn’t plan to sell fabrics anymore. Instead, she intended to focus on ready-to-wear clothing and high-end custom orders! The computer in her space contained countless design drawings of ancient attire, each one breathtakingly beautiful and capable of setting fashion trends here. She would print them out, hire a group of skilled seamstresses, and produce a batch of clothes to test the market.
With a plan in mind, the next step was action. She hadn’t forgotten her purpose for coming out today. Accompanied by Ying Tao, she headed to Yafang to select some maidservants and guards.
At Yafang, there were people ranging from eight to fifty years old, all homeless individuals who had been bought and sold repeatedly, deprived of their freedom.
As soon as she and Ying Tao walked in, a slightly plump woman with shrewd eyes came forward. She first looked Yun Li over, then said:
"What kind of servants are you looking for, miss? I can help you screen them according to your requirements."
Yun Li also sized her up, pretending to pull a silver ingot from her sleeve and handing it to her: "Bring me all the men and women between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five to have a look!"
The plump woman took the silver, beaming with joy: "Miss, wait a moment, I'll bring them right over!"
In the blink of an eye, the plump woman returned with a large group of people.
"Miss, you can choose. All the slaves in Yafang between the ages of fifteen and fifty are here!"
Yun Li quickly scanned the crowd with her eyes—about forty people. They were all dressed in coarse linen clothes, wearing shackles on their feet, and looked dirty and listless.
"What skills or talents do you have? For example, cooking, needlework, knowledge of medicine, bookkeeping and accounting, martial arts—anything you can do, just speak up. No matter what ability, as long as I can make use of it, I can offer you a stable income."
After Yun Li finished speaking, the people present finally slowly raised their heads, no longer looking dull, and showed some reaction in their bodies as they all looked at her.
Someone in the crowd asked: "You can really give us a stable income?"
Yun Li nodded. "Yes, but I don't keep idle people. The prerequisite is that you must have ability! I welcome those with ability!"
Her shop needed renovation, and she had other plans for the future. Many areas would require manpower, so she wanted to cultivate her own people, as they would be easier to manage.
"Miss, I know needlework. I've been learning embroidery since I was young!"
"Miss, I know cooking and can make pastries. I used to do odd jobs in the kitchen of the Minister's residence!"
"I know some martial arts…"
"I know some basic medical skills and can recognize common medicinal herbs. My father was a doctor, and I helped him manage herbs when I was young."
Everyone chattered about their strengths, afraid that Yun Li wouldn't want them.
In the end, Yun Li selected more than half to take away—fifteen maidservants and fifteen guards.
The last ten were not chosen because they had previously worked in the homes of other high-ranking officials in the capital. For example, she didn't take the one who said she had worked in the Minister's residence and could make pastries!
Just in case—human hearts are unpredictable. These people would be with her for a long time and might become her capable assistants in the future. She didn’t want to plant a ticking time bomb by her side, so it was better to nip it in the bud from the start.
Yun Li promptly paid the plump woman, redeemed all thirty people, and took them away. Taking them all back to the Prime Minister's Residence was certainly unrealistic, so she first took them to the courtyard she had bought in the east of the city to settle them down.
She then selected four maidservants around the same age as Ying Tao to bring back to the Prime Minister's Residence.
…
Meanwhile, in Yu Wang Fu, Prince Yu, Helian Chi, sat at the table with a flushed face, covered in fine red rashes upon closer inspection, looking unwell as Imperial Physician Liu took his pulse.
"Your Highness, have you mistakenly eaten something?"
Prince Yu thought for a moment, then shook his head: "This prince has been in the palace since this morning and hasn't eaten or drunk anything…"
"What about yesterday or the past few days, Your Highness?"
Prince Yu thought for a moment and shook his head again. Apart from being summoned by the Emperor today and that night with the woman, he had spent the past few days investigating the matter of the assassins from that night and searching for that damned woman within his own estate…
His meals were personally overseen by Steward Wu and delivered by the shadow guards, undergoing three rounds of poison testing, so there should be no issue. Moreover, he had always maintained a light diet, and these past few days, he had only eaten ordinary food.
Imperial Physician Liu asked doubtfully, "Has Your Highness experienced any unusual reactions these past few days?"
He thought back again, and after careful consideration, the only notable event was today on his way back from the palace, when he passed by Yuhua Yuan and encountered the Empress and several concubines admiring flowers. He did not linger and left directly.
It seemed that after seeing the Empress, he had felt somewhat uncomfortable, with a slight urge to vomit. At the time, he thought it was the unbearable scent of the concubines' cosmetics and perfumes, but now it seemed it might not be so simple. Could the Empress have poisoned him?
However, he remembered keeping a distance from the Empress and the others, merely exchanging a brief greeting without even speaking a word.
His heart sank, and he told Imperial Physician Liu about his reaction.