Xiao Changheng nodded:
“Your Majesty, please speak.”
“Ahem… Your wedding with the Crown Prince taking place on the same day is a double blessing, a rare event that occurs once in a hundred years! I specially grant you both to hold your weddings in the inner hall of the Imperial Palace. What does my royal brother think?” The Emperor said with a beaming smile.
Xiao Changheng’s expression turned slightly cold, and he immediately wanted to refuse:
“This subject believes…”
The Empress, seeing his intention, immediately interrupted with a smile:
“The State Preceptor has also calculated that holding both weddings in the same hall can prosper the National Fortune and stabilize the Great Liang’s rule. I believe the Regent King will certainly not refuse, right?”
“…” Xiao Changheng’s expression grew even colder.
Yun Qingqing glanced at the Crown Prince, who wore a meaningful expression, and suddenly let out a light laugh.
They had even brought up prospering the National Fortune and stabilizing the rule—clearly, they were deliberately putting him on the spot so he couldn’t refuse.
“Being able to hold the wedding in the Imperial Palace is a tremendous honor. How could His Highness possibly refuse? Isn’t that right, Your Highness?” Yun Qingqing said with a smile.
Worried that Xiao Changheng might not grasp her meaning, she secretly squeezed his hand hard.
The man fell silent for a moment, then suddenly chuckled softly:
“Since Qingqing likes it, then let it be done this way.”
The Emperor breathed a sigh of relief and immediately issued an edict to finalize the matter.
Yun Bai Lian lowered her head, her smile appearing joyful but actually carrying a hint of smugness.
Now she wouldn’t have to worry about all the court officials attending the Regent King’s wedding, leaving the Crown Prince’s Residence deserted.
Moreover, with both weddings held together in the Imperial Palace, Yun Qingqing’s ugly face would become her best foil!
Even if she was the Princess Consort of the Prince Regent, so what? She would still be ridiculed by everyone!
The Empress was also very satisfied.
The State Preceptor had said that the Crown Prince marrying the Heavenly Phoenix was the perfect opportunity to suppress the Regent King’s Qi Fortune. That was why she had specifically persuaded the Emperor to arrange both weddings in the same location.
After waiting so long, she was finally going to completely resolve this thorn in her side!
…
Early the next morning, Yun Qingqing put on a Veiled Hat and left the residence for East Street.
First, she bought a large quantity of high-quality cinnabar and talisman paper, as well as some other useful items, storing them all in her ring.
Finally, she arrived at the entrance of a fairly large shop.
Huichun Hall.
Yun Qingqing stepped inside, slapped a list on the counter, and asked the clerk:
“How many of the medicines on this list can you prepare?”
Upon hearing this, the clerk looked displeased and said:
“Look at what you’re saying! This is Huichun Hall! How many medicinal herbs in this world can’t be found here…”
As he spoke, he snatched the list to look at it, but his eyes grew wider and wider, gradually falling silent.
“So, can you prepare them or not? Price is not an issue,” Yun Qingqing said calmly.
“Please wait a moment, honored guest! I’ll go fetch the manager right away!”
The clerk snapped back to reality, his attitude completely changed. He bowed and scraped, then scurried off to the back hall.
Before long, a middle-aged man in a blue satin robe hurried over and politely addressed Yun Qingqing:
“I am Tang Chuan, the manager of this Huichun Hall. Did you bring this list?”
“Yes, can you prepare it all?”
Manager Tang nodded:
“Although the medicinal herbs on your list are precious, given Huichun Hall’s resources, there’s no problem. However, there is one ingredient—a hundred-year-old snow ginseng—that is our shop’s treasure. We have only one, and the price…”
Yun Qingqing nodded:
“Just name the price you need, and I’ll pay it.”
She still carried with her the warehouse of wealth that Yun Zhiping had privately hoarded, so money was no concern at all.
Seeing her look of someone who didn’t lack funds, Manager Tang thought to himself that she was indeed a major customer. He immediately had a shop assistant bring in a tray, on which lay a crystal-clear, translucent lotus—the hundred-year snow ginseng.
“This hundred-year snow ginseng costs ten thousand taels of silver. Adding the other medicinal herbs on your list, the total comes to ten thousand three hundred and fifty taels.”
Although the other herbs were also precious, together they amounted to little more than a fraction of the snow ginseng’s price.
Yun Qingqing nodded and was about to take out the silver notes from her space to hand them over when someone behind her suddenly said:
“I’ll take this hundred-year snow ginseng! How much is it?”
She turned around and saw that the speaker was a young man, elegant and holding a folding fan. She couldn’t help but frown.
This person was Ye Zhishen, the heir of the Loyal and Brave Marquis’s household. He had always been on good terms with Xiao Zirui and had always looked down on the original owner, never missing a chance to mock her whenever they met.
“My apologies, sir. We only have one of these hundred-year snow ginsengs in the shop, and this young lady has already purchased it,” Manager Tang said.
“How much did she buy it for?” Ye Zhishen asked with a casual smile.
Manager Tang truthfully replied, “Ten thousand taels.”
Ye Zhishen immediately raised his chin and declared:
“I’ll pay twenty thousand taels. Sell it to me!”
Seeing Manager Tang hesitate, he glanced at the silver notes in Yun Qingqing’s hand and said:
“She hasn’t paid yet, has she? I’m offering double the price. As a business, how could you pass up an extra ten thousand taels of silver?”
Manager Tang was tempted and smiled apologetically at Yun Qingqing:
“Esteemed customer, as you can see, what the young master says does make sense. This hundred-year snow ginseng…”
Yun Qingqing’s voice turned slightly cold:
“I’ve long heard that Huichun Hall is fair and honest, with clear pricing. Does your employer know you conduct business like this?”
Manager Tang was momentarily speechless.
Upon hearing her voice, Ye Zhishen narrowed his eyes, stared at her for a moment, and then sneered:
“Who do we have here? Isn’t this Miss Yun, who was rejected by the Crown Prince but still clings to him day and night? What, it’s not like they’re raising the price on the spot—I’m voluntarily offering twenty thousand taels. What’s wrong with the highest bidder winning? If you have the ability, why don’t you offer a higher price?”
Manager Tang nodded in agreement:
“Exactly, exactly! Since there’s only one hundred-year snow ginseng and both of you want it, the highest bidder shall have it!”
Yun Qingqing’s tone turned completely cold:
“I must have this hundred-year snow ginseng, and I’ll pay exactly ten thousand taels—not a single copper coin more.”
Ye Zhishen glanced at her as if watching a joke:
“Yun Qingqing, you really have some nerve, don’t you? Whatever you want must belong to you? You cling to the Crown Prince day and night—did he marry you? Now you think just by stubbornly insisting, you can take the hundred-year snow ginseng for ten thousand taels?”
With that, he directly handed a silver note to Manager Tang:
“Manager, don’t mind her. Here’s twenty thousand taels. Wrap up the item for me right now!”
But Yun Qingqing stepped forward in a flash, slapped the silver note on the table, grabbed the hundred-year snow ginseng, stuffed it into her sleeve, and directly stored it in her space.
Better safe than sorry.
“What are you doing!” Ye Zhishen exclaimed in shock.
Manager Tang also showed anger:
“Are you trying to rob us openly? Hand over the item immediately, and I might let you off without pursuing this!”
“Pursue?” Yun Qingqing sneered. “Huichun Hall has always had clear pricing and never engages in on-the-spot price hikes! Does your employer know you’re behaving like this?”
“Today, this hundred-year snow ginseng was reserved by me first. Ten thousand taels is the agreed price, and no one can snatch it from my hands!”
“Manager Tang can go fetch your proprietor right now and see if Divine Doctor Tang is willing to sell it to me for ten thousand taels or to him for twenty thousand!”
Ye Zhishen sneered:
“Fine! Then let’s have Divine Doctor Tang come and see who he’s willing to sell it to! If you still refuse to hand over the snow ginseng then, don’t blame me for reporting it to the authorities!”
Who does this woman think she is?
The Ye and Tang families have been close friends for generations—she’s simply asking for humiliation!