The most dissolute couple in the capital

The next morning, Cui Qingyi didn't get up until the sun was high in the sky.

Su Xin brought in hot water to help her wash up. While wringing out her handkerchief, she smiled and said, "Your Highness, Aunt Guan has been sorting out the accounts for the front and back courtyards since early this morning, saying she wants to wait for you to get up and review them."

As expected of the steward sent by Her Majesty the Empress, Her Majesty is truly kind! Aunt Guan is truly kind!

She took the handkerchief and put it on her face, her voice muffled: "Let her eat breakfast first. Just leave the account books on my desk, no rush."

Su Xin responded.

After wiping her face, Cui Qingyi slowly sat down in front of the dressing table, looked at her face in the bronze mirror, and suddenly remembered something.

When she got married, the Empress Dowager was very generous to her daughter-in-law, who was willing to "jump into the fire" to save her beloved youngest son. In addition to gold and silver jewelry, she also specially provided two prime shops facing the street in the East Market. The East Market was such a place where every inch of land was precious, and high-ranking officials and nobles gathered there. You could easily drop a brick and hit the family of a third-rank official.

Cui Qingyi flipped through the land deeds. One of the properties was used as a silk shop and had already been rented out, making a fortune from the rent every month. The other property used to be a teahouse, but the owner had recently returned to his hometown to retire, leaving it vacant.

Since the room was empty anyway, Cui Qingyi recalled the way Li Chengjing's eyes lit up among those bottles and jars yesterday.

"Even a long-term meal ticket that can breathe needs emotional value," Cui Qingyi thought to herself. "Since he has a talent for this, why not find him something to do?"

Only when your partner is positive and motivated can you relax and relax, right?

Holding the land deed, she strolled over to the incense room.

The incense room of the Liang Prince's Mansion was located in a separate small building in the west courtyard, which Li Chengjing had renovated himself before his marriage. The entire building was filled with all kinds of bottles and jars, which were neatly arranged on specially made wooden shelves, even more so than the pharmacy of the Imperial Medical Bureau.

She pushed open the door and saw Li Chengjing squatting in front of a low table, with seven or eight small porcelain dishes in front of him, each containing a different colored paste.

"Your Highness."

Li Chengjing didn't even look up: "Wait a moment, I'll be right there."

He used a thin bamboo skewer to pick up a little bit of the light pink ointment, spread it on the back of his hand, looked at it in the light from the window, shook his head, and then changed to another dish.

Cui Qingyi wasn't in a hurry. She found a chair, sat down, and quietly watched him work.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Li Chengjing finally hissed in satisfaction, raised his head, and looked at him with a smug expression of having completed a masterpiece.

"Qingyi, come and look at this color."

He raised the back of his hand and brought it close to Cui Qingyi's face.

A very light blush was applied to the back of her hand, which shimmered with a warm glow in the sunlight, like a thin layer of dew on a peach bud.

Cui Qingyi reached out and grasped his wrist, examining it closely. This subtle color, when applied to the face, would give one a naturally healthy complexion.

"It looks good." She gave a sincere evaluation.

Li Chengjing chuckled and pointed to another dish: "This one is for older people. The color is a bit darker, so the concealing effect is better. And this one, I added mint. It feels cool when you apply it in the summer, and it's less likely to come off."

"Your Highness's craftsmanship is truly superb," ​​Cui Qingyi exclaimed sincerely, then gently pushed the land deed in front of him. "Your Highness, I have an idea."

"Among the dowry bestowed upon me by the Empress Dowager, there is a vacant, prime shop in the East Market," Cui Qingyi said with a smile. "Your Highness's incense-making skills are so exquisite; it would be a waste to keep them locked away in this palace for our own enjoyment. Why don't we open a cosmetics shop and promote Your Highness's talent?"

Li Chengjing paused for a moment, then shook his head.

This reaction was unexpected by Cui Qingyi.

"Your Highness is unwilling?"

"It's not that we're unwilling," Li Chengjing said, rubbing his nose. "Relatives shouldn't compete with the common people for profit. Those things like opening shops and doing business should be left to the people. If we get involved, how will those small merchants and vendors survive?"

Cui Qingyi was slightly taken aback, and her gaze towards Li Chengjing held a genuine surprise and admiration.

"Your Highness is very righteous, I have learned a lot." Cui Qingyi put away her casual expression and her tone became serious. "However, Your Highness misunderstands me. Our Incense Palace is not here to make money off ordinary people."

"What do you mean?"

"Your Highness, think about it. The base oil you used is the finest mutton fat, the base is pearl powder from the Western Regions, and there's also agarwood and top-grade orchid... Ordinary people might not be able to earn enough to buy a box of perfume in a year."

Cui Qingyi patiently explained, "We can do business with wealthy and powerful families, and noble ladies. These families are not short of money, and they don't buy cosmetics; they buy unique items that no one else has. And Your Highness's craftsmanship is precisely that 'uniqueness.' We don't compete with small merchants for a penny or two; we simply take the money that wealthy families spend elsewhere and bring it to us."

Lee Seung-kyung blinked, seemingly processing what he had just said.

Cui Qingyi added fuel to the fire: "Moreover, if Your Highness is still not at ease, I have another idea."

"What are your thoughts?"

"I was thinking, could we donate a portion of the profits?" Cui Qingyi said casually. "We earn money from these high-ranking officials and nobles, but instead of keeping it in the Prince's private treasury, we donate all the profits. In this way, we won't bury His Highness's talent, and we can also... oh no, we can take from the people and use it for the people. Wouldn't that be a great deed that accumulates merit?"

She paused, looking into Li Chengjing's eyes: "What does Your Highness think?"

To put it bluntly, they create high-end brands to make money from wealthy people, and then donate a portion of it to charity to improve their reputation.

"Then let's open it!" Li Chengjingting exclaimed, his excitement palpable. "Such chivalrous and courageous acts of saving the common people—I'm extremely interested!"

Without hesitation, Cui Qingyi left the incense room and immediately summoned Aunt Guan, whom the Empress had lent her.

"Aunt Guan is an old hand from the palace, very knowledgeable," Cui Qingyi said gently, offering her a seat. "His Highness is kind-hearted and wishes to donate the silver he earns from making incense in his spare time to do good deeds. However, I am new to managing the household affairs and am not familiar with the various charitable institutions in the capital. If I donate blindly, I fear that corrupt officials will take advantage of the situation. Does Aunt Guan have a suitable and reliable channel?"

Aunt Guan pondered for a moment, then looked up and said, "Your Highness, there is indeed one. However..."

"Please speak freely, Aunt."

"In Mingquan Lane in the south of the city, there is an orphanage called 'Ciyouyuan'. This orphanage was founded by Her Majesty the Empress and Princess Zhao, specifically to take in abandoned baby girls."

She knew this place in her past life.

But this happened three or four years later. By then, orphanages had been established nationwide, becoming a great achievement of Li Zhao's benevolent rule.

She never expected that the Empress was already making preparations so early.

Moreover, judging from Aunt Guan's tone, this orphanage has been operating for several years.

"Adopting abandoned babies?" Cui Qingyi feigned surprise, frowning slightly. "Why only female babies?"

Aunt Guan's expression darkened: "The princess has lived a secluded life for so long that she naturally does not know the reasons behind this. In the common people, there is a strong preference for sons over daughters. Countless poor families drown or abandon their newborn daughters..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but her meaning was clear.

Cui Qingyi remained silent for a moment.

"Her Majesty the Empress and Princess Zhao's act of kindness is truly admirable." Cui Qingyi put down her teacup. "Aunt, would it be convenient for you to take me to see them?"

Aunt Guan immediately replied, "If Your Highness has such intentions, this servant will arrange it immediately."