I support the army through farming and business.

Chapter 194 Marketable but priceless
A month later, the caravan arrived in Suzhou Prefecture. The next day, Qian Yuzhi dressed up and went to the door with a visiting card to request an audience.

Madam Zheng, the young mistress of the Ming family, met with her in person.

"Qian Yuzhi, the manager of Hualufang, greets Young Madam Ming," Qian Yuzhi said, kneeling and bowing. "May Young Madam Ming remain forever beautiful and radiant."

"No need for formalities," Madam Zheng ordered someone to help her up. Seeing that Qian Yuzhi was well-mannered and courteous, she smiled and praised, "As expected of someone under the Princess's command, please sit down."

Qian Yuzhi declined to sit down, saying, "My status is lowly, and I should not be bothering you. However, before she left, the Princess repeatedly instructed me to convey her gratitude to your family for your help."

Qian Yuzhi took the wooden box handed to her by her subordinate. “Your Highness is short of money, and the Ming family is a century-old family that has seen countless fine things. After much consideration, Your Highness personally made these two bottles of flower dew. Please do not find them too cheap.”

The maidservant smiled and stepped forward to take the wooden box, placing it beside Madam Zheng.

"The gift is small but the sentiment is great. The entire household is overjoyed by the gift from the Princess."

As she spoke, Madam Zheng personally opened the wooden box, revealing two exquisitely crafted glass bottles lying quietly on a sky-blue silk. The bottles were filled to about seven-tenths full with pure white liquid, which shone like jewels in the sunlight.

Born into a prestigious family and raised amidst luxury, Zheng had seen all sorts of rare and precious treasures, yet she was still amazed by the exquisitely crafted glass bottle.

Compared to these, the glass ornaments produced by the Imperial Jade and Precious Stone Bureau were truly unworthy of attention.

Zheng's humble attitude and the amazement in her eyes reassured Qian Yuzhi, who then introduced the flower dew, "This flower dew is made by extracting the essence from flowers and going through dozens of processes. There are few flowers in the Northwest, but the plum blossoms bloom exceptionally well, so the Princess picked them to make this plum blossom flower dew."

Zheng played with the glass bottle in her hand, which was carved with red plum blossoms and white snow. She could faintly smell the fragrance of winter plum blossoms.

"This floral water is also extremely easy to use. After opening the cap, just press the top with your finger and the floral water will spray out."

Following Qian Yuzhi's instructions, Zheng pressed the button gently, and water indeed gushed out of the small hole. In a moment, the crisp fragrance of winter plum blossoms spread from her sleeves.

"It smells so good!" the maid exclaimed in surprise.

Not only was it fragrant, but it smelled wonderful. Zheng closed her eyes and savored the fragrance that permeated the air around her, as if she were enjoying a pleasant stroll through a plum grove in winter.

"Your Highness is so clever and resourceful that you have managed to create such a divine product from the Jade Pool."

Qian Yuzhi smiled and introduced another bottle, "This is peony flower dew, extracted from the petals of the finest peony flowers. It is most suitable for elegant and noble women like the young mistress and the madam."

Following up on the topic, Zheng picked up another glass bottle carved with peony flowers and gently pressed it. In an instant, the rich fragrance of peonies completely masked the scent of plum blossoms, domineeringly dominating everyone's sense of smell.

Madam Zheng was very curious, "What is the value of this flower dew?"

"Plum blossom dew is not expensive, only one thousand taels per bottle."

Zheng nodded. A bottle cost 1,000 taels. It wasn't cheap, but it was a good product, so it was worth the price.

"And what about the peony dew?"

Qian Yuzhi's smile remained unchanged. "Peony flower dew is available but priceless; the highest bidder wins."

"Hiss!" Zheng gasped. The highest bidder wins. Even with her generous dowry, she was still terrified.

Ms. Zheng put the peony dew back into the box, saying, "At this price, many people will be deterred."

Qian Yuzhi's smile remained unchanged. "Young Madam, there's no need to worry. There aren't many bottles of this peony flower dew to begin with, and the flower dew shop only sells it to select people." Madam Zheng was stunned. Did that mean that even if she wanted to buy it despite the heartache, she couldn't?

For a moment, Zheng couldn't even tell which feeling was more unbearable.

"The Flower Dew Shop has all the necessary staff and equipment, but picking flowers and distilling takes a long time. I think this time shouldn't be wasted, so I humbly request the young mistress's help in promoting it."

How to promote it?

"Please use the floral dew given to you by the princess instead of sachets, incense, or other spices. If any dignitaries ask, just tell them the truth," Qian Yuzhi said. "This is the best form of publicity."

"Even if you don't say it, I use such a good thing every day."

With a sincere smile, Zheng introduced Qian Yuzhi to the capable steward of the outer courtyard of the Ming government, and even invited Qian Yuzhi to dine in the mansion, treating her almost like a guest.

Qian Yuzhi was extremely grateful.

With the overt and covert help from the Mingfu, Qian Yuzhi was busy arranging flower picking and steaming dew while personally overseeing the shop's renovation.

Mr. Zheng was also very busy.

The prominent families of Jiangnan are always celebrating. Today, the Wang family is hosting a flower-viewing banquet, tomorrow the Li family is organizing a Cuju (ancient Chinese football) tournament, and the day after tomorrow the old lady of the Sun family will celebrate her birthday. The Ming family is the first-class family in Jiangnan, and they receive countless invitations every day.

Zheng carefully selected several families to attend the banquet. Amidst the silent competition among the noble ladies and young women of Jiangnan, who were subtly showing off their jewelry, clothes, and makeup, Zheng, with her unique fragrance, firmly outshone everyone else.

It is truly a strange thing to smell the crisp fragrance of plum blossoms in the sweltering heat of midsummer.

While Zheng Shi was making a name for herself, the name of Hua Lu Fang also spread throughout the noble families of Jiangnan, and many ladies and even men wanted to buy a bottle to use.

A thousand taels of silver is an unheard-of sum for ordinary people; to them, it's nothing more than an accessory, a piece of clothing, or something to win a smile from a beautiful woman.

The first day of the seventh lunar month is auspicious and suitable for opening a business.

Huaxianlu, located in a bustling area of ​​Suzhou's main street, opened to great anticipation. Maids and servants from various noble families who had been waiting outside flocked to the store, specifically requesting to buy plum blossom dew.

"Do you only want plum blossom dew?" The well-trained female shop assistant smiled sincerely and acted generously. "Our shop also has more than a dozen kinds of fragrant dews, such as pomegranate blossom dew, trumpet creeper dew, and osmanthus dew."

The salesperson picked up a sample of floral water and sprayed it, saying, "This lotus fragrance is delicate, the trumpet creeper fragrance is light and gentle, and the osmanthus fragrance is rich. Each floral water has its own merits. Are you sure you want to choose the plum blossom floral water?"

The head maid was taken aback by the question: So many kinds? The lady/madam didn't mention that!
"I need to go back and ask the master," the head maid frowned. With so many styles, how was she supposed to describe them to the lady/young lady?

"This is a sample of our floral water," the clerk said, offering immediate relief. "Although it can't compare to the genuine floral water, the taste is exactly the same."

The head maid was overjoyed and took a sample of each type of floral dew before excitedly returning to the mansion.

After trying each of the samples, the ladies who received them all thought they were all good and wanted them all.

The young mistress, who was on good terms with Madam Ming, asked, "Why aren't there any samples of peony flower dew?"

The head maid said with a smile, "The people from Huaxianlu said that peony flower dew is precious, and there are only ten bottles in total. Only customers who buy all the flower dew can get the qualification to enter the peony flower dew auction on the fifteenth of July."