Lu Qingwan chuckled, "You trust your Prince that much?"
Li Jin puffed out his chest, beaming with pride, "Of course. His Highness's loyalty to His Majesty is beyond question. But what sets our Prince apart from General Gu is that he is not blindly loyal. The Great Qian, His Majesty, and the forty thousand Xuanjia soldiers are equally important to him. If invaders were to attack, it would be natural for the Prince to dedicate his all and for the soldiers to die in battle. However, if His Majesty were to act foolishly and harm the Great Qian and the soldiers, the Prince would absolutely not tolerate it."
As he spoke, his gaze landed on Lu Qingwan, "The Princess and the Prince are one. From the moment the Prince ordered his subordinates to recognize you as the matriarch, you have become as important to him as his own arms and lungs."
After saying so much, Li Jin was indirectly telling her that although Feng Xi Wu would not let her undertake the same risks as Madam Gu, if such a situation truly arose, Feng Xi Wu would not let her suffer the same fate as Madam Gu. Lu Qingwan was truly speechless at his scheming mind.
"You don't need to explain your Prince's thoughts to me," Lu Qingwan said, exasperated. "Go do what you need to do. Don't forget to cover for the Prince. Don't be shocked when you see another Prince sitting in the Wutong Garden tonight."
Li Jin put on an honest face and acted cute, "His Highness is seriously ill and recuperating in the manor. As his personal guard, I naturally must stay in the manor to protect him. Shen An has not been accompanying His Highness closely, so perhaps I can supplement his knowledge of His Highness's various habits?"
"Do as you please."
Lu Qingwan walked towards the Wutong Garden with a swaying gait. Seeing Li Jin actually follow, she casually asked, "How has business been recently?"
"As winter is cold, our hot pot and barbecue stores are fully booked every day. As the end of the year approaches, our clothing and jewelry are also selling well. However, the styles of winter clothing are a bit limited. If Princess has time, could you perhaps design some new styles?"
He looked respectful, but his eyes were full of business acumen as he looked at Lu Qingwan. Lu Qingwan laughed, "You're quite good at seizing opportunities."
Li Jin smiled guilelessly. Lu Qingwan then changed the subject, "Speaking of which, with His Majesty's physical condition, the matter of establishing a Crown Prince is inevitable, isn't it?"
Li Jin hesitated for a moment before lowering his head to reply, "If nothing unexpected happens, it should be decided before the end of the year."
Lu Qingwan wore an expression of "I knew it," "Then what about the Crown Princess? Whether it's Prince Chen or Prince Jing who ascends the throne, they will need to select a Crown Princess, won't they? To stabilize the heir's position, the other Prince should also be quickly granted a marriage and then sent to his fiefdom. This means that a selection of consorts will be happening soon, right?"
Li Jin looked confused, "What does the selection of consorts for the two princes have to do with our business?"
"It has a lot to do with it, a lot!" Lu Qingwan rubbed her hands excitedly and began to calculate on her fingers for Li Jin, "The Crown Prince and the Prince will select consorts, each requiring one principal consort and two secondary consorts, at most six positions. But there are far more than six eligible young ladies in the capital, more than six hundred even. These women will be vying for attention, blooming like a hundred flowers, and what will determine who gets that position?"
Li Yang, who overheard their conversation from afar, chimed in, "Naturally, it's their family background! The Crown Princess must have a clean family history and powerful influence to assist the heir. As for the Prince's consort, her family background should also be clean, but her influence cannot be too strong, and it must not appear outwardly weak, otherwise, the new consort will be looked down upon..."
Li Yang delivered his piece and then saw Lu Qingwan and Li Jin staring at him with speechless expressions. He looked quite innocent, "What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong?"
"You're not wrong, but are there really more than six women in the capital with clean family backgrounds and powerful family influence?" Lu Qingwan said disdainfully, "If you choose people based on your standard, you could hit seven or eight with one throw of a stone."
Li Jin nodded in agreement. Li Yang became curious, "Then what else?"
"Naturally, it's about the methods to attract attention!" Lu Qingwan said with disappointment, "They'll employ every strategy under the sun. Whoever can capture the attention of the Crown Prince and the Prince, and gain the admiration of the ministers and His Majesty, will have their position secured!"
Li Yang listened with confusion and awe, "Wait, that's not right. If I heard correctly, you're talking about business, aren't you? The future selection of consorts for the Crown Prince and the Prince, what does that have to do with your business?"
Li Jin, like a weathervane, who had just sided with Lu Qingwan in looking down on Li Yang, now sided with Li Yang. "That's right, Princess. What does the selection of consorts have to do with our business?"
"Words alone are useless. Just wait and see!" She looked around, "Where is the Prince?"
Li Jin took a moment to understand she was referring to Shen An, "Li Qing is altering his appearance for him. We'll release him after the disguise is complete."
Lu Qingwan opened her mouth, "So, I have nothing to do?"
Li Jin and Li Yang were at a loss for how to answer this question. Lu Qingwan, however, was amused, "Since I don't need to worry about the Prince's matters, I should attend to my own. Go, have Manchun bring me the things I've prepared, and then find Yue'er and Zhi Qiu for me."
Sensing that Lu Qingwan might bring some surprises, Li Jin ran off eagerly. Soon, two maids arrived. Manchun's eyes lit up, "Princess, are we trying out new clothes again?" She was the one who managed Lu Qingwan's clothes and jewelry, and she also loved beautiful clothes and jewelry. Every time Lu Qingwan released a new style, she was the most excited.
"Come and see." Lu Qingwan took out the blueprints she had prepared from a drawer. "Can this hairstyle be done?"
Manchun was full of confidence. She placed the items on the table and leaned in to look, only to exclaim, "What kind of hairstyle is this? It looks so strange!"
"This is called a 'Da La Chi' (大拉翅). I've prepared everything needed. I can describe it but can't do it, but you are skilled with your hands. I believe you can do it." Manchun was somewhat tempted, "Then I'll give it a try. If it doesn't turn out well, Princess, please don't be angry with me!"
Lu Qingwan directly pushed her into a chair, "Don't worry, when have I ever been angry with you? You study it first. Zhi Qiu, come here!" Zhi Qiu had modeled for Lu Qingwan a few times and was now very experienced. She obediently followed Lu Qingwan to change her clothes. Although the style of the clothes seemed a bit strange, she patiently put them on. Seeing her so willing, Lu Qingwan cheerfully called to Yue'er, "Yue'er, go help her." The little girl skipped over and helped Zhi Qiu change her clothes. After the clothes were changed, the shoes stumped the two maids.
"Princess, can these shoes really be worn?"
"Why not?" Lu Qingwan took the horseshoe shoes from Yue'er and put them on, then confidently walked around in front of them. "How do they feel?"