I turned the cold palace into a paradise

Twenty minutes later, the table was a mess. Except for the soup made by Liu Lu, all the other dishes were eaten up.

Everyone slumped down in their chairs. Except for Yunyue and Wang Taifei and Madam Xu, they were normal. After all, Wang Taifei and Madam Xu could eat the food sent by Yunyue every day, so they didn't have to eat too much again. Li Wanhua was an exception. She was afraid that she wouldn't have enough to eat if there were too many people, so she stuffed her mouth with food. Yunyue's mouth twitched when she saw this. What if she was starving her?

Afraid that everyone would have stomachaches at night, Yunyue distributed the hawthorn water that she had prepared earlier to everyone.

Maybe it was the delicious food, or maybe it was because they had been in the rain together, everyone had lost their initial guard and felt more relaxed.

"Happy birthday, Yunyue." Liu Lu took out a jade pendant from his bosom and put it in Yunyue's hand. "I don't have anything good, this is a birthday gift my mother gave me. I give it to you today. I hope you don't dislike it."

Yunyue didn't expect that Liu Lu had prepared a gift for her, and it was given to her by her mother. She quickly refused it. After all, today was not her birthday.

"Take it. Are you still disgusted? Do you not want to be my sister?"

Seeing this, Yunyue had no choice but to accept it and helped her keep it first.

Huang Cairen and Yu Meiren also took out the gifts they had prepared. Huang Cairen's was a handkerchief, and Yu Meiren's was a purse.

Yunyue saw that the flowers and birds on the handkerchief were lifelike, and it was obvious that they had been embroidered with great care. She was very happy to accept it. Huang Cairen saw that Yunyue did not dislike her handkerchief, and she smiled. She had spent several days embroidering it, and was planning to sell it for some money. If it were not for this feast, she would really be reluctant to give it away.

Lady Yu's purse was equally exquisite, and contained some herbs. Yun Yue smelled them and found that they were for mosquito repellent.

"I'm the most vulnerable to mosquito bites. This purse is very timely. It's really thoughtful."

Lady Yu was surprised that Yunyue could tell the effect of the herbs in the purse just by smelling them. Could it be that she also knew medical skills?

"This is for you." A pair of white and slender hands handed a book to Yunyue. It was Ouyang Shu.

Yunyue took it and flipped through it. It was a travel book. It described the customs and landscapes of Tianchen and the surrounding countries. Yunyue was overjoyed. This was a good thing. When she escaped from the palace in the future, she would know where to go. She thanked Ouyang Shu and happily accepted it.

This is Ouyang Shu's favorite book. She originally thought that Yunyue from the military family would not like the book she gave her, but looking at her glowing eyes, she knew that she really liked it. Her cold face softened a little.

Afterwards, Concubine Wang gave Yunyue a bracelet, but Li Wanhua gave her nothing but said she would give it to her later.

After delivering the gifts, they didn't rush to leave. Before, they were all alone in the empty and depressing room. Today, it felt surprisingly good to sit together. Li Wanhua and Huang Cairen were both talkative, and Yunyue was even more so. Moreover, she had a high emotional intelligence and would not ignore anyone. For a while, everyone chatted happily, and even Ouyang Shu could say a few words.

"Yunyue, can I come to your place for dinner next time? I can pay, the handkerchiefs I embroidered can be exchanged for money." Huang Cairen's words hit everyone's mind, and everyone looked at Yunyue expectantly.

Yunyue did not agree immediately. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Today's meal took me most of the day with the help of Nanny Xu and Sister Wanhualu." Although it was the same whether there were two people or not.

"So it's not realistic to have a meal together every day. Let's see if this is feasible. We can have a meal together every five days. But we need those who have money to contribute money and those who have strength to contribute strength."

Everyone knows that cooking is not easy. Although they cannot cook, they know that in a small kitchen on weekdays, there are always several helpers in the kitchen besides the cook.

They all nodded.

Except for Ouyang Shu: "No need." She was determined to die and didn't want to get entangled with them too much. After saying that, she stood up and wanted to leave.

But Huang Cairen stopped her and said, "What you said is really funny. Now there are only a few of us in the cold palace. What's wrong with having a meal together? Could it be that the great lady doesn't like us and doesn't want to get along with us?" Huang Cairen was unhappy. It was not easy to coax Yunyue to be happy and agree to improve the food every few days. I don't know what Ouyang Shu is thinking. If Yunyue is unhappy and unwilling, he will fight her to the death.

"No money." Ouyang Shu said lightly.

Huang Cairen was choked and speechless. Everyone knew that Censor Ouyang was a well-known honest person in the court. Ouyang Jinyan was upright and honest in his work. He was the poorest official in the court. If it weren't for his wife's two shops, Ouyang Jinyan's salary would not be enough to support his family.

Ouyang Shu was not like herself who could embroider a handkerchief to earn some money. She just knew how to study hard.

Huang Cairen was wondering how to start the conversation, and Yunyue said, "Sisters, are you interested in doing some business together?"

"Business? What business?" Li Wanhua spoke first. What's wrong with Yunyue? Shouldn't she look for her own business first?

"How do you do business in this cold palace?" Huang Cairen asked curiously.

Seeing that everyone was looking at her curiously, Yun Yue continued, "What do you think of selling ice in this weather?"

Li Lu raised his eyebrows and said, "You want to sell ice cream? This year the heat came earlier and more intensely than in previous years. Selling ice cream at this time does make money."

"But this ice was stored last winter. Do you have any stock? Even if you do, the ice is limited and you can't make much money." said Lady Yu.

The others nodded in agreement.

Li Wanhua grinned at this and said, "Hey, guess where Yunyue got the ice from?"

"I bought it." said Huang Cairen.

"Wrong, Yunyue and I made it ourselves!" Li Wanhua was extremely proud.

"what?"

“How do you make ice in this weather?”

"Ice can still be made?"

Seeing that everyone looked unconvinced, Li Wanhua looked at Yunyue. Seeing Yunyue nod, she excitedly made ice for everyone herself.

The moment the ice was formed, everyone's eyes lit up, even the usually indifferent Concubine Dowager Wang looked at Yunyue with wide eyes.

"Yun Yue! I want to do business with you!" If you don't see the business opportunity at this time and don't join, you'd be a fool.

"Why would you share such a profitable business with us?" Yu Meiren asked in confusion. It was not her fault that she was not careful. In this palace, those who were not careful would have been ruined.

Everyone else was looking at Yunyue as well.

"First, I don't have enough money to open an ice cream shop. Second, if I earn money by myself and eat and drink well every day, I'm afraid of being reported. Finally, I want to build a good relationship with you, because if nothing unexpected happens, we will live together all the time in the future, and I hope we can live in peace. In addition, I am afraid of boredom and loneliness, and I also want someone to talk to."

Everyone was silent for a while.

"I'll join too." Lady Yu also nodded. Yunyue was telling the truth, so she felt relieved.

"I am willing to do so too!" Liu Lu smiled. She wanted to save more money for her daughter.

Li Wanhua didn't say anything, knowing that Yunyue would definitely keep a seat for her.

"Then Li Niang and I will join in the fun." Concubine Dowager Wang thought that even if it was just to play with Yun Yue, she would support her.

Li Wanhua was a little unhappy when she saw that Ouyang Shu was the only one who didn't speak: "What are you thinking, great talent? Yun Yuebai is offering you money for such a good opportunity, why don't you join? Your family is so poor, maybe you can use the money you earn to support your parents."

When Ouyang Shu heard Li Wanhua mention her parents, she couldn't help biting her lip, thinking again and again, and nodded in agreement: "Okay."

"Then what are you still doing sitting here? Pay up! Otherwise you're just waiting to have the money given to you for free!" Li Wanhua said unhappily.

Everyone blushed and stood up to go back to their rooms to get the silver.

"Our Wanhua is really amazing." Yunyue praised with a doting look on her face, "If it weren't for Wanwan, they might not have agreed."

"Hey, since I'm so awesome, can you reward me with braised pork tomorrow?"

"Hahaha, look at what you have accomplished."

On the same day, Yunyue signed an agreement with the concubines in the cold palace. Except for Ouyang Shu, who offered a dowry shop, everyone else gave all their silver, jewelry and other valuables to Yunyue as a partnership fee. Yunyue opened an ice shop not only to make money, but more importantly, to create conflicts of interest with them.

So, except for Yunyue, everyone else had 10% of the shares, and Concubine Wang and Madam Xu had 10% each. Originally, everyone was only willing to take half, but it was only after Yunyue's strong request that they accepted it with a grin.