A Fragrant Feast in the Boudoir: The Crown Princess's Wealth Knows No Bounds

On a stormy night, lightning flashing and thunder booming, the wooden door of a ruined temple burst open. The Crown Prince, Xiao Jue, collapsed into Lu Qingyue's world, covered in blood. His blade-sharp gaze found her hiding behind the statue at once.

“Your sauce shouldn't be buried here.” He coughed up blood, but his eyes burned with a wildfire.

Three months later, the capital was in an uproar. The Crown Prince had survived against all odds and returned with a woman who made sauce. At court, Lu Qingyue knelt before the emperor in plain clothes. But what she presented was no condiment: it was a groundbreaking plan to reform military supplies.

“This common woman stakes her life on it.” She lifted her head and met the emperor's gaze, her voice clear as a chime. “My new sauce can keep for three years without spoiling. If supplied to the northern army, it could save a million taels a year in transport costs!”

The whole court burst into derisive laughter. Until she opened a jar right there. The rich, pungent aroma swept through the palace hall as she laid out her meticulously calculated accounts. The Minister of Revenue's face changed instantly.

The man who had once been at death's door now stood on the palace steps, every inch the imperial heir, and held out his hand to her. “You saved my life. From this moment on, take up the pieces in this game to transform the realm.”

Thunder cracked beyond the palace eaves, lighting the brilliance in her eyes. From the sauce shop to the palace, she would make her own mark on the world.