"Ah Ying, if these natural sponges are truly that important to you, I'll go fetch them for you."
Without further ado, Lu Xunguang took off the glass diving goggles from Li Ying's forehead and handed the long rope to her.
Before she could open her mouth to stop him, he had already leaped off the imperial barge without hesitation.
"Something's wrong! Someone has fallen into the water!"
The young eunuchs attending from afar on the barge were confused. They thought one of the accompanying officials had accidentally had an accident.
"It seems to be Lord Lu!"
"Quick! Hurry! Where are the imperial bodyguards! Lord Lu mustn't have any mishaps!"
The barge instantly became a scene of chaos and pandemonium.
The emperor had just fallen asleep not long ago when he heard the commotion at the bow of the barge. It was extremely annoying. Suppressing his anger, he also got up to take a look.
Li Ying secretly broke out in a cold sweat.
She originally didn't want to make such a big fuss and let everyone know. But now...
Helpless, she had no choice but to steel herself and step forward to explain the whole story in detail.
The emperor roared angrily, "Absurd! A dignified second - rank imperial merchant is so reckless! Jumping off the imperial barge like this. What if something really goes wrong?"
Princess Yongning quickly apologized, "Father, it's Yongning's fault for being willful. It was just a joke at first, but I didn't expect it to make Lord Lu take such a risk... Please punish me, Father!"
Amid the noisy voices, Li Ying turned a deaf ear. She only stared intently at the small area of the sea where Lu Xunguang had jumped.
She tightly held onto Lu Xunguang's safety rope.
After a long while, the rope finally moved slightly.
Li Ying was overjoyed and immediately concentrated on pulling the rope.
Su Buchi also saw Lu Xunguang's figure emerging from the waves and shouted, "Quick! Lower the ladder!"
Lu Xunguang finally climbed up the ladder dripping wet and knelt respectfully in front of the emperor.
There was a small fishing net bag hanging from his waist, filled with strange - looking, black - colored things. From afar, they looked like lumps of black mud.
"Lord Lu! You've really been too childish this time! How could you risk your life for such filthy things!"
Seeing that he was safe and sound, the emperor finally felt relieved, but he couldn't help scolding him.
However, Li Ying's face lit up with joy.
Before Lu Xunguang dived into the water, she had only briefly described to him what the natural sponges looked like and where they grew in the crevices of the reefs.
This man had actually managed to find them!
"Your Majesty, you don't know. Princess Yongning and Lord Lu went through great efforts to find these natural sponges, not just for fun and pleasure."
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Empress Pei looking worried. Frowning, she immediately came up with an excuse.
"Your Majesty, since Her Majesty the Empress has given birth to a legitimate son, Princess Yongning is extremely happy. However, considering that the little prince has delicate skin, she ordered this humble woman to do her best to find something soft and clean for the little prince's bath. Lord Lu was also eager to relieve Your Majesty's worries, so he took this risk."
When the emperor and Empress Pei heard this excuse, they both felt skeptical.
"Something for bathing?"
Lu Xunguang took out the sponges from the net one by one. With just a little force, thick sewage oozed out, which was shocking and made people gasp in disbelief.
But Li Ying was calm and confident as she smiled slightly.
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty and Your Highness. As long as the outer flesh of these natural sponges is removed and the soft inner skeletons are left, they will be completely transformed!"
To prove that her words were true, she quickly soaked the sponges in soapy water and rubbed and washed them repeatedly.
The sand and all kinds of attachments from the ocean were completely cleaned up. This sponge that looked like coke finally turned into a tender, slightly yellowish, and soft sponge.
After trimming the irregular edges of the sponge clean, it only needed to be naturally dried in the sun. Then, depending on the type of sponge, it could be used for facial cleansing or bathing.
As the name suggests, the honeycomb sponge gets its name from its unique honeycomb - like porous structure. It has extremely strong water - absorbency. Just rub the facial soap a few times on the wet sponge and gently knead it, and a large amount of dense and delicate foam will be produced.
The natural soft texture of the honeycomb sponge not only provides daily cleaning power but also can gently remove the aged and dull cutin on the skin surface, promote metabolism, and restore the skin's smoothness and elasticity. It will never cause the slightest skin irritation, so it is most suitable for bathing babies.
The other type, the velvet sponge, has longer fibers and a texture as soft as silk.
Those tiny sponge pores can penetrate deep into the skin pores and gently and thoroughly clean all the dirt, oil, and makeup on the skin.
The women in the palace inevitably rely on their looks to serve the emperor. It is inevitable for them to paint their eyebrows and wear heavy makeup every day.
Fortunately, Li Ying had vigorously publicized the negative effects of makeup residue on the skin in the princess's women's health - preservation club. Now, most of the female relatives in the capital know that the lead white in makeup is harmful to beauty and health and has no benefits at all. Everyone regards "be sure to remove makeup before going to bed" as the golden rule.
The unique texture of the velvet sponge can be used for makeup removal. It can clean more thoroughly without aggravating skin sensitivity. After facial cleansing, if it is combined with pure flower dew and essential oils for skin care, it will get twice the result with half the effort.
Li Ying explained in detail. Although the emperor looked skeptical, Empress Pei and the Empress Dowager who were accompanying him all showed obvious interest in their eyes.
Seeing that everyone was eager to try, the emperor had no choice but to order Li Ying and Lu Xunguang to distribute the sponges to the female relatives on the imperial barge.
If this thing really had such wonderful effects, it would be time enough to reward them later.
Empress Pei took the honeycomb sponge in her hand. She only felt that this round, yellowish lump was extremely soft. After hearing Li Ying's introduction that the sponge felt even more skin - friendly when wet, she immediately believed it a little.
Looking at the affectionate looks between Li Ying and Lu Xunguang and recalling what Princess Yongning had said personally just now that she didn't want to forcefully marry Lu Xunguang and snatch him away from others, Empress Pei immediately had an idea.
She held the sponge with a smiling face and casually chatted with the emperor, "This sponge is really good. Lord Lu has put a lot of thought into it."
"Ah Ying has wonderful ideas and extensive knowledge. Lord Lu always follows her lead in everything. They are really well - matched. They are just like a young couple. There's a bit of the meaning of 'the husband sings and the wife follows'."
"If they work together to relieve Your Majesty's worries, I can finally feel more at ease..."
Seeing the emperor frown, as if he was unhappy again, Empress Pei quickly said, "Your Majesty, it's just that I was overjoyed to get this sponge for my son's bath. I spoke out of turn for a moment..."
The emperor waved his hand and said, "It doesn't matter."
However, even though he said so, his face was still gloomy as he walked away with his hands behind his back.
Li Ying thanked Empress Pei for speaking up for her just now. After everyone had left, Princess Yongning walked up gracefully and gave her a bright smile.
"Regarding today's matter, I originally just made a casual joke. But it made Lord Lu take risks and I almost got punished by Father. Thank you for helping me out."
Her bright eyes rolled, and she said with a charming smile, "I, the princess, distinguish clearly between kindness and grudges. Since I owe you a favor, I will surely repay you."
"Tell me. Is there anything you want to ask of me?"
Seeing Li Ying pondering silently, a faint fire suddenly flashed in her eyes.
"Let me guess. Do you want me to plead with Father and not marry Lord Lu?"