After understanding the market situation, Zhao Xian felt more confident and prepared to buy ducklings.

He went to a secluded spot in the market, and seeing that no one was around, he bought more than two thousand ducklings through the system. These ducklings were placed in more than a dozen large round frames.

These frames are well-ventilated and can be stacked together. The ducklings are very robust and have a strong quack, which immediately fills the quiet place with their calls.

At the corner of the market was a labor market, where not only were there laborers selling their skills, but also people pulling carts to transport goods. Zhao Xian found a driver of an oxcart and asked him to deliver ten baskets of ducklings to the entrance of Shuixian Village, where someone would receive the goods.

The oxcart driver was very puzzled. He spent every day at the market and didn't know why there were so many ducklings for sale, but he didn't dare to ask too many questions.

He negotiated the price with Zhao Xian, and after receiving the freight, he loaded the ducklings onto the oxcart and drove away.

Making soap requires a lot of preparation work, and once this work begins, it cannot be stopped. Therefore, Zhao Xian did not buy any pork fat when he came to town this time.

When the carriage returned to the village entrance, Zhao Xian saw many villagers waiting there, including Wang Lizheng.

This is the only way to enter the village, and the patrol team usually guards this place when they are on duty at night.

Upon seeing Zhao Xian's carriage return, the village head asked:

Have you bought the ducklings yet?

"I bought it. It's on the oxcart behind. Wait a bit, the oxcart will be coming into the village soon."

"Are the ducklings really only five coins each?" a villager asked.

"That's right, it's five coins each. These ducklings are big and good. To ensure their survival rate, the hatchery usually raises them for ten days before selling them."

The villagers were surprised that the ducklings were sold ten days after hatching. In ten days, the ducklings should have grown a bit, and these ducklings only cost five coins each. It seems that buying such ducklings was indeed a good deal.

More and more villagers are gathering at the village entrance; they are all there to wait for the ducklings.

There's nothing for me to do here; I have many things to do at home, so I can't waste time at the village entrance.

When Zhao Xian returned home, he immediately went to the workshop. During this period of producing liquor, a lot of millet had been used up, and two more rooms had become available.

Making soap doesn't require much space; three rooms are enough.

Currently, most of the millet used to make liquor is stored in the village's granary. Once the family's millet is used up, they can use the millet in the granary. They can take as much as they need without taking up any warehouse space.

Zhao Xian had three rooms cleared out and began designing them.

He planned to convert one room into a kitchen, building several stoves specifically for rendering lard, and to add some equipment and devices to the second room, where the important process of making soap would be completed.

The main reaction in soap making is saponification. The equipment and devices in the workshop will ensure that various raw materials undergo sufficient chemical reaction under appropriate conditions, ultimately yielding unformed soap solution.

Hardeners, preservatives, and foaming agents are added to these soap solutions, mixed thoroughly, and then poured into soap molds. After solidification, ordinary soap is obtained, which is mainly used for washing clothes.

The processing procedure can also be refined. In addition to adding hardeners, preservatives, and foaming agents, a certain amount of pigments and fragrances can be added to produce all kinds of soaps. These soaps can be used to wash the face and body, and their price is much higher than that of soaps for washing clothes.

In addition, glycerin is produced during the soap-making process, which is a valuable ingredient in cosmetics. Since I don't currently have any plans to make cosmetics, I'll keep this glycerin; it will come in very handy in the future.

However, extracting this glycerol is not an easy task. In order for the workshop to extract glycerol conveniently in the future, Zhao Xian plans to make a double-layer distillation device to ensure the extraction of high-purity glycerol.

With his ideas clear, Zhao Xian prepared to renovate the three rooms, add equipment and supplies, and then begin soap production once that was done.

In the afternoon, the village head came over and told Zhao Xian that the villagers had taken all the ducklings away. Because the ducklings were not only strong but also big, the villagers were very happy.

The villagers paid with copper coins; over two thousand ducks cost more than ten thousand copper coins, enough to fill a whole sack.

Zhao Xian had Qin Yingying accept the money, then looked at the village head and said:

"Uncle Village Head helped me find some workers; I want to renovate a few rooms in the workshop."

The village head smiled and asked, "You're going to renovate the workshop again? What are you planning to produce?"

"Soap."

The word "soap" didn't exist back then, so the village head certainly didn't know what soap was, but he did know about soapberry, which was used for washing clothes.

"Is soap used for washing clothes?" the village head asked.

"Yes, soap is indeed used for washing clothes, but it's much better than soapberry."

The village head was very interested in the novel things Zhao Xian had come up with, and he also wanted to see what kind of soap Zhao Xian had made, so he asked:

"No problem, I'll go find someone to help you renovate the workshop right now." The village head said and then left.

After two busy days, the workshop used for soap production was finally completed, and Zhao Xian breathed a sigh of relief. He planned to start trying to produce the first batch of soap in a few days.

During this period, the house was constantly visited by people, most of whom came to buy wine wholesale. As production increased, the wholesale volume also grew larger and larger. Among these merchants, Manager Lu was the one who visited the most frequently.

Around noon, Manager Lu arrived again. It was lunchtime, so Zhao Xian invited Manager Lu to sit down and eat.

As the two ate and chatted, Zhao Xian inquired about the preparations for the crab food festival.

"These past few days, Manager Liu has managed the restaurant very well, which has made things much easier for me. The kitchen has already developed several crab dishes, and these dishes are being served to customers as soon as they are available. If they are highly praised by diners, the restaurant will reward them, and these dishes can then be featured at the food festival."

"Great! It seems the crab food festival will be a huge success. I'll definitely be there."

At this moment, Manager Lu suddenly remembered something and looked at Zhao Xian to ask.

"Manager Zhao, don't you have a brother-in-law named Yang Hong?"

Zhao Xian was taken aback and immediately sensed that something was wrong.

"What's wrong? Yang Hong is in the restaurant. When did he go there, and what was he doing there?"

"It's been about two days. He said you sent him over to help look after the restaurant."

Zhao Xian was dumbfounded. He never dreamed that Yang Hong would go to Qing'an Prefecture and manage the restaurant. Wasn't this going to ruin his plans?

Seeing Zhao Xian's expression change, Manager Lu was at a loss for what to do.