Chapter 061 Making Soap
Xu Qingying paused, then suddenly smiled, "Don't worry, father. I still have some extra money."
Xu Degui had come all the way into the city today, so he naturally knew the expenses.
The three families had a total of only a dozen taels of silver, and those molds accounted for the bulk of it. Add to that the raw materials they bought and some dry food, and there should be very little left of the dozen taels of silver.
Xu Degui couldn't help but wonder, "Where did you get the money? We should have spent most of our fifteen taels of silver, right?"
Xu Qingying deliberately kept the secret a secret, "Of course someone is very optimistic about this soap business and invested in me early on."
Xu Degui was stunned. After thinking about it for a long time, he still couldn't guess who this person was. He had no choice but to ask, "Who are you talking about?"
"I promised them to keep it a secret." Xu Qingying couldn't help but smile when she saw Xu Degui's nervous brow. "Don't worry, father. Our capital is not a problem. What we should worry about is not how much soap we can make, but how much we can sell."
That being said, Xu Degui had never made his own decisions in his life. Moreover, the soap business was growing bigger and bigger. Without any capital recovery, Xu Qingying was already thinking about how to increase production. From what she said, they had to produce at least 5,000 bars of soap before reaching Henan Prefecture.
What if all of this falls into my hands?
Xu Degui was terrified and unable to sleep these past few days. His business hadn't even started yet, but a few hairs had already turned gray.
On his way back, he ran into Xu Deyuan again. Xu Deyuan stood with his hands behind his back, looking him up and down, his tone full of disapproval: "I heard from Zhao Bantou that we won't be traveling any further the day after tomorrow. We need to stay for a day and make all the soap?"
When Xu Degui saw his second brother again, he remembered how he had instigated several families behind their backs, saying that their soap business could not make money, and he felt a lot of emotion in his heart.
But after all, the bond between brothers could not be severed. Although he was somewhat unhappy, he had been inferior to Xu Deyuan for many years, so he habitually suppressed his dissatisfaction, "Ying'er arranged it this way."
"You keep mentioning Xu Qingying. Who is in charge of the Third House, you or your daughter? How can a man of your stature listen to a woman's orders?"
Xu Degui said slowly: "Second brother is right."
Seeing that Xu Degui was still respectful, Xu Deyuan was satisfied. "Don't just give me a verbal promise. She's just a young girl, how can she know how to run a business? As her father, you have to keep her in check."
Xu Degui sighed helplessly in his heart.
In the past, the family shop was busy, and the children were all under the care of Miao. It was only after spending more time with Xu Qingying in the past two days that he realized how powerful she was. Although Xu Degui was honest, he also knew his own limitations and knew that with his own abilities, how could he control Xu Qingying?
Look at the kid's demeanor in doing things. He speaks very carefully, and he scolds people around him in a way that makes them obey him completely.
He finally understood that his eldest daughter was truly capable and much more capable than he was.
Xu Degui was like a mute, just nodding.
Xu Deyuan continued to lecture him, "Also, although the soap business belongs to your third branch, we are brothers after all. Don't blame me for not mentioning some things."
"Second brother, please speak."
"I heard you're planning to make 5,000 bars of soap?"
Xu Degui hesitated for a moment, and this time he finally became a little wary of Xu Deyuan's rhetoric. But then he thought that Zhao Bantou had just told everyone about this matter, and he would continue to select people tomorrow, and he couldn't hide it from Xu Deyuan, so he simply told him the truth.
"That's what Ying'er said."
It’s Ying’er again!
Xu Deyuan was furious, but he suppressed his temper and said word by word, "Nonsense! Do you know how many people there are in Henan Prefecture? It's only a city of 100,000, and you're actually trying to sell 5,000 pieces of soap. Do you really think that soap is some kind of golden treasure that everyone wants? If all of it were lost, how would you deal with it?"
These words touched Xu Deyuan's heart.
He was worried that Henan Prefecture would not be able to digest these 5,000 bars of soap.
But she didn't want to show her weakness in front of Xu Deyuan, so she said, "There will be a way. This soap is a good thing. How could anyone not want it?"
"Your kindness is truly being taken for granted. How old is Xu Qingying? How old are you? Can you still afford to lose at your age? Why don't you listen to me? Why are you so anxious? Stop her quickly. Take it slow and steady. Sell as much as you can. Wouldn't that be safer?"
"Second uncle, please don't worry about how our third branch sells things." Suddenly, a clear female voice rang out. Xu Qingying, who had returned, came towards them. Although she was young, she was full of dignity and had a smiling look in her eyes, yet she seemed distant. "Second uncle, you have good intentions and have taken good care of the third branch. Your niece would like to thank you in advance."
After saying that, Xu Qingying performed a salute that no one could find fault with.
"However, everything has its pros and cons. As the saying goes, fortune is sought in danger. My niece believes that doing business is like fighting a war. Since we have already seized the initiative, we must take the enemy by surprise and win the battle with flying colors."
Xu Deyuan curled his lips. "Do you know how to fight? Don't show off just because you've read a few books. There are so many people in this army who are more knowledgeable than you. You're just a young girl, what do you know about business? Don't let yourself go bankrupt!"
"Since the soap business is clearly written to be the responsibility of the Third House, you don't need to worry about how to sell it or whether it can be sold." Xu Qingying glanced at Xu Deyuan's neck and suddenly said with a nonsensical smile, "I see Second Uncle's neck is bruised from wearing the shackles all day. Why don't you come early tomorrow to apply for the job? Anyone who helps me can ask the officials to remove the shackles. Second Uncle is frail and overworked. If he gets sick during exile, I will worry about him."
Xu Deyuan's pupils shrank.
This is clearly showing off, threatening and intimidating.
What does Xu Qingying mean?
Isn't this telling him clearly that he must be obedient, otherwise he will have to wear these shackles forever?
Xu Deyuan's expression changed slightly, and he sneered, "My niece is quite capable. She's become one with the police so quickly. Fine, I want to see how far your third branch can go without me, Xu Deyuan!"
Xu Deyuan turned away.
Xu Qingying shook her head, a faint smile appearing at the corner of her lips.
Who says this second uncle is not smart?
She felt that Xu Deyuan was full of ulterior motives.
Xu Qingying turned her head and saw Xu Degui's brows furrowed. She had heard Miao say that Xu Degui had been worried and unable to sleep these past few days. Thinking that they had never dealt with such a big thing before, she was a little panicked and said, "Father, are you scared? Second uncle is angry out of shame—"
"I know. The fact that he was so eager to come to me and say these things actually gave me more confidence."
"Oh?" Xu Qingying raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Your second uncle, in short, just can't stand us living better than the second branch... ahem..." Meeting Xu Qingying's bright eyes, Xu Degui waved his hand and put on a stern father's face, "Okay, stop asking about the elders. Just concentrate on making soap. Five thousand yuan is no small sum, you mustn't let it go to waste!"
Xu Qingying now understood that Xu Degui was not a fool. He also saw through Xu Deyuan's tricks. He just wanted to ruin their soap business...
The smile in Xu Qingying's eyes deepened this time.
The Xu family is really interesting.
If Xu Deyuan knew that everyone in the Xu family except the second branch had privately approached her to ask for investment, how would she react?
Very good, she has successfully gained the support of her second uncle. Although the people from several families obey Xu Deyuan's orders on the surface, they all have their own plans behind the scenes.
The Xu family is such a mess...why not just let her be the head of the family?
Xu Qingying suddenly had such an idea, and the more she thought about it, the more feasible it seemed.
The power of ancient families should not be underestimated. If she can conquer the entire Xu family and train them, then the younger generation of the Xu family will become her right-hand men. Who knows, maybe she can even become a mountain king in a poor and remote place like Qianzhou?
This time, despite the objections of Zhao Bantou and the others, Xu Qingying went back to the city to buy dozens of pig pancreases. The carriage was so full that the wheels were nearly crushed, and Xu Huiming had a hard time pulling the stuff back.
Today is a special day. They will stay in the camp for two days to complete the task of making 5,000 bars of soap!
Xu Qingying had already had a work plan. Early in the morning, Team Leader Zhao removed the shackles from everyone. After Xu Qingying's passionate speech, everyone understood that they had to stay here for two days to make soap.
Most of the Fang family members did not participate, but just watched the fun from the side.
There are about fifty or sixty people who can actually participate.
Xu Qingying assigned the tasks early in the morning. Group One was responsible for logistics, specifically for everyone's meals and setting up camp in the wild; Group Two was responsible for pounding and chopping the pig pancreas; Group Three was responsible for boiling lard; and Group Four was responsible for burning the ash and filtering the supernatant to form the alkaline solution.
Before work began, Xu Qingying distributed KPIs to each team and also established quality standards for the production line. For example, she determined how much pig pancreas needed to be crushed to pass the test, and that the alkaline solution must have a clear supernatant. Team members were then divided into three groups to monitor each other. Failure to meet these standards resulted in wage deductions. With these quantified KPIs, everyone was working diligently.
Without the constraints of shackles, the logistics team would wipe their sweat when they were hot, and when they were thirsty, they would just shout and someone would bring them water. They could rest for an incense stick of time every half hour, and could even have a low conversation. This treatment was beyond everyone's expectations, and they admired Miss Xu Liu's skills even more.
He could earn some pocket money while in exile, and the work wasn't strenuous; women and children could do it. Furthermore, the more he did, the more he earned. Who wouldn't be happy about that? Who wouldn't remember Xu Qingying's favor?
Zhao Bantou originally thought that so many people would be in chaos and had prepared himself for shouting at the top of his lungs today. However, he never expected that in the small camp, everyone was arranged in an orderly manner, each doing their own job, and not even a trace of verbal communication could be heard.
Everyone was working efficiently with their heads down, their hands moving non-stop. It was a very lively scene!
Old Master Fang walked slowly through the crowd with his hands behind his back and his body hunched.
He heard women talking in low voices from time to time.
"Oh, this won't do. You need to wait a little longer. Miss Xu said the supernatant must be clear and translucent. If it doesn't meet the standard, all three of us will be fined—"
"Mrs. Zhang, come and take a look. Is mine bright enough?"
"It's brilliant, that's right. We have to work harder and not let Group A outperform us. Miss Xu said that the first place winner in the alkali-making group will get double the wages..."
"What nonsense are you talking about? Let's get started!"
After walking around, the smile on Old Master Fang's face gradually became solemn.
At first he wanted to watch the excitement, but the more he watched, the more frightened he became.
He looked at this team that followed orders, coordinated well, and worked in a balanced manner. Suddenly, he thought that this grassroots team, temporarily formed by women and children, was more disciplined than a regular army.
If the army of the Great Zhou Dynasty could have such a style, the Xiongnu wouldn't have had to raid all the way to Datong Prefecture...
At this time, this veteran who had served through three dynasties finally looked Miss Xu Liu in the eye for the first time.
A glimpse of the leopard in the cage reveals a lot. Xu Qingying, though a woman, possesses strong organizational skills. The soap incident also shows that she dares to think and act. Because she is uneducated and unconstrained by etiquette, her thinking is unconventional, and she possesses the breadth of mind and courage of a man...
What a pity.
If this were a man, with her qualifications, he would definitely be made a marquis or a prime minister.
Unfortunately, she was a girl. Even if her soap business was successful, she could only be a merchant at best. At worst, she could marry the son of an official, which would be considered a very good ending.
Mr. Fang felt sad and regretful for a moment.
Just as I was thinking this, I heard a commotion in the crowd, as if there were women arguing and crying.
As expected, country women are talkative, and this hastily assembled team would take half a day to talk if there was any slight bump or collision.
"Go away, go away! You have such a vicious and black heart! I'm breaking off the engagement now! Take your girl and get out of here! If I see you again, I'll beat you out with a big stick!"
Xu Qingying saw a dispute in the team and rushed over to deal with it immediately. She saw that several people from the eldest wife were struggling with the girl from the Qian family. The girl from the Qian family was crying bitterly, and the girl next to her was supporting her, and the two of them were crying together.
Xu Qingying saw that everyone had lost their previous enthusiasm for work and they all looked over curiously, some even left their seats and ran over to watch the fun.
She quickly shouted to everyone, "Everyone, go back to your seats. Don't forget that everyone has an assessment task. If you just watch the fun and fail to achieve your goal, you will only get food today without any wages. What's going on? Aunts and sisters, do you want to work for me for free..."
Someone laughed and joked: "Let's just wait and see..."
"What's there to see? Making money is more important than excitement. Don't forget, this business doesn't belong to me alone. If you delay the officials' business, you won't be able to take off your shackles tomorrow—"
This threat actually worked.
The uncles and aunts who were watching the fun scattered instantly and returned to their seats. Xu Qingying had no choice but to pull everyone in the main room to the side to deal with it.
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