Chapter 252 Developing the Soap Market
The room was filled with silk gauze, probably five or six thousand bolts.
Zhao Ergou casually picked up two pieces of cloth and spread them out. The colors were very uneven, some very dark and some very light.
This gauze was originally reserved for nobles. If it's dyed like this, no noble would be willing to buy it. Even if it's sold at a low price, ordinary people wouldn't buy it because the material is very fragile and easily snagged and torn. Wearing it would make it impossible to work, which would just be a waste of money.
No wonder this person wanted to burn it down.
"Waaaaah, I have no face to face my elders in Jiangdong again..."
The man sat at the warehouse door and burst into tears, his face covered in tears and snot.
"Master, Master!" Suddenly, a flamboyantly dressed woman rushed over and struggled to help the man up. "Why are you drunk again? It's just some cloth, only a few thousand taels of silver. Master, please don't worry about it..."
"You long-haired, short-sighted woman, what do you know!" the man roared. "Thirty thousand taels of silver! With that money to buy grain, we can feed all the people in our entire Hekou County for three years!"
Zhao Ergou heard the words "Hekou County".
Could this man be someone from Hekou County who came to Nanyang to do business?
Before he could think any further, the sobbing man had already been helped away by the brightly dressed woman.
He didn't think about it anymore, took the basin to the inn's kitchen to buy leftover oil, and bought a large basin for ten coins.
After all the preparations were complete, Cheng Wanwan took the two boys to the busiest street in Nanyang City. This place had many vendors and street performers, and many passersby gathered around to watch the excitement.
Zhao Ergou and Zhao Dawang unloaded the two tables they had rented from the cart and set them up side by side, placing several wooden basins on the tables in turn.
Another wooden basin was filled with copper coins, estimated to be at least several thousand or tens of thousands.
"Thump!"
Zhao Ergou struck a gong; this one was also rented.
The crisp sound attracted the attention of several passersby, and a few people immediately gathered around.
“Boom boom boom!”
He knocked three more times.
"Fellow villagers, come on, come on, walk this way, look this way! If you don't come and look, you'll regret it for the rest of your life!"
"Don't miss this opportunity! Opportunities don't come every day; if you miss it today, you might never have another one!"
A handsome and energetic young man was calling out rhythmically on the roadside, and more and more people gathered around.
After they formed a circle, Cheng Wanwan stepped out.
She smiled and looked at everyone, saying, "Today is a free opportunity for everyone to make money, a chance to earn money without any risk. Why not take advantage of it? Don't you agree?"
These people on the street were all ordinary folks. Earning one or two taels of silver a month was considered middle class. When they saw a large bowl of copper coins on the table, they were all eager to get their hands on it.
"Ma'am, tell me quickly, how exactly do I make money?"
"Hurry up and tell me, I have something to do later."
Stop keeping me in suspense!
“Boom boom boom!”
Zhao Ergou banged the gong to quiet everyone down.
Cheng Wanwan pointed to the three wooden basins on the table and said with a smile, "These three basins contain the dirtiest clothes. Come on, let everyone see just how dirty they are!"
Zhao Dawang picked up the clothes from the three basins. He couldn't even tell what color the fabric was originally. The inside was covered with mud, and the outside of the mud was covered with a thick layer of oil. It looked shiny and oily. Even a professional woman who made a living washing clothes would probably not know where to start.
"There are three things on this table. First, wood ash. City people don't use it much, but everyone in the village uses it to wash clothes. Second, soap balls. I suppose everyone here uses this to wash clothes and hands. Third, bath beans. I wonder if anyone has used them?"
As soon as Cheng Wanwan said this, someone raised their hand.
There are quite a few wealthy people in Nanyang City. If they run a small business, they can easily afford a bath powder costing one or two taels of silver.
She smiled and said, "If you use these three things to wash clothes, which one do you think will get them the cleanest?"
"Of course, it's bath beans!"
"It must be bath beans. Although they're for bathing, they're also great for washing clothes! It's just that nobody would dare use them for washing clothes!"
"Isn't that a pointless question? How exactly are you going to help us make money?"
"Yeah, weren't we supposed to make money?"
"Everyone, don't rush." Cheng Wanwan's face still had a warm smile. "I've placed these three items here. Whichever one you think will clean the best, stand in front of it. Everyone who guesses correctly will receive ten coins! Isn't this making money?"
She knelt down and placed the wood ash, soap ball, and bath beans on the ground.
The people on the street instantly chose their positions; everyone, all of them, chose the bath beans.
She smiled and said, "Next, could the three ladies please use these three items to help wash clothes? It's not free; it costs ten coins per wash."
"I'll do it! I'll do it!"
"Me too!"
Three women immediately squeezed out from the crowd.
Almost without any suspense, a bath bean was put into the basin, rubbed vigorously, and after rubbing off most of the bean, the oil stains on the clothes were washed off. The woman happily picked up her clothes, and the onlookers cheered, because it meant that each of them could receive ten coins.
The cheers from the onlookers attracted even more people to watch.
Cheng Wanwan raised her hand: "Those who participated this time, come and collect your money. Don't push or rush, take your time one by one, everyone will get some! Don't worry if you're late, we have another round. As long as you guess correctly, you can get ten coins. Don't miss such a good opportunity!"
The crowd that followed was stunned.
"Can you really get money for free?"
"I've lived in Nanyang for forty years and I've never seen anything like this!"
"It's definitely a scam!"
Zhao Ergou banged on the gong and drum and shouted, "At the beginning of life, people are inherently good. We won't do anything deceitful!"
Since there was no harm in watching, more and more people came to see what was going on, and even the acrobatic troupe next door stopped their performance and came over to join in the fun.
The second round has begun.
But this time, three things were changed.
"The first thing is soapberry, the second thing is bath beans, and the third thing is—" Cheng Wanwan picked up a square, pale yellow object from the table. It was about the size of a human hand and quite thick. No one could tell what it was. She smiled and said, "This is soap. If you use these three things to wash clothes, which one do you think will clean them the best?"
"Is that even a question? It's definitely bath beans!"
"Exactly! With a clump of bath beans, how could it not get you clean?"
"Goodness, one bath bean costs at least one tael of silver. Using a whole set of laundry detergent is such a waste!"
Various voices came from the crowd, but without hesitation, they all stood firmly in front of Zaodou.
Cheng Wanwan told the three women to continue washing clothes.
The woman washing clothes with soap didn't care at all; she figured she'd get paid anyway, whether she washed them or not.
Surprisingly, she only applied a little soap, and the oil stains on the fabric came off. After soaking it in water, the area became clean.
She paused, quickened her pace, and in no time, the entire piece of fabric was clean and new.
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