"I have a wonderful thing here that can help people wash the dirt off their hands and clothes. If they're clean, I'll give them candy for free; if they're not, I'll compensate the person who comes to help me with five taels of silver!"
Li Ershu's words only fueled everyone's curiosity.
"You're not talking about bath beans, are you? Those things are really expensive!"
Soon, people in the crowd began to speculate.
Li Ershu stopped teasing him and took out the soap directly.
"This thing is called soap, and it's much better than bath beans. It can remove all kinds of dirt. Anyone who provides me with what I just mentioned can get a free sugar painting!" Li Ershu raised his voice and said to the crowd.
Soon, several people stepped forward.
"What do you think of my hands? I've been farming all year round, and the grime on my hands isn't something you can just wash off easily! Don't let it ruin your reputation, hahaha!"
An older man stepped forward, extended his hand, and smiled.
After reading it, Li Ershu was confident.
"Sir, just cooperate with me, I'm very confident I can keep my business!"
Seeing the old man come forward and receive Li Ershu's promise, many people in the crowd also reached out their hands, volunteering themselves.
Li Ershu looked around and then selected four people whose hands were relatively dirty to come forward.
"Alright! Now we just need two more people whose clothes are a bit dirty to come forward."
As soon as Li Ershu finished speaking, two people came out.
"I am Zhao the Butcher from the east of the city. Kid, take a look and see if you can wash this outer garment of mine clean?"
Zhao the butcher pulled up his outer garment to show Li Ershu.
Li Ershu nodded in satisfaction and looked at the other burly man.
"I am the head chef of Manxianglou Restaurant. The grease stains on my outer garment are impossible to remove. Would you be willing to give it a try?" Chef Song asked.
Li Ershu pulled him up, looked at him, and nodded without hesitation.
“Of course it is!” Li Ershu said confidently.
After saying that, he took out three basins that he had prepared in advance, and then turned around to fetch water from the nearby stream.
Fortunately, there is a river in Jiangdu City, so it is very convenient to get water.
After the water was prepared, Li Ershu first asked Butcher Zhao and Chef Song to take off their outer garments.
Both were men, and taking off their outer garments was not a big deal.
Without hesitation, the two took off their outer garments and handed them to Li Ershu.
Li Ershu took the two men's outer garments and wiped them dry one by one.
Once the two outer garments were soaked, everyone saw Li Ershu carefully apply the soap he mentioned to the oily areas.
After applying soap, Li Ershu soaked all the dirty clothes in the soapy water.
"Is that all?" Butcher Zhao asked curiously.
I didn't see him rub or pound it, how could it be clean like that?
That's far too much of a joke.
Li Ershu smiled and reassured them, "Your clothes are indeed too dirty. You need to use soap and soak them for a while to remove the stains. Let's wash our hands first, and then our clothes will be almost clean."
When Zhao the butcher heard what Li Ershu said, he could only nod with some doubt.
Li Ershu then walked up to the five people whose hands were dirtier than before.
"Five of you, please cooperate with me by raising your hands so that those watching can see them clearly," Li Ershu said, cupping his hands in greeting.
The group wanted to see what Li Ershu was really up to, so they did as he suggested.
He raised his hand high so that the onlookers could see it clearly.
"Gentlemen, please remember these five people's hands. In a moment, I will use this soap to wash their hands clean!" Li Ershu said to the crowd.
After saying that, Li Ershu told the five men to put their hands down and come to the two basins of water he had just filled.
"Please wet your hands with water first, then lather them with this soap and rub them back and forth."
As Li Ershu spoke, he demonstrated for the group.
"Wow, this soap is so slippery, it's actually quite fun!"
"Yes, yes! Not only is it smooth, but it also has a unique fragrance. It's amazing!"
"......"
The whispers of the five people aroused everyone's curiosity, and they all tilted their heads, wanting to see what was going on.
Li Ershu was quite satisfied as he watched the foam in the hands of the group turn black.
The foam is wet and black, which means the dirt has been washed off.
After rubbing them for a while, Li Ershu told them to wash them clean in the basin.
To everyone's surprise, the water in the basin became murky as soon as the five people put their hands in.
The once clear water instantly turned black.
The onlookers burst into laughter.
The group looked somewhat embarrassed, but after taking their hands out again, they couldn't help but gasp in surprise.
"Wow! Look, my hands are really clean!"
"Mine too! I feel like my hands have gotten whiter!"
"This thing is amazing!"
As they spoke, without Li Ershu needing to remind them, they raised their hands for the onlookers to see.
This made Li Ershu a little embarrassed; their overly cooperative behavior made it seem as if he had invited these five people to put on a show.
"Yes, it's amazing!"
"Hey bro, what kind of soap is this? How much is it per bar?"
"Yes, how much does it cost?"
After seeing that the five people had washed their hands clean, some people in the crowd started wanting to buy soap.
Who wouldn't want to try something so amazing?
Li Ershu raised his hand, signaling everyone to be quiet.
"Please be patient, everyone. It's not too late to buy them after I wash these two pieces of clothing!"
Li Ershu first had the five people, who had washed their hands, each choose a sugar painting before turning around to wash his clothes.
He was afraid that the five people would one day think he was lying.
"No, no, no, you've washed my hands clean, so I don't need this candy."
The old man who had just said that Li Ershu was going to smash his own signboard repeatedly refused.
Without a word, Li Ershu handed the old man a sugar painting with a galloping horse design.
"Sir, you've helped me, so you should accept my payment. Don't be so polite!"
The old man looked at Li Ershu with admiration and smiled as he accepted the sugar painting.
Honest and trustworthy people are always appreciated.
After distributing the sugar paintings, Li Ershu went to deal with the clothes he had just soaked in soap.
These two pieces of clothing were indeed quite dirty. Li Ershu carefully rubbed them, but not a single bubble came out.
The water used to soak the clothes had become murky and even seemed to have thickened.
Gu Lili had told him that if he encountered such a situation, he should just wash it a few more times.
Li Ershu carried the crumpled clothes to the riverbank and threw them into the river.
I rinsed it with clean water and then lathered it with soap.
There was no bubble this time either.
The crowd began to stir again.
"Hehe! I think this kid is probably just bragging!"
"Yes, I'm afraid it's possible to clean hands but not clothes!"
"Exactly! They're going to ruin their reputation! They'll be waiting to pay up!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com