I often recall watching videos about soap-making processes, but over time, I feel like my memory is flawed, as if everything is wrong.
We need to make the soap quickly; practice makes perfect!
We didn't have enough clam shells left from before, and the river water is too cold. We can't possibly go into the river to collect them now!
Fortunately, Meng Chuying said that she had seen some river mussels in the shallows downstream of the river when she and her friends went to play by the river before. Mainly, the river water there is very shallow in the summer.
The next day, led by Meng Chuying, she and Ye Lingyu went to the lower reaches of the river.
There's a branch of the river there, and a shallow area where, perhaps due to the season, the riverbed is visible.
They found plenty of clams in the shallows. Enough for her to make soap, and enough for them to have a good meal.
Even more fortunately, Cheng Qingyan found several pearls while opening the river mussels.
Although the size and appearance weren't particularly good, two of them were quite nice. They were well-sized and rounded, and the outer layer had a purplish sheen.
I used to see other people open river clams and find pearls, but I never thought that I would open some myself and find a few pearls too.
Moreover, with the help of Ye Lingyu and Meng Chuying, the process of cleaning up the river clams was much faster this time.
She was in charge of opening the clams, Ye Lingyu was in charge of extracting the clam meat, and Meng Chuying was in charge of cleaning the clam shells. The three of them had a clear division of labor, and the work was completed much faster than expected.
After opening the river mussels, Cheng Qingyan picked out the two prettiest pearls and took them to be cleaned.
She planned to give these two pearls to Ye Lingyu and Meng Chuying, as they were the fruits of their labor.
It may not be very valuable, but it's the thought that counts.
When the pearl was presented to Ye Lingyu and Meng Chuying, Meng Chuying was quite surprised. She couldn't accept something so precious.
"I don't need it. These beautiful things should be given to Sister Ye." Meng Chuying pushed Cheng Qingyan's hand back.
"I promised to give you each one, how can you not use it? These are all thanks to you, Chu Ying!" Ye Lingyu placed the pearl in Meng Chu Ying's hand.
“Sister Ye…” She understood that Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu had kept a record of her work every day while she was helping out in the fields. They had even settled her wages before she went to town last time, so that she wouldn’t be penniless when she was away from home.
She's only led the way; how could she possibly accept this pearl?
"Sister Ye, please keep the pearls for now. You can use them to make jewelry or something else. It's up to you, Sister Ye."
Ye Lingyu knew in her heart that Meng Chuying really wouldn't accept it.
In the end, Ye Lingyu decided to go to town next time to find someone to drill a hole in the pearl before giving it to Meng Chuying.
After the clam shells are cleaned and dried, they need to be roasted and then ground into powder for later use.
The alkaline solution is made by boiling wood ash, filtering it, adding shell powder and stirring it evenly, and then filtering it again with gauze.
This is only half the process; the shell powder that was previously mixed with alkaline water still needs to settle.
The mutton fat was rendered in the same way as the lard, and the cracklings were stored separately. They can be used later for stir-frying or making steamed buns!
Cheng Qingyan had eaten pork lard buns once before when she went hiking, and they were so delicious!
After buying the lard and mutton fat, we rendered them in advance, and they have already cooled completely.
Simply wait for the alkaline solution to settle, then add the clear alkaline solution to the lard and mutton fat.
After adding some finely ground coarse salt to increase the hardness and durability of the soap, stir continuously in one direction to fully mix the lye and oils and produce a saponification reaction.
Once the oil gradually turns into a sticky paste, it can be poured into a mold to set. The setting time depends on the weather, but it usually takes three to five days.
The molds used to shape the soap are made of bamboo cut down from the mountain.
By the time all of this was completed, it was almost Chinese New Year.
Cheng Qingyan's maternal grandmother's family has a custom that a few days before the Lunar New Year, around the 24th of the lunar calendar, they make steamed buns, steamed bread, and fried dough sticks.
On the 23rd day of the lunar calendar, Cheng Qingyan and Ye Lingyu took Meng Chuying to the town of Yifu again.
This trip was mainly to buy things for the Chinese New Year, such as Spring Festival couplets, red lanterns, dishes for the New Year's Eve dinner, and charcoal for burning at home.
As for the herbs needed for the prescriptions that Ruan Banxia had given her before, she had already planted several batches of them in her space.
They're all relatively new, so even if she can't use them all, she can sell them for money without attracting attention.
This time she didn't make medicated soap, so she planned to sell some of the herbs she had grown before!
She didn't want to be flashy; her main concern was valuing her life. But she still needed to supplement her family's income, and since it was her first time spending the New Year with Ye Lingyu, she wanted to have a prosperous one.
The high-end items in her space were too eye-catching. Given her family's financial situation, she might have the life to sell them, but not the life to enjoy them.
In this era of cold weapons, she didn't want to be stabbed on the street, especially with Ye Lingyu around.
Before transmigrating, I never worried about money, nor did I think anyone would kill someone for money.
She can't take the risk now; in the era of imperial power, life is far more important than money.
If she could stay in this small mountain village and live a simple life with her wife, that would be wonderful.
Having witnessed the advancements and prosperity of technology, in an era where even visiting a relative takes ten to fifteen days, she wouldn't risk her own life and Ye Lingyu's life before she possessed absolute power.
When she arrived at the pharmacy where she had bought medicine last time, the shopkeeper didn't recognize her at first.
When we were discussing the price, the face looked familiar, and it took me a while to recognize it.
"Young Master Cheng, it's been a long time. Is this all you have this time, just these common herbs?" The pharmacy owner was still thinking about the ginseng from last time, so he must have made some money.
Cheng Qingyan then pretended to tidy up Meng Chuying's small basket, and hesitantly took out a century-old ginseng from it.
"Shopkeeper, I actually have a century-old ginseng here. To buy this ginseng, I not only used up all my savings but also borrowed a lot of money. Could you please take a look at it?"
The shopkeeper took the century-old ginseng from Cheng Qingyan and examined it carefully: "Hmm, not bad, not bad at all. This ginseng is of excellent quality. I wonder if Young Master Cheng is willing to pay a price?"
Cheng Qingyan smiled with feigned relief: "I'm relieved to hear you say that. I don't know how much this thing can sell for, but of course, I want to make as much money as possible."
"Hahaha, Young Master Cheng is a truly honest man. How about this, this ginseng is indeed a hundred years old. The price I can offer is eighty taels, how about that?"
Eighty taels of silver—it would take a moderately well-off family half a lifetime to save that much.
After quoting the price, the shopkeeper quietly awaited Cheng Qingyan's response. The price he offered this time was relatively fair, without much markup.
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