Yun Zimu reached out, carefully pinched a piece, and popped it into his mouth, squinting his eyes in satisfaction.
He was truly becoming less and less afraid of his wife; he even dared to grab food with his bare hands now.
Seeing that Yun Zimu seemed to enjoy this deep-fried treat, Su Qiruo simply fried up some more pork belly slices in the oil, sprinkled them with salt, and once they cooled, they became a delicious snack.
"It's delicious. Wife, you're amazing."
Yun Zimu was so happy his eyes were almost closed. Seeing him eat in such an adorable way, Su Qiruo felt an overwhelming sense of affection.
"Even if it's delicious, don't eat too much, or you won't have an appetite for dinner."
Su Qiruo said softly as she ladled the lard into a jar.
He was still just a young boy, after all; once he let go of his reservations, his innocent nature began to shine through.
"Mm... Wife, you have a piece too."
Yun Zimu pinched a slice of meat and held it to Su Qiruo’s lips. As soon as she bit down on it, he pulled his hand back, his face flushing red.
There was still some hot lard left in the pot for later use. Su Qiruo placed the lard jar back on the windowsill and grabbed a basin to scoop out the ashes from the stove.
Yun Zimu blinked curiously, asking in confusion, "Wife, do you need the ashes?"
"These plant ashes are good things."
Su Qiruo smiled and nodded, shoveling the ashes into the basin before going outside to fetch two ladles of water to mix in.
"Zimu, go tear off a small piece of the cotton cloth you use for making shoes and bring it to me."
Su Qiruo gestured with her hands, and Yun Zimu immediately got up to find the cloth for her.
After filtering out the impurities and ash, Su Qiruo carried the filtered lye into the main room and began to boil the ash-mixed water in a new, unused pot.
Then, she poured the hot rendered lard into the lye and stirred it continuously.
"It would be better if I had limestone to burn into lime water, but this should work."
Her arms were aching from the stirring, and seeing no signs of saponification yet, Su Qiruo couldn't help but mutter to herself.
Yun Zimu didn't understand what she was saying; he only knew that when his wife told him to add firewood, he added firewood, and when she told him to put it out, he put it out.
Finally, seeing the mixture thicken significantly, a look of joy appeared on Su Qiruo’s face.
It looked like it might work. Perhaps the proportions were a bit off, but she could experiment slowly in the future.
Su Qiruo found a long, narrow wooden box, poured the soap mixture into it, and set it outside to air out.
Yun Zimu was curious; he kept running outside every little while to check on it. When he finally saw the white soap had set, he gasped, covered his mouth, and ran inside to call Su Qiruo.
"Wife, Wife, it seems to have turned hard."
If Su Qiruo hadn't known that her simple little white rabbit didn't understand anything, she would have spat out the water she was drinking.
She turned out the large block of soap and cut it into smaller pieces with a knife, then handed one to Yun Zimu.
"Go wash your handkerchief and see if it can get it clean."
Yun Zimu carefully held the so-called soap, squatted by the water basin, and pulled his handkerchief from his robes, not knowing how to use it.
Su Qiruo smiled, walked over to Yun Zimu, and squatted down to teach him how to use the soap.
The small oil stain on the handkerchief actually faded significantly, and Yun Zimu found it even more magical.
Su Qiruo smeared some oil on her hand, rubbed some soot from the bottom of the pot onto it, and used the soap to scrub it twice; it actually washed clean.
"Wife, is this the soap you want to sell?"
Yun Zimu now felt that his wife was truly incredible, capable of making such magical soap.
"Yes! Do you think it's feasible, Zimu?"
Su Qiruo was fairly satisfied with the soap, though the shape was a bit lacking.
No, if she really wanted to rely on this to make money in the future, she would have to find a carpenter to make some molds.
"It's feasible. If you take this soap out to sell, it will definitely be a big hit."
Yun Zimu nodded repeatedly, saying that this thing was much easier to use than soap locust pods.
Seeing Yun Zimu’s earnest little expression, Su Qiruo suddenly wanted to tease him.
"Zimu, this soap is an heirloom of the Su family. Since you know the method now, you must be a member of the Su family for the rest of your life. If this method leaks out, we’ll lose our livelihood."
Seeing Su Qiruo’s serious expression, Yun Zimu hurriedly promised with a solemn face, "I... I won't tell anyone else."
Su Qiruo smiled, pinched Yun Zimu’s little cheek, and said dotingly, "You little fool!"
Only then did Yun Zimu realize his wife had been teasing him. He puffed out his cheeks, his voice tinged with a bit of anger.
"I'm not a fool!"
Having said that, he took the soap and went straight back into the room.
"Oh! Such a proud little temper; I wonder who spoiled him like this."
Watching the back of Yun Zimu’s head, Su Qiruo couldn't help but laugh.
"But, I like it!"
The little husband she had spoiled herself, she would have to keep doting on him even if he cried.
After dinner, Su Qiruo sent the remaining pieces of soap to the homes of Lu Dasheng, Lu Qimei, and Lu Ziping. She explained the uses of the soap to the three of them, and after trying it themselves, they all agreed it was a good product.
When she returned, Su Qiruo picked some flower petals. Later, she could mix them with white flour, egg whites, honey, or milk and *Qingmuxiang* (Aristolochia) to make scented soaps to sell to the husbands and sons of wealthy families, which should also be quite popular.
But no matter how good the product was, she had to make it for her own husband to use first. After suffering for so many years, it was finally time for him to enjoy life.
Su Qiruo’s original goal in working hard to earn money was to let Yun Zimu live a better life, and that had not changed.
Since Heaven had allowed her to transmigrate here to protect him, she would do her utmost.
When Su Qiruo returned, the oil lamp in the inner room was still lit. Hearing the sound of the door closing outside, Yun Zimu hurried out.
"Wife, you're back."
"Why aren't you asleep yet? Were you waiting for me?"
Looking at Yun Zimu’s slightly red eyes, Su Qiruo couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache.
She felt tired after being busy all day, let alone Yun Zimu, who rarely went out.
"I've locked the main gate. Go to sleep!"
He really was a timid little thing; even when he was this sleepy, he didn't dare to sleep alone.
"I'll go get some foot-washing water for you, Wife."
Yun Zimu rubbed his eyes and started to go get the water, but Su Qiruo hurriedly pulled him back.
"I can do it myself. You've been busy all day, go to sleep!"
Yun Zimu’s bright eyes suddenly dimmed. He clutched his sleeves tightly, watching Su Qiruo turn and head to the kitchen, and couldn't help but bite his lower lip.
It seemed his wife didn't like him as much as he thought.
Yun Zimu blinked in disappointment, his gaze lingering on the door of the west room.
Did other couples also sleep in separate rooms like this?
Was his wife afraid of hurting him again, or did she really not like him, which was why she insisted on sleeping alone in the west room?
***
(The original design was to combine the method of making "bath beans" mentioned in *Qianjin Yifang* by Sun Simiao of the Tang Dynasty, which is what we now call scented soap. One type uses white bean flour as the main ingredient, adding five spices—*Qingmuxiang*, *Gansongxiang*, *Baitanxiang*, musk, and cloves—along with various Chinese herbs like white silkworm and *Atractylodes*, finally adding egg whites and pig pancreas. First, the pig pancreas is mixed with white flour and egg whites, dried in the sun, then mixed with other ingredients, pounded into a fine powder, and finally mixed with the white bean flour. This type of bath bean is mostly used for skin cleansing, and its formula is mostly for nourishing and whitening the skin, which has the same effect as modern whitening soap.)
—
(However, white flour and eggs are a bit wasteful for the protagonist in the book, so we chose to use the simplest limestone, lye, and lard. (Because conditions are limited, some steps in the text are purely fabricated by the author; please just read them for fun.))
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(Limestone heated at high temperature forms calcium carbonate (quicklime) and carbon dioxide: CaCO3=CaO+CO2)
(Calcium carbonate (quicklime) plus water produces calcium hydroxide: CaO+H2O=Ca(OH)2)
(Sodium carbonate (lye) and calcium hydroxide (lime water): Na2CO3+Ca(OH)2=CaCO3↓+2NaOH)
((This is also the oldest way to make caustic soda.))
(End of chapter)