Chapter 145: Chapter 144: Soap Powder

Leaving the restaurant, the sky was still bright.

Qin Yao led Da Lang to the West Market to sell white-furred squirrels.

Such “idle distractions” were things that ordinary people wouldn’t even glance at.

Qin Yao could only hope for a bit of luck, that perhaps a steward from some household would fancy it and buy it to please young masters or misses.

The little squirrel wasn’t eating because what Da Lang fed it yesterday didn’t suit its taste.

Qin Yao spent two cents to get a small handful of peanuts from a nearby old lady selling them. The once drooping little squirrel’s eyes immediately lit up; if its feet weren’t still tied with a hemp rope, it would have surely leaped into Qin Yao’s arms for the peanuts.

Da Lang put it down and took the peanuts Qin Yao handed him to feed it. The little squirrel grabbed them and started eating, looking especially adorable as it nibbled.

Watching it, Da Lang felt a bit reluctant.

But he also understood that the current situation at home wasn’t suitable for keeping this little creature, so he could only hope to find a good family that would treat it well.

The little squirrel, once lively, was quite captivating. When Qin Yao saw a stewardess-like person appearing at the street corner, she immediately started hawking.

She had no sense of embarrassment; her cries filled the street, making it hard not to attract attention.

A stewardess and a servant with a purchasing look came up curiously to inquire about the price. Qin Yao held up six fingers, “600 cents.”

They gasped at the price, thinking it was ridiculously high!

Looking at the attire of the mother and son, which resembled beggars, the purchasing servant shook his head disdainfully, walked away, and a few steps later, turned back to sneer:

“Not even two taels of meat, and selling for 600 cents, must be crazy for money!”

After saying that, he expected the mother and son to look embarrassed.

Unexpectedly, neither of them even glanced at him. The young one was focused on feeding the squirrel, while the elder was already chatting with the stewardess.

He vaguely heard phrases like “rare white-furred breed, a once-in-a-century encounter” and “such a docile nature, sure to be loved by young masters and misses.”

“Such a uniquely white-furred and adorably-faced squirrel is impossible to find without going deep into the mountains. For just 600 cents, you’re getting a great deal.” Qin Yao said earnestly.

The stewardess thought for a moment and happily said, “I’ll take it.”

The servant who hadn’t gone too far was stunned, hurried back, and also wanted it.

“Sorry, there’s only one, and it’s first come, first served.” Qin Yao shot him a disdainful look for not recognizing the value, then smiled as she placed the little squirrel into the stewardess’s hanging basket on her wrist.

“It won’t run away, will it?”

“No, it won’t.” Qin Yao pulled the stewardess aside and taught her a few tips on handling small animals.

Offering after-sales service along with a purchase, the stewardess grew more and more fond of the white-furred squirrel munching peanuts in the basket.

With the 600 cents now in hand, Da Lang’s earlier reluctance vanished instantly, and he only thought of what they could buy for home.

Qin Yao found a carpenter in the city to customize a carriage box.

The carriage box wouldn’t be ready until mid-October, but Qin Yao could wait since the custom design was quite unconventional and a bit complex.

Qin Yao wanted a fixed table installed inside the box, ideally one that could be folded when not in use and easily set up when needed, with some storage space underneath.

As for other features, due to the limited space, Qin Yao had no other requirements for the time being.

She thought about researching horse carriage bearings in the future to create a four-wheel carriage.

However, if alloy materials weren’t available, this idea might be hard to realize.

A cumbersome four-wheel carriage might not be as nimble as a two-wheel one.

Using quality materials for the box and including metal-rimmed wheels cost five taels of silver.

Da Lang, walking beside his stepmother, watched as she handed over five taels of silver without blinking, a bit shocked as he’d never seen so much money before.

But hearing Qin Yao say the carriage box was for their use when they went to school next year moved him tremendously.

So much so that Da Lang completely forgot his father was still at the academy in the city.

Qin Yao also bought some fabric and shoe soles, along with two jin (pounds) of pastries and five jin of meat.

After purchasing these, passing by a general store, Qin Yao suddenly remembered the cleaning products needed for bathing and wanted to see if they sold soapwort.

Inevitably, there wasn’t any, only a cleaning powder called soap powder that foamed when wet, said to be made from pig pancreas.

Intrigued, Qin Yao asked about the price.

The shopkeeper glanced her over, noticing her bow and arrow and a knife tied with cloth, he restrained his disdain, “Twenty cents per tael.”

“One tael?” Qin Yao doubted she’d heard the unit wrong, unsure if it was per jin.

The shopkeeper, with an expression that anticipated her questioning, said heavily, “Just one tael!”

“Forget it, let’s go, Da Lang.” Qin Yao turned to leave, thinking if she couldn’t afford it, she’d make it herself.

Thanks to the inspiration from the general store, she suddenly recalled learning how to make soap in middle school chemistry class.

So she returned to the butcher to buy fat.

But unfortunately, it was a bit late, and there wasn’t much left at the meat stall, so Qin Yao only managed to buy four jin.

Fat cost more than streaky pork, twenty-five cents per jin, amounting to exactly one hundred cents.

Two jin of fat could produce one pound of oil, and four jin could yield two pounds of oil, enough for her to make ten bars of soap.

After all these purchases, the silver Manager Fan gave her left her with only eighty-one taels, and with her savings, a total of one hundred and eighty-four taels of silver remained.

Who would have thought that venturing into the mountains for training would bring such an unexpected gain?

Thinking that she could buy several more acres of fertile land made Qin Yao feel elated and rejuvenated.

However, Da Lang was clearly exhausted. The two took an ox cart home, and he slept the entire way.

Initially leaning against the cart’s railing, as he fell asleep deeper, his head ended up on Qin Yao’s back.

When the driver stopped and they arrived at Lower River Village, his whole body was lying across Qin Yao’s lap.

Qin Yao woke him up, and Da Lang immediately blushed deeply.

The sun was about to set, so they had to hurry back to the Liu Family Village. Qin Yao carried her weapons on her back, her hands were full as well.

Da Lang carried his small bundle and weapons, holding the two jin of fragrant pastries in his arms.

They had braised pork noodles for lunch, which had been mostly digested by now. The aroma of the pastries wafted into their noses, leading to a constant inner battle between reason and impulse, making Da Lang’s journey rather strenuous.

Fortunately, before nightfall, they finally arrived at the Liu Family Village.

Having been wandering in the forest for so many days without washing their hair or changing clothes, the mother and son looked like beggars.

Those cooling down by the village well initially didn’t recognize them until the three siblings, Second Lang and others, excitedly shouted for Mother and Big Brother and rushed over. Only then did people glance up in surprise and see that the “beggars” were actually Miss Qin!

Jinhua and Jinbao cleared the way in front, and upon entering the house, they excitedly shouted, “Our third auntie is back!”

Inside, having already finished dinner and repairing farm tools, Old Liu and others’ eyes lit up.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep