Chapter 11: Making Soap

After that, Xu Mo hurried off to the kitchen and busied himself with various tasks.

Chen Miaoyi followed him, intending to help, but was quickly startled. “Husband, that’s the cooking pot—why are you putting straw in it?”

“I’m preparing plant ash. This pot is just the right size and convenient to use!” Xu Mo replied.

“But if you dirty it, how will we cook in it later?” Chen Miaoyi protested.

“It’s fine. I’ll get a new pot soon—one much better than this,” Xu Mo said with a dismissive wave.

Hearing this, Chen Miaoyi said no more and instead asked, “Husband, what do you need the plant ash for?”

Xu Mo, still busy, answered, “I need it for making soap.”

“Soap requires plant ash?” Chen Miaoyi was utterly puzzled. She could not imagine that this powerful cleansing agent Xu Mo spoke of would be made from lard and plant ash.

Xu Mo nodded. “That’s right. First, I have to make lye with the ash, then mix the lye with lard. The final product will be soap!”

He kept up a running commentary as he worked, and before long, the plant ash was ready.

Next, Xu Mo carefully poured clear water into the pot, stirring constantly with chopsticks to ensure the ash dissolved thoroughly.

Once the ash settled to the bottom, he measured the water level with his finger.

“Miaoyi, remember this: at this step, the water should be about a finger’s length above the ash,” Xu Mo instructed.

Though she still didn’t quite understand, Chen Miaoyi memorized his words.

Xu Mo then stoked the fire in the hearth and slowly brought the mixture to a boil.

After about fifteen minutes, he carried the clay pot to the main room.

“Miaoyi, now we just leave it overnight and by morning, the lye I need will be ready!” Xu Mo said, full of anticipation.

Chen Miaoyi glanced at the steaming pot and found herself growing expectant as well.

After washing up, Xu Mo once again suggested that Chen Miaoyi sleep in the bedroom, but she refused as before.

—

At dawn the next day, Xu Mo was awakened by Chen Miaoyi’s excited voice.

“Husband, come quickly! Is the lye ready?” she called, pushing open the bedroom door.

Xu Mo sprang up and hurried to the main room, slipping on his shoes as he went.

After a night of cooling and settling, the water in the clay pot had transformed into a pale yellow, clear liquid that looked quite concentrated.

“It’s done! This is lye!” Xu Mo exclaimed joyfully. “Miaoyi, we’ve made lye!”

Chen Miaoyi nodded happily, then said, “Husband, I’ll go buy the lard right away!”

With that, she took some money and hurried out the door.

—

By the time Chen Miaoyi returned, Xu Mo had already poured out the lye into two clay bowls.

“Husband, I’ve bought the lard. Is this jar enough?” she asked, carrying in a large jar.

Xu Mo nodded. “It’s more than enough.”

He then heated the lard until it melted, slowly poured in the lye, and kept the flame low while stirring constantly.

The saponification process took far longer than expected, and Xu Mo’s arm was sore well before the time it took for an incense stick to burn.

Seeing this, Chen Miaoyi offered, “Husband, let me do it. I’ve watched you and learned how. Take a rest.”

Xu Mo didn’t refuse, handing her the wooden spoon and settling by the hearth to tend the fire.

An hour later, when much of the moisture had evaporated, Xu Mo removed the pot from the stove and set it on the main room’s table to cool.

Following behind, Chen Miaoyi asked eagerly, “Husband, what comes next?”

“We wait,” Xu Mo replied.

He quickly added, “Once it’s cooled and fully solidified, it will be the soap I spoke of!”

“That’s all? It’s finished?” Chen Miaoyi could hardly believe the process was so simple.

Xu Mo smiled, then asked, “By the way, Miaoyi, do you know any carpenters? Good ones?”

“Husband, why do you need a carpenter?” she asked.

“I want to make some molds. If this batch is a success, next time I can pour the soap into molds to shape it. It’ll be much more presentable, don’t you think?”

Chen Miaoyi nodded in firm agreement and said, “Husband, how could you forget? Your uncle is a carpenter—an excellent one!”

“My uncle?” Xu Mo was startled. He had no recollection of this.

It was then Xu Mo realized he had not inherited all of his predecessor’s memories.

From Chen Miaoyi’s explanation, he learned that his late father had an elder brother who lived with his family in Sweetwater Lane, east of the city.

“Miaoyi, fetch me two hundred coins. I’ll go see Uncle,” Xu Mo said.

Chen Miaoyi quickly agreed, threaded two strings of coins—each worth a hundred—and handed them to him.

Xu Mo tucked the money away and set off briskly for Sweetwater Lane.

No sooner had he left than Chen Miaoyi fetched a large palm-leaf fan and began vigorously fanning the clay pot.

Meanwhile, following the address, Xu Mo arrived at his uncle’s house in no time.

Knock, knock, knock...

—

Xu Mo rapped on the courtyard gate and called out, “Uncle, are you home?”

Before long, the door creaked open.

A young girl appeared, her face round and her eyes bright and lively—a clever child at a glance.

“Xu Mo? What are you doing here?” she asked, frowning with clear displeasure.

Xu Mo’s uncle was named Xu Tieshu. He had a son and a daughter; his wife had passed away years ago.

The son was Xu Ping’an, eighteen years old; the daughter was Xu Hui, fourteen. This bright-eyed girl was Xu Hui.

“Cousin, is Uncle home? I wanted to—” Xu Mo began.

But before he could finish, Xu Hui cut in sharply, “Don’t bother. My father has no money!”

“Cousin, I—” Xu Mo tried to explain.

But Xu Hui, spirited beyond her years, interrupted again, “Even if he had money, he wouldn’t lend it to you for gambling!”

“Go on, go on!” she cried, shooing him away and attempting to close the gate.

Xu Mo quickly wedged his hand and foot in the doorway, calling out loudly, “Uncle, are you home? It’s Xu Mo—I have a carpentry job I’d like your help with!”

“What are you doing? My father isn’t home—leave already!” Xu Hui protested, but she hadn’t the strength to push Xu Mo out.

Xu Mo called out three times before a middle-aged man’s voice sounded from inside the courtyard. “Huihui! Let him in.”

At last, Xu Hui stepped back with a pout, allowing him to enter.

Xu Mo entered the courtyard and saw, standing by the main room’s door, a middle-aged man with a furrowed brow, eyeing him intently.

“Is this another debt collector, or have you run out of money for the gambling house?” the man asked.

This was none other than Xu Mo’s uncle, Xu Tieshu.

Due to Xu Mo’s predecessor’s ruinous gambling, Xu Tieshu’s family was bitterly disappointed in him. After repeated fruitless remonstrations, they had cut off contact.

Xu Mo stepped forward, clasped his hands in salute, and said, “Uncle, I haven’t come to borrow money, but to ask for your help with a carpentry job.”

As he spoke, Xu Mo took the two strings of coins from his pocket. “Uncle, though we’re family, I would never ask you to work for nothing. See, I’ve brought payment.”

Xu Hui had just closed the gate. Turning back and seeing the two strings of coins in Xu Mo’s hand, she exclaimed in astonishment, “Xu Mo, how do you have so much money?”

Xu Tieshu was equally surprised. Ever since squandering the family fortune, Xu Mo hadn’t had more than twenty coins to his name.

Yet now, he could produce two full strings of coins without hesitation.