Military Camp

Today, Qin Fang didn’t need anyone to call him; at the right time, he came out of the tent himself.

“Captain Qin, your wife hasn’t come to deliver food today.”

“Captain Qin, you’re really lucky. Sister-in-law brings you food every day.”

“Captain Qin, what will Sister-in-law bring today?”

Qin Fang replied, “Go eat your own food; you’ll understand when you get a wife.”

The soldiers fell silent.

As Qin Fang walked to the back door of the military camp, he sat on the same stone where he had eaten yesterday.

Soon, he spotted that troublesome woman coming with a basket, and he hurriedly got up and ran over.

Yang Haiyan looked pleasantly surprised. “How come you’re out?”

Qin Fang replied, “Is it heavy? Let me carry it.”

Hearing him say this, Yang Haiyan felt that he was starting to care for her, which was a good sign.

She handed the basket to Qin Fang and playfully said, “It’s really heavy; my hands are sore from carrying it.”

Qin Fang thought for a moment: Should he buy her some ointment? “Then don’t come tomorrow; you should rest well.”

“It’s fine; I’ll just bring something simple tomorrow,” Yang Haiyan insisted.

“Then you should get some ointment for your hands,” Qin Fang thought about how he was scolding himself.

Yang Haiyan reassured him, “It’s nothing; I’ll be fine after a little rest.”

They reached the stones, and Qin Fang opened the cloth covering the basket.

Inside were a small jar and a large lunchbox.

The food wasn’t as plentiful as yesterday’s noodles, since there was also a jar of soup(food).

The soup smelled strongly of fried fish, and it was thick and white.

Even with just one dish, Qin Fang felt the taste was vibrant and delicious.

He thought to himself, this woman’s cooking is really good.

However, he couldn’t help but wonder if she had enough money for all this.

As Qin Fang ate, Yang Haiyan curiously asked, “Dear, when your shift ends this month, should we invite your superiors and comrades over for a meal?”

Qin Fang paused.

Yang Haiyan continued, “We should invite them to toast at our wedding banquet, right?”

“Alright, I’ll inform them and let you know in advance.” Given this woman’s cooking skills, it would surely impress everyone.

However, it meant more expenses.

But since others had invited him to their weddings, it was only right that he return the favor.

He hadn’t thought of this before, but since she mentioned it, he couldn’t pretend he didn’t hear.

After returning to town, Yang Haiyan first visited the carpenter’s workshop.

The wooden soap mold she had ordered was ready.

Back at home, the soap she had made early yesterday morning had already solidified.

So, Yang Haiyan cut the soap.

Since the mold was round, she cut the soap into nine pieces using a grid pattern.

Each piece weighed about 15 grams, totaling 150 grams.

After cutting, Yang Haiyan washed her hands with the newly made soap, which had a hint of rose fragrance.

She found it very satisfactory.

The nine small pieces cost only five wen to make, less than one wen each, but she could sell them for five wen each without any problem.

This soap could be used for washing hands, bathing, and washing faces.

In addition to reselling pig intestines, Yang Haiyan thought of this new idea.

She decided to find a marketing point; after all, Qin Fang’s monthly allowance was not enough to support her, so she needed to earn money.

The marketing point would naturally be in a rouge shop.

But which one should she choose?

This was Yongzhou, which was under the jurisdiction of the Yonghe Marquis.

Half of the Marquis’s family lived in the capital, while the Marquis and his son, along with the son’s wife, were all in Yongzhou.

The son was the heir to the next Marquis, so he had to be cultivated here from a young age to take on responsibilities.

When the son inherited the title, the old marquis would return to the capital.

If the son’s wife had a legitimate son, that child would also return with them, leaving the next heir in Yongzhou.

In short, this was a way to become a hostage in the capital.

In the novel, the female protagonist, Yang Dahua, caught the eye of the son’s wife, and the male protagonist rose from a hundred-man captain to a general due to the son’s wife’s influence.

However, Yang Haiyan didn’t care about any of this.

She had no intention of stealing the female protagonist’s opportunities.

Even if Qin Fang remained a hundred-man captain for his entire life, she just wanted them to live peacefully.

What she was considering now was that Yongzhou was the territory of the Yonghe Marquis’s household, which naturally included their wealth.

Since the son’s wife married into Yongzhou, she must also have private property there.

Typically, a woman’s private wealth mainly came from her shop.

The Marquis son’s wife was the benefactor of the female protagonist, while the Yonghe Marquis’s household was the benefactor of the male protagonist.

The virtues of these benefactors were unquestionable.

So, she thought to market her soap in the shop of the Marquis son’s wife.

In the novel, it’s described that the son’s wife gave the female protagonist a shop as a token of gratitude for her help.

The shop sold rouge and powders; it didn’t earn much, but it was enough to get by.

Therefore, if she could place her soap there, and in the future, if it became the female protagonist’s shop, her business would surely flourish.

Yang Haiyan found the shop, named Yongji, which is easy to remember with “Yong” from the Yonghe Marquis’s title.

Yang Haiyan entered Yongji, and a young attendant quickly approached her: “Madam, what would you like to buy? I can give you an introduction.” Seeing Yang Haiyan’s hairstyle, he recognized she was a married woman.

Yang Haiyan replied, “Hello, young man. I’d like to meet the shopkeeper. I recently made some items that young ladies and married women might like, and I want to discuss a business deal.”

Yang Haiyan was beautiful, with a gentle voice and polite demeanor, which delighted the young attendant.

He quickly went to find the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper, looking around forty, had sharp eyes but wore a smile. “Madam, please come in. What business do you want to discuss with me?”

Yang Haiyan took out the soap. “This is called scented soap. It can be used just like lye soap. As for the effects after use… you can try washing your hands first.”

The shopkeeper picked it up and examined the milky-white soap, which looked very appealing.

He also caught a whiff of its fragrance.

Although he was still puzzled, he decided to give it a try.

After testing it, the shopkeeper was astonished and asked Yang Haiyan, “How do you plan to negotiate this deal?”

As a savvy shopkeeper, he saw a business opportunity in the soap.

Yang Haiyan responded, “I made this myself. I plan to sell it to Yongji. What price can you offer?”

The shopkeeper said, “Madam, you have great skill to create such a product. How many pieces of soap can you provide each month?”

Yang Haiyan could make more, but she didn’t plan to; producing too many would reduce its value. “I can make 100 pieces a month. If the price is right, I can promise that this soap will only be supplied to your shop.”

The shopkeeper thought 100 pieces was too few.

With such a good product, each household’s young lady would stock up. “Can you make more? Ideally, 200 pieces a month. I’ll offer you 15 wen per piece.”

Yang Haiyan was taken aback; it was a surprisingly high price.

Seeing her expression, the shopkeeper smiled. “At Yongji, we never take advantage of anyone. The price I offered is fair. If you were to sell elsewhere, they would definitely try to lower the price. But this soap is indeed exceptional. Generally, a seamstress takes two days to stitch a handkerchief, which costs at least four to five wen, but your soap is worth much more.”

Yang Haiyan replied, “Then I will accept your kindness. Thank you, shopkeeper.”

The shopkeeper said, “You understand our shop’s reputation. Could you deliver your goods on the 1st, 11th, and 21st of each month? On the 1st, 100 pieces; on the 11th and 21st, 50 pieces each.”

Yang Haiyan said, “Today is already August 28, so I will deliver it on September 1, as I have some stock to use up.”

The shopkeeper did not ask further and smiled, “That’s fine.”

Then, they signed a two-copy agreement.

Back at home, Yang Haiyan used the remaining lard to make soap liquid.

After using up 1400 grams of lard, she poured it into a large soap mold.

This mold could hold about 100 grams of soap liquid per cavity, so she would need to cut it afterward, yielding 100 pieces.

On September 1, Yang Haiyan took the solid soap out of the mold.

She had 20 rectangular bars, which she cut into five pieces each, turning the rectangular soap into squares.

After cutting, she placed them in a basket and covered them with cloth before heading to Yongji.

The shopkeeper had been waiting at Yongji since early morning.

Seeing Yang Haiyan arrive, he finally felt at ease.

After her visit, he had investigated her background and learned that her husband, Qin Fang, was a captain under the young master.

He felt reassured about her identity.

“Madam Qin has arrived.”

Yang Haiyan hadn’t intended to hide her identity, so she wasn’t surprised. “Shopkeeper, I brought the soap for you to count.”

“Ah, good.” Knowing her identity was one thing, but business still needed to be clear.

After confirming the count, the shopkeeper paid her 1 tael of silver and 500 copper coins for the 100 pieces.

Yang Haiyan said, “I have a suggestion.”

The shopkeeper replied, “Madam Qin, please go ahead.”

Yang Haiyan suggested, “You could order wooden boxes or pouches to package the soap. This would increase the selling price.”

The shopkeeper thought for a moment and gave Yang Haiyan a thumbs-up. “Madam Qin truly has a business mind.”

Yang Haiyan modestly replied, “It’s just the thoughts of a small woman; nothing grand.”

After leaving Yongji, Yang Haiyan happily went to the market.

She earned 1500 wen(1 tael of silver and 500 copper coin), and with the 1232 wen she had left, she now had a total of 2732 wen.

Besides returning the 1300 wen Qin Fang had given her, she had an extra 1432 wen, making her very pleased.

Yang Haiyan decided to treat both herself and Qin Fang.

She bought 5 jin of yellow beans, 10 jin of white rice, two pig trotters, two jin of pork, eggplants, and winter melons, along with some fabric, spending a total of 353 wen.

She took the vegetables and meat home herself, while the yellow beans and white rice were bought from the same place, which she had delivered.