After arranging the household chores, Shen Qing and Huo Bing stayed in the kitchen alone.

Shen Qing had thought things through.

The tasks of making the brush, combing the hair, polishing bamboo, tying threads, installing, and so on couldn’t be done by just one or two people.

Everyone in the family would have to pick a part they were good at and form a production line.

Making soap was different, though.

The oil had to be heated to the right temperature before adding the lye, and how much lye to add, along with how much stirring was required… all of this was a matter of skill.

One person who is skilled could handle it from start to finish.

There wasn’t a need for many people, and Shen Qing didn’t want too many people to know.

The more people who knew, the more likely it was to be leaked, so the core technique had to be kept in the hands of a few people.

Huo Bing understood this too.

After listening, she spoke with a trembling excitement: “Mother, such an important task… should it not be done by the head of the household or the third or fourth brothers?”

“Would it be inappropriate for a daughter-in-law like me to do it?”

Shen Qing asked in return, “What’s inappropriate about it? You’re steady and careful, it’s the perfect fit.”

Huo Bing lowered her head and said sadly, “Mother, after all, I’m an outsider.”

The mother was very kind to entrust her with such an important task—it was a sign of trust—but the words she had heard for over ten years had long taken root in her heart.

She, an outsider and a woman, couldn’t be trusted with such work.

Such important tasks should be done by the head of the household or the younger brothers.

Shen Qing laughed and asked, “Then what is my surname? By the way, aren’t we the only outsiders in this family?”

Huo Bing immediately lifted her head, her eyes, dark and shiny like the stars, glittering with light.

“From now on, there will be no outsiders. Once you enter the family, we are all family. Our goal is to live well, striving to have meat, eggs, white flour, and rice at every meal!” Shen Qing said boldly.

Huo Bing, moved by the atmosphere, blinked her bright eyes. “Mother is right!”

The thought of having meat, eggs, and white flour at every meal seemed unimaginable—something she wouldn’t even dare dream of.

But Mother was right; they should live well.

Three meals a day, and every meal should be filling.

---

In the kitchen, there wasn’t even a stove.

There was only a pit dug into the ground, surrounded by a circle of stones, with a large iron pot placed on top.

The smallest fire was burning in the stove, and Shen Qing carefully poured a small bowl of sesame oil into the pot.

Sesame oil was cheaper than lard, and it lasted longer, so it was a good choice for the first batch, as it could withstand failure.

Having made handmade soap before, Shen Qing knew the right temperatures and how hot the oil should be.

The problem was that the lye extracted from the wood ash was harder to measure, so it would require several tries.

“Each time, we will use a small bowl. You see, the oil should be heated to the point where it gives off a faint heat, a little hotter than bathwater but not to the point where it burns the skin.

Then, while stirring, add the lye. Stir quickly to mix the lye and oil well. Once they are fully combined, we can pour them into molds. If they don’t combine, the soap is a failure.

If there’s too much lye, it’s even worse.

This can’t be detected while stirring, but once it’s in the mold and it starts to harden, you’ll see lumps of dark brown spots on the soap, which looks terrible.

It will also burn the skin when used, making it a failure product. It can’t be sold, or it’ll ruin our reputation,” Shen Qing explained while demonstrating.

At this time, reputation was most important.

Although business in Xingcheng couldn’t last long, they couldn’t lose their integrity.

Huo Bing listened attentively and understood.

She summarized, “So, it’s not about worrying if we add too little, but about worrying if we add too much.”

Shen Qing gave her a thumbs-up and praised, “Clever! That’s exactly right.”

Talking to smart people was so much better.

She had just discovered another good trait of her eldest daughter-in-law: she was intelligent and quick to understand.

This was crucial. If she had encountered a foolish person, teaching them a dozen times might not help, and eventually, she’d be so frustrated she might throw the pot.

After blending the oil and lye, they stopped immediately after a few tries and waited for the soap to harden overnight.

By the next day, they could tell how much lye was needed just by looking at the appearance of the soap.

Once the molds were filled, Huo Bing stayed behind to clean the kitchen, while Shen Qing carried the molds to her room.

Just as she finished placing them down, she heard Jiang Xiangzhong’s voice coming from outside, scolding.

“My food is cold! You know I’m coming back for dinner, and you didn’t even keep it warm for me?”

“Xiangzhong, I’m sorry. Sister-in-law was using the pot earlier, so I couldn’t keep it warm. Don’t worry, I’ll heat it up now.”

“I’ve been studying all day and am exhausted! How can food not be more important than anything else? Are you doing this on purpose because of how Mother treated me yesterday? If it were before, would you dare to treat me this way?”

Jiang Xiangzhong’s words were full of anger, growing more furious as he spoke.

“You’re just bought by our Jiang family—”

“Jiang Xiangzhong!” Shen Qing came out and called his name coldly.

Her voice wasn’t loud, but it was terrifying to everyone who heard it!

Jiang Xiangzhong froze, stiffening, and stubbornly raised his head to look at her.

“I know you’re tired from school,” Shen Qing said slowly.

Jiang Xiangzhong’s tense body relaxed a little—did this mean his mother was giving in?

Others, however, had different thoughts. For some reason, they felt this was just the calm before a storm.

Sure enough, Shen Qing casually said, “Catching fish, working in the fields, sowing seeds, weeding, harvesting, gathering wild vegetables to feed the chickens and ducks, washing clothes—none of that’s tiring, it’s all very easy. From now on, you’ll be like your brother, sister, and sister-in-law. You won’t need to go to school.”

Jiang Xiangzhong was stunned.

He never expected his mother would tell him not to go to school.

He loved studying and had never said it was tiring before, but his mother often said it was hard and exhausting, so the good food at home should be saved for him, and he didn’t need to do any of the chores.

Over time, he had come to believe this was the natural order of things.

He stammered, “Mother, I… I want to study.”

“Oh? Didn’t you say studying was tiring? So tiring that you couldn’t even heat your own food. Your brother, sister, and sister-in-law have worked all day, and they don’t get to have their food warmed, let alone cook a meal themselves. Why should we let you be the only one so tired? You should live as comfortably as they do,” Shen Qing said sarcastically.

It was clear she had provided all the resources for him, but he was ungrateful and even took it for granted.

Now, her tone was far from kind.

Everyone else understood what Shen Qing was saying.

Jiang Xiangzhong understood even more.

He turned and bowed deeply to Huo Bing, saying, “Sister-in-law, I was wrong just now. Please don’t take it to heart. Thank you for saving me some food. I’ll heat it up myself.”

Huo Bing quickly waved her hand.

After all, he was Mother’s most beloved youngest son.

She looked up at her mother and saw her nod in approval.

She understood and stepped aside. “No need to thank me. You can go ahead. If you need help, just ask me.”

Since Mother had allowed Xiangzhong to cook, there must be her reasons.

In the past, her husband never took part in raising the child.

He had never changed Xiao Hua’s diapers or fed her porridge.

But even so, whenever the child cried, he blamed her for not soothing her properly.

If the child fell ill, he blamed her for not taking care of her well.

If the child was too thin, he blamed her for not feeding her properly…