Looking at the excited woman in front of him, Zhang Zixuan suddenly didn’t know what to say.

“I know you don’t believe me, but that’s okay. Tonight, I’ll cook it for you all to try. If you think it’s good, then I’ll take it to Manager Wu for him to try as well.”

Although Jian Xiu was confident in her dish, she wasn’t entirely sure about the local taste preferences.

It was best to have her own people try it first.

As for pork offal, the most troublesome part was just cleaning it properly.

When stir-frying, as long as you added enough seasoning, the taste wouldn’t be too bad.

Thinking of this, Jian Xiu started to worry again.

She didn’t know about other households, but in all her years of cooking, she had never seen soy sauce around here.

She wasn’t sure whether it simply didn’t exist in this place or if her family just didn’t have it.

If it truly didn’t exist, then she had found herself a golden business opportunity.

Thinking of this, Jian Xiu eagerly asked Zhang Zixuan, “Have you ever heard of soy sauce?”

“Soy sauce? No. Is it an oil? How is it extracted?”

“You really haven’t heard of it?” Jian Xiu asked excitedly.

If even Zhang Zixuan didn’t know about it, then it probably didn’t exist here.

After all, he had spent years traveling as an armed escort, journeying far and wide. He was well-traveled and knowledgeable.

“I truly haven’t heard of it. Describe it to me, and I’ll see if I can recall anything,” Zhang Zixuan replied.

Seeing how excited Jian Xiu was, he was worried she was getting her hopes up for nothing.

“It’s not an oil. It’s a seasoning used in cooking, made from soybeans. It’s a dark, liquid sauce. Have you ever seen anything like that?”

Hearing this, Zhang Zixuan thought carefully but ultimately shook his head.

“No, I really haven’t heard of it. When Zhiyong and Haifei come back, I’ll ask them too.”

“If even you haven’t heard of it, then it most likely doesn’t exist here,” Jian Xiu murmured.

“Do you have another idea in mind?”

“Yes, I do, but I need to actually make it first. For now, it’s just a thought,” Jian Xiu said mysteriously.

From what she knew, the key ingredient for making soy sauce was soybeans.

Right now, many things were scarce, but soybeans were abundant.

They were incredibly cheap—just two or three copper coins per jin (a unit of weight).

With this in mind, Jian Xiu became even more eager to visit the county town.

There were so many things she needed to buy.

Not just buying things—there were also many matters she needed to take care of.

When she last brought back bamboo shoots, she also carried back a large bundle along with Liu Tou and Qi Tou.

Not just them—even Zhang Zhiyong and the others returned with her.

“Let’s have dinner here tonight,” Jian Xiu said with a bright smile.

“Oh, no, no…”

“It’s settled! I also need your help with something tonight.”

“Sister-in-law, just say the word! If you need us, we’ll do our best to help,” Zhang Zhiyong replied with a grin.

They had originally planned to have dinner at home before coming back to wash the plantain herbs.

Now, hearing Jian Xiu’s words, they guessed it must be about the herbs.

Seeing the courtyard full of freshly harvested plantain herbs, Zhang Zhiyong felt a surge of joy.

He never imagined they could earn money this way.

Compared to this, even business owners in the county with shops didn’t earn as much.

In just half a day, each of them had made over ten trips. Even after drying, they estimated there would be at least ten jin left.

At fifteen copper coins per jin, that meant 150 coins in total. Even split among the three families, that was still 50 coins each.

This calculation made him ecstatic.

In the county, a full day of labor—waking up early and working until dark—only earned around fifteen coins.

Some jobs even paid as little as twelve.

And yet, people still fought to get those jobs!

“You all rest for a bit first. We’ll talk more while we eat,” Jian Xiu said with a smile.

Seeing that she was insisting, Zhang Zhiyong and Zhang Haifei had no choice but to stay.

“Jian Xiu, there’s no need to cook rice. We can just have some porridge,” Huang Chunzhi quickly stopped her as she reached for the rice.

“We’ve all worked hard today. If we don’t eat well, where will we get the energy to work?”

“Seeing you use rice so freely like this, I feel bad for you,” Lin Xia said with a sigh.

“What’s there to feel bad about? People need food to survive. If you don’t eat well, nothing else matters. If you really feel bad, then see that slab of pork over there? Help me separate the bones from the meat.”

“Should we separate the fatty and lean parts?”

“No need. Just remove the bones.”

Hearing this, Lin Xia and Huang Chunzhi didn’t ask further and went to prepare the meat.

“Jian Xiu, you know, no wonder Old Liu’s wife was so mad. That pig was at its peak growing stage, and you slaughtered it just like that. Of course, she’d be furious,” Huang Chunzhi said with a chuckle.

“I bet she’s still sulking over it,” Lin Xia added.

“Let her be. If she wants to be mad, that’s her problem. But if she tries to mess with me, I won’t be as polite as before.”

“You should’ve done this sooner! Just look—ever since you cut ties with that Zhang family, your days have only gotten better. Mark my words, now that you’re free from them, your future will be even brighter.”

“Of course…”

While the women chatted and worked in the kitchen, the men were busy handling the plantain herbs.

“Even after just half a day, they’re already drying well. In another two days, they should be ready to sell to Renhetang,” someone said.

Renhetang was the largest herbal medicine shop in the county.

Ordinary people rarely dealt with such a prestigious store.

Those who entered its doors were usually wealthy and noble.

For country folk like them, the only reason to go there was to sell medicinal herbs.

Buying medicine?

There was no need to visit such a high-end place.

“If the weather is good tomorrow, one more day of drying should do it,” someone else agreed.

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s wash these herbs overnight if we have to!” Zhang Haifei said eagerly.

“Your water supply makes this so much easier,” Zhang Zhiyong said with a grin.

“Exactly! Just turn the spout, and the water flows out. Even wells aren’t this convenient.”

Hearing this, Zhang Zixuan couldn’t help but feel a little proud.