Chapter 72: The Whole Village Smells Nice

Yan Lao’er acted naturally, stepping forward to take a closer look while anxiously picking up Yan Yu. “Er Ya, you can’t go over there. Be careful, it might scratch you.”

Li Xuemei thought about what she could do. She cut a thin strip of wild boar meat, threw it over, and sternly ordered, “Shoo!”

Father and son both turned their heads in unison to look at her.

Li Xuemei raised an eyebrow in confusion. What? Did she not act naturally enough?

Wasn’t the first instinct when encountering a wildcat in the wilderness to drive it away?

The little cat twitched its ears and struggled to stand up.

It picked up the meat slice and actually left.

The family of three: …

What kind of plot was this?

Wasn’t it supposed to be a heartwarming story about rescuing an injured animal?

At noon, the Yan family had scrambled eggs with wild garlic sprouts, accompanied by large steamed buns made from a mix of white and coarse flour.

The meal was fragrant and delicious.

And then, the cat returned for business.

This time, it seemed much braver, coming closer and meowing more persistently.

Its broken paw remained stubbornly curled.

Yan Lao’er sighed and cut another strip of meat, waving his hand to shoo it away.

He thought: This is wild boar meat, fed to a mechanical cat—it’s a one-way deal!

The little cat left, satisfied.

After lunch, Li Xuemei took Da Ya and Er Ya into the ‘bathroom.’

Taking advantage of Da Ya’s distraction, she rubbed a big chunk of shampoo onto her head and then sneakily added a piece of scented soap.

Da Ya thought the soap smelled amazing! She tried to look up, but Li Xuemei mercilessly pushed her head down.

She lathered up her hair, rinsed it, and repeated the process three times.

Da Ya, watching the dirty water flow down, was too embarrassed to lift her head.

Yan Yu remained expressionless—until her mother dragged her over for another wash.

Don’t ask why. The answer: the soapberry they used before smelled awful.

When the three of them returned, they were all fresh and fragrant.

This immediately attracted the women of the village.

They surrounded them, bombarding them with questions.

Li Xuemei said, “Her father bought it ages ago. We never had the heart to use it. No idea what’s in it, but it smells amazing.”

“Yan Lao’er’s wife, this must’ve cost a good amount of silver, right?”

“I asked him, but he wouldn’t say. Probably quite expensive. I’ve been trying to make scented soap myself, but it never smells like this.”

“What?!” Sister-in-law Cui let out a loud shriek. “My second brother can make scented soap?”

“Huh?” Li Xuemei looked surprised. “Didn’t you see this morning? Those over there.” She pointed at the neatly arranged rows of drying soap balls.

“Oh my! They’re round! They don’t look like the ones I used before—I didn’t even recognize them!” Sister-in-law Cui leaned in, too hesitant to touch them, but took a deep breath instead. Her eyes lit up. Yes! This was the scent!

The soap looked smooth and glossy, even better than the ones sold in town.

“My elder brother said they turned out decent. If we can add some fragrance, they might even be like the expensive ones her father bought before.”

Sister-in-law Cui squeezed closer to Li Xuemei, took another deep breath, and savored the scent. “The premium stuff my second brother bought has a truly unique fragrance! I’ve only ever heard of osmanthus, chrysanthemum, and jasmine scents. Those alone are three qian more expensive than regular soap!”

“Elder Brother said we should add dried flower powder and sandalwood powder,” little Yan Yu piped up loudly. Seeing everyone turn to her, she beamed even brighter. “I heard it all!”

Everyone was stunned.

This kid—why was she blurting out the family’s secret formula so casually?

Li Xuemei didn’t mind. She smiled and said, “That’s just what Elder Brother suggested. Once we get some, we’ll add it in and compare it to the store-bought ones. If the difference isn’t too big, maybe we can even sell some to make up for the money her father spent.”

“Why wait? Let’s try it now! I have dried wild chrysanthemums. Should we grind them into powder? Wait here!” Sister-in-law Cui dashed off.

The other women didn’t leave either—some went to help Sister-in-law Cui, while others stayed to chat with Li Xuemei.

With such a fragrant person around, who wouldn’t want to get closer?

Sister-in-law Cui soon returned, holding a mortar and pestle.

Wild chrysanthemums are slightly cooling and help with liver function, swelling, and detoxification.

They were a perfect addition to scented soap.

Li Xuemei took the last batch of soap balls and kneaded the chrysanthemum powder into them.

She brought one close to her nose—there was indeed a faint floral scent.

“It’s really that simple!” she said, delighted.

The women passed the soap around, smelling and inspecting it, full of amazement.

Sister-in-law Cui was the most excited. “Er Ya’s mother, ask Yan Lao’er—how does he plan to sell this scented soap?”

“Sell? This soap is just made from the three wild boars’ pancreases. We’re all neighbors—just take some and use it,” Yan Lao’er said, pretending to be generous.

But really, he was just talking.

In small villages like theirs, people were extremely careful about money matters. Especially in a mixed-surname village like theirs, a single misstep could lead to gossip from one end of the village to the other.

Take the original Yan Lao’er, for example—just walking by would make the whole village roll their eyes at him.

“That won’t do! If we had the pig pancreas, could we make it ourselves? No! Skills are worth something! You have the ability to make it, so you deserve to earn from it!” Sister-in-law Cui said sternly.

Her own husband made a living with his skills. If they always gave things away for free just because they were neighbors, their family would starve!

Yan Lao’er looked troubled. “Given our situation right now, even if I take money, it’s not much use…”

Sister-in-law Cui’s eyes flickered. She glanced at the mortar and then said, “How about this, Second Brother? My family’s wild chrysanthemums are still medicinal herbs. I’ll trade some with you for two pieces of scented soap. How about that?”

“Just take them,” Yan Lao’er said generously. “In the future, if anyone wants some, just come by. If you feel bad about it, bring some fragrant wildflowers, mugwort, medicinal herbs—or even soapberries to trade.”

“Really? We can trade?”

“Mugwort too?”

“I have a lot of soapberries! I’ll go get them!”

…

When Sister-in-law Cui returned with half a bag of wild chrysanthemums, Yan Lao’er ground them into powder and kneaded them into the soap, piece by piece.

Some villagers brought handfuls of mugwort, others brought soapberries, and some who had neither but still really wanted some even brought cuts of meat.

Yan Lao’er accepted everything.

Then someone noticed that even meat could be traded, so they went home and scooped up a net full of small fish.

That’s when Yan Lao’er realized—some families actually owned fishing nets!

Perfect timing.

As they say, even a broken home still has hidden treasures. Nothing should be thrown away, because you never know when it’ll come in handy.

A scented soap trade frenzy began among the women.

Meanwhile, the men still couldn’t stop thinking about seasonings.

Gradually, some of them came to ask if they could trade for spices.

Yan Lao’er nodded, and the entire village erupted in excitement.

They had been craving good flavors for so long!

Now that every household had meat, they were willing to trade some for seasonings.

Yan Lao’er had them bring two bags—one for salt, Sichuan pepper, and chicken bouillon, and the other for chili powder and cumin.

The first bag was for everyday cooking, while the second was for grilled meat.

He had mixed everything beforehand, so it didn’t need to be precise. Whoever brought something to trade got a fair share. No one would be shortchanged.