Chapter 312
Chapter 312
The next morning, tiny Jiang Yunsui got up and immediately began bustling around.
Her first task was to find everything she needed.
She did not even have to send anyone from the mansion. She merely announced that she would buy the items, and the next day, people carried what she needed over to sell.
She had Dawa handle the purchases.
The medicinal ingredients needed to be dried and ground into powder.
She left that work to the servants.
Jiang Yunsui took her plans to find craftsmen.
This time, she sought carpenters specifically.
The carpenters under Ji Yan’an were skilled. Although there were things on Jiang Yunsui’s plans they did not understand, they asked questions and drew on their past experience, soon working out how to build it.
The loom was rather large. Even with three carpenters, it would take at least five days to finish.
Jiang Yunsui said, “Five days. That’s about right.”
After handing off the loom’s construction, Jiang Yunsui went back to fussing with the wool.
But halfway there, a maid from Old Madam Ji’s side caught her and hauled her back to her lessons.
Ji Yang was delighted to see her.
“Little Aunt, what have you been doing these past few days? I couldn’t find you anywhere.”
She had missed lessons for several days. Old Madam Ji had finally lost patience and sent someone to catch her and bring her back.
Jiang Yunsui said, “Important work.”
“I’ll take you to see it later.”
Ji Yang nodded repeatedly. “All right!”
“Ahem…”
Old Madam Ji, drinking tea at the front, coughed twice. Only then did the two girls, who had been whispering and neglecting their lesson, sit up straight and pay attention.
The moment class ended, Jiang Yunsui and Ji Yang properly said goodbye to Old Madam Ji and their female teacher before leaving.
“Come on, come on. Let’s go to my place.”
Ji Yang said, “I miss Little Snow and the others too.”
As soon as they reached the residence next door, they went around petting every animal in turn.
Especially the young ones. The snow leopard had the softest fur and body and was the most satisfying to cuddle.
The little wolfdogs had grown, and their coats now felt slightly prickly.
“Little Snow really is the softest.”
Like a pair of little fiends, they held the snow leopard cub and buried their faces in its belly, breathing in its scent again and again.
The little snow leopard looked utterly resigned to its fate.
“All right. Let’s get to work.”
Ji Yang was curious too.
She trotted behind Jiang Yunsui. When she saw the wool soaking in water and giving off a strong sheep smell, she froze.
Then the odor made her gag for quite a while.
“It stinks!”
Jiang Yunsui burst out laughing.
She herself was holding a handkerchief scented with peach blossoms over her nose.
The wool had soaked in water for some time, turning the water pitch-black.
It needed to be taken out and washed again.
But Jiang Yunsui’s ancient version of laundry powder was not ready yet.
She had chosen common, inexpensive materials: medicinal herbs that removed odors, plus soapberries and honey locust pods with strong cleansing properties. All had to be dried and ground into powder.
She also added some carbon powder.
She gathered everything she could think of that might remove dirt, odor, or grease, then consulted Shen Qingzhu about the formula.
In the end, they created several types of “laundry powder,” tested each on different batches of wool, and selected the best formula.
Several days later, everything was ready.
They poured the cleaning powder into water and stirred until it was evenly mixed, then threw in the wool, which had already been washed twice to remove coarse debris, and continuously stirred and pounded it with a wooden pole.
It was just like washing clothes.
But this work required someone strong.
Before long, the clean water visibly turned cloudy.
The dirty, greasy wool looked much cleaner and whiter.
But that was not enough. The wool was still yellowed.
For the cloth and yarn to look good, the wool had to be whitened.
All the bleaching agents Jiang Yunsui remembered were modern technological products. She could not find an ancient method for bleaching wool.
In the end, she could only seek out Shen Qingzhu.
Shen Qingzhu: …
“I’m only a physician.”
Jiang Yunsui looked at him pleadingly. “But you know so much. Maybe there’s a plant that can whiten things?”
Shen Qingzhu sighed. “I’ll help you look.”
This world did contain some unusual medicinal plants.
In truth, Jiang Yunsui only needed to divide the wool into several grades.
The finest, softest, whitest wool could be top grade; soft but slightly yellowed wool could be middle grade; and the coarsest, yellowest wool could be lower grade.
Even if the lower-grade wool was unattractive, common people would still buy it.
After all, it was warm and cheaper than cotton.
But Jiang Yunsui wanted the best possible result.
Of course, if she truly could not find a way to bleach the wool, she would have to settle for grading it.
Fortunately, Shen Qingzhu actually found a peculiar plant for her.
“I read in a book about plants that Rong City has abundant forests. The people there make their living by burning charcoal, so their clothes often become filthy.
“But they discovered a white plant called Snow Grass. They crush the grass, collect its juice, and mix the juice with a small local fruit. The mixture can wash clothes very clean and white.”
“Its only drawback is that it easily makes brightly colored clothes fade, so it isn’t widely used.”
That was especially true for nobles. Most of their clothes were ornate and brightly colored. The mixture might wash the fabric clean, but it also stripped out those vivid colors!
But that was exactly what Jiang Yunsui needed.
Rong City, however, was far from them and close to the south.
Jiang Yunsui did not want to trouble Ji Yan’an over such a small matter.
Shen Qingzhu offered her an idea.
“You can cooperate with merchants. Ask them to bring Snow Grass and the fruit the next time they come to Mobei, then buy it from them.”
Jiang Yunsui said, “Oh, right! I’ll go now.”
“Thank you, Shen Qingzhu!”
Delighted to have learned where to find what she needed, Jiang Yunsui skipped home.
But the round trip would take considerable time.
Her wool venture therefore paused in the meantime.
During that interval, the potatoes at the estate ripened.
Potatoes had been planted earlier than the other crops and matured sooner too.
Jiang Yunsui could hardly wait to dig them up.
Ji Yan’an heard the news as well.
He knew how precious those potatoes were to Jiang Yunsui, so his interest was piqued and he decided to go see them.
The Ji women happened to be bored and clamored to come along.
Once again, a large group set off grandly for the estate.
The sight of Little White and Snow-Treader once more drew the attention of many people in Mobei City.
“Whose horse is that? Find a way to buy it for me.”
In a restaurant, a richly dressed man leaned beside a window. One arm encircled a beautiful woman of foreign appearance while his hands roamed restlessly, but his eyes remained fixed on Jiang Yunsui’s Little White.
“Young Master Liu, you mustn’t! That horse belongs to Young Master Ji of the Ji Family. You can’t take it!”