Chapter 52: The Butterfly Effect
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“Your Highness, is this soap?”
Wang Shijie’s eyes lit up as he reached out to take one of the soap bars. He had seen yi zi (traditional soap), but those were dark and dull, completely unlike this clean, beautiful, and aesthetically pleasing soap.
“Wait, don’t touch it yet,” Xiao Ming reminded him. “The soap hasn’t fully solidified; it still needs a day or two.”
This time, Xiao Ming had used a soap-making method similar to traditional handmade soap rather than full-scale industrial production. Industrial soap-making required the use of salt precipitation to speed up the solidification process, but that method required precise control of salt content. Instead of dealing with that, it was simpler to let the soap cool naturally for two days. Besides, the Wang family still needed time to prepare their merchant caravans and ships, so the delay wouldn’t be an issue.
At that moment, Lu luo also had a fascinated expression, holding her hands over her heart, her eyes sparkling like stars.
After instructing Chen Longwen to watch over the soap, Xiao Ming returned two days later to retrieve a portion of it.
This batch was meant for Chang’an—since this was a brand-new product, he naturally had to send some to Consort Zhen. At the same time, the imperial concubines could help spread word of it.
He knew very well that in this era, fashion trends among the common people were often set by the imperial concubines.
“Your Highness, how much do you plan to sell this soap for?”
Two days later, Wang Shijie arrived at Prince Qi’s residence to discuss the pricing. Now that the soap was ready, it was time to set a price.
Traditional yi zi was so expensive that only the nobility and wealthy elites could afford it, and this soap was naturally targeted at the same clientele.