Chapter 71: Their Daughter Definitely Has an Immortal Affinity

Chapter 71: Chapter 71: Their Daughter Definitely Has an Immortal Affinity

Everyone had just received their share of the scented soap. They were beaming so hard their faces nearly cramped from smiling. The palm-sized bars were crystal clear with a rosy, hydrated sheen, emitting a rich fragrance that smelled like a blend of flowers and fruit.

Tian Ergou, who used to visit the city frequently, pointed at the soap and said, "It looks like osmanthus cake to me, but osmanthus cake isn’t this color, and the fragrance is much stronger."

Yun Xiu agreed. "I’ve seen traveling merchants selling soap in the county town. A single bar sells for at least half a tael of silver. It’s made from animal fat mixed with a few other ingredients, and even the wealthy families there can only bear to buy one piece at a time."

Yun Old Lady inhaled sharply, asking in astonishment, "Going by what you’re saying, doesn’t that mean the scented soap Zhen Niang brought back could also sell for half a tael of silver?"

Yun Xiu shook his head. "If the soap Zhen Niang brought were sold in the county town, it would easily fetch more than one tael of silver."

He knew a good product when he saw one, and the wealthy families in town would be even more discerning. Ordinary soap only came in yellow and white, and the scent was faint. How could it compare to what Zhen Niang had brought? If presented to the imperial family, it could probably serve as tribute.

Everyone was shocked to hear this. One tael of silver! Right now, they were living more luxuriously than the rich families in town. Every household had a bar of scented soap. And look—they were about to distribute candles, too!

Grandpa Zhang said excitedly, "Candles are a fine commodity! Farming families only bear to buy a few for ancestral worship during the holidays or for weddings and funerals. The Goddess has gifted every one of our families three candles all at once."

Granny Wu nodded. "The candles made in the Immortal Realm are excellent, too. They’re perfectly smooth with no lumps, and there’s no foul odor."

"These candles look so precious, they’re practically fit to be kept as family heirlooms," another elderly woman remarked, cupping her candles in both hands as if holding a treasure.

Yun Zhen completely understood their mindset. Farming families rarely used candles. They went to bed early every day; even if they had to stay up late, their only source of light was the fire pit.

Yun Zhen addressed them, "Everyone, don’t be reluctant to use them. Neither the scented soap nor the candles from the Immortal Realm are expensive. This time, I was lucky enough to stumble upon a shop clearing out its inventory. I got fifty bars of soap and a hundred candles for just one hundred and fifty cents."

One hundred and fifty cents?

Zhou Dashan was thrilled. "So scented soap and candles are cheaper in the Immortal Realm than they are here!"

Yun Zhen raised her right hand, demonstrating the benefits of the scented soap to the crowd. "Washing your hands frequently with this soap doesn’t just clean off the dirt; it also makes your skin softer and smoother, and it can even fade the scars left by frostbite."

A seven or eight-year-old girl looked enviously at the smooth back of Yun Zhen’s hand. "I want to wash my hands with the scented soap every day."

Yun Zhen gave her an approving look. "That’s right! You have to wash your hands with the scented soap every day and apply the frostbite ointment. Only then will the frostbite on your hands completely disappear. Once it’s gone, your hands will be more nimble, and it’ll be much easier to do chores."

The crowd was persuaded by her words. "We’ll definitely make a lot more crochet dolls for the Goddess to take to the Immortal Realm to sell. Once we have money, we can buy scented soap to wash our hands all the time!"

At the mention of crochet dolls, Yun Zhen suddenly remembered something. She hadn’t bought the crochet material kits!

Too much had happened today—all good things, of course. First, she had caught someone moving out and scavenged a bunch of great stuff. Then, right when she was stressing over how to bring it all back, the bracelet Divine Artifact granted her a pocket dimension in her mind. She had made a close friend. She had earned the largest sum of money she had ever seen in her life. Yun Zhen’s brain had been so bombarded by one happy event after another that she had forgotten something important: she had forgotten to buy the crochet material kits.

Taking a deep breath, she consoled herself that it was fine, then told the others, "I forgot to buy the crochet material kits today, so you don’t need to make any dolls tonight. Just take the evening off to rest."

No one minded in the slightest. Whatever the Goddess said was law. They simply replied, "Understood, Goddess."

Yun Zhen wiped the sweat from her forehead. "Do you guys feel like it’s a bit hot in here?"

The people standing closer to the stove nodded in unison. They had noticed it ages ago. It was the heat radiating from the stove. The flames crackled loudly inside—CRACKLE CRACKLE—baking the entire room until it was toasty warm, leaving their faces flushed red from the heat. They just hadn’t said anything so as not to interrupt the Goddess while she was speaking.

Zhou Dashan pointed ahead. "It’s because of the stove. The fire inside is burning intensely, going WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH non-stop. The iron has heated up, warming the whole room."

"It feels like summer."

"I’m sweating."

Earlier, everyone’s attention had been focused on the scented soap and candles. They were sweating from the heat but thought they were just flush with excitement over their new treasures. As it turned out, it was because the fire inside the stove the Goddess brought was blazing, thoroughly heating the house.

Someone exclaimed in awe, "Heavens! Are the stoves the immortals use to keep warm in the Immortal Realm really this incredible? It baked the whole room warm!"

"I thought it was just my imagination. I was wondering why it felt so stiflingly hot, but to think it was all because of the stove."

"In the dead of winter, it actually heated a freezing thatched cottage enough to make us sweat!"

The crowd’s gazes burned even hotter than the stove. The Goddess had told the truth! The stove really could bring them warmth! If every single one of their households had this stove, they wouldn’t have to shiver through the freezing nights anymore.

No one was happier than Yun Zhen. "With this stove, we won’t freeze! This icy winter will become a warm spring!"

"WOOHOO!" the crowd cheered excitedly.

Someone cheered, "The stove is fantastic! There’s no smoke to choke us!"

Yun Zhen traced the stove to the chimney pipe. "The smoke from the stove must be venting outside through the pipe."

The village chief also realized the truth. "No wonder you had to knock a hole in the wall and stick the pipe outside. I was confused, thinking the wind would blow in through the pipe and put out the fire. It seems I was overthinking it."

"Winters won’t be so hard to endure anymore!"

"The Goddess has brought us warmth and full bellies!"

Everyone danced with joy.

Yun Zhen was equally delighted. The heating effects of the stove were plain to see, and everyone was looking forward to having one in their own homes.

"It’s getting late, so you should all head home," she said. "Since we don’t have the crochet material kits today, we won’t be making any dolls. We’ll pick it up again once I buy the kits."

She then took out the White Rabbit creamy candies. "These are candies gifted to me by a friend I made in the Immortal Realm. Everyone, take one for a sweet treat."

Receiving the candies made everyone even happier. Eating the rich, creamy, and wonderfully sweet treats, it was a delicacy they had never tasted before. Combined with the power of the stove, it filled the crowd with hope for the future.

"Goddess, we won’t disturb your rest any longer." The villagers left, their hearts brimming with excitement.

Once everyone was gone, Yun Zhen let out a heavy sigh of relief. "Dad, you and Mom put all the rice and flour in the corner."

The couple nodded and did as she asked.

SWISH!

Yun Zhen dumped out all the items from the pocket dimension in her mind.

"Mommy! There are two Xiaobaos."

Xiaobao had been standing perfectly still when a tall cabinet suddenly appeared next to her mother. To her shock, another Xiaobao appeared right in the middle of the cabinet! Terrified, she dove into Yun Zhen’s arms.

Yun Zhen hugged her. "Don’t be scared, Xiaobao. This is a mirror, and that’s just Xiaobao’s shadow inside."

Xiaobao blinked her large eyes. "Aren’t shadows black? What’s a mirror?"

Yun Zhen explained, "A mirror is something that makes a person’s shadow become much clearer."

Xiaobao nodded, half-understanding. So there weren’t two Xiaobaos. The one inside was just her shadow.

The elderly Yun couple was dumbfounded by Yun Zhen’s actions.

Yun Xiu pointed at the cabinet and the other items. "Where did these come from?"

"Dad, Mom, this is my new ability," Yun Zhen said. "I scavenged these things from the Immortal Realm and brought them back."

She told her parents about the pocket dimension in her mind and explained the origin of the cabinet.

Yun Xiu and Yun Old Lady exchanged a glance.

An immortal destiny!

Their daughter definitely possessed an immortal destiny!