The System Wanted Me to Be a Landlady (GL) - Chapter 36: Making Candles

Chapter 36: Making Candles

August was a festive season for farmers because the August autumnal sacrifice celebrated the autumn harvest.

And for Song Yuyan, August was also a busy month. First, Bai Can had already peeled off the raw materials secreted by those white wax insects from the tree branches according to her instructions. She needed to make time to produce the candles and also prepare some tools for making candles.

Actually, the process for making white wax was not very troublesome and did not require any special tools, but it needed manpower with considerable strength to help. Fortunately, Bai Can’s muscled build was sufficient to handle this step.

The candles were made at the Song house. Bai Can did not want to do it at his own home, not because he did not want to trouble his family, but because there were too many people in his family.

He ranked fifth in the family, with four older brothers ahead of him. Three of them had already married and had a bunch of children. Only because his parents were still alive did the Bai family not divide the household, so the whole family lived together.

Although there were many people in the family, which made managing the farmland easier, there were still too many eyes and ears. Moreover, his brothers and sisters-in-law each had their own little thoughts. Making candles was something Song Yuyan had proposed. He, Bai Can, was not the type to covet credit, so he could not let his family know about this matter. Otherwise, they would definitely make him pass the candle-making recipe back home.

Furthermore, the money he earned from going out to chop trees was basically all handed over to the family. But the matter of his marriage was not even off the ground yet. At his age, he was also somewhat anxious, so he naturally had to start planning for himself.

If he could successfully make candles with Song Yuyan, and the two of them split the accounts evenly, he could still hide some pocket money!

Song Yuyan originally did not know his thoughts. But after she generously taught him how to make candles, her trust moved him deeply. At this moment, he decided to regard Song Yuyan as a good brother for whom he would go through fire and water. So he poured out the long and short of his family matters while working on the side.

When the two stopped to rest, Bai Can asked Song Yuyan, “You just let me into the kitchen like this and let me know how to make candles. How can your heart be so big?”

Song Yuyan said, “What does it matter? The more people who know how to make candles, the more people can rely on this craft to produce more candles. The demand for the required raw material—white wax—will increase, more people will raise white wax insects, and once the raw materials increase, the world will not lack skilled people to make candles. The produced candles will become more and more numerous, the prices will tend toward low, and ordinary commoners and scholars will be able to afford candles.”

Bai Can stared in stunned silence. Suddenly, he felt Song Yuyan’s figure had grown much taller, and then he felt ashamed of his inferiority. “I never thought Song Dalang would have such a broad mind and lofty aspirations. It is I who had a short-sighted view!”

The system, which had not appeared for a long time, also popped out. “I told you that you are walking the route of that kind of female supporting character who disdains competing for fame and profit and only warms others, a white lotus flower type!”

Song Yuyan: “Why do I feel like you are mocking me?”

“White lotus flowers are pure white and flawless, emerging from the mud unstained. Is that not a compliment?”

Song Yuyan: “Do not think of me as that great, thanks! I am just making an investment. Investments have risks, so one must prepare for investment failure. But I will not really be that selfless. Telling him this matter only benefits me without harm.”

She told Bai Can the method for making candles. Bai Can also could not monopolize this technique. Even if he had the intention to exclude Song Yuyan and make candles alone to earn money, he would still need to find the raw materials for making candles.

Although he had the intention to raise white wax insects, could he, who had not even understood white wax insects much before, really raise them? Moreover, he needed capital to invest. To raise white wax insects, he had to first find a patch of white wax trees or privet trees to start. And once there was any mistake, it would be a losing deal.

Even if he really managed to raise white wax insects, and he fell out with Song Yuyan, Song Yuyan would have no loss. She could recognize his character at the same time and no longer need to hold back against him.

If she really wanted to earn money with the candle-making craft, she could find someone with even more financial strength to cooperate. Unless Bai Can also had that kind of financial strength, he would sooner or later be excluded and lose the candle business in Mingzhou.

Of course, Song Yuyan never thought of people in a bad way first. What she first thought was that if she could gain preliminary trust with Bai Can, the two of them might have many more opportunities to cooperate.

Moreover—

“I remember the original host’s wish was ‘to live splendidly, to gain fame, profit, status, and happiness.’ And in this era, to gain fame and status, having money alone is not enough.” Song Yuyan said.

“For a simple example, when a scholar passes the imperial examinations and becomes an official, his family at most counts as a scholarly clan, and cannot become a prominent clan. To become a prominent clan, one must gain an extremely good reputation among the common people or scholars. As for how to gain reputation, one naturally has to invest heavily.”

Song Yuyan’s goal was very clear. What she had to do was not only change the original host’s fate of a miserable death, but also complete her mission through some minor details, so she could return to her original world sooner.

However, Song Yuyan did not think too much about these things. After all, she was not the type of person who “first thinks of what benefits she can gain when getting along with people.” Up to now, her interactions with Bai Can had not mixed in too many interests.

_____

Making candles was not something that could be completed in one or two days. First, the peeled raw materials had to be put into a pot, water added, and boiled over high heat. When a layer of white substance floated on the water surface, it could be skimmed off. This was the best white wax produced.

But the process did not end like this. Because when peeling the raw materials from the tree branches, there were white wax insect larvae inside. During boiling, they would sink down with another part of the substance. This part was not waste; it could still make candles of slightly lower quality. Only after thorough purification could it be poured into molds to form the candles.

And in the step of purifying the sediment substance, it needed to be soaked in water for several days before skimming it up to remove the white wax insect larvae inside, then squeezed and heated to process out the secondary wax.

This step could not be done without Bai Can, because… Song Yuyan actually felt somewhat disgusted by insects.

The original host was not afraid of insects, and when there were insects on the Tang family’s vegetable leaves in the past, she would still cook them and eat them.

But Song Yuyan could not. Although she would not scream upon seeing insects, she also did not want to touch them voluntarily. When seeing insects, as long as she did not look closely, she would not feel uncomfortable. But as soon as she saw the insects crawling or wriggling, her scalp would tingle.

This was also one of the reasons she did not mind letting Bai Can know the method for making candles. After all, she did not want to do it herself, so she could only let others do it.

Fortunately, the “tool person” Bai Can was immersed in the exhilarated mood of being trusted by her and did not feel there was anything wrong with her just directing from the side.

Just as Song Yuyan was processing the slightly lower quality secondary wax, Tang Zhi led Du Yan to the door.

Tang Zhi said, “I saw this uncle inquiring about the Song house’s location at the alley mouth, so I led him over. Do you know him?”

The twenty-nine-year-old who was called “uncle” Du Yan: “…”

Song Yuyan saw Du Yan’s hurt expression, her heart bursting with laughter, but she could not show it in front of him. She introduced, “This is the juren Du Juren who is traveling and passing through Mingzhou.”

Tang Zhi remembered Song Yuyan had mentioned this person several times. She originally thought the other party was a middle-aged man, but he turned out to be a bit younger than imagined. However, even if younger, he was still more than ten years older than her, so calling him “uncle” seemed to have no problem.

Fortunately, Du Yan did not quibble with her about these things. In terms of age and seniority, he was of the same generation as Song Zhu. But he regarded Song Yuyan as a friend, and since friendships did not distinguish age or seniority, they could count as friends across generations.

Song Yuyan invited him into the house to sit, and specially took out tea, letting Sun’er brew tea for him.

Brewing tea was still relatively rare in this era, because what was popular now was dividing tea, that is, grinding grouped tea leaves into powder, then rushing water to thoroughly fuse the water and tea into one, before drinking.

And the Song house conditions were simple, so naturally they would not use such a complicated method. They bought that kind of tea leaves that had gone through processes like stir-frying green, and this kind of tea leaves could be directly brewed to drink, with an even more concentrated aroma.

This kind of tea was common in the markets, and those who drank it were mostly ordinary commoners. Going to a tea house, basically one cash for two bowls. Du Yan was not from a high-door great household to begin with, so he did not mind what tea the Song house gave. Anyway, as long as she showed the proper hospitality, he was content.

He saw that when he arrived, Song Yuyan seemed to be busy with something. He also had no urgent matters, so he let Song Yuyan go busy first. Song Yuyan saw that there were only two little radish heads at home, and it would not be good to neglect Du Yan.干脆 she let Tang Zhi help entertain the guest first, and she went in to teach Bai Can how to pour the candles into the molds before coming out.

Tang Zhi thought, she was not a Song family member, who lets a neighbor help entertain their own guests?

But she also knew what Song Yuyan was busy with, so she agreed.

Du Yan was a scholar and quite attentive to the distinction between men and women. Knowing he could not stay in the same room with Tang Zhi, he干脆 went to the courtyard to walk around and appreciate Song Yuyan’s handmade works.

Song Yuban, the little radish head, also followed by his side, separating him from Tang Zhi. He saw this child was about the same age as his eldest son, so he could not help chatting with him a couple of sentences, like asking if he studied or not.

He knew the relationship between Song Yuyan and Song Yuban. And thinking of the difference between his two older brothers and Song Yuyan’s this “older brother,” he admired Song Yuyan’s character even more—her family property was seized by her uncle, yet in the end she was willing to let go of grudges and raise her uncle’s child, showing how magnanimous her heart was…

Song Yuban remembered Song Yuyan’s teachings and was afraid of saying the wrong thing, so in front of Du Yan he did not say much. Even when answering, he would first go over it several times in his mind, and only say it out if he felt there was no problem.

In Du Yan’s eyes, this became the child having a steady character and being mature beyond his years. He secretly praised Song Yuyan again for teaching the child very well.

Du Yan discovered a half-carved bamboo carving by Song Yuyan on a small low table in the corner. He casually mentioned bamboo carving matters. Who would have thought Tang Zhi picked up the conversation. Only then did he discover that this little girl also understood bamboo carving and leave-green carving.

____

The Song house courtyard was not big, so Song Yuyan could hear Tang Zhi chatting enthusiastically with Du Yan, who had originally been an “uncle” in her mouth, from the kitchen. She was slightly distracted and secretly scolded herself for being too careless. How could she leave a fourteen-year-old little girl and two little radish heads outside to handle guests?

Although she thought Du Yan was also an upright gentleman, this had nothing to do with Du Yan’s character, but rather she should maintain vigilance by nature. At that time, she only thought she could not let Tang Zhi and Bai Can, an unrelated man and woman, stay alone in the kitchen, so after thinking it over, what she came up with was still a suboptimal plan.

She glanced outside and felt fortunate that Du Yan and Tang Zhi were more thoughtful than she had imagined, while also secretly reflecting on herself.

She hurriedly finished the matters, handed the finishing work to Bai Can, and came out. Before and after, it was not even a quarter of an hour. Du Yan did not feel neglected, and Tang Zhi also let out a sigh of relief… If they chatted any longer, the little bit of ink in her belly about bamboo carving would probably be used up.

Song Yuyan took a small bamboo tube section to Tang Zhi. This small bamboo tube was about as thick as her wrist and only as long as a thumb. Tang Zhi still thought she had carved something on it again, but upon taking it in hand and looking, she saw it was filled with a kind of white wax inside, and in the middle a cotton wick stuck out with a pointed tip.

She whispered in Tang Zhi’s ear, “This is a thank-you gift and also an apology gift. It was inconsiderate of me to trouble you to help entertain the guest, so I specially apologize to you. I hope you are magnanimous and forgive me.”

Tang Zhi had not even thought of this, but since this person took the initiative to admit fault, she did not explain and instead asked, “Is this the white wax you made?”

The Tang family little girl actually recognized white wax, but she did not use it often and had never seen such a small and cute candle!

The candle was an already formed candle, but this was probably Song Yuyan’s quirk. When she engaged in handmade productions, she always made some extra delicate small objects. For example, in grass weaving she liked to extra weave some grasshoppers and such small items; in bamboo weaving she would also weave a few small baskets; in bamboo carving, she would take palm-sized bamboo pieces for openwork carving…

The girl full of girlish heart would not be stingy with these small objects, often giving them to the two little radish heads at home to play with, or casually giving them to Tang Zhi—ever since Tang Zhi expressed she liked that small basket for bayberries, she felt a girl Tang Zhi’s age should also like this kind of object.

“Yes! Miss Tang can take it back to try and help me see how the effect is.”

Tang Zhi felt some joy in her heart. Although Song Yuyan always gave her things under the pretext of thanks, which of her “thank-you gifts” was not from a new field she had just entered?

Song Yuyan always first gifted her the new objects she figured out, and even the hardest-hearted person would feel a part of their heart soften. Not to mention a girl like Miss Tang, who had a sharp tongue but a soft heart.