Chapter 180 Hygiene
AI Model: gemini-2.5-flash
Unexpectedly, the number of people increased rapidly.
In just three days, six Mercenaries groups had brought in refugees. The smallest group had fifty to sixty people, while the largest brought over four hundred.
One Mercenaries group tried to be sly and use a bunch of old, weak, sick, and disabled people to make up the numbers, but they were seen through immediately.
Roger didn't stand on ceremony. With a look, Xiong Da had the Magic Pig knock all these Mercenaries to the ground, even trampling some into a bloody pulp.
Afterward, he had people pile the bodies of these Mercenaries near the entrance of the territory, putting up a sign to warn of the consequences of not following the rules.
Anyway, the bounty clearly stated that inferior goods could not be passed off as quality. These Mercenaries breached the contract first, so killing them was fine and served to establish his authority.
Two days later, the 5,000 catties of wine and 300 female refugees arranged by Old Mo Wen from the Black Market in Trador Royal Capital also arrived at the territory.
Although the population suddenly increased, fortunately, the territory's cassava reserves were sufficient, so there would be no famine in the short term.
Moreover, relying on the forest to the east, there was an inexhaustible supply of wood for building temporary shelters, ensuring the refugees had a place to live, protected from wind and rain.
Among the newly arrived refugees, those without special skills—a small portion—were selected by Raymond for training, while the majority were put into city wall construction and housing erection.
Those with special skills were assigned to various workshops.
The entire territory was like a machine that had suddenly received ample fuel, with all its parts accelerating their operation.
However, the rapid increase in population also brought new challenges, such as sanitation issues.
It was then that Roger noticed there were no public toilets here, and public urination and defecation were rampant.
This was practically testing the limits of a plague outbreak!
He immediately ordered the construction of public toilets throughout the territory and issued strict sanitation regulations, strictly prohibiting public urination and defecation. Violators would face severe punishment, possibly even expulsion.
Harris asked, somewhat puzzled, "Aren't you exaggerating a bit? This situation is commonplace everywhere. Even in the imperial capital, the alley corners are inevitably filthy."
Roger retorted, annoyed, "It's precisely because everyone considers it commonplace that so many die inexplicably when a plague breaks out! If people paid even a little attention to hygiene, many diseases simply wouldn't occur!"
This matter was non-negotiable and had to be strictly enforced.
What he wanted was not "a little better than elsewhere," but to completely eradicate this dirty and chaotic phenomenon.
If anyone couldn't control themselves, he wouldn't mind using whips or expulsion to help them remember.
The construction of public toilets was fully launched within the territory.
Initially, some lazy refugees were dismissive and continued to relieve themselves in hidden spots.
Roger acted decisively, caught a few typical offenders, and simply expelled them from the territory. Everyone was intimidated and began to dutifully seek out public toilets.
At the same time, he also paid attention to personal hygiene, ordering the construction of public bathhouses, intending to thoroughly improve the territory's hygiene standards from the inside out.
However, when the bathhouses were almost complete, he realized there was no soap here at all.
What he had used before were the scarce cleaning blocks from the castle, made of some unknown material.
Upon asking Harris, he learned that most commoners in various countries only rinsed with water to clean themselves.
Those with a bit of spare money would use a certain magical fruit with a slight cleaning effect.
As for wealthy families and nobles, they generally used a kind of "skin cleansing paste," which was quite expensive and something commoners could not hope for.
The cleaning blocks used in the castle were of lower quality than the "skin cleansing paste."
No wonder he always felt his skin dry and tight after bathing, not as refreshed as with soap back home. He had always thought it was due to not being accustomed to the local environment.
Harris looked at Roger with some disbelief. "You wouldn't happen to know how to make this 'skin cleansing paste,' would you?"
"I know a little."
Harris flapped his wings in surprise.
"You, you really know?! Goddess above! Is there anything you don't know?!"
Roger was amused by Harris's exaggerated reaction. "I told you, these are common knowledge in my hometown."
Harris still couldn't quite believe it, even suspecting if Roger's hometown was the legendary Land of the Gods.
Otherwise, how could even a secret recipe like "skin cleansing paste," mastered by only a few workshops, be "common knowledge"?
Every piece of common knowledge there turned into a secret art of turning stone into silver here?
Ignoring Harris's exclamations, Roger had the servants prepare some animal fat, plant ash, and lime.
After a busy session, looking at the gradually solidifying paste in the pot, Harris curiously pointed with the tip of his wing. "Is that it?"
"That's just the first step. It needs to naturally saponify for a few weeks before it can be used."
"Why wait a few weeks? What is 'saponification'?"
"Simply put," Roger explained in the most accessible language possible, "it's that this thing would burn your skin if used now. It needs to be left for a period to become mild before it can be used."
Harris nodded, half-understanding. Although he didn't grasp the deep principles, he understood the consequence of "burning skin."
He looked at the unremarkable paste in the pot, finding it hard to imagine that this thing would turn into a treasure comparable to "skin cleansing paste" in a few weeks.
"Tsk tsk, truly miraculous... And this thing, it should sell for a lot of money, right?"
After all, if the effect was similar to 'skin cleansing paste' but the cost was much lower, it would be another highly profitable product.
Roger hadn't originally planned to make money from it, as it was primarily for improving the hygiene of his people and preventing diseases.
Selling it at a high price would go against his original intention.
However, on second thought, it could be graded like paper.
A basic version could be supplied cheaply to the people; another, more refined version, with added fragrances or herbs and more exquisite packaging, could be sold as 'premium soap' to the rich and nobles.
This way, he could both ensure the basic hygiene needs of his people and open up a new source of income.
The corners of his mouth involuntarily curled upwards.
Paper, strong liquor, glass, soap... These everyday items, ordinary on Earth, had all become "black technology" products capable of generating enormous profits in this world.
While he was feeling smug, Physician Elton rushed to find him. "Lord, that Ryan is dying!"
Roger's heart tightened, and he immediately followed Elton to the temporary isolation clinic.
Ryan was tightly bound to the bed, his skin ashen, eyes sunken, his whole body emaciated and barely clinging to life.
In just a few days, he seemed to have been drained of his life force, a completely different person from his previous "normal" self.
"Lord, as you can see, he has severe symptoms of exhaustion. This is probably the consequence of stopping the black pills. I've tried everything and could only barely delay it, but now I'm out of options."