The smell grew stronger.
The more he looked, the more frustrated he became, not knowing what to do next.
The stench was truly unpleasant.
A woman passed by below, asking, "Ma Lin, are you cooking shit?"
Ma Lin replied, "No, I'm making soap."
The woman said, "A grown man like you, can't you do something proper?"
Ma Lin used to think these primitive women all looked like beasts, their faces indistinguishable between male and female. Now that they wore fur clothes, they finally had a hint of femininity.
Ma Lin looked at the lump in the pot, feeling extremely conflicted.
Anyway, cooking it further and stirring it wouldn't separate out the dirty stuff.
He extinguished the fire, moved the pot aside, the water stopped boiling, and the temperature slowly dropped.
He picked up a wooden spoon and stirred it again.
The oil and water separated into two layers.
He scooped out the top layer of oil into a small bowl with a wooden spoon.
