bookrandom Chapter 40 Refining Salt
Chapter 40 Refining Salt
Half an hour later, Qin Xuan arrived at the training ground in the west of the city.
This place covers a vast area and includes not only a training ground but also a horse training ground, where the Shence Army conducts riding training on a daily basis.
However, he was not there to inspect the area; instead, he had the iron pot delivered directly to a large, temporary workshop set up behind the horse training ground.
There was a huge, newly built stove, and some strange-looking things in Zhao Luoying's eyes.
"Your Highness, you didn't commission such a large iron pot to cook rice, did you?"
Zhao Luoying couldn't understand Qin Xuan's behavior at all, and could only make wild guesses.
Qin Xuan secretly flicked her little nose and chuckled, "This is for refining salt!"
"Refined salt?"
Zhao Luoying was stunned for a moment, then her beautiful eyes widened.
She stared at Qin Xuan in disbelief and exclaimed excitedly, "Your Highness, can you really refine refined salt?"
Two years ago, when Qin Xuan and Zhao Luoying were still fighting on the border, Qin Xuan had mentioned some strange ideas to Zhao Luoying.
At the time, Zhao Luoying thought Qin Xuan was just daydreaming and naturally didn't believe it.
Qin Xuan didn't offer much explanation, since he had only said it as a joke or to amuse himself, and hadn't had time to put it into practice.
But now Beining City is suffering from hunger and cold. If he doesn't show some real skills, how can he save these millions of people from their suffering?
“The Jurchen, Khan, Khitan and other foreign countries are not lacking in food, but in salt and iron.”
“Our Beining City is currently under blockade by the Jurchens and the Great Qi, which has blocked trade. But if we can provide refined salt and iron, do you think people from other countries will still listen to the opinions of the Great Qi or the Jurchens and refuse to have dealings with us?”
Qin Xuan looked at Zhao Luoying with a smile and said.
Zhao Luoying was stunned for a long time before she calmed down. Ignoring the subordinates around her, she grabbed Qin Xuan's hand and said softly, "Your Highness, are all those firearms that can hit a target from a hundred paces away, explosives that can split mountains and rocks, and fireworks that can fly into the sky and emit starlight true?"
"Of course, and I'll have it made very soon."
Qin Xuan nodded with a smile.
With refined salt and refined iron as trade commodities, it is natural to further enhance the military strength of Beining City.
Otherwise, disaster would have struck Beining.
While the two were talking, their soldiers and craftsmen had already placed the iron pot on the earthen stove and lit the firewood.
"Your Highness, may we pour in the brine now?"
A man in his forties respectfully stepped forward and asked.
He was originally an infantryman in the Shence Army, but he lost a leg while defending the city, so Ning Yuanfeng arranged for him to stay here and temporarily manage the salt refining.
Qin Xuan nodded, and then five or six craftsmen carried large wooden buckets and poured the brine into the pot one bucket at a time.
Zhao Luoying, unaware of the reason, asked curiously, "Your Highness, why does this brine look so dark?"
"This is the color of the coarse mineral salt after it has been crushed, ground into fine particles, dissolved in water, and left to stand naturally." Qin Xuan looked around the iron pot and nodded slightly without realizing it.
Zhao Luoying naturally knew what mineral salt was; nowadays, both the Great Qi and the Jurchen Kingdom used mineral salt.
However, this type of mineral salt contains a lot of impurities, so it tastes bitter and astringent, and may even contain some toxins.
Even so, salt was something that only high-ranking officials and nobles could enjoy on a daily basis. Ordinary people might not even be able to eat it once a month.
"Your Highness, the brine is almost boiling," the lame old soldier reminded him.
"No rush. Control the heat carefully. It's not too late to add the soy milk after you see the crystals."
Qin Xuan gave a brief instruction, and then began a long wait.
Although Zhao Luoying was curious, she was also afraid that asking too many questions would ruin Qin Xuan's important plans, so she waited anxiously and quietly.
Only when white crystals began to appear around the iron pot did she excitedly exclaim, "Your Highness, Your Highness, crystals have really appeared!"
Qin Xuan smiled slightly. Actually, this method of refining salt is called brine boiling, which is not a secret in later generations.
The reason for adding soy milk is to help absorb impurities more effectively and speed up the refining process when forming tofu, a type of protein.
However, in this era, limited by productivity and various conditions, people are still unable to understand and discover it.
"Okay, it's time to pour in the soy milk, and then remember to use a bamboo spoon to scoop out the resulting tofu curds."
Qin Xuan felt a little expectant at this moment. After all, although he knew about the braising method, this was the first time he had conducted such a large-scale experiment.
The lame old soldier immediately nodded, then called over three craftsmen to stand at three different points on the iron pot, each holding a bamboo ladle that had been prepared beforehand.
The reason for using a bamboo spoon is that bamboo spoons have gaps, which can play a certain filtering role.
After a flurry of activity, Zhao Luoying was pleasantly surprised to find that the brine, which had looked dark just moments before, had now become clear again.
"Your Highness, what's going on?"
Zhao Luoying asked.
Qin Xuan was taken aback. He understood the principle, but he had to explain it using chemistry. If he did, Zhao Luoying would probably be even more confused.
So he simply lied and said, "The tofu will absorb the pigment in the brine, and the water will naturally become clear."
"Oh, so what's next?" Zhao Luoying asked.
"Next, continue simmering until the remaining brine has completely evaporated, and you will get the salt crystals."
As Qin Xuan spoke, he silently recorded all the time.
The most crucial aspects of this braising method for refining salt are actually the heat and timing. If the heat is too high, the refined salt will turn yellow.
As time passed, and more and more snow-white salt frost appeared, not only Zhao Luoying became excited, but Qin Xuan himself also breathed a sigh of relief.
"My God! This method can actually produce such snow-white salt?"
"This is simply the work of an immortal! Our Prince Chu must be an immortal reincarnated."
"I've never seen such a large pot of refined salt in my entire life."
"..."
At this moment, whether they were soldiers guarding the area or craftsmen working on the job, everyone was moved to tears, their eyes filled with disbelief.
The salt frost before their eyes was nothing short of a miracle to them!
"Long live the prince!"
"Long live the prince!"
"..."
The craftsmen knelt down one by one, kowtowing and shouting.
At this moment, Qin Xuan was like a celestial being in their eyes!
"Everyone, get up and quickly scrape off the salt frost with bamboo spoons, then let it dry in the sun, and you'll get real refined salt."
Freshly extracted salt crystals still contain some moisture, so they must be dried in the sun.
The craftsmen quickly got up one by one and then carefully scraped off the salt frost.
The movement was as cautious as if one were holding a baby in their arms, afraid of accidentally making the baby cry.
"Luo Ying, pass down the order that this place must be heavily guarded from now on. In addition, those responsible for producing refined salt must be provided with separate accommodations and managed independently. The braising method must not be spread outside."
With the experiment a success, Qin Xuan naturally couldn't leave it unresolved.
Knowing the matter was of great importance, Zhao Luoying immediately ordered people to guard the entire refining workshop.