Tang Dynasty Mingyue Song Dynasty Pass

Chapter 168 The Way of Salt is Knowledgeable (Ask for a Monthly Ticket!)

When Bai Susu and Xiao Tong came to Su Chen's residence, the sun had just set and the sky was getting darker.

The Su residence hadn't lighted the lights yet, and Su Chen's voice sang a cappella from the courtyard: "The outline of the blue and white pen is thickened and lightened, and the peony depicted on the bottle is just like your first makeup. The sandalwood scented through the window makes me understand what's on my mind. Halfway through writing..."

Bai Susu paused, and stood at the entrance, with a faint smile on her lips. For some reason, every time Su Chen fired blue and white porcelain, he would sing this song.

In her opinion, the lyrics of this song are weird, and the tune is also different, and it's difficult to sing, as if she can't pronounce the words correctly. She doesn't know why Su Chen likes to sing this country folk song so much.

"The charm of the pictures of ladies rendered in glaze is hidden, and your sweet smile is like a bud, and your beauty is scattered, and you go to places I can't go..."

Su Chen was humming Lao Zhou's song in the yard, while sitting in front of the table, tinkering with his new set of equipment, a device that can dissolve and filter coarse salt, because these days people eat coarse salt cubes and coarse salt powder , It tastes bitter and astringent, which is caused by mineral salts containing too many impurities.

Since the salt-making technology of the ancients has not yet reached the level of purification, edible salt is still a mineral salt full of impurities.

He remembered reading a certain historical novel, in which there was a protagonist with the surname Yun, who went back to the ancient times to refine fine salt, and was appreciated by the general and the emperor, so he counterattacked in life and made great progress. He thought it was nonsense, but today Su Chen There is nothing to do at home. After having a material foundation, he is no longer limited to the state of eating and drinking and waiting to die. He also intends to improve the quality of life. Therefore, he also intends to study and try how to purify edible fine salt.

The sea salt production before the Song Dynasty was all based on the method of frying, that is, frying salt in a pan, first finding a relatively salty seawater area, extracting brine as raw material and putting it in an iron pot to cook, so that the salt crystals are precipitated, and the salt produced in this way contains More impurities are called coarse salt.

At present, the official salt supervision department will carry out secondary processing and simple filtration on these coarse salt, so that the quality of coarse salt is slightly better, and it is used as fine salt, which is specially used by the royal family and dignitaries. Ordinary people still use bitter ones. kosher salt.

Su Chen spent a lot of money to buy some fine salt and came back, and found that this "fine salt" was still much worse than the refined salt of his later generations. The degree of fineness, taste, mineral content, etc. were all incomparable.

So, Su Chen was tinkering in the yard, and vaguely remembered that in the chemistry textbooks he learned in high school, it was mentioned that coarse salt needs to be dissolved, precipitated, filtered, evaporated and other steps to make refined salt, but how to do it is up to him. Thinking and pondering, trial and error.

"Su Chen, what are you doing?" Bai Susu walked in with Xiao Tong Yingying, and saw Su Chen concentrating on tinkering with those bottles and cans.

"Gewu!" Su Chen talked about chemistry, but the other party didn't understand, so he could only say that the ancients could understand the word "Gewu".

Bai Susu nodded slightly, she had gradually understood that this talented Su, besides being good at poetry and writing operas and legendary novels, also cared very much about the skill of investigating things, tinkering with some tools when he had nothing to do, and because of this, soap soap, drive away Mosquito toilet water, high-purity spirits, blue and white porcelain, etc., were developed.

In the past, she didn't have any feelings about Gewu, she didn't take it seriously, she just thought it was the work of a craftsman, but now Bai Susu also pays attention to it, especially she is full of curiosity about Su Chen's research on Gewu.

Bai Susu moved closer to him, stared at the distillation bottle and filter device, pointed at them and asked, "What is this used for, and what's your idea?"

"Make refined salt!" Su Chen replied naturally.

Bai Susu asked suspiciously: "What refined salt?"

Su Chen explained: "On the basis of coarse salt, after a series of processing, we can make better fine salt!"

Bai Susu was a little puzzled: "Isn't there fine salt on the market?"

Su Chen complained: "What kind of fine salt is that? It's just that the volume has become smaller, but the mineral composition has not changed much!"

Bai Susu didn't understand what the meaning of "mineral composition" was. She looked at Su Chen strangely, but when she thought of his talent, she would never be indiscriminate, so she asked impatiently: "The fine salt you make is better than the fine salt on the market. Salt, should it be finer?"

Su Chen nodded and said: "Of course, otherwise, what am I going to do with all this effort! Just wait and see, once it is successfully made, after comparison, all the so-called fine salt stored in your house will have to be thrown away Lost."

Bai Susu didn't believe it, but seeing Su Ji's convincing appearance, she had no choice but to believe it.

If he could really refine fine salt with better quality, then the Bai family could also run a salt merchant business by the way.

Beginning in the Tang Dynasty, Liu Yan, Yangzhou’s salt and iron envoy, changed the original mode of purchasing, transporting, and selling salt by the imperial court to buying by the imperial court and reselling it to merchants, who carried out the transportation and sales; since then, the group of “salt merchants” officially appeared on the stage of history.

The Jianghuai area is a treasure land of geomantic omen for salt production. The coast has the most extensive coastal tidal flats in the world, and the four distinct seasons are suitable for sea salt production. It is known as "the benefit of boiling salt since ancient times is more important than that in the southeast, and the two Huaihe Rivers are the most." And the saying that "the salt tax in the two Huaihe Rivers is the best in the world".In the Western Han Dynasty, "King Wu sealed Guangling (now Yangzhou) and boiled the sea for salt." This is the beginning of the Lianghuai salt industry being recorded in historical records.

The reason for the rapid rise and economic prosperity of the Southern Tang Dynasty is related to the imperial court's control of Yangzhou, Yancheng, Taizhou, Haizhou and other salt lands.But six or seven years ago, the Northern Zhou Dynasty conquered Jiangbei, and the land of the Huaihe River was occupied by the Northern Zhou Dynasty. After Zhao Kuangyin seized Zhou and built the Song Dynasty, he took control of the Lianghuai Salt Fields and supplied the economy along the Yellow River in the Central Plains, making the Song State continuously rich and strong.

After Li Yu ascended the throne, he took over Jiangnan Datang from his father. In fact, it was already a mess. No matter in terms of economy, military strength, talents, comprehensive national strength, etc., he was not at the same level as Zhao Song at all, and even had a big gap. Later, the demise of the Southern Tang Dynasty, in fact, Li Yu was also blamed, and the situation in the south of the Yangtze River was doomed that he would not have the strength to resist the Song Dynasty.

Nowadays, Jiangnan lacks salt, and most of them have to spend huge sums of money to buy it from Jiangbei, or buy it from Qianyue. As a result, the financial situation has become increasingly difficult, and the Southern Tang regime has had to increase taxes.

Bai Susu thought for a moment, then suddenly said: "It's a pity that there is no salt field in the south of the Yangtze River, so we can't provide coarse salt in large quantities. People in the market have to save even coarse salt. Even if you can really produce fine salt, the price is much higher, and you can only sell it." It was used by the powerful and the court."

Su Chen nodded and said: "That's right, the people of the Li people are not allowed to go there for the time being, but we can privately buy more coarse salt from Jiangbei and Qian Yue, and then make it into 'Suji Refined Salt', and then sell it back to Jiangbei and Qian Yue Go, there will be huge profits in this way."

Bai Susu's eyes lit up when he heard the words, but when he thought of the salt and iron business, the imperial court has control, and merchants can't operate it as they want. They need to apply for a "salt introduction" document from the imperial court, and the imperial household department allows the Bai family to operate. Don't be in a hurry to do it yet.

Su Chen put down the utensils in his hand, and asked, "Didn't you go to the tribute meeting today, did it go smoothly?"

When Bai Susu heard that he was concerned about the Bai family's affairs, a smile appeared on his face and said: "Well, in front of the transfer envoy and the father-in-law in the palace, the Bai family successfully counterattacked with the help of blue and white porcelain and soap, which made Ding Yuexi's plot fail and he left in a complete defeat. Yes. Brother Chen, all this is thanks to your help, so just after the tribute meeting is over, people rushed over to thank you!"

Su Chen also felt relieved for her, this turmoil finally passed, and the crisis of the Bai family was resolved.

"Susu, have I helped you and the Bai family enough these days?"

After Bai Susu heard the words, seeing the seriousness he said, she nodded slightly and said: "Yes, without Brother Chen, the Bai family would definitely be in danger. I really don't know how to thank you!"

Su Chen thought about it, and felt that there was one thing that had been in his heart for a long time, and it was time to solve it.

　PS: It's the beginning of the month, ask for a monthly pass! [This book was released in May and ranked eighth on the new book monthly ticket list. Thank you for your support and love!In the new month, I implore everyone to continue to vote for the monthly vote! 】

　　

　

(End of this chapter)