Red Mansion Huacai

Chapter 356 Canned
"Please stay, sir. We will be waiting for you later." Xu Xing and Tao Juntan bowed and then turned and left.

Li Weijian stopped in front of the duty room and watched the two people go out of the second door, shook his head and returned to the table. Since the last meeting, the widowed aunt Liu had praised them highly, and the two cousins ​​had no objections. Li Weijian privately asked Yan Fengzhen to reveal some information, and when Yan Fengzhen replied, the two were overjoyed.

Therefore, although there was no engagement and no marriage certificate, the marriage was verbally agreed upon and would be finalized after the national mourning next year. Given Li Weijian's current position, it was expected that the two would not dare to go back on their words. What made him shake his head was not this matter, but the Shi Academy.

This college seems like a makeshift team with no rules at all.

It was just a gathering of a dozen new graduates of practical science, chatting and talking every day, just like the fake practical science society of the Marquis of Cheng'en. How could this work? Li Weijian was still hoping that the practical science college would transform into a scientific academy. He took the time to ask questions several times and suggested some projects based on the preferences of the new graduates.

Of the two who had just left, one went directly to Leting, and the other went to the steam engine factory in the outer city. Another scholar named Liu Hong was very good at prospecting, and he said there was an alkali mine in his hometown. He immediately received funds and took his men and went to Henan at a high cost.

Apart from that, the rest of the people still act like masters. They can talk, but they also do practical things...what is that?
Li Weijian thought about it and realized that there was a shortage of people to do practical work, but there was also a shortage of people to work on theory. So he simply divided the remaining dozen people into several research groups and offered rewards. As long as they made a breakthrough in one topic, they would get a minimum reward of one thousand taels of silver.

Now, except for two or three self-righteous ones, the rest are all ready to try and show their talents.

This is enough for the Practical Academy. As for the remaining few who think they are noble, Li Weijian is too lazy to care. It's really meaningless. People outside think that passing the Practical Academy is a lucky thing, but these few think they are noble Hanlin! In this case, then let's live in poverty for the rest of our lives.

After dealing with the official documents, Li Weijian took out his pocket watch and looked at it. It was almost 3 p.m., so he stretched his muscles and left the office.

After leaving the government office, Li Weijian breathed a sigh of relief as he saw a large dark cloud spreading from the west. He muttered, "It's been hot for more than ten days. It's time for it to rain."

Ding Rufeng said jokingly, "Master, you are right. I heard that there have only been two small rains in Zhili since the beginning of summer. If it doesn't rain again, I'm afraid the crops will die of drought."

Li Weijian nodded, and got into the carriage after leaving the government office. Ding Rufeng led a group of Beishan guards, and turned the carriage around and headed for the outer city. The carriage rumbled along, and just after passing Xuanwu Gate, a group of people gathered in front of them, and there was a man climbing on the roof, waving his sword and shouting.

Li Weijian lifted the curtain and looked around, then sent Ding Rufeng to investigate. When Ding Rufeng went over, he saw the man fall headfirst from the third floor with a strange cry, and hit the ground with a thud, causing the onlookers to scatter.

What do you mean? Jumped off the building?
After a while, Ding Rufeng returned with a strange look on his face and whispered, "Master, it was Tao Fu Ji's people who wanted to demolish the teahouse. The owner refused to move no matter how much money he was offered. Later, I don't know where they found a bandit to harass him every day, and also led the owner's stupid son to get addicted to gambling. The owner was so upset that he hacked the two bandits and jumped off the building himself."

Li Weijian blinked and asked quickly, "Didn't the Shuntianfu bailiff come?"

Ding Rufeng curled his lips and said, "Those yamen runners are smart. This matter has nothing to do with Shuntian Prefecture, so why would they come to the front at this time?"

Behind Tao Fu Ji is the prince. Well, now we are in for some fun.

Li Weijian simply ordered a detour, and the carriage left from the West Gate and headed straight for Haidian. Not far out of the city, seeing dark clouds, Li Weijian simply abandoned the carriage and rode on horseback, leading his entourage to Jingyuan in less than half an hour.

This place is only six or seven miles away from the Imperial Spring Garden where the emperor is, and only three or four miles southwest is Haidian Town. Haidian at this time is different from later generations. Haidian, as the name suggests, is not much different from Baiyangdian, with large and small lakes all around.

Li Weijian's newly acquired garden included a small lake, with steep cliffs on the east, flat land on the west, a lake on the north, and a river on the south. There were more than a dozen pavilions and terraces inside, as well as a main house with three entrances.

Thanks to Li Weijian's galloping horse, as soon as he entered the garden, raindrops began to fall outside. Xiangling was feeding fish in a waterside pavilion, and when she saw Li Weijian coming, she hurried to greet him.

"Fourth Master."

"Ah."

Xiangling greeted them and followed Li Weijian eastward. Not far away, Li Weijian suddenly stopped and turned his head to see more than a hundred ducks swimming in the lake to the north.

Li Weijian frowned and asked, "Where did the duck come from?"

Xiangling laughed and said, "I was just saying that. Isn't the master tired of the frogs croaking at night? Yesterday, the mistress sent people to the countryside to collect more than a hundred ducks. She said that the ducks would eat the tadpoles and they would not be so noisy."

Li Weijian smiled and said, "My sister has good intentions."

He walked with his hands behind his back and soon arrived at the owner's house. The rain was getting heavier, accompanied by lightning and thunder. When he entered the main room, he saw Daiyu, Qingwen, Xiuying and Zijuan sitting around playing dominoes.

Daiyu looked normal, Qingwen was smiling, but Xiuying looked worried. A closer look showed that the money box in front of this silly girl was empty, as if she had almost lost all the money.

Seeing Li Weijian coming, several people hurriedly stood up to greet him.

There was another thunderclap. Daiyu saw that Li Weijian was half wet, so she hurriedly ordered, "Xueyan, go find some dry clothes for the master."

Xueyan found some clothes and waited for Li Weijian to change into them. Xueyan spread out the half-wet clothes and said, "Master, it's time to change your clothes."

Li Weijian took a look and saw that the official uniform was dark in some places and light in others. It was time to change it. The printing and dyeing technology at that time was too primitive. Brand new materials would fade after being washed for more than ten times. The brighter the color, the more serious it was. In accordance with the Ming Dynasty system, most official robes were red in color, because it cost a lot of money every year to make these official robes.

Daiyu took one look at them and said, "Fortunately I made a few extra ones earlier. I'll find two and wash them. I hope they'll be ready to wear tomorrow morning."

Zijuan helped Li Weijian wash his hands, and Qingwen served him tea. Li Weijian sat down leisurely, rubbing his thighs and saying, "Riding a horse is a tough job. I feel like my thighs are about to be worn out after only forty miles. I think we should take a carriage when we go on the northern tour."

Daiyu smiled and said, "Si Ge is a civil servant, so it is appropriate for him to ride in a carriage." After a pause, she continued, "Were you held up by something yesterday?"

"Don't mention it. Miss Ping came to ask for help at noon. Something happened in Rong Mansion again."

"Ah?" Daiyu asked hurriedly.

Li Weijian briefly told what happened yesterday.

Daiyu frowned after hearing this. After all, it was someone else's family affair, and she didn't want to interfere. Qingwen, who was standing by, was in a rage and couldn't help but say, "Mr. Lian is so funny. He found a mistress and caused so much trouble in the family. The new and old second wives are here!"

Xiuying blinked and said, "It's no wonder that Master Lian behaved this way. Second Madam is too stubborn. I heard that Master Lian wanted to sleep with Miss Ping before, and he had to coax Second Madam to be happy. Even so, it only happened two or three times a year. In my opinion, Second Madam is a little too stubborn."

Qingwen sneered, "Isn't it because Second Master Lian is incompetent? If it was Fourth Master, do you think Second Madam would dare to be so strong?"

Daiyu frowned and scolded, "Don't talk nonsense. Why do you want to involve Fourth Brother in someone else's family affairs?"

Qingwen stuck out her tongue. She had a fiery temper and was very clear about what she loved and hated. If someone else had scolded her, Qingwen would have been angry, but it was Daiyu who scolded her, and she didn't care at all.

"That's what I said. The Fourth Master treasures his wife like a baby, so why would he think of anything else?"

Daiyu pursed her lips, reached out and picked up the bamboo 'Bu Qiu Ren' and tapped Qingwen on the head gently: "You deserve a beating. I told you to stop talking nonsense, but you can't control your mouth."

Qingwen was beaten and kept groaning like a weirdo. Knowing that Li Weijian wanted to talk to Daiyu, he pulled Xiangling aside and said, "Madam wants to talk to the Fourth Master. Why don't we finish this round of beating first? Anyway, it's raining and we can't do anything."

Xiuying immediately nodded in agreement: "That's right, I haven't even made back my money yet."

Xiangling didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "You still want to get your money back? Be careful that you might even lose all your money for next month!"

The girls were quarreling, so Li Weijian dragged Daiyu to the study room at the east end. The two sat opposite each other, and Daiyu asked, "What happened next?"

"I don't think it will work after trying to persuade her, so I just persuaded the old lady to send my second sister-in-law to Xiangshan Yuyuan."

Daiyu said, "Well, we should wait until the baby is born before we talk about other things." After a pause, she frowned and said, "I'm afraid this matter won't be so easy to get over. Sister Feng has a strong temper and can't stand this kind of anger. I'm afraid there will be more trouble in the future."

"It's going to rain, my mother is going to get married, we can't control what happens in the future." After a pause, Li Weijian asked, "How are those road dishes?"

Daiyu smiled and said, "I was just about to tell Fourth Brother that there are two portions of braised pork. The one that Fourth Brother prepared has been here for seven days and looks just like usual. The one that was directly placed in the tin pot has swelled up a bit."

Daiyu called Xueyan, who was watching the cards, over after she gave some instructions. A little maid took an umbrella and went to the kitchen at the back. After a while, she brought back two iron cans.

Li Weijian looked carefully and found that the tin can that he had not brought with him was a little swollen.

I found a dagger on the table and pried it open. As expected, there was a faint stench inside. I opened the one with the mark again, and there was no other strange smell. It looked just like usual.

This year, the Leting Iron Works built many more blast furnaces, and the output of steel continued to rise. Various processing plants emerged around the ironworks, and the processed steel was either transported to the capital along the canal and then distributed to various inland places; or transported to Songjiang and Guangzhou by sea, and then transported to the inland along the waterway.

Last month, the government collected data from various places and found that the price of iron farm tools had dropped by 70% compared to the previous year. Even so, the steel produced in Leting was somewhat in excess. Because Li Weijian had sent a letter to Leting before, after many attempts, tinplate was produced. If tinplate is available, canned food be far behind? Well... it is really quite far away.

Chemical industry had just started, and Li Weijian only had a little knowledge of chemical industry, and he had no idea how to make nitrite. He had tried it before, but the braised pork was put into cans. If it was not processed, it would swell in about a week in hot weather.

After much thought, Li Weijian finally remembered the pasteurization method. To put it simply, it is to maintain a constant temperature of 80 degrees and keep the food in it for 15 seconds, so that most bacteria can be killed.

But after trying it last month, Li Weijian found that pasteurized canned food could only last for a month at most, and it would go bad if it took longer... How could this work? Li Weijian always took one step and looked three steps ahead. This tinplate can not only released steel production capacity, but also provided Dashun with military supplies, which was a boon to the country and the people!
So they decided to go all out and made a high-temperature steam kettle. The tinplate cans treated with this process can be stored for two or three years, not to mention half a year.

After taking a quick bite, it was fine except that it was a little cold. Seeing Daiyu's burning eyes, Li Weijian scooped a spoonful and handed it to her. Daiyu ate a piece and frowned, saying, "The taste is too strong."

Li Weijian said with a smile: "It's a roadside dish. If the taste is not strong, it may not be stored for long."

Daiyu said, "I heard that we will go on a tour to the north in June. We will have to walk two or three thousand miles along the way. I'm afraid there won't be any fruits or vegetables to eat on the grassland. Fortunately, my fourth brother came up with this idea. I see that the canned food has not gone bad after being stored for quite some time. I'd better ask the kitchen to prepare more food for the trip and put it in the cans, as well as some green vegetables and candied fruits. I heard that the grasslands only eat red and white food, and you won't be able to eat anything else if you want to."

"Well, my sister is thoughtful." Li Weijian thought: "There is only half a month left, I think we can get more."

The northern tour was a stop-and-go tour. The most important thing was to meet with the Mongol princes, so there was no hurry to travel. Now it was time to open a canning factory, and when it was finished, send a few carts to the imperial court. Who knows, if the saint was happy, the canning factory would become a good business.

Daiyu saw that Li Weijian was lost in thought, and after a brief thought she knew what he was thinking, so she said, "Fourth brother, there is enough money in our family, why do you have to work so hard?"

Li Weijian came back to his senses and saw Daiyu's serious expression. He thought for a while and then said, "Sister, do you know what money is?"

Daiyu said, "It's just gold, silver and copper coins."

Li Weijian shook his head: "Sister, don't forget that there was Jiaozi in the early Song Dynasty."

Daiyu frowned and said, "How could I not know? However, in the early Song Dynasty, Jiaozi was rampant, and later people said that this was an evil act of the court to exploit the common people."

That's right. During the Song Dynasty, Jiaozi was issued indiscriminately. After a few years, the Jiaozi issued in previous years would not be recognized. When a new Jiaozi fell into the hands of a merchant, the merchant had to exchange it for 500 wen. In the late Southern Song Dynasty, a guan of Jiaozi was not worth 100 wen, a typical case of excessive currency issuance.

Li Weijian smiled and said, "Sister, what you said is both right and wrong. Let's not talk about that for now. Sister, have you ever thought about how the Former Song Dynasty could last for nearly three hundred years despite the rampant use of Jiaozi and Huizi, and how the tax revenue far exceeded that of previous dynasties, even the Former Ming Dynasty and Dashun Dynasty were far inferior to it?"

"These national affairs are all considered by the ministers in the court, but I don't know about them."

Li Weijian said, "It's because the imperial court endorsed the credit of Jiaozi and Huizi. Speaking of Huizi alone, there was a law in the early Song Dynasty that half of the taxes were collected in copper coins and half in Huizi. In this way, the originally worthless Huizi became valuable."

Daiyu thought for a while, then nodded and said, "So that's how it is...but what does this have to do with the canning factory that Fourth Brother wants to run?"

Li Weijian asked with a smile: "Sister, have you ever thought about why the Former Song Dynasty could collect so much tax? But why it was not so much during the Former Ming Dynasty and Dashun Dynasty? Don't forget that the Former Song Dynasty's population and territory were not as large as those of the Former Ming Dynasty and Dashun Dynasty."

Daiyu said, "I feel strange and nervous. The Records of Food and Money in the History of Song Dynasty records that in the second year of Zhiping, the internal and external income was 116,138,450,000. Even if the provincial income was 80 million strings of coins, it would be 70 million taels of silver. But the annual income of the court in the past few years was only about 40 to 50 million." After a pause, Daiyu suddenly realized, "Could it be because of Huizi... Yes, Huizi can be used as copper coins. Half of the annual income in the early Song Dynasty was Huizi. Hmm... The total amount of silver and money in the world has remained roughly the same. With the addition of Huizi, wouldn't the copper coin be only half of the original value? No wonder the annual income of the early Song Dynasty was so much. It is not much different from that of Dashun after conversion."

Huh? Can you still think like that? Li Weijian blinked, thought for a while, and felt that he should change direction.

So he said, "Sister, what you said is not unreasonable, but it is not the right way. Take the canning factory as an example. Originally, the iron materials of the Leting Iron Factory were piled up like a mountain and it was difficult to sell them. I founded this canning factory, which gave the iron materials of the iron factory an additional market. Not only that, but also meat and vegetables were purchased, and farmers everywhere also made more money."

"That's what Fourth Brother said."

"If you want to run a factory, you have to hire people. This way, the unemployed people in the city will have a way to make a living. The canned food produced can not only be tasted by the rich in remote areas, but also meet the military needs. And no matter whether it is the iron factory, farmers or hired people, the money they earn must be paid as taxes. Isn't this a hundred benefits without any harm?"

Daiyu shook her head stubbornly and said, "No, no, if the money doesn't change, it will all be earned by Fourth Brother. Then others will have no money to spend, right?"

Li Weijian was suddenly at a loss whether to laugh or cry. The economic principles that should have been taken for granted did not make sense when it came to Daiyu.

Seeing Li Weijian in a dilemma, Daiyu kindly tried to comfort him, "Forget it, it's just a minor incident. Go ahead if you want to do it, Fourth Brother."

Li Weijian was getting more and more depressed. He was thinking about explaining it to Daiyu, but Daiyu suddenly winked playfully and said with a smile: "It's a good thing that Fourth Brother came back today, otherwise I would have sent someone to look for him."

Li Weijian was surprised and asked, "Sister, what do you want to talk to me about?"

Daiyu tilted her head and held her hair in a bun, and said with a smile, "Fourth brother, have you forgotten what day it is today?"

Today... Li Weijian pondered for a while, then came to his senses and said: "Oh, I really forgot everything!"

Today is Tianfu Festival, the day Li Weijian gave birth to his son.

Daiyu smiled and said, "I was going to consult with my fourth brother about how to celebrate this birthday, but he happened to stay at home yesterday. At noon, I consulted with Qingwen, Xiangling and Xiuying, and we all pooled together twenty taels of silver, bought some things, and invited Miss Xing to come. Although it's not a good idea to have a big celebration, we should at least have some fun behind closed doors."

Just at this moment, Qingwen called out from outside, "Master Four, Madam, someone in front said that Miss Xing has arrived."

Daiyu looked outside and asked in surprise, "Why did you come here in the rain?" After a pause, she looked at Li Weijian and said meaningfully, "It seems that Miss Xing is concerned."

Li Weijian always felt that Daiyu seemed to be being sarcastic, but he just couldn't get the topic right.

............................................................

After the rain, the sky clears up.

Baochai got out of the carriage, and the maid Ying'er behind her was holding two empty cans in her hands.

Li Weijian's canning factory was still under planning, and the canning factory was located in the old house. He had not yet told the officials in the inner court about this matter, and he wanted to train Daiyu's ability to manage the household, so he left it to Daiyu to manage.

Daiyu thought that they were preparing food for the northern tour, and she put a lot of thought into it. She was afraid that the food would not taste good, so she asked Xing Xiuyan for help. So every day, Xing Xiuyan would first inspect the shops in the inner city, and then come to Li Weijian's old house to try to make various food for the tour, and then the servants would process it at high temperature and seal it.

Today, Xing Xiuyan made a few more things. Thinking that she would go to Haidian Garden later, she took a few things with her. As she went out, she ran into Baochai who was returning.

Because Baochai took care of Xing Xiuyun out of kindness that day, Xing Xiuyun was grateful, and the two girls talked intimately for a while. Baochai asked about the canned food, and Xing Xiuyun told her the truth and gave two more to Baochai to try.

I thought it was just a normal act of courtesy, but I didn't expect Baochai to be so smart and she seemed to be thinking about something.

When he entered the second courtyard of his house, he could hear his brother Xue Pan and his sister-in-law Xia Jingui arguing from afar.

"——Do you think I don't dare to hit you?"

"Hit me if you want! It's a pity that I was so blind to marry a loser like you. You have no ability outside and even lost your royal merchant foundation, but you are able to do things at home!"

"you……"

"Come, come, here is the knife. If you are really capable, just chop me off and see if the government will spare you!"

Sister Bao frowned. Since Bilian was sent back home, Xia Jingui had made a fuss several times, making Aunt Xue and her daughter so angry that they could only cry in secret and blame their fate.

Xia Jingui could give up her dignity, but the Xue family wanted to save face. Moreover, they were related to the Xia family, and the Xue family was far inferior to the Xia family, so Aunt Xue and Baochai could only swallow their anger.

Although Xue Pan had relied on his drunken courage to contradict Xia Jingui two or three times, each time it ended up like today. In the end, Xue Pan did not dare to take action and did not lose his courage. Instead, Xia Jingui became more and more powerful.

Sister Bao pretended not to know and led Ying'er into the main room. Aunt Xue was so angry that she burst into tears. When she saw Sister Bao, she said, "My child, when will this life end?"

Baochai thought clearly and said, "Mother, we have to save our dignity no matter what, but sister-in-law is the one who is willing to lose her dignity. If things go on like this, we will be the ones who suffer. If it were up to me, mother, it would be better for you to move out. After all, our family has more than one property."

Aunt Xue was hesitant again when the old matter was brought up. It would be easy to move out, but Aunt Xue was still worried about Xue Pan and was afraid that Xue Pan would be bullied by Xia Jingui, who was like a shrew.

Aunt Xue wiped her tears and suddenly caught a glimpse of the can in Ying'er's hand. She couldn't help asking, "Where did the tin box come from?"

(End of this chapter)