In the dilapidated courtyard of Ding Laohan's house.

A 200-pound fat man was smiling and squinting his eyes to introduce himself: "I am the head of the Yanghe group, this son, are you sure you want to wrap our salt ball?" ”

Zhu Cihong nodded and said, "Yes, the output of your salt ball is far from enough, if you have other ways to introduce, my son can give you benefits, and the price of salt is the same as your group." ”

Han Fatzi's small eyes lit up, and he flattered: "It's really lucky that we can meet a customer like Childe, but Childe may not know something, salt is not bought and sold casually, that is to say, it is not something that can be bought with money, I don't know if you can understand what I mean." ”

Zhu Cihong glanced at him and said, "Nonsense, can my son come over to buy salt without salt?" ”

Han Fatzi's eyes continued to brighten, and said, "I would like to ask a presumptuous question, I wonder if the prince knows about the salt merchant Wei family?" The salt produced by our Yanghe regiment is all harvested by the Wei family. ”

"I don't know, and I'm not interested in knowing."

Han Fatzi was stunned for a moment, and said tentatively: "I don't know where the son came from?" ”

Zhu Cihong threw a silver ingot to him and said, "Don't talk so much nonsense, if you have anything to say." ”

Han Fatzi took the silver very skillfully, wiped it on his body, and put it in his sleeve pocket, and then said with a smile: "Childe is magnificent, he will definitely be a high school champion in the future!" ”

Seeing Zhu Cihong's unhappy face, Han Fatzi hurriedly withdrew the topic and said: "The current Lianghuai salt industry has been covered by the big salt merchants, and there are some forces behind them, such as the ambassador of the salt class, I am worried about the ...... of the son."

Listening to what Han Fatzi said, Zhu Cihong probably understood that the salt production of Yanghetuan was monopolized by the Wei family.

The Wei family was not one of the top ten salt merchants who owned the salt gang, but a merchant under the salt merchant, that is, a middleman who bought salt from the stove households in the salt farm and resold it.

The Wei family was one of these saltworks who had the monopoly privilege of purchasing all the salt produced in the saltworks, and adopted the method of unequal exchange to brutally exploit the salt producers and grab commercial profits.

There are also general merchants above the Wei family, those big salt merchants have strong economic power, and the main task is to make the salt transportation envoy Yamen collect salt taxes from salt merchants, they have the closest relationship with the government, and they are giants among salt merchants, and there is no shortage of tens of millions of family assets.

Salt merchants monopolized the whole process of salt circulation throughout the country, wantonly lowered the purchase price, raised the selling price, exploited the stove households and consumers, and obtained huge commercial monopoly profits.

After Zhu Cihong heard this, he smiled and said: "Han Tuantou, don't worry, my family is also related to the government, even if it has some background, I will accept your salt, and the Wei family will not dare to trouble you." ”

Hearing this, Han Fatzi relaxed slightly, these guards were wearing official boots, which showed which official this son should be, listening to this accent, he was still from Nanzhili, since he dared to say so, his power must be greater than that of the Wei family.

Han Fatzi is not afraid of rich salt merchants, he is afraid of this combination of collusion between officials and businessmen, with officials behind him, and he can't afford to provoke him!

He couldn't believe that the harmless young man in front of him was the legendary ruthless and ruthless Crown Prince......

Zhu Cihong saw that he was satisfied, and began to ask about the matter: "Since ancient times, the benefits of boiling salt are more important than those in the southeast, and the two Huai are the most. ”

Mr. Han Tuan smiled bitterly and said: "Gongzi doesn't know, our Yanghe Tuan was not like this during the Wanli period, the color folding method implemented by the imperial court at that time, although the days were a little harder, and the government added a little more, but everyone can get by, and there will be some surplus silver in a year." ”

"Since 20 years ago, the imperial court implemented this salt system, and the big salt merchants took over the salt class on their behalf, and everything has changed, and the salt produced by our Yanghe group can only be purchased and processed by the Wei family.

Ding Laohan on the side sighed: "We can't live this day of the stove household, don't hide it from the son, our regiment has been running away year after year, and dozens of households have already run.....

After listening to this, Zhu Cihong pondered for a while, the rigid salt method implemented by the imperial court is more advanced than the folding method, but it is just for better management and increase financial revenue, but it has only been less than 20 years, and the salt tax is not only getting smaller and smaller, but even the stove households who cook salt are living so hard.

Although salt production makes money, but after all, the money is rich to those salt merchants and salt officials, and the real working people are still living in dire straits.

Zhu Cihong thought for a moment and said, "Take me to your salt factory to have a look, I want to see the color of the salt." ”

"Okay!"

Han Fatzi responded happily, and hurriedly led Zhu Cihong to the salt field, as if he was very confident in his salt production.

After a while, everyone came to the salt field, and at a glance, the seashore was wide and the salt pans were facing each other.

The factory occupies a large area, and there are at least four or five hundred people working in it, using the salt boiling method that has been popular for thousands of years.

Hundreds of cauldrons are burning with firewood, steaming, and the gurgling sound of boiling water is constantly heard, and there is a special person stirring next to the pot.

Zhu Cihong visually measured that the diameter of this large iron pot was about 1.4 to 1.5 meters, and the height was about 30 centimeters.

According to Han Tuantou's introduction, the boiling salt here is not to pour seawater into the pot to boil, but to make brine first, and then put the brine in the pot and boil it into salt, what they see is the link of boiling salt, an iron pot needs to be boiled for three hours, boiled into seven to ten catties of salt.

In addition to the iron pot, there is also a bamboo pot to boil salt, the bamboo pot is made of bamboo strips, square flat bottom, coated with lime or yellow mud, three meters long, one meter six wide, one meter deep, each pot can boil 1,000 catties of salt.

Walking out of the salt boiling site, Zhu Cihong saw a row of large pools dug out on the other side not far away, on which I don't know what was being laid, and a group of men and women carrying buckets to water on it.

Like an enthusiastic tour guide, Han Fatzi explained to Zhu Cihong: "This is to use seawater to pour brine sand to make brine. ”

In order to make brine with high salt content, the stove households spread fine sand about two to three inches thick with rake pine where the tide can reach the seaside, so that the sand can fully absorb the tide.

After the seawater is blown and dried to form brine sand, and then the brine sand is evenly sprinkled in the brine pool, and then poured with seawater, the seawater can fully absorb the salt in the brine sand, so that the salt content is greatly increased, if the salt concentration is increased, the brine can be repeatedly drowned.

Pour the brine into the pot and stir-fry, you can make the salt of the white flowers, if you want to make refined salt, you need to think about the brine five or six times, the material of the consideration is the best silk, cotton cloth is second, only the impurities in the water can be boiled out of the refined salt.

I want to add more for the New Year, but I find that I don't want to do anything at home, I just want to lie on the sofa and listen to songs, read books, and watch the news, and I don't want to move at all!

(End of chapter)