Chương 125: Salt Production, Winemaking, and Papermaking

"Young master, you want these..." Uncle Liu couldn't help but ask.

"Let's do some inventions and creations."

Liu Ce grinned and said, "Uncle Liu, help me move these things to the backyard. Also, call a few clever servants over; I want to teach them some skills."

"Yes!" Although Uncle Liu didn't understand, he just did as his young master instructed.

For the next ten days or so, Liu Ce was busy with these things.

Liu Ce quickly transformed a corner of the backyard into an "experimental base".

The servants gathered around to watch the spectacle, whispering among themselves.

"What is Your Excellency trying to do?"

"I don't know... They said they wanted to invent something."

"Invent what? Invent eating?"

Just then, Liu Ce arrived.

He rolled up his sleeves and patted the pile of coarse salt.

The salt grains were mixed with sand and dirt, and they looked black. If you picked them up, you could use them as projectiles—they would definitely cause a bump if you hit someone on the head.

"This thing."

Liu Ce weighed the salt block in his hand.

"Is this what you usually eat?"

The servants nodded: "Yes, Your Excellency, this is already considered good. Poor families eat even dirtier salt."

Liu Ce shook his head and said, "No, no, this is no human food. Let's get some fine salt today!"

He directed his men to pour coarse salt into a large earthenware jar and dissolve it in water.

The murky salt water looked like muddy soup.

"Filter it first!" Liu Ce took out a coarse cloth bag that he had prepared in advance—it was made of several layers of coarse cloth and was similar to a modern filter.

The servants poured the salt water into a bag, but the filtered water... was still murky.

"My lord, it seems to be of little use..." a servant said cautiously.

Liu Ce scratched his head, recalling modern purification methods.

He looked around and saw a pile of wood ash in the corner—leftovers from burning firewood in the kitchen.

"Got it!"

He scooped up a ladleful of wood ash and sprinkled it into the salt water.

"Stir it well! Let the wood ash absorb the dirt!"

The servants did as they were told, half believing and half doubting, and stirred vigorously with wooden sticks.

After stirring for a while, a miracle happened—the salt water really became much clearer! The tiny impurities were absorbed by the wood ash and settled to the bottom of the tank.

"Wow! Amazing!" The servants' eyes widened in disbelief.

Liu Ce said smugly, "This is nothing! Pour out the clear brine, and we'll boil the salt!"

Firewood was lit on the large earthenware pot stand.

Liu Ce kept an eye on the heat: "Don't use too high a heat, or the salt will burn and taste bitter."

As it boiled, a layer of white foam rose to the surface of the water.

"Quick! Throw it away!"

Liu Ce commanded, "This is bitter brine, it's poisonous, we can't keep it!"

The servants quickly skimmed off the foam.

After simmering for half a day, white crystals began to precipitate out of the pot.

One layer, two layers... Finally, a thick layer of white salt covered the bottom of the pot.

A bold servant reached out, pinched off a handful, and stuffed it into his mouth.

Then his eyes widened like saucers: "My lord... my lord! This salt... this salt is wonderful! It doesn't gritty at all! And it's not bitter!"

The other servants also tried it and were all amazed.

Liu Ce scooped up a little with a wooden spoon and placed it in his palm.

Fine as snowflakes, pure white and crystal clear. He pinched a small amount and put it in his mouth—the salty taste was pure, without any bitterness or gritty texture.

"It's done!"

Liu Ce smiled smugly, then clapped his hands and said, "This is called the 'multi-step filtration method.' From now on, the people of Youzhou will eat this fine salt! It's clean, delicious, and inexpensive!"

Just as he was feeling smug, Cai Yan, Zhang Ning, and Ren Hongchang arrived.

They heard that Liu Ce was "inventing" in the backyard, so they came to watch out of curiosity.

Cai Yan held up a cup of tea and said softly, "Husband, have some tea and rest."

Liu Ce took it and drank it all in one gulp, then handed the fine salt to them:

"Try this, the fine salt I made."

The three girls each tried a little and all showed expressions of surprise.

"This salt... is so fine," Zhang Ning said.

"The taste is just right, there's no strange smell." Ren Hongchang nodded.

Cai Yan carefully examined the color of the salt and said softly, "My husband is truly learned; he even understands the method of salt production."

Liu Ce chuckled: "No problem, no problem."

Cai Yan then paused, thinking even more deeply: "Husband, if this salt-making method is promoted, it will not only benefit the people, but also become a major source of wealth for Youzhou."

Liu Ce laughed and put his arm around her: "Yan'er is so smart! That's exactly what I was thinking!"

……

Having secured the salt, Liu Ce set his sights on the millet in the yard.

The wine of the Eastern Han Dynasty was sour and weak, like swill.

As a modern time traveler, how could I tolerate this?

"Today we're brewing wine!" he announced.

The servants were bewildered again: "My lord, the wine... aren't the wineries all brewing wine?"

"What they're brewing, is that called wine?"

Liu Ce scoffed, "That's called vinegar! Let's brew something better today!"

He directed his men to soak the millet thoroughly and then steam it. They steamed it until each grain burst open, filling the air with its aroma.

"Let it cool! Let it cool until it's not too hot to handle!" Liu Ce instructed.

After the rice had dried, he took out a small cloth bag—inside was the yeast he had secretly figured out a few days ago.

It's made by fermenting a mixture of wheat bran and mugwort. Although it can't compare to modern professional yeast, it's better than nothing.

Sprinkle the yeast into the rice, mix well, and put it into a large earthenware jar that has been prepared beforehand.

"Dig a hole in the middle and pour some clean water in it."

Liu Ce demonstrated: "Then seal it tightly and place it in a place around 20 degrees Celsius to ferment."

The servants blinked: "My lord, what's twenty degrees?"

Liu Ce was taken aback and slapped his forehead.

Oh, I forgot, there are no thermometers these days.

He thought for a moment, then touched the wall of the jar with his hand: "It should feel neither too hot nor too cold, about the same temperature as our palms. If it's too hot, the wine will turn sour; if it's too cold, fermentation will be slow."

He wrapped the earthenware jar in a thick piece of linen and placed it in a sheltered corner: "In about ten days, we'll have good wine to drink!"

An old servant asked cautiously, "My lord, can this method really produce good wine?"

"rest assured!"

Liu Ce said confidently, "If I can't brew it, I'll treat you to a month's worth of wine!"

The crowd was skeptical.

...

After arranging the brewing, Liu Ce turned to the pile of mulberry bark and tattered hemp cloth at the west end.

Cai Yan asked curiously, "Husband, are you going to brew wine from all this junk?"

"What kind of wine are you brewing?"

Liu Ce smiled and said, "These are the raw materials for papermaking."

"Paper making?" the three women exclaimed in unison.

Although paper existed in the Han Dynasty, its quality was poor, its production was low, and its price was high.

Scholars primarily used bamboo slips and silk. Bamboo slips were heavy, and silk was expensive; neither was affordable for ordinary people. Liu Ce had long wanted to improve this situation.

"Watch closely."

Liu Ce began the process, "Soak these for a few days until they soften."

He poured mulberry bark and tattered burlap into a large vat of water and soaked it for several days.

Once the materials had soaked for a while, Liu Ce directed the scooping out of the softened materials and putting them into another large vat. Water was added and the materials were boiled, along with wood ash—this stuff is all-purpose; it can be used for cleaning and bleaching. The mixture had to be stirred constantly. After boiling for several hours, the materials were cooked until they were mushy and turned into a paste.

Then pour it into a stone mortar and have the servants pound it vigorously.

"Pound it harder! The finer the better!" Liu Ce encouraged from the side.