Teasing the First Dragon at the Start

It's worth noting that the price of this small bag of fine salt is almost enough to buy a whole sack of coarse salt.

They are worlds apart, like heaven and earth.

If Bai Su knew how to make fine salt from coarse salt, becoming incredibly wealthy would be no dream, and he would soon become the richest man in the Central Plains.

Although my family has little interest in money, their monopoly on porcelain and tea is enough to make them incredibly wealthy.

Right now, there were not only a few of them in the courtyard, but also a group of Liu Ji's childhood friends who had come to help, Cao Can, Fan Kuai and others.

They were all dumbfounded when they heard that their elders wanted to refine salt.

Born into humble circumstances, they naturally knew the vast difference between fine and coarse salt, a matter of vital importance to the nation.

If controlling coarse salt means controlling people's livelihoods, then whoever controls fine salt is essentially owning a money exchange that can mint unlimited amounts of coins, with inexhaustible wealth.

For a moment, the crowd's gazes were varied, some surprised, some curious, some doubtful, some excited...

Bai Su smiled as she looked at the varying reactions of the crowd: "I sent you all to buy coarse salt, why are you all making such a fuss?"

Liu Ji sighed; it turned out to be a false alarm.

She wiped the sweat from her forehead and sighed with some disappointment: "I thought you could refine this coarse salt into fine salt. If you could, you would be rich."

Looking at her regretful expression, Bai Su couldn't help but sneer, "You're obsessed with money. You're in charge of the liquor business, and you're still not satisfied. You're always looking for more than you have."

Liu Ji, with his large, almond-shaped eyes, gave Bai Su a resentful look: "It's all because you, young master, are fickle and tired of the old. This old woman has been neglected for so long, and the valley is now covered in dust and tangled nets. If I don't save any money for wine, how am I supposed to survive in the future?"

Bai Su's lips twitched, and she couldn't help but say, "Come on, you've never skimped on your salary. You even get advances every now and then. I heard you've already overdrawn your salary for thirty years."

Seeing that he couldn't fool Bai Su by feigning grievance, Liu Ji smiled and winked, pretending to be completely oblivious.

If Mo Xun hadn't been there, Bai Su would have loved to shove her down on her lap and give her a good spanking.

Liu Ji, that female hooligan, is truly unruly; she'll climb the roof and tear off the tiles if you don't discipline her for three days, and she'll become arrogant if you give her a little sunshine.

Mo Xun gently brushed aside the strands of hair between her brows with her slender jade hand, glancing between Bai Su and Liu Ji. She thought to herself, "Is my master racing against Lord Liu? I'm just a child, I don't understand anything."

Bai Su stroked her chin, pondered for a long time, and then instructed, "Go... prepare some water for me."

Liu Ji was taken aback, somewhat confused, and asked, "Young master, what do you need water for?"

Bai Su rolled up her sleeves, pursed her lips, and said, "Naturally, it's refined coarse salt."

Liu Ji's large, almond-shaped eyes widened in surprise, and his lips trembled slightly. "Wh...what, refined coarse salt?"

Not to mention her, even Mo Xun, who was standing to the side, was startled, seemingly not expecting that Bai Su could actually purify fine salt.

"But young master, you just said..."

Bai Su said with amusement, "I was just trying to give you some peace and quiet. I didn't deny it."

After receiving Bai Su's answer, everyone's work efficiency instantly increased several times over.

After all, mastering the method of refining fine salt is tantamount to possessing an inexhaustible gold mine. If they present it to the imperial court, they will also benefit from it, and be promoted and given great merit.

These are the battle achievements that others gain through bloody battles on the battlefield, but they can obtain them simply by sweating. Naturally, they are all extremely motivated.

Amidst the stunned gazes of many minor officials around them, the leader of the Mohist school and Liu Ji, the second-in-command of the Imperial Household Department, came running over quickly, carrying buckets of water, as if they were servants, and they seemed to enjoy it immensely.

Bai Su looked at the two women sitting on the ground, their hands behind their backs, panting heavily, and couldn't help but smile.

He immediately instructed Fan Kuai and the others beside him: "Go and prepare some coarse sand, fine sand, charcoal, and thick cloth."

"Yes," Fan Kuai said in a low voice.

Although she didn't know what Bai Su wanted these things for, their life in the Shaofu had already instilled in them a deep trust in Bai Su, leaving them with no doubt whatsoever.

If it's an instruction from an adult, then you just need to do it.

Not long after, they returned with pieces of burlap and other belongings.

Bai Su placed coarse sand, fine sand, and charcoal on pieces of cloth and then placed them on different basins.

He glanced at the basin of coarse salt beside him and ordered, "Pour the salt into the basin of water..."

Fan Kuai and the others immediately began pouring coarse salt into a large basin filled with water.

The coarse salt, when poured into the water, immediately began to dissolve.

At a speed visible to the naked eye, the water surface gradually became murky.

Bai Su said calmly, "Keep pouring, stirring as you pour. Don't stop unless I tell you to."

Fan Kuai and the others wiped the sweat from their foreheads and then picked up a bag of coarse salt.

Bai Su stroked her chin, keeping a close eye on the water in the basin. She only stopped when she saw that the salt water was almost saturated.

The coarse salt inside has stopped dissolving, and the water in the basin is murky.

He pointed to several basins covered with cloth next to him and instructed them to pour the dissolved salt water into the basins, which were separated by layers of coarse sand, fine sand, and charcoal wrapped in linen, in that order.

Fan Kuai and the others worked together to lift the large basin and began pouring water.

As the salt water seeped in, a thick layer of mud and sand remained on the outside of the burlap, while the salt water in the basin became noticeably clearer.

Bai Su looked at the clear salt water and nodded in satisfaction.

Purifying crude salt and removing impurities such as mud and minerals is an extremely simple matter.

The real problem is how to remove the magnesium contained in coarse salt, which is the culprit behind many people's diarrhea and even poisoning and death.

If this were anyone else, the premise alone would be enough to stump most people, but for Bai Su, it's just basic stuff.

Liu Ji walked over at this moment, blinking her big, fluffy eyes curiously: "Young master, is that all? It can't be that simple, can it?"

Bai Su gave her an approving look: "Not bad, you're quite clever this time. Go... and get me some limestone."

Liu Ji looked puzzled, but didn't say anything and obediently went to get the things.

Mo Xun couldn't help but ask, "Sir, what do you plan to do with the limestone?"

Bai Su smiled faintly: "Just watch."

Before long, Liu Ji walked over with graceful steps, her fair cheeks flushed, and she was carrying a small bag in her hand.

Bai Su took the item, opened it, and was surprised to find that it contained limestone.

He chuckled and, amidst the puzzled looks of the crowd, tossed the limestone into the clear water.

The once calm basin of water began to boil at a visible speed, making a "gurgling" sound.

In just a few moments, the limestone that had just been thrown in turned into lime slurry.

While everyone looked at each other, wondering what Bai Su was going to do.

Bai Su poured the top layer of lime water into the filtered salt water.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the originally clear salt water gradually became turbid again, and then underwent some changes, gradually returning to its clarity.

At the same time, a layer of white sediment fell into the basin.

Mo Xun's almond-shaped eyes widened in disbelief. She never imagined that something used for building houses could be used in food and have such a strange effect.

Bai Su didn't stop. She poured out the top layer of salt water and then sprinkled a spoonful of baking soda into it. The salt water became cloudy again, but after a while, it became clear again, and a layer of white sediment appeared in the basin.

He looked at what was in front of him and couldn't help but sigh.

After all, I haven't been in the industry for many years, so I can't master the accurate measurement right away. But under the current conditions, this level of performance is already the limit.

Next, all you need to do is have people practice this method more.

After finishing everything, Bai Su wiped the sweat from her forehead and instructed, "Put these filtered salt waters into a large pot and boil them."

No one suspected anything, and they hurriedly started a fire to boil salt.

Mo Xun approached and asked in a low voice, "Sir, some people have tried to boil salt before, but the salt they ate still caused diarrhea. Will your method work?"

Bai Su smiled and said, "You'll know whether it works or not in a moment."

Looking at Bai Su's confident expression, Liu Ji couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation.

The Tian family of Qi monopolized the salt trade in the west, making them incredibly wealthy, which had long been the envy of many. Unfortunately, due to various reasons, no one had been able to do anything about it.

If Bai Su could produce the western salt, it would be tantamount to directly dismantling a major asset of the Tian family of Qi.

Fan Kuai and the others were diligently tending the fire, and as more firewood was thrown in, the fire grew stronger and stronger.

As the water level dropped, a thin layer of white crystals gradually appeared in the pot.

Liu Ji stared wide-eyed in disbelief. Although she was full of confidence in Bai Su, she still couldn't quite believe it when she actually saw her.

Good heavens, they actually turned coarse salt into fine salt!

Mo Xun rubbed the snow-white salt between his fingers and exclaimed in surprise, "This...this is truly top-quality salt, even better than the salt from the Tian family of Qi."

The salt was as white as snow and as fine as sand; it was no exaggeration to say that it was a royal tribute worth a thousand gold pieces.

It's hard to imagine that this stuff is extracted from vinegar and salt.

Liu Ji came to his senses and couldn't help but exclaim, "This...this salt is so white, it's even whiter than the Grand Master's body!"

Bai Su looked at her with amusement. Is that how you evaluate someone? And how did you know that the Grand Master's body was white? What did you do to the Grand Master without my knowledge?

He shook his head slightly, stepped forward, rubbed some salt grains on his tongue, tasted it, and nodded. Although the taste was inferior to that of later generations, it was already considered top-notch in this era.

Chapter 292 How Could You Slander Someone's Innocence?

Liu Ji grabbed a handful of white salt that looked like fine sand and let it slip through his fingers.

She turned her gaze to Bai Su: "Young Master, you have performed such a great feat this time, what are your plans for the next step?"

Bai Su stroked his chin, pondered for a long time, and then said, "Don't make a fuss yet. I'll go to the palace to meet with His Majesty and discuss this matter."

Liu Ji nodded, not surprised by Bai Su's calculation.

After all, this matter is of great importance, not only involving salt itself, but also affecting the nobles of the six kingdoms. If it is not handled properly, it could cause a lot of trouble.

Inside the Xianyang Palace.

Zhengjie sat at her desk, holding a report in her fair hand as she read it.

Hearing footsteps, she looked up and gazed at Bai Su with interest in her phoenix eyes: "Oh, what brings you here?"

Bai Su asked with a somewhat strange expression, "Is there anything wrong with me coming to see His Majesty?"

Zhengjie put down the report in her hand and waved for the palace maids in the hall to leave.