“Yes, Brother Feng, rock salt really is poisonous.”
Run Niang, who usually disliked speaking much, this time also advised: “When I was little, a salt peddler came to our village selling rock salt, the villagers bought some because it was cheap, later several people died from eating it, Sister Xiaorou knows about this too.”
“There is such a thing.”
Guan Xiaorou originally had full confidence in Jin Feng, but hearing Qing Mulan and Run Niang say this, she suddenly hesitated a bit.
Though she loved money very much, she was more afraid of something happening to Jin Feng.
“Master of the house, otherwise let’s do like other salt merchants and go to the seaside to haul salt?”
“Our Xichuan is full of salt mines everywhere, if developed and utilised well, the whole Da Kang could eat for a hundred years without finishing, why abandon the near and seek the far, going thousands of li to the seaside to haul salt?”
Jin Feng handed the bowl to Run Niang: “Help me scoop half a bowl of noodles again.”
Run Niang’s hand-pulled noodles were getting more and more authentic, Jin Feng could eat one or two bowls each time.
“Sir, salt production is no small matter, if something goes wrong it will be big trouble.”
Seeing Jin Feng’s unhurried appearance, Qing Mulan became anxious: “Actually since ancient times, many people have had the same idea as you, trying to use rock salt to make salt, but no one ever succeeded, instead they lost their lives.”
After coming to Xihewan, Qing Mulan really liked this place, and looked forward to what Jin Feng would eventually transform Xihewan into.
Knowing Xihewan’s development needed a lot of money, and at that time Jin Feng hadn’t started selling soap and black knives, always worrying about silver.
So Qing Mulan pestered hard, kept writing letters to bombard her brother, only then securing the salt production and sales qualification for Jin Feng.
But now, Qing Mulan somewhat regretted it.
Others who got salt production and sales qualifications all went to the seaside to haul salt, even if they wanted to produce salt themselves, they would find a fishing village by the sea, hire seaside fishermen to sun-dry salt.
Qing Mulan really hadn’t expected that Jin Feng would think of using rock salt to produce salt himself.
“Sir, I know you have many places needing money now, but you already have soap and black knives, right? No need to use rock salt to earn the people’s black-hearted money?”
Qing Mulan was really anxious, her words becoming heavier: “If rock salt is not handled well, it really can cause deaths!”
Tang Xiaobei was unwilling as soon as she heard: “Sister Mulan, how can you say that about my husband? Others can’t do it, doesn’t mean my husband can’t!
Besides, you’ve known my husband for so long, when has he ever cheated the people? Which time wasn’t he using hard-earned money to subsidise the people?
Without my husband, would Xihewan or even the whole Jinchuan County have the days it has now?”
“Xiaobei, that’s not what I mean, I’m worried about sir…”
Qing Mulan also knew she had said the wrong thing, wanted to explain, but halfway through was interrupted by Jin Feng.
“Alright, I know what Mulan means, afraid I’ll make poisonous salt, harm the people, and harm myself too.”
Jin Feng took the rice bowl from Run Niang: “Run Niang, go to the kitchen again, bring the salt jar over.”
“Okay.”
Though Run Niang didn’t know why Jin Feng suddenly wanted the salt jar, she obediently went to the kitchen and brought the salt jar over.
“Is this the jar I gave you last time?” Jin Feng asked.
“Yes.” Run Niang nodded.
“Then that’s fine.” Jin Feng pointed to the salt jar and said: “This salt is what Xiao Jin and I made in the lab using rock salt, we’ve been eating it for almost a month, has anyone felt unwell?”
“What?”
Everyone turned to look at Jin Feng.
Run Niang covered her mouth, eyes full of disbelief.
Only now did she know that the salt she used for cooking was made from rock salt.
Qing Mulan sceptically scooped out a spoonful of salt and poured it on the table.
Most salt in Da Kang was coarse salt, and somewhat blackened, while the salt on the table was like snow sand, white and fine.
With the Qing family’s influence, the salt Qing Mulan ate from childhood was naturally much better than ordinary people’s.
But salt with such good appearance, she was seeing it for the first time.
Incredulously asked: “Sir, is this really made by you from rock salt?”
“Sister Mulan, it’s true, this jar of salt was refined by me and sir together, I personally put it into the jar.”
Zhou Jin, who had been burying her head in eating, spoke up: “There is still a lot of unused rock salt in the lab now.”
The vast majority of natural rock salt contains impurities, these impurities are harmful to the human body, must go through multiple purifications and filtrations to be usable.
Jin Feng and Zhou Jin had recently been busy with this in the lab.
The best way to haul salt from the seaside to Xichuan was also by water along the Yangtze, the journey far aside, all upstream against the current.
Da Kang had no motorised boats, the big salt-hauling ships basically all relied on trackers, even if smooth, it took several months.
Plus the salt merchants’ greed, so Da Kang’s salt price had always been high.
If Jin Feng could really extract such good salt from rock salt, it would be a major event for the whole Da Kang.
Qing Mulan felt her heartbeat quicken a lot.
“Sir, can you let Xiao Jin demonstrate salt production for me?” Qing Mulan said: “Not that I don’t believe sir, but this matter is too significant.”
“Alright.” Jin Feng thought, said to Zhou Jin: “Xiao Jin, tomorrow demonstrate for Mulan.”
“No tomorrow, go now.”
Qing Mulan didn’t eat dinner, pulled Zhou Jin and left.
The lab was a forbidden area in Xihewan, Qing Mulan was entering for the first time, like Grandma Liu entering the Grand View Garden, curiously looking at the bottles and jars inside.
That night, Qing Mulan personally watched Zhou Jin smash a rock salt block of over fifty jin, then through procedure after procedure, turn into fine and white refined salt.
Qing Mulan tasted it, the flavour very pure, no strange taste at all.
“Too amazing, really too amazing! So rock salt really can become refined salt.”
Even witnessing the whole process with her own eyes, Qing Mulan still found it unbelievable: “Sir is going to make a fortune this time!”
Salt is something every household must have, the market countless times larger than soap and black knives.
The salt Jin Feng produced, whether in appearance or taste, could crush other salt merchants’ sea salt.
Most importantly, Jin Feng didn’t need to haul salt from thousands of li away at the seaside, compared to other salt merchants, the cost was almost negligible.
At current Da Kang salt prices, it would be hard for Jin Feng not to get rich.
“Sir says salt isn’t some valuable thing, he produces salt not just to make money, but to let all the people of Guangyuan eat cheap and safe salt!”
Zhou Jin said: “So when you said today that sir wants to earn black-hearted money, Sister Xiaobei got so angry.”
“Let the people eat cheap and safe salt…”
Qing Mulan murmured to herself, face burning hot.
Thinking of her words questioning Jin Feng at dinner, Qing Mulan felt ashamed with nowhere to hide.
“I wrongly blamed sir, I’m going to apologise to him now.”
