Chapter 30: Exorbitant Profits, Thirtyfold Exorbitant Profits!

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  Thank you "Cold Blooded" and "Little Liangzi" for your reward~~~~ I'm deeply grateful~~~~

  In the current environment, if it's refined salt, selling at three taels of silver per dan is absolutely no problem. If it's pure and genuine Qingyan salt, one dan can even sell for over ten taels of silver. Compared to coarse salt which sells for 300-400 wen per dan, it's really like heaven and earth. If the market is monopolized, prices can be even higher.

  According to the salt merchants in Jingzhou, since the outbreak of the civil unrest in Shaanxi, the supply of Qingyan salt has been intermittent and sometimes non-existent. The market has been out of stock for a long time, and some wealthy families have offered high prices of 300 coins per catty to buy it, but still can't get any. If there were a large quantity of refined salt available at this time, the profit would be unimaginable. Selling it at 100 coins per catty would definitely not be a problem.

  When he said that, Zhang Zhun suddenly remembered that the coarse salt he used to brush his teeth every day had very large grains and many impurities, which was indeed uncomfortable. In the past, his attention was focused on filling his stomach with food, and later he devoted himself to the guard team, without having the opportunity to notice this point. For a wealthy family, they were used to rinsing their mouths with green salt, but suddenly there was no green salt, it was quite uncomfortable.

  Zhang Zhun said excitedly: "You prepare a few things for me, and I'll show you some refined salt."

  Yang Rui Feng hastily began making preparations.

  His character, even if it's dull, clearly recognizes that if he can really turn coarse salt into fine salt, the day of making a fortune will arrive. In today's Shandong Province, and even in Northern China, the demand for fine salt and green salt is endless, no matter how much it is, it's not enough to fill it. It's not an exaggeration to call it a money tree or a treasure basin.

  Soon, Yang Rui Feng had prepared the necessary utensils according to Zhang Zhun's requirements, and he and Yang Gan Sheng were also waiting with bated breath. Looking at their expressions, it was clear that they were quite nervous inside. This was unavoidable, as the price difference between refined salt and coarse salt was really too great. If Zhang Zhun could really refine the coarse salt into refined salt, he would definitely make a huge profit.

  To put it in trendy terms, it's like one side is heaven and the other side is hell!

  Zhang Zhun was naturally not as tense as they were, it's a fact that if he did something wrong, it must be that some details were not done well, rather than the method being wrong. When Yang Rui Feng was preparing the relevant utensils, he brought out his past memories and carefully sorted out the context. Purifying crude salt is an experimental project that every student has done, although many details have been forgotten, but the basic procedure is still remembered.

  Obviously, distilled water is not available, and collecting it is difficult. However, the well water in Yangjiatun is relatively clear. By filling a wooden basin with well water and letting it sit quietly for a day, allowing impurities to settle, taking only the top portion results in a relatively clean water source, close to distilled water.

  Cotton cloth can be used instead of filter paper. New cotton cloth is hard to find, poor families buy cotton cloth by the foot and it's impossible to have extra. However, old cotton cloth that has been carefully washed can still basically meet the requirements.

  The basic operation of refining crude salt is to filter first and then evaporate, with a focus on removing impurities from the crude salt. Filtration needs to be repeated to remove as many impurities as possible. Each time you filter, you need to use clean cotton cloth. The work of washing the cotton cloth is still very cumbersome.

  Zhang Zhun was only responsible for explaining, and the specific operations were all done by Yang Rui Feng and Yang Gan Sheng, two brothers. Yang Kai De and Yang Ying Wan, on the other hand, assisted on the side to see how crude salt could be turned into refined salt.

  The test uses an ordinary large pot for boiling salt, which is carefully cleaned and then dried upside down before being placed on the stove for use. A wooden barrel for filtering is also needed, which is washed clean, dried and set aside for use.

  Because it was the first trial, Zhang wanted to see the effect as soon as possible. Therefore, he put about 10 kilograms of "distilled water" in the bucket and then continuously dissolved coarse salt until it was saturated. The concentration of the saturated brine is approximately 36%, which means that there are at least more than three kilograms of refined salt in the bucket.

  After the coarse salt is dissolved, use layers of cotton cloth to seal the bucket mouth, then turn it over and let the salt water drip naturally until all the salt water has dripped out. The cotton cloth left a lot of impurities, some yellow, some black, not uniform. But this is still not enough, and repeated filtration is required until no impurities can be seen on the clean cotton cloth.

  Repeatedly dissolve, filter the salt water, pour all into a large pot, cover with cotton cloth, burn fire underneath to boil vigorously, until all the water evaporates. During this process, it is necessary to continuously stir with a clean stick until all the water has been completely evaporated. Continue stirring to prevent salt from solidifying. Once all the water has evaporated, white refined salt will be produced.

  "Got it!"

  Zhang said with a smile.

  The Yang family was also overjoyed.

  Look carefully at the refined sea salt, it is no longer granular, no longer yellowish in color, but a white powder. Gently stroking with your hand, you can feel a very fine and refreshing sensation. Even if you don't touch it with your hands, just looking at it with your eyes, you can feel that the quality is much better than the original coarse salt. Yang Kaidi and others have never actually seen real refined salt, but thinking about it, refined salt should be roughly like this.

  "It's really fine salt."

  Yang Rui Feng and Yan had dealings with each other for half a lifetime, so they naturally understood the difference between refined salt and coarse salt.

  In Jimo County, he had seen refined salt with his own eyes.

  "What great salt!"

  Yang Kaidao also looked very emotional.

  The military households of Fushan Village, who have been boiling sea salt for over a hundred years, really didn't know that using this method could turn coarse salt into refined salt. If they had known about this purification method earlier, the villagers of Yangjiatun would not be living in such poverty and misery now.

  It's no wonder, really. The crude salt was also boiled out by the military households with great difficulty, and after boiling, it was immediately packed up, wrapped tightly in cotton cloth, for fear of getting damp and being unsalable. Who would be willing to dissolve the crude salt in water again, filter it back and forth repeatedly, and then re-evaporate it? It's precisely this subtle difference in thinking that led to a very simple refining process going unnoticed.

  Zhang Zhun looked at everyone present, all of whom were closest to him, nodded thoughtfully and said in a low voice: "Yang Bo, this method can only be known by us. If others learn it, the whole Shandong will be refined salt, and the price won't sell."

  Yang Kaidi naturally understood the severity of the situation and said to his family, "You all heard what Yulian said? This method of getting refined salt is not allowed to be leaked out by anyone!"

  Everyone nodded.

  Yang Rui Feng collected all the refined salt from the pot, weighed it and found that there were exactly three catties. He packed the three catties of refined salt into a special bag and excitedly said: "I'll go to Jimo County immediately to see how much this refined salt can sell for."

  "Be careful on the road."

  Yang Rui Feng nodded in agreement, carrying with him the hopes of his entire family, and hastily set off on the road.

  He carried the fine salt in a cloth bag on his back, and it was not conspicuous at all. He believed that even a salt smuggler would not notice him. As long as he was careful on the road, there should be no problem. He had been to Jimo County Town many times before.

  The Yang family was anxious and excited, continuing to dissolve more coarse salt repeatedly, filter, evaporate, and then carefully pack the refined salt. Wasting a little of the original coarse salt didn't matter, but refined salt couldn't be wasted; a casual handful might be worth a penny!

  With the arrival of the salt, the Yang family was extremely excited. While busy refining the fine salt, they waited for Yang Rui to return. This evening, the whole family surprisingly didn't sleep until after midnight, and only when the last pot of refined salt was finished did everyone reluctantly go to bed.

  Only Zhang Zhun himself knows what he should continue doing.

  By noon the next day, Yang Rui Feng had returned.

  "Good news!"

  "It was sold at a good price!"

  Yang Rui Feng entered the house and immediately exclaimed excitedly.

  He carried three catties of fine salt to Jimo County and visited several salt merchants in a row, asking about the price of fine salt. Finally, one merchant offered the highest price, 155 coins per catty. So, the three catties of fine salt he brought were sold for 465 coins, equivalent to the price of 100 catties of coarse salt. The merchant also stated that no matter how much more fine salt Yang Rui had, he would buy it all at this price.

  For safety's sake, Yang Rui didn't reveal too much information and hastily returned overnight. On the way back, he was almost running because his feet were excited as if they had been stepping on cotton all the time. Yangjia Village is over a hundred miles away from Jimo County, and Yang Rui ran for a whole day and night without feeling tired at all. The only regret was that he only brought three catties of fine salt, if he had carried twenty or thirty catties on his back, this trip would not have been in vain.

  "One hundred and fifty-five!"

  The Yang family's eyes lit up.

  In the past, coarse salt could be sold for no more than five cents a catty!

  The price of refined salt is as much as thirty-one times that of coarse salt!

  The price difference is really too big!

  It's really hard to imagine!

  Excessive profit, absolute excessive profit!

  Thirty times the profit!

  Zhang Zhun was not very familiar with the price of private salt and did not know whether this price was high or low. However, 155 wen for one catty was already a completely different story from the previous rough salt which cost only three to four wen per catty. The difference in price was more than 100 wen! From now on, as long as the Yang family specialized in refining and selling refined salt, they could make a profit by taking the difference.

  To celebrate, Yang Rui brought back five kilograms of pork and other daily necessities from Jimo County. The price of each kilogram of pork was fifty cents, previously it would take at least ten kilograms of coarse salt to buy one kilogram of pork, now the price of one kilogram of fine salt is enough to buy three kilograms of pork. Yang Rui's purchase of pork this time was a pleasant experience. The last time the Yang family ate pork, it seemed like it was during the Chinese New Year, and each person only got a small piece of fatty meat.

  "Mother, don't deep-fry this pork!" Yang Rui Feng said.

  "Got it." Huang was also very happy.

  Authentic pork, she hasn't had it for a long time either.

  "Let's have white rice for lunch!" Yang Rui Feng said again.

  "Go! Genuine white rice!" Huang replied with equal delight.