Salt!
In the world before Qin He traveled through, salt was already so cheap that every household could easily consume it.
But this was not the case in the Daqian Dynasty.
Things are more valuable when they are scarce. The salt in this world mainly comes from rock salt and sea salt. The output is already scarce, and there are no means of finishing. Therefore, even low-quality coarse salt is very expensive in the market and difficult for ordinary people to enjoy.
As for the fine white salt, it is a tribute item, and most people have never seen it in their entire lives.
There is a large salt drying field in southern Xinjiang that is close to the sea. To prevent nuisance from pirates, the salt drying field is guarded by soldiers.
It is a pity that all the salt produced in southern Xinjiang is transported to the capital by land and supplied to high-ranking officials, and not a single salt can make it into the jobs of ordinary people.
The bricklayers who build houses cannot afford to buy a house, and the salt workers who dry the salt cannot afford salt. The world may always be so absurd.
But there is no doubt that this is a way to make money.
Everyone knows the truth, but where does this salt come from?
Going to the heavily guarded sea salt field to sell salt is a narrow escape, and making your own sea salt is even more pointless - because it is close to the coast, and most of the people under its rule are descendants of exiled criminals, so the southern Xinjiang government has the tightest grip on the private production and sale of sea salt. Once discovered, , can be killed on the spot.
However, Qinhe is not prepared to take the Haiyan route.
In his previous life, there was a salt farm near his home. In order to save money, the school organized spring outings for students to visit the salt farm.
At that time, Qin He could not have imagined that this cheap and boring experience would profoundly affect his destiny in the future.
Therefore, the saying that knowledge changes destiny is really true!
But to start his salt production plan, Qin He still needs a helper.
In the evening.
Xu Gang returned home with a jar of wine and half a chicken, only to find that Qin He was already waiting for him in the yard.
"Brother Qin?"
Xu Gang's eyes widened and he said happily.
"I wanted to call you, but I didn't expect you to come first. Come on, come on, have a taste of this rice wine!"
Qin He didn't rush to talk, he just took out all his money and laid them out in a row.
"Brother Qin, what do you mean?" Xu Gang was confused.
"I have a big plan to make a fortune. I'm short of some capital right now, so I want to help you get it together." Qin He didn't hide it either.
Unexpectedly, Xu Gang chuckled, took out a handful of copper coins from his arms, went back into the house, took out a bag, and poured out all the money he had saved.
"If Brother Qin is short of money, just tell him. Why do we brothers talk about such gossip?"
Xu Gang thought Qin He had found an excuse to ask for money from him, he laughed.
"If it hadn't been for your loyalty, Brother Qin, and not leaving me behind when the quarry collapsed, how would I still be alive to drink and eat meat now?"
Qin He was indeed a worthless scoundrel in the past. The only virtue in his gloomy life was loyalty, but this also allowed him to get acquainted with Xu Gang, a good brother.
So when Qin He had the opportunity to make a fortune, the first thing he thought of was the trustworthy Xu Gang.
"I'm not asking you for money," Qin He explained, "I'm asking you to buy shares and let us all get rich together!"
"What is investment?"
Qin He was stunned for a moment, then reluctantly explained: "We will contribute money and efforts together, and we will share the money together after we make it!"
"Business partnership?" Xu Gang frowned and waved his hands repeatedly, "No way, we are untouchables and can't read. How can we sign contracts and do business with those merchants!"
He has a weak mind and is often deceived by evil businessmen, so he is resistant and afraid of doing business.
Qin He comforted him: "We are not going to the market to set up a stall, but to get some private salt to sell."
Xu Gang was even more shocked by these words. Although the two of them had done a lot of deception and abduction in the past, illicit sex was a fool's errand after all.
"Qin, Brother Qin, you, you are going to steal salt from the salt farm?" Xu Gang stammered and asked.
Qin He shook his head: "No, we make our own salt."
"Make salt by yourself?" Xu Gang blinked, obviously not expecting that his loyal brother could also make salt.
Qin He hesitated for a long time, but finally told his plan: "There is a bitter pond to the east, do you know?"
"I know, I know!" Xu Gang chuckled, "The water in Kutan is so bitter that you can't even catch a single fish in it. Brother Qin, why are you carrying it?"
"I plan to use Kutan water to make salt. Now I need to buy several large pots, set up two earthen stoves, and need a strong man to carry water with me."
Qin He said seriously.
"Xu Gang, this is a good opportunity for us to turn around! Just imagine, even if you are stronger than others, if you always make a living by moving sheep, how many more years can you live?"
Xu Gang was silent. He was slow-minded, but he was not a fool.
When he was rushing to move the sheep this morning, the men with sallow faces and skinny muscles already made him palpitate.
Xu Gang's father was a northern barbarian. He was stronger than Xu Gang, but he never lived past the age of forty in southern Xinjiang...
On the day his father died, Xu Gang stayed by the bedside, watching helplessly as his father covered his heart with force, cried out in pain, and vomited black blood. He struggled for several hours before finally dying.
People living at the bottom have long been numb to all kinds of tragedies, but this is not because they do not want to escape from the never-ending quagmire, but because they lack an opportunity to escape.
Now, the opportunity came to Xu Gang.
"Brother Qin, I'll do it with you!" Xu Gang gritted his teeth.
He didn't want to die helpless like his father, nor did he want his future son to live on the streets like him.
Just do it.
Qin He put all the money into his pocket, and then prepared to buy salt-making equipment.
As for Xu Gang, Qin He told him to go to Kutan to fetch water while it was dark.
They could only do this at night, but Kutan had to pass through an uninhabited swamp area along the way, which was extremely dangerous at night.
"Be careful." Qin He patted Xu Gang's shoulder.
The two of them split up.
At this point, the market has long been closed, but a ruffian like Qin He naturally has his own way. The pockmarked Liu I met earlier secretly poured iron weapons at home.
When Qin He arrived at the door of his house, the sky was already filled with stars.
Slam the door hard.
"Brother Qin, what are you doing?" The pock-faced Liu who opened the door was a little surprised and a little wary.
He knew that the big guy Xu Gang had been following Qin He, and if the two of them wanted to take advantage of him, he wouldn't be able to stop them.
Qin He chuckled: "I'm here to take a look at your goods and take care of your business."
The pockmarked Liu was even more confused. After looking around to confirm that Qin He was the only one, he turned sideways and let him in.
Seeing Qin He actually taking out the money, Pockmarked Liu finally woke up from his surprise.
"I want an iron pot, don't be too rusty, and get me some good bricks." Qin He said.
After hearing this, Pockmarked Liu said with a playful smile: "They say that a man's temperament changes when he has a woman. It seems that the old saying is indeed true!"
Qin He was startled.
Pockmarked Six then joked: "When you lived alone, you didn't even bother to repair the broken walls. Now that you have a woman, you actually want to buy a pot and set up a stove. Hey, it seems that woman must have made you very comfortable!"
Qin He was originally worried that Pockmarked Six would doubt why he bought these things. Unexpectedly, the other party made up a reason for him first and immediately laughed.
"Brother Qin, you can choose whatever you want." Pockmarked Liu said with a smile.
