It’s Langya Port again…
Jing stood here again, looking at the twenty large ships lying across the port with some emotion.
"Jing, hurry up and board the ship!"
The soldiers were busy carrying items to the ship, including grain, vegetables, and beans.
Beans are used to grow bean sprouts. Generally speaking, there is no shortage of food when sailing on a ship. Water and vegetables are relatively scarce. Food is easy to store, and there is no shortage of meat. The crew members who board the ship are all very good at water, and fishing is not a problem. It's not too difficult, only vegetables can't be dealt with.
Making the beans and sprouting them was what Zhao Si had instructed in advance.
Jing glanced at the ground beneath his feet again, then climbed onto the boat along the rope ladder.
This trip to sea is not too sensational. There is no way. There are only 17 ships that came back. It is impossible to build a large number of ships in a short time. The three extra ships were scrapped and scrapped. They are a bit smaller. I guess The quality is also a bit worse.
There were no longer a few people boarding the ship to go to sea. There were crew members, a large number of Yin Yang family disciples, craftsmen, and accompanying soldiers.
Because there are many people and few boats, it is impossible to complete the journey in one go.
According to Jing's plan, it should be divided into two batches.
First bring a group of people to deal with Xu Fu who is stranded in Fusang, and then the Yin-Yang family disciples and crew members will get supplies on the spot in Fusang and start exploring the open sea.
The remaining ships began to travel between Fusang and Daqin to carry out offshore development work.
There are only six ships reserved for exploring the distant seas. They will travel around the world according to the planned routes. Whenever there are tribes gathering or there is a civilization that can communicate, they will negotiate with the other party and put down five or six crew members. Then mark it on the chart.
As for the ships, they will only stop temporarily to obtain supplies and then continue sailing.
In the end, the six sea ships will probably return to Daqin within three to five years, and then continue to follow the sailing route and start the second round of exploration around the world. According to the chart markings, they will pick up the crew members who were stranded in various places. Replace them with new crew members and retract the previously summarized information to form a cycle.
And Jing's mission is very critical. He cannot stay on land. What he has to do is to lead the fleet back safely. If it cannot return safely, it means that a large number of crew members stranded in various places will lose contact with Daqin.
What he carries is not just his own life and glory.
"Until today, I didn't know what my brother was carrying!" Jing Yi stood on the deck, wearing a brocade robe, looking at the magnificent sea.
After drifting on the sea for an unknown amount of time, he returned to the land where he was born and raised. Now, carrying the will of the Holy One and the lives of countless people, he is about to embark on a journey again.
"Jing!"
A crew member trotted over and reported to Jing the status of the people boarding the ship.
After confirming that the head count was correct, Jing stood on the deck and gave orders.
The drums beat in response, the sails were raised, and the black water dragon flag was rolled with the refreshing sea breeze.
"set sail!"
Jing looked at the boundless sea and shouted.
Last time, he followed Zhao Si across the ocean, but this time, he was going to set off alone.
Twenty sea ships swayed slightly and headed towards the sea.
"Xu Fu..." A smile flashed across Jing's face.
"Great Qin! I'm here to investigate!"
"Brother!"
Jing took one last look at the land. The soldiers of the Qin Dynasty guarding the port on the shore gradually turned into black spots as the distance became farther and farther. The coast also continued to lengthen and lengthen, and finally became a line, and finally disappeared into the sea. In the curtain of the sky.
"I will definitely come back!" Jing clenched his fists to make himself less nervous.
He... is obviously just a little boy.
But he was lucky enough to be admitted to the sect of Zou Feng, and became his disciple. He could even become the deputy general of this ocean voyage, and he had great power.
Although he is the deputy general, he is fully responsible for sea navigation. At sea, everyone must obey his orders.
Jing was very nervous. He had never shouldered such a big responsibility before, and he didn't even know how he should respond.
When the poor suddenly became rich and suddenly gained power, Jingcai realized that he was really bad. He didn't know how to command all this. However, Zhao Si, many years ago, had led his men to seize the ship and go to sea, and led the crew across the sea to return to Qin.
"Then at this time, you might as well think about what the brothers would do!"
Jing took a deep breath.
…
and the other side
All along the coast...
Daqin is now frantically expanding its salt drying sites and increasing its salt production capacity.
After all, if you can’t eat salt and can’t afford it, how can you have endless salt?
What's more, salt has always been one of Daqin's main economic sources and it is profitable. How could it not increase production?
You can doubt all kinds of things about Da Qin, but never doubt Da Qin's execution ability. This is to build the Chi Road all over the world, connect the Great Wall together, and even build a Chi Road directly from Xianyang to Shangjun in order to attack the Xiongnu.
Since the salt-drying method was judged to be feasible, the matter fell into the hands of the young master.
This department of the Young Master General was originally the empire's money bag and production center. When it was profitable, it would spend money to work like crazy. Now the salt fields opened in coastal areas can no longer be calculated by acres, but by damn hectares. .
An endless supply of salt began to be gradually produced.
Unfortunately, due to disputes in the court, the First Emperor decided to lower the price of salt, and profits dropped a lot.
Originally, the official price of a liter of salt fluctuated around 200 yuan, which varied slightly from place to place. It fluctuated around 100 yuan depending on transportation costs.
For example, in coastal areas, the price of salt is generally around 130 yuan.
Of course, this is official salt.
The price of private salt will be even lower. The price of private salt in coastal areas is about 100 yuan.
As for the money, of course it was Qin Banliang.
The purchasing power of Qin Banliang is not comparable to that of later generations of copper coins. This is mainly due to the fact that this era is the Bronze Age. Copper is needed in a large number of weapons, armors and various places where metal is used. Therefore, there is very little copper that can be used to make money. Because the currency is serious Insufficient, so the purchasing power of copper coins is not comparable to that of later generations.
It may seem like a hundred yuan to buy a liter of salt, but in this era, one stone of chestnuts cost just over fifty yuan, and one bushel of millet only cost three copper coins.
When Liu Bang was in poverty, he relied entirely on friends to support him. Most of his friends only gave him three Qin Banliang. Only Xiao He gave him five Qin Banliang, which Liu Bang would remember for a lifetime.
It is conceivable how scarce money is in this era. Copper is not much cheaper than silver in this era. A bronze Qin sword weighing several kilograms can be priced according to copper, and can buy several stones of fine grain.
Nowadays, with the advent of salt drying technology, the manufacturing cost of salt has been greatly reduced and the output has been greatly increased. After intense discussions, it was determined that the price reduction would be about 50%.
Originally, the official average price in various places was 200 yuan, but now the official average price is 100 yuan.
There is no way, the transportation cost and labor cost are real, and they cannot be reduced much further. The general's house is ready to risk their lives, and Meng Yi does not dare to say any more.
Of course, 100 yen is just the average price. The shipping price in coastal areas like Qidi will be even lower, about 60 yen per bucket, which is the price of buying one stone of chestnuts.
The average salt price has been directly reduced by more than half, which is even lower than the price of private salt without tax.
Most importantly, the quality is better too!
Nowadays... with the advent of salt drying technology, a large amount of cheap and high-quality salt is continuously produced. The quality is better than before, and the price is cheaper than private salt. The first batch of table salt has begun to be put into the market in coastal areas. There is also a large amount of sea salt that is walking into the center.
Generally speaking, people's response is often slow.
Therefore, the first people to learn about the large-scale drop in salt prices were the nobles.
There is no way, the government has not publicized it at all, and people in coastal areas are used to buying private salt.
"Father! Something bad is happening!"
A young man burst into the house in a panic.
Inside, a middle-aged man with a slightly white beard is spreading ink on a piece of silk in front of the table.
His son's reckless behavior disrupted Cui Min's mood, so much so that his brush trembled slightly, and a painting was completely wasted.
Cui Min frowned and looked at his unlucky son Cui Jing.
"You are not young, so you should know how to nourish your Qi. How many times have I told you, don't panic when something happens, don't panic, just concentrate your Qi! Do you know..."
"Dad! No, something really bad is going to happen this time!" Cui Jing smiled bitterly and raised his head.
"The price of salt has dropped!"
Cui Min frowned: "Is the official salt reduced or the private salt reduced?"
"It's official salt. Now in nearby areas, a dou of official salt only costs 63 yuan!"
Although Cui Jing's voice softened, every word was so solid and powerful.
The writing brush in Cui Min's hand fell on the desk, and the fingers that were holding it trembled slightly.
"Sixty dollars a dou? Is Zhao Zheng crazy?"
The Cui family is a real noble in Qi State, with royal blood in them. Cui, Tian, Lu, Gao, Guo and Qing, the Cui family is also ranked among the top.
The Cui family lived in the Langya area and had mastered the salt selling business from a long time ago. So far, they have accumulated an unknown amount of wealth.
Later, the Qin Dynasty destroyed the six kingdoms, implemented the policy of Shanhaiguan, and controlled the salt industry. Many of the Cui family's salt fields were forcibly purchased and taken away.
However, the Cui family has a big business after all, with wealth accumulated over countless generations, as well as technology and production workers. Therefore, they quickly set up a private salt farm secretly, colluded with the local nobles, bribed local officials, and continued to sell salt. .
The Qin State incorporated prices into taxes, that is, the price of taxes was directly put into the price of salt, so the price of salt would be much higher. The private salt produced by the Cui family did not need to pay taxes. In addition, it would last for hundreds of years. A noble family with hundreds of years of salt-making craftsmanship, it is well-known in the local area.
Therefore, after the Qin State took away a large number of the Cui family's salt farms, the Cui family's income did not actually drop much.
As for private salt, you never have to worry about selling it. Who doesn’t want to eat cheap salt?
But what if... the official salt becomes cheap salt instead?
"Sixty dollars? Is this salt edible? What's the quality of this batch of official salt? Do you want to find out?" Cui Min looked at his son Cui Jing.
"Dad, I brought it back..." After saying that, Cui Jing took out a bundle from his arms.
"Better than ours..." Cui Jing said cautiously.
Cui Min crushed the slightly rough salt grains in her hands, the expression on her face kept changing.
After a long time, I looked up at the sky. For a moment, I seemed to have aged a lot.
"Zhao Zheng, a maid, is trying to destroy the roots of our Cui family!"
(no more)
(End of chapter)
