Chapter 69 Salt Fields
Jin Sui knew that the white spots on the cactus were insects. She looked closely and wondered if it was a white shield scale or a cochineal insect?
The former are pests, but the latter are very useful.
Wild cochineal is a very good natural pigment, and is top quality for making lipstick, rouge, dyes and pigments.
As expected, God bless us. These little white bugs are actually cochineal insects! Jin Sui was overjoyed and called five soldiers to teach them how to collect cochineal insects. After they were collected, they were sent back to the border town.
Then explore the area, taking note of any wild cacti you find.
After hearing the prince explain the uses of the insect, everyone was pleasantly surprised. Wei Zhubo repeatedly praised the prince for his broad knowledge.
Jinsui was very pleased after hearing all the nice words. It turned out that those in a high position always have a subordinate who knows how to flatter them. They can provide so much emotional value!
It's just that his teeth are in bad condition and he always has a lisp when he speaks.
Jin Sui secretly made a note that he would help Wei Zhubo fix his teeth after returning to the city.
After walking a few dozen miles further, we found another good place. Although this land was also sandy and covered with gravel.
But there are a lot of weeds growing there, and as long as there is weed, we can grow things.
Jin Sui first asked Wei Zhubo why the Tuntian soldiers had never thought of coming here to do anything. Although Wei Zhubo felt that the prince was too naive, he would not ignore it like Cheng Yu did, and answered seriously:
"With so few people and poor land, we can't grow any drought-resistant crops. Even if we grow crops, they will be stolen if no one is watching over them."
Jin Sui pondered for a moment and asked, "What kind of melons and fruits? This sandy land is very suitable for growing watermelons."
Then she realized that in this era, fields must be used to grow crops.
Only the gentry could grow economic crops. If common people wanted to grow them, they would be fined and pay heavy taxes.
This is to prevent people from planting high-priced crops in a rush, resulting in a sharp drop in grain production.
As for what the soldiers wanted to plant, they could either open up experimental fields or build a small vegetable garden if the King of Li ordered them to do so. If they dared to plant on a large scale, the government would impose severe penalties.
As for the watermelon mentioned by Jinsui, it was called cold melon in that era. It was the most precious thing among precious things, and neither small nobles nor wealthy businessmen could eat it.
It is only for the powerful and wealthy, and common people have only heard of it and few have seen it.
Jin Sui just found it funny. In this era, sugar and salt can be exchanged for a sports car, while watermelon is only for the rich and powerful.
As expected, she needed to conduct an on-site investigation. If she didn't make this trip to the seaside, how would she know what was suitable to grow on the land?
Look at this piece of sandy soil, it is specially made for growing watermelons! In three years at most, I will let that powerful person have it exclusively, and it will become a specialty of my border town!
Not only can you grow watermelons, but you can also grow fennel, cumin, and willow, all without any human intervention. Just scatter a handful of seeds in the spring, plant them facing the wind, and harvest them in the fall.
She asked Wei Zhubo to write it down, and after returning to the city, she asked the soldiers to buy seeds from the people.
Because the prince walked and looked along the way, and pointed out where roads should be built, where experimental fields could be used, and where it was suitable to grow what crops.
The trip was delayed for some time, and it was almost dusk when they arrived at the beach. Wei Zhubo led his men to set up camp, while Jinsui took Heihu to inspect the beach.
Most natural beaches are rocky beaches, covered with rocks, with strong winds and waves beating against the cliffs.
Jinsui discovered that Heihu and the others had an instinctive fear of the sea. They looked at the sea in the distance with vigilance, as if a giant fish would jump out and swallow them at any time.
Jin Sui wanted to walk to the beach to see if she could pick up any seafood, but Hei Hu was so scared that he pulled her sleeve tightly.
She cried, "My Lord, I can't go to the sea today. Can we go tomorrow?"
Jin Sui took a look at the shallow sea area that only reached his calf, and laughed: "What's the difference between today and tomorrow? Can your courage grow fat overnight?"
Hei Hu pulled at his new red and orange clothes and said seriously:
"I am wearing red clothes today. If I drown, I will turn into a vicious ghost. Tomorrow I will wear old clothes. I am not afraid of drowning."
Jin Sui: "...I won't go into the sea anymore. I won't change anything."
I couldn't help but burst out laughing. Wei Zhubo provided emotional value, and Heihu was the happy pill.
Black Tiger felt embarrassed by her laughter, and said with the courage to kill an enemy:
"I'm going to the sea! I'm going to catch a big fish for the prince."
This time it was Jin Sui who pulled his clothes: "No need, I'm not here to catch fish this time."
This was true. She found a slightly flatter beach and asked the soldiers to clear the rubble and dig ditches to bring in sea water like they were cultivating farmland.
The moonlight is good tonight, and darkness will not affect the work.
Time is tight and the task is heavy, so she can only lead her brothers to work late at night. She must dry a batch of sea salt as assets before autumn.
Wei Zhubo and others kept asking what they were going to do with the pond. Were they going to grow seaweed? Raise fish and shrimp? It couldn't be a hot spring pool for sea bathing, right?
Jinsui became impatient with the questions, it was really difficult to explain, the only way was to let them see the salt with their own eyes. Explaining one question would lead to a hundred new ones.
She said with a dark face: "Can I run a hundred miles to entertain you? Just dig the fields, tamp them, and lay the grass!"
Wei Zhubo hurriedly said with a smile: "Since your Highness came to the border town, everything you have done has been for the good of the border town. Of course, I know that you will not make fun of people."
Apart from Huo Zian, the prince has never entertained anyone else.
Everyone stopped asking questions and divided into three shifts: one shift to eat and rest, one shift to dig, and one shift to look for hay nearby.
Jinsui took out a lot of energy bars and glucose from the space to serve as snacks for the soldiers. After eating the brown sugar they had been craving for, Heihu took the lead and worked particularly hard.
We worked until the moon was at its highest point in the sky. The moonlight was reflected on the sea, and the water was rippling like a piece of soft gauze. A very simple and rough salt field was formed.
The top is the filtration pool, the bottom is connected to the flat brine pool, and next to it is the flat salt field.
The seawater was introduced into the filtration pool covered with hay. Jinsui took off his shoes and socks first and jumped in, and then asked the soldiers to jump into the fields and step on the water.
At the beginning, everyone was very reserved and stepped on the water one step at a time, but as Jinsui took the lead, jumping back and forth to step on the water, they felt the joy of European girls stepping on grapes to make wine.
Suddenly, nearly a hundred soldiers joined her, dancing and laughing in the moonlight. Anyone passing by would have thought that the King of Li was leading his men to perform some kind of evil sacrifice.
Wei Zhubo had a lot to say but didn't dare to ask any questions. He thought to himself that he was just playing with the prince.
The prince's life at the border was too boring. It was his first time seeing the sea. With a young heart, he wanted to have fun with us.
Looking at Jin Sui checking the pool, he said, "It's almost done."
Anyway, Wei Zhubo didn't see what was "almost" done. If the seawater was put into the hay pond and stepped on, could it turn into something else?
When the filtered salt water entered the brine pool, Jin Sui originally wanted to use the instruments in the space to check it, but thinking about promoting the salt fields in the future, he still had to teach everyone more common inspection methods.
She then searched along the beach for a shrub called yellow croaker. It didn't take her too long before she took a branch, peeled it, and threw it into the brine pool.
The first time the branch sank, she had someone put more sea water into the filter pool, and then stepped on the grass to filter it until the branch floated up.
This indicates that the salt content in the brine pool meets the standard, and only then is the brine put into the salt drying field.
(End of this chapter)
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