Chapter 491: Saltpeter Ice
Tang Mingrui knew very well that the Mo family's corn seeds were to be sold to the government, and he only had one year to generate high profits.
Although corn tortillas are delicious, they are obviously not as profitable as dishes made with fresh corn.
He looked at He Zhiran: "Sister-in-law, do you have any tips on keeping corn fresh?"
In Tang Mingrui's impression, Jiu Sao is not only smart but also knowledgeable. Perhaps she can think of a good way to keep corn fresh.
When asked this question by Tang Mingrui, the first thing He Zhiran thought of was that fresh corn can be frozen.
The only way to freeze food in this season is to make ice.
It is no secret that people in the past used saltpeter to make ice. Many children do this in their experimental classes.
“Fresh corn can be kept frozen.”
Tang Mingrui...
Sister-in-law Jiu, it’s the same whether you said it or not.
Although the weather is not as hot as in summer, where can we get ice?
"If I had known this would happen, I would have asked someone to store some ice last winter. But now I'm afraid that's not possible." Tang Mingrui was obviously a little discouraged.
In his opinion, all the ice people use in summer is preserved in winter.
The temperature inside many caves is extremely low, so people store ice in such caves during the winter.
Not to mention that such a cold cave is not easy to find, transporting ice is also a huge project. Many wealthy families hire a large number of workers to carry out this work.
That’s not all. Although it’s cold inside the cave, it’s not as cold as in winter. Putting ice inside can only slow down the melting speed.
When using ice in the summer, it is good if half of the originally stored ice is left after removing the part that melts naturally.
Therefore, ice is very precious in Dashun during the summer and few people can afford it.
He Zhiran took in Tang Mingrui's lost expression.
She smiled and said, "Brother Tang, don't worry about the ice. You just need to find a bigger place. The bigger the better, big enough to store the fresh corn you eat."
Tang Mingrui was confused by what he said. It would be no problem to find a bigger place. The yard he bought at home was very big, and there were many spare rooms.
He just couldn't understand what Jiu Sao was trying to do. If he understood her literal meaning, Jiu Sao could get ice.
"Sister-in-law Jiu, what do you mean?"
"Just as you thought, I can get ice." He Zhiran was not very serious, but her tone inexplicably gave people a feeling that it could not be questioned.
Tang Mingrui was even more willing to believe it for no reason, and he stood up.
"Okay, I'll go back and arrange a bigger room."
As he was about to leave, he was stopped by He Zhiran.
"Don't worry, Brother Tang. I can make the ice in three days. The empty room you prepared needs to be sealed with mud on all sides. Except for the door, it must be airtight. Only in this way can the ice not melt easily."
Ancient times were different from modern times. The doors of cold storage could be made airtight. He Zhiran thought that the room should be sealed as much as possible. From now on, the weather will get cooler and cooler, so it shouldn't be a big problem to make the ice thicker. At most, she can provide more ice for replacement.
At most, it will last another three months, and the temperature in the northwest will drop below zero. By then, even without ice, fresh corn can be stored.
Tang Mingrui didn't know why He Zhiran asked him to seal the room with mud, but he just trusted him unconditionally.
"Don't worry, Sister Nine, I'll make arrangements right away."
As soon as Tang Mingrui left, Mo Jiuye asked He Zhiran in confusion.
"Ran Ran, where are you going to get ice?"
He Zhiran did not answer immediately, but pulled him back to the room and slipped into the space.
There is plenty of saltpeter on Taobao, and the price is very cheap.
After all, it was her first time operating it, and she only bought a small amount for experimentation.
Ever since he saw He Zhiran giving birth, Mo Jiuye felt more and more sorry for her. Even after she finished her confinement, he didn't want her to suffer at all. He even delivered footbath water to He Zhiran on time every day.
He Zhiran has also become accustomed to her husband's care. Since giving birth, she has gained a lot of weight because of Mo Jiuye's care.
She gained some weight, but it didn't affect her looks at all. She looked even more charming and beautiful.
It takes time to make ice from saltpeter. The couple was worried that someone would come looking for them, so they took the saltpeter and left the space.
They found several wooden basins of different sizes in their room, and Mo Jiuye followed He Zhiran's method.
In fact, it is not difficult to make ice with saltpeter. After following the method described by He Zhiran, Mo Jiuye was surprised to find that a thin layer of ice had formed on the water in the small wooden basin.
He said excitedly: "Ranran, come and see, we succeeded."
He Zhiran knew that success was inevitable as long as the right method was used.
But she was still very excited because this was the first time in her two lifetimes that she had used this method to make ice.
"Husband, by nightfall, this basin of water will probably be frozen."
"Ran Ran, you may not know how many people would be envious of having such a big piece of ice in this season."
He had been a study companion to Nan Qi in the palace since he was a child, and had witnessed with his own eyes two concubines of Emperor Shunwu fighting over a small piece of ice.
Although there are people in the palace who are responsible for storing ice, it still requires a lot of manpower and material resources.
There are very few ice cubes that can be stored until summer without melting. Therefore, even in the palace, ice cubes are very scarce in summer.
Moreover, they were all used by Emperor Shunwu, the Empress Dowager, the Empress, and several concubines of higher ranks.
Such a precious thing could be made by his Ran Ran with such a simple method, which really opened his eyes.
At first he thought He Zhiran was just trying it on a whim, but he didn't expect it to succeed so easily.
It was once said that He Zhiran had no talent for business. She was able to make money in ancient times entirely because of her knowledge from her previous life.
If she hadn't been trying to find a way to help Tang Mingrui store fresh corn today, she wouldn't have thought of using saltpeter to make ice.
"It seems that the Mo family has a new way to make money."
"If Ranran had figured out this ice-making method earlier, he would have made a lot of money in the summer.
But it's not too late now. As long as our ice-making method is kept secret, it will always be a way to make money."
Now when it comes to doing business and making money, Mo Jiuye can also talk about it clearly.
It can be said that the two of them gradually developed their business acumen due to changes in their living environment.
Especially He Zhiran, who has already come up with many ideas of using ice to make money.
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