Daming Yuanfu

Chapter 348 Mother and Son Discuss Business (Part [-])
Breaking up, watering, muddying, pouring, pressing...the briquettes can be easily made into shapes one by one.

Of course, it is not usable yet and must be air-dried.But since Gao Wushi wanted to show it to Mrs. Zhang, it would be too time-consuming to wait for it to dry, so he lit a fire and put a circle of briquettes beside it, and asked the servants to turn the briquettes from time to time.

The water vapor rose up, and a circle of briquettes was baked in a short time. Gao Yushi ordered people to bring two samples of coal stoves brought back from the capital, lit the briquettes and put them in, and then ordered people to bring two mouthfuls of water Put the iron pan on it.

The vent at the bottom of the coal stove was opened, and after a while, the cold water in the iron pot boiled.

"So fast?" Mrs. Zhang was very surprised: "This is much faster than burning firewood... How long can these two briquettes burn?"

Gao Wushi smiled and said: "I brought two sample coal stoves, one with two briquettes, one with three briquettes, and now this one is with two briquettes. In fact, how long it takes to burn depends on how it burns. If the vents are opened to the maximum, the two briquettes can be burned for about two hours, but if they are not opened so wide, they can be burned for almost one night at the longest."

"You mixed so much muddy water in your coal, so it burned for a longer time?" Mrs. Zhang couldn't understand it, and asked doubtfully, "What's the reason?"

Gao Wushi smiled and said: "The muddy water is not added to make it burn for a long time, it's just for shaping. The long time of burning mainly depends on the design of this coal stove... This question is more troublesome to explain. Anyway, as long as you know, the faster the ventilation, the faster the burner will be." The quicker it is, the better the fire will be."

Oxygen supports combustion, heat energy loss, etc., of course, even children in later generations will understand, but it is more troublesome to explain to the ancients, because this is a matter of worldview. The ancients did not know things like the periodic table of elements, so they are pragmatic and straightforward. Choose not to explain.

Fortunately, Mrs. Zhang also knew that her eldest son was a child prodigy since he was a child, and he was valued by his third uncle, so he personally gave pointers. Since he said that it was troublesome to explain, it must be really troublesome, but Mrs. Zhang actually understands the phenomenon that ventilation makes the fire flourish—— Although she comes from a wealthy family, she is not incapable of cooking herself.

The stoves used in kitchens in this day and age used firewood, and of course she used them. That kind of stove also had an opening for putting firewood in, and there was a piece of iron on it as a "door". The opening and closing of this door can also affect the firepower.Not to mention that you can also use a cattail fan to make the firepower stronger.

So the reasoning is interlinked. Although Mrs. Zhang doesn't know what oxygen supports combustion, she knows how to use it, and it's not difficult to understand.

Mrs. Zhang nodded, then turned around and said a few words to the two maids she had brought, called the two stewards, and gave some instructions. Pass.

Mrs. Zhang saw Gao Yushi's doubts, and said with a smile: "The two of them came from Puzhou half a year ago for my mother, to do some work like an accountant."

Gao Wushi asked, "What did Mother want them to do just now?"

Zhang said: "Calculate how much cost can be saved after making briquettes with the same amount of coal." She explained: "This is the most critical thing. Only when the cost is calculated clearly can the next thing be handled easily."

Gao Wushi laughed: "Since the eldest uncle, the Zhang family has successfully entered the officialdom. Unexpectedly, my mother's ability in business has not declined in the slightest."

Mrs. Zhang glared at him, and said: "It is true that people go to high places, but they must not forget their roots. The Zhang family was not a noble family, just merchants, but the lotus came from the mud, and the plum fragrance came from the bitter cold. How can you forget the original business of the Zhang family? You are the same, Gao Jiawen and Fan Chuanjia. You are now studying the way of merchants. Although it is also a move to consolidate the family business for my sixth room, you must not forget your business. Especially, You still have the status of the prince's accompanying student, so don't make mistakes in this small test when you go back to the hometown, otherwise... how many people will lose face because of this?"

Gao Wushi smiled confidently, and said: "As long as the county lord, mansion lord and master don't intentionally make things difficult, there must be no serious problem."

Mrs. Zhang was a little surprised by Gao's pragmatic attitude, stared at him for a while, and then said: "It's good for you to have confidence, but you still shouldn't be careless. I think your uncle was also a famous talent in Puzhou before the small test, but he still He studied day and night, not daring to slack off in the slightest, but even so, he did not go to the Maocai examination until he was 14. Although my son is talented and bright, after all, he is only nine years old, and he is five years earlier than your uncle, how can he be negligent? "

After all, Gao Yushi is a person who has received a lot of Western-style education in his previous life, and he emphasizes self-confidence, but he also knows that Daming's ethos is different. Some, otherwise it will be regarded as madness, so I nodded and said yes.

Seeing him like this, Mrs. Zhang put away her serious expression, thought for a while, and said: "Well... as for the county and government officials, you don't have to worry, as long as your article is okay, at least they won't make things difficult on purpose you."

Gao Wushi didn't speak immediately, but just looked at Mrs. Zhang, waiting for her to explain.

Mrs. Zhang smiled slightly, and said, "Let's talk in the room." After saying that, he turned around and went to the back room first.

Gao Wushi roughly guessed something, didn't say much, and followed his mother into the house.

After sitting down, Mrs. Zhang waved her hands to let the servants go out first, and then said: "The soap used by the Kaifeng government office and Xinzheng county government office is provided at half price."

Gao Wushi laughed.

Mrs. Zhang glared at him, feigned anger and said, "What are you laughing at?"

"My son thought it was a free gift." Gao Wushi laughed unbearably.

Mrs. Zhang said dissatisfiedly: "All kinds of business can be done in the world, but you can't do business at a loss. You didn't tell Wei Niang how much the soap cost. Wei Niang thinks that supplying it at half price may already cost a lot of money, even though they use it well. In fact, it can’t be counted as a lot, but business is business, although these two businesses are special, they can’t lose too much.”

Gao Wushi laughed again, and said: "My mother doesn't know, the amount that my son promised to donate to the imperial palace every year is not much less than the amount received by the whole Henan Province, and all those contributions, my son is Not a penny."

Mrs. Zhang was taken aback, her face paled, and she sat up straight: "Isn't that a big loss? You...you have so much money to fill in?"

She looked anxious and said angrily: "It's not good to do business with the palace, and you can't even get back the capital! But don't worry, if you can't, just tell your uncle, he is generous, you just need to study Well read, and he sure isn't afraid to spend money on you."

Huh, this sentence contains a lot of information.

But Gao Wushi laughed again, and said cheerfully: "Mother, don't think that your son will lose money if you give away all these goods for nothing. You have to settle two accounts: one is that after I deliver these goods, I can get them back." What's the benefit; another account is how much the cost of my soap is."

　Thanks to the book friend "fengjiyue" for the reward, thank you!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)