Author: March

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 have good water quality, 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 something 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 was not too sensational. There was no way, only seventeen ships came back. It was impossible to build a large number of ships in a short period of time. The three extra ships were scrapped and scrapped. They were 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 the crew 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. They will follow the chart markings to pick up the crew members who were stranded in various places.

Replace them with new crew members and retrieve 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 home safely. If he cannot return home 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 and wealth.

"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 where the sky meets.

"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 navigation at sea. Everyone at sea must obey his orders.

Jing was very nervous. He had never shouldered such a big responsibility. 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 will 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. It built the Chi Road all over the world, connected the Great Wall together, and even built 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 general.

This department of the Young Master General was originally the money bag and production center of the empire. When it was profitable, it would spend money and work like crazy. Now the salt fields opened in the 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 is 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 needed. 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 cannot be compared with 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 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 will remember for his whole life.

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, transportation costs and labor costs are real, and they cannot be reduced much further. The general's office 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 reduced by more than half, which is even lower than the price of private salt without tax.

The most important thing is that the quality is also better!

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 on the market in coastal areas.

There is also a large amount of sea salt that is walking down the river into the center.

Generally speaking, people's response is often slow.

Therefore, the first to learn of 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 accustomed to buying private salt.

"Father! Something bad is happening!"

A young man broke into the house in a panic.

Inside, a middle-aged man with a slightly white beard was spreading ink on a piece of silk in front of the desk.

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?"
To be continued...