Upon hearing Yang Peng's inquiry, Xue Yuanwai raised his hands and said: "Lord City Lord, as far as I know, there are no merchants in Cangzhou City who deal in mercury!" Yang Peng was a little disappointed and asked: "Then what should I do if I want a large amount of mercury?"
Mr. Xue stroked his beard and thought for a while, then said: "Your Excellency, you can buy cinnabar from the medicine store and then find someone to refine the mercury." "Looking for someone to refine the mercury? Who should I find?"
Xue Yuanwai talked and said: "I know a true Taoist priest. He has a pomegranate jar for refining mercury. I will introduce him to the Lord of the City!" Yang Peng replied: "It's all thanks to Xue Yuanwai's introduction!" Xue Yuanwai said: "This Taoist priest
My name is Cao Shoudao, and I live in Cangzhou City. If you want to see a live demonstration by a Taoist priest, why don't you come with me to the Taoist priest's home to find him!"
"Then let's go together!" Yang Peng led a few soldiers holding flags and banners, and rode horses with Xue Yuanwai to Cangzhou City. Yang Peng entered Cangzhou City and found that the Taoist priest's house was located in the west of the city.
The small courtyard he entered was quite elegantly decorated. When Yang Peng saw the courtyard, he felt that this was a true Taoist priest.
Xue Yuanwai patted the courtyard door, and a child with his head in a corner opened the courtyard door. Xue Yuanwai explained his purpose, and the child ran into the courtyard to report the news. After a while, a child wearing a Xiaoyao scarf and wearing a Buddhist robe
The Taoist priest arrived and welcomed the two of them into the courtyard. There was an alchemy furnace in the courtyard, and the side room was filled with large and small clay pots. It seemed that this was a Taoist priest who knew how to alchemy. The Taoist priest was tall and thin.
, with a long beard and a whisk stuck in his clothes. He didn't put on any airs. When he saw Yang Peng's outfit, he knelt down and saluted, and then stood up to speak.
"I am a Taoist from the Tianshi sect. My Taoist name is Cao Shoudao and my name is Lingxu Sanren. I have met you sir." Yang Peng asked kindly, "Does Taoist Cao know how to extract mercury?" "I know how to extract mercury using a pomegranate jar!
If you want to see it, Pindao can give a live demonstration!" "Then let me take a look!" Cao Shoudao led the two people into the house, took out a pottery jar, and said, "This is the pomegranate jar!"
Yang Peng nodded. Cao Shoudao took out a paper bag from a clay pot in the side room and opened it. Inside was a bag of cinnabar ground into powder. He filled the pomegranate jar with cinnabar powder until it was nine minutes full.
Then fill the jar neck with rice ash. Take out a tile cover that is the same size as the jar mouth, with a hole in the middle, and tie a crosshair on the tile lid with a thin wire, and tie it to the jar mouth.
Cao Shoudao turned the pomegranate jar upside down and inserted it on a "water jar" with the same hole diameter, a certain depth, and filled with water. The interface between the two was sealed, and then the two connected jars were hung.
Inside the "Danzao", the bottom and sides of the water jar are filled with soil, leaving only the pomegranate jar exposed above the soil surface.
The next step is to place a charcoal fire on the soil surface and bake it around and on the top of the pomegranate jar. The main component of cinnabar is mercury sulfide, which will decompose into sulfur and mercury vapor when heated. Mercury vapor is highly toxic, but Cao Shoudao
The device was sealed, and all the mercury vapor flowed into a tank filled with cold water below for cooling. Sure enough, not long after heating, liquid mercury appeared in the tank below.
Yang Peng was delighted when he saw the old Taoist priest refining mercury, and said, "Taoist Master Cao, I want to use a lot of mercury. How about you refine the mercury specifically for me from now on? I will give you four taels a month and three meals with meat."
When Cao Shoudao heard Yang Peng's words, he looked troubled and said, "Sir, Xiaodao is busy refining elixirs every day for the purpose of immortality. I'm afraid I can't refine mercury for you." Looking at Yang Peng's face, Cao Shoudao said
Said: "How about I sell this method of refining mercury to you for one hundred taels, and you can find someone else to operate it?"
Yang Peng looked at Cao Shoudao and felt that the Taoist priest was quite good at making money. He asked for one hundred taels. Yang Peng smiled and said, "One hundred taels is too expensive. The Taoist priest is cheaper." Cao Shoudao looked at Yang Peng.
Said: "This method of refining mercury can be regarded as a secret method of my master's sect, with many key details. My secret method is different from other methods. It can screen out impurities in cinnabar and extract pure mercury, which can also ensure the safety of the operator.
.If I sell it to you for one hundred taels, it is considered cheap. If it is any lower, I will be sorry to the sect's forefather."
It turns out that his secret method can also remove impurities from cinnabar, which is indeed more valuable. Seeing that what he said was true, Yang Peng stopped bargaining and said, "Then it's a hundred taels, I'll buy your method.
But you have to follow me to Tianjing New City and teach this method to my people until they can operate it independently."
Cao Shoudao said: "That's natural." After solving the source of mercury, Yang Peng bought some tin blocks in Cangzhou City and returned to Tianjing New City to start trial production of glass mirrors. Yang Peng found a few tin blocks and cut them into pieces.
Throw it into mercury. Tin is soluble in mercury, but the tin block will form a dense oxide film in the air. With this oxide film, the tin cannot dissolve into the mercury, so it must be cut. But Yang Peng
After waiting in the room for a while, I found that it dissolved very slowly.
At this dissolution rate at room temperature, it would take a long time for tin and mercury to fuse together, and Yang Peng couldn't wait any longer. Yang Peng simply put the mercury and tin cubes cut into small pieces into a small clay pot, and used a small fire in the yard to dissolve the mercury.
Heating. The boiling point of mercury is more than 300 degrees Celsius. The temperature heated by low fire is lower than 300 degrees. It only makes the mercury turn into a liquid state and does not make the mercury boil. However, mercury will also volatilize below the boiling point, and its vapor is highly toxic, so Yang Pengren
Go far.
When the mercury and tin melted, Yang Peng took a long breath, then walked over and put out the fire in the small stove. Yang Peng held his breath and stirred the liquid mercury and tin with a stick, and found that the two had dissolved into each other.
It became a tin amalgam alloy. Yang Peng held his breath for a while, then walked to a distance to get some air, and then came back to operate. After running back and forth ten times, Yang Peng found that the tin amalgam had cooled and solidified, becoming a pool of solid metal.
Yang Peng went to the glass workshop to get a piece of flat glass the size of a human face as a template for the mirror. He returned to the yard and heated and melted the tin amalgam alloy again. When the tin amalgam alloy turned into a liquid, Yang Peng found a handful
With a small brush, I brushed the tin amalgam alloy on one side of the flat glass while holding my breath, applying several thick layers.
Yang Peng had to go far away for ventilation every few times. It took Yang Peng a quarter of an hour to brush the glass that was as big as a human face. Then Yang Peng waited for the tin amalgam on the glass to solidify. After waiting for half an hour, the tin amalgam on the glass solidified.
It turned solid. Yang Peng raised the piece of glass and looked at it from the front, and saw his face clearly.
After coming to this world for so long, Yang Peng could see his own appearance clearly for the first time. The mirror was not as bright as the aluminum mirrors of later generations. It was a little dark, but it was enough to see his hair and skin color clearly. It was dark because it was similar to that of later generations.
Compared with the mirrors of this era, compared with the bronze mirrors of this era that can only roughly see the silhouette of people, it is more than a little better.
The mirror was considered a success. Yang Peng was in a good mood, and used a brush to apply several thick layers of tree paint as a protective layer on the tin amalgam coating on the back of the mirror. The mirror was considered completed. This glass mirror was made.
, Yang Peng sent it to Yang Tong first. Yang Tong was embroidering in the room. When he saw the glass mirror that Yang Peng brought over, he blinked as if he didn't believe it.
"Is there such a clear mirror in the world? You can really see the eyelashes clearly!" Yang Peng said: "I'm not cheating, right?" Yang Tong looked left and right in front of the mirror, never tired of it, and said: "So I
Born so pretty?" Yang Peng smiled and said: "My wife is the most beautiful!" Yang Tong was happy when he heard this, and actually blushed a little. He was embarrassed to look in the mirror again. After thinking about it, Yang Tong said
: "My husband is so awesome!"
Yang Tong smiled and said: "I gave you this small mirror, you can study it slowly! I will give you a big mirror after I make a big mirror." Yang Tong happily took the mirror and placed it carefully.
After completing the experiment on the table, Yang Tong began to organize manpower for mass production.
This glass mirror is an absolute luxury in this era. Yang Tong decided to sell it at a high price, so he naturally had to pay attention to confidentiality. Yang Tong decided to configure the raw materials of the mirror, smelting tin amalgam, and painting the mirror surface with tin amalgam and raw lacquer.
The protective layers are all separated, and each process is handed over to one person. In this way, even if someone bribes one or two workers, there is no way to know how the mirror is made.
Of course, Yang Peng also controlled the secret recipe from the source - only Yang Peng could produce transparent glass. Without large pieces of transparent glass, mirrors could not be produced. Yang Peng found five workers to produce mirrors. Yang Peng did not need such mirrors to produce a large output.
Gao, five people can produce 20 large and small mirrors a day, which is enough for Yang Peng to sell. Seeing the mirrors being produced by their own hands, the five workers gathered around the mirrors to look at them, and they were indescribably surprised. It turns out that there are so many mirrors in the world.
There was such a clear mirror that could see every hair. The workers were astonished to the Lord of the City and didn't understand how the Lord of the City could come up with such a brilliant idea.
The city lord must be Lu Ban who descended to earth, right? The city lord showed the produced mirror to his men for inspection. When Zhan Jinguo saw the mirror, his first reaction was to hide aside. "Brother, this is a magic trick, it put all my face in it."
!" Yang Peng spat: "What kind of magic, mirror, do you understand?"
Zhan Jinguo looked at it for a while longer and bared his teeth at the mirror. Yang Bamei looked at the mirror for a long time and praised: "Sir, this mirror is too clear. I finally know what I look like!"
Paifeng looked at the mirror and exclaimed: "The city lord is so powerful, he can produce such a mirror! It must be easy to sell!" Yang Jiumei looked at the mirror for a while and said: "Sir, this mirror is so good, I will give you a small one."
Let me do it." Yang Peng divided mirrors into three types. The first type is a small mirror as big as the palm of your hand. It is installed on the cover of a wooden box and can be carried around. It sells for 10 taels.
The second type is a mirror the size of a human face. You can see your entire face clearly in the mirror. The outside of the mirror is wrapped in a copper frame and sells for thirty taels. The third type is a dress mirror over one meter high. You can see it clearly in the mirror.
You can see your entire body clearly inside the mirror. The outside of the mirror is wrapped in a wooden frame and sells for one hundred and fifty taels. Of course, after you have finished the mirror, you must do a good job in marketing. Otherwise, it will be useless to sell the bare mirror in the store.
You need to know how long it will take for the product to be accepted by wealthy households and for customers to buy it. If you want customers to know about this new product, the best way is to let the top class of society make this product popular first.
On February 28, Yang Peng made thirty mirrors over one meter high and sent them to Bianjing City to present them to the officials. Emperor Zhao Heng of the Song Dynasty looked at himself in the mirror and said,
He didn't speak for a long time. In the smooth mirror, Zhao Heng saw his whole body. He could see clearly what his face looked like, what his nose looked like, what his mouth looked like, what his upper body looked like, and what his lower body looked like.
Even the beard on his chin can be seen clearly one by one.
After a long time, Zhao Heng took a breath and said: "It turns out that I look like this!" Wang Jin also looked at the mirror next to him and smiled: "It turns out that my slave looks like this!" Zhao Heng said: "Wang
Jin, today I know that you are not as good-looking as me!"
Wang Jin smiled and said: "How can a slave be prettier than the emperor? The emperor is the emperor and a human being for the people of the world!" Zhao Heng laughed loudly, turned around and looked at his back in the mirror. "It turns out.
This is what my back looks like!”
After looking at it for a long time, Zhao Heng sat back on the throne and said slowly: "This Yang Peng is really a skillful craftsman. He can actually make such a large mirror. I have only seen small mirrors trafficked from Xiyi. This is the first time I have seen such a mirror."
A big glass mirror. I heard that he also made soap. No wonder he can support more than 20,000 soldiers." Wang Jin said: "In the official family, this Yang Peng can fight and make new things. He is a talent.
." Zhao Heng smiled contemptuously and said: "It's a pity that he can't read and doesn't understand the learning of saints, so he can only be a craftsman and martial artist driven by others." Wang Jin said: "What the officials said is true, but
What a warrior!" "These domineering warriors are very difficult to control."
Zhao Heng took a breath and said: "But now, looking around, there is no one available. If I don't rely on these arrogant military attachés, who else can I rely on?" After a pause, Zhao Heng said harshly: "Ting Ping will be destroyed.
Sichuan thieves, I will deal with these domineering military attaches severely and let them know the price of being arrogant and breaking the law!" Wang Jin secretly felt that something was wrong when he saw the emperor saying such things to settle scores. Military attaches are not stupid.
, the military attache can also notice it. When the time comes, the military attache will have scruples in his heart, and the matter will be even more difficult to handle. But Wang Jin did not dare to explain, he only dared to raise his hand and say: "The official is a wise man!"
Zhao Heng raised his head and said: "This Yang Peng reassures me. I helped him get rid of Luo Zhen, and he gave me this valuable mirror to express his loyalty. How much does this mirror cost?" "According to the memorial.
It said, one hundred and fifty taels per side." "The thirty sides are four thousand five hundred taels. This Yang Peng is no better than Gao Huaide and his ilk. Now the war is raging, hundreds of officials are passing the blame, and the money is spent to find it.
There is less than one military officer who can fight. And this Yang Peng does not spend money from the court, he raises troops to drive the country, he can defend and fight. If our Song Dynasty has a few more generals like this, why worry about the injustice of the nine states?"
After thinking for a moment, Zhao Heng said: "Send one of these mirrors to each of the six pavilion elders, the six ministers, and the censor of Zuodu. The rest will be sent to the harem and given to the queen, the noble concubine, and several concubines."
"Wang Jin did the math and said: "In the official family, the Minister of War is empty, and there are only twelve ministers to send mirrors. Including the queen, the concubine and the nine concubines, there are still nine left!" Zhao Heng thought about it.
Thinking about it, he said: "I'll keep it in the Qianqing Palace. I'll check whether my clothes are in good order every day."
Wang Jin grinned and said: "Then there are eight noodles left, Your Majesty." Zhao Heng smiled and said: "Then I will give you one side and store the remaining seven noodles in the warehouse." This is what Wang Jin was waiting for.
After saying this, he knelt down with a smile and said, "Thank you so much, my servant!"
After Privy Councilor Cao Bin got the mirror given by the emperor, there was an endless stream of people coming to see the mirror. Cao Bin simply put the mirror in the lobby for all the guests to watch. On this day, Juzheng Xue also came to see the mirror given by the emperor.
As the assistant prime minister, Cao Bin had the highest power in the court, so he hurriedly led him to the main hall. In the main hall, Xu Nanzheng, the Minister of Rites, and the people talking, suddenly saw Xue Juzheng walking in with his hands behind his back. The two of them walked in.
He quickly stood up to greet Xue Juzheng.
Cao Bin pointed at Xue Juzheng and said with a smile: "Shou also came to see the dressing mirror!"
Cao Bin pointed behind him and said: "It's right there! Take a look and see for yourself!" Xue Juzheng walked to the mirror, looked left and right for a long time, and said with emotion: "What a mirror, even the hair can be seen. Live." In fifty-six years, this is the first time I know that my whole body looks like this!" Turning around and looking at Cao Bin, Xue Juzheng said: "The official has given you a treasure!"
Cao Bin came over and said proudly: "Is this the first time you have seen a mirror that reflects people so clearly?" There is a glass mirror, how can this be the first time I see it!" Cao Bin smiled and said to Xu Nan: "Shou is a wealthy gentry, and he bought a mirror from Xiyi a long time ago!" Xu Nan asked: "Shou is a wealthy gentry. How much does this mirror cost? The mirror I got from Xiyi probably costs a hundred taels!"
Qian Qianyi replied proudly: "Shen Ren gave it to me for free." Cao Bin said unhappily: "Shen Ren is very biased, why didn't he give me a pair?" Xue Juzheng smiled and excused Zheng Shenren: "Now that you have the dress mirror from Tianjing New City, what do you want from Shen Ren's Xiyi mirror?" Putting the mirror in his arms, Xue Juzheng said to Xu Nan: "This Yang Peng promoted by Han Bo is so energetic. First he beheaded Ma Shouying, and then he beheaded Ye Qi Hongguang. First he made a glass wine cup, and now he makes this big mirror worth a hundred gold. His ability can reach the sky!"
Xu Nan said: "This Yang Peng is a wise man. I promoted him single-handedly. Now that he is in Tianjing New City, I can be an official!" Xue Juzheng clicked his tongue a few times and spat: "You have found Aoyuan. !" Hehehe laughed, and Xue Juzheng said again: "Want to learn from Hou Bing and Gao Huaide? Is Yang Peng reliable?" Seeing Xue Juzheng talking about political affairs, Cao Bin said worriedly: "Accept it, I will observe it in the court. , you must be careful!" Cao Bin frowned and asked: "Let him go? If it happens, it will be bad."
Cao Bin and Xu Nan thought for a while and said one after another: "It's a great lesson!" At the attention of many people, the demand for glass mirrors gradually emerged. Yang Peng could sell more than a dozen mirrors every day in his shops in Beijing and Cangzhou. Although he could not sell out all the mirrors produced by Yang Peng, it also brought Li Zhi a A huge profit.
In March alone, Li Zhi sold 324 small mirrors, 137 large medium-sized mirrors, and 28 larger dressing mirrors. The best-selling ones were small mirrors, although they were only It's about the size of a palm, but it's cheap and can barely meet women's dressing needs. Far fewer people buy medium-sized mirrors. These days, thirty taels of silver can buy half a small yard, so they're willing to spend a lot for a medium-sized mirror. Thirty taels are still not many, after all, there are still only a limited number of rich families. And those who spend hundreds of dollars to buy dress mirrors are all wealthy and powerful businessmen. The twenty-eight customers who bought dress mirrors all sent their family members when they came to buy the mirrors. I came to buy it, and the family members who sent me were all cheering for me.
In March, the mirror brought Yang Peng 11,100 taels of profit, which was equivalent to the profit of the salt factory. It was very impressive. However, Yang Peng felt that the profit of the mirror should still increase. On this day, he was in Cangzhou The store in the city was thinking about how to increase the sales of mirrors, and saw Cha Yunke, the nephew of the governor Cha Dengbei, riding over with two servants.
When Zha Yunke saw Yang Peng, he jumped off his horse and said loudly: "I didn't find the city lord in Tianjing New City. It turns out that the city lord is here!" Now Zha Denbei has become the governor, and his relatives and family members have also followed the chickens and dogs to ascend to heaven, becoming an important figure in Cangzhou.
Although the governor's nephew does not have an official title, the business he runs is actually the business of the governor Cha Dengbei, and his influence exceeds that of ordinary officials. Yang Peng did not dare to neglect, and raised his hand and said: "Yang Peng came to Cangzhou City to take a look.
The store, I didn’t expect Mr. Cha to be running around!”
Zha Yunke smiled, walked to Yang Peng's shop and looked at the dress mirror again, took a look in front of the mirror, and said: "Your Majesty, this dress mirror is really a rare and good thing."
Li Yangpeng smiled and said: "Master Cha, do you want to buy one?" Cha Yunke said: "If you buy one, just buy one. I always look at myself!" Yang Peng was delighted with the business and was about to ask someone to help Cha Yunke.
While packing the mirror, he heard Cha Yunke say: "Mr. City Lord, I'm here to discuss business with you!" Yang Peng asked with a smile: "What business are you talking about?"
Cha Yunke said: "I will buy a thousand medium-sized mirrors from you this year and sell them to the Japanese country." The mirrors sold by Yang Peng are cheaper than Western mirrors, and the products are competitive in the Japanese country. Moreover, the Japanese country is rich in silver, and the prices are quite high.
, Cha Yunke used to make a profit selling mirrors.
Yang Peng was happy when he saw a big deal coming to his door, but he said calmly: "Master Cha, do you want so many mirrors?" Cha Yunke said, "Mr. City Lord, please set a price!" "Twenty-eight taels a piece.
, can’t be any less.” “The city lord lied to me, I made a thousand coins at a time, and you only gave me two taels less?”
Yang Peng smiled and said: "My mirror business is getting more and more popular. It is estimated that the price will increase in two months. Twenty-eight taels is not enough for you!"
Zha Yunke spat: "The city lord regards the future predictions as the current harvest! Use the predictions to negotiate the price with me." "Then how much did you say?" "Twenty-five taels, no more!" "Cha
Are you kidding me?" Yang Peng smiled and bargained with Cha Yunke for a long time, and finally decided to sell him a thousand medium-sized mirrors at a price of twenty-seven taels a piece. The business was settled, Yang Peng
But there is not so much inventory. Zha Yunke is not in a hurry, saying that he will not go to sea until June, so Yang Peng can prepare all the goods for him before June.
The next day, Zha Yunke shipped 20% of the goods, 5,400 taels, as a deposit. Yang Peng asked the five workers in the mirror workshop to stop the production of large coat and crown mirrors and concentrate on producing medium-sized mirrors.
If you want to know what happens next, let’s look at the breakdown in the next chapter.