Chapter 69: Salt Field
Jinsui knew that the white spots on the cactus were insects. She looked closer, wondering if they were scale insects or cochineal.
The former were pests, but the latter could be very useful.
Wild cochineal was an excellent thing, a natural pigment, perfect for lipstick, rouge, dyes, and paints.
Indeed, heaven favored her! These white spots were indeed cochineal insects!
Jinsui was overjoyed. She called five soldiers and taught them how to collect the cochineal insects. Once collected, they were to be sent back to the border city.
Then, they were to explore this area and mark down any place where wild cacti were found.
After hearing from the Prince what the insects were used for, everyone was surprised and delighted. Wei Assistant Secretary repeatedly praised the Prince’s vast knowledge.
Listening to all the flattery, Jinsui felt smug. It was true that those in power needed subordinates who were good at flattering them; they provided so much emotional value!
It was just that his teeth weren’t good, and he always spoke with a lisp.
Jinsui secretly made a note to help Wei Assistant Secretary cure his teeth once they returned to the city.
Walking a few dozen more miles, they discovered another good location. Although this land was also sandy soil covered with gravel,
it had grown a lot of wild grass. Where grass could grow, crops could be planted.
Jinsui first asked Wei Assistant Secretary why the Tuntian Soldiers had never thought of developing anything here.
Although Wei Assistant Secretary thought the Prince was too naive, he didn’t ignore her like Cheng Yu would have. He answered earnestly:
“We have few hands, and the land is barren. We can’t grow many drought-resistant crops. Even if we did, without anyone to guard them, they would be stolen.”
Jinsui pondered for a moment and then asked, “What about fruits and melons? This sandy land is very suitable for growing watermelons.”
Then she learned that farmland in this era had to be used for growing grain.
Only the Gentry were allowed to grow cash crops. If commoners wanted to grow them, they would be heavily taxed.
This was to prevent commoners from solely planting high-priced crops, leading to a sharp decline in grain production.
As for what the Tuntian Soldiers wanted to grow, unless Li King ordered the reclamation of experimental fields, or they could have a small vegetable garden. If they dared to plant large areas indiscriminately, the Government Office would also impose heavy penalties.
As for the watermelons Jinsui mentioned, they were called “cold melons” in this era and were considered extremely precious. Even minor Gentry and Rich Merchants couldn’t afford them.
They were exclusively for the Powerful People, and commoners had only heard of them, with few having even seen them.
Jinsui found it amusing. In this era, sugar and salt could be exchanged for ‘sports cars,’ and watermelons were exclusively for the Powerful People.
It was indeed necessary to conduct on-site investigations. If she hadn’t come to the seaside, how would she have known what could be grown in her fiefdom?
Look at this sandy land; it was born for growing watermelons!
In at most three years, this King will make it a special product of our border city, exclusive to the Powerful People!
Not only watermelons but also fennel, cumin, and fragrant willow could be grown with minimal human intervention. Just scatter seeds in spring, let the wind do its work, and harvest in autumn.
She had Wei Assistant Secretary record this and arrange for Tuntian Soldiers to purchase seeds from the common folk upon their return to the city.
Because the Prince had been observing and pointing out where roads should be built, where experimental fields could be established, and what crops were suitable for different areas along the way,
the journey was delayed. By the time they reached the seaside, it was already dusk. Wei Assistant Secretary set up camp with his men, while Jinsui took Hei Hu to inspect the beach.
Most natural beaches were rocky, densely covered with stones, with strong winds and waves crashing against the cliffs.
Jinsui noticed that Hei Hu and the others had an instinctive fear of the sea, watching the distant sea surface warily, as if giant fish might leap out at any moment to swallow them.
Jinsui wanted to walk along the seaside to see if she could find any seafood. Hei Hu, scared, tugged at her sleeve.
He said with a crying voice, “Your Highness, I can’t go into the sea today. Can we go tomorrow?”
Jinsui glanced at the shallow sea area, which only reached her calves, and chuckled:
“What’s the difference between today and tomorrow? Will your courage magically increase overnight?”
Hei Hu tugged at his new red and orange clothes and said very seriously:
“I’m wearing red clothes today. If I drown, I’ll become a vengeful spirit. Tomorrow, I’ll wear old clothes, and I won’t be afraid even if I drown.”
Jinsui: “…We won’t go into the sea, and we won’t turn into any kind of ghost, okay?”
She couldn’t help but burst into laughter. Wei Assistant Secretary provided emotional value, but Hei Hu was a source of joy.
Hei Hu felt embarrassed by her laughter and said with the courage of someone going to battle:
“I’ll go into the sea! I’ll catch a big fish for Your Highness.”
This time, Jinsui tugged at his clothes: “You really don’t need to. This King isn’t here to catch fish this time.”
This was the truth. She found a slightly flatter beach and had the soldiers clear the gravel, digging channels to introduce seawater like reclaiming farmland.
The moonlight was good tonight, so darkness wouldn’t hinder their work.
Time was tight and the task was heavy. They could only work overtime with the brothers. She had to dry a batch of sea salt to build assets before autumn arrived.
Wei Assistant Secretary and the others kept asking what the purpose of digging the pools was. Were they planning to grow seaweed? Raise fish and shrimp? Or perhaps build hot spring pools for sea bathing?
Jinsui grew impatient with their questions. It was too difficult to explain, so she decided they had to see the salt produced before they would understand. For every question answered, a hundred new ones arose.
With a dark expression, she said, “Can this King travel a hundred miles just to tease you? Just dig the fields, compact them, and lay the grass!”
Wei Assistant Secretary quickly smiled and said, “Everything Your Highness has done since arriving at the border city has been for the good of the border city. This subordinate knows you would never tease us.”
Except for Huo Zi’an, the Prince had never teased anyone else.
No one asked further questions. They divided into three shifts: one for eating and resting, one for digging, and one for finding dry grass nearby.
Jinsui took many energy bars and glucose from her space to supplement the soldiers’ meals. Upon tasting the longed-for brown sugar, Hei Hu led the charge with exceptional vigor.
They worked until the moon was high in the sky, its light reflecting on the sea, which rippled like a soft veil. A simple and crude salt field took shape.
Above was the filtration pool, connected below to a flat brine pool. Next to it was the compacted and leveled salt drying field.
Seawater was introduced into the filtration pool lined with dry grass. Jinsui was the first to take off her shoes and socks and jump in, instructing the soldiers to jump into the field and stomp on the water.
At first, everyone was reserved, stepping cautiously. But as Jinsui led the way, jumping and stomping back and forth, it felt like the joy of European maidens stomping grapes to make wine.
Suddenly, nearly a hundred soldiers joined her, jumping and laughing under the moonlight. Anyone passing by would have thought Li King was leading people in some evil god sacrifice.
Wei Assistant Secretary had a stomach full of questions but dared not ask, thinking to himself that it was just accompanying the Prince’s play.
The Prince’s life at the border was too monotonous. Seeing the sea for the first time, his youthful spirit wanted to play however he pleased, and they would accompany him.
Watching Jinsui inspect the pool, she said, “It’s almost ready.”
In any case, Wei Assistant Secretary couldn’t tell what was ‘almost ready.’ Could seawater, after being stomped in a grass pool, transform into something else?
After the filtered saltwater entered the brine pool, Jinsui initially wanted to use instruments from her space to check it. However, considering the future promotion of salt fields, she decided to teach them a more common inspection method.
She walked along the seaside searching for a shrub called Yellow Fish Grass. She didn’t have to search for long. She took a branch, peeled it, and threw it into the brine pool.
The branch sank the first time. She then had them add more seawater to the filtration pool and continue stomping the grass to filter it until the branch floated.
This indicated that the salt content in the brine pool had reached the standard, and only then was the saltwater moved to the salt drying field.
