The reason why Zheng Yinhong was willing to fully assist Li Zexuan in opening up the tea plantation, other than being driven by profit, was because he felt Li Zexuan's sincerity.
He had interacted with many officials in Jiangnan and Chang 'an, but Li Zexuan was the first official to talk business with him as an equal. This moved Zheng Yinhong and gave him a good impression of Li Zexuan.
Looking at Cao Wendong and the others' attitude towards Li Zexuan, it wasn't hard to understand why Zheng Yinhong swore loyalty to Li Zexuan and would never betray Li Zexuan.
If the ruler treats me like a country knight, I will repay him like a country knight. The scholar-officials were willing to die for those who knew them well. Zheng Yinhong, who had always kept his promises, was also willing to pledge his loyalty to Li Zexuan, who treated him like a national scholar!
It was true that businessmen valued profit, but the businessmen of this era also yearned for recognition. Li Zexuan's sincerity and Li Zexuan's equal treatment were the most important factors that moved Zheng Yinhong.
To be loyal to such a superior, Zheng Yinhong felt that as long as Li Zexuan didn't fall, the Zheng family would prosper forever.
At the same time, the news that Li Zexuan had a magical tea leaf and a magical tea brewing method silently spread. After all, there was no such thing as a wall that didn't have a crack.
Some of the civil and military officials close to Li Zexuan took a break from their busy lives and went to Yunshan to find Li Zexuan to drink tea.
Fang Xuanling, Zhangsun Wuji, Qin Qiong, Cheng Yaojin, Li Jing, Li Ji, Yuchi Jingde, and the others were basically in groups of three to five. They said they were visiting Yanhuang College, but their real purpose was to drink tea. In the end, when Mr. Li Gang saw that his tea leaves were getting less and less, he couldn't help but reprimand this group of "shameless" old men. Only then did the wave of civil and military officials visit Yunshan was slightly reduced.
However, Li Zexuan was "bleeding profusely." After those old fellows tasted the deliciousness of the Celestial Tea, they all asked him for tea leaves. However, he didn't have much in stock. But these old officials treated him well, so he couldn't refuse. In the end, he could only send a small box of tea leaves from door to door!
Yes, it was a small box. Li Zexuan custom-made a small wooden box. One box could be drunk about ten times. Although it was a little stingy, it was the limit of what he could do. If he had to blame something, he could only blame the taste of the Immortal Tea.
Think about it. Even old drunkards like Wang Ji and Cheng Yaojin liked to drink tea. How could the taste be bad?
It was a pity that Wei Zheng was far away in Henan Province. Otherwise, this old troll would definitely come to ask for tea leaves.
Li Zexuan, who didn't have much in stock, only hoped that Zheng Yinhong could quickly send a batch of stir-fried Immortal Tea to Chang 'an.
Yes, he also taught Zheng Yinhong how to stir-fry the Immortal Tea. Jiangnan Province was nearly a thousand miles away from Chang 'an. If fresh tea leaves were to be transported to Chang' an and then processed, the transportation cost would be too high. Therefore, Li Zexuan asked Zheng Yinhong to pick, stir-fry, and process the tea leaves on the spot. When the time came, the finished product would be directly sent to Chang 'an.
…
Early in the morning, Li Zexuan had just finished his sword practice and was about to go to Yanhuang College. However, at the gate of the college, he met someone he didn't expect to see.
"San Bao?"
Li Zexuan looked at the disheveled, dirty, and ragged 'beggar' in front of him. Seeing that the beggar's face was very familiar, Li Zexuan thought seriously for a moment before he suddenly cried out in surprise!
"Young master! San Bao is back! San Bao is finally back! Woo woo! "
San Bao looked at Li Zexuan in a daze. Seeing that Li Zexuan recognized him, he immediately knelt on the ground and hugged Li Zexuan's thigh, crying and wailing.
The few soldiers behind him also quickly knelt down. These people were sent by Li Zexuan to follow San Bao to search for ores.
"Get up! Get up quickly! What happened to you? Didn't I send you to Sichuan to search for ores? Why are you in such a sorry state? "
San Bao's "miserable" cries alarmed the people in the courtyard. Han Yuxi and Lan 'er came out one after another. The guards outside the courtyard, Pang Feiji, Liu Feng, Liu Yun, and the other guards also looked over. Li Zexuan quickly pulled San Bao up from the ground and asked.
It would have been better if he didn't ask. The moment he asked, San Bao cried even harder. With snot and tears, he said, "Young master, San Bao is back. San Bao almost couldn't make it back, but San Bao found a vanadium mine for you!"
Li Zexuan could feel the sadness from San Bao's words, so he quickly asked, "Why did you almost not make it back? Did someone in Sichuan make things difficult for you? "
At this point, Li Zexuan's tone became very unfriendly. Someone actually dared to bully the people he sent out. Wasn't this a slap to his face?
San Bao slightly controlled his emotions and replied, "Young master, we found the vanadium mine on a mountain in Feng Province, but we were caught by a group of people from the Qiang tribe. They said that we offended their sacred mountain and wanted to kill us. Later, we revealed our identities and met the leader of the Qiang tribe. He asked us why we were digging for ores on the sacred mountain. I told him the truth and said that I was helping you find the vanadium mine, but he didn't believe me. He said that he had never heard of a vanadium mine on the mountain and wanted to kill us.
Later, the local county magistrate came with people in time and saved our lives. However, the Qiang tribe didn't allow us to take the ore away from the mountain. Later, we took advantage of the darkness to steal a few pieces of ore, but we were discovered by the Qiang tribe. They sent people to chase us all the way until we left Yueyang County. At that time, we completely got rid of them, but at that time, we lost all our travel expenses and fishing talismans. We could only beg along the way and relied on the help of a few kind-hearted people to finally make it back! "
Li Zexuan was silent for a while after hearing this. He had expected that there might be some twists and turns in this trip. Although the Sichuan region had long been included in the political system of the Central Plains Dynasty, due to the geographical isolation and distance from the political center, and the fact that there were many Di, Qiang, Man, Liao, and other ethnic groups in the Sichuan region and around the basin, the land of Sichuan had become the "border" of the dynasty. There were many noble clans and tribes, and the various forces were also tangled and complicated.
Therefore, he had previously told San Bao to try his best not to have any conflicts with the local forces. However, he didn't expect San Bao to be in such a miserable state, almost starving to death on the way!
After a moment of silence, Li Zexuan patted San Bao's shoulder and said, "San Bao, you've suffered! Don't worry, I'll help you get back at the Qiang tribe for all the grievances you've suffered! "
"Yes, yes!"
San Bao nodded vigorously, then he scratched his head and said, "Young … Young Master, is there anything to eat? San Bao is hungry … "
The few soldiers behind him also rubbed their stomachs and looked at Li Zexuan with an embarrassed expression.
Li Zexuan hurriedly ordered, "Xiao He, quick! Go get some food and drinks for San Bao and the others! "
"Yes! Young Master! "
Xiao He hurriedly ran into the house.
Li Zexuan said to San Bao, "San Bao, and the rest of you, come in and sit down to eat and drink slowly! You've all worked hard along the way! "
"Yes! Young Master! "
"Yes! Marquis! "
…
After a while, Xiao He and Xiao Xi brought in a bowl of freshly cooked noodles and a large bowl of chopped green onion and egg soup. This was commonly known as minced meat noodles!
Each of them had a bowl of noodles and some minced meat on top. San Bao and the rest sat on the stone table in the courtyard and wolfed down the noodles!
"Ah! San Bao, eat slowly, no one is going to snatch it from you. Don't choke! "
It was Lan 'er's first time seeing someone wolfing down food like that. She was shocked and hurriedly tried to persuade him, which was rare of her.
"Oh! Thank you for your concern, San Bao won't choke! "
San Bao replied to Lan 'er as he ate. In his heart, he was thinking that it was better to choke to death than starve to death. He hadn't eaten such delicious noodles in a long time!
"Lan 'er, don't disturb them!"
Li Zexuan patted Lan 'er's head and said softly.
Although he had many questions to ask San Bao, he knew that now was not the time to ask. It was more important to let San Bao and the rest eat their fill first.
"Oh!"
Lan 'er nodded and stood for a while before going out to play. This little girl wasn't the type to stay idle!
After more than 15 minutes, San Bao and the rest finally put down their bowls and chopsticks. The few of them had actually finished the bowl of noodles and minced meat. They were like reincarnated hungry ghosts!
"Burp!"
San Bao and the rest burped and stood up from the stone bench. They bowed to Li Zexuan and said,
"Thank you, Young Master!"
"Thank you, Marquis!"
Li Zexuan waved his hand and said, "Mm, all of you can go back. Wash up and have a good rest. I will reward you later! San Bao, stay! "
The few soldiers quickly bowed and said, "Yes! Marquis! "
With that, they left.
Li Zexuan looked at San Bao and asked, "San Bao, you said that the local Qiang people see the mine as a sacred mountain. Why is that?"
San Bao thought for a while and replied, "Young Master, I think I heard a farmer mention this before. That mountain is called the Lan Family Volcano. It is said that this mountain can attract soldiers from all over the world. As long as someone passes by it with a sword, he or she will feel that the sword is being pulled by some kind of force. Later on, people think that this mountain has the power of the gods and won't let anyone go up it!"
"Lan Family Volcano?"
Li Zexuan frowned. He suddenly felt that this name was somewhat familiar. He quickly searched for relevant information in his mind. A moment later, his eyes widened as he said in disbelief, "You're saying that the mountain is called the Lan Clan's Volcano? Is there a mountain called the Sharp Mountain next to it? "
San Bao was stunned and looked at Li Zexuan as if he was looking at a god. She said, "Young Master, how did you know that there is a Sharp Mountain next to it? You are really amazing! There is indeed a Sharp Mountain next to the Lan Family Volcano, but San Bao hasn't gone up there yet! "
Li Zexuan's face was filled with excitement. He said, "That's great! That's great! "
He could basically conclude that the place that San Bao and the rest went to was the modern day Si Chuan Panzhihua. The Lan Family Volcano and the Sharp Mountain were the largest natural vanadium titanium magnetite mine in the modern day! In the twenty-first century, other than the United States, which extracted vanadium from potassium, vanadium, and uranium ore, the other major vanadium producing countries extracted vanadium from vanadium titanium magnetite!
San Bao and the rest had really found a treasure this time!
The local Qiang people mistook this mountain for a Divine Mountain. Li Zexuan thought that this was ridiculous because the magnetite in vanadium titanium magnetite was very strong. It was normal for it to attract iron swords. It had nothing to do with Divine Force at all!
"Oh, right! Young Master, these are the ores that we stole from there. We dropped a lot of them when we were running for our lives. There are only two left! "
San Bao took out two fist-sized dark gray stones from his clothes and handed them to Li Zexuan.
Li Zexuan took the stones. From their appearance, they looked like iron ores. However, upon closer inspection, the color of the stones was slightly lighter than iron ores. They were also slightly lighter than iron ores.
After observing for a while, Li Zexuan looked at San Bao and said, "If I let you lead the way, can you still remember the way?"
San Bao nodded and said, "Yes! Yes! Young Master, don't worry. San Bao definitely knows the way! "
Li Zexuan nodded and said, "Mm! Then you can go and rest first! You did a good job this time. I will definitely reward you handsomely! "
San Bao revealed his "bootlicker nature" and said, "Hehe! It is San Bao's honor to be able to help Young Master. San Bao doesn't dare to ask for a reward! "
Li Zexuan smiled and said, "Oh? If that's the case, then I will fulfill your wish and not reward you! "
"Huh?"
The smile on San Bao's face suddenly disappeared and was replaced with a sad face. He said pitifully, "Young Master … San Bao just …"
"Haha! Alright, alright! You should go back and rest! As for the reward you deserve, this young master will definitely not give you a single copper coin less! "
Li Zexuan laughed and said.
Han Yuxi and the rest also smiled.
San Bao scratched his head and realized that Li Zexuan was just teasing him. He was not angry. Instead, he smiled and bowed. "San Bao thanks Young Master!"
Li Zexuan nodded and said something to his wife before leaving with the Vanadium Titanium Magnetite.
…
"Mr. Wang, please come with me for a while!"
After arriving at the Academy, Li Zexuan went to the Chemistry Department's office and found Wang Ji.
"Oh! Yamachō! I'll be right there! "
Wang Ji was memorizing the "Yanhuang College's Confidentiality Regulations." When he heard Wang Ji, he quickly put down the booklet and followed Li Zexuan out of the office.
Speaking of which, whether it was the students or the teachers in the Academy, they would take out the Academy's "Confidentiality Regulations" and madly memorize them whenever they were free. After all, this week's Confidentiality Examination was of great importance to everyone, and no one would not take it lightly.
"Yamachō, why are you looking for me?"
Wang Ji followed Li Zexuan into the meeting room and asked eagerly.
He was in a hurry!
Li Zexuan took out the Vanadium Titanium Magnetite and smiled. "Mr. Wang, the people I sent out have found the Vanadium Titanium Magnetite. The most important thing now is to verify if there is Vanadium in it!"
"What? Found the Vanadium Titanium Magnetite? Then what are we waiting for, Yamachō? Let's go straight to the workshop! "
Wang Ji was pleasantly surprised. Li Zexuan had told him that Vanadium Pentoxide was an important catalyst in the process of producing sulfuric acid. Now that they had the Vanadium Titanium Ore, it meant that the workshop could finally produce sulfuric acid on a large scale!
…
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
