"Your Majesty, please calm down!" Chen Qun saw that Cao Pi was displeased and said, "We have secretly sent people to Shu to find out how to make refined salt."
"That's great!" Cao Pi nodded with satisfaction and said, "Refined salt is related to people's livelihood. I, the Wei Dynasty, must master the method of making refined salt."
"What your Majesty said is absolutely true!"
Chen Qunying agreed, of course he knew the importance of the appearance of refined salt to Wei, Shu and Wu.
Cao Pi, the imperial commander who personally conquered Soochow, wanted the Shu Han's method of making refined salt. Sun Quan, the king of Wu who was in Wuchang City (today's Echeng, Hubei Province) at this time, also attached great importance to the emergence of refined salt.
However, Sun Quan's method was more tactful than Cao Pi's. In addition to secretly sending people to Shu to find out how to make refined salt, he also sent Zhang Wen to visit Chengdu again.
Two years ago, in 223 AD, Liu Bei, the first leader of the Shu Han Dynasty, died of illness in Baidi City. In the same year, the Prime Minister of the Shu Han Dynasty, Zhuge Liang, sent Zhonglang General Deng Zhi to Wu for repairs. Last year, Sun Quan also sent Fuyi Zhonglang General Zhang Wen to return to Chengdu.
A year later, Zhang Wen visited Chengdu again, and Liu Chan naturally knew his purpose.
"Your Majesty!"
Chen Zhen said: "Wei Chen thinks that Zhang Wen's trip must be for the refined salt of my great man."
Two days ago, Chen Zhen received news that Soochow sent envoy Zhang Wen to visit Chengdu again, and he brought a lot of things this time. It is said that he pulled more than thirty carriages.
He is very worried.
Because Han and Wu are now in an alliance, and envoys from the Allied Powers are visiting, as the emperor of the Han Dynasty, Liu Chan naturally wants to receive them in person.
Chen Zhen could guess the purpose of Zhang Wen's trip without even thinking about it. Zhang Wen must have come for refined salt.
Because a month ago, Liu Chan suddenly placed a cart of refined salt in front of Chen Zhen and told Chen Zhen that the big man had mastered the method of making refined salt.
Next, the Han Dynasty will mass-produce refined salt, and the people of the Han Dynasty will be able to use refined salt to cook food from now on.
Chen Zhen was a little confused at first, but when he tasted the food cooked with refined salt, he was completely shocked.
Salt is a daily necessity for human beings.
It is used basically every day. The salt that people used in the past was bitter salt.
But this refined salt no longer has a bitter taste, and the food cooked tastes delicious.
Chen Zhen was very excited.
The Han Dynasty mastered the method of making refined salt, which gave him an additional source of income. As the minister of the Han Dynasty, how could he be unhappy?
Of course he is happy.
As the Han Dynasty became richer and richer, the hope of reviving the Han Dynasty became greater and greater.
Chen Zhen actually had a premonition that people from Wei and Wu would soon go to Shu to buy this refined salt, but he didn't expect that Soochow would actually send Zhang Wen to visit Chengdu in the name of an envoy.
Is he here to buy salt?
Absolutely not.
He is here to buy the method of making refined salt.
Chen Zhen was an important minister of the Han Dynasty, so he naturally knew how important the production method of refined salt was to the Han Dynasty.
He was a little worried, worried that His Majesty the Emperor would sell the method of making refined salt to Soochow when he received the envoys of Soochow.
After all, Liu Chan is young.
So early this morning, Chen Zhen went into the palace to meet Liu Chan. He wanted to remind Liu Chan in advance.
"Your Majesty," Chen Zhen said: "If Zhang Wen wants to buy refined salt, will he sell it?"
"Sell!" Liu Chan said: "If you don't make money, you are a bastard."
Chen Zhen frowned and asked: "What if he wants to buy the method of making refined salt?"
Liu Chan laughed when he heard this and said: "Then it depends on how much money they are willing to pay in Soochow."
Hiss——
Chen Zhen was immediately startled and thought that fortunately I had the foresight, so he deliberately asked: "How much does your Majesty think it can be sold for?"
Liu Chan sneered secretly. He had guessed Chen Zhen's thoughts a long time ago. Anyone with a little bit of brains in this matter knows that this unique production method is priceless.
Liu Chan pretended to be confused and asked: "Ai Qing, do you think half a million plants are feasible?"
"???"
Chen Zhen's eyes widened immediately, and he almost lost his temper.
Seeing Chen Zhen's expression changed drastically, Liu Chan secretly rejoiced that he had deliberately misreported the numbers.
Now is the Three Kingdoms era.
Currency is very confusing. The silver coins in costume movies and TV dramas are not popular in this era. The currencies of the three kingdoms of Wei, Shu and Wu are also different.
Although the Han Dynasty's five-baht coin circulates in the Three Kingdoms, after decades of melee, the value of the currency is not very high.
For example, soon after Cao Pi became emperor, he abolished the five-baht coin and replaced it with the original trading model of barter.
Although five-baht coins are still circulating in Soochow and Shu-Han, the five-baht coins they circulate are also different.
The currency circulating in the Shu Han Dynasty was the direct currency minted by the first lord Liu Bei after he entered Shu, following Liu Ba's suggestion, in order to enrich the treasury.
The weight of a plain coin is equal to four Eastern Han Dynasty five-baht coins, but it needs to be exchanged for one hundred five-baht coins.
Currency is not of high value in this era.
Liu Chan deliberately quoted a price at random, just to see Chen Zhen's reaction.
Chen Zhen was extremely shocked when Liu Chan reported the price. He already knew that his worries were not unnecessary, so he said:
"Your Majesty, only my Han family owns the production of this refined salt. This production method is a priceless treasure. No matter how much money Soochow offers, Your Majesty cannot sell it."
"Why?" Liu Chan asked deliberately.
Chen Zhen replied: "As long as the production method is in the hands of our Han Dynasty, whether it is Soochow or Cao Wei, if they want refined salt, they can only keep buying it from our Han Dynasty."
"In this way, the wealth of Wei and Wu will continue to flow into the treasury of our Han Dynasty."
Seeing Chen Zhen's sincere words and serious appearance, Liu Chan was quite moved.
"Oh!" Liu Chan said gratefully after hearing this: "Thank you, Aiqing, for reminding me in time. I have decided that I will not sell this refined salt production method no matter how much money you give me."
"Your Majesty is wise!"
Chen Zhen breathed a long sigh of relief. Liu Chan was too young and needed reminders from veterans like them.
At the same time, he was also a little relieved. Although His Majesty the Emperor is young, fortunately he is not an idiot. As long as he is reminded in time, he can understand the truth.
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It's just that he doesn't know.
Liu Chan is deliberately pretending to be stupid.
Two days later——
Zhang Wen, the envoy of Soochow, came to Chengdu.
Liu Chan did not receive him immediately, but in accordance with the wishes of Chen Zhen, the minister ordered them to meet the Soochow envoy first to confirm his intention.
After two days of negotiations, Chen Zhen and other important officials of the Han Dynasty already knew Zhang Wen’s intention.
Buy salt.
For two days, Zhang Wen said nothing about the production method of refined salt that Soochow wanted to buy. He only said that he went to Chengdu to buy refined salt on the order of Sun Quan, King of Wu.
Zhang Wen didn't mention it, so Chen Zhen and the others couldn't take the initiative to ask. So the two sides stayed polite for two days, and finally decided to let Zhang Wen meet the Han Emperor Liu Chan three days later.
However, on the first day of meeting Zhang Wen, Chen Zhen came into the palace again to remind Liu Chan.
Because he knew that although Zhang Wen had never mentioned a word in the past few days, the purpose of his trip was to purchase Liu Chan's method of making refined salt.
But Chen Zhen didn’t believe it.
If it were him instead.
He would not have told Liu Chan’s ministers all about his intention before meeting Liu Chan, if he was really that idiotic.
He is not qualified to serve as an envoy.
The next morning.
Inside Chengdu Guanyi.
Zhang Wen didn't sleep much all night, and his trip to Sichuan was of great significance to him.
He came to Chengdu a year ago.
That was for the restoration of Wu and Shu, and he completed his mission perfectly.
What surprised him was...
After returning to the Kingdom of Wu, King Wu Sun Quan was not satisfied with him for praising the Shu Han Dynasty.
This time King Wu sent him to Shu again, and Zhang Wen understood that this was King Sun Quan giving him a chance.
If he cannot complete the tasks assigned to him by Sun Quan during this trip, I am afraid it will be difficult for him to gain a foothold in the Soochow court.
But he was lucky.
Zhuge Liang, the prime minister of the Shu Han Dynasty, was still fighting the rebellion in Nanzhong at this time. He was not in Chengdu.
If Zhuge Liang were in Chengdu, Zhang Wen asked himself that it would be basically impossible to complete his task.
……
……
This chapter has been completed!