The next day, Xu Chen led a group of Mongolian hunters to inspect the salt mine.
The road was difficult to walk, and we were all walking through primeval forests, and there were towering ancient trees. The dense forest that blocked the sky was filled with the smell of decay accumulated over hundreds of millions of years.
It happened to be the time when spring was warm and flowers were blooming. The dense forest was full of exotic flowers and plants in full bloom, as well as a large number of wild birds and beasts of all sizes that were difficult to see elsewhere. Xu Chen was full of novelty along the way.
A group of people walked and played all the way, chasing and shooting some wild birds and beasts. Of course, Xu Chen would also investigate the road construction plan along the way. Although most of the people were riding horses, the speed was actually very slow because there were tangled trees everywhere.
An ancient vine cannot get up quickly even if it wants to.
Two hours later, a group of people arrived at the salt mine area.
The valley where the battle with the barbarians began has changed greatly.
In addition to the simple wooden house that Xu Chen presided over the construction here at the beginning, there were several more wooden houses and pergolas, but they looked much sturdier, and there were many rattan baskets, stones, hoeing, firewood and other tools piled inside.
The salt mine has now been dug beyond recognition, and it has turned into a big pit.
A large amount of soil, sand and gravel came out of the cleaning and panning and were piled around indiscriminately.
A group of barbarians were digging salt in rattan baskets, looking busy as they came and went.
Hearing the long-lost sound of horns and the neighing of horses, a group of barbarians all stopped what they were doing and looked into the mountains and forests, with many of them looking frightened on their faces.
This horn sound was their nightmare. In the winter before last, it was this horn that brought a group of ferocious foreigners, who beat them to a complete defeat. The tribe suffered heavy casualties. Nearly half of the men were killed, and many were left with disabilities.
They died one after another shortly thereafter.
But they simply couldn't resist.
Because those foreigners wearing leather armor are not only fierce, but also have magical abilities. They have taught them to build houses and drill wood to make fire. As long as they obediently help dig for salt, they will not only ensure their survival, but also get various pottery.
Animal skins and even linen and grain.
But when a group of people came out of the woods on horseback holding two large flags, all the savages were stunned.
The people who came this time were even more terrifying. They were all riding tall beasts.
Moreover, the leather armor and clothes on their bodies are more sophisticated, and many of them have various strange weapons hanging on their waists, just like aliens.
"Oh~~"
Some people screamed in fear and wanted to run away.
"Run away, die!"
There was a Mongolian officer on horseback, drawing a golden sword and shouting.
Suddenly, all the barbarians were so frightened that they squatted on the ground or even lay directly on the ground, holding their heads and not daring to move.
Some people recognized Xu Chen in their panic.
It was this young man who gave them food, taught them how to make fire, and communicated with them. This prevented the Mongols from killing them all and left a large number of women, children, and children behind.
"Put the knife away, why are you trying to scare them?"
Xu Chen turned over and dismounted with a smile.
The other hunters also dismounted, and the burly Mongolian officer put away his long knife and said quickly: "These barbarians are bad, lazy at work, and like to steal food!"
Xu Chen smiled and said nothing, but walked to the salt pond.
The three salt ponds that were hastily built now look small and broken, but they are already filled with salt water. Especially in the largest salt pond at the bottom, a layer of snow-white salt particles can be clearly seen at the bottom of the pond. It looks like
Salt water saturation is very high.
Next to the salt pond, there is a row of stones, with rattan baskets specially used for collecting and storing salt. Several of the rattan baskets have already contained a lot of white salt, which can be used in pottery after drying.
The cans and linen bags were packed and transported to the Mongolians, who then transported them to the Yugong clan.
This kind of exchange usually occurs once a month, and the Mongolian people are responsible for it.
There are seven or eight Mongolian hunters supervising and guarding here all year round. First, they supervise these barbarians to dig and make salt. In addition, they also help them drive away wild animals and hunt for prey. These hunters usually rotate once a month.
Although it was very hard work, the profits were huge. Xu Chen used the salt in exchange for pottery, linen, copperware, etc. that were urgently needed by the Mongolian people.
Just like salt, the Mongolian people have accumulated a lot of wealth in just over a year, and have almost become the richest tribe in the Yugong tribe. Many tribes are willing to intermarry with the Mongolian people. On the Mother's Day in the spring of last year
, the Mongolian tribe became the only tribe in the Yu Gong Alliance with a net population growth. Seven or eight young and strong men were married, which greatly improved the strength of the tribe.
In addition, they also completely got rid of the grudges and feuds with this group of southern barbarians. The tribes no longer had wars, and their production and life settled down immediately, and they began to build houses and cultivate and develop rapidly.
Everyone in Xuchen's Mongolian family is very grateful, so they manage the salt mine very seriously, so that the excavated salt is constantly transported out.
However, due to technical reasons, the output of salt has not been very high, only three to four hundred kilograms a month. Coupled with transportation difficulties, transportation is also very slow and difficult, resulting in a severe shortage of salt. Dozens of tribes have only
The Ba tribe can be satisfied, while other tribes are allocated very small quotas every month.
This has also made salt a commodity that has always been traded among various tribes. Whenever it is delivered to the Lei Tribe and Ba Tribe, it will soon be snapped up by some neighboring tribes.
Especially the two large tribes, the Wu tribe and the Gonghuo tribe, have gradually emerged from their survival crisis in the past year. In addition, the fish and pickles pickled in salt can be preserved for a long time and are full of flavor, which is also a disguised stimulus.
The huge demand for salt is completely in short supply.
However, this salt brine area is not very large, and the method of collecting and making salt is primitive and simple. It is impossible to achieve high yields, so we can only dig slowly.
He came here for inspection this time to see if there was any way to increase salt production.
As the agricultural area becomes larger and larger, plant foods gradually become the main food of various tribes, and salt supplements must keep up.
Not to mention complete satisfaction, at least basic supply must be ensured.
Therefore, the mining scale of this small salt pond must be further expanded.
In addition, with the continuous excavation of salt mines, the previous kind of rock salt crystals will become less and less, and most of them can only be saturated and precipitated to make salt by washing the salty sediment in salt ponds.
Eventually, this salt brine area will be completely dug up and turned into a salt well, and the actual output by then is still unknown.
After all, this salt brine area has been here for thousands of years to reach such a small scale. The scale of this salt well should not be too big. In order to meet the increasing demand, more salt mines need to be found.
OK.
Xu Chen spent a whole day in the salt mine. In addition to guiding the expansion of new salt ponds, he also formulated a new salt mining plan.
At sunset in the evening, Mo led a group of hunters back from hunting in the nearby forest and brought back seven or eight wild beasts of all sizes. A group of barbarian women and children carefully helped to collect firewood and light the bonfire, and grilled the skinned and disemboweled beasts on the bonfire.
In addition, some people put minced meat and bones into earthen pots and stew them on simple small stoves.
A year later, these barbarians have changed a lot. In addition to having enough animal skins and linen clothes to cover their bodies, they have also learned to make fire and cook skillfully. They can also understand and use simple language with Xu Chen and others.
When Xu Chen and others saw him for the first time, his appearance was completely different.
At that time, in Xu Chen's opinion, these people were no different from real savages. They could neither make fire nor build houses. Most of them did not wear clothes at all, and did not even speak a language. They dug in the woods.
To survive in a cave, what you really live is to live like a beast by eating hair and drinking blood.
However, this change came about only after a bloody massacre.
Judging from their words and deeds, in addition to fear and awe, there was also a trace of hatred. Although this hatred was hidden deeply and carefully, Xu Chen could still see it, but he just didn't dare to resist.
Xu Chen didn't take this sentiment too seriously.
Because something like hatred will gradually disappear as time goes by.
This group of barbarians currently only has more than a dozen men, and most of them are old, weak, sick, and disabled, so there is no room for resistance.
And he could also see that this time he came with a group of hunters on horseback, which once again created a new kind of shock to these barbarians and brought them more fear.
Two older barbarian women and several young girls distributed food to everyone.
Xu Chen was sitting by the campfire joking with a few hunters. He looked at the food carefully placed in front of him in pottery bowls and plates. His face was slightly startled, and then he reached out and grabbed the thin black hand of a girl.
The girl trembled with fright and struggled to break away in horror.
The two older women scolded the girl loudly, and all the savages turned their heads to look over. A group of hunters sitting around looked at Xu Chen in surprise.
As far as they know, His Majesty the Witch King is not a womanizer and has never mated with women from any tribe. His only crush is Ye, whom the Ba tribe lives with day and night, but they do not mate like other men and women.
These savage women are dark, short, ugly, and dirty. Even the Mongols never touch them.
Could it be that His Majesty the Witch King’s hobbies are different?
There was an eerie silence in the entire scene.
Gu Heju, the two personal tools, looked at each other, one on the left and the other on the right. After hesitating for a moment, Gu reminded in a low voice: "Chen Ge, barbarian girls are ugly and don't want to mate!"
Xu Chen, whose head was covered with black lines, did not speak. Instead, he looked at the girl's hands that were soaked in salt, gently touched the peeling and scabbed wounds with his hands and asked, "Does it hurt?"
The girl struggled to pull her hand back and put it in her arms, squatting on the ground and trembling with fear on her face.
She didn't understand.
Xu Chen helplessly reached out and touched the girl's dirty hair, handed her a piece of barbecue and said, "Take it and eat it!"
The girl hesitated for a long time, but couldn't resist the temptation of the barbecue. She reached out and grabbed the barbecue, stood up quickly and stepped back behind the two older women. She took a bite and then couldn't help but glance at Xu Chen secretly.
The tense and weird atmosphere instantly relaxed a lot. All the barbarians started working on their own. The surprise on the faces of the group of hunters returned to normal, and some people began to pick up the barbecue and eat it.