Those who had never been here, including Pingxi Prefectural Governor Wang Jianbei, were extremely curious about everything inside the woolen mill.
There wasn’t much to say about the tour. Instead of keeping the production process a secret, Yan Liqiang wanted more people to know about it instead. Hence, the entire woolen mill and all processes were open to visitors. When the group of people entered the mill, they were overwhelmed by the new surroundings. The process of spinning wool, as well as the new spinning frames and looms were eye-openers for everyone.
Yan Liqiang made himself the tour guide and personally explained the production process to Wang Jianbei and Eunuch Ou, especially on the process of extracting sodium carbonate from the plant ashes. When they arrived in the said workshop, Yan Liqiang even personally demonstrated the process to them. He first added water to the plant ashes and stirred, then strained the mixture to get rid of the impurities. The filtered out clear liquid was alkaline sodium carbonate that could be used to cleanse and degrease wool.
The most common plant ash turned out to be the key in turning worthless wool into treasure. No one would have believed such an outrageous relevance had they not seen it with their own eyes. People couldn’t help but wonder how Yan Liqiang managed to make such a secret discovery. Of course, many of them also had an answer to this question deep down their hearts. When they saw Yan Liqiang’s newly-designed spinning frames and looms that could improve efficiency by sixteen times, all of them were secretly thinking the same thing — Could Yan Liqiang really meet deities in his dreams? If not, how did he discover the method of scouring wool as well as the amazing techniques in the path of mechanics and the investigation of things?
Ordinary people might need to go through many hardships to make such an achievement in their lives. Yet, making such achievements were as normal as eating a meal to Yan Liqiang. All these things seemed so casual and so effortless to him. It had only been a short while since he returned to Gan Province and invented a four-wheeled carriage and a coil spring, but now he had already established The Greatest Mill. It was as though someone was teaching him all these things…
After visiting the mill, the Pingxi Prefectural Governor said something everyone had in their minds. “The Greatest Mill is indeed worthy of its name. There’s definitely no other place like this in the Great Han Empire, or even the entire Silver Continent!”
“You’re flattering me, Prefectural Governor. His Majesty only gave this mill that name because he was generous. I believe mills like this will bloom all over the northwestern region or within the borders of the Great Han Empire in no time!” Yan Liqiang replied humbly, then smiled at everyone. “Thank you everyone for making the trip to the Yan Fortress today. I believe you all are hungry by now. Lunch, refreshments, and fine wine have been prepared in my manor, please take a short break!”
“Lord Yan, how much for the woolen fabric and wool blankets? Can I preorder the next batch of goods from this mill for the next six months in advance…?” A paunchy merchant couldn’t help but ask eagerly before they even had their meal.
Apart from the scarce woolen fabrics acclaimed by the royalties in the palace, anything that was produced from The Greatest Mill which the Emperor had bestowed the golden plaque upon would definitely sell well. Even ordinary grass mats could be sold for a fortune. Any businessman would understand the reason behind this.
As soon as the cloth merchant opened his mouth, a heated discussion immediately broke out among the other cloth merchants who also joined the tour.
“Huh?! What gives you the right to reserve the goods for the next six months?! It should be mine!”
“Our Guangchang Trading didn’t even say anything yet! How dare a small merchant like you make such a demand…!”
“If Lord Yan agrees to that, we, from the Cloud Textile Store can offer to pay a hundred thousand taels of silver as deposit first, regardless of the wool fabric’s price…!”
“Our Hengtai Textile Store can offer two hundred thousand taels of silver as deposit…!”
With such a piece of thick and fat meat, bountiful of silver, as well as an opportunity to make a fortune in front of them, the textile merchants and store owners couldn’t stay quiet even in the presence of Wang Jianbei and Eunuch Ou. They started fighting each other, flaunting their wealth and power.
“A charter regarding the woolen fabrics from the mill has been prepared. Please do not worry as everyone will be given an opportunity. After lunch and some tea, I’ll have my people distribute them. All of you will know when you read it!”
The merchants settled down after hearing Yan Liqiang’s words, as they waited to see his arrangements in relief.
…
Since Eunuch Ou didn’t like noise and was picky about the place, Yan Liqiang invited Wang Jianbei to accompany the old eunuch. The three of them had lunch together in a separate small garden at the Yan Residence.
Yan Liqiang noticed Eunuch Ou was a little exhausted after lunch, so he arranged a courtyard in the Yan Residence for the old eunuch to take a rest, then sent Wang Jianbei off from the Yan Fortress.
“About the thing we discussed in the carriage, I’ll make preparations as soon as I go back!” Wang Jianbei smiled at Yan Liqiang when they were about to part ways at the entrance of the Yan Fortress.
“Rest assured, Prefectural Governor. As soon as you make a move, I’ll make arrangements on my side to move with you. We’ll make sure not even a tael of silver will be lost!” Yan Liqiang nodded.
“Hahaha. To other people, that might seem like a huge amount, but it’s hardly anything to you. With His Majesty’s imperial edict and the reputation of ‘The Greatest Mill’ falling into the Yan Fortress, your woolen mill will definitely become an infinite gold mine. Every wool that goes into it will be turned into streams of gold or silver. The only thing you need to worry about is the appointments His Majesty has conferred upon you. The more he raises the stakes for you, the more things he’ll desire and expect of you. With the current circumstances in the Great Han Empire, this may not necessarily be a good thing. After all, every coin has two sides!” With better trust and understanding between both parties, Wang Jianbei’s words to Yan Liqiang were no longer superficial but deeper now.
“Thank you for your word of caution, Prefectural Governor. I know what to do!” Yan Liqiang cupped his fist at Wang Jianbei with a solemn face.
Wang Jianbei nodded, then stopped speaking. He climbed onto the four-wheeled carriage, then left Yan Fortress along with his escorts.
Yan Liqiang turned around. After taking only a few steps and before he could even enter the archway at the city gates, another four-wheeled carriage escorted by a few guards that was about to leave the Yan Fortress drove toward his direction and came to a halt in front of Yan Liqiang. The door swung open, and Ruolan elegantly alighted from the carriage to stand before Yan Liqiang.
“Lord Yan, were you sending the Prefectural Governor off?”
“Ah, yes. Are you about to leave, Lady Ruolan?” Yan Liqiang greeted the lady from the Zhong Clan.
Zhong Ruolan covered her mouth as she smiled, and her beautiful eyes roamed over Yan Liqiang’s face. “If I don’t leave, I’m afraid your lovely future wife will send someone to chase me away!”
“Hahaha, very funny, Lady Ruolan!”
“Thank you for your invitation today, Lord Yan. Witnessing the birth of the youngest Heavenly Master Craftsmith in history and The Greatest Mill were really eye-opening to Ruolan. In three days time, I’ll be preparing some light wine in my humble abode. We’ll be honored by your presence for a business-related discussion!”
“In three days…” Yan Liqiang pondered for a moment, trying to recall if he had any banquets to attend on that day.
“If Lord Yan isn’t available, we can reschedule for another day! I’ll be waiting to welcome you any time!” Ruolan spoke considerately. The fact that she wasn’t pushy about it made Yan Liqiang very comfortable.
Yan Liqiang chuckled. “No need to reschedule, let’s make it three days later!”
Ruolan immediately smiled, looking like a blooming flower. “That’s a promise then!”
“It’s a promise!”
…
When it was about time, the textile merchants were given a bizarre ‘partnership charter’. Everyone was dumbstruck first before a discussion broke out. Given how they had run businesses for their entire lives, they had never seen such a novel partnership. Although the charter was strange to them, it was clearly detailed and the benefits of both sides were carefully taken into consideration. It was an impressive and refreshing take on things.
