After Breaking Off My Marriage, I Became A Powerful Minister's Treasure

Chapter 84: They Were Really Bold

"Since there is such a good thing, I will naturally approve it."

He asked curiously, "Is it difficult to make ice?"

Xiao Hanzheng replied, "It's not difficult. I just need one item to make it. I've brought it along. How about I make ice on the spot for the emperor to see?"

Back then when he saw his wife making ice, he felt that it was very magical.

Seeing it with one's own eyes was more convincing.

Mo Qingling also wanted to see it. "Okay!"

Hence, he followed Xiao Hanzheng's instructions and got someone to find a large wooden basin and put it on the ground. There was also a small wooden pail inside.

He also added water to the wooden basin and wooden pail.

Mo Qingling and others from the county yamen then saw Xiao Hanzheng taking out a few small white stones from the basket on his back and throwing them into the large wooden basin.

"Wait a moment and the water in the small wooden pail will freeze."

Mo Qingling and the people from the county yamen looked, at why does it feel so unreliable.

Putting stones into the water basin would freeze the water in the wooden pail which didn't have stones. Was this for real?

Mo Qingling's suspicion deepened, but he did not refute it.

"Alright, then I'll do some work first. You can drink some tea and wait for a while. When the ice is done, I'll come and take a look."

He had just taken over Nanxi County not long ago. The previous magistrate had accumulated a lot of work.

Since he was already here, although he did not really come to be a county magistrate, he still wanted to do his job well.

Xiao Hanzheng nodded. "As you wish, Sir!"

The bailiffs in the county yamen kept staring at the wooden basin curiously.

After a long while, one of the bailiffs could not help but shout, "The water is really starting to freeze!"

The other bailiffs also walked over to take a look. "It has already frozen. It's so magical."

"As expected of an old immortal. He can actually think of a way to make ice in summer."

"The disciple of this old immortal is also smart to learn everything."

A group of people surrounded the wooden basin and sighed. Soon, Mo Qingling also walked out from the inner room.

Seeing that the water in the wooden basin had really started to freeze, his heart was startled.

Seeing was believing. Otherwise, he probably would not have believed this method that others were talking about.

He was also smart. "The fact that this water can freeze has something to do with the white stone you threw just now, right?"

Xiao Hanzheng replied, "Yes, this is saltpetre, which is also used in pharmaceutical pills. Some Taoists also use it to refine pills. You can buy it from the medicine shop."

Mo Qingling quickly asked, "If you use this saltpetre to make ice, will it be costly?"

Xiao Hanzheng answered truthfully, "If you source saltpetre directly, it will only take some time and energy. No silver is needed to exchange for it.

"Buying it will cost a lot."

The cost of making ice from saltpetre wasn't low. They did not want to spread it across the country such that everyone could use it.

They were just publicising this so that everyone could learn it.

It would also benefit the saltpetre mines' development.

If the poor people found saltpetre, they could also transport it to the city, sell it to the rich families and improve their lives.

The key point was that Shi Qingluo wanted the people of the county to actively mine saltpetre from the mountain near the Taoist temple.

While they tied up everyone's interest, they could also pave a path for them.

When the mining was more or less done, their workshop should be able to kick start the production.

His wife's ideas were often interconnected to other events, and even he could not help but admire her.

When Mo Qingling heard this, he immediately knew what Xiao Hanzheng meant.

It seemed that the cost of this method of making ice was not low.

A common man on the street might not be able to afford it, but it could also benefit the poor who were lucky enough to find saltpetre.

Of course, this method was better than nothing.

After Daliang was established and the war ended, consumers in many places were waiting to spend their money.

The imperial court had a lot of overseas expenses.

The Ministry of Revenue was often short of silver, and the palace was still using the ice warehouse left by the previous dynasty.

There was limited ice storage, so the palace was short of ice every year.

In the summer, there were many concubines and officials who asked the emperor for ice.

The emperor would definitely be happy after they presented him with this method.

Mo Qingling thought for a moment and said, "Write down this formula for making ice. I will send someone to the capital to present it to the emperor, and let the people of Daliang learn it."

This would benefit the emperor and others in the imperial court, as well as their reputation among the commoners.

He then added, "Write down where this method of making ice came from."

This also meant that he would let his majesty know that Xiao Hanzheng and his wife shared this formula.

He would not take credit on behalf of them, while also giving the formula a historical origin.