Chapter 9: Baisha Town

Zhang Sanniang said to her husband unhappily: "Old man, why are you saying these things? I am currently teaching the child a lesson! Don't change the subject!"

Most of these are boats operating on the Jinshui River, and they are all small businesses. This place is not far from Bianliang, and one can reach the capital in one go after having a full meal. The closer one gets to the capital, the higher the prices, so saving a little is worthwhile

Zhang Sanniang forced a smile and said, "Forget it, let's discuss these matters when your father returns; I have no idea at the moment"

He suddenly recalled that in this era, someone must have described Baisha Town in such a way: densely populated, with numerous shops, and bustling markets. After all, this is a town, and towns have officials to oversee and collect taxes, which inevitably indicates a certain level of commerce; otherwise, the taxes collected would not even suffice to cover the salaries of the officials, leading to losses for the court.

Xu Ping said: "How much wine is there in the lees? What can it accomplish? Is there a lot of sour and spoiled wine in the tavern now? I have a way to turn it into good wine"

Manager Tan, whose full name is Tan Bennian, was originally an elder when the Xu family operated a restaurant in Tokyo. As the Xu family moved to Baisha Town, he took charge of all the miscellaneous affairs in the current restaurant. According to Xu Ping's previous life, he is essentially a professional manager, receiving a monthly salary along with bonuses. Strictly speaking, his status is quite similar to that of Xu Chang, as he shares the master-servant relationship with the Xu family. However, unlike Xu Chang, who is a domesticated servant, he generally does not participate in the household affairs of the Xu family.

Xu Ping, you will stay here for the next couple of days and pass down the method of brewing wine to supplement our needs. The tavern has been opening every few days, and we cannot bear it any longer

Xu Zhengdao: "Even if you do not teach, the child is much more well-behaved than before. That Granny Hong, I don't think she is capable of doing anything. It would be better to give her a few coins and send her home early! You know very well that since we took over this tavern, we never expected so much of the stored wine to spoil! My hair has turned quite gray from worry."

Future generations will surely be deceived upon seeing this; who would have thought that this place is even smaller than a slightly larger village from Xu Ping's previous life? There are only a few dozen shops, large and small, scattered about, and they wouldn't even send a tax collector here, as the tax collected is insufficient to deal with the troubles caused by these few shops.

Xu Ping pointed out to her where the river is, where the ditch is, where the channel is, where rice should be planted, and where trees should be planted. He indicated where the orchard is, where the vegetable garden is, where sheep should be raised, and where cattle should be raised

Xu Zheng waved his hand and said: "Don't listen to your mother rambling. What's wrong with selling alcohol? Living in tall buildings and spacious houses, wearing silk and satin, isn't it all earned from alcohol? Tell me, how do you deal with bad wine?"

Xu Chang glanced at Xu Ping, secretly sighed in his heart, and lowered his head without responding

According to the regulations of the Song Dynasty, officials were prohibited from seeking women under their jurisdiction and could only purchase or hire maidservants. This was naturally intended to prevent officials from engaging in corrupt practices; however, in reality, as long as no one reported it, no one took it seriously.

Xu Zheng turned his face and said: "What are you talking about in front of the child? You have no sense of propriety!"

Xu Chang turned his head and looked at him strangely: "What are you laughing at, Da Lang?"

Xu Ping had no choice but to grit his teeth and say: "It has nothing to do with Xu Chang; it was all my own decision. That Granny Hong lacks any insight; handing the farm over to him is just a waste of resources"

Xu Zheng hurriedly instructed Ying'er to go to the wine cellar and bring back two bottles of wine, which he then opened in the room

Xu Ping, in a moment of urgency, took out the sketch he had drawn yesterday and handed it to Zhang San Niang

Zhang San's mother held the piece of paper in her hand, looking at it from different angles, completely puzzled

After a short while, they arrived at the backyard, and the waiter returned to his duties in the front.

Zhang Sanniang's expression softened as she pulled Xu Ping to sit in front of her, gently stroking his head and saying: "Since coming to the countryside, my son has indeed become much more sensible. Darlang, if you have your own ideas, as your mother, I can only be pleased; there is no real intention to scold you. However, you should also consider your mother’s feelings. Granny Hong has watched me grow up since childhood, and now she is all alone and helpless; how can I bear to treat her poorly? You should also be more accommodating towards her."

Xu Ping then realized that he had treated others to food and drink yesterday, and the village had also made plans; there could be no lack of follow-up. He said to Xu Chang, "Alright, we will go together."

Zhang San's mother lowered her head and remained silent

Xu Zhengtan sighed: "My child, you only know one side of the matter, but not the other. In our family of wine merchants, who can guarantee that there won't be any accidents? Whether it turns sour or goes bad, using the lees to distill wine is just the right remedy, and it saves a lot of glutinous rice for brewing. This year, due to the severe drought, you have no idea how high the grain prices have risen!"

In the morning, Xu Chang came to see Xu Ping several times. Seeing that he remained silent, he finally couldn't help but say: "I am going to the town shortly, isn't Da Lang going?"

Baisha Town is situated right next to the Jinshui River, and due to its navigability, all the shops are located along the riverbank. The Xu family's restaurant is the most luxurious building, quite eye-catching. Surrounding the restaurant are a few scattered rice shops, grocery stores, and inns. Behind each shop, there are three to two hundred households.

Xu Ping shook his head: "It's nothing, nothing at all"

Xu Ping was merely performing the formalities, and Zhang San Niang said: "You two have arrived a bit late; Granny Hong has just left. The day before yesterday, I mentioned that all matters in the village would be handled by Granny Hong, yet you two caused quite a stir yesterday. Da Lang is still young, so I won't mention him, but Xu Chang, you are an adult; how could you create such a commotion!"

Xu Ping hurriedly said: "Xu Chang also mentioned this to me, but I think, recently, only our family is selling wine, and we cannot sell it elsewhere. Even if it is fine wine, it only benefits our own business, which is not very meaningful."

Xu Ping dismounted from the donkey and entered the tavern with Xu Chang

Xu Zheng stroked his sparse beard on his chin and said slowly, "The wine you brewed yesterday, I tasted some, and it is quite strong, indeed a fine brew. I heard it was distilled from the lees? Why haven't you mentioned it to us? This is also a way to make money."

Seeing Xu Zheng's half-hearted skepticism, Xu Ping felt a sense of relief. Although the wine contained organic acids, they were ultimately weak acids, while the lime water was alkaline. The neutralization of the acid and base would produce insoluble calcium salts, which could simply be filtered out. This knowledge, though simple, was rather advanced for this era.

Two individuals arrived at the entrance of the Xu Family Tavern on a donkey. Outside, there was a wine banner with four large characters inscribed: "A Gentle Breeze Comes from the West," which was quite poetic

As Ying'er entered the room, she saw Mr. and Mrs. Xu sitting at a table, with Zhang Sanniang wearing a dark expression and looking rather displeased

It is currently noon, and the downstairs is filled with people, bustling with noise, indicating that business is quite good

Having found a solution, Xu Zheng could not sit still for a moment. He called Xu Chang, and the two went to the wine cellar to conduct experiments, leaving only Zhang Sanniang and Xu Ping in the room

Xu Zheng's eyes lit up: "Is there really a way? My son, you are truly born to run a restaurant. It is worth the decades I spent selling liquor to have given birth to you!"

A young attendant came forward to greet the two and led them towards the backyard

There were no horses in the village; one of the two rode a donkey as they followed the dirt road behind the village towards Baisha Town

Xu Ping suddenly let out a "puff" of laughter

Seeing the expressions of the crowd grow more puzzled, he quickly changed his words: "Calcium hydroxide solution can neutralize acidity, this is a common principle. Father, you will know if you try it."

Zhang Sanniang said coldly: "How much knowledge do you have? It's only been a few days since we last met, and you've learned to retort!"

Xu Ping and the other person arrived in front of their parents' room. The maid, upon seeing them, hurried inside to announce their arrival

Xu Ping said: "Let her only manage the matters inside the courtyard; as for the fields, I have my own opinions."

Xu Zhengdao: "Money is like honey, not a drop of it is sweet! If it weren't for the lack of money, how would we have come to this rural place? The bustling and lively Tokyo city offers so many benefits!"

Xu Chang asked the waiter: "Why haven't we seen Supervisor Tan?"

At this time, Zhongmu County had no more than 4,000 households and a maximum population of 20,000, which was even fewer than that of a smaller village in the previous life, making it truly hard to imagine. During the Song Dynasty, taxes were levied based on the number of households, and to reduce the burden, the population per household was generally quite small. By establishing more households, one could pay less tax, so the actual population might not even reach 20,000.

After some thought, Xu Ping said: "Mother is sentimental, and I understand that. However, as long as we casually assign a position to Granny Hong and pay her accordingly, why must we let her manage the entire village?"

Xu Pingdao: "This depends on further observation, whether it has soured significantly or not"

Xu Zhengdao: "Is it really necessary to steam it? What is the reasoning behind adding lime water?"

Liu Xiaoyi and a young servant, dressed in new clothes with black shoes and white socks, looked quite spirited as they stood outside the door to welcome guests. Upon seeing Xu Ping and his companion, they hurriedly approached to lead the donkey, calling out loudly: "The young officials have arrived!"

After walking for more than an hour, I finally entered the town of Baisha.

It is now mid-April, just entering summer, a season that should be characterized by lush vegetation and herds of cattle and sheep roaming the fields. However, on both sides of the road, there are only wastelands, overgrown with reeds and weeds, with the occasionally exposed ground glistening with white salt and alkali.

Xu Ping blurted out: "If there is too much acid, of course, we need to add alkali!"

Being so close to Zhang Sanniang made Xu Ping feel somewhat unnatural, yet he still retained some remnants of his previous debauched self. The innate bond between mother and son did not repel him. To speak of it, Xu Ping's parents truly cared for him; however, in Xu Ping's own words from his past life, both Zhang Sanniang and Xu Zheng were career-oriented and did not wish to keep him tethered to them.

Xu Pingqi asked: "Who is this Zhou Jianzheng? With such a powerful background, how dare he take concubines under his own jurisdiction? Is he not afraid of someone reporting him?"

Zhang San Niang said: "According to what you said, what should be done?"

Xu Ping sniffed and said: "This bottle is not potent; it only needs to be filtered through clear lime water and then boiled, after which it can be mixed with good wine, and it will be fine. The other bottle is a bit heavier; the sourness cannot be completely removed, so it must be rinsed with water and then steamed in a pot before it can be used."

Zhang San Niang coldly laughed and said: "Indeed, there are many courtesans in the brothels of Tokyo, unlike here, where there are only a few private prostitutes. Even if you have the desire, you cannot go there!"

The common people do not contend with the officials; as for us commoners, who would dare to provoke these officials and their families

As they walked along, Xu Ping quietly calculated the distance. For horses, donkeys, and mules, if not hurried, the normal speed is about four to five kilometers per hour. Since they are carrying people, they should be somewhat slower, around three to four kilometers per hour. This is common knowledge that those in this profession should know, and it is also a remnant of the semi-mechanization that was promoted in China back in the day

This is nowhere near the Central Plains of my memories; it is simply as if I have arrived at the desolate wilderness of the northern desert. Xu Ping sighed inwardly; in the previous life, when speaking of the Northern Song Dynasty, it was always about the prosperity of Bianliang City, yet I did not expect that the surroundings of the capital would be so desolate

Zhang San's mother impatiently said: "The child is mine; I want him to study and become an official. How could I let him sell wine for a lifetime like you!"

The waiter sighed: "Please do not mention it anymore. Last month, Zhou Jian from the town took a concubine and has been idling in our restaurant's pavilion. Every time he comes, he insists that Manager Tan serve him, which is extremely bothersome for the manager.

Zhang San Niang said: "What use is there in what you are saying? You never stray from the word 'money' in three sentences; I see you are someone who has emerged from the eye of a copper coin!"