That’s right, the method that Yan Liqiang mentioned that could make soil sell at the same price as coal is honeycomb coal.
When he rushed to the craftsmen's camp, he saw Qian Su talking about coal in the coal yard, and he already thought of honeycomb coal.
In this era, people who have really burned coal stoves know that people who buy coal like to buy large pieces of coal, because fine coal is not easy to burn in traditional stoves. It is difficult to burn. Those fine coals are like sand. If there are too many in the stove, it may even put out the burning firewood. Therefore, fine coal is not easy to sell. When everyone goes to buy coal, those fine coals are mixed with the large pieces of coal and sold together. Because the coal supply in Pingxi County is tight, the coal purchased by the Artisan Camp this time is not of good quality, and those fine coals that are difficult to burn account for a considerable part.
These fine coals that are difficult to burn are a nuisance to others, but to Yan Liqiang, these fine coals are simply the best raw materials for making honeycomb coal.
The most traditional recipe for honeycomb briquettes is 20% yellow mud, 80% coal powder, a little lime, some water, and an iron mold for making honeycomb briquettes, and you can start making them.
Let's not talk about coal, but loess, which is everywhere in the mountains and is completely free of charge. You can dig it as you like. Lime is also cheap and readily available. Water is no problem either. As for the iron mold for making honeycomb coal, that is not difficult either. Whether it is at Yan Liqiang's home or in the general's camp here, it is a simple matter to make some iron molds.
The price of coal slag and coal powder is lower than coal. After mixing them with loess to make honeycomb coal, the same weight of honeycomb coal, even if it is sold at the same price as ordinary coal, is a business that turns loess into gold, which is absolutely profitable. In fact, after it is actually made, this honeycomb coal should at least be sold at a higher price than coal. The profit is terrifying.
Yan Liqiang asked Qian Su to find a charcoal core and a wooden board. While talking, he clearly drew the honeycomb briquettes and the iron mold for making honeycomb briquettes on the board so that the two people could see it more clearly at a glance.
For Qian Su and Yan Dechang, who saw honeycomb coal for the first time, their mouths opened and could not close after they saw the honeycomb coal drawn by Yan Liqiang on the drawing board. Both of them were blacksmiths, and making fire was a common thing for them. They knew the mystery of the honeycomb coal just by looking at its appearance.
Qian Su clapped his thighs excitedly. "Great, great, it's really great. The holes on these coal balls can naturally ventilate. There is no need for people to dig them out. The fire will naturally burn vigorously. These air holes are absolutely amazing, absolutely amazing..."
"That's right, that's right. When burning charcoal or coal in the stove, if the fire in the stove is not strong enough, someone needs to keep the fire going at all times. That is, air holes should be left on the fire to help the fire and let the gas under the stove come up. If there are these air holes on the coal balls, then once the coal is burning, there is basically no need for anyone to take care of it!" Yan Dechang nodded and looked at Yan Liqiang in surprise. Even as Yan Liqiang's father, he felt that Yan Liqiang was making him more and more difficult to understand. Could it be that this was really taught by the god Yan Liqiang met in his dream
In the past, Yan Dechang was somewhat skeptical of Yan Liqiang's statement, but now, even he was shaken. Thinking of this, looking at the thing Yan Liqiang drew, Yan Dechang asked a question, "Liqiang, what do you call this thing you made, coal?"
"This coal is called..." Yan Liqiang just said four words.
"Wait a minute, let me guess..." Before Yan Liqiang could even utter the word honeycomb coal, Qian Su, who was standing next to him, spoke up. Qian Su looked carefully at the picture Yan Liqiang had drawn, frowning tightly, and then suddenly relaxed his brows. "Is this thing called lotus root node coal? Look at these pores. The shape of each node looks like a cut lotus root node!"
Lotus root node? Yan Liqiang blinked his eyes, then looked at the honeycomb briquettes he had drawn. You know what, Qian Su was absolutely right when he said it looked like a lotus root node.
"Li Qiang, do you think my guess is correct?"
"Yes, this is the Oujie coal. Uncle Qian has a keen insight, which really impresses Liqiang!" Yan Liqiang said with a serious face, and at the same time gave Qian Su a thumbs up.
“I knew it, Li Qiang, the thing that the gods taught you in your dream, this name must have something magical about it…” Qian Su stroked his beard with a proud look on his face.
"Uncle Qian, what do you think of this business?"
"If this coal ash can be mixed with loess and burn, then this business is a gold mine that can't be eaten up!" Qian Su's expression gradually became serious, revealing a thoughtful look, "This business is too big, the Artisan Battalion can't eat it all in one go. If the things you mentioned are only made by the Artisan Battalion, it will be a waste. There are many people in the Artisan Battalion, and once this thing is made, before we make much money, others will learn it after just one look. The secret can't be kept, and someone will immediately follow suit and imitate it. Once more people imitate it, the price of this Oujie coal will not go up, and the money earned will be less. Moreover, this thing should have a large sales volume and sufficient profit in a city like Pingxi City. If we can get hold of the supply of Oujie coal in Pingxi City, it will be hard not to make a fortune. If we want to do it, it's best to find one or two powerful partners to do it together and take over Pingxi City... "Speaking of this, Qian Su saw Yan Liqiang smiling without saying anything, and he reacted immediately and guessed what Yan Liqiang was thinking. He laughed out loud, pointed at Yan Liqiang and shook his head, "Liqiang, you really even counted your uncle Qian. Okay, I'll go with you tomorrow..."
Yan Liqiang laughed, "Thank you, Uncle Qian. However, this matter is not just relying on your name. I really need your help. My father and you are counted together. No matter how much shares we negotiate in the end, you two will each own half. If this really succeeds, Uncle Qian, you can live in Yixiangyuan every day for 365 days in the future..."
"If I live in Yixiangyuan every day, I can still live for a few more years..." Qian Su laughed.
"What are you two talking about? The more I listen, the more confused I become..." Yan Dechang, who was standing next to him, looked at Qian Su, then at Yan Liqiang, with a bewildered look on his face, not knowing what the two were talking about.
"Li Qiang wants to bring the Lu family in first..." Qian Su explained.
"Li Qiang, do you really want to do this business? I feel a little uneasy about you expanding your business so much all of a sudden..." Yan Dechang said worriedly.
"Dad, don't worry. I know my limits. Uncle Qian and I only came up with ideas for this business. We used the secrets of Oujie Coal to invest. We didn't invest much, and we didn't own a lot of shares. We just wanted to make some friends and earn some money first..."
After hearing what Yan Liqiang said, Yan Dechang naturally had nothing to say.
…
The next day, heavy snow fell. In the midst of the heavy snow, Yan Dechang left the craftsmen camp in a carriage and returned to Qinghe County. After lunch, Yan Liqiang and Qian Su rode on their rhinoceros horses and headed towards Lujiazhuang...
We hadn't reached Lujiazhuang yet, and had just walked halfway when we saw a hillside in front of us, a three-way fork in the road. The sound of the ground shaking came from the corner of the hillside in front. From the sound, it seemed that there were at least a hundred people riding their horses at a rapid speed, making a very loud noise.
Yan Liqiang and Qian Su, who were chatting, looked at each other, slowed down their horses and stopped them on the side of the road.
It was very scary to see so many rhinoceros horses running on the road together, just like a bunch of people racing on the highway. If you accidentally crash into them head-on, and someone among them has poor riding skills and cannot control themselves, once someone falls to the ground at this time, their life may be in danger, so both of them were very careful.
After just a few breaths, a large group of fully armed cavalrymen with bows and guns turned over from the other side of the hill. They didn't even look at Yan Liqiang and Qian Su. After turning around the hill, they headed straight to the other side of the fork in the road with murderous intent...
"Ah, these cavalrymen are the elite stationed in Pingxi City. Why are they in such a hurry to come to Huanglong County?" Yan Liqiang said to Qian Su in surprise.
Looking at the direction where the cavalry left, Qian Su frowned and said, "Let's go to Lujiazhuang first..."
"Um… "
The two continued to move forward. Unexpectedly, just a few minutes after they walked, another large group of riders appeared on the road ahead. There were as many as 40 or 50 of them. Each of them wore a cloak and a red headband. They rode their rhinoceros horses at full speed, waving whips and braving the wind and snow. They seemed to be chasing the group of cavalry in front of them...
From the way they were dressed, it was clear that the riders behind were all rangers.
Something happened, something must have happened...
Yan Liqiang and Qian Su looked at each other and stopped at the same time.
"Uncle Qian, look..." Yan Liqiang called out.
"Let's go, let's follow them and see, then go to Lujiazhuang..." Qian Su made a quick decision and turned his horse around.
"good… "
The two men immediately kicked their horses and rushed after the group of rangers...
(End of this chapter)