Changsheng: Peak at the Beginning

Although Xixia and Liao were threats to the borders of the country, the movements on the grasslands, which were separated by a layer, still did not reassure the new emperor. Although no one had personally experienced the power of the grassland people, the foreign enemies recorded in history books were almost all grassland people or people who colluded with grassland people. The new emperor suddenly felt a huge pressure on his shoulders.

At this time, Ying could only comfort the new emperor, saying, "Your Majesty sees things that others cannot see. This is our advantage. Anyway, Xixia and Liao are the most immediate and serious threats. If we completely eliminate Xixia and Liao, I believe that our elite soldiers and generals will have been trained, and we will surely be able to recreate the glory of the Han and Tang dynasties."

These words made the new emperor feel very comfortable, but he did not get carried away. After all, the situation in Western Xia was progressing very smoothly. In just over two months, one-third of the cities in Western Xia were under the control of the imperial court. In fact, due to Shi Ying's proper dispatch, the front line no longer needed to deliberately raise food and fodder to transport there. Not only could they solve the food problem of soldiers and livestock on the spot, but they also transported a large number of cattle and sheep to Shuzhou, Chang'an, Luoyang and other places and made a fortune.

Not to mention other places, all the major restaurants and food stalls in the capital city have introduced their own specialties in cooking beef and mutton. Even Rulan couldn't help but teach the method of making beef jerky, and equipped her own caravan with beef jerky as dry food, which won over a lot of people's hearts.

Because there have always been few oxen for draft in the Dynasty, the government of all dynasties has strictly prohibited the slaughter of oxen. Most of the cows on the grasslands are used for milk production and meat, and they are a bit reluctant to work. Therefore, after being introduced to the Dynasty, most of them are used for meat. As a result, there is always a shortage of oxen for draft in the Dynasty, and even the powerful and wealthy can rarely eat beef.

Now a large number of cattle and sheep are being sold as compensation, because the southern region, where maritime trade is booming, is the happiest. Beef jerky can even be taken with people to eat when going out to sea.

Rulan benefited from the beef jerky, and turned around to give Molan some advice, wanting her not to waste cow's and goat's milk. If cow's and goat's milk could be preserved for a long time, then maybe the grassland people could feed themselves and would not easily go south to plunder.

This idea sounds a bit naive, but Molan respects Rulan very much for having such an intention. When Shiying comes back, she even talks to Shiying about it. Shiying also feels that this method of boiling a frog in warm water is indeed feasible.

With Shi Ying's support, Mo Lan specifically talked to Ru Lan, "The most important thing for the grassland people is the cavalry. They come and go like the wind and are familiar with the terrain. Therefore, if the Central Plains dynasty is weak, it will be plundered and the people will suffer. If you want to curb the number of cavalry, you must first limit the number of horses."

Rulan continued, "So we should encourage people to raise more cattle and sheep on the grasslands, so that the number of horses will automatically decrease!"

Molan praised: "That's right!"

"But if we only sell cattle and sheep for meat, we may not be able to solve this problem for a long time given the country's large territory and large population. So we should try to make use of cow's milk, goat's milk, and wool."

The shelf life of cow's milk and goat's milk is very short. In the cold winter, it can be stored for about ten days, but in other seasons, cow's milk and goat's milk that have been stored overnight cannot be eaten.

Milk tofu and ghee can be made on the grassland, but these things have a strong odor and are not to the taste of the people in the country, so they can only be used as winter rations by the grassland people.

Wool can be made into felt, but because wool has a strong smell and rough fibers, even felt will not be used by the rich and powerful.

Therefore, the craftsmanship of these products needs to be improved, and they need to be made into things that suit the tastes and aesthetics of the people of the country before they can be consumed in the market.

Of course Molan also cares about the affairs of the court, but she seldom takes the initiative to find out anything. After all, Shi Ying never hides anything from her. Therefore, Molan has recently focused all her energy on how to deal with wool.

The first problem is the cleaning of wool. Wool felt can be used in many places. In addition to being hung as a door curtain to block the wind and keep out the cold in winter, it can also be spread on the ground. Whether it is used as a decoration or as a way to keep out the cold, it is very good.

Molan first tried to use soap beans and wood ash to soak in water to wash the wool. This way the wool was washed clean, but whether it was soap beans or wood ash, it was still sufficient to supply small quantities, but it was difficult to supply the raw materials when the amount of wool was large.

Although wool can be spun into thin threads, no matter how thin the threads are, they are still not as thin as cotton or silk threads, so the method of weaving wool together using the weaving method is not very useful.

Molan racked her brains and offered a large sum of money as a reward in the weaving workshop, but half a year had passed, and she even found something that could replace wood ash to clean the dirt and grease attached to the wool, but she still could not make the wool yarn into anything other than felt and blankets.

Rulan's progress is much faster. In addition to being made into cheese, tofu, and ghee, cow's milk and goat's milk can also be made into milk powder. If it is sealed and placed in a cool and ventilated place, it can be kept for half a year as long as it is not opened.

Rulan took advantage of the convenience of caravans and the imperial market to open a new workshop on the border. After just one winter, she had recovered all her previous investments and even made a small profit. At the same time, she also solved the problem of providing for the families of people in many places on the border.

When Rulan sold the method of making milk powder to the imperial court, the new emperor specially promoted Rulan's husband Zhang Zhe and allowed him to participate in the milk powder business. Rulan herself was even given a fourth-rank imperial decree. Sheng Hong and Wang Ruofu were so happy that they pulled Lin Qinshuang aside and kept praising each other and themselves. Soon, a lot of good things fell into the hands of Changfeng and Molan.

When the soldiers who had sent troops to Western Xia returned triumphantly, Hualan's husband Yuan Wenshao and Changwu, the eldest wife of the Sheng family in Youyang who followed Gu Tingye's footsteps, both had a bright future because Rulan had made milk powder. This stuff could not only be sold for money and used to curb the number of horses of the grassland people, but also provide a new source of food for the grassland people. Most importantly, the border troops in the northwest and northeast of the country could all do business.

As a result, Yuan Wenshao became more diligent in visiting Hualan's relatives, and even Changwu was favored by many people. The first wife also made a lot of money following Rulan.

Among the four girls in the Sheng family, only Hualan and Minglan seem to be the most mediocre, because they still have no career of their own and are still revolving around their husbands and children. Minglan, in particular, has a mediocre relationship with Molan and Rulan, and there is also a rift between her and Hualan. Princess Pingning watched as the Sheng family's in-laws became better and better, but her family could not benefit from any of it. Naturally, she felt more resentful towards Minglan.

Fortunately, after Qi Heng experienced the fate of Princess Jiacheng, he was able to establish himself. He entered the officialdom through the imperial examination, had some talent, and was born into a noble family. He belonged to a force that was won over by the new emperor, so his official career was considered bright.

However, Minglan felt very anxious when she saw that she was the only one among her sisters who could not integrate into her family.