The Frontier Prince: Starting From Scratch - Chapter 5 - Making Ice with Niter

“Liu Fu, could you go buy some bitter niter?”

The sun had already passed its zenith. Zhao Xu figured the regional magnates of Yan Prefecture would soon arrive. So, he instructed Accountant Qin to take out ten taels of silver and handed them to Liu Fu.

Zhao Xu nodded thoughtfully. In ancient times, bitter niter was a medicinal herb used as a laxative, available at apothecaries. Nowadays, it’s known as niter. His plan to extract silver from the regional magnates involved using niter to make ice.

In ancient times, people in the north stored ice in cellars during winter and used it to cool off in summer. The imperial city even had a dedicated institution for managing ice storage. During summer, the emperor would reward court officials with ice, making it a valuable commodity.

For the Dasong Dynasty, ice was even more precious. The reason was that the imperial city was Jinling, known today as Nanjing¹, one of the “Four Furnaces” due to its intense summer heat. Unlike the north, winters there weren’t harsh enough to produce thick ice layers. In recent years, Jinling had seen very little snow.

Thus, during the scorching summer, Jinling and the entire south faced an ice shortage. Wealthy families sought ice to cool off but couldn’t find any. This led to the saying that ice in the south was as valuable as gold during summer.

With the current heatwave, having a large supply of ice for sale in Jinling would surely yield immense wealth.

“Buy three jin², and be quick,” Zhao Xu instructed, handing Liu Fu the silver. Liu Fu nodded and returned within the time it takes to burn an incense stick, carrying a small bag of niter. The heat had drenched his clothes.

Wiping his sweat, he panted, “Your Highness, the bitter niter is here?”

Zhao Xu nodded and asked Liu Fu to fetch two porcelain basins of different sizes. Shortly after, a servant reported that some regional magnates had arrived. Zhao Xu had Liu Fu lead them to the front courtyard.

“What does Your Highness want from us?” asked a portly magnate dressed in silk, eyeing the dilapidated Prince’s Mansion with disdain. It was so shabby it couldn’t compare to the quarters of their own servants.

But then again, it made sense. Since the founding of the Dasong Dynasty, no prince had ever come to Yan Prefecture. Prince Yan was the first, and any prince sent here was practically exiled. The emperor wouldn’t provide lavish conditions.

“Your Highness said he would demonstrate a skill once everyone arrived,” Liu Fu repeated verbatim.

“Hahaha…”

The crowd burst into laughter.

“Has Prince Yan’s madness really cured?”

“Probably not, or why else would he propose such a ridiculous thing?”

“Let’s go, this is absurd,” someone suggested.

At that moment, Zhao Xu emerged from a room.

“Greetings, Prince Yan.”

Upon seeing Zhao Xu, the crowd began to bow, though many only bent slightly, just for show. Zhao Xu noticed but remained unperturbed. One day, he’d make them kneel and sing his praises.

“At ease,” Zhao Xu waved his hand. He had already instructed Liu Fu to note down the names of everyone present-the servants and family heads alike. Soon, he’d know which regional magnates could be won over.

“Everyone, please be patient. I am not here to fool you. Just wait a moment, and you’ll discover a lucrative opportunity,” Zhao Xu said.

Seeing Prince Yan himself step forward, the crowd paused, deciding to wait and see. At worst, they’d just be entertained.

Around forty to fifty people stood together, waiting.

Zhao Xu then entered the room. He placed the smaller basin inside the larger one and filled it with water, wrapping it with a cloth.

The principle behind making ice with niter is that when niter dissolves in water, it absorbs a significant amount of heat, theoretically lowering the temperature to minus two degrees, eventually turning the water into ice.

The purpose of the large and small basins is to use the niter in the large basin to cool down and turn the water in the small basin into ice, making it safe to consume. After all, niter is still toxic. The cloth is used to insulate against external heat.

Once the ice-making process is complete, the water in the large basin can be dried out, allowing the niter to crystallize again. After accounting for some loss, the remaining niter can be reused.

After completing all these steps, it was time to wait.

“It’s about time,” Zhao Xu said after fifteen minutes, lifting the cloth.

As the cloth was lifted, a burst of white mist rose, chilling the air. The small basin had already formed a thick layer of ice.

Feeling pleased, Zhao Xu carried the ice-filled basin to the courtyard.

“Everyone, take a look. This is the performance I promised,” Zhao Xu said, walking around the crowd with the ice.

“It’s ice,” someone exclaimed.

“In this scorching summer, where did this ice come from?”

“Incredible.”

A murmur of whispers spread through the crowd.

Liu Fu’s eyes widened in disbelief. Apart from buying the bitter niter, Zhao Xu hadn’t involved him in any of the process. He had no idea how Zhao Xu had managed to create the ice.

“Prince Yan’s madness has not only healed, but he’s become so capable,” Liu Fu thought in astonishment.

“Your Highness, could this be ice from an ice cellar?” someone asked.

This was the thought on everyone’s mind. If it wasn’t, did Prince Yan possess some magical powers?

“No, this was made by me, using the art of turning water into ice,” Zhao Xu said, standing tall.

As soon as he spoke, the regional magnates erupted in chatter.

“Does Your Highness possess magical powers?” someone asked in shock.

“No, it’s merely a simple technique. If I teach you, you can do it too,” Zhao Xu said, scanning the faces of the crowd to gauge their reactions.

Now, many had lost their disdain for him. Some were deep in thought, while others had eyes gleaming with the prospect of profit.

“I am Dong An, eldest son of the Dong Family from Yan Prefecture. I seek Your Highness’s instruction in this art,” a young man stepped forward.

He had fair skin and appeared quite scholarly.

“I am from the Yang Family in Yan Prefecture, and I also seek Your Highness’s guidance,” another person stepped forward.

Among the crowd, many had already grasped the implications. Some astute servants were already running home, while the less clever ones remained puzzled.

Zhao Xu nodded to himself, recognizing that there were indeed smart individuals among the regional magnates of Yan Prefecture. After all, they held considerable resources and were educated in commerce from a young age, making it easy to understand Zhao Xu’s intentions.

At this point, he no longer concealed his motives.

“As you all know, ice is precious during the scorching summers in the south of the Yangtze under the Dasong Dynasty. It’s now June, and the summer has just begun. If you master this art of ice making, you can earn substantial silver in the imperial city and even in the south.”

After a pause, he continued, “I have gathered you here to teach you this art. Since I lack imperial orders, I cannot leave my fief and thus cannot return to the imperial city to profit from this. However, such a secret art cannot be given away for free.”

Zhao Xu’s straightforwardness made everyone realize the situation.

Someone asked, “Ice is expensive in the south, but how much does it cost to make it?”

“It can be said to be a highly profitable investment,” Zhao Xu replied.

At this point, the crowd could no longer remain calm. They were all smart people. The south of the Yangtze under the Dasong Dynasty was wealthy beyond measure. If they truly mastered this art of ice making, they could become immensely rich.

Their power would increase significantly.

Immediately, someone excitedly shouted, “Your Highness, how much silver is required to learn this secret art?”

Footnote:

1. Nanjing(南京):Nanjing (南京) is a major city in eastern China, the capital of Jiangsu Province. With a long history, it served as the capital of several Chinese dynasties and is now an important cultural, economic, and educational center.
2. Jin(斤):“Jin” is a traditional Chinese unit of weight, 1 jin ≈ 500g.