Tianliangyuan

Chapter 122 Xu Han is shocked

Xu Zhaozhao understood that Princess Anhe was indeed thinking of her when she said that.

"Second sister-in-law is right. It's a pity that second brother is not in the capital. Otherwise, it would be perfect to send out the invitation in his name."

Princess Anhe rolled her eyes at her and ignored her completely.

Xu Zhaozhao chuckled and then came over to coax her, "Oh, I'm young, so please let me have my way!"

This childlike, coquettish behavior made Princess Anhe burst out laughing.

After the girls had rested enough, they started another game of Cuju (ancient Chinese football). Although they didn't have enough players, all of their maids could play.

Xu Zhaozhao likes this kind of atmosphere. She only plays with people she can get along with. That's what playing is all about!

If you add unfamiliar people or people with ulterior motives to the group, it will only make things more tiring.

That's not playing around, that's playing mind games!

Xu Zhaozhao made the strong liquor because she wanted to help Xie Feng and her second brother at the border.

Xu Zhaozhao produced a type of baijiu with a relatively high alcohol content, which she estimated to be around 58 degrees.

If you were to drink this kind of wine, unless you were an extremely heavy drinker, you would definitely find it too strong and too spicy to swallow.

But Xu Zhaozhao still made this wine, thinking that people nowadays would use alcohol to disinfect wounds. Not to mention the old cloudy wines, even the clear wine she made herself had a low alcohol content.

Therefore, she made special improvements to everything from raw materials to purification processes.

The alcohol content of baijiu is closely related to the selection of raw materials and the fermentation process.

Baijiu made from sorghum usually has a higher alcohol content, while baijiu made from wheat has a relatively lower alcohol content.

The deep processing and purification of raw materials can also affect the alcohol content of baijiu. For example, fine grinding and refining processes can improve the purity and alcohol content of baijiu.

In addition, the selection of yeast and the control of fermentation conditions also play an important role in the alcohol content of baijiu during the fermentation process.

The yeast in the yeast starter will ferment the sugar in the raw materials into alcohol, and factors such as temperature and humidity during the fermentation process will affect the activity of the yeast and the fermentation effect.

Xu Zhaozhao had already tried these methods many times last year.

As soon as Xu Zhaozhao got home, Wang Ruolan called her over.

Xu Han was also inside.

"Daughter greets her father and mother."

"No need, come and sit down." Xu Han waved to her directly.

Xu Han was a military general and didn't care much about such formalities. Moreover, Zhao Zhao was his most beloved daughter, so he naturally cared even less about these superficial things.

"I wonder what brings Mother here to summon her daughter?"

Wang Ruolan smiled and said, "The jars of strong liquor you brought back earlier were all quite good. Your maternal grandfather and uncles all tasted them and thought they were excellent, especially the one called 'Top Scholar Wine,' which had a very good taste. However, I'd like to know, why did you name it 'Top Scholar Wine'?"

Xu Zhaozhao replied truthfully, "Actually, I didn't know how to name it at the time. It just so happened that my third brother invited some classmates and friends over to drink and compose poems. I saw that Fu Zhuangyuan was the top scholar, so I just named the wine Zhuangyuan Wine."

Wang Ruolan nodded, "I see."

Xu Han had also drunk the champion's wine, but he thought it wasn't as good as the hero's wine.

Hero Wine is actually the highest alcohol content baijiu, and it's the one that Xu Zhaozhao put the most effort into making.

"Zhaozhao, Hero Wine is delicious and strong, but it doesn't give you a headache. If I get drunk at noon, I don't need any hangover soup. I just take a nap and I'm fine. I don't have any hangover symptoms. That's really rare."

Poetry and wine were very popular in Daxing. Not only men, but even young women could all drink a few cups of wine.

As a military officer, Xu Han often had banquets with his colleagues. After drinking for decades, he felt that this Hero Wine was the most satisfying for him.

It's powerful, but doesn't give you a splitting headache—it's definitely my favorite!

"If Father likes it, I will send him a few more jars another day."

"Alright, I'll be waiting!"

Wang Ruolan rolled her eyes at him, knowing all he knew was drinking.

"Zhao Zhao, I heard you had someone get you a set of equipment before, is it for brewing wine?"

Xu Zhaozhao suddenly realized that her mother's question was probably because she was worried that the matter would be leaked and someone would secretly harm her again.

"Not really. I specifically ordered people to make this tool separately, and the person in charge of it was someone from Pagoda Fruit."

Wang Ruolan nodded, but still reminded him, "You still need to be careful. The profit margin for this wine is extremely high. The fruit wine you produced last year already attracted the attention of many breweries and wine merchants. This time, the sake will likely cause a stir in the capital. You should make more preparations."

"I dare not hide it from my mother. Actually, I was originally thinking of asking my father for a favor."

Xu Han was taken aback, then realized: "Do you want me to deliver wine to the palace?"

Xu Zhaozhao hesitated for a moment: "It's not just about sending wine to the palace, it would be best if my daughter could meet the Emperor."

Xu Han's expression turned serious: "Why?"

Xu Zhaozhao remained silent because she intended to hand over the production of this Hero Wine directly to the imperial court.

This inevitably involves distillation.

Xu Zhaozhao gave a brief explanation, but Wang Ruolan felt it was inappropriate.

"According to you, this distillation method is extremely important. If you rashly submit it to the imperial court, it will soon spread, and at that time, I'm afraid it will suppress your own brewery."

"Mother, distillation is one of the key steps in determining the alcohol content. During distillation, alcohol has a lower boiling point than other substances, so by controlling the distillation temperature and time, alcohol and other components can be separated to obtain the desired alcohol content."

I only submitted some details about brewing Hero's Wine to the imperial court; I wouldn't submit the rest. As for whether they could develop it themselves, I didn't care. A family like ours can't be accused of being only interested in money.

Besides, even without the money from brewing wine, our family has no shortage of food and drink, and I myself am not short of money. Rather than being accused of competing with the people for profit in the future, it's better to simply offer up the recipe. That way, at least we can obtain some protection from the imperial court.”

What Xu Zhaozhao didn't say was that if she taught them the distillation method, they would just follow the instructions blindly. Even if they could actually produce liquors with an alcohol content of 38 or 40 degrees, it wouldn't have much impact on her.

Daxing is famous for its fine wines, and anyone with spare money, whether an official, a merchant, or an ordinary citizen, will buy them.

Therefore, it's impossible for her to completely control such a large market. If she did, the person above her would have to find ways to suppress her.

Xu Zhaozhao said solemnly, "Father, the reason why I handed over Hero Wine to the court is that this wine can play a better role in reducing inflammation. If the soldiers on the border are injured, they can use it to disinfect and clean their wounds, which will help them heal faster and greatly reduce the mortality rate."

Xu Han was shocked to hear this. If that was the case, he should immediately go to the palace to meet the emperor!