...
Wang Shouzhe didn't take this little episode too seriously and shifted the topic to the main point: "By the way, Second Brother, are the live fish the most valuable in your fish stall?"
"Yes, apart from spirit fish, some high-quality live fish are the most valuable. Sea bass, pike, mandarin fish, carp, shad, these are all known for their tenderness and are quite favored by noble families and wealthy merchants. The only requirement is that they must be fresh and alive," Wang Shouyi said with a frown. "Uncle Six's fishing fleet has live water storage. Once ashore, the live fish need to be delivered to Changning Guard City overnight using a special cart. Even if the time taken is minimal, many mistakes occur. Out of ten, six to seven will die, and once they die, their value drops by half and can only be sold as fresh fish."
Wang Shouzhe pondered for a moment and said, "So, the cost of transportation and the mortality rate of live fish are the two key issues. Solving these two issues, even if the fish catch yield doesn't increase, can earn a lot more in a year."
The reason he was inspecting various clan industries was to examine every production detail. If he could apply some modern Earth-based optimizations, he'd enhance the clan's production output.
"If Fourth Brother can find a way to reduce live fish mortality, conservatively, we could confidently make seventy to eighty extra Qian Gold annually," Wang Shouyi said, unable to hide the pain on his face. "Those dead ones would be pure profit."
"It's hard to say now; I need to see your existing plan, Second Brother."
"Come with me, Fourth Brother." Wang Shouyi led Wang Shouzhe to the backyard of the courtyard, where two carts were parked. Unlike regular carts, they had no passenger compartment, but each housed a large round wooden tub. He said, "One cart carries both water and fish, while the other carries only water. Every hour, some of the water in the fish tub needs to be changed. But even so, when there are too many fish, they still die. I'm considering adding another cart just for water, though this would significantly increase costs."
Upon seeing Wang Shouyi's methods for transporting live fish, Wang Shouzhe's eyelid twitched. The number of valuable fish Uncle Six's team could catch daily wasn't numerous, at most one or two thousand pounds a day.
And they used such astonishing means to transport them? The fish tubs were surprisingly simple, lacking any oxygenation or filtration; it was just about water exchange!
To change the water, another cart was used just to carry water. And that wasn't enough; Wang Shouyi even planned to add another cart?
However, Wang Shouzhe knew it wasn't Wang Shouyi's fault. This was a Black Tortoise world, where everyone was focused on how to improve cultivation realms and personal martial power.
Of course, not all human elites ignored studying some natural sciences. But even if some did research a part of the findings, they would keep it to themselves, strictly guarding the knowledge, making it hard to spread.
It wasn't their fault; even if Wang Shouzhe discovered any knowledge, it would only be secretly used by the clan. The thought of disseminating it to benefit other families was out of the question.
In his previous life, when at work, Wang Shouzhe was often a lazy fish with no ambition. On holidays, he often went fishing with friends. After catching more fish, he bought oxygen pumps trying to keep live fish alive for gradual consumption, but found that even with oxygenation, fish still died quickly. After slightly researching and learning simple principles, he understood some fundamentals.
To keep live fish alive for gradual consumption, one must meet three conditions in their tank.
The first is the dissolved oxygen in the water. Fish need oxygen to survive, and the oxygen in the water is limited. The more fish in a bucket, the more oxygen consumed. This can be addressed by aeration.
Second is the cleanliness of the water. Fish waste and food residue produce ammonia and nitrites, and breathing creates nitrogen. These are factors causing fish death. This can be addressed by water changes and filtration.
Furthermore, temperature plays a role. Higher temperatures increase fish activity, leading to more oxygen consumption and more toxic ammonia production. Therefore, maintaining relatively low water temperatures is very effective as well.
Combining these three points, the two entered Wang Shouyi's study. After a brief thought, Wang Shouzhe sketched a simple diagram on paper: the top of the fish-containing wooden barrel would have a filter with water falling like rain into the tub, using the simplest drip aeration principle.
He also used the simplest terms to explain the principles of oxygen and toxic substances to Wang Shouyi.
Having worked in the fish trade for over a decade, Wang Shouyi quickly grasped Wang Shouzhe's principles and exclaimed in sudden realization, "Hearing what Fourth Brother said, I suddenly understand many things. The elders once passed down that we must exchange live water because fish need the live energy in water. Without enough live energy, water becomes dead water, and fish die. Fourth Brother's suggestion of using drip and sprinkle methods to increase live energy in water never crossed my mind."
"This was something I read in ancient texts. Whether it is effective remains to be seen through Second Brother's experiments," Wang Shouzhe nodded discreetly. The term 'live energy' is indeed more digestible than the cumbersome term 'oxygen.'
"Fish consume the live energy and expel dead energy; too much waste in water produces toxic gas. Filtering out these wastes using layers of cotton cloth, charcoal, and gravel removes the toxins, naturally preventing fish from dying. Why didn't I think of this?"
Wang Shouyi grew more animated: "Additionally, what Fourth Brother said about the hot and cold conditions makes sense. The colder it gets, the less likely live fish die during transportation, while in summer, more live fish die. The reason is, in hotter conditions, fish are more active and thus require more live energy... No wonder transporting during the day isn't as effective as during the night! If only some ice stored in the cellar could be added to the water..."
The theories Wang Shouzhe shared seemed to open a new door for Wang Shouyi. Things that had puzzled him for so long suddenly made sense.
"As long as you understand, Second Brother, you can have the craftsmen make some small devices for trials first," Wang Shouzhe said, glancing at the sky. "It's getting late, and I still have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave first."
Being the clan leader, Wang Shouzhe wasn't there to invent. Furthermore, knowing something and doing it are two different things. Getting hands-on with those things might not yield great results.
As long as Wang Shouyi understood the principles, he could take charge of the following work.
"Fourth Brother, don't rush off." Wang Shouyi held him back. "It's rare for you to visit the fish stall; I haven't even treated you properly. Let's have lunch at the Hundred Flavors Pavilion. The live fish there are all supplied by us, and their dishes taste excellent. I still have many unresolved questions, like the siphon effect for drainage? And what is the principle of using a pump to add live energy to a water tank, and how can one utilize a pump principle to make water flow uphill..."
Enough!
Wang Shouzhe listened to the 'thousands of whys' and, though a bit overwhelmed, knew it was a good thing. Should Wang Shouyi immerse himself in this field after running the fish stall for many years, future business would only flourish, contributing greatly to the clan.
In Changning Guard, Wang's Fish Stall wasn't the only one; over ten noble families were in the fish business. Especially the Liu Family and Zhao Family, whose operations were larger in scale than Wang's.
The better the fish stall business did, while generating more wealth, they also squeezed out the survival space for the competitors.
So, Wang Shouzhe spent more time with Wang Shouyi, concentrating on a 'starter education.' Both the siphon effect and hand pumps required pipes. In this world, the use of pipes was quite rudimentary, limited to bamboo, ceramic, and copper types, but they sufficed.
If a manual pump couldn't be made for now, it wasn't crucial. Using a simple siphon principle to extract the bottom water and having workers manually pour water on the filtration layer would suffice. This greatly increased the transport capacity of one cart, and the rate of live fish survival was also significantly improved.
Wang Shouyi was utterly absorbed, even during lunch at Hundred Flavors Pavilion; he held onto Wang Shouzhe, asking incessant questions.
"Second Brother, are you saying that Hundred Flavors Pavilion is truly one of the finest restaurants in Changning Guard?" Wang Shouzhe, tasting the dishes at Hundred Flavors Pavilion, found the flavor to be average, elevated only by the quality of ingredients.
Of course, the culinary skill was still above the Wang Race family chefs, but compared to Earth, there was still a considerable gap in flavor.
"Fourth Brother, this meal cost 32 Large Copper 73 coins..." Wang Shouyi's face turned black with injustice. "This is the hard-earned private money I've saved, and you're still not satisfied with such fine dishes?"
Wang Shouzhe stroked his chin, guessing the gap in flavor was due to monosodium glutamate. In his past life on Earth, MSG and chicken essence pervaded the culinary world, setting his soul's taste thresholds very high for umami.
If MSG could be recreated, could it become a new industry?
...