Fifty-one freshly released

As soon as he heard that the furnace temperature was insufficient, Luan Yi thought to himself: This is bad—are they going to have people seek out coal and produce coke at this moment? In his anxiety, Luan Yi began pacing back and forth, thinking hard. What should he do? If the furnace temperature is too low, impurities cannot be removed, the quality of the glass will suffer, and it will be impossible to produce glazed vessels. Calm down! The current issue is the low furnace temperature. Ways to increase it include changing the fuel and improving ventilation… Ventilation—that’s it!

Luan Yi immediately lifted his head, excitement lighting his face. He glanced around; everyone was still wringing their hands in anxiety, as if wondering how such a world-changing task could be stalled here. Luan Yi quickly cleared his throat to draw their attention and said excitedly, “I have a solution. Bring me paper and brush!”

Once he had the materials, Luan Yi dipped his brush deeply in ink and swept it broadly across the paper. In no time, two vivid drawings came to life before him.

The craftsmen gathered around as the young prodigy finished his sketches. Zheng Hun asked, “Sir, what are these?”

Luan Yi smiled, “They are devices to aid combustion, called bellows and chimneys.” He then explained their functions, methods of construction, and importance to the assembled craftsmen.

What did he draw, you ask? Anyone from the twenty-first century would recognize them. The first was a push-pull bellows, commonly seen in historical dramas. Its design is simple yet highly efficient, and it was considered the most advanced ventilation equipment for a long time in world history, only replaced after the Industrial Revolution. Luan Yi had seen its construction on a documentary about ancient Chinese inventions on the Discovery Channel, never expecting it to come in handy now. The second drawing was a chimney. A chimney, when used in a furnace with natural draft burners, relies on the suction it generates to draw external air into the furnace for fuel combustion, thereby indirectly improving fuel efficiency and raising furnace temperature.

The craftsmen, all experts in their own right, immediately grasped the significance of these devices upon hearing the explanation and were exhilarated. Both were simple to construct, and if completed, would indeed raise the furnace temperature.

Luan Yi turned and asked, “How long would it take to make these?”

Zheng Hun thought for a moment and replied, “Within seven days, they will be finished.”

Luan Yi spoke sternly, “Very well! Zheng Hun, you are charged with making the bellows and chimney within seven days. Any worker who finishes ahead of schedule shall be rewarded with 200 coins per day. But if anyone is late by a day… 300 coins shall be deducted per day.”

“Yes, sir! We will not disappoint!”

In the following days, the Luan family’s Lishan factory became a scene of bustling activity. Luan Yi not only oversaw the renovation of the smelting equipment but also improved various factory regulations and even upgraded Manager Pang’s outdated accounting system.

The factory manager was busy, and the craftsmen below had no rest either. Aside from those making the wooden bellows and chimney, the laborers had already begun mining ore in Jingshan, while the blacksmiths started designing and crafting molds for future glassware.

Busy days always pass quickly. Five days later, amidst the cheers of the entire factory staff, the first batch of glazed glass from the Han Glaze Factory was finally produced. Though the quality was still inferior to future glass, it was already much better than what was currently available on the market. Luan Yi was thrilled, immediately rewarding those who had contributed and doubling the wages of all the craftsmen in the technical department. He also strictly ordered them not to divulge the formula for the glaze, warning that he would show no mercy to anyone who leaked it.

The next day, Luan Yi personally delivered the first four glass cups produced to the Jinan Royal Residence, placing them in Zhu Ying’s hands. He promised that every month, four sets of similar quality glassware would be offered to his superior, Zhu Ying, as a sign of respect.

Zhu Ying was overjoyed, examining the cups from every angle. Glazed glass was an extremely rare luxury in the Han Dynasty; just these four cups could fetch fifty gold ingots in the market, and with each ingot valued at ten thousand copper coins, that amounted to fifty thousand coins. Such a sum would exceed his lifetime salary as Jinan’s chief historian! Moreover, this was not a one-time payment; it would be delivered regularly each month, totaling sixty gold ingots and six hundred thousand coins a year, six times more than the ten-coin offering paid to him by Yang Mou, the sorcerer. With such a windfall, how could he not be delighted?

Unbeknownst to him, after improving the formula and production process, the cost for the Luan factory to produce a single glass vessel was just a few hundred coins—a negligible expense for the Luan family, who wouldn’t even bother to pick it up if dropped on the ground.

Yet Zhu Ying knew one thing well: there is no such thing as a free lunch. For the Luan family to invest so heavily, they must have a request, and it would not be a small matter. He asked Luan Yi, “Master Ziqi, what brings you here today?”

Luan Yi hesitated, saying it was nothing major—just that the Luan family’s business in Jinan was now on track, his father was serving as an official in the kingdom, so he had come specially to pay respect to his superior Zhu Ying, hoping for his guidance.

Seeing Luan Yi’s evasive gaze, Zhu Ying pressed further, “Although my acquaintance with Lord Luan and Master Ziqi is not long, our connection is strong—I feel as if we are old friends. I wish to regard Lord Luan as a close friend. If my friends encounter difficulties, I am duty-bound to help. So, Master Ziqi, you need not hide anything; speak freely if you have a request.”

“Um…”

When Luan Yi still spoke ambiguously, Zhu Ying grew angry: “What, do Lord Luan and Master Ziqi not regard me as a friend?”

“Never, never!” Luan Yi laughed inwardly, realizing that his and his father’s compliant behavior over the past three months had been highly effective. From Zhu Ying’s perspective, the two of them were genuine merchants, in Jinan as officials only incidentally, their main focus being business and profit. This was evident from their wide-ranging enterprises. And what is a merchant’s defining trait? The pursuit of profit, valuing harmony to foster wealth, and avoiding conflict. In fact, the Luan family had done precisely that—upon arrival in Jinan, they neither meddled in politics nor local affairs, only burying themselves in making money, the epitome of merchant behavior.

This was exactly what Zhu Ying, as chief historian of Jinan, hoped to see. He understood that so long as the Luan family observed proper etiquette, he would always get his share of their profits, and he would, in turn, do his best to help them. This was a brand-new profit chain, a way he had long envisioned to enrich himself.

Look—today, the first profits had arrived in his hands, richer than expected. That was precisely the effect Luan Yi sought—to overwhelm him with wealth, and with ever greater offerings, drive a wedge between Zhu Ying and Yang Mou, thus securing a foothold for the Holy Mother Church in Jinan.

With this in mind, Luan Yi spoke slowly, “Since that is so, I shall not stand on ceremony. Moreover, as Lord Zhu is an official alongside my father in Jinan, he is my elder. If Lord Zhu does not mind, may I call you Uncle Zhu?” This was a classic ploy for closeness, but Luan Yi was a renowned scholar—others would have to address him as ‘Master’. That title denotes a learned person, a term reserved for those of great knowledge. To be regarded as an elder by such a person was indeed an honor.

So, Luan Yi’s call of ‘Uncle Zhu’ filled Zhu Ying with delight. He graciously accepted, inviting Luan Yi to use the term, and changed his own address, saying, “Virtuous nephew Ziqi, this makes us ever closer. Speak freely—whatever it is, say on.”

“Then I shall share my thoughts with Uncle Zhu.” Luan Yi glanced at Zhu Ying, noting his good mood, and tested the waters: “My father and I recently heard that Yang Mou has opened many temples in Jinan, earning considerable income. We wish to follow his example, build a grand temple in Licheng County, and earn some incense money to supplement our household. Would this be possible?”

“Hmm?” Zhu Ying had always been wary of the Luan family meddling in temple affairs. Now, they were indeed reaching for that domain. His eyes instinctively narrowed, a murderous aura emanating.

Seeing Zhu Ying’s anger, Luan Yi feigned timidity, saying, “If it is not permitted, then forget it.”

Zhu Ying reconsidered. His reluctance to let the Luan family touch temple matters stemmed from fear they would oppose him. But now, the Luan father and son were not opposing him—they simply wanted to share in the business, to build their own temple and earn more incense money, which fit the greedy nature of merchants perfectly. So he responded, “Nephew, you may not know—Jinan already has many temples, nearly all run by Yang Mou. Adding another might not be appropriate.”

The meaning was clear: Nephew, I’d like to help, but the temples here are monopolized by Yang Mou, and my relationship with him is strong—I must protect his interests and cannot let the Luan family get involved.

“I understand, but…” Luan Yi glanced at Zhu Ying, gauging his reaction, then continued, “But I once wrote in ‘On Wealth’ that a merchant’s monopoly breeds arrogance. I posited that monopolists are often proud and lacking in compassion. I was once unsure of this theory, but after coming to Jinan and meeting Yang Mou, I see it is true.”

“Hmm? Why do you say so, nephew?” Zhu Ying’s anger had just subsided, but now, hearing Luan Yi disparage his subordinate and half-friend Yang Mou, his temper flared again.

“Uncle Zhu, please don’t be upset. Allow me to explain.” Luan Yi spoke earnestly, “From what I know, Yang Mou collects incense money of 100 coins from every household in Jinan each month. With 48,763 households, that’s 4,876,300 coins monthly, or 48,763 strings. Adding other revenues, his monthly income is at least 70,000 strings. Such an enormous sum—I don’t know how much Yang Mou gives you each month, Uncle Zhu, but I suspect it’s less than 20,000 strings.” In truth, Luan Yi was overestimating; Zhu Ying actually received only 100,000 strings per year from Yang Mou, less than 10,000 per month.