My Pen Pal Zhu Yuanzhang

Chapter 194 The First Person in Ming Dynasty to Drink Alcohol
When Zhang Dewang saw the serious-looking Jinwu Guards at home, he was completely stunned.

As a famous winemaker in Yingtian Prefecture, Zhang Dewang’s family has been making wine for generations. In Yingtian Prefecture, anyone who loves wine will give a thumbs up and call it “good wine” when they hear the words “Zhang’s Wine Shop”!
Relying on his ancestral foundation and his own hard work throughout his life, Zhang Dewang has lived a wealthy life. Now that he is old, he has handed over the family business to his children to manage, and he himself enjoys his retirement and waits for his grandchildren.

However, having been honest all his life, he never expected that an official would come to his door. Looking at the shining weapons of the Jinwu Guards, he almost peed his pants with fright.

As an ordinary citizen, he could not tell the difference between the Jinyi Guards and the Jinwu Guards. His legs went weak and he knelt down.

"My fellow Jinyiwei, I am innocent!"

No matter if there is anything wrong or not, it is always right to protest your innocence.

Everyone in the Jinwu Guard was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. There was nothing they could do because the Jinyi Guard was so famous. People only knew the Jinyi Guard but not the Jinwu Guard.

Moreover, few ordinary people can tell what the Jinwu Guards do.

The eunuch who came to announce the decree knelt down as soon as he saw Zhang Dewang so swiftly. It was perfect, so he started to announce the decree right away.

When Zhang Dewang heard that it was the emperor who summoned him to the palace to brew wine, he was a little bit unbelieving and thought he had misheard. However, after he took the imperial edict tremblingly and confirmed it again and again, he found that it was actually true!

Their uneasy mood suddenly turned into extremely excited. Going to the palace to brew wine for His Majesty meant that from now on, their Zhang family would be the royal winemakers. This was a great joyous event that would make their ancestors' graves smoke!
He was still thinking about enshrining the imperial edict, but the eunuch urged him to do it urgently, so he could only entrust these matters to the younger generation in his family, and he entered the palace with the eunuchs and the Jinwu Guards.

Zhu Yuanzhang called together all the skilled craftsmen in the palace, and under his command, they were busy working in an orderly manner.

The reason why it was held in the palace was, on the one hand, that Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to witness the birth of alcohol in person, and on the other hand, of course, it was also to keep it secret.

When Zhang Dewang met Zhu Yuanzhang and was ready to show his skills, he was stunned when he saw the wine-making equipment prepared for him by his emperor.

Is this thing used to make wine?
Although the distillation equipment is somewhat similar to my own, the distillation process seems too complicated.

Can this thing really make good wine?

Zhang Dewang became nervous again. His Majesty had entrusted him with the important task of brewing wine. If anything went wrong, how would he explain to His Majesty and his ancestors?

At that time, not only will His Majesty blame me, but he will also destroy his own reputation, which will be truly unforgivable.

However, after repeated trials, Zhang Dewang discovered that the special distillation device was indeed very useful. It could repeatedly purify the wine and remove impurities. The person who could come up with this device was truly a rare winemaking genius!

After unremitting efforts, Zhang Dewang finally produced the first batch of finished products. When the alcohol dripped all over the copper pot, the extremely rich aroma made everyone present almost drunk on the spot.

Everyone looked at the whole pot of alcohol in amazement and made exclamations of admiration.

"Is this alcohol? It's really the essence of wine!"

"Just smelling the rich aroma makes me almost drunk. I wonder what kind of god dares to drink this wine?"

As a winemaker, he would naturally be the first to try the wine after it was finished. Although Zhu Yuanzhang had repeatedly warned that drinking it would be poisonous, Zhang Dewang stubbornly believed that how could something he brewed be poisonous?

He scooped up a small bowl and brought it to his mouth. The strong smell of alcohol stimulated Zhang Dewang so much that he could hardly open his eyes. He took a sip carefully.

All of a sudden, he felt a taste of explosion in his mouth. The strong stimulation of alcohol made him dizzy. He felt the world spinning, and then he fell to the ground with a plop, unconscious.

Zhu Yuanzhang shook his head helplessly. He had already told people that drinking this would cause poisoning, so who told them not to listen?
However, Zhang Dewang would be his personal master in making alcohol in the future, so he had to wake him up first. He called the imperial physician and found that Zhang Dewang was just drunk, so he was relieved.

This made everyone feel both amused and helpless. The winemaker was actually drunk by the wine he brewed. This was probably the first time in history that this had happened.

Zhu Yuanzhang, who watched the entire process of alcohol production, suddenly thought that alcohol is actually the product obtained after several purifications of liquor.

The wine obtained after the first or second distillation is actually very fragrant, and is much stronger than the current Ming Dynasty liquor.

So, when producing alcohol in the future, can we also produce such good wine at the same time?
After Zhang Dewang wakes up, let him try it.

Zhu Yuanzhang found another small bottle, filled it with alcohol, and rushed to the Imperial Hospital without stopping.

Lao Li said that this thing can kill bacteria, and he couldn't wait to verify it.

Arriving at the Imperial Hospital, after seeing Lou Ying and exchanging greetings, Lou Ying said excitedly:

“Your Majesty, thanks to the microscope sent by the strange man, I have now discovered that there are many kinds of bacteria in this world, and different bacteria can cause different consequences.

Just like in the past, when someone was seriously injured, they would often have a high fever or even a severe cough while recovering from the injury. In the past, we always thought it was due to evil wind entering the body, but now I understand that it is actually the wound that has been infected by bacteria."

Zhu Yuanzhang looked at Lou Ying in surprise. He was thinking of showing off in front of him, but he didn't expect that he had already discovered it himself.

However, it was also thanks to the microscope sent by Lao Li that he made such an important discovery.

"But how to remove the bacteria from the wound has puzzled me. Although boiling water can kill the bacteria, it obviously cannot be used on the injured person, as it will only aggravate the injury!"

Lou Ying said in some distress: "I feel ashamed of your Majesty's painstaking cultivation, and I also feel ashamed of the expectations of this extraordinary person, alas..."

"Doctor Lou, don't worry too much. We have a solution!" Seeing Lou Ying's distressed look, Zhu Yuanzhang began to feel proud again.

"Your Majesty, do you really have a solution?" Upon hearing this, Lou Ying's brows immediately lit up and he looked at Zhu Yuanzhang with anticipation.

"Doctor Lou, what do you see here?" Zhu Yuanzhang took out a small bottle of alcohol and handed it to Lou Ying.

Lou Ying took the bottle with some suspicion, then pulled out the cork. Suddenly, a strong smell of alcohol hit him in the face and filled his nose.

"liquor?"

"No, it's called alcohol. This thing can kill bacteria!" Zhu Yuanzhang said proudly.

"Alcohol that can kill bacteria?" Lou Ying's face was full of disbelief. To be cautious, he quickly made a slice, then placed it under a microscope, and then carefully dripped a drop of alcohol on it with a test tube.

Then, he saw through the microscope that under the stimulation of alcohol, the bacteria that were alive and well just now suddenly became subdued and became motionless.

It actually worked. Lou Ying was overjoyed and so excited that he couldn't control himself. With alcohol, how many lives could be saved!
This alcohol should have been given to Your Majesty by the strange man. The strange man is truly a living Bodhisattva in this world. Thinking of this, Lou Ying's respect for Li Han increased a little more.

(End of this chapter)