It doesn't matter what the lord is.

"I didn't buy it."

Then I pointed to the table and said:

"I made it myself. Here."

He Yue's eyes suddenly widened with a look of disbelief.

I quite like to see her surprised, because most of the time she is calm and collected.

I took the medicine bottle in my hand, tossed it up, waited for it to fall into my hand, and tossed it up again. After repeating this several times, I said to He Yue:

"Alchemists and alchemists are too rare. Especially those at the master level who can be put to use are too rare. The reason is that they only know the results but not the reasons. Mix certain things together, burn them with a certain degree of flame for a certain period of time, and a certain result is produced, so the same formula is passed down from generation to generation, which is the inheritance of alchemy and alchemy. But why such a result is produced, whether the temperature of the flame has any effect, and whether it would be better to change to something else, these are not explored by them, so they fight and study the formulas of those masters and predecessors all day long, for fear that the formulas in their hands will be discovered by others. So I often feel that their industry will not make progress, or that the progress is too slow and too accidental."

I put the bottle of pills back on the table and laughed:

"So, I decided to take a completely new approach...'scientific alchemy'."

5. There is no fun in doing experiments

I stood up and showed her many inconspicuous corners of the factory.

There was confusion and a bit of joy in He Yue's eyes.

She was probably confused about the things she couldn't understand, while she was happy because she already knew that we could make elixirs.

This is much more profitable than the demon breeding farm. After all, most of the demons raised in Yuxi City are low-level demons, and the materials produced are also limited in use. But good auxiliary medicines can be auctioned at a sky-high price among the upper class. The prospects are broader and the money comes faster.

I tried to put it as simply as possible so that He Yue could understand:

"You just said that there are two purposes for refining medicine, one is purification and the other is detoxification. In my opinion, this is actually one thing, which is purification. Extracting pure medicine is the primary purpose. As for how to control the medicinal properties and make the drug's promoting effect on the human body as mild as possible, that's another story."

I brought He Yue to the first device.

The turquoise liquid dripped along the edge of the metal dome into a large basin below. Each drop of liquid was as smooth and round as mercury, and finally flowed together to form a thin surface of water. A small pile of medicinal herbs was suspended in the center of the water. Under the candlelight, the liquid was pure enough to reveal a person's shadow. He Yue and I were very close, so our faces were also reflected on it.

"The reflux method allows repeated purification, which can minimize the incorporation of drug residues into the drug solution. It also saves solution, which is much better than the traditional water boiling method."

I took He Yue to see the next device. In a translucent glass bottle, two different colored liquids were clearly layered. I took the liquid that had been repeatedly flowing back and poured it into the bottle, blocked the bottle mouth and shook it violently. The colors of the liquids in the upper and lower layers changed at the same time. The upper layer showed a bright emerald green, while the lower layer had clearly visible black flocs.

"Extraction. Using the different solubility of the various ingredients in the liquid medicine in different solutions, the effective ingredients can be screened out as quickly as possible. The emerald green liquid medicine dissolves in the upper layer, while many toxins sink to the lower layer."

I took He Yue to the next place, poured several different kinds of liquid medicine together, and said:

"Alchemy and alchemy often talk about a formula ratio, but even if you figure out the ratio, you may not be able to make it. In fact, it's very simple. Too high a temperature will cause the medicinal properties to volatilize, and too low a temperature will not produce anything. But in my opinion, the so-called elixir is essentially the active ingredients in the medicine mixed in proportion. The ratio, flame, and time required for refining the medicine are just to achieve this goal. Then we only need to purify each medicine at the beginning, and then directly mix the active ingredients, which can save most of the trouble. This also uses the idea of ​​assembly line operation that I told you about before, producing parts first, and then combining them into components."

As I said this, I handed the test solution in my hand to He Yue and said:

"This is a simple blue flower pill. All we need to do is purify it, pressurize it, and solidify it."

I raised my hand, casually pointed at the various instruments placed in the room, and said:

"This is just a simple example, because the production of Qinghua Dan is not complicated. Look at the various instruments in this room. Different medicines need to be produced in different ways. Don't learn from the alchemists who only know how to use fire to burn. If it burns out, it is a pill. If it doesn't burn out, it is a waste pill. Don't learn from the alchemists who stir a pot of unknown mixture all day long. If it stirs out, it is medicine. If it doesn't stir out, it is a waste medicine. There are so many ways to make medicine in the world. What's more, the methods of refining different medicines are originally different."

"Some use extraction, some use precipitation, some use salting out, some use dialysis, and some use crystallization. Sometimes many methods have to be used together, and even the same method needs to be adjusted according to different drugs. For example, in the extraction method, there are many types of solutions, and the most suitable ones need to be selected. For example, the degree of salt added in the salting out method requires constant exploration. For example, in the dialysis method, do you see these two electrodes? They may come in handy in the future."

He Yue held the medicine in his hand, sat back in his chair, and seemed to be thinking about something.

After a while, He Yue asked:

"Is this what you call 'science'?"

I nodded.

In my opinion, science and technology are two different things.

Science is a method of studying problems, and the study of things to gain knowledge is a primitive scientific method - observation. Technology is a technique, and the two are different.

Since I came to this world, it has become quite difficult to reproduce many technologies, or in my opinion, it is not so necessary. It is rare to reincarnate into a different world, and I have to play with the same things that I have long been tired of playing. I feel boring just thinking about it.

But scientific methods can help people achieve twice the result with half the effort.

It is not advisable to completely copy the technological products of the previous life, but it is pleasant to use the research methods of the previous life to study the things in this world.

"To understand the principles and solve the problems in a more effective way..."

He Yue looked at the emerald green liquid medicine in his hand against the light, sighed, and said:

"I don't understand these. But I know that in the future, Yuxi City will need a lot of professionals who understand this. They are very important and need to be trained as soon as possible."

I said:

"I wrote a chemistry book for Bai Huang before. If you are interested, you can take a look at it. It contains some basic knowledge. Once you understand it, it will not be difficult to operate these things in the factory now."

He Yue cheered up and said:

"Then I'll have to take a closer look. I'll pick a few smart kids of the right age and let them learn from me. Everything needs to be planned early. Besides, regarding this elixir..."

I smiled and said:

"It's up to you to decide. By the way, when I was researching the extraction potion, I found that there was no high-concentration alcohol, so I made some directly by distillation. Take a look."

As I said this, I took out a bottle from the cabinet below and handed it to He Yue. He Yue opened it, smelled it, and asked:

"liquor?"

He took a sip, frowned, and said painfully:

"It's a strong drink."

I replied:

“I usually call it the water of life.”

He Yue stared at me for a while, looking expectant. I spread my hands helplessly and said:

"No more. There is nothing valuable left. Only my beauty is worth some money. But the price is too high. Ordinary people can't afford it. And it's useless to buy it. It just adds another mouth to feed."

He Yue laughed and said:

"You have self-awareness. But this time I have impressed you. At least I feel that the money I invested in building the factory can be recovered. Since the merits and demerits offset each other, I will not hold you responsible for insisting on spending money to build the factory during the most difficult period."

I slammed the table, pretending to be angry, and said:

"You have no conscience. I was very thoughtful and patient, okay? Shouldn't I get some reward now?"

He Yue smiled and said:

"What reward do you want?"

I thought about it and said tactfully:

"He Yue, did you know that the king has a private treasury? It's the king's little treasury, private money, the kind that no one cares how he spends it... Do you understand what I mean?"

He Yue nodded:

"I understand. But you can't do that now. When the treasury of Yuxi City is full next year, we will allocate some money to you. You can do whatever you want then. For now, just make do with it. Keep the rewards simple."

As she spoke, He Yue walked over here, lifted her bangs in front of my eyes, and leaned down.

Without any preparation or hesitation, I felt the soft touch of lips on my left cheek.

He Yue touched her lips, which had become slightly lighter in color, with her finger, and looked at her finger for a moment, then said to herself:

"I need to go put some lip balm on."

After saying that, without even looking at me, he left alone with the bottle of medicine and the bottle of wine.

6. As soon as one wave subsides, another wave rises

The next day, He Yue presented the future plans of the northern industrial base on my desk.

He exhaled hot air, his face revealed a little fatigue, but his mental state was good. He felt a sense of excitement after staying up all night. The weather now was indeed a bit strange. If you get into bed, you can sleep for twelve hours and wake up feeling grouchy. But if you get dressed and get out of bed, the cold will make you wake up instantly and become energetic.

I took the plan from He Yue, which roughly stated the following three points:

First, the production method of the medicine is not disclosed to the public. It is only said that a very capable alchemist has come to Yuxi City, who can refine a small amount of top-grade elixirs for sale. Because of the high purity, the price is set high, targeting the high-end market.

Second, the distilled liquor is not sold to the outside world. Instead, Yunhai is contacted as the exclusive agent and Yunhai is responsible for selling it to the outside world. The final sales volume is split equally between the two parties.

Third, while the plan for military expansion remains unchanged, a group of personnel will be recruited to take charge of the security of Yuxi City. At the same time, it is expected that the first batch of new schools will be built in the middle of next year to start secretly training some innovative talents.

I read it once, nodded, and said to He Yue:

"I think it's okay."

He Yue sat down next to me, close to the charcoal fire, and said while warming her hands:

"I thought you would refuse, and I spent the whole night thinking about how to convince you."

"Are you afraid that I will blame you for being too slow in planning? I still understand that haste makes waste."

I held the teacup in both hands, blew away a tea leaf floating on the water, and took a sip of tea slowly.

He Yue sighed and said:

"In fact, I also think this will be slower. The medicine can be mass-produced, but it can only be sold in limited quantities. No matter how good the quality of ordinary pills is, how much can they be sold for? At most, it is only several times the price of similar pills. This is still not a fast enough way to make money. If it can be mass-produced and sold all over the world, the profits it brings can instantly make Yuxi City grow into a behemoth that cannot be underestimated."

I added:

"A tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind. I'm afraid it will be gone before it grows up. The thirty-six territories of Yongtian have joined forces to hunt us down. It's quite exciting to think about it."

He Yue smiled and said:

"It's thrilling. It's like jumping off a building. For a moment you even think you're going to take off, and then you're gone."

He Yue's hands gradually turned red. She put her hands in her sleeves and said:

"This also includes distilled liquor. Yunhai itself sells liquor. One third of the world's fine liquor comes from Zixuan, one third from Lingwu, and one third from Yunhai. If we really compete with Yunhai for business, Yunhai Lord and Baifeng will definitely be the first to disagree. By then, a pale treaty will not be able to protect Yuxi City at all. It is better to do Baifeng a favor and let him be responsible for management and sales. Anyway, they are businessmen and are familiar with this aspect."

I nodded.

There was silence for a while, and neither of them spoke.

After a while, He Yue asked:

"How are you and the assassin doing?"

I just passed the tea to my lips and said casually:

"Okay……"

After taking a sip of tea, I suddenly realized something was wrong and spat out the tea on the table.

He Yue raised her eyebrows and looked at me ambiguously.

I coughed twice and said:

"Where did this assassin come from? Didn't that guy leave a note a while ago saying 'I couldn't beat her, so I ran away'? Bai Huang turned Yuxi City upside down, but couldn't find her. A notice was posted two days ago, telling everyone that the assassin had left. There's no need to panic when going out on the street. This matter is over."

He Yue didn't say anything, still having a half-smile on his face.

I had no choice but to lower my head and drink my tea.

He Yue said:

"It's strange. Two days ago, when the gardener was loosening the soil in the garden, he dug out an iron bucket in the corner. Inside was a black mask and some other things. Who buried it in our city lord's mansion..."

My hand holding the tea trembled a little, but I still said:

"I don't know. Who?"

He Yue stared at me for a while and said:

"Hey... Never mind. I won't pursue this matter. Yuxi City needs its own Anbu organization anyway. It's better to have one than not. I'm just an assistant minister of internal affairs. The army and Anbu affairs are not my responsibility. But even so... I'm telling you, are you sure you want to keep me in the dark? Without saying too much, running an Anbu organization always requires funds. If I don't approve, where will the money come from? Hmm?"

He Yue said, poking my cheek with her finger, and asked:

"You don't want to take it from your own private money. Do you have any private money?"

I had no choice but to put on a flattering smile and said:

"Isn't it that Yuxi City has been having trouble with its cash flow recently? Based on the principle of sharing your worries, I originally wanted to wait until you had more money before bringing up this matter with you."

He Yue obviously didn't believe it, but she didn't refute anything. She just smiled and said:

"I will contact Yunhai in the next two days. The distilled liquor will be available soon. Just in time for the New Year, there should be many people willing to pay for it. Let's make some money first. As for the elixirs, it would be better to contact various sales channels after the New Year. After all, there are basically no people practicing martial arts during the Spring Festival. Next year, we will move the demon breeding farm to the four new cities, and the scale will increase. The expenses of the Anbu will still be affordable."

He Yue put a finger to her lips, blinked at me and said:

"Don't worry, I won't tell Alayya and the others about the assassin."

I clasped my hands together, bowed to him, and said exaggeratedly:

"Thank you for saving my life."