章節 151: Supplying Canned Food
Translator: Cinder Translations
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In a magnificent living room, Hansel sat somewhat nervously in his seat, occasionally glancing towards the door.
Several days ago, he had requested an audience with Viscount William, who served as the royal quartermaster. However, the Viscount had continuously excused himself, citing busy affairs, and avoided meeting him.
Yesterday, he finally received the long-awaited reply: Viscount William could meet him the next morning at his own residence.
Hansel got up early today, dressed in carefully prepared attire, and arrived at the Viscount's mansion at the appointed time.
He reminded himself inwardly, "This meeting is crucial, it concerns whether I can open up sales channels for canned goods, and whether I can come into the sight of the kingdom's upper echelons."
This time returning to the capital, Hansel not only continued to recruit talents for Paul and gather refugees, but also bore the heavy responsibility of promoting canned goods to the kingdom's military.
Paul estimated that this matter was highly likely to succeed. After all, canned food was invented to solve the problem of military rations, and it should be appealing to any military, regardless of the world.
Although Hansel was a layman in military matters, he could clearly see the significant importance of such food that was easy to transport in large quantities and could be stored for a long time.
Sitting in the living room of Viscount William's house, after glancing countless times towards the entrance to the living room, he suddenly heard footsteps in the corridor outside.
"He's coming!"
Hansel's heart thumped. He made an effort to compose himself, straightened his posture, and waited for the arrival of the host.
Soon, a figure flashed at the entrance to the reception room. A middle-aged man with a shrewd look in his eyes walked in.
Hansel immediately stood up and greeted the middle-aged man, "It's an honor to see you, Lord Viscount William."
"Hansel, please sit down, please sit down."
The Viscount immediately invited him to take a seat.
"How time flies, I didn't expect Abbott's second son to have grown so big."
Viscount William suddenly exclaimed. The incident involving Old Abbott had caused quite a stir back then, and it was well known throughout the capital. The young man before him was the child who had suddenly appeared back then.
"Uh... ah... yes."
Hansel awkwardly responded.
"So, what brings you here to see me?"
Viscount William got straight to the point, clearly not intending to engage in small talk with Hansel.
Hansel felt annoyed inwardly, "I've clearly stated everything in my letter of request each time. Does this quartermaster lord really have such a busy schedule that he can't even remember why I've come to see him?"
But he didn't show the slightest hint of displeasure on his face. Despite not holding a very high title, the Viscount held a key position in supplying the royal army.
Hansel maintained a polite smile on his face and explained his purpose, "Thank you, Lord Viscount, for sparing the time to see me amidst your busy schedule. I'm here to introduce to you a newly developed military ration."
To arouse Viscount William's interest, he directly referred to the canned goods as military rations, after all, the Viscount was the quartermaster.
The Viscount looked puzzled, "Military rations? Developed?"
Hansel nodded, "Exactly."
Then he called out, "Toman!"
The servant standing nearby, Toman, immediately placed a wooden box he had been holding onto the table and carefully opened it.
Curiously, Viscount William peered into the box, where he saw six glass bottles arranged inside.
"Is... is this... military rations for consumption?"
"Yes, Lord Viscount, their formal name is 'canned goods.' This is a special food processing method that allows food to be preserved for a long time. Please taste it; let's start with the beef."
Hansel picked up a can labeled beef. He peeled off the wax seal from the top of the can, revealing a cork inside. He took out a can opener he carried with him, firmly twisted it into the cork, pulled hard, and removed the cork. Then he placed the canned beef in front of the Viscount.
The Viscount looked somewhat reluctant as he stared at the canned beef in front of him.
To be honest, the appearance of canned meat was not very appealing, with chunks of white fat floating on the cloudy meat soup. Rather than stimulating appetite, it was somewhat off-putting.
After a while, he called for a servant and instructed, "Go to the kitchen and fetch two forks."
The servant quickly returned to the reception room and placed two forks on the table.
Viscount William gave Hansel a glance, who understood and picked up a fork, inserted it into the bottle of canned meat, picked out a piece of beef, and chewed on it.
Seeing him eat without hesitation, the Viscount then picked up another fork, inserted it into the can, picked out a piece of beef, and tasted it.
Chewing, the Viscount murmured, "Hmm... the texture is acceptable, indeed beef."
The taste was a bit peculiar, but still acceptable. Furthermore, it could be confirmed that it wasn't the taste of spoiled meat.
After swallowing the beef, Hansel continued, "Lord Viscount, the canned beef we are tasting was produced over a month ago."
"Over a month?"
Viscount William was greatly astonished that it could be preserved for such a long time.
He picked up another piece of beef, raised it to eye level, and examined it carefully.
From the taste and appearance, it seemed that this beef had been cooked. However, cooked meat would usually spoil within a day or two, even if stored in a cold room. How did this small glass jar manage it?
Seeing the Quartermaster's surprise, Hansel showed a hint of pride.
"Lord Viscount, according to the inventor of canned goods, they can be preserved for at least half a year. Even in the hot summer, as long as they don't exceed their 'shelf life,' the meat inside won't spoil."
"Half a year?"
Viscount William showed an expression of disbelief. As a Quartermaster, he knew that dried meat could also be preserved for a long time, but the taste... like chewing wax, it wasn't as tasty as the canned meat before him.
"It's not just beef; other meats can also be canned. This is pork, and this is lamb."
As Hansel introduced, he took out the other five cans from the box.
"And it's not just meats; there are also canned vegetables and fruits. These three bottles are pear, apple, and spinach."
The colorful fruits and vegetables looked much more appealing, catching the Viscount's attention.
Using the can opener, Hansel opened each of these cans one by one and had Viscount William taste each one.
"Hmm... these two fruit cans taste good."
The Viscount took a liking to the fruit cans and continued to eat several mouthfuls.
Hansel chuckled inwardly; of course, the taste was good.
The canned goods used for promotion and tasting were specially prepared: the canned meats were seasoned, and the fruit cans had added sugar. These two seasoning ingredients were very expensive in the Northwest Bay.
Viscount William picked up the napkin handed to him by the servant and wiped his mouth.
"If they can really be preserved for more than half a year, these so-called 'canned goods' are indeed excellent."
"Of course, they are excellent, Lord Viscount. I believe they will be well-received by the soldiers. As Quartermaster, you must understand the soldiers' pain of not having access to meat and vegetables."
Whether the soldiers welcomed it or not wasn't important; they had their "means" of getting meat and vegetables.
What mattered most was that it saved a lot of trouble for our Quartermaster.
Viscount William thought so in his heart and repeatedly agreed with Hansel's words, "Certainly, Baron Abbott, these are indeed excellent military rations."
He suddenly remembered that Hansel was indeed a baron.
(End of the Chapter)
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