Chapter 41: The Hochberg Family

After sending a letter to the Hochberg family and receiving their quick approval, I set out with Hans and Ryu on horseback to the Hochberg territory. Stein and Jan were left behind this time.

Since we were traveling within the country, we could buy food anywhere and stay at inns, so we brought minimal supplies.

In fact, cheese is almost a universal preserved food. It's rich in vitamins, minerals, protein, and calories. Its only shortcoming is the lack of Vitamin C, which is one of the most difficult nutrients to preserve, easily breaking down with heat and dryness.

We arrived at the Hochberg estate. The Duke himself came out to greet us.

"Johann, thanks to you, I became a duke. I'm truly grateful," he said, suddenly embracing me. I was startled.

"Congratulations on becoming duke, father-in-law. Jung was very happy," I replied.

"Thank you. Let's not stand here talking. Come inside. Hans looks well."

"Yes, he's been doing as he pleases at my place."

"I never had the capacity for that. Johann, I'm entrusting Hans to you."

"Of course."

Ryu watched this exchange with an amused smile.

I looked at the Hochberg mansion. It was so grand it could be mistaken for a castle.

"Did you burn down half the house?"

"No, the previous mansion wasn't this large."

"We recently rebuilt it. We've had quite a bit of money coming in," he explained.

We were led to the reception room.

"Hans told me about the wagon. I've prepared a workshop and gathered craftsmen. I've also arranged materials. The water buffaloes should arrive soon."

"Are you being so accommodating? Thank you. Here's the funding."

"No need. I owe you. Those potatoes dramatically improved the food situation in my territory. When I shared them with other nobles, I received many gifts. The king even gave me a substantial reward. We're quite wealthy now."

"Moreover, we've produced various goods from the surplus potatoes."

"Here's one of them. Try this," he said, passing around glasses of liquid.

I took a sip. It was strong liquor - potato shochu, apparently distilled right here.

"This is a distilled spirit. Who made the manufacturing machine?" I asked, looking at Hans. Hans magnificently avoided eye contact.

"Hans, can you look me in the eye?"

"No, someone else designed it. I just manufactured it," he said, looking elsewhere.

"Father-in-law, may we make this device at our place?"

"For you, Johann, certainly. But don't tell anyone else."

"Of course."

"Hans, after this job is done, you'll make one for us too, right?"

"I'd be happy to."

I went with Hans to see the distillation apparatus. It was a primitive pot still.

Examining it closely, I noticed something. While the main body was copper, the final narrow pipe wasn't copper. It was gray, not the reddish color of copper.

"Hans, what's this part made of? It doesn't look like copper."

"The narrow pipe is made of lead. It's difficult to process."

"Lead is toxic. Replace this part with copper immediately. Everything we make must be copper."

"Really?"

"I swear it's true. Lead should never be used."

"I'll remake it right away."

"Hans, you've helped me again."

"It's not acute poisoning, so a small amount won't be immediately problematic. But continuous use is dangerous."

"Thank you. Did you make other foods?"

He brought out yellow strips. I tried one.

These were dried sweet potato slices. Delicious.

"These are fine. They're incredibly tasty. I'd like to take some on our next expedition."

Dried sweet potatoes are nutritionally excellent. Rich in various vitamins and minerals, they notably contain large amounts of the hard-to-preserve Vitamin C. They have calories and are high in fiber. Their only drawback is a short preservation time of about a month, but they're still a form of preserved food.

I'll definitely take these along.