Chapter 92
As soon as Zhou Qi said this, Tang Yu'an's attention was diverted. He first took out the super printer from his portable warehouse.
This is a square machine, about 80 cm long and wide, with a unique shape. The mechanical accessories and panels can be seen, making it look very technological.
"This printing machine can produce various labels." Tang Yu'an looked at the instructions on the panel and read the information to Zhou Qi.
【Super Printing Machine】
Description: Used to make and print various labels and stickers, it is a good helper when pricing goods.
This description seems unremarkable, but Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi, who have drawn special items many times, did not underestimate it just because of its simple description.
It must have some special features that the two of them haven't figured out yet, which is why it deserves the word "super".
"Let's try it first." Zhou Qi said.
"good!"
Tang Yu'an fumbled to turn on the printer, and the panel suddenly lit up, with operating buttons appearing on it.
Please select the type of item you want to make.
1. Tags
2. Stickers
Tang Yu'an looked at the difference between the two.
Labels do not have a sticking function, but stickers do. Both types allow you to freely choose the size, style, and printed text and patterns.
"It doesn't seem like there's anything special about it?" Tang Yu'an said with a frown.
Zhou Qi also made selections on the panel until the last step—
【Please put in the raw materials】
"Do you want to put paper in?" Tang Yu'an took out a stack of A4 paper from his printer.
Zhou Qi took the paper and opened the cover of the printer. It was empty inside, with a lot of space and no paper outlet.
He looked at the raw material box of the printing machine and suddenly had an idea. He exchanged 10 points for a piece of cotton cloth and put it into the printing machine.
Tang Yu'an couldn't help blinking as he watched his operation.
Although he was confused, he did not stop him because he knew that Xiaoqi would definitely not do anything rash.
Soon, Zhou Qi closed the lid and pressed the production switch.
["Sticker-Post-it Note" is being produced, estimated to take 3 minutes]
It only takes 3 minutes, it’s done quickly!
Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi waited patiently, and soon saw the 3-minute countdown was over.
[The "sticker-sticky note" is ready, please take it out]
Tang Yu'an quickly opened the lid and saw that the white cotton cloth in the raw material box of the printing machine had turned into a square sticky note pad.
He took it out and looked at it.
This sticky note is made of cotton cloth, which looks very sturdy and has a very smooth surface.
Tang Yu'an took a pen and wrote on it, and found that the cotton cloth was not simply cut and pieced together, but the material had been processed to make it more suitable for writing.
He thought about it, took out a cup and poured water into it, then tore off the cotton sticky note with words on it and soaked it in the water.
“The words are not blurred!”
In addition to changing the material of the cotton cloth to make it more suitable for writing, it also retains the characteristic that the cloth will not melt in water like paper.
When ink is written on it, it will penetrate into the fabric and will not spread easily like ordinary paper.
"That's great! When I run out of notebooks, I can use this printing machine to make more!"
Cloth can be exchanged and is very cheap, so you don’t have to feel bad about using it to make notebooks. Moreover, the notebooks made from it will be stronger and more durable.
If Sister Hongli needs it, I can sell it to her. In the future, important things like land deeds won’t need to be written on straw paper!
Zhou Qi nodded, but as he looked at the printing machine, he had other thoughts.
“Can we use other materials?”
"For example?"
Zhou Qi glanced at him, then used his telekinesis skill to take out the pebbles that Tang Yu'an had picked up to make a water purifier from the warehouse.
These are half the size of a palm and cannot be used to make water purification devices.
Tang Yu'an looked at the stone he took out in surprise, and asked uncertainly: "Use stone? Will this work?"
Cloth can be cut, but stone is so hard...
"Try it?" Zhou Qi said.
Tang Yu'an hesitated for a moment, but nodded: "Since it is a super printing machine, it must have something more special. Let's give it a try!"
So Zhou Qi put the pebbles into the printing machine and pressed the option.
["Label-Card" is being created, estimated to take 10 minutes]
I didn’t expect it really works!
It just took longer this time.
While waiting, Tang Yu'an looked at today's harvest.
Before he knew it, his experience points had reached level 9 (176/180), and he only needed 4 more experience points to level up!
Xiaocao still made the highest contribution today, attracting a total of 23 guests. This was a little less than yesterday, but the experience points he gained were still considerable.
Then there is Brother Xiaoqi, whose employee level has finally been upgraded to lv5 (2/60).
Tang Yu'an quickly downgraded the skill of picking up goods remotely and authorized him to do so. However, it only improved the distance. If he wanted to unlock the remote placement function, he had to continue upgrading.
Brother Chi Hao is still at the bottom today.
He had already left Jufeng Town and picked up two new passengers on his way down the mountain, who brought him 6 experience points.
Tang Yu'an felt that he could only attract so few customers in Jufeng Mountain, where the population was relatively dense, and he could not expect to attract more on the way back to the fortress.
Therefore, his expectations for Chi Hao have been reduced to the lowest level. He only hopes that he can return to the fortress safely and open up a safe route to the fortress for him and Xiao Qige.
After all, he and Brother Xiaoqi will definitely have to go to the fortress in the future.
The points balance has reached 11,675. Looking at the increasing points balance, Tang Yu'an felt his back straighten.
At least when it comes to taking a bath, they no longer have to be as frugal as before.
Tang Yu'an was chatting with Zhou Qi. When he felt thirsty, he picked up the iced black tea and took a sip. Then he heard a ding sound, and the printing machine was completed!
["Label-Card" is completed, please take it out]
Tang Yu'an couldn't wait to open the cover of the printer, and saw a stack of cards neatly placed inside.
The stone is really made into a card!
And instead of simply cutting the stone into pieces, they used the pebbles as raw materials and remade them into cards of the same size.
Tang Yu'an picked up one and took a look.
The color of this card is very similar to that of pebbles, and it has a stone texture. It is a bit heavy, like a small slate, with the five words "Ping An Grocery Store" engraved on it. It was written by Brother Xiaoqi just now.
"Can the text printed on the card be replaced with other materials?" Tang Yu'an asked.
Zhou Qi checked the panel and nodded.
"Wow, then we can print on it without using ink!" Tang Yu'an said happily.
Although the engraving now has a very textured feel, it is not very obvious visually. If it is printed with other colors or materials, it will definitely be more eye-catching, and may also create a different visual effect.
He looked at the card in his hand, thought of something, and suddenly said, "Brother Xiaoqi, do you think we can use the printing press to print money?"
"Printing money?" Zhou Qi was stunned.
"yes!"
Tang Yu'an nodded and said innocently, "It's so inconvenient to have no money! It's so troublesome to trade."
Bartering is naturally very troublesome. You have to carry all the items you are trading with you. They can also put small items in a portable warehouse and use backpacks as disguise.
But if you want to trade large items, you have to carry them on your back, just like a frying pan made of iron and gold.
If you have "money" to use, both transactions and conversions will be much more convenient.
Zhou Qi listened to his mumbling and subconsciously denied it at first, but as he thought about it slowly, he thought - why not?
Just like the emergence of silver notes, they were first introduced by ancient merchants and then gradually promoted and developed.
And aren’t they also businessmen now?
Although the world's monetary system collapsed due to the catastrophe, why can't they rebuild a new monetary system?
Their requirements are not high. As long as it can be implemented in the deserted city, it will definitely be beneficial to the operation of the grocery store.
Because the residents have the "money" they issue, they will naturally come to them to exchange things, and the connection will naturally become closer.
Moreover, they are about to build a branch, and when the branch is completed, the currency can be launched at the same time as it opens to the public.
Currency is naturally related to goods.
Currency is a commodity that serves as a general equivalent, while paper money is linked to credit.
Only when customers can exchange the banknotes they promote for goods of equal value will they trust the banknotes and continue to use them...
After Zhou Qi thought about it seriously, he nodded and said, "We can try it."
"Really?" Tang Yu'an's eyes lit up.
"Yeah." Zhou Qi nodded, "But we don't call money money."
"What is that called?" Tang Yu'an asked puzzledly.
"Call them salt tickets!" Zhou Qi's tone was filled with excitement. "Each salt ticket can be exchanged for an equivalent amount of salt at the grocery store."
Salt is definitely the most attractive and valuable commodity in the wasteland.
"As long as it can really be exchanged for salt, there will definitely be many people willing to hold salt tickets." Zhou Qi said.
There may even be a situation where salt tickets are purchased on a large scale.
But they can't control this. After all, they have the final say on how many salt tickets to issue. And given the environment in the wasteland, it is still a long way off for this situation to occur.
unless……
The branch opened in Jufeng Town, and they promoted the salt tickets to Jufeng Town.
This is something that will happen later. This kind of salt ticket will definitely be tried out in Huangcheng first, and then promoted among their old customers.
They already have a certain credibility foundation. After operating for a period of time, if customers start using salt tickets as currency, it proves that the implementation of salt tickets has been successful.
So the question is, how can they ensure that when customers use salt coupons to exchange salt at the grocery store, they will definitely make a profit?
"Ordinary paper definitely won't work." Tang Yu'an said.
Not to mention whether ordinary paper is worth exchanging points for salt, the problem of paper's poor preservation performance is very fatal in the wasteland.
The daytime temperature in the wasteland is very high. Paper can easily become brittle and deform under high temperature. Add to that disasters like floods, and paper can no longer be used.
"Therefore, the materials used to make salt tickets must be waterproof, high temperature resistant, not easy to deform, and wear-resistant," Zhou Qi concluded.
He took out a pen and paper and wrote down these characteristics.
Cloth is naturally stronger than paper, but it can also tear or deform easily, so it's best to find another material to use instead.
"Don't we need to save on the materials used to make salt tickets?" Tang Yu'an suddenly said, "Because customers use salt tickets to exchange for salt, we can earn points!"
The more expensive the salt ticket, the more points you earn!
Although he might make a loss when it is released, but... his points will not be deducted for the loss, and he can still get experience points.
Moreover, after completing three transactions, there will be no record even if the stock is issued at a loss.
Zhou Qi shook his head. "The materials are too expensive, and we can't produce them in large quantities. Besides, the value of the salt ticket itself should be equal to or lower than its face value."
Otherwise, customers would be reluctant to exchange it for salt.
"Oh, it seems to be true..."
Tang Yu'an also took out a pen and paper. "1 point can be exchanged for 10 grams of salt, so... as long as the value of a salt ticket itself is 1 point, and the face value of a salt ticket is lower than 10 grams of salt, we can make a profit!"
Zhou Qi nodded, "Then one salt ticket can be exchanged for one gram of salt. That's easier to calculate."
The problems encountered in recruiting Xiaocao made him realize that one must never overestimate the cultural level of the wastelanders, as they might not even be able to do simple addition and subtraction.
"Okay!" Tang Yu'an nodded.
In this way, as long as customers bring two or more salt tickets to exchange with them, they can make a profit, and the more they exchange, the more points they earn.
"So, back to the previous question, what material should be used to make salt tickets? I think only metal meets the characteristics I just mentioned."
But is metal easy to obtain?
Hearing his question, Zhou Qi stretched out his hand, and as a faint golden-bronze light appeared, a piece of metal slowly condensed and took shape in his hand.
"Use mutant metal?" Tang Yu'an thought about it and nodded, "It seems possible!"
Mutated metal can be exchanged for iron and gold, and it has value in itself and is recognized by the wastelanders.
The printing machine can be set to the size and quantity. As long as the value of a single metal salt ticket is controlled at 1 point, there will be no problem!
"Then let's make a few and try them out."
"good."
Zhou Qi took out a mutated metal arrow. One arrow was worth 30 points and weighed about 20 grams.
That is to say, this mutant metal arrow can make 30 salt tickets, and the weight of each salt ticket is approximately equal to 0.67 grams.
Zhou Qi placed the mutant metal arrow into the raw material box of the printing machine and then set it up.
["Label-Card" is being produced, estimated to take 15 minutes]
The time increased again, but not too long.
Tang Yu'an opened the item list function to organize it, and Zhou Qi continued to think about how to improve the water purification device.
The size of a mineral water bottle is definitely not enough. If you want to make an enlarged version, it must be at least as big as a bucket. The upper bucket should be filled with filter material, and a bucket for collecting water should be placed below.
However, this operation is not very convenient. Since my mother-in-law is old, I still have to find a way to make a device that is convenient for water supply and collection.
Time passed quickly.
["Label-Card" is completed, please take it out]
Tang Yu'an heard a ding sound and quickly got up and ran over to open the lid.
He saw that the metal arrow had turned into cards the size of business cards. He picked up one and looked at it.
He found that the metal sheet was as thin as a cicada's wing, so he had to be very careful when holding it for fear of damaging it. After all, one sheet was only 0.67 grams and was spread over a relatively large area, so the thickness was very thin.
Zhou Qi also took one and observed it, then frowned and said, "Let's make a new batch. We need to make it smaller."
Tang Yu'an nodded.
He took out half of the metal sheet, closed the printer, set the card size again, and continued to wait.
This time it took much less time, just one minute.
They tried several times and finally adjusted the salt ticket to the size of a coin, which gave it the right thickness and made it less prone to damage.
"I think it should be called salt currency."
Tang Yu'an looked at the freshly minted metal coin and said, "Is it too small?"
Although it is convenient to carry, it is also easy to lose.
Zhou Qi nodded, "And it's not easy to make anti-counterfeiting marks."
The biggest worry about currency is encountering counterfeit currency. Once someone comes to the store with counterfeit currency, the merchant will probably lose everything.
If this situation can be avoided, it is better to avoid it in advance.
"So, we have to make something that no one else can forge!"
Mutated metal can be directly generated by mutants, so it is indeed easy to forge it. So...
"What if we mix two materials?" Tang Yu'an said, "Try using mutant metal and cotton?"
Zhou Qi also thought it was feasible.
Using a single material is risky, and using multiple materials is difficult. Even before a disaster, it is probably impossible to forge it.
After all, who could have imagined there was such a thing as a super printer?
Tang Yu'an did it as soon as he thought of it. He exchanged a piece of black cotton cloth, cut it into a similar size, and put it into the box together with a metal salt coin - the less material, the shorter the production time.
Sure enough, this time it still only took 1 minute.
Tang Yu'an opened the lid and saw that the cotton cloth and metal coins in the printing machine box were gone, and instead there was a black and gold card lying quietly.
He picked up the card, only to find that it was as soft as cloth and could be folded and rolled freely, but at the same time it had the properties of metal and could not be torn open even with scissors, let alone torn by hand.
Looking at the scars on the scissors and then at the "metal cloth" in his hand, Tang Yu'an's eyes lit up.
Zhou Qi handed him a glass of water.
Tang Yu'an put the newly made metal cloth into the water, soaked it for a while and took it out. He found that the cloth was not only not soaked, but also dried up after a light shake and wiping with a paper towel.
So this metallic cloth is waterproof!
Zhou Qi took another candle, lit it, and placed the metal cloth on the fire. Its ignition point was also very high, and it did not burn even when it was close to the outer flame of the candle.
"The outer flame temperature of a candle is about 500 degrees Celsius, so the ignition point of this metal cloth is above 500 degrees, which is completely sufficient for daily use."
“Great!”
Tang Yu'an couldn't help but say, "It's both waterproof and fireproof. Ordinary metal scissors can't cut it. And it looks so beautiful. It perfectly meets our needs!"
This metallic cloth is black and gold, with a very special metallic texture. It feels very smooth to the touch and it is difficult to leave words on it with a pen.
Tang Yu'an was very sure that no one in the wasteland could imitate such material, and this was an effective anti-counterfeiting measure.
“The materials are also easy to get.”
Not to mention cotton cloth, as for mutant metals, they can trade with iron and gold - if there is no shape requirement, his output should be able to be increased.
At that time, they will use salt tickets to exchange for mutant metals with Iron Gold, and Iron Gold will use salt tickets to exchange for salt with them. This transaction will earn them points and experience points twice!
Hearing Tang Yu'an's words, Zhou Qi couldn't help but smile.
He shook his head and said, "We have just started, so we can only offer salt tickets at a half-buy, half-give-away rate."
For example, if you trade 10g of salt, you will receive 1 salt ticket.
People are more likely to accept gifts. Once they find that salt tickets can really be exchanged for salt and are easy to carry, they will gradually be willing to use them.
Just like mobile payment, it was not trusted when it was first launched, but in the end even street vendors were equipped with QR codes.
When people regard salt tickets as a trustworthy currency and use them to exchange with each other, they will have succeeded.
Zhou Qi didn’t know how long this would take, but since he had thought of it, he might as well do it.
"Let's make more salt tickets first."
"good!"
Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi discussed other details and finally produced 100 salt tickets.
Unlike the first one, they designed a simple pattern on the latter one and wrote the word "salt" in the middle, making it a true "salt ticket".
These patterns and text designs can be saved in the super printing machine, so there is no need to worry that the salt tickets produced in the future will be different from this batch.
"Take it to trade with Granny Guo and Grandpa Li tomorrow. They must have seen money and know the concept of money." Tang Yu'an said.
"Yeah." Zhou Qi nodded.
Tang Yu'an touched the black and gold salt ticket in his hand. For some reason, he felt an irrepressible excitement in his heart.
It's like...
They are doing an amazing thing!
"Brother Xiaoqi, should we try making other colors?" Tang Yu'an suddenly thought of something and said.
"It just so happens that we have three kinds of salt, which can be represented by the three colors black, white and gray!"
The refined salt exchanged by the system, the coarse salt originally available in the grocery store, and the sea salt they processed are of different qualities and naturally correspond to different salt tickets.
Zhou Qi thought about it and agreed.
"Okay." He exchanged the gray and white cotton cloths, and then operated the super printing machine, still using the previous parameters.
After waiting for two minutes, they received a platinum salt ticket and a gray gold salt ticket.
“It really works!”
Tang Yu'an said excitedly, "I'll give the platinum-colored salt tickets to my mother-in-law and the others tomorrow."
The salt traded to old customers like Granny Guo is all refined salt, which happens to be snow-white in color, so platinum salt tickets are just right for it!
Zhou Qi also agreed to this arrangement.
So they made 100 salt tickets each in gray gold and platinum.
Just waiting to promote it to old customers tomorrow!
-
Jufeng Town, first floor of the Jade Pavilion.
It was late at night and the temperature on the top of the mountain had dropped very low, but because the kang was heated in the dormitory, it was warm and not cold at all.
Shitou was lying on the bed after eating and drinking his fill, and was about to fall asleep when he heard a sighing sound beside him.
"Xiaocao, why are you tossing and turning instead of sleeping?" he asked vaguely.
Xiaocao turned over and looked at him.
"Brother, we've finished the order for the guard post today..."
After five or six days, the guards' hair was cut into short buzz cuts, and the order entrusted by the mountain owner had been completed.
This also means that they no longer have a stable source of customers.
The author has something to say:
Rebuilding the monetary system will be a long and complex project, but bartering isn't going anywhere, so let's give it a try! This is just a prototype, and we'll refine it over time.
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