no the same?
How are they different?
Is Princess Xie going to cause trouble this time?
Everyone was uneasy, looking around and exchanging glances with those around them.
"Lady Zheng, is there any new procedure this time?"
"Yes, please tell me everything at once!"
He always just smiles without saying a word, which really piques people's interest.
The crowd joined in the commotion, and the restaurant became lively again.
This time, Zheng Yurong didn't remain silent. She raised her hand and pressed it down in mid-air.
Seeing this, everyone knew she was about to speak, and they quickly stopped talking.
"Please be at ease, everyone. Please allow me to explain in detail."
As Zheng Yurong spoke, she took out a stack of papers from a box next to her.
"These are all the blueprints for the treasure ship—"
Before she could finish speaking, everyone turned their attention to the stack of papers.
drawing!
These are the blueprints for the treasure ship!
Once you get your hands on it, you can create a behemoth in the sea.
Their family can roam freely across the seas!
"Lady Zheng, what is the base price? And how much will the price increase each time?"
Some people were impatient and started shouting.
He was comparing it to the example of the last auction, because Princess Xie was also going to auction off these drawings for a high price this time.
Sigh, if it's like last time, with ten people bidding for one blueprint, then we can't completely monopolize the market.
However, being able to grab one is still an opportunity.
They had to make sure that what other powerful families had, they also had!
Otherwise, their family would fall behind other families.
If you fall behind even once, you will fall behind every step of the way. Eventually, you will be left at the bottom and replaced by a newly emerging family!
"Honorable guest, please don't be in a hurry!"
Zheng Yurong smiled and said softly, "Didn't I just say that this auction is different from the last one?"
"This time, we don't want any money!"
After saying this, Zheng Yurong paused deliberately.
She scanned the room, wanting to see everyone's reaction.
Everyone: ...
There weren't many surprises.
They are all experienced and intelligent people, so they know very well that free things are often more expensive!
Everyone suddenly realized that Princess Xie might have bigger ambitions this time.
Behind them are huge families. It can't be said that the lives, fortunes, and wealth of the entire clan are tied to them, but they need to be extremely cautious about every major decision they make.
Princess Xie is up to something big!
Recalling the princess's formidable achievements, everyone dared not underestimate her and became even more cautious.
"No money? Heh, Lady Zheng, how can it be considered an auction if there's no money involved?"
Someone deliberately used jokes to test the waters.
Zheng Yurong said, "That's why I say this is a different kind of auction."
"Alright, enough joking around. Let me explain the specific methods."
Zheng Yurong was afraid that if she exaggerated the atmosphere too much, everyone would completely lose patience.
She pulled out a sheet of drawings from a stack of blueprints. "These are the blueprints for the sails, including the sail layout, structure, materials, and processes, etc."
"The auction price is 200,000 for timber released annually."
"Fang" was the unit of measurement for timber volume in this era, roughly referring to the amount of timber that could be placed in a specified area.
It is roughly similar to the cube number of later generations.
Two hundred thousand yuan a year is no small sum.
The group looked at each other in bewilderment.
As expected, they didn't ask for money, but what they wanted was timber, enough for a large shipyard for a year!
Moreover, they hadn't misheard; the blueprints they "auctioned" with a year's worth of timber amounted to only a sail, not the entire treasure ship.
Zheng Yurong seemed oblivious to the doubts and hesitations on the faces of the audience.
She pulled out another stack of blueprints. "These are blueprints for the ship's rudder and rotating oars, including all the technologies for propelling the treasure ship."
"Auction price: 200,000 catties of refined iron per year."
hiss!
Everyone gasped in shock.
Refined iron, that's a very rare raw material.
Throughout history, emperors of various dynasties have strictly controlled resources such as salt and iron.
Iron ore, copper ore, and other mineral resources were all taken over by the imperial court.
If a private individual mines without authorization, it is a serious crime of treason.
Of course, legitimate businesses like shipyards require a certain amount of raw iron, which is permitted by law.
However, it requires certain procedures and is quite expensive.
In Lingnan, the imperial court's deterrent power was greatly diminished, and local powerful families were secretly mining minerals.
But 200,000 jin is no small amount.
Even these powerful families couldn't help but tremble at the mention of this.
With so much refined iron, they could only "auction" a ship's rudder and some kind of rotating oar.
Wait, what is a rotary oar?
Several wealthy women from families that owned shipyards couldn't help but be secretly surprised.
They might not be experts in shipbuilding, but they did have some understanding of the basic structure of ocean-going vessels.
For example, masts, sails, cabins, rudders...
But they had never heard of a rotating oar before.
Huang was one of them; she frowned and thought carefully.
Suddenly, her husband's words of advice came to mind.
Huang thought: This might be the reason why such a large and heavy treasure ship can sail on the sea!
This rotating oar must be the most advanced and profound technology of the treasure ship!
We must get our hands on it!
"It's just 200,000 catties of refined iron. The Chen family has its own iron mine. If they squeeze it out, they can still get some!"
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