Chapter 72
The barrage of comments was in turmoil, but Liu Ju stood firm as a mountain.
He had no intention of clarifying the meaning of the barrage. Instead, he found the barrage, which seemed to have guessed something but was not sure about it, very amusing.
As for expressing his attitude? Sorry, he doesn't fully understand the situation on the barrage yet, and doesn't really trust it.
Especially since the comments mentioned earlier that a research team has been formed to conduct research. This research is aimed at the "magic image", the time and space he lives in, and also at him.
Liu Ju couldn't stop the research, nor could he stop the release of the "images." But at least he could keep a hand. In this situation, it wasn't appropriate to reveal his true colors too openly, exposing his greatest secrets.
Therefore, Liu Ju suppressed his thoughts and quietly watched the barrage of comments flash and disappear.
After rolling his eyes, he yawned slightly, glanced at Liu Che and his ministers who were excitedly talking and discussing in front of the paper and engraving, then quietly took a step back, took Huo Guang and Wei Buzhi, and quickly escaped when the opportunity arose.
Throwing down a thunderbolt and running away had been his specialty for the past two years, a skill he'd mastered to perfection. He didn't care how much of a commotion the thunderbolt caused, or how busy the court was.
This also made the ministers love and hate him.
What they love is that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince always brings huge surprises; what they hate is that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's "surprises" often make their hearts beat up and down, and are unpredictable, and their heart diseases are almost "scared" out.
The Crown Prince, in particular, was a hands-off boss. He didn't even bother with the subsequent matters, yet he always managed to keep them busy, leaving them with no time off for long periods. Who could possibly understand this kind of pain?
But it was painful and joyful. So what could I do? He was my own prince, so I had to pamper him.
Three days later, Shengpinglou held an auction.
Liu Ju and the chief guard occupied the best wing, from which they could not only see in all directions but also hear in all directions.
The sounds in the VIP room kept reaching my eardrums.
"Why is Shengping Tower so lively today?"
"That's because you haven't seen the grandeur of Shengping Tower two years ago. Back then, there was no polo in the capital, and Shengping Tower was the favorite place for young men in Chang'an to play. Back then, it was bustling almost every day."
"It's a sad thing to say. In just two years, the four great owners of Shengping Tower, Princess Liu Ling of Huainan, committed treason and committed suicide, and Lady Yun fled the capital with her mother. Only Chen Jiao, the Marquis of Longli, and the Wang family remain. And unfortunately, the Wang family has lost even the title of Marquis. With the decline of the owner, Shengping Tower has also declined."
"It's a rare opportunity today for Lady Qi, a disciple of the Crown Prince, to borrow the space of Shengping Tower. It's quite a lively occasion. I don't know the rules of this auction, but I heard that most of the items being auctioned are new goods from Rouge Pavilion. It's said that one item is new paper made by the Crown Prince."
Paper, just one word can make friends around him excited.
"I've heard that the prince's newly made paper is very fine and smooth, like snow and jade. I must see how magical it is."
"If the price is not too high, I will buy it."
"I think so."
…
Everyone's curiosity and enthusiasm were unprecedentedly high. In the side room, Liu Ju was very happy to hear this. He turned to ask the guard chief, "Why did my sister think of borrowing the Shengping Tower?"
The guard chuckled: "You want to hold an auction and want to find a venue. According to your description of requirements, I thought there was no place more suitable than Shengping Tower.
"Especially now that Shengpinglou only has two owners left, and Marquis Longli has always only cared about taking the money and not taking care of the business. The management of Shengpinglou is now in the hands of the Wang family.
"As you know, after the incident with Wang Cong'er last year, Wang Xin lost his title of Marquis and had to pay a large sum of compensation. While it's not enough to put the Wang family in dire straits, they are certainly unwilling to continue to decline.
"Seeing that Eyi had found a way out, they also wanted to find an opportunity to make a contribution. Now that Chang'an and the court are all over the place, where is the best place to make a contribution?"
Liu Ju shook his head in confusion.
The guard looked at him with a sly smile. Liu Ju was stunned: "Me?"
"Of course. Everyone knows you're full of brilliant ideas, and any one of them is a great achievement. Following you naturally means the most opportunities. But you're still young, so you act casually and don't care about anyone's face. When the Wang family proposed a marriage alliance, you rejected it publicly, and your words were... very rude."
Liu Ju touched his nose embarrassedly.
The guard smiled and continued, "You were the one who personally brought the charges against Wang Chong'er to our father. The Wang family didn't dare to approach you rashly, so they had to come to me. They hoped to establish a connection with you through me."
"I just spread the word that Qi Yuanniang wanted to do something and needed a suitable venue. Wang Xin was smart enough to know that you were behind Qi Yuanniang. He guessed that it was you, not Qi Yuanniang, who was really trying to stir up trouble, so he offered to give up Shengping Tower.
"That suits my taste, so I happily accept it."
Liu Ju: ...
"What does the Wang family want?"
"I neither agreed nor refused. Let's just wait and see. Wang Chong'er won't be around long, and Wang Xin has lost his title and his money. He's already been punished, so there's no need to hold on to him.
"Although Wang Xin is a bit scheming and Wang Chong'er is a jerk, the Wang family still has two illegitimate sons. They may not seem talented, but they are down-to-earth and could be of use."
At this point, the guard looked at Liu Ju and said, "Brother, the Wang family is the Empress Dowager's family after all, and the Emperor's uncle's family. As long as they don't commit the crime of treason and change their previous temper, the Emperor won't embarrass them too much. Now that the punishment has been handed down, the Emperor's majesty has been fully demonstrated. Our goal has been achieved. Let him be left alone for a few years, and then he will show mercy again."
This was to tell him that the Wang family still had hope of revival, so it would be better to go with the flow and give them favors first. He could also take the opportunity to select people he recognized, and wait for Wang Chong'er to pass away to support the Wang family. Now, he could save the face of the empress dowager, satisfy his father's wishes, and also support a powerful force.
Liu Ju nodded: "Sister, you have considered everything carefully. It's up to you to decide."
The brother and sister finished chatting.
Qi Yuanniang had already walked to the front of the stage and, facing the crowd, explained the auction's rules. Each item had a minimum bid. Each distinguished person in each room could raise their paddle once, increasing the bid by twenty wen. They could also make their own bid. The highest bidder would win.
The first item was the shampoo that Liu Jugang had newly developed for Ajie Yanzhige.
This item had not yet been officially sold. Once introduced, the guests were in an uproar, and many bidders came forward, eventually selling it for seven hundred coins.
The second item is a specially made perfume. The fragrance of this perfume lasts longer than any previously sold in Rouge Pavilion, and there is only one bottle of this scent, and no other will be released.
"Exclusive enjoyment" is always exciting, especially for a girl who is rich, has free time and loves beauty. In the end, it was bought for 900 coins.
Then came the third, the fourth...
Without exception, all of them were either new, specially made, or had other unique features. As a result, there were many people bidding, and the whole process was full of excitement.
The last highlight was placed in an ebony box, and the maid carefully placed it on the display table.
Qi Yuanniang said loudly, "I believe everyone here has received the news. The last lot to be auctioned today is the newly made bamboo paper made by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, also known as White Jade Paper. Inside this box is a knife, and one hundred sheets have been cut. We will auction them all together. The starting price is five hundred coins, and each bid will increase by one hundred coins."
As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the venue reached a climax, and everyone stared at the box intently.
Some people are also confused.
"What exactly is this white jade paper? We have never seen it before. How do we know that the box must contain white jade paper?"
"You're probably not from outside the capital, are you? Don't you know who Qi Yuanniang is? She's the Crown Prince's disciple, and the Crown Prince values her very much. How could she fool you with fake items? The auction rules state that if something is fake, you'll get ten times the compensation."
"I never doubted the authenticity of the contents of the box. I was just curious. Rumors say white jade paper is incredibly good, but no one knows exactly why. If we want to buy this, we have to know if it meets our expectations, right?"
…
Everyone was talking and arguing, but Qi Yuanniang was not annoyed. Instead, she opened the box, took out a piece of bamboo paper, and unfolded it with both hands to show everyone. She was afraid that everyone might not be able to see it clearly from a distance, so she gave it to the maid to circulate from room to room.
Not long after, Liu Ju heard exclamations coming from various rooms.
"White jade paper, white jade paper, it's really as thin as a cicada's wing, like snow and jade."
"The texture is fine and smooth to the touch. The rumors are true, the rumors are true."
…
The paper circulates around and returns to the box.
Qi Yuanniang returned to her seat and said, "The auction begins!"
Almost as soon as the words were spoken, someone raised a sign. Then another person raised a sign, and the process continued, one after another.
In just a few breaths, the base price of 500 coins had been pushed up to 5,000 coins. The price continued to climb. After another few breaths, it reached 10,000 coins.
"I'll provide the hardware."
A voice rang out.
Liu Ju paused, a look of surprise on his face.
The guard frowned slightly. "Although bamboo paper is rare, the Shaofu is already producing it, and it won't be long before it's available to the public. Most people know this. Auctioning it now is just a way to try it out and take advantage of the time. Even if you don't win, you can still get it by waiting a while."
"So I can understand the ten thousand coins. The young nobles in Chang'an and the mausoleums were well-off, and in the past they would compete fiercely for a piece of music or a dance by a musician or dancer, spending countless sums of money.
"It's not surprising to spend tens of thousands of dollars on bamboo paper these days. After all, this is the first gift outside the palace. Not only the ministers, but even the royal family hasn't had it yet.
"What they're buying isn't just paper; it's also face. If they can get a picture, they'll be so proud and they'll be able to stomp on the other young men, showing off for a long time."
"But the hardware... is a bit excessive."
Five metals, equal to fifty thousand coins.
It was indeed excessive, and not just slightly excessive, but extremely excessive. Before the auction began, Liu Ju and the Wei Chang had discussed it, and both felt that 10,000 coins was the peak. Even if there were fluctuations, it would be around this level, and the difference wouldn't be too great.
Liu Ju rolled his eyes, balancing his chin on his hand as he looked towards the stage. As expected, when the hardware came out, the bidders were shocked and dropped their signs one after another.
Although Qi Yuanniang was also surprised, she remained calm and called out the number calmly: "Five gold once, five gold twice, five gold three times, deal. Congratulations to the nobleman in room number four for winning the white jade paper.
"Today's auction ends here. Thank you for participating. If you have won an item, please go to the backstage to pay the full amount and collect the item."
After saying this, he bowed and left the stage.
Liu Ju drank milk tea and ate snacks. Not long after, Qi Yuanniang knocked on the door and handed him a booklet. "Your Highness, this is the list of successful bidders today."
Liu Ju nodded, took it and looked through it one by one, finally his finger stopped at the last line: "The person who took the picture of the bamboo paper is called Sang Lin?"
"Yes. His accent sounds like he's from the south. I went out of my way to talk to him and learned that he's a wealthy businessman from Xuzhou. His family is quite wealthy."
The guard chief's expression flickered: "Even if I had a lot of money, I wouldn't use it like this."
Qi Yuanniang nodded. "Yes. I was also puzzled, so I took this opportunity to ask. Sang Lin said frankly that he was from another place. Chang'an might be able to buy bamboo paper after a while, but Xuzhou is a long way away, so it won't be so fast. And he didn't buy this for his own use."
Liu Ju was stunned: "Not for himself? Is he going to give it to someone else?"
"No. Your Highness, Sang Lin said he came here in the name of Muliuli Street. He had already visited it two days ago. Now that his affairs in Kyoto are settled, he will leave for his hometown tomorrow. There are one hundred pieces of bamboo paper in the box. He has already witnessed the power of today's auction.
"If it weren't for the auction, the items wouldn't have reached a final price today, and the final price would have been lower. It's the auction method that inflated their selling price. He plans to hold an auction when he returns, dividing the 100 pieces of bamboo paper into ten lots and selling them."
Liu Ju: ...So they are here to purchase goods for investment.
Forget about the glass issue; the imperial court hasn't even settled all the issues with the provincial governments yet. Establishing bookstores throughout the country to freely sell bamboo paper is a near-future project for Chang'an. But for Xuzhou, it would take at least a year or two, or at least half a year.
This time difference is enough for Sang Lin to make a fortune.
Especially since it is divided into ten portions, what a clever trick.
Liu Ju's expression was complicated. The guard chuckled, "The plan I just came up with has already been learned by someone else. Why, are you unhappy?"
"No. If I can use this method, then others can too." Liu Ju shook his head. "In that case, it seems reasonable to bid the hardware, shock all the bidders, and snatch the bamboo paper."
He waved his hand, dismissing the matter, and asked Qi Yuanniang to withdraw. He then looked at the maid behind the guard and said, "I've already had Qi Yuanniang demonstrate today's method. Sang Lin has already learned it, have you?"
The maid stepped forward and bowed: "Yes, I have learned it."
Liu Ju nodded and tossed over another book. The book was bound with paper, but on the title page were four large characters: "Business Manual."
The captain was stunned and took a quick look. Almost all of them were related to buying and selling.
There are investments in technology, investments in power; limited editions, customized editions; ordinary memberships, silver memberships, gold memberships, etc. There are so many options, it's really dazzling.
The guard was surprised: "Where do you get so many tricks?"
Liu Ju pointed to his head proudly: "I came from here."
The guard chief chuckled and handed the book to the maid. "The situation in the Western Regions is different from that in the Central Plains. You need to be flexible and adapt the methods in this book to the situation, and see which ones are applicable and which ones are not."
"Yes, Princess, I understand."
The guard nodded. This was someone she had carefully trained, originally intended to be sent as part of the dowry in the event of a peace alliance. Later, when plans changed, she had him secretly manage Yanzhi Pavilion as a training exercise. Once the trip to the Western Regions was confirmed, he would accompany Zhang Qian to Eyi.
Of course, she prepared more than just this one person for this trip to the Western Regions, but this person was the most critical one and also her most trusted confidant.
After instructing the maid, the guard looked at Liu Ju again and asked, "Did you make this paper specifically for the Western Regions?"
"Yes, and no. We need it for the journey west, but even if we don't, we still need it. Sister, paper can be used as a rare commodity, just like glass, to open up trade routes to the Western Regions. But this is secondary.
"More importantly, I created this to facilitate the Western Envoy. With this, they can easily record the local customs and depict the geographical topography along the way. It will also be convenient for them to communicate with the Han people."
Communication…
Liu Ju took out a piece of paper, flattened it, carefully cut out a small strip, asked Feng He to bring pen and ink, wrote tiny words, then rolled up the paper and held it in his hand.
"Sister, bamboo slips are heavy. Silk is light, but too thin silk will easily show through. There's no way to write so many words on it and still be able to roll it up so small. Bamboo paper like this is very convenient to hide in the seams of clothes or in a hairpin."
The guard's pupils shrank sharply. How could she not understand the hidden meaning behind these words?
The journey west passed through many countries and was full of unknown dangers. If something really happened, this method could provide a certain degree of security. In the face of special circumstances, there was also hope of hiding the information and getting it out.
Liu Ju raised his eyebrows and stuffed the note into a thin tube only the size of his finger: "Sister, you should know that since the Warring States Period, there has been a method of raising and training flying pigeons to transmit information.
"But this method is too restrictive, and therefore rarely used. This was true in the past, and it is also true in our dynasty. The reason is very clear.
"Although flying pigeons can travel thousands of miles a day, they are small and have limited strength. They can't carry anything larger or heavier over long distances. What if I had this?"
Liu Ju shook the thin tube in his hand and said, "Tie this to the pigeon's leg, and it can fly for days and nights without falling. Moreover, this tube is waterproof to prevent the information inside from being damaged.
"If rolled into small strips, it can convey more information. This way, our contact with the Western Regions will be closer, more frequent, and we can know the situation of the Western Envoy more clearly."
The guard's eyes flashed, and his expression became serious: "Have you told father about this?"
"I said it. Although once the paper is published, someone will definitely think of this in the future. But we can take advantage of a little time, why not take it? So I didn't say it in front of the ministers, but explained it to the emperor in private."
Liu Ju blinked, "Sister, this method is not only needed by us, but also by the imperial court. So I cannot hide it. I understand. We can have selfish desires and plans. But our selfish desires and plans must not harm the interests of our country. I understand."
The guard smiled, patted his head, and said with great satisfaction: "Okay, sister got it. Sister will arrange for someone to train homing pigeons."
Liu Ju curled his lips. He was naturally confident in his sister's work.
Afterwards, Liu Ju didn't know what his father and elder sister did, nor did he care. He leisurely studied and had fun. After half a month, the delegation was complete.
At the end of July, we set out westward.
Liu Ju and his three sisters went outside the city to see them off, not only to Zhang Qian but also to E Yi and all the people who were carrying important tasks.
Watching the crowd marching away, Liu Ju knew that this was a team that was taking huge risks and facing difficulties; it was a team that carried many hopes of him and his father; and it was also the beginning of their ambitions for the Western Regions.
Looking back, this is the homeland of our dynasty, the outstanding land of the Central Plains, and also the place where he needs to work diligently.
When he proposed the construction of Liuli Street, he said he wanted Chang'an to become the dazzling Oriental Pearl in the eyes of foreigners; he wanted everyone to know that the Han Dynasty was rich in resources and treasures. He had been working hard for this, and he would continue to work hard for this.
And he wanted more than that. He also wanted everyone to know the bravery and majesty of the Han Dynasty, to know the strength and prosperity of the Han Dynasty, and to make the Han Dynasty the only one in the world and the hegemon of the world.
This process will be long, but he will work towards it throughout his life.
And now, our grand ambition begins with the journey to the Western Regions.
This team will not come back in the short term, maybe three to five years, or maybe seven to eight years.
He is not in a hurry, he is still young and he can wait.
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