Gu Jiu felt like he had lost 100 million.
After returning to the palace, she lay on the couch, feeling exhausted.
Once the cement road from Beijing to Luozhou was completed, the benefits of cement became clear to the world.
Seeing that the cement market in Beijing was about to experience a boom, she had to hand over the opportunity to make money to the Shaofu.
Ahhhh!
A loss of 100 million.
"Tomorrow, I'm going to find the Shaofu family commander and give him a good beating."
Liu Zhao laughed. "If you're so unwilling, why did you give up the cement market in the capital before? You didn't have to do that."
Gu Jiu sighed, "We have to do this. Father asked the Shaofu to burn cement, and we won't see any profit from the money we invested in it for a while.
If I don't give up the cement market in the capital and let the Shaofu reap the benefits first, given my father's stinginess, he will definitely set his sights on the cement road from the capital to Luozhou and interfere with the toll booths.
There's no other way, I can only sacrifice the small for the big. Jiangnan is rich anyway, and with a little time, I can make up for the losses in the capital."
Liu Zhao remained silent.
Because what Gu Jiu said was right, Emperor Wende was just so stingy.
How could Emperor Wende be happy if Gu Jiu didn't give out some dividends first?
This is what the saying "Serving the king is like serving a tiger" means.
Liu Zhao said, "Don't worry, I will avenge you."
Gu Jiu's eyes were full of stars. "How are you going to avenge me?"
Liu Zhao smiled mysteriously, "Do you know why Father was discussing cement in Weiyang Palace instead of Xingqing Palace?"
"Is he guarding against someone?"
"Of course, I'm on guard against the Ministry of Revenue. This time, the Minister of the Household is building a cement factory and repairing roads. I will lend a helping hand to the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of War, and the Ministry of Works. I'll get them involved in the cement business as well."
Gu Jiu became nervous, "Is this okay? Aren't you afraid that the Emperor will be furious and punish you?"
Liu Zhao smiled and said, "It's okay. I won't get myself involved."
He only needs to sell the information to someone, and this cement war will be inevitable.
The Shaofu and Emperor Wende wanted to have the whole thing to themselves, but that was absolutely impossible.
Baji!
Gu Jiu kissed Liu Zhao on the cheek and said, "That's great! We really can't let the Shaofu take all the spoils. We have to be on guard against corruption."
It is really easy for toll booths to cook the books.
In order to prevent false accounting, Gu Jiu reused retired soldiers from the Tianlang Army as toll collectors, and at the same time recruited employees from all over the country to manage the accounts and money.
It is equivalent to checks and balances between the two sides.
In order to prevent a group of people from embezzling money, she also plans to conduct annual assessments and replacements at toll stations.
We cannot allow a group of people to stay in one place for a long time, as this can easily lead to corruption.
As long as the personnel turnover at toll stations is guaranteed every year, corruption cases can be effectively prevented.
Liu Zhao said, "I'm sorry to have wronged you. Although I don't understand the economics, I know that this cement can earn you a lot of money. Giving up the capital for nothing will only lead to heavy losses."
It was more than just a heavy loss, it was clearly a loss of 100 million.
Ahhhh!
Can't think about this problem.
Whenever I think about it, my heart aches.
Gu Jiu covered his chest with his hands, looking very uncomfortable.
Liu Zhao became worried. "What's wrong? Where do you feel uncomfortable? Check your pulse quickly."
Gu Jiu shook his head, "My heart feels uncomfortable."
"Could it be a heart disease?" Liu Zhao was shocked and was about to ask someone to call the imperial physician.
Phew!
Gu Jiu laughed out loud, "You look so nervous, I'm not that serious. I'm just worried about the money and feel bad."
Liu Zhao frowned slightly, "Why not take back the market in the capital?"
"I can't take back what I gave away. I'm not that stingy."
But looking at the pain you look like, you don't seem as generous as you say.
Gu Jiu bared his teeth, saying, "What a stinky man, he only knows how to sabotage others."
"Forget it, forget it. At worst, I can make it back somewhere else."
Making money has become an extremely simple thing for Gu Jiu.
She was just a little unhappy that the cement market she had worked so hard to develop was given away for nothing.
She was feeling distressed here, while in the palace, the emperor and empress were discussing her.
Empress Pei helped Emperor Wende wash up while chatting, "Gu Jiu is quite good. He took the initiative to give up the cement market."
Emperor Wende hummed a sound, and after a moment he said, "She's really on guard against me. It's absurd to judge me by someone else's standards."
Empress Pei laughed. "Today's dividends are being distributed. I invested fifty thousand taels from the prince's account and reaped a rich harvest. I also benefited from it. Could it be that she was afraid that Your Majesty would take advantage of it, so she deliberately gave up the cement market?"
Emperor Wende snorted twice, "Do you think I'm the kind of person who would steal my daughter-in-law's business?"
Queen Pei smiled but said nothing.
Emperor Wende said, "Outside the South City Gate, she manages it very well. No one else could do better than her. She is clearly a mean-spirited person. I will not interfere with the affairs outside the South City Gate at all."
Empress Pei thought to herself that if Gu Jiu had not taken the initiative to give up the cement market in the capital, Emperor Wende might have intervened outside the South City Gate.
With a hen laying golden eggs right before our eyes, who could remain indifferent? Who could restrain their hands?
Moreover, Emperor Wende was very short of money.
Who knows, one day his temper might explode, or something might irritate him, and he might even plan to attack the South City Gate.
Thinking in this way, it was indeed a wise move for Gu Jiu to voluntarily give up the cement market in Beijing.
Queen Pei thought secretly that Gu Jiu was quite good, had good judgment, could speak and do things.
It was a pity that the eldest son, Liu Zhao, was a worthless person. He had a cold face all day long and was not close to her at all.
On the contrary, the youngest son Liu Yi is well-behaved, sensible and filial.
If it weren't for the overall situation, Empress Pei really didn't want to give Liu Zhao face.
This child Liu Zhao is not likable at all.
"I would like to congratulate Your Majesty in advance on the prosperity of the second year of Wende."
Emperor Wende laughed heartily, "Thank you for the Empress's good words."
He also hoped that the cement market in Beijing would truly boom, bringing in a considerable amount of income for the Shaofu.
…
There are not many days left until the Chinese New Year.
People in the city are still busy trying to earn some money for the New Year.
People in the countryside have already started hibernating.
In the winter, when there is nothing to do, people stay in the house and warm themselves by the fire. Women do needlework, while men repair the roof and furniture.
This winter is particularly cold.
The countryside is also very quiet.
Hujiatun in the Jingji area is a remote mountain village located at the foot of the mountain.
On this day, the quiet winter life was disrupted by outsiders.
"Auntie, this is a coal stove, and this is honeycomb coal. Look, put the honeycomb coal in, align the holes, and once the fire is lit, cooking and boiling water will be very fast. You don't have to worry about running out of hot water all day long."
Wang Xiaoxi was a farmer living in the suburbs of Beijing. He had an older brother and a younger brother. He was in the middle, neither the eldest nor the youngest, so he was naturally ignored.
He grew up like a sheep herder. Because a large number of laborers were needed outside the South City Gate, he followed the villagers to work outside the South City Gate to earn enough food and daily wages.
Winter is here and there is less work on the construction site, so the employer gives priority to taking care of the refugees.
As a native of Gyeonggi Province, it would be a lie for Wang Xiaoxi to say that he has no objection.
But he didn't want to do hard labor all his life.
If there was any other way out, he would never do hard labor.
The coal factory happened to be recruiting people, offering a monthly salary of two hundred wen, plus commissions.
At first, he didn't understand what commission was.
After someone explained it to him, he realized that commission meant selling things and he could extract a portion of the money as his own compensation.
This is a good thing!
Although he is not very eloquent, he can learn.
Even if it was just for the monthly salary of two hundred wen, he would be happy to do this business.
The refugees from Xinmin County and the residents in the second phase of the project had already been taken over by the old friends from the coal factory, so it was not his turn yet.
After attending a training course for half a month, he began to follow the masters, going from village to village, and from township to township to sell honeycomb coal.
He is full of energy and refuses to rest even when the end of the year is approaching.
That day, we arrived at Hujiatun early in the morning.
He had heard that Hujiatun was a medium-sized village with seventy or eighty households. Every household in the village had some money thanks to selling agricultural products to the Sihai Meat and Vegetable Shop.
"...If Auntie is worried that the honeycomb coal will burn too quickly, put this ceramic lid over the hole below, leaving only a small hole for ventilation. See if the fire has died down."
"Burning like this, three honeycomb coals can burn for a whole day and can also heat several pots of hot water. When you cook, take off the lid and the fire will start again. It won't take long to prepare meals for the whole family. This coal stove is so convenient and perfect for winter use."
"...If you sell a hundred honeycomb briquettes at once, we'll give you a free coal stove. Seriously, I wouldn't dare lie to you. This is my business card, with my name and our boss's address on it. You know Sihai Trading Company, right? Our boss is the manager of Sihai Trading Company, so he'll always be there."
Wang Xiaoxi took out a palm-sized business card and distributed a few to the aunts and uncles who were watching.
At first, the business suffered from the fact that its clerks were not trusted when they went out to sell their products.
Gu Jiu casually mentioned, "You can make a business card to introduce yourself."
The resulting business card was not the small one Gu Jiu remembered. Instead, it was the size of a grown man's palm.
There is also a strange custom in the business that the bigger the business card, the more impressive it is.
When Gu Jiu took the business card that was more than ten centimeters long and carefully made by the business below, he looked as if he had lost all hope in life.
"Ma'am, this is the business card I made just as you requested. It should be this big and impressive!"
Gu Jiu: "..."
What can this lady say?
Can this lady stop the guys from pursuing the arrogance?
cannot!
Well, it's okay if it's a little bigger. These days, without glasses, it's easier to see if it's a little bigger.
As a result, business cards as big as an adult man's palm became popular in Sihai Trading Company and began to become popular in the business circles of Beijing.
As a clerk in a coal factory, Wang Xiaoxi naturally had to follow the trend when he went out to sell his products. He made a large stack of business cards for himself, since it was paid for by the government after all.
"...Uncle, I wouldn't dare lie to you. This is a benefit offered by our company. If you buy 100 honeycomb coals at once, we'll give you a coal stove for free."
"Honeycomb briquettes aren't expensive. If you buy them individually, they're one cent each. But if you buy a hundred at a time, they're only fifty cents, a full half price. Yes, that's the same price all over the capital."
"Of course burning wood is convenient. But it's so cold, and it's dangerous to go up the mountain to chop wood. If you bump into something or fall, you'll need to see a doctor, and the cost of medicine is much more expensive than honeycomb briquettes. Plus, your family is large, so you need a lot of firewood. If your family can't handle it, you'll have to spend money to buy firewood. It's also worth spending money on honeycomb briquettes, where you have hot water all day long. You can use it for washing vegetables, cooking, and even washing clothes. And you don't have to watch the fire."
"It's going to be cold for at least two months. If you spend a hundred or two hundred coins and buy a few hundred honeycomb coals to store at home, you can live comfortably during these two months."
"Auntie, looking at your outfit, you must have a capable person at home. You've worked hard all year, and it's time to take a break. Bring home a coal stove, and the whole family will be happy during the New Year. Besides, with this coal stove, you don't have to burn charcoal for heating, which saves your family a lot of money."
"You have a large family, and if you keep the fire burning all day, you'll use at least six honeycomb briquettes a day. If you buy a hundred honeycomb briquettes at a time, six will only cost three cents. You won't use a hundred cents a month."
"If there are only a few people in the family, we naturally won't need six honeycomb coals."
"Auntie, do you want to bring a coal stove back?"
The villagers watched for a long time. Almost everyone in the village surrounded Wang Xiaoxi and watched him sell honeycomb coal.
Hard work pays off, and finally three families bought honeycomb coal.
The headman's family was the richest, and he bought three hundred honeycomb coals at once.
The other two households only bought one hundred honeycomb coals.
Wang Xiaoxi was overjoyed to have sold 500 honeycomb coals in one village.
"I'll come back in twenty days. If you run out of honeycomb coal, just come to me. From now on, I, Wang Xiaoxi, will be in charge of this area."
"Honeycomb coal is on the main road outside the village. It's solid and heavy. I'll have someone pick it up for you right away."
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