Chapter 258 The First Batch of Artificially Cultured Pearls
Taxes in Lingnan were not high, so after paying their taxes, the common people still had a lot of grain left over. Jiang Tangtang had to spend extra money to buy the grain back and return it to the treasury.
Although some tax revenue was lost, Jiang Tangtang felt it was worth it.
The tax reduction greatly increased the enthusiasm of the people. Every grain of food they planted was their own, so the people were very enthusiastic.
There was no need to persuade agricultural officials to encourage everyone to reclaim wasteland, as the common people utilized all arable land.
As for the tax reduction, which will give the common people more surplus food, there is no need to worry whether the common people will just lie down and rest.
The good harvests of the past two years have enabled the common people to have enough food and clothing, but many of them are awakened in the middle of the night, fearing that their comfortable life is just a dream, which makes them subconsciously work harder.
Moreover, as life gets better, the needs of ordinary people are also increasing. Who doesn’t want to live in a nice house? Who doesn’t want to wear new clothes?
There are so many new and interesting things in Lingnan.
Recently, a new kind of cloth has been produced in the cloth workshop. It is said that it is soft, durable and cheap. Many common people are thinking about selling their grain and buying some in the city.
Jiang Tangtang's grain recycling went smoothly.
It means spending a lot of money again.
Jiang Tangtang flipped through the account book again.
In the past two months, revenue from foreign trade has decreased significantly.
Sales of some previously popular rouge and powder products and high-end snacks have been cut in half.
This situation was actually anticipated by Jiang Tangtang.
After all, the target consumers of these products have always been the wealthy and idle women of the Zhou Dynasty.
But now the Western Rong army is approaching the capital, and there is always the danger of the enemy breaking into the city and losing heads. These rich and idle women are also panicking. How can they have the mood to put on makeup, eat, drink and have fun?
A sudden drop in income is also normal.
Although this was expected, Jiang Tangtang still had a headache looking at the account book showing a sharp drop in income. There were more and more places to spend money now, and he had to find a way to make money!
Jiang Tangtang held his chin and pondered for a while, then wrote a notice, had someone copy it, and posted it in Lingnan and Cangwu.
Simply put, it is to call on warriors to go out to sea and explore unknown sea routes.
Given the danger and uncertainty of this job, the benefits are relatively good. In addition to a one-time payment of fifty taels of silver before going to sea, if the worker is unable to return for a year, his family can also receive subsidies from the government.
If a warrior who went out to sea could return safely, he would of course receive a salary increase and promotion, and be valued by the government.
This was a great temptation for many families with no future, so after the imperial examination, another wave of enthusiasm arose.
Of course, the selection process for those going to sea is still very strict. In addition to physical fitness and intelligence, there are also assessments of character and other aspects.
However, opening a shipping line will not produce results in a day or two. How to make money quickly is still one of the problems that bothers Jiang Tangtang.
The wars that broke out in various parts of the Four Great Zhou regions gave Lingnan and Cangwu some space to develop, but the overall environment was not good, which also restricted many commercial activities.
Jiang Tangtang had no better solution for the time being and could only vigorously develop several areas in Zhanglingnan, focusing on domestic demand and infrastructure.
Fortunately, although trade was hindered, more and more aristocratic families moved to Lingnan in groups.
Meanwhile, the pre-sale homes sold last year have been completely built and renovated, and are only waiting for the landscaping of the yard before they can be delivered.
These houses have received unanimous praise from major families.
Although the area is not as large as their mansions in Beijing, the floors of the rooms in these houses are all tiled, and the areas in the yard where no flowers or plants are planted are all paved with blue bricks, so that the entire yard can be kept spotless.
There is also a toilet that is so clean that it can be used as a kitchen. Just flush it with water to flush away the dirt, and no more dirty eyes.
These houses are very popular among wealthy families.
Many newly moved families regretted not being able to grab a house and asked around where they could buy one.
So Jiang Tangtang decided to continue to develop the real estate business, and the urban land in Qiongzhou, Lizhou, Yazhou and other cities was expanded again.
In addition to Lingnan's houses, there are also furniture, textiles, carpets, ornaments, etc. sold to match the houses, which are also very popular among these aristocratic families.
Jiang Tangtang took out a few houses and turned them into sample rooms like in modern times for these aristocratic families to visit.
The coffee tables, cabinets, etc. in the room were all made by Jiang Tangtang based on the style of modern furniture.
Compared with the complex carvings and mortise and tenon techniques of ancient times, modern simple panel furniture made with iron nails saves much more time.
Putting these furniture together, the nobles might not even give them a second glance. But when they were placed in the whole room and decorated with various decorations, creating an artistic conception, the nobles immediately felt that they were fresh and stylish, and orders came to the furniture workshop like snowflakes.
In addition to the surge in orders from furniture workshops, orders from various fabric workshops also surged.
Jiang Tangtang had people use rice husks and wild chrysanthemums to make lazy sofas, cushions, and other items, and advertised them as having health benefits such as improving eyesight.
People of this era have not yet been baptized by health supplements, and are immediately fascinated by the miraculous-sounding effects.
Almost every aristocratic family that moved to Lingnan had one.
Regardless of the health benefits of these products, it is true that they are very comfortable to use.
This in turn has driven several industries.
Some went up the mountain to pick wild chrysanthemums, while others, with some skills, took on work at the cloth shop and went home to sew...
The arrival of these aristocratic families not only boosted the local real estate, furniture and other industries, but also made Jiang Tangtang's rouge, powder and high-end snacks popular again.
After all, they were in Lingnan and were not in danger of losing their heads for the time being. Once the crisis was over, these wealthy people who were used to enjoying themselves naturally returned to their previous hedonistic nature.
Lingnan's economy once again entered a period of rapid development.
Of course, along with these nobles, there were also dozens of palace masters sent by the Emperor of the Great Zhou.
Some of these people disguised themselves as slaves of noble families and infiltrated Lingnan.
Some even dressed up as refugees.
But no matter whether it was a master disguised as a slave of a noble family or a master disguised as a refugee from the imperial palace, no one could get close to Jiang Tangtang.
Jiang Tangtang is usually protected by guards with extraordinary skills such as Yuan San, and there are also fierce tigers following her. The guards in the mansion are even more majestic. In addition, the identities they play have many restrictions in Lingnan, so they have no way to get close to Jiang Tangtang.
Since these palace masters couldn't capture Jiang Tangtang, they turned to capture Lu Jingcheng and a few other children.
But they came at an inopportune time. After the new year, Su took her children back to Taiwan.
On the one hand, Baodao is relatively safer than Lingnan and Cangwu. On the other hand, after Jiang Tangtang took over several places in Lingnan and Cangwu, many things in Baodao fell on the Su family.
At first, Su was just helping Jiang Tangtang to relieve some of her stress, but gradually, she began to find a lot of fun in it.
Recently, the day for collecting pearls has arrived at the pearl breeding base planned by Jiang Tangtang.
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