Guangfufang.
Just as Wu Youcai's family was about to have dinner, they saw a group of uninvited guests arrive in the yard.
Although I didn't recognize any of these people, I could tell from their attire that they were extremely wealthy.
Wu Youcai hurriedly dropped his bowl and chopsticks and ran to the courtyard to kneel down, because he saw that the neighborhood head, Liu Ergou, was kneeling on the ground.
"Old Wu, this distinguished guest would like to see what you eat at your home!"
What do you want to eat?
"What else can we eat? Flatbread, of course!"
Upon hearing this, Li Shimin stepped forward with a smile.
"Could we please come in and have a look?"
"Sure!"
"Please come in, distinguished guest!"
"Our door frame is a bit low, please don't let it hit your head!"
When Li Shimin entered Wu Youcai's house, he saw his wife and two sons hunched over the dining table, eating flatbread. In front of them was a bowl of steaming egg drop soup.
Li Shimin was very pleased to see this. If the people of the Tang Dynasty could eat such food, then the world could be called a peaceful and prosperous age!
Where is the grain stored?
"Oh...it's in the tank!"
Wu Youcai's wife hurriedly lifted the lid of the grain jar. Li Shimin looked down and saw that the grain jar was indeed full of grain.
But this made him even more puzzled: if there was food at home, why didn't they light a fire to cook?
Is it possible that buying these flatbreads is cheaper than cooking them yourself?
"Hey folks, your flatbread must be expensive, right?"
Wu Youcai nodded upon hearing this.
"It's really not cheap. A sesame seed cake costs one coin, and that's without sesame seeds or sugar! If it has sesame seeds and sugar, it costs three coins!"
"Then why don't you cook at home?"
"Not worth it!"
"Not worth it?"
Upon hearing this, Li Shimin asked in confusion.
"Cooking your own meals is always cheaper than buying them, right?"
Upon hearing this, Wu Youcai smiled slyly.
"It's cheap, but it uses a lot of firewood!"
"Useless firewood?"
"Your Excellency may not know this, but since winter began, the price of firewood and charcoal has been rising every day. Only when the eldest grandson of the main family was in charge of the city were the prices cheap, and grain and firewood were distributed to every household."
"If we cook at home, the firewood alone will cost ten coins per meal!"
"If you factor in rice, flour, cooking oil, salt, and the like, a meal would cost at least twenty coins. It's much cheaper to just buy some ready-made food!"
"this……"
Li Shimin was speechless at this statement. He had always been worried about the people of the Tang Dynasty going hungry, but he never thought that they would be unable to cook because they had no firewood.
In fact, capital cities throughout history have faced this problem.
Because the capital city had too large a population, most of the surrounding trees had already been burned, so firewood and charcoal had to be transported from much farther away.
As a result, the already low value of firewood and charcoal, coupled with the high transportation costs, suddenly drove up the price of firewood and charcoal.
Li Shimin looked at the officials behind him, puzzled.
Are firewood and charcoal really that expensive in Chang'an?
Upon hearing this, Changsun Wuji and the others lowered their heads and remained silent. Yuchi Jingde, who only knew how to eat, drink, and have fun, paid no attention to these matters and naturally knew nothing about them.
Only Li Jing cared about these trivial matters, and when His Majesty inquired, he immediately nodded in agreement.
"Master, firewood and charcoal are indeed expensive in Chang'an!"
"Top-quality plum blossom charcoal costs ten coins per pound, which is much more expensive than grain!"
"ah?"
Just as Li Shimin opened his mouth in surprise, he heard Li Jing continue speaking.
"Even the most ordinary black charcoal costs one coin per pound, which is more expensive than grain no matter how you look at it..."
"this……"
Li Shimin was speechless upon hearing this, then pointed to the flatbread on the table and said.
"Since firewood and charcoal are so expensive in Chang'an, how are these flatbreads baked? Don't they need firewood and charcoal to bake them?"
As soon as Li Shimin finished speaking, Wu Youcai, who was standing to the side, laughed.
"My esteemed guest, you may not know this, but these flatbreads were all baked in Xianyang and transported here. They don't need to be burned with firewood from Chang'an at all, hahaha!"
"ah?"
Li Shimin exclaimed in surprise again. He never imagined that a small flatbread would have to be baked in Xianyang and transported here.
etc!
Xianyang?
Could this be related to that grandson of Li Jue?
“My lord, it’s not that I’m complaining about the price of firewood and charcoal, but that I don’t want to waste time.”
"My wife, son, and I have to go out to work right after dinner, and we won't be back until dark. We don't have time to cook..."
"work?"
"Yes!"
"Recently, many workshops have sprung up in the neighboring Chang'an County, and they are all hiring. I work as a carpenter there and can earn thirty coins a day!"
“My two sons are apprentices, and they can earn ten coins a day for pocket money.”
"However, the one who earns the most money in my family is my wife. She works as a weaver in Chang'an County and can earn fifty coins a day!"
Upon hearing this, Li Shimin roughly calculated that this family could earn 100 coins a day, which would amount to 3 strings of cash a month.
If what this man said is true, then their family really doesn't need to cook over a fire!
Just because their family needs to work, does that mean other families need to work too?
After leaving Wu Youcai's house, Li Shimin visited several other homes under the guidance of the neighborhood head. He discovered that the people in Guangfufang were all in the same boat, eager to go to the neighboring county to work.
Some people even complained that they were wasting their time and didn't bother to talk to them.
"Warden, do all the people in your ward work in the next county?"
"To answer your question, at least 70-80% are working over there!"
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