After the news of the Ming Dynasty's voyage to the West was published in the imperial gazette of the capital, it immediately caused an uproar.

Compared with the people across the Ming Dynasty, the people in the capital were naturally the wealthiest. In the past, those who could live in the capital were basically wealthy families.

Even some poor households have now turned their lives around.

With a population of three million in the capital at present, no matter what business you do, you can make a lot of money.

Even small vendors fry thousands of pancakes a day.

It can’t be finished. It can’t be finished at all.

From opening in the morning to closing, there is no rest at all, and the stall is basically run by the whole family in turns.

Pancakes cost ten cents each, and at least three thousand were sold every day, which meant an income of three strings of coins, and nearly a hundred strings of coins a month.

It's just a pancake stall, but it has such a high revenue. You can imagine what the capital city has become now.

This is the current demographic dividend of the capital, which allows a large number of people to rise rapidly.

Naturally, stalls also have to pay management fees, but the cost of a few strings of treasure notes a month really has no impact at all. Now there are not enough stalls, and stalls are prohibited in many places. They can only be set up in designated places.

These days, you can't just set up a stall wherever you want. The Public Security Bureau has strict requirements. Anyone who sets up a stall at random will not only have all their belongings confiscated, but will also have to pay a fine.

"Old Li, are you crazy? Why would you go to the West instead of making pancakes?"

In the small alley, Zhang, the wife, cried out in surprise. She found it extremely unbelievable that her husband wanted to sign up to sail to the West.

Life is so good now.

Relying on the stall that was allocated earlier, he could earn several strings of cash every day by selling pancakes, which did not feel like an off-season in the capital.

What a wonderful life we ​​have, with three sons and two daughters in the family.

The couple take turns helping to make pancakes every day, and they don’t have to do much, as their children take care of it.

Of course, he will also be paid part of the wages, after all, the youngest son is already in his teens.

But I didn't expect that Old Li would be crazy and want to go to the West with me.

"Woman, you know nothing. This is a major event that can be recorded in history. I haven't even seen it yet, and I don't know if the government will let me go on board."

"If I can carry my pancakes on the ship, I can sell them overseas, to Southeast Asia, the West. Do you know where that is? Do you know how many countries there are? If I can sell my pancakes like this, then our Li family's pancakes will become famous."

Old Li was about to scold at first, but as he spoke his tone became more cheerful.

Zhang didn't understand: "What's wrong with me? I don't know what you're talking about. I just know that we live a good life now. We don't have to worry about food and clothing every day. I never thought we would live like this."

"It is said that it takes several years to go back and forth to the West. The incident at sea has already happened outside the Ming Dynasty. How can the outside world know what the situation is like? Didn't the court newspaper also say that there are wars everywhere in the world, and only our Ming Dynasty is safe?"

"Can't you just put aside those messy thoughts and stay at home peacefully? Why do you have to go overseas?"

At this point, Zhang suddenly paused, remembering some rumors she had heard before, and cried angrily and aggrievedly: "You are so good, old Li, I thought there was a reason, it must be the previous incident about the overseas woman."

"So you want to find a concubine overseas. Are you saying that I am too old and ugly to be worthy of you? Now that you have some money, you want to abandon me."

"Sons, take a good look at your father. He is going to abandon us..."

This crying and shouting immediately attracted the attention of neighbors, and even many passers-by stopped to watch the fun.

The second son was making pancakes outside, and the eldest and third sons hurried out to inquire about what was going on.

When Old Li saw this scene, he felt embarrassed and immediately pushed the door open and disappeared into the crowd.

Only then did Zhang tell her sons what happened, crying.

The eldest son frowned and said, "Mom, it's not that you're attracted to the foreign concubine. That's unpredictable. Besides, everyone in the West is trying their best to get in, and it's not like Dad can go just because he wants to."

"If I really have the qualifications to travel with the ship, it would be a good thing. Although I am traveling abroad, I am with the officers and soldiers. No one in the world dares to provoke our Ming Dynasty. It is very safe."

"My father has been making pancakes all his life, and his skills are better than my grandfather's. Even the official said they were good after eating them. Maybe I really have a chance to be selected."

Zhang didn't expect that her beloved eldest son would actually protect his father, and she cried even more aggrievedly.

When the eldest son saw his mother's condition, he knew that he couldn't explain the situation to her, so he could only rush to comfort her.

Old Li over there quickly arrived at the teahouse.

The teahouse was really small, but it was crowded. Old Li squeezed to the table by the left window in a familiar manner.

"Old Li, you are finally here. Earlier, a neighborhood official came and said that you, Old Li, have the greatest chance and are likely to be selected."

"It is said that when His Majesty was on a secret visit to the capital a few years ago, he ate the pancakes made by your father and praised them."

"You have to buy the tea today."

Seeing Old Li coming, an old acquaintance immediately spoke with envy.

Old Li looked at him suspiciously and said, "You old pockmarked man Zhang, don't try to trick me into treating you."

Zhang Laomai had no special skills and relied on renting out the few houses left by his ancestors. With the rising market prices in the capital, he could actually earn more than ten strings of treasure notes in rent a month.

She had given birth to two daughters before and a son last year. She had nothing to do on weekdays, so she was a regular customer of this small teahouse.

He is just very stingy and always tries to find ways to get others to pay for his things.

Someone nearby said, "Old Li, this time Old Mazi Zhang didn't lie. It was really the neighborhood official who said it himself, half an incense stick of time ago. Everyone heard it. He only mentioned you, but no one else said anything."

Old Li saw the people around him nodding their heads, and he believed it in his heart, but he said with some dissatisfaction: "The woman at home refused to agree to my going to the West, saying that she was afraid that I would find a concubine overseas."

"Please judge for yourself what kind of person I am."

Hearing this, Zhang Lao Mazi laughed out loud: "You, Old Li, are such a person. I don't know who said here yesterday that he would buy a few Silla maids to serve him, so that he could also enjoy the blessing of the landlord."

Silla maids were maids located in present-day Goryeo during the Tang Dynasty. Because of the relationship between the Tang Dynasty and Silla, many Silla maids were adopted by wealthy people in the Tang Dynasty.

They were well-behaved, obedient, good-looking and extremely capable, and were very much loved by the Li Tang nobles, which also made Silla maids very famous.

Of course, the Silla Kingdom has long disappeared now, and the Silla maids mentioned today are a general term, meaning the well-behaved and obedient maids outside the Ming Dynasty.

"Nonsense, I'm not talking about finding one for myself, I'm talking about finding one for my sons. In this world, I can't even afford the betrothal gifts, so I have to find a way from outside."

"When Zhang Lao Mazi's daughter got married some time ago, she asked for a betrothal gift of 300 strings of precious coins. Nowadays, every family asks for 180 or 100 taels of silver. It's really scary."

"That overseas maid is only twenty or thirty taels at most. She looks good and has a good temperament. She will be very obedient as a daughter-in-law."

Old Li retorted.

After hearing this, some people feel that buying a daughter-in-law is actually a good choice.

The capital is developing rapidly, and many people want to register their household registration in the capital.

According to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, the only way to change one's local household registration, apart from official positions and migration, is to get married, and the control is particularly strict in the capital.

Apart from anything else, as long as you are registered in the capital, you can study in school for free, and you don’t have to worry about food and drink. It is equivalent to the government helping to raise your children.

As for physical medical care, there are a lot of free benefits, and it basically doesn't cost much to see a doctor.

The most important thing is that there are many opportunities to make money. Even if you just do a casual job, the income is very considerable.

Housing is scarce in the capital, and even now you are not eligible to buy a house without a Beijing household registration.

A large number of foreign businessmen can only lease properties in the capital.

This also led to many foreign businessmen wanting to settle down in the capital, and the quickest way was to marry a woman with a Beijing household registration.

There is a requirement here, it must be a wife, taking a concubine is not included in the scope of changing the household registration.

In the wedding market, when demand increases, the price increase will naturally be dramatic.

The price of the betrothal gift changes almost every day.

But not every family wants to earn as much as Mr. Li in a month. Most of them can only earn around 20 to 30 strings of cash.

Old Li didn't want to be a sucker, so he thought about buying a daughter-in-law instead.

"You know what, this is really a way out. I'm still worried about my son's marriage. According to what Old Li said, my two sons combined may not even have 50 strings of cash."

"How can I ask for fifty strings of cash? You don't know. The broker only gets a few strings of cash and sells it for twenty strings of cash. This business is really profitable."

"That requires a way. If you don't have a way, and you spend money to buy it, it's illegal. You might be fined hundreds of coins. It's better to go the formal way honestly, so you don't have to worry about anything."

Everyone immediately started chattering. In this day and age when the country is peaceful and the people are content, those who can drink tea in this small teahouse basically have some family property. Even if they don't have a lot of money, they are not short of small changes.

They were all in their forties or fifties, and every household had many children in response to the government's call, so naturally marriage was a common verbal issue.

Suddenly, someone said mysteriously, "Silla maid, everyone knows the Bodhisattva Barbarians, but the Kunlun slaves are the most mysterious. I don't know what they are like."

The Tang Dynasty recorded that the Kunlun slaves had fingers like ten ink sticks, ears like two spoons, curly hair, black bodies, and were quick and vigorous.

The rich and powerful and the idle are the most curious. The color black is very stimulating, but it is also rare in the Ming Dynasty.

This immediately aroused the curiosity of many people.

But then someone snorted and said, "If you have nothing to do on weekdays, read more. The court newspapers have long mentioned these Kunlun slaves. They live in the far west, where the sun is as scorching as fire, which is why they have such dark skin."

"The most important thing is that these Kunlun slaves have many diseases, some of which we have never seen in the Ming Dynasty. If you get infected, your life will be over."

"Moreover, the trading of Kunlun slaves is prohibited in the brokerage business, but if anyone is found trading, they will be punished with at least ten years of hard labor."

This news immediately discouraged everyone. No one wanted to suffer a hard labor disaster due to curiosity, which would ruin their life.

At this time, a man in official uniform walked in. He was the local official, roughly the same as the street cadres in later generations.

"Old Li, I knew you were here. The news came from above that you have been selected to go to the West. This is a great event. Today's consumption must be paid by you."

The local official said with a laugh.

If someone from this neighborhood can be elected, it is a manifestation of political achievement for the neighborhood official, which is naturally a good thing.

Old Li had never thought that he would actually be chosen, and he was a little overwhelmed and said, "Sir, my wife seems to disagree, and I don't know what to do."

Old Li still cares about his wife a lot. Although he says that, he actually feels very distressed in his heart.

In the beginning, we had walked this far hand in hand. Life was not easy in the past. It has only been two or three years since we started having good days. Old Li is not a man who forgets his roots.

Take the pancake stall for example, he can’t run it by himself.

"Everyone else is rushing to get in, but you're still thinking about pushing it away."

"But I can tell you that this trip to the West is a major event for the court. There is no room for error. Signing up is voluntary and no one is forcing you. Now that you have been selected and you say you don't want to go, it would be deceiving the court. If the higher-ups blame you, you will regret it then."

The official snorted coldly and spoke in a cold tone.

Old Li was immediately frightened, with cold sweat on his forehead: "I'll go, I'll go, please rest assured, I will definitely go."

If you are convicted of a crime, you will become a criminal.

Apart from anything else, the stall’s qualification might be taken away, and the livelihood would be in trouble. The whole family depends on this pancake stall for their livelihood.

The neighborhood official saw Old Li's frightened look, and he consoled him, saying, "The government has issued a notice to support good craftsmen like you in creating brand awareness. This trip to the West is a good opportunity to promote our Ming Dynasty cuisine."

"It's such a blessing to be chosen. Do you think your family is the only one that makes pancakes? If it weren't for the fact that His Majesty has eaten your pancakes, how could it be your turn?"

"The price of a follower position in the Chamber of Commerce has been raised to three hundred strings of cash. There is still no demand for it. You should be content. According to the rules, you can bring two people to assist you."

At this point, the neighborhood official looked at the people around him who were ready to make a move and warned them, "Don't have any crooked ideas. The higher-ups will investigate strictly. If you don't know how to do this and get caught, you'll be guilty, and Old Li will be punished as well."

Only then did everyone stop and suppress the little thoughts in their hearts.

Brand effect is what Zhu Ying is currently supporting for small workshops, especially in the food sector.

Although the Ming Dynasty now seems peaceful, in fact, class contradictions are becoming increasingly intense, and the gap between the rich and the poor is also growing.

This is a fundamental social contradiction, and there is almost no possibility of eliminating it. Even in later generations, it will still exist, but Zhu Ying does not have that ability.

The only thing that can be done is to divert social conflicts and transfer the conflicts of the Ming Dynasty to overseas as much as possible.

For example, the marriage problem is solved by introducing women from overseas.

Let the lower-class people see more opportunities for advancement, just like a small workshop like Lao Li's, which can grow bigger.

This area requires guidance and support.

If the lower classes are given more opportunities, conflicts will naturally be resolved.