Chapter 94
"Crown Princess... a little interesting." He muttered to himself, slowly bringing the piece of paper with the whole story in the Golden Palace over the candlelight and watching it turn into ashes.
"Sir, what about the mission of 'Imperial Fresh Products'..." the minister beside him asked cautiously.
Li Deyu chuckled, revealing his yellow teeth. "What's the rush? The Emperor only mentioned collaboration, but didn't say when it would be completed. Your Highness the Crown Prince is young, and it's a good thing he's energetic."
We, the ministers, must help His Highness to review and consider everything carefully. The promotional regulations, budget review, personnel deployment... which one doesn't take time? It won't hurt to delay and see what happens.
A silent contest has begun.
The next day, Song Qingyuan got up at dawn. She deliberately changed into a relatively low-key yet respectable palace dress, which neither looked too aggressive nor too contemptible.
Shen Yanzhi had been waiting outside the hall for a long time. Today he was wearing a dark casual suit with dark patterns embroidered with gold thread, which made him look tall and straight and his demeanor calm.
"Are you ready?" When he saw her come out, he naturally extended his hand.
Song Qingyuan placed his hand on his palm and nodded. "Let's go and see the legendary 'officialdom tumbler'."
The Ministry of Revenue was located on the main thoroughfare of the Imperial City, its vermilion-lacquered gates guarded by stone lions exuding a solemn and awe-inspiring presence. Upon seeing the Crown Prince's ceremonial guard, the officials at the gate quickly knelt to greet them and reported them in.
Minister of Revenue Li Deyu, along with his subordinates, had already been waiting outside the hall. Upon seeing Shen Yanzhi and Song Qingyuan, he immediately led the way in kneeling and bowing, "Your Majesty, I, Minister of Revenue Li Deyu, and all the officials of the Ministry of Revenue, respectfully welcome His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and His Majesty the Crown Princess."
"Minister Li, please stand up. All the gentlemen, please stand up." Chen Yanzhi gave them a gentle hand, "I and the Crown Princess are here today to discuss the matter of 'Imperial Delicacy'. We apologize for the inconvenience."
"Your Highness, you are too kind. Sharing your worries and serving His Majesty is our duty." Li Deyu smiled broadly, his wrinkled face like a blooming chrysanthemum. He turned sideways and respectfully gestured "please." "Your Highness, Your Majesty, the yamen is simple. Please come to the back hall for tea."
Entering the main hall of the Ministry of Revenue, the scent of stale ink and paper hit me. The walls were piled high with file racks. Officials were busy at their desks, the sound of abacus clacking incessantly, a scene of bustling activity.
Song Qingyuan observed calmly. This place seemed chaotic, but there was order within the chaos. Everyone's face was numb and shrewd, worn down by the tedious work.
In the back hall, tea had already been prepared.
After the host and guest were seated, Li Deyu personally served tea and then spoke, "Yesterday, I heard that Your Majesty was so clever and resourceful in the Golden Throne Hall, and that you used lightning-fast methods to uncover the evil plot. It truly opened my eyes, and I admire you so much!"
"You are too kind, Minister Li." Song Qingyuan smiled faintly. "These are just some petty tricks to prove your innocence, not worthy of public display. However, since this 'Imperial Delicacy' has won the emperor's praise, I will have to rely heavily on Minister Li and the officials of the Ministry of Revenue in the future."
"Very good, very good." Li Deyu nodded repeatedly, then looked troubled and sighed, "Your Majesty, you don't know. This promotion is easy to say, but it is very complicated to do.
First, let's talk about the rules. We're the government, so everything must be done according to the rules. What's the price of "Yupinxian"? Is it a nationwide standard, or does it vary by region?
Will the sales channel be a government-run monopoly, or will it be handled by merchants? If it's a government-run operation, where will the staff come from? If it's merchant agents, how will they be selected, and how can we ensure they don't drive up prices and oppress the people?
As soon as he opened his mouth, he launched into a barrage of questions, each of which hit the nail on the head, yet was so tedious that it was overwhelming.
The maid brought by Song Qingyuan presented a plan that had been prepared long ago.
"Minister Li, please read this. Your Highness and I discussed these issues last night and have drawn up a preliminary plan." Song Qingyuan's voice was neither hurried nor slow. "We believe that 'Yupinxian' should be people-friendly and the price should not be too high.
The initial price is 50 wen per bottle, a price that ordinary people can afford. As for distribution, a two-pronged approach can be adopted in the initial stage, with three to five government-run demonstration stores established in major provincial capitals as benchmarks.
At the same time, we are recruiting honest merchants nationwide as agents. They only need to pay a certain deposit and promise to abide by the official guide price to obtain sales qualifications.
Li Deyu took the thick plan and flipped through two pages before a flash of surprise crossed his eyes. The plan was clearly organized, covering everything from pricing strategy, channel development, publicity plans, to risk management. It was so detailed it didn't seem like it was written by a princess from the inner palace.
"Your Majesty is very thoughtful. This plan... is very good, very good." Li Deyu praised it, but he put the plan aside and picked up his teacup again. "But... setting up a government-run store requires space and manpower; recruiting merchants requires review and supervision. All of this requires money.
"Your Highness, Your Majesty, you both know that my Ministry of Revenue is a mere shell. Last year, there was a snowstorm in the north and floods in the south, and the treasury was drained of money. Now, we are stretched to the limit. I simply cannot spare the extra money to undertake this matter."
He looked troubled, as if he cared about every penny in the national treasury.
Shen Yanzhi had been listening quietly, and only now spoke slowly: "Don't worry about the money, Minister Li. I plan to use all the 1,000 taels of gold that my father gave me yesterday as start-up capital for the promotion of 'Imperial Fresh'. I think it should be enough."
A muscle on Li Deyu's face twitched. He hadn't expected the Crown Prince to pay for it out of his own pocket, and it was a gift from the Emperor. This effectively ended his usual excuse of "no money."
"Your Highness is so righteous, I admire you!" Li Deyu immediately put on a touched expression, "Now that we have the funds, things will be much easier. However... manpower is still a big problem.
Each department in the Ministry of Revenue is so overcrowded that it's hard to spare anyone. How about this: I'll have the doctors from the Ministry of Revenue take the lead and form a preparatory group to further refine the regulations and survey the market conditions in various regions.
This matter is of great importance and cannot be taken lightly. We must proceed steadily and steadily to live up to the high expectations of His Majesty and His Highness. Do you think we should be able to see some preliminary results in three to five months?
Song Qingyuan almost laughed out of anger.
What a "three to five months"! This old fox has really taken the "delay" tactic to its extreme. By the time he's finished investigating for three to five months, the opportunity has already passed. This isn't a steady and cautious approach; it's clearly a plan to drag this matter out until it's completely unresolved.
She was about to open her mouth to refute, but Shen Yanzhi gave her a look that urged her to stay calm.
"Minister Li is absolutely right." Shen Yanzhi actually nodded in agreement. "This matter does require a thorough plan. I'll have to trouble you, Minister Li. As for manpower, I do have an idea."
"I still have some useful officials in the Eastern Palace who can be sent over to assist the preparatory team and obey Minister Li's orders. This way, we can both relieve the Ministry of Revenue and allow them to learn more about how to handle government affairs, killing two birds with one stone."
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