"Eh? Xiao Bao, hold on. There's no hurry to cook. It's good for the body to be hungry once in a while. Come closer to me. Xiao Bao, I'm not praising you on purpose, but you're really efficient. I thought it would be good enough if we could get on the boat in the afternoon, but who would have thought that you were already prepared? "
When Li Longji heard Zhang Xiaobao say that there was money to be made, his interest was piqued. He called out to Zhang Xiaobao and waved his hand.
Money was a good thing, but it could not be casually printed and distributed. He could only follow the rules of the game to earn money.
"What do you mean I'm ready? We'll make do and gather in Luoyang. You should get on the boat first and take a nap to recover your energy. When you wake up, we can talk about making money while having lunch. "
Zhang Xiaobao turned around and said before he continued to lead the way.
Li Longji waved his hand, indicating that there was no need to lift the carriage. He walked to the carriage by himself. The distance of more than 1,000 steps was considered as a workout.
When he got on the carriage, Wang Juan was already waiting. She brewed a pot of tea, some melon seeds, and grapes. She held a cup of coffee and took small sips.
When he saw the coffee, Li Longji could not help but shudder. He hated the taste. He thought that only Wang Juan would treat this black stuff as a treasure. She had the merchants from the west find it and plant it in Lu Zhou, waiting for it to grow. Every time a merchant brought it to trade, she was reluctant to sell it. He could not see how it was precious.
There was a musty smell. When he drank it, it tasted like coptis. It was far better than tea leaves.
When Wang Juan saw Li Longji looking at her, she quickly protected the cup of coffee as though she was afraid that someone would snatch it away. In her opinion, coffee and tea were no different. They were both bitter and aftertaste.
"Your Majesty, why don't you take a nap?" Zhang Xiaobao picked up a boiled broad bean and suggested to Li Longji. When he saw his godfather looking over, he pushed the plate of broad beans to him. His godfather liked to eat broad beans.
"Let's talk about something else. Otherwise, I won't be able to sleep well." Li Longji yawned. He picked up the teacup and smelled the tea. He felt much more energetic.
Wu Huifei, who was sitting on the side, stopped talking to Empress Wang in a low voice and began to listen attentively.
Zhang Xiaobao didn't touch the teacup. He reached out and opened the small cabinet next to him. He took out a thermos bottle and a bowl and poured himself a bowl of warm yellow wine. He pulled out the drawer on the side of the small table and took out a plate. There were also broad beans inside, but they had been boiled with fennel.
She picked one up and ate it. She took a sip of wine and enjoyed it with her eyes closed for a moment. Then, she said, "It's actually very simple. For example, Xiaobei's Baby Candy House pays money to a new company according to different agreements. One day, when the road is difficult to travel and the weather is hot, the candy they were transporting melted. They tell the new company and the new company compensates them according to the agreement. Cuckoo, do you want to try it too?"
Zhang Xiaobao gestured for Wang Juan to eat the beans in front of him.
"Xiao Bao, what's wrong with you? You want to eat fennel beans when drinking yellow wine? You look so poor. Do you eat fennel beans when drinking coffee? "Wang Juan opened the small sunroof of the car. The smell of yellow wine was much stronger than coffee and tea.
"I want to drink red wine and smoke cigars. Wouldn't the smell in the car be even stronger? Why open the sunroof and turn on the fan? Being poor is also a kind of personality."
Zhang Xiaobao ate another broad bean and stopped. He opened another drawer and took out a small plate of fried potato sticks. He put it in front of Wang Juan and said, "Make do with it. I don't have time to make dessert. Do you want jam?"
"I want honey. I'm sick of it. Seeing the two of you together every day, my teeth are about to fall down. I really admire the two of you. Aren't you sick of it? Xiao Bao, talk about business. Cuckoo can find something to eat by herself. "
Li Longji couldn't stand it anymore. He heard that the two of them were together every day when they were less than a month old. In another two or three years, it would be 20 years. Weren't they sick of it? They could still stick together? He admired them.
If he didn't say this, Wang Juan really didn't want to eat. As soon as he said this, Wang Juan smiled sweetly at Zhang Xiaobao and said, "Husband, I want to eat with salt. You see, there's nothing in the coffee."
"Then eat with salt." Zhang Xiaobao took out another plate and brought it over. Then he said to Li Longji, "This is called different professions, different personalities, complementary thinking, unified ideals, Yin and Yang in harmony, rootless and limitless. It's called …"
"It's called Tai Chi. I know. Don't tell me things from stories. I want to hear about the compensation and profitability of the new company after the signing of the agreement with Baby Candy House."
Li Longji drank all the tea in the teacup in one gulp and sat on the small table. He looked very anxious.
Zhang Xiaobao refilled Li Longji's tea. It was 70% full. He said, "In fact, it's very simple. Set up a new company and let others pay a small part of the money. When others suffer a disaster or have problems, they can get a part of the compensation from the company, or even all of the compensation.
Collecting the wealth of the world and soothing the pain of the people is similar to taxation. It's taken from the people and used by the people. It's a supplement and perfection to taxation.
For example, the Tang Empire's tax provides medical treatment. If an artisan accidentally broke his arm, he has to go to the medical center to reattach it and recover. With the support of the Tang Empire's tax and your money, it's free. The artisan doesn't have to pay a single cent.
But if the artisan can't work, he has to make a living even if he doesn't work. He has two ways. One is to apply for unemployment benefits. You should also urge the matter we talked about last time to be carried out quickly.
But this unemployment benefit can only ensure that he and his family can live and not die of hunger or cold. It's far from making up for the loss caused by him not being able to work.
If he pays the money to the new company and signs an agreement, the company will compensate him. If he earns the same amount of money in the past day, according to the agreement, the company will compensate him with 600 copper coins or the same amount of money. Every day, there's a time limit. It's also included in the agreement. "
After explaining, Zhang Xiaobao continued to eat the fennel beans and drink the yellow wine. The only thing missing was the coins.
Li Longji and the other three were digesting Zhang Xiaobao's words. The carriage was quiet for a moment.
After a while, Empress Wang spoke first, "Soldiers who go to war can also apply?"
"Soldiers have the country's pension. It's not that they can't, but they can't apply for it themselves. Wouldn't that make the soldiers feel bitterly disappointed?" Wang Juan answered this question.
"What if someone cheats the company?" Wu Huifei asked.
"This is a small problem in the implementation of the agreement. It can't be stopped and can only be improved gradually." Zhang Xiaobao answered.
Li Longji also asked, "For example, Tubo suffered a disaster in the spring and signed an agreement with the company. Does it conflict with the imperial court's tax reduction? Or like your example just now, an artisan injured his arm. After the company pays, he can still apply for unemployment compensation? "
"The two are not related. The imperial court treats everyone equally. The company's compensation will be treated according to the agreement. It's like one is commercial and the other is non-commercial. The company collects money and uses it to invest. Although it can indirectly accelerate the depreciation of the country's currency, it will inevitably increase the imperial court's tax revenue.
The imperial court's tax revenue increases and can be used to subsidize the people. In theory, the purchasing power of the currency unit will decrease. In reality, the people's wealth will not evaporate. "
Zhang Xiaobao explained, separating the public and private matters.
Li Longji narrowed his eyes and thought for a while, then said, "I understand. After you and Cuckoo told me that time, I thought about it carefully. Indeed, whether the currency depreciates or not mainly depends on the amount of currency issued and the country's productivity. It's the way to balance.
When the amount of currency issued decreases and the productivity increases, the depreciation will be the direct product of the increase in productivity and the indirect product that uses the product as raw material. On the other hand, the depreciation will be the currency. The depreciation of the product will be the improvement of the people's living standards. The depreciation of the currency will be a disaster for the country. "
Li Longji seemed to have thought about it a lot. He spoke of his own theory, but that was all he knew. He knew that the knowledge behind it was very profound. It was so profound that Xiao Bao could use it as a weapon sharper than a cannon to attack other countries.
Moreover, it was the kind that was impossible to guard against. Every step was a trap. When it was gentle, it was like a trickling stream. When it was strong, it was like a surging tide.
"Very good, very good." Li Longji, who knew that Xiao Bao had many tricks up his sleeve, was very satisfied. Then, he looked at Gao Lishi.
Gao Lishi hastily said, "It's another kind of bank, right? It's just that the operation is not managed by the Great Tang's imperial court. What if it goes bankrupt? Other people's money will be gone, right? "
Wang Juan finally finished her coffee. She rubbed her stomach and said, "It's delicious. Whether it's hot or cold, the taste is the same. When Lu Zhou's coffee tree grows and bears fruit, it'll be considered cheap if it's 50 copper coins a cup.
When the time comes, we can cooperate with Little Bei's precious candy house. The adults can drink coffee and eat snacks while the children can continue to drink milk and juice. We'll definitely make a lot of money. "
After praising Lu Zhou, Wang Juan continued Gao Lishi's words, "It can also be managed by the imperial court. It depends on how it's defined. In theory, there's a possibility of bankruptcy. After all, the money raised has to be used for other investments. If the currency doesn't circulate, it'll depreciate.
However, the losses and profits of investments are purely cash operations that don't involve the industry. That's a zero-sum game. There's a balance of probability and a limit of loss.
This new industry that's about to appear can't be completely out of the imperial court's control. Xiao Bao and I will add on the content. As for the system, I'll leave it to Xiao Bao to manage. I believe there won't be a problem. There's no need to worry about bankruptcy. "
"In that case, I agree. I'm willing to fully invest." Li Longji nodded.
"I'll follow and assist." Wu Huifei wanted to participate.
"I don't agree. Your Majesty, you can only take 10%. Otherwise, it'll be easy for you to transfer a large amount of money when you need to do other things. I won't do it. Concubine Hui can participate."
Zhang Xiaobao objected.
Li Longji was stunned for a moment. After pondering for a while, he said, "Let's discuss it again. Let's keep it open first. We can discuss the investment later. Aiya, we're at the river. Xiao Bao, why do you think there are fewer boats?"
Zhang Xiaobao turned his head and looked out of the window. There were still two miles to go. Now, he could only see the boats in the river. Seeing that Li Longji changed the topic and used a delaying tactic, he didn't pursue the matter just now.
He said, "Because a part of it went to help transport supplies and cooperate with the disaster relief in Tibet. The other part was given to Little Bei and the rest. Only when we reach Luoyang can we gather a large enough team. I wonder if Little Bei and the rest had a good time along the way? Let's send a report. "
*****
"I say one, and you say one. What's a flower blooming in the water? Little Yuan, it's your turn. What are you looking at? It's just a city wall. What's there to look at? It's only Xuzhou. It's a place that military strategists will fight for. "
Little Bei and company's boat went with the flow. They opened the sails and sped all the way. They had already reached Xuzhou. If they continued south, they would reach Chuzhou, which was also the area around Suzhou.
Little Bei was singing a duet with Little Yuan. When he saw Little Yuan looking elsewhere with his binoculars, he was very displeased.
However, Xiao Yuan did not put down his binoculars and continued to watch. He looked at the washing stones that were used to wash clothes and fetch water. When Xiao Bei touched him, he said, "Xiao Bei, which place's custom do you think it is? They like to put children in a wooden basin and then let them float down the river to play by themselves?" Xiao Yuan did not put down his binoculars and continued to watch.
"Ah?" As Little Bei took Little Yuan's binoculars, he said, "In a story. Then, a monk scooped it up. Let me see. Where is it? Ah, that woman really put it in the river? Quick, save the child. Those on the shore, capture that woman. She dares to harm people. "
Little Bei immediately turned nervous. At the washing stones downstream, there really was a woman who had placed the wooden basin containing the child into the water. In such a large river, the wooden basin was like a leaf that could be overturned at any time.
As he shouted, Little Bei took off his outer clothes and drew an arc. With a plop, he jumped down. Despite knowing that it was very far away, he still swam over with all his might.
Little Yuan paused for a moment before shouting, "What are you waiting for? Get the people there to save and capture her. My brother and sister, I hope the water isn't cold."
After shouting, he jumped down as well. He didn't dare to jump into the Yellow River back then because the water was cold.
The guards on the boat didn't dare delay. Like dumplings, they jumped down one after another.
Similarly, there were people on the shore who ran over to capture the child. Those who were watching the commotion also gathered.
When Little Bei swam to the washing stones, the wooden basin had already overturned. However, the child inside had magically floated down the river for a distance and was scooped up by a small fishing boat.
"Bring the child over to me. Let me take a look. I've got her. Little Yuan, hurry up. I'm waiting for you." Little Bei stopped on the water and pointed at the fisherman to get him to bring the child over. He then turned his head to call Little Yuan.
Little Yuan's performance today was pretty good. He flopped to Little Bei's position and wiped the water off his face. When he looked at the shore, he saw that the woman had already been restrained. Her eyes were swollen from crying like peaches. There were also tear stains on her face.
The fisherman didn't know Little Bei's identity, but seeing his ostentation, he didn't dare delay. He rowed the boat and came over. He reached out to grab Little Bei and said, "How pitiful. The girl doesn't have ears. No wonder she was thrown into the river. Sigh, this is a heaven-sent disaster."
Little Bei didn't reach out. When he heard the fisherman's words, he thought for a moment before saying angrily, "What heaven-sent disaster? Give me the child. Can't you let me live without ears? I want to ask, what's going on? "
The fisherman hesitated for a moment. When he saw that Little Bei's chest was sticking out of the water, he handed the child over.
Little Bei stretched out his hands. Little Yuan also came over to help. The two of them carried the child and steadily stepped on the water toward the washing stones.
When they stepped on the stones, before Little Bei could ask, the woman wailed, "My child, it's not that I'm heartless. You were born in the wrong place. My child …"
"Why are you crying? You know how to feel heartache, but you still threw him into the water? Shut up. Tell me, how is he born in the wrong place? How can he be born in the wrong place in my Tang Dynasty? I want to see who doesn't want their child to live. Where's the doctor? Come here. "
Little Bei shouted angrily with his eyes wide open.
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