It was another sunny day. Today, more people came to Between the Clouds and the Water than before. Some people who thought they were talented all came here to participate in the competition.
The original rule of the competition was for the students who had failed to qualify to participate. However, after some people heard about this, they went to Shuiyun Club. No one knew who they were looking for, but they randomly pulled a worker over and said that they wanted to participate. They were even willing to fork out some money.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan took it seriously. It didn't matter if the people came to take the money or not. As long as they participated in this competition, people like them would definitely not come alone. Rich people were very likely to be able to call friends.
In order to attract more people, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan discussed for a while and decided to increase the prize money for winning the competition by a large margin. Winning in a group would get two strings of coins per person, and based on the individual ranking, the first place would get a hundred strings of coins and two sets of the Four Treasures of the Study.
In order to let more people have time to come, the competition was delayed for another ten days. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan also went back home and arranged for the coal mine. They let their father collect money. One copper coin per ton of coal, and they also gave the village one copper coin. The village would have to pay another tax. This way, the yamen would have more money.
A ton of coal was two thousand catties. It was not much when piled up on the ground. A stone of rice was about one hundred catties. A stone of coal could be filled with one hundred sixty to seventy catties. Because of the density, if it was only filled with coal, it would be more. Roughly, a ton of coal would cost more than twenty copper coins.
This price was not low, but now, each place was in charge of some resources, including salt. If they thought it was not worth it, then don't pick it. When the time came, when the pressure was too much, they could bargain and do a favor.
Zhang Xiaobao also knew that the current price of coal was very low compared to when he and Wang Juan came. Zhang Xiaobao prepared to earn seven to eight copper coins for a ton of coal. He deliberately set the price of twenty copper coins to give people a chance to bargain. No matter who wanted the coal, they would have to find someone with enough coal.
Those below the fifth rank could not even think about it. These officials came to ask for favors, so naturally, they had to do a favor. Even if half of them were willing to return the favor, it would be easier for his father in the future.
Today, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan came to Zhuangzi again. The competition started at noon today. People came and went, and it was very lively here. The restaurants Between the Clouds and the Water were all occupied. Some smart people actually spent money to occupy a few and then sold them to others..
When Zhang Xiaobao heard about this, he just smiled. Scalpers existed at any time.
Those courtyards that were suitable for people to live in were not empty. Some people could not find a place to live, so they could only go to the nearest Zhuangzi. The villagers had houses, but it was a pity that the villagers in Ge Jia Village had not built houses yet. The houses were crowded, and only one or two were available, which was far from enough to meet the demand.
This was Xiaobao's idea. He did it on purpose. Every day, the competition would start at noon. After lunch, they would be able to go and watch the competition. Furthermore, the competition was divided into the preliminaries and the finals. There were four competitions, which added up to twenty days.
Those who participated in the competition did not have to worry. There was free food and a place to rest. As for those who wanted to watch the fun, those who had money could stay from the beginning to the end. Those who did not have money could only watch according to the competition, especially those who were close to it.
"Grandpa Bi, did you see that? Our culture is flourishing. From today on, the Academy will become famous. "Zhang Xiaobao, Wang Juan, the old man, Liu 'er, and Xin Er were all on the roof of Between the Clouds and the Water.
Looking at the people coming and going, Zhang Xiaobao stood up and said loudly.
The old man naturally would not be fooled so easily. He looked at the people below and said, "Our culture is flourishing too. How much did your family earn this time? The restaurants and accommodation are all full. Many people have no place to stay. Tell me, how much did you earn from the advertisements? You put up flags and put up banners. "
"Grandpa Bi, you've wronged us. We don't earn much from advertisements. Look at the advertisement for Purple Bamboo Pavilion. They have the most and biggest flags, and the banner is placed in the most obvious position. It's about the same for the Four Directions Clothing Company's advertisement. My family even used boats to advertise for the meat and grain companies.
We only took 100 strings of cash from each of these places, which is just enough to make the advertisements. The rest is for the labor. We did not take any money from the advertisements. How can we make any money? "
Zhang Xiaobao said to the old man with a wronged expression.
The old man did not know about this matter. He asked Zhang Xiaobao in confusion, "Why did you not take money? Do you want to do something good? "
Zhang Xiaobao shook his head like a rattle-drum and said, "Who wants to do something good? It's all for you, Grandpa Bi. You are now the dean of Jianjia Academy. Look, there are so many people here. Won't you take in 300 to 500 students?
My family is afraid that after you take in so many students, we will not have enough money to make clothes and food. We can't even afford the mung bean soup and charcoal in winter. What will happen to the Academy then?
We can only ask for less advertising money and let them take out half a year's worth of necessities for the Academy. For example, the Four Treasures of the Study will be taken care of by Purple Bamboo Pavilion. For example, the meat store will send fresh meat every day. For example, the clothing store … "
"They are responsible for making clothes, aren't they? The necessities are enough for the Academy and we can't ask for money. All of it will be included in the advertising fee. That is to say, half a year's worth of necessities for the Academy will be settled by this advertisement. You don't need to spend any money. After half a year, you can compare with other places.
In only 20 days, you can earn half a year's worth of necessities for the Academy. Your family is really good at making money. It seems that your father should work in the Ministry of Revenue. "
The old man did not wait for Zhang Xiaobao to finish and continued his words. At first, he was thinking about how much money the Zhang family would spend on the Academy. Now he did not need to worry about that. The Zhang family had their own way of making money.
Zhang Xiaobao nodded embarrassedly and explained, "Grandpa Bi, you can't say that. In fact, we don't need them to provide the necessities. We can just use the advertising fee. The main thing is that every time we buy, we have to negotiate the price. The price of the meat is not fixed.
That is to say, my family is using the advertising fee to buy the necessities in advance instead of getting the necessities for free. If my family received the money in one go, we could use it to make more money. We are just afraid that they can't pay in one go, so we use the method of paying in installments. The necessities of the Academy will be paid by my family. "
The old man thought about it and agreed. However, he was interested in paying in installments. He asked, "Can other things be done in installments?"
"Yes, but not now. Flying Money is only used for bulk transactions. There are also pawnshops and loan sharks. Their original profits are high, so they don't need to pay in installments. Some loan sharks are actually using installments to collect money. Every time a certain period comes and the family can't pay back the money, they will give a portion of the money first. Speaking of responsibility, I don't really understand either. I'll tell Grandpa Bi when I learn."
Zhang Xiaobao originally wanted to mention the matter of the bank. He did not work in the bank, but he knew the internal situation. He had to use it in the past, but he suddenly realized that it was not appropriate to say it now. His family could not gain much from it, and it could easily affect the interests of others, so he had to stop.
The old man did not continue to ask this time. He felt that Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan knew so much. It was impossible for them to know more. It depended on what the Zhang family taught them.
They continued to watch from the rooftop. The old man was deeply impressed by the Zhang family's way of making money.
Every day, it would start after noon. Naturally, there would be nothing in the morning. It was impossible for people to stay in their places and not move, not to mention that the scenery here was so good.
Renting a boat to play in the water for a while, or going to the mountains to take a look, and buy some things along the way could let the Zhang family earn a lot of money.
There was also the market, which usually started in the afternoon. Since there were more people coming, there were people setting up stalls in the morning before dawn. There was also the grocery store. No one knew where it got so many goods, but it was also on display.
Naturally, the people who came here to play would not be like ordinary people, exchanging things for things. They could only buy things with money, especially some exquisite trinkets. They were all collected. When they were collected, they were cheap. Now that they were sold, the price could be doubled.
With all kinds of snacks and ice money, the Zhang family would probably earn a few thousand strings of coins in 20 days, maybe even more. There were crosstalk and skits at night. If they wanted to watch them, they would have to spend money.
Zhang Xiaobao was also calculating how much money they could earn. After he calculated, it was more than what the old man thought. These days, he transferred a lot of medicine from other places. He also asked someone to go to the hospital to find a doctor. The doctor would be here in a while. When the doctor came, he would examine the people who came here for free.
If they were in good health, he would recommend health supplements to them first, including food therapy. If they were not in good health, he would treat them directly. It was just right that they could stay here for 20 days. The diagnosis was free, but they would have to pay to buy the medicine. The restaurant could also directly promote a few kinds of medicinal cuisine.
Those who did not have much money would drink the medicine directly, while those who had more money would eat the medicinal cuisine. The medicine was bad, but the medicinal cuisine was not bad. In this way, plus the health supplements they bought before leaving, they would probably still have a few thousand strings of coins left after giving some money to Li Xun and Zhuangzi of the Ge family.
"Xiao Bao, do you think your family's method of earning money can be used elsewhere?" The old man felt that if it was possible, he should let people try it elsewhere. The businessmen had money in their hands. If he did not earn from them, who would he earn from? In particular, he could let the imperial court do this. When the imperial court had more money, he could do something.
Zhang Xiaobao nodded. "As long as you choose the right place and make the necessary preparations, it can be used with a little modification. In a few days, we will also do it in Huayuan County. However, it will not be a matter of the students. We won't be able to earn too much, but there will be a lot of benefits."
"What are you doing?" the old man asked curiously.
"It's a medical competition. It's best to let some medical doctors from Beijing participate," Zhang Xiaobao replied.
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