When the people who worked with Jiang Lan found that the restaurant could not make money and came to discuss with Jiang Lan, Jiang Lan took out the contract she had signed and showed it to them. There were various clauses clearly written on it, and one of them was to build stairs outside on one day.
The businessmen were dumbfounded. They saw that Jiang Lan wanted to prepare everything according to the contract. She did not look as easy to talk to as before.
If they did not want to do it, they could not get back their investment. They could leave, but they could not take the money with them. It would benefit Jiang Lan and the others.
Feng Dongjia, who was in charge of the first floor, could not help but say to Jiang Lan helplessly, "Jiang Dongjia, the first floor of the Sea of Silver Sand that I have booked is almost no longer profitable. If this continues, we will lose money in a few days. Can Jiang Dongjia think of a way?"
The other businessmen who were not good at business also echoed. Since they could not threaten Jiang Lan, they could only speak softly.
Jiang Lan frowned and looked sympathetic. "Aiya, it's difficult to think of a way. If there is a good way, the Sea of Silver Sand will not be inferior to Between the Clouds and the Water. If you want to talk about a way … there is one, but I don't know if you want to try it."
"Jiang Dongjia, if you really have a way, please tell us," Wang Dongjia asked anxiously.
"Well, it's not difficult. Since others are not willing to eat on the first and second floors of the Sea of Silver Sand, why don't we send it to other people's houses? Hire more servants and run around the various roads every day. The bicycles sold elsewhere are not bad. Buy a few and let the servants ride them.
Write the words on the front of the bicycles and let people shout as they walk a few days ago. When more people know about it, they can stop and order food. Then let people ride back to the restaurant and send the food over. What do you think? "
Jiang Lan kindly gave everyone an idea. The businessmen thought about it and found that this idea was indeed not bad. Usually, people would send people to the restaurant to order food and let the restaurant send it over. Naturally, it could not be compared to someone riding a bicycle and shouting.
Many people's eyes lit up. They were grateful and impressed by Jiang Lan. It was not easy to think of such a method.
At this time, Feng Dongjia spoke again.
"Jiang Dongjia, it's good, but not many people come to the restaurant. Won't the place be empty?"
When the others heard Feng Dongjia's words, they also realized this problem. Since they could order food, wouldn't the first and second floors be wasted?
"Ahhh! That's right, it's empty. Then everyone, think of other ways. We can't always be empty. "Jiang Lan looked helpless.
"Then let's try it out first. If it really doesn't work out, we can only accept the loss." Some people in the crowd had already decided to back out. They would rather give up the money they had invested than continue to invest. It was no longer important whether they still had to deal with Between the Clouds and the Water.
Before the others could do anything, Wu Feng, who had also come to participate in the meeting, was anxious. It was not easy for them to unite as a group to deal with Between the Clouds and the Water. If they were to disperse like this, they would not be able to regroup again. This would only make the name Between the Clouds and the Water even more famous.
He hurriedly tried to dissuade them. "Everyone, don't be anxious. Think about it again. There's always a way."
Jiang Lan also said, "Fine, I'll think about it later. When I have a solution, I'll discuss it with you guys. Let's go buy a bicycle first."
The merchants left one by one, very discouraged. Originally, they were planning to deal with Between the Clouds and the Water. Now, they were going to buy Zhang Dongjia and Wang's bicycles.
Those bicycles were not cheap. Zhang Dongjia and Wang's were not selling them well. Other than the rich people who bought one or two for the sake of novelty, no one else was willing to buy them. The worst bicycle cost more than a hundred strings of coins.
It was still possible to ride a bicycle in the city, but outside the city, when it was raining and the roads were not good, it was better to ride a carriage or a donkey.
When everyone left and only Jiang Lan and Wu Feng were left, Wu Feng said to Jiang Lan with a sad face, "Jiang Dongjia, I don't know if they can still take out the money. Recently, they have to buy a batch of silk, so they are a little tight on cash."
Jiang Lan shook her head regretfully. "Manager Wu, we have the money, but we can't transfer it over. We also need to make arrangements for the Jiangnan East Road. Why don't we ask other merchants? Three days, at most three days. I will definitely be able to think of a way to solve the restaurant's problem."
"Alright, I will find someone to ask tomorrow." Wu Feng had no other choice. Recently, he had bought too much silk. The silk he bought in private was sold at a 10% discount or 95% of the original price. He was afraid of alerting the enemy, so he had not deposited it in the bank yet. He planned to wait for a period of time before depositing it all together and taking it out in batches.
The key was to get through this period of time.
After Wu Feng left with his people, Jiang Lan smiled and picked up the cold tea in front of her. She took a sip and muttered, "You dare to fight with the Young Master? Take the silk, take it, let's see who loses in the end. "
*****
The capital was bustling with people coming and going.
The number of animals in the zoo had increased by quite a lot. Those animals that could be raised well were gradually opened to tourists. In order to ensure the freshness of the animals, the newly arrived animals were not immediately shown to people, but taken out bit by bit.
People who did not have other channels to learn about animals still yearned for the zoo. This led to the zoo's income being much higher than Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan's.
Other than the cost of feeding and research, there was still a sum of money left.
Today was the day of the end of the month settlement. Gao Lishi brought people to deposit the money. When he returned, there was a team that specialized in pulling money. They came to Xingqing Palace and reported to Li Longji.
"This month, we earned a total of six thousand strings of cash from selling tickets and renting out stalls? Good, we earned quite a lot. We have extra money to use again. "
Hearing the data from Gao Lishi, Li Longji noted down a round number. Six thousand strings of cash was not much compared to the tax, but it was still an income, and it was increasing month by month.
"Your Majesty, Xiao Bao sent a letter saying that he will send two sharks in a few days. He wants us to build a pond here first, which is where Your Majesty wants to build the lake. It will be used to raise the creatures in the sea first. After all, there is not enough salt in Jili State yet.
Also, Xiao Bao suggested that Your Majesty should open up the Imperial Gardens a few times a month. Otherwise, it would be a waste to leave them there. Jili State will provide a lot of things there for others to buy and sell in the gardens. "
Gao Lishi brought up two more things.
In the past, Li Longji would not agree to open up the Imperial Gardens so casually. It was a symbol of identity and status. Now, he had changed a lot and knew the importance of money. He wanted to occupy more land, but it was absolutely impossible without money.
Especially recruiting conscripts. It was better than letting each place raise money to recruit soldiers. It could prevent others from rebelling.
So, he agreed.
Seeing that the Emperor agreed to the two things, Gao Lishi took out a few pieces of paper that looked special. They were six inches long and two inches wide. There were delicate and delicate patterns printed on both sides. When he touched them with his hand, he could feel the bumps and depressions in some places.
Li Longji took them and looked at them one by one. There were different numbers written on them. Some were one hundred coins, some were one thousand coins, and the smallest one was ten coins. The paper was a little small.
The only thing that did not change was' Kaiyuan Tongbao '.
"This is …?" Li Longji waved the paper in his hand and asked.
"Your Majesty, this is the money that Xiao Bao and Cuckoo asked people to make. In the future, it will be used to replace copper coins and silk. It is said that countless craftsmen worked together to create this anti-counterfeiting thing. If you look at it, you can see the bumps and depressions in the blank space on one side. It is not on the surface of the paper."
Gao Lishi explained.
Li Longji held the light paper in his hand and looked at the largest number on it, which was one million coins. He felt that it was not so reliable. It was not as valuable as copper coins. He asked with uncertainty, "Will people be willing to use it? What will happen if it is less than ten coins? "
"Xiao Bao and Cuckoo are currently making the money that is less than ten coins. They need to use a die to press it and not cast it like before. When the time comes, if someone wants to forge it by hand, it will not be worth the effort.
As for whether people will be willing to use paper money, this is easy to handle. Xiao Bao wants Your Majesty to issue a decree that when paper money is issued, the imperial court will accept paper money for tax purposes. Xiao Bao will also cooperate with other merchants to accept the purchasing power of paper money. When people get used to it, it will be fine. "
Gao Lishi said and then said, "Your Majesty, the benefits of using paper money are not only to prevent people from making copper coins privately, but also to eliminate the storage cost of silk. More importantly, it is convenient to carry. It saves a lot of effort when transporting compared to copper. There are other benefits that Xiao Bao did not mention. I think it will not be simple."
Li Longji held the paper money in his hand and thought for a while. Then he said, "Let Xiao Bao and others print more first. Where is the place to print money?"
Li Longji was not stupid. He knew that printing money was unusual. If people casually printed money for fun in the future, the country would be finished.
"Your Majesty, the place to print money is now in Jili Province. Xiao Bao is preparing to move the printing factory to the capital. When the time comes, Your Majesty should find someone to guard it."
Gao Lishi immediately responded.
"Then what should we do with the silk? There is a lot of silk in the Tang Empire. Should we sell it to the people? "Li Longji thought of another problem that needed to be solved.
Gao Lishi sighed and replied, "Your Majesty, there is already a market for the silk. It can be sold in Xinyuan Province, Japan, and Xinluo. There are also merchants in Tufan and Tujue. Xiao Bao is considering cooperation with them. Xinyuan Province and Japan will be handed over to merchants in Jiangnan East. Other places have not been considered yet."
"Jiangnan East? Blue Sea Silver Sand? "Li Longji suddenly thought of the restaurant Between the Clouds and the Water.
"Yes, Xiao Bao wrote in a letter that Blue Sea Silver Sand is also his. It is not a good thing for Between the Clouds and the Water to monopolize. It needs competitors. It is just that merchants who cooperate with Blue Sea Silver Sand to deal with Between the Clouds and the Water are suffering. Most of their money is restricted and they can only make a little money."
Gao Lishi showed an expression of schadenfreude.
Li Longji was stunned and said, "No wonder you can run the restaurant so well. I thought there was another capable person. I wrote a letter to Xiao Bao and asked him to leave some leeway. Don't be so ruthless."
Li Longji did not doubt Zhang Xiaobao's ability. If he wanted to make people who opposed him lose all their property, there would be people who could survive.
"Your Majesty, rest assured. Xiao Bao has already stayed. In a few days, there will be new movements on the first and second floors of Blue Sea Silver Sand. At the same time, the third floor of Blue Sea Silver Sand, which is adjacent to or directly opposite Between the Clouds and the Water, will also change. There will be competition and cooperation."
*****
"Come on, come on …"
The government of Jili Province was very lively. Xiao Bei and the others watched the two little ones trying to turn the tables and cheered them on. From time to time, they would give a demonstration.
The two little ones did not understand what the others were shouting. When they saw someone turning the tables, they would follow suit. Every time they turned the tables, they would giggle a few times. They seemed to be very interested in this kind of game.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan also temporarily put aside their work and accompanied them, enjoying this warm moment.
Only when the two little ones were tired and hungry and were about to cry did Xiao Bei and the others stop and find a wet nurse to feed their little brother and sister.
"Xiao Bao, when are we going to do it?" Wang Juan suddenly asked a question that the others did not understand.
"Wait a little longer. When the news spreads to all the banks, we will come together. On the sixth of next month, I want to see who will cooperate with Wu Huifei after this incident."
Zhang Xiaobao looked at Xiao Bei and the others, who said that they were going to find guards for him, run out one after another and replied to Wang Juan.
Wang Juan did not say anything more on this topic and changed the topic. "Then what about printing money? How can we not let Li Longji print money randomly? "
"Li Longji will not print money randomly. He is not stupid. Unless there is a financial problem, he will devalue the currency to deal with it. As for whether or not someone will print money crazily in the future, that is not something we can control."
Zhang Xiaobao really did not know what to do about this matter. Not to mention now, even if it was at any other time, he would still print money. Which country had not done this before?
Wang Juan stretched lazily. "Then let's wait until the sixth. I am sleepy, so I will go back and take a nap. Tomorrow, we will send a thousand people to North America to find something good for you."
*****
The days passed by one after another. When the sixth arrived, the Great Tang Bank suddenly posted a notice.
It said a total of two things.
The first was naturally paper money. Zhang Xiaobao contacted many merchants and agreed to accept paper money. Anyone who used paper money to buy things would enjoy a 5% discount this month.
Those who were used to using money did not have any objections, but the ordinary people were confused. Could a piece of paper be used as money?
Even with the merchants' promise, they were hesitant. They wanted to see the effect if someone else changed it first.
The smarter people immediately thought of counterfeiting. In the past, they could secretly make copper coins, so now they could try to make paper money. However, when they saw paper money, they were discouraged.
It was too difficult to make. If they used a pen to draw, it would be easy to make mistakes in the small details. They also had to find the same paper and the same oil. Drawing one would take at least a few months. It was also possible to draw a hundred strings of coins.
The problem was how to make the marks on the paper between the bumps and depressions on the money and the light.
Those who wanted to counterfeit temporarily suppressed their thoughts. They needed to improve their skills.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
