Moonlight shone on the porch.
Fan Ruoruo said with pity, "My future sister-in-law is said to be suffering from... tuberculosis. She often coughs up blood, so she has been forbidden to eat meat. The girl you speak of is eating chicken legs." She thought about the scene her brother had described earlier and couldn't help but laugh. "Of course it can't be Miss Lin. Furthermore, it's said that Miss Lin's appearance is only delicate and pretty. She's definitely not as beautiful as you described."
Fan Xian thought about it and sighed. He put the matter aside, but he wouldn't give up on the idea of finding the girl. Another image appeared in his mind, and he couldn't help but frown.
"Tuberculosis?" He knew that in this world, tuberculosis was equivalent to an incurable disease. Although he had studied with Fei Jie for a year and had never stopped cultivating in all aspects, since the other party was the daughter of the Eldest Princess, there would definitely be an imperial physician to treat it. If even the imperial physicians could not cure it, what could he do?
Fei Jie's absence was a big problem.
The next day, when Fan Xian woke up, he found that his father, sister, and Lady Liu were not there. He ate some porridge and side dishes, then prepared to leave. He planned to go to the Temple of Qing to try his luck and see if he could meet the girl again.
Just as he was about to leave, Fan Sizhe ran over and pulled on his sleeve. He pulled him into the study and very seriously handed him a few pieces of paper. Fan Xian looked at him curiously and saw that his brother's eyes were bloodshot. It seemed that he had stayed up all night. "You didn't sleep," he asked. "If Second Aunt saw you, wouldn't she scold you again?"
Fan Sizhe laughed. "I learned from you. I kept it a secret."
Fan Xian smiled and rubbed the pieces of paper with his fingers. He rested his chin on his hand and looked at them. Written on them were the "plans" that Fan Sizhe had made the night before. Although Fan Xian had not been a successful businessman in his previous life, he had seen pigs run. The business atmosphere of his previous life and the Kingdom of Qing today could not be mentioned in the same breath. Add to that the special profession he had once held, and he was confident in this.
His brows gradually furrowed. "That's a good idea, but I'm not familiar with the capital, so the location of the bookstore is up to you. But there's a problem. Although we're the only one who has the manuscript, how can you guarantee that other booksellers won't steal it after you've printed it? "
Fan Sizhe said with a face full of fanaticism, "The family is very idle now, and those servants have nothing to do. We can let them wander the streets, and if they see a pirated shop, they can smash it."
Fan Xian was dumbfounded. Do you only know how to smash and rob? It did not meet his expectations at all. He shook his head with a bitter smile. "Don't think that the booksellers are inconspicuous. In fact, the profits they make are not small. Who knows what kind of background they have?"
"What are you afraid of? This manuscript originally belonged to our family. How can he be justified in stealing it? "Fan Sizhe shouted.
Fan Xian reminded him, "There are no provisions in the Qing Kingdom's laws that protect manuscripts from being printed. Besides, this book didn't pass the Eighth Bureau's inspection. If you go to court, I'm afraid you'll have to pay for it first."
Fan Sizhe chuckled and said, "I'm not afraid of that. If we really want to open a bookstore, we can just have our father write a letter. The Eighth Bureau won't refuse. "
Fan Xian thought about it and agreed. His seemingly ordinary father had a much deeper relationship with the Overwatch Council than most people knew. He changed his mind and said, "But even if you get rid of your identity as a banned book, you can't just rely on smashing and robbing to destroy your competitors. As the saying goes, you can't hit someone in the face. You chased away middle-aged women on the streets and alleys of the capital and closed down other people's shops. That's a way of shedding all pretense of cordiality. For the sake of money, it's not worth it for both sides to fight each other. "
"What are you afraid of?" Fan Sizhe rolled his eyes. It seemed that his older brother was a bit too soft-hearted. "If you don't think it's worth it, you can think of a way to make a rule. In the future, we'll follow the rule. If other booksellers dare to steal it again, we'll just have the authorities deal with it."
Fan Xian laughed heartily. "Rules? Do you think the laws of the court will be so trifling? Just because the Fan family wants to publish a book, they'll change the law? "
Fan Sizhe shook his head. "How can we change the law? Of course, we have to take the lower path. Changing the rules of the Jingdou Garrison is very simple. That fierce woman in Ye Zhong's family has a good relationship with Princess Rou Jia. We just have to ask my sister to let Prince Jing's manor and the Ye manor know. "
Fan Xian's interest was piqued. "The capital's garrison regulations can regulate the sale of books?"
Fan Sizhe was surprised. After thinking for a moment, he said, "There seems to be a clause in there that governs refugees and traveling merchants. It'll be a good time to make use of it."
Fan Xian was full of admiration. He thought that this young man in front of him had the potential to become an unscrupulous businessman. He could even think of such a ruthless move as collusion between the government and merchants and the city guards. But he knew that there was always a gap between ideals and reality. He asked, "Have you calculated the profits?"
"Ten chapters per volume, eight taels of silver per volume. There are sixty-eight chapters in total. There are six hundred and forty thousand people in the capital. One volume per thousand people means that we can sell more than six hundred copies. If we calculate it carefully, we can sell them for thirty-five thousand eight hundred and forty taels of silver. " Fan Sizhe explained with great interest. He had already calculated all of these costs. "The rent on Luodong Road is more expensive. Plus the editing costs, we can leave the printing to the Hall of Scrolls. That way, we won't have to worry about it."
"The Hall of Ten Thousand Scrolls?" Fan Xian asked curiously.
"The most famous private printing workshop in the capital." Fan Sizhe laughed sinisterly. "They have a big business, but they don't have any reliable people behind them. If they dare to steal our manuscripts, we can just copy them and turn them upside down. I'm afraid they'll make even more money."
Fan Xian was so depressed that he wanted to vomit blood.
"If we calculate it carefully, we can make at least a few thousand taels of silver in the year. If we can really make other booksellers stop, the number will increase."
Fan Xian sighed. "You're too optimistic. If you want to be a successful businessman, you must first prepare for a rainy day. Let's talk about the number you estimated. Although the people of the capital are wealthy, each set costs more than fifty taels of silver. How many people can afford it? "
Fan Sizhe was shocked. He looked at Fan Xian as if he were looking at a monster. "Don't you know the market price of your book?"
Fan Xian's eyes widened. In his previous life, "Dream of the Red Chamber" had become popular during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor. He had heard rumors that it was sold for hundreds of taels of silver. But that was only a handwritten copy, and not many copies had been circulated. If you were going to publish it in a big way, could it be sold for so much?
Fan Sizhe sighed. "A few days ago, I heard that the daughter of the capital's magistrate read your book. She couldn't eat or drink, and was in a daze. The magistrate's wife burned the manuscript. She cried out in pain, 'Why did you burn my precious treasure?' She fell ill for a long time. Brother, the capital is not like other places. There are as many officials as there are carp swimming around. How many young ladies are there who have nothing to do? Selling hundreds or thousands of copies is not a problem. "
Fan Xian was dumbfounded. He wondered if he should bring some snacks to the poor magistrate's daughter.
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