Ang Lee had not succeeded in making a gun that satisfied him. In addition, Ang Lee also had some unspeakable worries in his heart. It was these worries that made Ang Lee not know whether to study guns and equip the army on a large scale. If it caused unpredictable consequences, wouldn't he become a sinner?
Although cannons had been put into use and their power was far from comparable to guns, the weight and use of cannons were quite cumbersome. Without carriages and horses, it was difficult for three to five people to move it. It was even more impossible to carry it with you. The accuracy was not very high, and it could not be used at close range.
Because the imperial court had strict control over cannons, there was a limited number of them. It was very difficult to steal one to do bad things, and it was easy to be discovered.
Guns were different because the cost of manufacturing was lower. Once the army was equipped, the number of portable weapons would be very large. In fact, it was easy to monitor such a large number of portable weapons. Once someone secretly took one out, it might not be discovered in time.
If a person with bad intentions stole a gun and hid it on his body, he could walk on the street without fear. If he encountered a court official passing by, he only needed to gently pull the trigger to kill the important court official of the Tang dynasty. The guards of the court official would not be able to react in time. Even the emperor would feel insecure when he went out.
The assassin would obtain a weapon that was hard to match. He could even kill his opponent from a distance without coming into contact with them. Then, he could quickly escape. The government wouldn't even know who to arrest if they wanted to.
Therefore, this risk was very high. Once this assassination weapon was popularized, the guards of many high-ranking officials would be greatly reduced. If the emperor wanted to appear in public, he would have to think carefully.
It was precisely because of these concerns that Ang Lee was very careful when he studied guns. He gave different parts of the gun to different craftsmen to be responsible for manufacturing and research. Then, he personally assembled and experimented at home.
Of course, there was also an advantage to popularizing guns, which was that the number of soldiers could be greatly reduced. This was because the power of firearms was very strong. The combat power of 100 soldiers could completely defeat 10,000 soldiers armed with cold weapons. In this way, the number of soldiers could be reduced as much as possible. Thus, in terms of military pay, it could greatly reduce the burden of the imperial court.
Ang Lee wasn't in a hurry about the guns. What Ang Lee needed to deal with was the production of batteries and flashlights as soon as possible. As for the flashlights, which didn't require much technology, Ang Lee planned to make the technology public so that ordinary people could make some simple ones by themselves.
As for batteries, it was still quite difficult to manufacture them. Moreover, if they wanted to save costs, they would have to carry out large-scale assembly line production. Naturally, they would have to hand it over to the nobles to set up professional workshops.
Ang Lee had already told many ministers that the battery technology would be sold to the three highest bidders, but the highest bidder would still need to be publicly tendered.
Before this, Ang Lee had already divided people into groups to popularize the use and effect of flashlights. After the nobles and commoners in the capital understood the use of flashlights and batteries, Ang Lee could publicly bid.
Popularizing the use was only one aspect. Another aspect was to prepare more time for the nobles so that they could know the news earlier and come to participate in the competition in time. The more people who participated in the competition, the higher the price of the technology could be sold. At the same time, it would be easier to choose more powerful nobles. This also made many merchants speechless. They couldn't complain that the imperial court didn't give them a chance.
Everyone could see how great the prospects of the battery were. Although Ang Lee said that it would be divided into three, it was still very attractive. If the three successful merchants all belonged to the same noble, then it would still be a monopoly.
In order to get this piece of fat meat, many nobles had already begun to discuss countermeasures. Among them, there was no lack of important officials in the imperial court.
For example, people like Li Linfu and Yang Guozhong, as well as other nobles in the capital, were all thinking about how to get the battery technology. They thought that it would bring them great benefits.
In the Censor's Residence, Yang Guozhong had just returned. He didn't have time to eat and immediately called his confidant over.
"Alang, what's the hurry?"
The butler asked.
"Let me ask you, how much cash do we have on our books?"
Yang Guozhong asked.
The butler hurriedly said, "Alang, recently we bought dozens of machines from the imperial court to expand the production volume. So, we really don't have much cash left. We only have a thousand gold coins."
"What, so little? Damn it."
Yang Guozhong angrily smashed the cup next to him, which shocked the butler in front of him.
It was no wonder that he was angry. Ang Lee had already said in the imperial court that the battery technology would be sold to the three highest bidders. Moreover, it would be a public bidding. A large group of merchants would bid openly in a public place. To a large extent, this could prevent private transactions and the possibility of cheating would be greatly reduced.
If the ministers of the imperial court were to bid in person, it was estimated that many small officials would not dare to compete with them. However, their status was so noble that they were naturally not allowed to appear in such an occasion. Other officials naturally could not compete. The real participants in the bidding were ordinary merchants. Among them, there were real big businessmen and also the puppets of these powerful officials. These people mixed together and did not know each other. Naturally, there was no need to give face to anyone. They could just bid boldly. In this way, the final result would inevitably be that the technology that could make money would be sold to the one who offered the highest price.
Although Yang Guozhong had already received the skin care technology provided by Ang Lee for free, and this technology had brought him too many practical benefits, people were always greedy. Especially those with high status, they were even more greedy. Who would complain about having too much money?
Therefore, he also wanted to fight and buy this technology that could bring him huge benefits. In this way, he could earn more money.
But now, in order to expand the business of the skin care technology, he actually spent almost all the money he earned. This made him very depressed. At the critical moment when he was in urgent need of money, such a thing actually happened. No one would feel good if they were in his shoes.
"Alang, what happened? Are you in urgent need of money?"
The butler asked with concern.
Yang Guozhong sighed and said helplessly, "Forget it, there's no chance. I wanted to start another business, but unfortunately, I have no money in my hands. I can only leave the opportunity to others."
"Alang is talking about the flashlight that is being promoted on the street!"
The butler guessed.
"Hey, how did you know?"
The butler replied, "Alang, who doesn't know about this! Many places in the capital are promoting the flashlight. They built many sheds and said that there will be an open bidding. Everyone knows about it. I even went to the shed to take a look. That guy is really bright! It's a good thing, much better than a lantern. "
"Hmph, you also know that it's an open bidding. But we have no money. I'm afraid we can't compete with others."
Yang Guozhong said helplessly.
The butler said, "Alang, even if we don't have money in our house, we can't let outsiders benefit! The madams and you are all family. If we all work together, are you afraid that we can't get the technology? "
"That's right! The three madams have also received a lot of benefits from me. The underwear business is almost all given to them. They should have a lot of money in their hands. If I work together with the three madams, we can compete. After we get the technology, we can also get a share. Even if it's only 10%, it's still good. "
Yang Guozhong said excitedly. After a pause, he hurriedly said, "Hurry up and prepare the car. I want to meet the three madams."
Yang Guozhong was not the only one eyeing the battery technology. In the Right Prime Minister's residence, Li Linfu coughed. His health was not very good, but when he thought of the harsh life his descendants would have to face after he passed away, he felt very uncertain.
In the past, in order to climb to the highest position, he had offended many people and made many enemies. Since ancient times, in the land of Hua Xia, hatred would be passed on to the next generation. If one person harmed another, then his descendants could suffer revenge. Even the laws of the imperial court were like this.
For example, if a person wanted to rebel, his descendants would not know. But as long as the person who rebelled was discovered, then it would be a serious crime that would implicate nine generations of the family. His descendants and relatives would be implicated. In other words, the emperor would transfer the hatred for the rebel to the descendants and relatives of the rebel, and make all these people disappear.
Li Linfu had offended a lot of people. While he was still in power, he naturally didn't have to worry about people taking revenge on him and his descendants. However, his health was already not good. If he suddenly passed away, how could his good-for-nothing descendants protect themselves?
Losing their lives was one thing, but even if they could keep their lives, if they did not have power and money, their lives would be very difficult. And in this world, which parent would want their children to suffer? They all hoped that their children could live well and be richer. This was the greatest wish of all parents in the world.
Because Li Linfu had always had a lot of power, even if he did not develop his own business, he could live very well just by accepting bribes. In addition to his high salary, the pressure of living was even less.
However, among his descendants, there were only a few who were truly talented. Most of them were ordinary people with mediocre abilities. Under his wings, they might be able to live very comfortably. However, once he fell from power, naturally, no one would come forward to give him gifts. In this way, his dozens of sons and hundreds of grandchildren could only eat dirt. Their lives would become more and more difficult.
In the past, when he was in good health, Li Linfu would not think about his future. But now, his health was very poor, and it was time to think about his future.
He did not have to worry about a few sons who were small officials in the imperial court. As long as they had a salary from the imperial court, it would not be difficult for them to support themselves. But those useless children and grandchildren were not easy to deal with. Once they lost his support, these prodigal sons who were used to spending money extravagantly might live quite miserably.
And right now, there was a chance that could give his descendants a chance to live. It was the battery technology, a semi-monopolized technology that only three families could master.
As long as they mastered this technology and opened a workshop, they could get a steady stream of income. As for the problem of the competition between the three families, he felt that it was not difficult to solve. As long as the three businessmen communicated with each other, fixed the price, or divided the sales into different regions, this problem could be solved very well.
For example, with the Yangtze River as the dividing line, the market could be divided into two parts, Jiangnan and Jiangbei. There were also natural barriers such as the Huai River, the Yellow River, and the Qinling Mountains. They could all be divided geographically. So that different families were responsible for different areas, which was also a good idea. In short, this aspect was flexible. As long as the three families could sit down and talk, everyone could win.
"Father, you want Ninth Brother to operate the battery technology. Can he really do such a thing? Moreover, I heard that there is a public bidding. It will cost a lot of money! "
Li Xiu's attitude was obviously against it. He did not want his family to be involved in this matter. He was not that ambitious. He was a person who was content with a small fortune. He felt that he would be satisfied as long as he had enough to eat and drink.
Li Linfu's face was gloomy as he said, "You are already a supervisor of the imperial court, so you naturally don't care. But these younger brothers of yours have nothing to do all day. As long as I am alive, I can still take care of them. But you have also seen the state of my body. If I am no longer around, with your ability, can you feed your brothers? Although I have already bought a house for each of them and hundreds of mu of fertile land, how can that be enough? It is far from enough! So, this opportunity must be seized. "
"Father, I think it is better to give the money saved directly to my brothers because I feel that they don't have the ability to operate a workshop. If they screw it up, won't everything be in vain?"
Li Xiu said.
"They can learn if they don't know how! Running a workshop is not difficult. Since others can learn it, why can't my sons learn it? As long as they put in more effort, it will be fine. This is the only thing I can do for them now. "
Li Linfu said helplessly.
"Since Father has decided, then let's do it!"
Li Xiu also felt that it was not a good thing to just sit around and eat. He must let his brothers have their own businesses. At least, they must be able to support themselves and their descendants. A few hundred mu of land might be able to support one or two generations. After three generations, they could only eat dirt. The so-called wealth would not last more than three generations referred to this. The first generation had high status and ability and could provide a lot of property for their descendants. The second and third generation's descendants were mediocre and the family began to decline. After three generations, the family would completely decline. It was very likely that no one would know of their family's former glory.
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