Chapter 303

The seedlings in the fields were lush green, and a dozen or so steeds were galloping lightly on the small path. As they walked, Hua Yunfei introduced to Ye Xiaotian, "This Yu Ji is not only the largest brick and tile shop in Tongren Province, it is also the only brick and tile shop. A few years ago, there were two other shops in the same industry, but unfortunately, they couldn't compete with the Yu Ji Association and closed down one after another. "

The Yu Ji Brick and Tile Factory was located at the foot of the Yellow Earth Ridge. On the empty land in front of the ridge, a large courtyard was built using a fence. In the courtyard, there were rows of neatly stacked bricks and tiles. Behind the courtyard was a row of houses, and behind the houses was a hillside. The hillside had a huge gap dug out, as if it had been bitten by a giant prehistoric beast.

Ye Xiaotian led his horse into the Yu Ji Brick and Tile Factory, and with great interest, he stopped in front of a mud pit that was a foot lower than the ground. There were a few old men in the mud pit, each holding a cow. They were slowly walking back and forth in the mud pit. They were smelting.

Smelting was a crucial step in the process of making bricks. The loess dug out from the mountains was added with water, then stepped on by humans and animals, and repeated until the loess was trampled into sticky mud. Only then could it be used to make bricks and tiles. The few old men in the mud pit had already turned into mud monkeys, but they were still holding the cow's reins and trampling it over and over again.

In the main building of the Yu Ji Brick and Tile Factory, Head Shopkeeper Ding was respectfully inviting Yu Junting to take a seat. Yu Junting had heard that Taoist Priest Chang Feng of the Seven Mysteries Monastery on the Six Dragon Mountain had remarkable abilities, so he specially went to pay a visit today. On the way back, he took a detour to the Yu Ji Brick and Tile Factory, which was one of the businesses under her name.

Shopkeeper Ding welcomed his boss in, and his heart was filled with fear. This female chieftain came from a large family, and among the businesses under her control, the brick and tile factory was not the main source of income. In the past, he would only go to the County Supervisor's residence to pay his boss a visit at the end of the year. He did not know why his boss would condescend to come here today.

Shopkeeper Ding carefully reported the recent business situation to Yu Junting: "Currently, we need a large amount of bricks and tiles to repair the city walls, and the magistrate's office is expanding the granary. There is no lack of business, but it is almost the busy farming season, and we need to raise the wages to keep the people. The magistrate's office is still trying to lower our prices."

Yu Junting was displeased: "I have already given Fatty Zhang a lot of benefits, but he still wants to increase the wages... Don't pay attention to him. If anyone from the government comes to pressure you, just come and find me. "

With his boss backing him up, Shopkeeper Ding's heart was at ease. Yu Junting said: "I am not here to check the accounts today. I went to the Six Dragon Mountain today, and paid a visit to Taoist Priest Chang Feng of the Seven Mysteries Monastery. This Taoist priest is very skilled, and he intends to build a Taoist temple in Tongren City to spread Taoism. I have already promised him that I will pay for all the bricks and tiles needed to build the Taoist temple. The Taoist temple will probably start construction in a few days. You must keep this matter in mind, and do not neglect it. "

Shopkeeper Ding secretly sighed. Recently, his boss seemed to need a large sum of money, and all the businesses were ordered to hand over their surplus funds. But when it came to the monk, not only did his boss not take a single cent, he was even afraid of neglecting him. As he thought of this, he hurriedly agreed.

At this time, someone came in and reported: "Shopkeeper, there is a person who claims to be the magistrate's office's Imperial Judge Ye who wants to see you."

Yu Junting could not help but be startled. Ye Xiaotian? What is he doing at the brick and tile factory? Yu Junting thought for a while, then told Shopkeeper Ding: "You go and welcome him in. I will hide behind and listen to his purpose."

Shopkeeper Ding obeyed and went out to welcome Ye Xiaotian into the main room. He ordered someone to serve tea, and cautiously asked: "This old man has always been law-abiding, and has not done anything illegal. May I know the purpose of Imperial Judge Laoye's visit today?"

Ye Xiaotian said with a smile, "Do I have to be here to fight a lawsuit just because I'm here to push for a judge? Haha, you are a businessman, so this Ye is here to discuss business with you. Shopkeeper Ding, is this Yu Ji brick and tile factory your own business, or does it have another owner? "

Shopkeeper Ding was stunned for a moment, then replied: "This old man can make the decision on the business of this brick and tile factory. If you have something to say, please say it."

Ye Xiaotian took a sip of tea and said with a smile: "Recently, the heavy rain has caused the city to be flooded. The magistrate has decided to dredge the river for the benefit of the people. Because the project is huge and involves the whole city, he is afraid that the engineering department will not be able to bear the heavy responsibility, so he entrusted this task to me. "

Behind the main seat in the living room was a large wooden screen. Behind the screen was a small space, and like the front, there were also chairs. Yu Junting was sitting there, and he could clearly hear the conversation in front of him. Hearing Ye Xiaotian shamelessly pasting gold on his face, Yu Junting could not help but laugh.

Ye Xiaotian said: "The most troublesome thing in dredging the river is how to deal with the silt that has been cleared out. To remove the silt, we need to hire horses and carriages, which is time-consuming and laborious, and the cost is too high. Now, this official has thought of some methods. Some silt can be used to fill ponds, some silt can be used to fertilize the fields, but there is still a large amount of silt that cannot be disposed of. This official thought, why not use the river mud to make bricks and tiles? "

Shopkeeper Ding tentatively said: "What the Top Prefect means is to let our Yu Ji brick and tile factory set up a kiln in the city, and use the mud to make bricks and tiles?"

Ye Xiaotian clapped his hands and said: "Exactly, in this way, we can turn waste into treasure, isn't it killing two birds with one stone?"

Shopkeeper Ding smiled, shook his head and said: "Master Prefect is really thinking too much … Cough, cough, Master Prefect, although the river mud can be used to make bricks and tiles, but the bricks and tiles made from the mud are too defective. Generally speaking, only 70% of the bricks and tiles can be used. This old man is a businessman, and for this old man, it is not worth it."

Ye Xiaotian shook his head and said: "Shopkeeper Ding's calculation is wrong. You can't just look at the finished product. When this official came here, when you want to make bricks and tiles, you must choose soil that is sticky. After digging it out, it must be exposed to the sun, crushed, and sifted. After leaving the pure soil, you must add water and refine it, and use horses and oxen to trample it at least five to six times until it becomes a thick mud. Only then can it be used to make the embryo.

In that case, when you go up the mountain to collect the soil, do you need human or animal power? Do you need to expose, crush, and sift the soil? Do you need human or animal power to add water and refine the soil? Don't you need to spend money? But the mud that is dug out from the river directly saves you the first three steps. Not only does it save you money, it also saves you a lot of time!

Furthermore, because the bricks and tiles you make are not profitable and heavy, it is very difficult to sell them outside of Tongren City. Now that you can make them in Tongren City, you can save the process of transporting them from the countryside to the city. During this period, how much manpower and material resources will you save?

Based on this calculation, if you set up a kiln in the city, even if there is a 30% defective product, plus the cost of building the kiln, you will still make a lot of money. Even if it's a defective product, it can't be said that it's completely useless. This official can spend some money to buy it and grind it into slag to reinforce the river bottom. "

Shopkeeper Ding carefully thought about it and couldn't help but be tempted. Cleaning up the entire city would take a long time, and at the fastest, it would take one and a half years. If he could use the mud in the city to make bricks and tiles and sell them on the spot during this one and a half years, he would indeed be able to make a lot of money.

Shopkeeper Ding was a businessman. When it came to calculating whether something was worth doing, the only criterion was whether it was profitable or not. Now that he heard Ye Xiaotian say this, this business deal could be done.

Shopkeeper Ding closed his eyes and calculated. Out of habit, his fingers lightly tapped on the table, as if he was fiddling with the beads of an abacus. After a long time, he opened his eyes and said to Ye Xiaotian, "This old man has to personally enter the city to take a look. If this method is really feasible, this old man is willing to share Daren's burden!"

Ye Xiaotian happily said, "No wonder out of the three brick and tile shops in Tongren, only your Yu Ji is left to outshine others. Shopkeeper Ding is very bold. Since it's like this, this official won't say anything more. Shopkeeper Ding, please go to the Punishment Hall to take a look. If you are interested, then come find me. "

Shopkeeper Ding was clean and efficient, and Ye Xiaotian was even more straightforward. Both of them had made their attitudes clear, and Ye Xiaotian immediately took his leave. This kind of swift and decisive style of doing things left a deep impression on Shopkeeper Ding. He felt that this official was really different from the officials in Tongren Province.

Yu Junting sat behind the wooden screen. At first, when she heard Ye Xiaotian's words, the corners of her lips still carried a trace of a teasing smile. However, as she listened, her expression gradually became serious.

She had originally pushed the matter of dredging the river onto Ye Xiaotian's head with the intention of teasing and humiliating him. Looking at Ye Xiaotian's attitude at the time, it was clear that he was also unwilling to accept it. However, since he couldn't shirk the responsibility, he was able to put aside his prejudices and do his best to complete the task. This was commendable.

The prefectural magistrate had only allocated a pitiful two hundred taels of silver, and he had thought of every possible way possible. He didn't beat around the bush, didn't shirk the responsibility, and even used his status as a seventh-ranked official to ask for help from a merchant. This man was very serious. If I can use this kind of person …

Suddenly, Chieftain Yu had a thought of cherishing talent.