Daming: I, the emperor who trains the carpenter

"Well, that's a good thing to say."

"In any case, the imperial court wants to save the market, and the market that has been developed with great difficulty cannot be stopped just like that."

"Since the elders have plans, let's do it this way. It's almost November, and there is not much time left. It is not good to delay it for a long time."

"Everyone, let's do it."

As Zhu Youxiao said, he also thought about it. Since it is going to hold a promotional feast, can he also participate in it?
After thinking about it, Zhu Youxiao was really moved. Speaking of it, he hasn't done carpentry work for a long time. This is a housekeeping skill that can't be forgotten. Would you like to make a batch of things and try it?
Zhu Youxiao's carpentry skills can be said to be the pinnacle. He has unconstrained ideas and meticulous thoughts, and a pair of skillful hands, such as beds, tables, chairs, houses, etc., have played a lot of tricks for him.

Now his cabinet elders are planning to use promotions to stimulate the market, and he really wants to design something to spread.

After Zhang Haogu and the others left, Zhu Youxiao immediately called Wang Tiqian and Wei Zhongxian, two personal generals, to discuss: "The cabinet intends to stimulate the market and promote consumption. I think this idea is good, and I plan to make something , see the effect."

"Isn't it said that the world likes the good things that come out of the palace? It's been a long time since I did anything. Tell me, what should I design?"

Listening to Zhu Youxiao's question, Wang Tiqian and Eunuch Wei glanced at each other, knowing that the emperor wanted to resume his old business again, so he did it himself.

Well, if the emperor has such a heart, the slaves and servants will have to share the worries of the emperor.

Eunuch Wei thought for a while and said, "Your Majesty, the slaves are thinking about it, there are many things that folk merchants can manufacture, such as tables, chairs and benches, and all kinds of folk styles, although their workmanship is nothing compared to yours , but those things can’t stand the large quantity and cheap price.”

"That's why I feel that, first of all, this thing depends on whether it is sold to ordinary people or to the rich."

Zhu Youxiao nodded: "Wei Banban is right, continue."

Eunuch Wei bowed: "The folks have money in their hands, but they are used to living a hard life, and they save every one of them. When they choose things, they usually choose the cheap ones, the durable ones, and the expensive ones. I can’t afford it. So if you want to sell it to ordinary people, you have to make something exquisite and durable, and the materials should not be too good, otherwise the palace will lose money if the price is too low.”

"If it is sold to rich businessmen and gentry, then the emperor can give full play to his own strength, design ingeniously, use high-quality materials, and even if the product is sold at a sky-high price, those rich businessmen and gentry will rush to buy it."

"That's the reason." Zhu Youxiao really didn't plan to sell it to ordinary people. If he wanted to sell it, he would sell it to rich people. How much money do ordinary people have, and only by selling to the rich can they make money.

After making up his mind, Zhu Youxiao got up and said, "Go, go and figure out what to do."

Zhu Youxiao took Wang Tiqian and Wei Zhongxian to seek development for his carpenter career, while Zhang Haogu brought Lu Xiangsheng, Qian Qianyi, and Cui Chengxiu back to the cabinet.

"Your Majesty agrees, then we have to prepare. After all, the court can afford to wait, but those small and medium-sized merchants can't afford to wait." Zhang Haogu said.

Qian Qianyi looked at Lu Xiangsheng: "Mr. Lu, how much money can the household department allocate?"

Lu Xiangsheng thought about it in his heart and said: "After the court navy defeated the Netherlanders, they seized a lot of warships and firearms, as well as a large amount of gold, silver and jewelry. Counting the indemnity of the Netherlanders, this is 500 million yuan. Two denarii."

"The Nanyang Development Company also acquired a large number of firearms, gold and silver utensils, jewelry, and a pile of silk tea spice tobacco leaves in the colonies of Batavia and Palingpan, as well as many good things from Nanyang and the West. "

"Many of these things are easy to sell. Gold and silver utensils and jewelry can be directly priced. These are almost 500 million taels of silver."

"Converted into precious banknotes, it is a base of 1000 billion."

Qian Qianyi asked suspiciously: "Mr. Lu, the indemnities given by the Dutch people before were all 300 million taels. Why did they only get 500 million taels after copying their house?"

Is the money too little?

Shanxi merchants copied more than 100 million yuan, and Qian Qianyi also saw Jinshan Yinshan. The Dutch in Nanyang occupied the sea route. How much money has this been for more than [-] years?
Lu Xiangsheng was very helpless: "The things in this colony, such as large quantities of gold, silver, silk and spices, etc., they have to be transported westward every few months, and what is left is gold and silver utensils and jewelry."

"It would be nice to be able to hold these things such as silk, spices, tea and tobacco leaves, not to mention that they still have a lot of Western goodies, such as Nanyang and Western artworks. These things will not sell for a while."

"What's more, the most valuable thing in Nanyang is the colony itself. If you can have the current 1000 billion treasure notes, be content."

Qian Qianyi heard that this was true, so he said: "That's right, anyway, there is still a 1000 billion base, which is not bad, and it is used to stimulate the market."

Lu Xiangsheng quickly stopped Qian Qianyi's wild thoughts: "Qian Xiang! Stop it! It's not 1000 billion, but 300 billion."

As he said that, Lu Xiangsheng settled the accounts for Qian Qianyi: "Previously the navy went to sea to fight the Dutch, and a total of two to three hundred warships on both sides fought each other, and the navy also lost a lot of warships and personnel. The firearms of warships in the sea need to be replenished, the soldiers who died in battle need pensions, plus the repairs of warships returned, firearms maintenance, and the replenishment of gunpowder and shells, this total needs 170 billion.”

"There are also end-of-year rewards and welfare subsidies for the soldiers of the new army, especially those who guard the borders of southern Liaoning, Gansu-Shaanxi, grasslands, and Jiaofu. The 15 soldiers guarding the frontier will receive twice the year-end rewards of the northern and southern Zhili. For welfare, wine and meat, cloth, etc., this is 300 billion, and the soldiers in the north and south Zhili need another 280 trillion.”

"It's a total of 750 billion. The household department didn't keep a penny of these funds, and allocated the rest. The household department still has 55 billion in advance, so it can make up 300 billion. to stimulate the market."

Zhang Haogu looked at Lu Xiangsheng: "Master Lu, it is difficult for the household department to be in charge of the family, and we know it well. But it is the first time for the imperial court to do this kind of activity. Whether it is to mobilize the enthusiasm of merchants or encourage the people to buy things, it needs a sum of money. As a base, the 300 billion is still a little less, can you allocate another sum from the treasury of the Ministry of Household Affairs?"

Qian Qianyi also hurriedly said: "Yes, Lu Xiang, the Ministry of Households will call again."

Lu Xiangsheng was a little helpless: "They all keep an eye on the household department, but the savings are all emergency. A little bit of this, a little bit of that, and back and forth, but there is not much emergency."

Zhang Haogu pondered for a moment, and said: "This event is sponsored by the imperial court. It is always a good thing to have more money in hand, and it is easier to do things. The discounts and promotions of merchants are mainly used to stimulate the market, and these merchants cannot be allowed to lose money." , otherwise who will do business in the future?"

"What I mean is that this time we have to make a big deal, we have to make a big deal, we have to make it known to everyone, we have to make it so popular that the people of Ming Dynasty, as well as those merchants and tourists from foreign countries, know that the imperial court is going to discount, and we must Give benefits to everyone."

"It's done well this time, and it can be done like this every year in the future. At that time, instead of the court spending money to subsidize the merchants, the merchants will spend money to pay the court tickets. In business, some people do small business, and some The people in the court do big business, the court does not do these businesses, the court operates a market, and the entire stall is owned by the court, if the money is distributed, the meat will rot in the pot, too?"

"In this way, the Ministry of Households will allocate another 200 billion yuan to make up another 500 billion yuan. For the 200 billion yuan, I will borrow it from the Ministry of Finance, and I will return it to the Ministry of Household Affairs later."

Lu Xiangsheng said: "Yuanfu, you have said that, and the Ministry of Households will add another 200 billion."

After settling down, Zhang Haogu continued: "Cui Shilang."

Cui Chengxiu was listening to the conversation of these bigwigs, and the sum of money started at tens of billions. Cui Chengxiu was also in a state of mind when he heard it. He felt that sitting in this cabinet, he was an old cabinet.

Is this what it feels like to be in charge of the cabinet and rule the world?

Is this what it feels like to talk and laugh about national affairs?

He was thinking about how he would govern the Ming Dynasty after joining the cabinet, known as Cui Xiang, Cui Ge's old man, Zhang Haogu's words brought Cui Chengxiu back to his senses.

Hearing Zhang Haogu calling her, Cui Chengxiu got up quickly: "Yuanfu."

Zhang Haogu waved his hand to signal Cui Chengxiu to sit down: "After Cui Shilang went back, he called all the representatives of the North and South chambers of commerce to discuss this matter. If the market is closed for a day, not only the merchants, but also the court will suffer. This matter It needs to be resolved cleanly.”

Cui Chengxiu asked: "Yuanfu, what is the date?"

Zhang Haogu pondered for a moment, and said: "The sooner the day, the better, it's almost November, so discuss it early and make preparations early."

Cui Chengxiu asked again: "When is the day when the court will hold the event, the merchants should prepare early."

Zhang Haogu calculated the current situation of Ming Dynasty, and it would definitely not be possible to last for one day. In one day, many common people, merchants, merchants, and gentry were not enough to travel, and there was still a need for publicity, so it would last at least several days.

After making up his mind, Zhang Haogu said: "Just November No. 11, starting from November No. 11 and lasting for seven days. This time, the imperial court will make a sample for the merchants and let them see, this business How to do."

"It's done this time. Wait until December, and then let those big businessmen come here."

After the cabinet was decided, Cui Chengxiu also went to get busy immediately. This matter was sponsored by the court, and he, Cui Chengxiu, was the main person in charge. If it was done well, it would be his achievements in the commercial office, and there was no room for sloppiness.

Master Zhang has mentioned that in the future, he will definitely upgrade the commercial office and the tax office into departments. By then, the Ming Dynasty will not have the existing six departments, but a more precise division of power and duties, at least a dozen departments. , the chances of joining the cabinet will be high at that time, Master Cui still wants to join the cabinet.

Here the regulations were set, Lu Xiangsheng approved a note to allocate funds from the household department, Qian Qianyi also went to talk to those big chambers of commerce, and Zhang Haogu had to make a detailed plan so that he could submit it to Zhu Youxiao.

This is not something that can be done just by talking about it from the cabinet. The Ministry of Household Affairs, the Ministry of Rites and the Yamen of Shuntian Prefecture all have to participate.

Soon, Zhang Haogu, Lu Xiangsheng, Qian Qianyi, Zhang Ruitu, Li Mengchen, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, the servants of the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Ministry of Rites, Cui Chengxiu of the Commercial Office, etc. all gathered in the lobby of the Ministry of Accounting for a meeting.

The first and second cabinet ministers gathered to discuss how to handle this time.

Regarding money and other issues, the ministers of the household department and their subordinate doctors were discussing, and how to handle this event, the ministers and doctors of the Ministry of Rites were also discussing.

Cui Chengxiu of the Commercial Yamen reported on the discussions with representatives of large and small chambers of commerce, while Shuntian Prefecture was in charge of selecting places, maintaining order, and so on.

This matter is very big, and the political achievements are also obvious. All departments have credit, and there is no need to worry about others taking your credit, so everyone is busy.

Zhang Haogu watched Shuntian Mansion Yin Li Mengchen and his subordinates gesturing and arguing for a long time on the map, and then he decided to hand it over.

"Yuanfu, Cifu, Lu Xiang, Qian Xiang, this is the address chosen by Shuntian Mansion."

After taking the map and looking at it, Zhang Haogu frowned slightly, and Qian Qianyi frowned slightly. As the two who know the energy of merchants best, the two did not doubt the location chosen by Shuntian Mansion. After all, Shuntian Mansion chose a good one. location, but the place is too small.

Qian Qianyi knew that it was inconvenient for Zhang Haogu to say some things, so he said: "Master Li, there are hundreds of chambers of commerce in the Zhili area alone, and tens of thousands of merchants, merchants, gentry and students. How many, have you counted?"

"Can this street handle such a large flow of people?"

Li Mengchen was stunned for a moment, and saw Qian Qianyi swipe his hand to the north and south: "From Yongdingmen to Zhengyangmen, plus Guangningmen to Zhengyangmen, these two roads are all set aside. The second is that the imperial court distributes benefits to the people, don’t make it petty, be generous, and let the people and foreign envoys and merchants see what is the style of the upper kingdom.”

Li Mengchen's face was a little ugly. From Yongdingmen to Zhengyangmen, there was also a road from Guangningmen. The two main roads in the outer city of the capital were occupied in this way. How many yamen servants would be needed to maintain order? Well, what went wrong on the spot, he can't afford it.

"Prefect Li, do you have any questions?" Qian Qianyi asked.

Li Mengchen took a deep breath, and his eyes became firm: "Qian Xiang, there is no problem."

Looking at Li Mengchen's series of reactions, Zhang Haogu asked, "Are you sure there is no problem?"

Li Mengchen nodded: "Yuanfu, Shuntian Mansion promises to maintain order and security at the scene, and there will be no problems."

"Okay, let's get ready." Zhang Haogu said with a smile.

When Li Mengchen went to discuss with the officials of Shuntian Mansion how to maintain the possible traffic of hundreds of thousands of people coming from the two main roads, Zhang Haogu also said softly: "The existing yamen servants in Shuntian Mansion want to complete this matter. It's a bit difficult."

Qian Qianyi echoed: "Well, let's assign a group of people from the Beijing camp to him."

Zhang Haogu nodded: "I'll write a note in a while, asking Jingying to mobilize 3000 people to assist Shuntian Mansion."

After this series of discussions was over, the regulations were finalized, and after the officials from top to bottom were clear about their responsibilities, Zhang Haogu also got up and went to the palace. He had to report the plan of this event to Zhu Youxiao.

When Zhang Haogu arrived outside the Hall of Martial Arts, he saw Emperor Tianqi of Ming Dynasty, Naren Da Khan recognized by the grassland people, and the most outstanding craftsman of Ming Dynasty, Zhu Youxiao, was processing a bed with a chisel .

"Your Majesty, this is you." Zhang Haogu leaned forward and watched Zhu Youxiao as the main force, and Eunuch Wei followed him at an early age. The king and servant were very puzzled by the big bed that the two men were working on.

Is there no shortage of furniture in the palace?

Palaces, beds, tables and chairs, these things in the palace were not all designed and manufactured by Zhu Youxiao, how did this happen again?

Eunuch Wei was delighted to see that Zhang Haogu had come, and quickly said: "Master Zhang, look quickly, this is what the emperor wants to sell at that event."

Zhang Haogu suddenly realized that Zhu Youxiao also planned to have fun at the event.

Putting down the chisel in his hand, he went to the side with a basin and towels to clean it up, and then Zhu Youxiao said proudly: "Master, from your point of view, how does this bed look?"

Zhang Haogu looked at this finely carved dragon and phoenix bed, it was beautiful, even if it hadn't been polished, it could be seen that it was made with precision, and the materials used were also high-quality.

However, there is no shortage of such things in activities.

Seeing Zhang Haogu frowned, Zhu Youxiao was a little unhappy: "Master thinks my design is not good?"

Zhang Haogu shook his head: "No, Your Majesty's design is excellent, it can be said that this craftsmanship is unmatched in the whole world."

Zhu Youxiao asked again: "Is the material I use bad?"

Zhang Haogu shook his head again: "Your Majesty uses high-quality mahogany material, how can this material be bad?"

Zhu Youxiao was puzzled: "Master, why are you frowning? If I put this bed out, wouldn't those wealthy businessmen and gentry rush to take it?"

Zhang Haogu said with a smile: "Return to Your Majesty, but for all the items that come out of the palace, which one of those wealthy businessmen and gentry is not vying for it? They all want to be contaminated with His Majesty's dragon spirit, so that they will be a blessing to their descendants."

"If this big red rice bed made of dragon and phoenix Cheng Xiang is put out and told to the world that your Majesty made and polished it yourself, then there will be many people who will snap up your bed and try to get your dragon spirit."

"Even those people on the prairie will snatch it like crazy. After all, you are Naren Khan of the prairie. They can pay as much as you want."

Hearing Zhang Haogu's praise, Zhu Youxiao's mood improved a lot, but he still didn't understand, what did Zhang Haogu mean?

Zhang Haogu finally said: "But Your Majesty, there will be many things like tables, chairs, benches, and beds in this event. Since there are so many beds, why do you insist on designing this instead of making something that is not available in the event? ?”

These words made Zhu Youxiao's body tremble, yes, why did he only think about tables, chairs, benches, beds and other objects, why didn't he think about getting some objects that he hadn't seen in the event?

"Master, do you have any good ideas?" Zhu Youxiao knew at a glance that Zhang Haogu definitely had an idea!
This is Daming's God of Wealth, with a bright mind!
Zhang Haogu smiled slightly: "Your Majesty, I think it's boring to make these big objects. If you want to make them, you can make small ones. They are small and exquisite. This is not better than big objects? And most of the small objects in the market are wood carvings. Why can't we make them?" Anything else?"

"For example, a model?"