The world of film and television starts from the flow of money

The Shaofu managed the royal finances in a variety of ways: First, it levied taxes on mountains, seas, ponds and lakes. The mountains, rivers, lakes, oceans and other natural resources within the Qin Dynasty were all within the scope of the Shaofu's taxation. For example, taxes were levied on wood and minerals produced by mountains and forests, and fishery resources in lakes and oceans. The taxes generated by these abundant natural resources became one of the important sources of royal fiscal revenue.

Second, collect population tax: The Shaofu was responsible for collecting special population tax from the population belonging to the royal family, including the people living in the royal territory and various personnel serving the royal family, and collected taxes according to certain standards and proportions to enrich the royal financial funds.

3. Collecting industrial and commercial taxes: The Shaofu collected taxes on industrial and commercial activities related to the royal family. For example, the handicraft workshops run by the royal family had to pay taxes when the products they produced were sold on the market; commercial trade activities in which the royal family participated, such as the transaction of specific commodities, were taxed, and these industrial and commercial taxes were also part of the royal fiscal revenue.

Of course, in addition to collecting taxes, the Shaofu also has its own industry, oh, it should be said that it is royal industry.

The Shaofu directly managed a large number of official handicraft workshops. These workshops covered multiple fields, such as textiles, ceramics, metal smelting and processing, etc. Taking textile workshops as an example, they would organize craftsmen to produce silk fabrics, linen fabrics, etc., and provide all kinds of exquisite clothing and textiles for the royal family; in ceramic workshops, craftsmen fired high-quality pottery and porcelain to meet the needs of the royal family in life and etiquette; metal smelting and processing workshops were responsible for producing metal utensils and decorations needed by the royal family. Through the effective management and operation of these handicrafts, on the one hand, the material needs of the royal family were met, and on the other hand, the sale or reward of excess products could also bring certain economic benefits to the royal family.

In addition to handicrafts, the Shaofu was also responsible for operating other industries related to the royal family. For example, the Shaofu managed and rented out the land owned by the royal family to obtain land rental income; participated in some commercial trade activities, used the royal family's resources and privileges to buy and sell goods, and made profits from them to increase the royal family's financial revenue.

The income of Shaofu accounted for half of the national fiscal revenue, which means that half of the country supported Qin Shihuang's family.

Although a lot of money was collected, the various projects undertaken by the Shaofu had lasted for more than ten years.

Although Qin Shihuang was devoted to seeking immortality, he also made preparations and carefully built his own afterlife.

The size of the Mausoleum of Mount Li was expanded again and again, and new designs emerged one after another. The Terracotta Warriors and Horses were to be presented in a one-to-one proportion. The underground palace was even larger and more magnificent, no less magnificent than the majestic Xianyang Palace. Now, Qin Shihuang suddenly had another idea to build an underground palace like an immortal palace.

This huge tomb pit was like a hideous monster with a bloody mouth and fangs. No matter how much money was invested, it seemed that its greed could never be satisfied. Even if the counties and prefectures levied additional taxes, it would be difficult to fill these huge holes. They had to find other ways to make money.

There was no need to think about alcohol in this era. Ordinary people often went hungry, and the prohibition on alcohol had been in place for many years. The ban was only temporarily lifted during festivals or the birthday of Qin Shi Huang.

There is no way to talk about cigarettes, after all, there are no seeds.

Although the gold mine has begun to be dug, distant water cannot quench immediate thirst.

It seems that we must come up with other ways to expand our financial resources.

…………

Pickaxe pool.

More than a year has passed, and several papermaking workshops have started operations, and Haochi has become very lively. The noisy sound broke the long-standing silence and attracted the attention of many people in Xianyang City.

When the Minister of the Imperial Household Wei Dong, the Imperial Household Doctor Qin Ming, the Imperial Household Order Shi Ce Chi, the Imperial Household Secretary Sima Dun and others were busy with their own government affairs, they suddenly received an urgent order from the envoy. They did not dare to slack off at all, and immediately put down their work and rushed to the designated place without stopping.

The horses galloped along the way, raising clouds of dust. When they arrived at the Haochi, everyone's faces were filled with anxiety and anticipation.

At the workshop door, the village chief guarding the door had a serious look on his face, holding a spear tightly in his hand. He took the token handed over by Wei Dong, looked left and right, and carefully checked every detail. After repeatedly confirming that there was no problem, the village chief nodded slightly and let Wei Dong and others enter the workshop. Then, he called a clerk and ordered: "Take these clerks to see the Shaofu!"

"Please follow me, sir!"

The clerk quickly agreed and respectfully led the way. Wei Dong and others followed the clerk's footsteps and walked into the workshop. Since they arrived at the Haochi, they had passed three sentries. Each sentry was closely guarded by soldiers holding spears, watching everything around them vigilantly. Looking at these soldiers patrolling the workshop, everyone looked at each other and sighed in their hearts.

"This workshop is heavily guarded." Qin Ming said softly.

Ce Chi nodded slightly in agreement: "Think about it, if we can really make what Zhao Gao said, it will be a national treasure and cannot be leaked easily."

Sima Dun's gaze lingered on the soldiers for a moment, and he said thoughtfully, "Such a strict guard shows how important this matter is. We must do our best and live up to our mission."

As I walked, I could feel the tense atmosphere in the workshop. The sentries made me curious and expectant about what I was about to see.

The workshop was built along the Haochi Pond. When the few people stepped into it, the first thing that caught their eyes was the small artificial dam beside the pond. This dam was like a solid arm, cleverly dividing the lake water on the shore into small shallow pools. Half of these pools were soaked with wood and bark, and the other half were soaked with hemp heads, rags, hemp stalks and other things.

Hundreds of people gathered on the shore, swinging their axes up and down, cutting the swollen hemp rags into pieces. Their movements were skillful and powerful, and each swing of the axe had a sense of rhythm. After cutting, the materials were gently washed in water, as if washing away the dust of the world. The washed hemp rags were carefully put on the ox cart and slowly drove along a straight road to the depths of the workshop. The rolling sound of the wheels of the ox cart was intertwined with the sound of people working.

The entire workshop is long and narrow, closely following the hoe. Every few hundred steps in the middle is a unique process. Each process is clearly separated, and different craftsmen are responsible for different areas. It is like a precision machine, with each part running in an orderly manner.

"Is this what Shaofu Zhao and others built?" Several people's eyes were full of surprise, and they couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

The clerk beside him smiled and said, "It is the Shaofu Lord, but this construction drawing was drawn by Lord Yi."

"Oh, I see." Several people looked at each other and smiled knowingly on their faces.

When everyone came to a place with a faint strange smell, the clerk pointed to the broken hemp that was being soaked in the stone pond and said, "It's being soaked in lime water here."

Women often use wood ash water to remove the gum from ramie, so it was not surprising to everyone.

Then, the clerk pointed to a workshop over a hundred steps ahead, where steam and smoke were rising, and said, "That's the place for steaming. The chopped hemp has to be boiled before it can be used." Several people looked in the direction the clerk pointed, as if they could see the chopped hemp gradually becoming soft under the high-temperature steaming.

Several people watched silently along the way. When they passed by the steaming earthen stove, the hot air blowing in their faces made them feel the heat of labor. They came to the water-pounding room full of pounding sounds. The steamed hemp was pounded by the water-pounding water-pounding machine driven by water power. The sound of the water-pounding machine was like a war drum, and each pounding was full of power. After hundreds or thousands of poundings, the hemp became a sticky paste.

The clerk said that this level is called beating. The sticky pulp was transported to dozens of large stone troughs in the back and mixed with clean water. Some people in short brown clothes held square bamboo sieves with smooth surfaces and gently scooped up the pulp in the water. Everyone stopped and watched quietly for a while. It can be seen that their techniques are not very skilled. They often have to try many times before they can scoop out a paper film with moderate thickness and uniform distribution. Among them, the ones who are fast and accurate are actually a few gray-haired old men. "Elders are also here to serve labor service?" Sima Dun frowned and looked at the jailer.

"The superior official misunderstood." The junior official explained quickly, "This process is called scooping out the slurry. It is the most important, but not many craftsmen can do it well. Someone came up with an idea and hired a few old fishermen who made a living by scooping fish with bamboo baskets in Gaochi and Weishui. Unexpectedly, they were able to scoop fish steadily and well! They were paid ten cents a day!"

Everyone looked over and saw that the rags and hemp heads that were originally collected by the people of Xianyang because they thought Zhao Gao was hysterical were actually being put into the production process in an orderly manner. Everyone was looking forward to the final product more and more.

"Where is the Shaofu?" The workshop was very long. After walking for a while, they were almost at the end, but Yi Huawei was nowhere to be seen.

"It's right in front." The clerk pointed to the front and said, "Today is the day when a new batch of paper is dried. All the senior officials are waiting there!"

Hearing this, several people couldn't help but quicken their pace.

After walking through the stone ponds soaked with paper pulp, the view suddenly opened up and a light yellow ocean came into view. It was countless paper films being exposed to the sun, like golden waves swaying gently in the breeze.

Today, the sky is exceptionally blue and open, and the golden sunlight generously pours down on this high ground beside the pool. Hundreds and thousands of bamboo sieves are neatly arranged, absorbing the heat of the sun.

The sun shines on the bamboo sieve, creating a soft halo. The moisture on the sieve slowly evaporates under the sun, turning into wisps of smoke that drift away. As the moisture gradually disappears, only thin and dry sheets of paper remain.

The craftsmen carefully peeled off the sun-dried hemp paper, fearing that the hard-earned result would be damaged. After peeling off the paper, they gently pressed it with a square stone to make it smoother. Finally, the papers were stacked together and carefully placed on the table.

After more than a year of hard work, the results were finally reaped. Yi Huawei was overjoyed, and just as he was about to try writing calligraphy on the hemp paper, the clerk led Wei Dong, Qin Ming and others to him.

Wei Dong, Qin Ming, Sima Dun and others looked respectful, straightened their clothes, bowed to Yi Huawei, and said in unison:
"Your subordinates Weidong, Qin Ming, Sima Dun... greet Lord Zhao!"

Yi Huawei raised his eyes slightly, glanced at a few people, and said nothing, but calmly picked up the pen and wrote lightly. In an instant, a line of neat and beautiful Qin seal characters appeared on the paper. The ink danced on the light yellow hemp paper like a dragon, exuding a simple and elegant atmosphere.

They looked at each other, and all of them showed a trace of admiration. They thought to themselves, although Zhao Gao was promoted by luck, his calligraphy is really good. No wonder His Majesty praised Zhao Gao's calligraphy several times. It is indeed extraordinary.

Sima Dun slowly walked to the table, carefully picked up the thin light yellow hemp paper, and gently squeezed it. The paper was indeed as smooth and delicate as silk cloth, and it was said that the paper was made of rags and hemp, so the cost was not high. He couldn't help but exclaimed: "Master Zhao, is this paper?"

"Exactly! Would you like to try it?"

Yi Huawei made room for him and pointed to the paper and pen on the table.

"I would rather obey your command than be disrespectful!"

Sima Dun was delighted to see the prey, and he didn't care about being polite, he picked up the pen...

………………

Qin Shi Huang took a rare break from his busy government affairs. The bamboo slips that had been piled up like a small mountain and weighed two or three hundred kilograms were removed from the table one by one and slowly moved to the side. Instead, neatly cut light yellow hemp paper was neatly placed on Qin Shi Huang's desk.

Qin Shi Huang leaned forward slightly and reached out to pick up a piece of hemp paper that was two feet and two inches wide and one foot long. With a light touch, it was just as Yi Huawei said, as light as silk, but finer and tougher than silk. This paper was carefully selected, and it looked even and clean, without any flaws. It felt smooth and delicate, and the edges were cut very neatly, as if it had been carefully measured with a ruler.

The emperor's eyes fell on another piece of paper covered with dense seal characters. The handwriting seemed familiar. The First Emperor frowned slightly, thought for a moment and asked, "Is this Zhao Gao's handwriting?"

"Your Majesty, you can see clearly that this is exactly what I wrote!"

Yi Huawei bowed and smiled.

Qin Shi Huang nodded slightly and said, "Your calligraphy has become more and more refined. This paper is also a good thing. I am very satisfied."

Even such a light piece of paper weighed only ten zhu. However, the content written on this seemingly insignificant piece of paper could catch up with the amount of information carried by a bamboo scroll weighing two jin.

Qin has always been very particular about "document administration". Replacing bamboo slips with paper will undoubtedly greatly improve the office efficiency of Qin officials. Even Qin Shihuang himself would read light paper documents leisurely on the couch every day, which felt much easier than lifting heavy bamboo slips.

Since the unification of the country, the government affairs that Qin Shihuang had to deal with every day increased rapidly like the tide. Although the emperor was known for his diligence, it was difficult for him to be happy looking at the piles of bamboo slips and being exhausted by the paperwork every day.

There is no doubt that hemp paper is fully qualified as a writing medium. But the only problem is the cost.

At this time, the emperor raised his eyes slightly and asked, "How much money does it cost to make hemp paper?"

Upon hearing this, Yi Huawei hurriedly handed over the account book recorded on paper by the clerk.

"Your Majesty, we collected rags and hemp from the Shaofu, the markets and the neighborhoods in Xianyang. One stone is worth 120 coins. After taking into account the cost of transport, firewood, processing and manpower, the cost is no more than 500 coins."

Yi Huawei bowed slightly and added, "One stone of rags can make a thousand sheets of hemp paper with a width of two feet and two inches and a length of one foot! This is also the daily output of the workshop."

In other words, the cost of a piece of hemp paper is only half a penny! (End of this chapter)