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

It was midsummer, the sun was scorching, and the earth was like a huge steamer.

Afang Palace.

The Imperial Garden is shaded by green trees, but it is still hot.

There stood an exquisite pavilion, with thin gauze curtains hanging around it, gently fluttering in the breeze. Behind the chair were two screens made of ice, which gave off a hint of coolness. Two palace maids stood behind the ice screens, gently waving fans, slowly blowing the cool breeze towards Hu Hai who was sitting on the chair.

Hu Hai was wearing a light silk robe, leaning on a chair, with one hand casually resting on the armrest, and the other holding a bunch of iced grapes, which he would put into his mouth from time to time. He ate with relish, and a satisfied look on his face.

Turning his head to look at Yilan standing beside him, Hu Hai said with a smile: "My dear Yi, you are indeed a master craftsman. You can make ice cubes in this summer. You are worthy of being called the God of Craftsmanship. I will reward you generously, a hundred taels of gold! ... Teacher, you eat too!"

As he spoke, he raised his chin slightly and signaled the palace maid beside him to serve a bowl of ice drink to Yi Huawei.

Yi Huawei cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Afterwards, he took the ice drink handed to him by the palace maid and drank it in big gulps. As soon as the ice drink entered his mouth, a cool feeling instantly spread throughout his body.

He exhaled a breath of air with a hint of chill, his eyes revealed a touch of comfort. After a pause, Yi Huawei stepped forward and bowed again: "Your Majesty, it is summer now, the sun is high, and the heat is unbearable. I have an idea. Now that I have mastered the method of making ice, your Majesty's ice cellar must have a lot of old ice. Why not give this old ice to the ministers, one bucket for each. In this way, it can not only show your majesty's grace, but also let the ministers deeply feel your majesty's care in this hot predicament."

Hu Hai raised his head slightly, his eyes showing a thoughtful look. He narrowed his eyes slightly, tapped the armrest of the chair with his fingers, and after a moment, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he said: "Teacher, what you said is very true, I will do as you say. Come, pass on my order to reward the ministers with a bucket of old ice from the ice cellar."

"I think all the officials will be grateful for your majesty's kindness."

Yi Huawei straightened up and said again: "Your Majesty, I have another idea. This ice is indeed extremely precious in summer. If the ministers want more ice, they can buy it with money. One catty can be sold for thirty coins (the price is equivalent to three days' salary for ordinary people). In this way, the needs of the ministers can be met, and Your Majesty can also increase a considerable income."

Hu Hai's eyes lit up, he leaned forward slightly and asked:

"Teacher, this is a brilliant idea. But isn't thirty cents too cheap?"

"Your Majesty, small profits but quick turnover. Thirty coins is not expensive, but in such hot weather, a family needs at least 100 kilograms of ice a day (50 kilograms today), which is 3,000 coins a day. There are hundreds of officials and nobles in Xianyang City, so it costs hundreds of thousands of coins a day, and tens of millions a month."

Yi Huawei showed a confident smile on his face and patiently explained: "Besides, this hot weather will last at least until March, so the income will be quite considerable."

"That doesn't mean there are tens of millions? Good!"

Hu Hai nodded slightly, agreeing with Yi Huawei's statement: "As you said, I will leave this matter to you. I must ensure that the ice trade goes smoothly and bring me some wealth."

Yi Huawei bowed again and said, "Your Majesty, rest assured. I will do my best." After that, he asked Xiao Xizi beside him to arrange the reward and sale of ice.

Soon, the old ice in the ice cellar was rewarded to the ministers one after another. The ministers were overjoyed to receive this unexpected gift and were grateful to Yi Huawei. When they learned that they could buy more ice with money, some ministers with wealthy families began to plan to buy more ice to relieve the suffering of the hot summer.

Xiao Xizi arranged for someone to set up several ice-selling points in Xianyang City and began to sell ice cubes. People came to buy ice cubes in an endless stream, including ministers and wealthy businessmen. They spent a lot of money to buy ice cubes for their own enjoyment or to entertain guests.

In just a few hours, 200,000 kilograms were sold, making a profit of 6 million yuan.

Zhao Mansion.

From the afternoon on, carriages carrying money came one after another. The wheels rolled and the sound of horse hooves echoed in the streets. Until the sun slowly set in the west, the sky was filled with orange-red afterglow, and several ice shops sold out all the ice they had made in the past few days, the carriages carrying money gradually stopped.

In the yard, Ah Da looked serious and directed the servants in an orderly manner. The servants were busy shuttling back and forth, collecting boxes full of coins.

Ah Da carefully separated half of the box and arranged for someone to transport it to the treasury. Then, he divided the remaining box into two and said loudly: "Send this half to the treasury, and the other half to the palace. Move quickly!"

The servants responded and took quick action.

In the pavilion, Chenxi sat there leisurely, enjoying the cool breeze from the ice screen fan, holding a porcelain bowl filled with chilled bayberries, which had been soaked in salt water beforehand and sprinkled with a layer of honey while chilling.

Chenxi bit down a bayberry gently, and the sour and sweet taste spread in her mouth. After eating it, Chenxi liked the taste and could eat several bowls a day. Even if her teeth were sore from eating other things, she couldn't help wanting to eat this iced bayberry.

Looking at Yi Huawei, Chen Xi narrowed his eyes slightly and said with a smile: "Everyone says that your sister is the reincarnation of the God of Craftsmanship. I think she is the God of Wealth. She can turn stones into gold. She actually made ice cubes with those gray stones. Wow~"

"Haha~"

Yi Huawei smiled softly and waved to Ah Da. After everyone left the yard, he turned to look at Chen Xi and asked, "You are the princess of Daqin, are you still short of money?"

"Why is there no shortage?"

Chenxi rolled her eyes at Yi Huawei, frowned slightly, and began to count: "Although I am a princess, I have a fixed monthly allowance. But the expenses in the palace are huge. My clothes must be made of top-quality silk and brocade, and the labor fees of those embroiderers are not low.

There are also various jewelry, which one is not valuable? The craftsmen who make jewelry have superb skills, so the wages are naturally not low.

Furthermore, the maids and eunuchs around me also need to be rewarded, especially during festivals. On weekdays, if they do their job well, I will give them some small favors. They are loyal to me, so I naturally cannot treat them unfairly.

If I want to hold a banquet on weekdays, it will cost a lot. All kinds of delicacies have to be collected from all over the place, delicacies from the mountains and the sea, fine wines, and each dish must be carefully cooked. There are also the expenses of musicians and dancers. When all these are added up, how can the monthly salary be enough? "

"I'll have someone send a million dollars to your house later, is that okay? Haha~," Yi Huawei laughed and stretched out his hand to gently pinch Chenxi's cheek: "If it's not enough, just tell me again!"

Farm tools, bookstores and the like were all state-owned enterprises, and Yi Huawei did not take a penny from them. However, the papermaking workshop was Yi Huawei's own business.

Today, the workshop not only prints books, but also produces pens, ink, paper and inkstones, and its scale has expanded several times.

In the Qin Dynasty, there was a clear hierarchical relationship between masters and servants. Servants were required to obey their masters absolutely, and masters had a lot of control over the lives of servants. Yi Huawei was now a noble man, and he was willing to provide welfare protection for his workers. In the Qin Dynasty, it was rare to have such a master. For those people who were looking for a stable life, becoming Yi Huawei's servant was a good choice. Therefore, in just over a month, seven or eight hundred families came to seek refuge, and they have since become Yi Huawei's servants.

The Zhao Mansion could not accommodate so many people, so Yi Huawei approved funds to build a farm for them outside the East City. If there were servants who wanted to farm, Yi Huawei let them do so, and if there were servants who wanted to work in the workshop, they were assigned to the workshop. This arrangement not only met the different needs of the servants, but also enabled Yi Huawei's industry to run smoothly.

With the booming popularity brought by the large population and the great influence of Yi Huawei, the emergence of the street market is a natural result. Today, Zhaojiazhuang is bustling and full of vitality. It has become a small trade wholesale market, attracting book vendors and merchants from all over the country.

Seeing this, Yi Huawei built another area of ​​shops for these merchants to use. These shops are only rented and not sold. The location and layout of each shop are planned to ensure that they can meet the needs of different merchants. The architectural style of the shops is simple and generous, using the traditional architectural techniques of the Qin Dynasty, which is sturdy and durable. Each shop is equipped with basic facilities such as shelves and counters to facilitate merchants to place goods. Yi Huawei also formulated reasonable rental standards, which will not make merchants feel overburdened and can bring a certain amount of income to himself.

With the completion of this area of ​​shops, the commercial atmosphere of Zhaojiazhuang has become stronger. At present, it is only open on the first, fifteenth and thirtieth days of each month. But as time goes by, more and more people are doing business, and foreign merchants are gradually becoming sedentary merchants. It can be predicted that in the near future, this place will gradually become a lively market.

If the development goes smoothly, Zhaojiazhuang may even evolve into a Guanshi. Guanshi was an important trading place in the Qin Dynasty with strict management and regulations. At that time, Zhaojiazhuang will become a more prosperous commercial center, attracting more people to trade and live.

So, although the national treasury was somewhat empty due to the war, the money in Yi Huawei's small treasury was piled up like a mountain. A million yuan was only one month's income.

Of course, if Yi Huawei wanted to use money, he could withdraw the money from the national treasury and the emperor’s private treasury at any time.

"That's not what I meant!"

Chenxi frowned slightly, quickly slapped Yi Huawei's hand away, and carefully put down the porcelain bowl in his hand. He straightened his body slightly and said seriously:
"Don't you always say that it is better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish? Ask your sister to help me get a few things, so that my family can make a living. In the future, your child won't suffer any loss..."

"ah!!?"

Yi Huawei was startled, with a look of surprise on his face. Then he widened his eyes, leaned forward slightly, and asked anxiously: "Are you pregnant? How many months?"

Chenxi's eyebrows were raised, with a hint of anger in her eyes. "Why? You don't like it?"

Yi Huawei waved his hands quickly, looking nervous: "No, no, no, how could I not like it. It's just that this happened too suddenly, and I was a little surprised for a moment."

After a slight pause and a moment of thought, he said, "However, now that you are pregnant, you must be extra careful. As for what you said about asking your stepsister to help you make a living, I will make the arrangements. Just focus on taking care of the baby and don't worry about other things."

As the prime minister of the Qin Dynasty, he and Chenxi were not married in a formal way. If this matter were to get out, it might cause some trouble.

Another thing is that as his body became stronger, it seemed that having a child was a little difficult, so he didn't take any protective measures. Unexpectedly, Chenxi became pregnant so quickly, which caught Yi Huawei off guard.

"How come you're pregnant? How many months old is the baby?"

After a pause, Yi Huawei looked at Chen Xi and said seriously, "Who else knows about this?"

"What do you mean by how did it come about?"

Chenxi raised her chin slightly and glared at Yi Huawei, with a hint of dissatisfaction on her face. Then, her expression softened and she continued, "Don't worry, the one who took my pulse was my nurse who is proficient in medicine. She is a cautious person and will not tell anyone about this."

As she spoke, Chenxi gently reached out her hand and rubbed her belly tenderly, with a loving look in her eyes: "It is said that it has been more than three months."

"Haha~"

Yi Huawei reached out and gently rubbed Chenxi's hair, and said softly: "Take good care of the baby, and leave the rest to me. Your first priority now is to take care of yourself and our child."

Chenxi glanced at Yi Huawei slightly, with a hint of anger in her eyes. She slowly said: "If you are too embarrassed to ask her, forget it. Anyway, you will suffer a little in the future. My poor child, your father cannot recognize you openly. The future may be a little difficult, but your mother will do her best to protect you and let you grow up healthy and happy. I don't ask for too much, I just hope you can be safe and don't go through the twists and turns like us..."

"Okay, keep pretending!"

Yi Huawei looked at Chenxi's aggrieved look, feeling angry and amused. He frowned slightly and shook his head helplessly: "I'm just worried about your hard work. It's not easy to make money. I'll give you two prescriptions to guarantee that you will make a lot of money."

"What recipe?" Chenxi's eyes lit up, and a curious expression appeared on his face. He smiled and quickly took Yi Huawei's arm and shook it gently.

Yi Huawei looked at Chenxi's expectant expression, and the corners of his mouth slightly raised: "Soap and perfume..."

During the Zhou Dynasty, people used "wood ash soap" to clean clothes. Wood ash is the residue left after burning firewood. At that time, people would soak clothes in water with wood ash and scrub them vigorously. The "Book of Rites: Internal Regulations" states: "If the hat and belt are dirty, rinse them with ash; if the clothes are dirty, wash them with ash." This means that if the hat and belt are dirty, you can just add some wood ash and wash them.

In the Qin Dynasty, plant ash soap was upgraded to include "shell ash". People would collect a large number of shells and burn them into ash. Then, the shell ash and plant ash were mixed together. The strong alkali produced in this way - potassium hydroxide, is particularly effective in washing clothes. Moreover, this "soap" has an unexpected effect - it makes silk softer and whiter. After washing once, it is like new.

Of course, there are also disadvantages. After washing clothes with wood ash soap, some wood ash particles or odors will remain on the clothes. If these particles are not rinsed clean, the clothes will feel rough when worn. In addition, the smell of wood ash and shell ash mixed together is not very pleasant.

(End of this chapter)