Daming: My boss Zhu Yuanzhang

The merchant was stunned. He was too scared to step forward when Li Wei was there, but now he was suddenly replaced by an enthusiastic guy, which made him a little at a loss.

But after being stunned for a moment, he immediately recovered. The most important thing now is to buy the land first!

"I'll buy it directly."

"Okay, please sit down and wait."

The waiter led him to a table, served him tea, and then quickly ran to prepare the contract.

The merchant sat at the table, looking at the warm tea in front of him, the flat ground under his feet, and the windows made of pure and transparent crystal, and his heart was full of surprise.

These things were so novel that they made him feel as if he had entered another world.

In the back hall, Li Wei was assigning work to Laifu and Shen Jing.

These two people naturally attached great importance to Li Wei's arrangements. When they received Li Wei's letter, they took people to Yangzhou directly.

Laifu's main role is to lead the stewards and clerks of the Chamber of Commerce to replace the original officials and be responsible for the sale of land.

Shen Jing's task is also very important. He wants to settle these large-value transactions directly through the bank. He also wants to familiarize these land buyers with the bank's procedures and promote deposits, loans and exchange services.

Li Wei had just finished instructing Laifu to arrange things for the "good Samaritans". Before Laifu had time to do it, he heard from his clerk that there was business coming to the door, and he immediately reported it to Li Wei.

Li Wei was immediately happy after hearing this: "It's a good sign. Let's go and have a look together."

With that said, Li Wei brought Fu and Shen Jing out of the back hall.

The merchant was still immersed in curiosity about new things. When he saw Li Wei leading someone out, he was shocked and quickly stood up and saluted.

"Greetings, my lord!"

When Li Wei saw it was him, he felt suddenly. He waved his hand casually and said, "No need to be polite. I'm just a businessman now. Just treat me as an ordinary businessman."

At this time, he had taken off his official robe and changed into ordinary clothes. However, the merchant knew his identity. Even if he said so, the merchant did not dare to really treat him as an ordinary person.

"I still don't know what your name is?" Li Wei said with a smile.

"The villain's name is Jiang Chun." Jiang Chun bowed and said.

"What's the business?"

"The villain was originally a grain merchant. When the imperial court came to power, the villain followed him to transport grain to the border in exchange for some salt, and started a salt selling business."

Jiang Chun replied softly.

Li Wei nodded slightly when he heard it, which was what he expected.

Yangzhou has the Lianghuai Salt Transfer Department. Many salt merchants transport grain and other military supplies to the border, and then exchange salt and lead them here to get salt. Therefore, many salt merchants are concentrated here.

In fact, this was not the original creation of Zhu Yuanzhang. There was this method in the Song Dynasty, called Zhongna.

Now under the control of Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhongna is executing fairly well. For example, Yunnan relied on merchants Zhongna to ensure sufficient food and grass at this time.

But later, when the emperor became fatuous, various dignitaries and high-ranking officials wanted to request salt imports, which resulted in the salt imports being far more than the actual salt production. Merchants who actually transported grain to the border for exchanges could not get the salt at all, and the Sino-Namibia Law was gradually abolished. .

Li Wei chatted casually with him, and then introduced Lai Fu and Shen Jing to him, especially Shen Jing.

These salt merchants are all very wealthy. If they absorb their money into the bank, they will never be short of money again.

Although Jiang Chun didn't know much about banks, he was a little moved after listening to Shen Jing's introduction. Coupled with Li Wei's face, he agreed to deposit part of his property in the bank.

Later, Laifu also signed the deed of the land transaction with him. After collecting the money, he asked the clerk to take it to the government office to apply for the land deed.

After sending Jiang Chun away, the guys from the Chamber of Commerce also started to move. Soon after, the pre-sale area changed from deserted to a lively scene. Similar scenes reappeared. Good-hearted people spread the word, and the guys entertained them warmly, and even I prepared a small gift. Even if I don't buy the land, I can still get some advantages by coming in and listening to the guys' explanation.

The canals and streets were filled with advertisements for the pre-sale of land in the new city. Since the land sellers were changed from officials to chambers of commerce, many ordinary people no longer had any worries and were attracted.

Of course, ordinary people will not easily spend hundreds of dollars to buy these lands. Even if Shen Jing provides so-called loans, almost no one is willing to pay. After all, the city has not been built yet, except for a cement road. , the new city was still just a wasteland.

But they didn't buy it, but many smart businessmen took action one after another, often buying more than ten acres.

It is not difficult for these wealthy merchants to come up with hundreds or thousands of dollars. Moreover, they are also aware of the future potential of Dongcheng. The land they buy now will definitely make a profit in the future.

Regarding this phenomenon, Li Wei could only sigh lightly. In fact, he hoped that ordinary people would be brave enough to borrow money to buy in advance. After all, after the city was built, these ordinary people would only be unable to afford it. Unfortunately, he could not Convince these people who are conservative and cautious by nature.

Under the promotion of various marketing methods, the sale of land quickly became really popular. The transaction volume of the 5,000 acres of land in Xincheng quickly climbed from more than ten acres per day to more than 100 acres in just ten days. Within a short time, nearly half of the transactions had been completed. Treasure notes, gold and silver, and various currencies quickly flowed back into the accounts of the Chamber of Commerce like a raging flood. The funds Li Wei transferred from the Chamber of Commerce were quickly replenished before he even had time to spend them. On.

In the back hall of the pre-sale office, five or six accountants were busy calculating the transaction accounts during this period.

Li Wei sat aside, quietly waiting for the results calculated by the accountants. Jiang Shouqing and Jiang Quan were also nearby, staring at the accountants with fiery eyes.

Although Li Wei no longer lets them be responsible for selling land, they still pay close attention to the situation here and often come to inquire.

After a long time, the sound of the abacus finally subsided. Laifu put the accounts together and presented them to Li Wei, and then respectfully said:

"Master, in the past ten days, more than 2,300 acres of the 5,000 acres of land in the new city have been sold, and a total of more than 350,000 gold and silver coins have been collected. Now there are still more than 2,600 acres left in the new city. The land is unsold.”

"Great!"

After Laifu finished speaking, before Li Wei opened his mouth, Jiang Shouqing and Jiang Quan shouted excitedly.

Within ten days, 350,000 yuan was obtained. The city was not even built yet, but the money was already made. Li Wei's operation was really an eye-opener for them!

With these 350,000 yuan, the imperial court no longer has to worry about the cost of building a city in the future. It can just sell the land like Li Wei did, get the money first, and then start construction!

Of course, there are so many merchants in Yangzhou, so it is a special situation to be able to sell it for so much money, and it will definitely not be so expensive in other places.

But cities in other places don’t need to be built as extravagantly as Li Wei’s! Save some money, and you can always get your money back no matter what, right? Jiang Shouqing and the two were very excited, and Laifu and Shen Jing were also a little excited. After all, they had only sold less than half of the land and had made over 100,000 yuan. If they had sold all of it, they would have made at least 500,000 yuan! If this situation continues, it will be just around the corner for the Chamber of Commerce to grow to a scale of tens of millions!

Compared to the excitement of several people, Li Wei's reaction was quite calm, but he was also filled with joy.

He now has three thousand guards to support, which is a huge burden. Of course, the more money, the better.

"Don't be in a hurry to sell the remaining land. Starting from tomorrow, we will close down if you sell 50 acres of land, and the land will be reduced day by day from now on." Li Wei ordered softly.

Laifu was a little confused when he heard this: "Master, why is this?"

Jiang Shouqing and others also cast questioning looks.

Li Wei smiled and briefly explained to them what hunger marketing is. The less you can buy something, the more you want to buy it.

Laifu was shocked after hearing this: "This method is really wonderful!"

"The less I can buy it, the more I want to buy it. Why didn't I think of it!" Shen Jing murmured in a low voice, chewing on Li Wei's words carefully, filled with admiration in his heart!

Although Jiang Shouqing and Jiang Quan do not understand business ethics, they also understand the principle that rare things are valuable. Li Wei's so-called hunger marketing is to create a false rarity for products.

Although they have read poetry and books and are a little ashamed of these deceptive tricks, they can't help but admire Mr. Li's exquisite grasp of people's hearts. No wonder he has defeated so many powerful people in a few years and climbed to the current position. Where is the position of power!

Li Wei did not stop after talking about hunger marketing, but also said a sales method that shocked them even more: "When there are not many left, we will take out those better locations and let people bid. The one with the highest price will get it, and it will definitely sell for a higher price!”

Hearing Li Wei's words, several people were instantly stunned!

"This...this is so...wonderful!"

Laifu wanted to say it was too dark, but he quickly changed his words when he thought it was his own master.

Shen Jing imagined in his mind the heated scene of people competing for bids, and his heart couldn't calm down for a long time. As a direct descendant of the Shen family, he had been in business for many years and claimed to be well versed in business. However, when he heard these genius ideas from Li Wei today, he was immediately overwhelmed. He is ashamed of himself!

He can be sure that if he sells it according to Li Wei's method, he will definitely be able to sell it at a price that far exceeds the normal value of the land!

Thinking of this, Shen Jing couldn't help but feel excited, and asked with some excitement: "Sir, can other things from our chamber of commerce be sold using your method?"

Li Wei was slightly stunned. He had overlooked this. In fact, many things in the Chamber of Commerce were unique to them, and of course they could be auctioned.

"Well, your idea is good. In fact, as long as it is valuable and rare, this method can be used. If we have the opportunity in the future, we can hold a special auction!" Li Wei nodded.

"Auction?" Shen Jing repeated the word, "When are you going to hold this auction?"

Li Wei pondered for a moment and said: "When there is a chance in the future, you and Laifu should also pay attention to it. If there are rare and valuable goods, keep them and sell them together at the auction."

If he really wants to hold an auction, he must prepare the goods in advance. He is currently focusing on building the city and has no energy to do this anymore.

"Ok."

Shen Jing was a little disappointed at not being able to put this idea into action immediately.

After settling the matter of selling the land with Laifu and Shen Jing, Li Wei turned his energy back to building the city.

He is not one of those black-hearted real estate developers in later generations. Now that he has collected the money, he must build the city properly.

Since then, Li Wei has personally gone to the site to supervise the construction every day, especially the proportion of cement used, as well as the intervals and timing of water sprinkling and maintenance. He has personally given instructions.

Because he has a much higher salary, the people who are now serving as corvees are also very motivated. They are afraid that the official will be dissatisfied and deprive them of the right to serve.

In the past, corvées were corvées, but now corvées are welfare. Five strings of money for half a year is much better than farming.

Although the Ming Dynasty does not have the advanced engineering equipment of later generations, it has more people and strength. Tens of thousands of people started working together, and the city wall was built very quickly. A towering city wall quickly emerged and extended along the canal bank, covering the area east of Yangzhou City. They were quickly surrounded, and the original outside of the city became the inside of the city, and the land changed from wild fields to valuable land in the city.

In addition to the city wall, he also built roads, drainage canals, etc. in the city. The roads are all made of cement, and the drainage canals are all underpasses. The dark gray cement roads that look like whole slabs divide the whole city into squares. Li Wei numbered it, and people who have bought land can find their own piece of land based on the number.

As the city rose from the ground, pre-sales gradually turned into current sales, and the land sales business became even more prosperous. There was no need for the guys from the chamber of commerce to act as good Samaritans. Every morning it was crowded with people queuing up to buy.

Due to Li Wei's hunger marketing, it is not as easy to buy a piece of land now as it was in the beginning. Dozens of acres are purchased every day and must be snatched. Many merchants who hesitated to make a move or came late found that they really couldn't buy it. , has begun to acquire privately at high prices.

Time flies, the weather gradually turns cooler, and in late autumn, the city wall is finally completed.

Li Wei, Jiang Shouqing, Jiang Quan and others climbed onto the tower of the new city, looked at the canal in front of them, slowly exhaled and sighed:

"Finally done!"

Jiang Quan on the side also sighed with emotion: "Yes, I didn't expect the new city to be completed so quickly. Thanks to your cement and those new tamping machines, the speed of city construction has been accelerated a lot."

Li Wei smiled softly. This time, he not only used cement to build the city, but also asked the Ordnance Bureau to make a large number of machinery. Although they were all manual, it also saved a lot of manpower and increased the speed of city construction.

But his speed is nothing. It would take less than a month for people in later generations to build a building with dozens of floors. After all, the city wall is just a wall, and the difficulty of construction is incomparable to that of high-rise buildings.

But when he looked back at the city, he couldn't help but said: "Maybe this is just the beginning."

Many merchants and people who bought land in the city have begun to build houses on their own plots of land, and craftsmen and people are everywhere doing construction.

This time he sold more than 3,000 acres of land in the city. Including the land along the street that was later auctioned, he sold a total of more than 500,000 guan, netting a net profit of 300,000 guan after deducting costs.

As for the remaining more than 1,000 acres of land, he wants to keep it for his own use, or sell it at a higher price when the new city becomes prosperous in the future.

On the second day after the completion of Yangzhou New City, Zhu Yuanzhang, who was far away in the capital, received the news.

"Hey, hey, hey, I didn't expect this kid to accomplish this!"

Zhu Yuanzhang couldn't help but grinned when he looked at the description on the secret note.

What he said came true. Not only was the city built, but Li Wei actually made money, a total of 300,000 yuan!

The world has experienced the melee at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty is now full of ruined cities and broken roads. He has to worry a lot about repairing these roads and cities.

Others would always ask him for money when doing things, but Li Wei not only got things done, but also made money along the way, which really surprised him.

Looking at the towering city walls and clean and smooth cement roads described in the secret memorial, he couldn't help but have the idea of ​​​​seeing this Yangzhou New City in person. (End of chapter)