Capital Datang

After the meal, Wang Zihao thought about the charcoal again, and his daughter happened to be there, Wang Xijun was very talented in business, so he might be able to see what Li Yin was going to do, so Wang Zihao interrupted the mother and daughter who were gossiping , Telling about Li Yin's acquisition of the coal production area by himself tonight.

"Xi Jun, what is Your Highness doing to buy those useless charcoal? After thinking about it all the way for my father, I still haven't figured it out?" Wang Zihao looked at his daughter who was thinking and asked. He really wanted to know Li Yin's intentions, otherwise tonight Might not be able to sleep again.

"I know!" Wang Xijun, who was thinking hard, suddenly frowned, and said excitedly, "This Li Yin is really cunning, throwing a piece of cement for others to grab, but he is going to make a fortune in silence."

After hearing his daughter's words, Wang Zihao was also shocked, and said very eagerly: "Xijun, do you really want to understand His Highness's intention to buy charcoal? Hurry up and talk to Weifu!"

"Hee hee, father, you are in the middle of the game, so you can't see the connection clearly. In fact, with your intelligence, as long as you can jump out and think about it, combined with some previous news, you can definitely guess what King Liang is playing. That little trick!" Seeing his father's eagerness, Wang Xijun said with a smile on his face.Capital Datang 46

Although Mrs. Wang doesn't care about business matters, seeing that her husband is so anxious, her daughter deliberately doesn't say anything, so she stepped forward and patted Wang Xijun on the head and reprimanded: "I know you girl has a lot of ideas, hurry up and talk to your father." Tell me, what is the idea of ​​that King Liang?"

"Mother, your daughter is so smart, what if you make her stupid and can't get married in the future?" Wang Xijun rubbed her head and said very dissatisfied.

"Go! You can't get married because of that King Liang, what's the matter with Guan Weiniang?"

"Okay, stop bickering, you two, Xijun, hurry up and tell your father, what is King Liang's plan?" Wang Zihao stopped the mother and daughter from bickering. Mrs. Wang is usually fine at home, and only Wang Xijun is with her. Well, the two women's biggest hobby is bickering. Once they quarreled, they would never end. He didn't want to listen to them arguing in the middle of the night.

"For the sake of your sincerity, Dad, let my daughter tell you." Wang Xijun smiled mischievously, ignored Mrs. Wang, and turned to his father, "Actually, this matter is very simple. Just think about it. Why did Li Yin suddenly become so interested in coal after he launched cement? There is only one answer, and that is that coal must play a very important role in the production of cement."

Although it was just a short sentence, to Wang Zihao's ears, it was no less than a bright light in the dark. It suddenly illuminated a corner of the fog in front of him, making him vaguely seem to have caught something, but for a moment I can't tell between them.

I only heard Wang Xijun continue to say: "Although the method of making cement has always been very mysterious, but now I can be sure that the cement must be calcined by fire, which is similar to the method of burning lime. At most, the proportion of ingredients is different. That's all."

After hearing what his daughter said later, Wang Zihao, who had already realized something, had new doubts, and couldn't help asking: "Xi Jun, it's not difficult to guess whether the cement is burnt. After all, the biggest function of coal is to burn. Your Highness now Such an eagerness to acquire coal-producing areas also proves this from the side, but how do you know that it is similar to the method of burning lime?"

"Father, have you forgotten what the new cement factory in the suburbs used to be for?" Wang Xijun said proudly again.The new cement factory she is talking about is the new cement factory established by the craftsmen Bai Qing who will be the superintendent and the craftsmen transferred by the Ministry of Industry after the establishment of Li Yin's supervisory institute. The cement is produced there.However, Li Yin was very strict with the guards there. The craftsmen lived and boarded in the factory, and there were seconded Jinwu guards patrolling for several miles around.

"Where? Isn't that the lime workshop of the Ministry of Industry? Ah~! I understand!" Wang Zihao was confused at first, then slapped his thigh, and finally figured out the key point. Why so many workshops under the Ministry of Industry are not used? The lime workshop was chosen, and both things had to be calcined. Apart from the difference in color, the appearance of lime and cement is actually similar. Although this does not prove anything, it is enough to show that Wang Xijun's guess is very likely.

After thinking through all this, Wang Zihao was in a great mood, especially for Li Yin's purchase of charcoal, he was even more amazed in his heart. Because charcoal is difficult to ignite, it is not as convenient to use as firewood and charcoal, so ordinary people seldom use it. However, it is very suitable for large-scale calcination in the workshop, and compared with firewood and charcoal, coal is also more resistant to burning, coupled with its low cost, it is not afraid that those who plan to build cement factories will not buy it.

For Wang Xijun, a smart daughter, Wang Zihao of course greatly appreciated it, but it was already midnight, so the family of three went back to their rooms to sleep after having a conversation.

Knowing Li Yin's plan, Wang Zihao became more concerned about the acquisition of coal. The next day, after Gao Zhong, the two went to Heishi Mountain in person. Not a single blade of grass grew, so it was basically a wasteland without an owner. The two went to the local county government to register, and then bought the entire land around Heishi Mountain for less than a hundred guan.

Then Wang Zihao asked around to see if there were other places around Chang'an where coal was produced, and he found four places, but these places were a bit far from Chang'an, and the coal was buried relatively deep, not as good as Heishi Mountain. , but he and Gao Zhongyi combined and bought them all at a cost. Anyway, these are wastelands, and the total cost is not much.

While Wang Zihao and Gao Zhong were enclosing the land, Li Min was also very busy. On the second day after the supervisory institute’s investment promotion list was posted, Li Shimin formally agreed to Fang Xuanling’s plan to use cement to build roads in the court hall. And the first shot is the construction of two main roads, one is from Chang'an to Songzhou on Jiannan Road, and the other is the main road from Chang'an to Luoyang. The first road is related to the security of the southern border of the Tang Dynasty, and the other is the It is the most frequent lifeline of Datang commercial transportation.

As soon as the construction plan of these two main roads came out, Li Yin's supervisory institute became even more popular. Businessmen who were still skeptical swarmed towards the supervisory institute. As a result, Li Min had to second a group of manpower from the Ministry of Industry again. , which alleviated the embarrassment of shortage of manpower.

However, with the increase in the number of businesses registered to produce cement, Li Min issued a new notice, to the effect that because there were too many people, he had insufficient manpower to guide the construction of cement plants, so he divided the registered manufacturers into three grades. The three grades are divided by investment funds, among which the first grade is above 20 Guan, the second grade is between 20 and [-] Guan, and the third grade is below [-] Guan. Merchants with higher grades will be given priority Under the guidance of the craftsmen of the Supervisory Institute, the construction of the cement plant started as soon as possible.

Along with the announcement, there is also the ranking of registered merchants according to their funds. Among them, the number of people who can enter the first grade is very small. The teams are all up to the standard of the first gear.And there are not many people who can enter the second rank, less than twenty in total, and most of them belong to the third rank. After all, there are not many people who can take out [-] guns at once.

As soon as this notice from the Supervisory Institute was issued, it immediately attracted the dissatisfaction of most franchise investors. After all, everyone invested with money. Why should those powerful people enjoy the privilege?Originally, they were not as good as the other party in terms of funds, and now they are asked to build a factory first, so how can they play with those who are not as strong?Capital Datang 46

Of course, the investment manufacturers would not just accept this unfair regulation. Many people went to the Supervision Institute to oppose it and demanded that they be treated the same. Otherwise, they would unilaterally tear up the contract and no longer invest in the cement plant. There is more or less background behind people, which is why they are so strong.

Li Yin first deliberately and forcefully rejected the request of these people, and insisted on the decision of grading according to funds. Although he is a fifth-rank envoy, he is the prince of Datang after all, and he has Li Shimin's support behind him, so there is no need Ignore these people's 'unreasonable demands'.However, after the people behind these businessmen came forward in person and talked to him about their relationship, Li Min finally added a clause after the regulations, allowing those who have already signed the contract to increase funds or form alliances. The two gears are up to them.

Seeing that Li Yin, who had a tough attitude, finally let them go, how could those investors think about anything else?Those with strength will increase their funds, while those without strength will go around to make connections, find people they know well and unite together, and strive to get a higher ranking.Before the cement plant was built, the cement investors had already started the first round of shuffling. Most of them chose weak alliances. Depending on the region or the relationship between each other, several or even more than a dozen companies joined together. Capital is integrated to compete with those powerful merchants.

After this round of reshuffle, the number of merchants registered in the Supervisory Institute has dropped from a few hundred to less than a hundred. It suddenly increased to 25 companies.

Li Yin is very satisfied with this result. This was originally a scene he directed and acted. The purpose is to let these investment companies integrate their capital, which will not only facilitate future management, but also be more conducive to the development of the cement industry. I don't want to see that kind of scene where small factories are everywhere and the management is in a mess.

After the capital integration was settled, the construction of cement factories finally started. Most of the 25 first-tier factories were built in Chang’an, Luoyang or the state capitals between the two places, and most of the second-tier factories were distributed. The state capitals between Chang'an and Jiannan.The new cement factory under the jurisdiction of the Supervisory Institute produced craftsmen and guided the construction of 25 factories of the first grade at the same time. These matters were mainly supervised by Bai Qing, an eighth-rank official, and Li Yifu was assisted as his deputy. For a while, the two were in Chang'an Everyone in the city knew him, and he stole the limelight.As for Li Yin, the supervisor, he finally had time to care about the property under his name.