The previously awe-inspiring governor of Ganzhou, the iron-fisted tyrant who wiped out the Ye family with a wave of his hand, and the one who made countless wealthy families in Ganzhou tremble at the mention of his name, Lei Lao Hu, at this moment, in front of Yan Liqiang, he directly turned into the nagging Yang Bailao.
Yan Liqiang finally realized what mistake he had made. No matter in his previous life or this life, he was not a materialistic person. Even when he was the poorest, he did not think that money could dominate everything, especially in this life, he made money more easily. The last time he voted for the Shatu people, he had realized his dream of getting rich and financial freedom, and possessed wealth that others dared not even think about. But he did not feel that the hundreds of thousands of taels of silver brought any essential changes to his life. Therefore, in Yan Liqiang's eyes, whether it was 10,000 taels of silver, 100,000 taels of silver, or 1 million taels of silver, he did not feel that there was any essential difference. But Yan Liqiang forgot one thing. The same money has different meanings to different people. It is not only the poor who value money. In many cases, the bigger the person, the more they can feel the power of money. These big people need more money to do big things.
Looking at Lei Sitong's furrowed brows and sad face, and listening to the governor of a state crying poor in front of him, Yan Liqiang pinched his thigh hard to wake himself up.
"… Ganzhou has an army of more than 100,000 soldiers. Every year, we need to pay for food for the soldiers and horses, the maintenance of the military camp, the consumption and replacement of military supplies, the salaries of sergeants and lieutenants at all levels, and even the shoes and socks worn by a sergeant, needles and thread, every iron and nail, every needle and thread, every piece of firewood and rice of the Ganzhou army. All of these need money. I have to find a way to pay for all these. The annual expenditure of more than 3 million taels of silver for the military supplies of Ganzhou is not a small amount. Others think that I am a governor of a state, with great power in hand and the final say. However, if you don't sit in this position, who can know the difficulties of sitting in this position? I'm not afraid of you laughing at me. In order to make money, your uncle Lei almost couldn't help but learn from the Black Wind Bandit and become a bandit..."
At some point, Lei Sitong had pulled Yan Liqiang's hand over, and was patting his hand affectionately while talking to him, causing Yan Liqiang to get goose bumps all over his body and his scalp to feel numb.
Yan Liqiang swallowed his saliva, laughed dryly, and took the opportunity to drink tea to quickly pull his hand out of Lei Sitong's tiger claws, "This... I didn't expect Lei... Uncle Lei, you are so difficult!"
"Who says it's not? If it were in other states, there would be no way to support so many troops. Most of them would have been cut long ago. But the Shatu and Heijie people are eyeing Ganzhou covetously. I wouldn't feel at ease if Ganzhou didn't have so many troops. As a governor of a state, I guard Ganzhou. Naturally, I have to protect the safety of the people of Ganzhou and prevent those foreign races from crossing the line. In addition to the military supplies, the city walls of Ganzhou and several important fortress checkpoints on the border have not been repaired for many years. In the final analysis, there is no money..." Lei Sitong said as he looked at Yan Liqiang eagerly.
"Well... it's true that without money, everything is difficult!"
"Who says it isn't true? In other places, money makes the devil work, but in Ganzhou, it's the other way around. Money makes the devil work. I wonder if the business you just mentioned, Li Qiang, is as good as this four-wheeled carriage business. If not, it doesn't matter. I think your four-wheeled carriage business is pretty good. Your spring... is really amazing. Others can't make it, so our family won't say two things about it. I, your uncle Lei, am a straightforward person. Li Qiang, if you give me half of this carriage business and I can earn three or five hundred thousand taels of silver every year, I will give you the position of a county magistrate. Anyway, the court didn't say that you, the governor, cannot be a county magistrate. Just tell me which county you want to be the county magistrate of. I'll take care of it. Whoever doesn't accept it, I'll kill him..." Lei Sitong said, patting his chest.
Hearing what Lei Sitong said, Yan Liqiang almost spit out the tea that he had just drunk. Fortunately, he quickly swallowed the tea. This person is not just a governor of a state or a frontier official, but a gangster boss.
"Uncle Lei, please forgive me for this. I have already promised the sale of the four-wheeled carriage and most of the future profits to a group of craftsmen and soldiers in the manufacturing bureau. It is really difficult to go back on my word!"
"Ah, you mean that you distributed most of the profits from the business that earned hundreds of thousands or even millions of taels of silver this year to the craftsmen and soldiers in the former craftsman camp?" Lei Sitong was really surprised. His previous complaints might have been a bit exaggerated and performative, but when he heard Yan Liqiang's words, he was really surprised, because what Yan Liqiang distributed was by no means a small amount, but a huge amount that made people jealous. Think about the hundreds of people in the craftsman camp. If Yan Liqiang really distributed most of the money earned from the four-wheeled carriages, then it would probably take less than a year for all the poor people in the former craftsman camp to become rich.
"That's right!" Yan Liqiang nodded. "Since I asked His Majesty to bring them here, I naturally didn't want them to suffer with me, but to let them live a good life with me. I also know Uncle Lei's difficulties. The business of this manufacturing bureau should belong to the Qiyun Governor's Office, which is different from ordinary business groups. His Majesty also nodded. Originally, there is no need to pay taxes, but in order to support Uncle Lei, I will hand over 10% of the manufacturing bureau's income to Uncle Lei every year in the future. It's considered as doing my part!"
Once the business of four-wheeled carriages is established, it will definitely be an enviable business. As the saying goes, profit alone cannot last long. The manufacturing bureau is located in Pingxi County, and various exchanges with the local people in Pingxi County are inevitable. Yan Liqiang had planned to pay taxes actively before. Only by paying the money and letting the government share the benefits of the manufacturing bureau can a good development environment be created for the manufacturing bureau in Pingxi County and Ganzhou. Now that he has met Lei Sitong and has this opportunity, Yan Liqiang simply explained the matter to Lei Sitong.
"Okay, Uncle Lei was right about you!" Lei Sitong was also somewhat moved. Yan Liqiang's words meant that he would have an extra 100,000 taels of silver to spend every year. This amount of money was no small sum. It was enough to bribe him. "Then what is the big business you just mentioned that is more profitable than a four-wheeled carriage..."
Yan Liqiang glanced at Lei Sitong, then took out two porcelain bottles, one black and one white, from his arms. He first opened the wooden stopper on the white porcelain bottle, and then poured some of the contents of the porcelain bottle onto the table in front of Lei Sitong.
Looking at the small pile of crystal white particles on the table, Lei Sitong frowned, "This is..."
"Uncle Lei, you'll know after trying it!"
Lei Sitong glanced at Yan Liqiang, and without hesitation, he was not afraid that those things were poison. He directly picked up a small handful with his fingers and put it in his mouth. Then, in just a moment, his eyes widened, "Salt..."
"Yes, this is salt!" Yan Liqiang smiled.
"Why is this salt so white? Even the green salt shipped to Ganzhou and the best pond salt produced in Lanzhou are not as good as this one, and there is not even a trace of bitterness. Could this be the new variety of tribute salt that you, Li Qiang, brought back from the capital?" Lei Sitong asked in surprise.
Yan Liqiang smiled and shook his head, "This is not green salt, nor is it pond salt, nor is it the new tribute salt in the palace, but it is produced in Ganzhou!"
"Impossible!" Lei Sitong was so shocked that he almost stood up and shook his head. "We only have local salt in Ganzhou. If Ganzhou could produce such salt, Ganzhou would have been the richest in the world long ago. How could I, the governor, be so poor?"
Yan Liqiang smiled, opened the cork of the black porcelain bottle, and poured out the contents of the black porcelain bottle.
The black porcelain bottle contains the local salt produced in Ganzhou. The local salt is yellow-brown in color. It is called salt, but it is more like yellow-brown sand, and it looks a little crystallized. In addition to the salty taste, this salt also has a bitter and astringent taste that is difficult to remove. It is the lowest kind of salt and is also the salt eaten by the poor and ordinary people. However, even such salt is very expensive. A pound of local salt costs more than 120 copper coins, and a pound of the best green salt costs more than one or two silver coins. A pound of pond salt in Lanzhou also costs more than 600 copper coins. As for the legendary tribute salt, I'm sorry, it is not for sale. Ordinary people, no matter how rich they are, can't see it...
"If I can turn the earth salt in this black bottle into the salt in the white bottle, and reduce the production cost by half, Uncle Lei, do you think this business can be done?"
(End of this chapter)