The bonfire danced in the wind, occasionally exploding sparks and crackling.
Fang Xuanling's face turned bitter after hearing Qin Huaidao's request. The rewards were nothing more than titles, official positions, land, money, beauties, etc. The titles and official positions were already very high and could not be given anymore. They were all given to the two princesses, and the beauties could not be given anymore. As for the
Land is best controlled by the imperial court, and money is the best choice for the imperial court.
But thinking of the emptiness of the treasury, Fang Xuanling said bravely: "I'm afraid it won't work. The floods in the south of the Yangtze River are serious. The Turks in the west are eyeing them and intend to go east. There are many places waiting for money, and the treasury can't get much."
Qin Huaidao was startled, thought for a while, and said, "Don't the imperial examinations require imperial examinations? I will print and sell all the books and materials involved in the imperial examinations. I guarantee that the price will be 10% lower than the current price. How about that?"
Textbooks and auxiliary books are a monopoly, and you can earn money by doing whatever you want. Not to mention that during the Zhenguan period, the imperial examinations included more than 50 subjects such as Xiucai, Mingjing, Junshi, Jinshi, Mingfa, Mingzi, and Mingshu. The number of textbooks was overwhelming.
Dead people, the examination contents include timely affairs, scriptures, essays, etc., which also require a large amount of teaching aids, such as past examination papers, answers to previous Jinshi examinations, etc.
The schools were divided into official schools, prefecture schools, and county schools, which were distributed throughout the Tang Dynasty. The number of students was huge, and there was a rigid demand. The exams had to be taken from the Jieji, Qiu, and Spring exams. The students were almost non-stop.
It's exciting to think about the huge market in one-stop buying and selling.
Fang Xuanling knew some of the secrets here. In the past, it was controlled by aristocratic families and subsidized by the court. However, Qin Huaidao was willing to pay 10% less than the current price. Only the students in the world would benefit, and the court could save a lot of money. Both parties were satisfied.
Why not? He immediately said: "That's no problem. The imperial court's inns all over the country can also help you consign it. This is also common practice."
There are tens of thousands of inns, distributed all over the Tang Dynasty. Students on study tours, visiting friends, etc. all use the official way to stay at the inns and buy books on the way. It is simply the best sales outlet, and my eyes suddenly light up.
The matter was settled like this, and Fang Xuanling breathed a sigh of relief. He could finally give Li Er an explanation, and the court did not have to worry about other hidden dangers caused by the failure of the title. It could also save a fortune and kill two birds with one stone.
As the head of the civil service, Fang Xuanling was also worried.
After chatting in some details, the three of them left together and went back to their room to rest.
Qin Huaidao did not move, and threw a few dry firewood into the bonfire while thinking about what had just happened. These three people were obviously entrusted by Li Er to find out, but the teaching material was not bad.
"Young Master, are you okay?" Xue Rengui suddenly came over, with concern in his words.
"Brother Xue, how many people are in charge of printing in the Industrial City now?"
"More than two thousand people are usually watched over by Zhao Wenwen. Is there a problem?" Xue Rengui asked.
"Expand the recruitment to 5,000, increase the production of white paper, and prepare at least 1,000 sets of movable type printing to prepare for the printing of scientific examination materials and auxiliary books for the imperial court. This amount is too large and cannot be done with a small number of people."
"Have you obtained the scientific examination textbooks and guidance books for printing?"
He reminded: "Young Master, the two thousand or so people currently responsible for making paper are struggling. If we print scientific research books, adding three thousand people may not be enough. At least four thousand people must be added."
Qin Huaidao waved his hand and said: "No, not too many. It will take more time. Chang'an's population has increased from more than 200,000 to 5,000. Adding transportation, coal mines, cement, etc., there will be nearly 10,000 people living with us, that is,
There are nearly 10,000 families, and each family is calculated as four people, which is more than 40,000 people, accounting for one-fifth of the total population of Chang'an. The court will not agree to any more."
Xue Rengui has never thought about this problem. Who among the rulers wants a large population to be controlled by others? Isn't this just another clan? Just tell the truth and nod without saying anything.
A refreshing breeze blows, refreshing the heart and mind.
The bonfire dances gracefully like an elf.
Qin Huaidao was in a good mood looking at the bonfire. The deadlock with Li Er was finally broken. Revenge was avenged. He got a lot of benefits. He was safe for the time being. Of course, he must take precautions. He looked around and there was no one around, and whispered.
: "You take the time to go to the Tea Mountain, personally tell Luo Ying to find a hiding place in the mountain, and send a group of trustworthy people from Qinjiazhuang to forge weapons. I will teach the relevant people the specific refining method in the next two days.
"
"Understood." Xue Rengui agreed. After having been together for so long, Xue Rengui was not worried that Qin Huaidao would rebel and harm himself in the future. Everything he did was just to protect himself.
If he really wanted to rebel, Xue Rengui would fight for it.
A scholar dies for a confidant!
…
The next morning, Qin Huaidao asked Mr. Huang carefully and selected twenty trustworthy people to secretly teach how to make weapons. This time, Qin Huaidao wanted to make special alloys instead of simple steel. The alloys were tougher and sharper.
Also more durable.
The basis of all weapons is materials.
As for weapons, Qin Huaidao made three types. One is a foot crossbow, which requires a person to sit down and use their feet and hands to fire the crossbow. Another person helps to load the crossbow. It is a single shot, but the range is terrifying, similar to the Qin crossbow. The other is
Repeating crossbows, the existing repeating crossbows have a short range, which is not as good as bows and arrows. After the materials of the newly built repeating crossbows have been improved, they can be on par with bows and arrows. The last one is Modao, which improves melee strength.
These three are control weapons. They must not be exposed and must be trusted.
Qin Huaidao divided the twenty people into two halves, one half was responsible for crossbows and the other half was responsible for Mo Dao. Private teaching was strictly prohibited.
Three days later, Qin Huaidao finished teaching the alloy refining process and weapon making skills. Twenty people quietly left and went to Chashan. They announced that they were going to help the cement refining place in Yangxian County. Yangxian County was too far away and the news was not easy to convey. They disappeared.
No one suspected it for two or three months.
After teaching day and night for the past three days, Qin Huaidao was very tired. He went back to his room and fell asleep. He vaguely felt someone was shouting. When he opened his eyes, he saw it was He'er. He was a little curious. Normally He'er would never disturb him.
Resting by myself, I couldn't help but ask: "He'er, what's wrong?"
"Someone from the Etiquette Department is here, saying they are here to confirm the wedding procedures and related matters."
"Who is it? Let him go to the guest room and wait for a while. I've been squinting for a while and I'm too sleepy." Qin Huaidao said he was a little angry after getting up and didn't want to talk to him.
He'er was a considerate person, and nothing was as important as her young master's. Without saying anything, he turned around and left, leading the guests to the reception room. Considering that she was half the hostess, out of etiquette, she made the tea herself with her big belly.
, while explaining: "My lord, the young master has been busy with business these days. He hasn't slept for three days. He just lay down and squinted for a while. He really feels more energetic. Can you please wait for a while?"
"It doesn't matter, are you He'er?" the visitor asked with a smile.
He'er looked at the other party with some surprise. Seeing that he was in his forties, he was dressed in a noble manner, wearing a purple official uniform, a gold and jade belt, and was at least third grade. He did not dare to neglect, and said quickly: "Sir, she is a common girl."
According to the etiquette system, after she got rid of her slave status and became Qin Huaidao's concubine, He'er could call herself a commoner's daughter and no longer needed to call herself a slave.
The other party nodded and asked no more questions.
The scene suddenly felt awkward, but after all, He'er grew up in a high-class mansion and was well-informed. He quickly adjusted his mood, made tea skillfully, made an invitation gesture, and then smiled and said: "Sir, please sit down for a moment.
The daughter of the people still has some things to deal with, so go ahead and call the adults if you need anything, there are people waiting outside."
"Go and do your work." The other party smiled calmly, keeping a distance without becoming alienated.
This attitude was a bit strange, He'er secretly took note of it and left slowly.
About half an hour.
Qin Huaidao came over in a hurry, with a haggard face and bloodshot eyes. After three days and three nights of iron training, no one could survive it. Fortunately, Qin Huaidao was in good physical condition and did not fall down. He was startled when he recognized the person's identity at a glance.
He saluted and said, "I didn't expect Master Li to be here. I'm sorry."
The person who came was none other than Li Daozong, the Minister of Rites, the biological father and future father-in-law of Princess Wencheng. This gift was a big waste, and Qin Huaidao was a little embarrassed, so he sat down to drink tea to wake up.
Seeing that Qin Huaidao was really haggard, Li Daozong didn't want to be false, so he deliberately gave himself a blow. The unhappiness in his heart dissipated quickly, and he bluntly explained his purpose: "Master Qin, there is no need to be polite. It's also my fault that I didn't greet you in advance before coming, and I didn't identify myself when I arrived. This time
I came here to inquire about the preparations for the wedding. It seems that Mr. Qin is not prepared?"
After saying that, Li Daozong's face became a little unhappy. Whoever would marry his daughter, but the man didn't prepare anything, and he wouldn't be happy in his heart.
Qin Huaidao smiled, refilled Li Daozong's tea, and made an invitation gesture.
Li Daozong asked with a cold face: "Master Qin, are you not going to explain? Or are you not going to get married?"