After laughing, someone asked with a clear head: "Master Xiang, what do these things you said have to do with 'Simao'?"
"Don't you understand yet?"
Yan Shiyue said: "Economy is a science, and sales is a skill. For buyers and sellers, there is no 'exploitation' of anyone. More often, it is a win-win situation, multiple wins, and everyone is happy. And from the perspective of 'country'
From a perspective, this is a kind of circulation and replacement of resources. We trade with neighboring countries in order to earn their money and get back what we want."
Lin Fujian finally said: "My family has ten thousand gold. If I put it into a shop, I might be able to get ten thousand gold."
"Yes," Yan Shiyue said, "Letting money make money is the way to make money."
She took a step back: "I want to ask my father and you to see something."
Emperor Ming Yan nodded.
She waved her hand, and the people guarding outside filed in, each holding a box. When they opened it, glass products were taken out one after another.
Even Emperor Ming Yan became curious and left his throne to watch.
In fact, glass products have just begun to be trial-produced. In Yan Shiyue's opinion, the production is not very good, but for the indigenous people, it is an epoch-making invention. The most attractive one is the mirror.
The clarity was far superior to that of a bronze mirror, and even Emperor Ming Yan was shocked when he took it over.
Other small ornaments, small vases, etc. are also crystal clear, with far more shapes and more exquisite shapes than jade and the like. Especially the most common glass beads, they look much more dazzling than gold and silver jewelry.
Everyone passed it around carefully and praised it one after another. Emperor Ming Yan asked: "What is this?"
Yan Shiyue said: "This is called glass. I just asked someone to make it. The craftsmen's recipes are all ready. As long as it is state-owned, it belongs to Aye. If not...oh, then I deserve to be rich?"
Emperor Ming Yan glared at her.
Yan Shiyue waited until everyone had seen it before asking, "Do you think this thing is good?"
Naturally, everyone was full of praise.
Yan Shiyue grabbed a handful of glass beads: "Well, tell me how much this handful is worth? Or, how much silver are you willing to spend to buy it?" She looked at Xu Mingxiu: "Xu Xiang?"
Xu Mingxiu said: "I don't like these things, but after thinking about it, they should be worth at least two or three hundred taels, right?"
"Master Lin?"
"If you have a good heart, you can get a thousand taels."
Others also said: "It must be three hundred taels."
"If you join the auction house, someone will buy it for five hundred taels."
Yan Shiyue smiled.
Then, she slowly walked among the people, raised her hand high, and pointed lightly. The glass beads suddenly slipped from her fingers, and the whole room was filled with a clanging sound.
Even Emperor Ming Yan was startled, and others even exclaimed in surprise. The effect was extremely shocking.
Yan Shiyue saw that many adults were bending down to pick up glass beads, and then she slowly said: "Then if I tell you...the cost of such a beautiful bead is less than a penny, would you believe it?"
"
The minister who was picking up beads exclaimed: "A penny?"
"Yes," Yan Shiyue looked at them with a smile: "That's why I want to build a state-run business. With such huge profits and such delicious cakes, if the court won't eat them, who else dares to eat them? Who else can eat them? Let's take a penny.
I can go to neighboring countries to exchange money for their ten thousand gold, ten thousand gold... Isn’t this kind of business worth doing?”
She smiled, unhurriedly, unhurriedly, but full of silent temptation from head to toe: "So, from the perspective of profit, I think the question of 'do it or not' is really
There is no need to think about it... What we need now is to think about 'how to do it', don't you think?"
"As for the risks... Hey, you can choke to death if you eat, you can choke to death if you drink water, everything has risks, then we can just commit suicide on the spot, why should we still live? You are all the pillars of the people, with rich knowledge and experience.
You are mature, I believe you will be able to figure out a way to avoid risks."
She cupped her hands and then retreated.
Others were still trapped in the shock just now and couldn't come back to their senses for a while.
Emperor Ming Yan was also thinking deeply.
This is different from cement. Cement is a relatively simple-looking and "convenient" thing. In his heart, it can be given as a kind of "benefit".
But this "glass", you can see the huge profit contained in it at a glance, which really shocked him.
As Yan Shiyue said, if the state does not do this business, who else dares to do it? Who can do it?
And it would be a pity to take back such a transaction and let it gather dust.
See below the ministers immediately changed their tune and discussed the issue of "how to implement it." Emperor Ming Yan suddenly realized that he had been brainwashed by his little girl.
The scene just now was too shocking, and the figures she announced later were also too shocking. It was like a thunder on the ground, which shocked them, and then they were led away by her involuntarily.
"Your Majesty," Lin Fujian stepped forward and said, "I suddenly thought of a story."
Emperor Ming Yan said: "Oh?"
“I thought of the incident in the past when Guan Zhong ‘subdued silk and surrendered to Luliang’, and I seem to have some understanding of the ‘economy’ that the Prime Minister spoke of.”
What is the story of surrendering silk to Luliang?
Talking about the weakening of Qi's national power, Guan Zhong saw that both Lu and Liang were good at weaving silk, so he proposed a plan to Duke Huan of Qi.
So Duke Huan of Qi and his ministers all put on turbans, and the people also followed suit.
As a result, the price of Qi's silk has risen sharply. Merchants from Lu and Liang also followed suit and transported silk materials into Qi. The people of the two countries grew mulberry and hemp to weave silk, and then used the money they earned to buy Qi's grain at low prices.
The state of Qi also cooperated in selling grain.
As a result, the two countries of Lu and Liang inevitably abandoned agriculture in order to develop the silk industry, while Qi took the opportunity to vigorously develop agriculture.
On the surface, all countries have become prosperous. Qi's national strength has greatly increased, its troops and horses are strong, while Lu and Liang's weaving industry has developed, and the country is also rich and the people are strong. It seems to be a win-win situation, but a crisis is lurking inside.
A few years later, Lu and Liang relied entirely on imports of food from Qi, and the time was ripe.
Duke Huan of Qi changed to wearing silk clothes, and at the same time forbade the people to wear trousers. After that, he "retreated to seclusion and did not communicate with the envoys of Lu and Liang". Ten months later, "the people of Lu and Liang were hungry and exhausted."
In other words, Lu and Liang had already planted mulberry trees in their fields, and it was too late to replant crops. The grain reserves were unsustainable, and agricultural production would not be restored for a long time. In the face of unbearable hunger, the two countries had to submit to Qi.
.
This is indeed an excellent example of the ancients' use of economics.
Guan Zhong was definitely an expert in this aspect. "The Hengshan Plan", "Buying a Deer to Conquer Chu", "Buying a Fox to Demote the Generation", etc. are all similar applications.
Yan Shiyue heard Lin Fujian retell the story and understood his intention.
He did not directly persuade Emperor Ming Yan to do it or not to do it, but he said indirectly that if we think about this matter carefully, it may be very useful, weakening the national power of other countries without even killing a soldier...
After all, what can I say? Glass is just a decoration, so what’s its use?
Even if we sell them to neighboring countries, they can't use them to fight. Therefore, if we can exchange our useless things for their useful things... then it will be a success. If we plan carefully, we may be able to "subdue silk and surrender to Luliang".
Such effect.
Emperor Yan of the Ming Dynasty was thoughtful. (To be continued)