The wise king's intention was very clear. The newspaper could be produced, but the newspaper, a killer weapon, must be completely in the hands of the court.
Otherwise...what if news slandering the imperial court appears in the newspapers one day, wouldn't it cause chaos?
In other words, the court is only allowed to use newspapers to mess with other people, but it is absolutely not allowed for others to use newspapers to mess with themselves.
It can be said to be double standards to the extreme.
But there is nothing we can do about double standards... What should we do? Do you want to rebel?
The wise king is worthy of being the God of War of Chu, and his strategic vision is truly unique, even in the battle of public opinion.
Xu Qing spread his hands on the side and said: "Your Majesty, you can say this easily. The princess has already said that Qingxue Study will lose one hundred taels of silver for publishing one issue of the newspaper... and this is Qingxue Study."
If you dare to print too much, if you open up the printing and selling, the newspaper will bear more losses. It can be said that the more you buy, the more you will lose, but it is a real loss-making business, even if you want to
If we have to do it, we may not be able to do it.”
The more you sell, the more you will lose... This business is really difficult to do...
But the wise king did not want to give up, because the newspaper was not only used to control public opinion, but what was even more terrifying was that the newspaper could even publish decrees from the court and government to make it a household name. It had the opportunity to change the situation where the imperial power did not go to the countryside, and
It can also further curb the aristocratic family's monopoly on officialdom.
So the wise king looked at Xu Qing and said: "How much does a newspaper cost? How can it be such a loss?"
Xu Qing said: "The price of a newspaper is one penny. The total cost of paper, ink and labor is far more than one penny. If we buy it like this, there is no way we can avoid losing money."
The wise king frowned. Public opinion is a weapon that cannot be controlled...
The wise king thought for a while and said: "Can't we increase the price of the newspaper? For example, five yuan, this should be able to recover the original cost, right?"
Xu Qing looked at the Xian King and shook his head and said: "Your Majesty, newspapers are not a necessity of life. It is only because they are cheap enough that most people can afford them. People who are slightly literate will buy one for five cents."
A piece of paper... You can buy a big bowl of noodles for five cents at a roadside stall outside... The common people will not buy it. If this is the case, it will probably spread among the gentry. The original public opinion effect
It may only be 30% of the original value, and spreading it only to the gentry class means that sales volume is limited. If it does not reach a certain sales volume, it will still be difficult to recover the money."
The Xian King was slightly startled after hearing Xu Qing's words. He really didn't understand the way of doing business. He finally understood after hearing what Xu Qing said.
In other words, if this small newspaper guarantees sales, it will lose money, and the more it sells, the more it will lose. If you want to ensure that you don't lose money, you have to raise the price. The consequence of raising the price is that the sales volume will be limited and the sales volume will not be reached.
Sales will still be at a loss.
In short, this is a business that is bound to lose money!
Xu Qing is a businessman, and a businessman will definitely not let himself lose money. This time he did this just to make the Xu family's reputation completely bad in Yongzhou City, and he spent money to retaliate against others.
But if he is allowed to do it in the name of the court for a long time, then someone must bear the loss...
The Xian King looked at Xu Qing and said: "In this way, you can read the newspaper, and I will ask the state merchants to make up for the losses."
Today's national merchants are no longer limited to Yongzhou City, they have even opened Zhuyeqing shops in the capital and in various important prefectures and counties.
Although the sales volume of Zhuyeqing in Yongzhou City is quite satisfactory, and it can be considered a small profit, the sales volume in the northern part of Chu State where the temperature is low all year round is particularly good!
It can be said that supply can truly exceed demand.
Coupled with the higher concentration of bamboo leaf green sold to the Ministry of War that can be used for medical purposes, it can be said that the current national business has grown into a behemoth in just over two months!
How much money comes in every day has been kept by Xiao Ye, and Xu Qing rarely asks. But what we know is that Xu Qing's current 30% profit is probably as much as the 60,000 taels that Xu Sima gave him, and the profits are still growing.
It continues to rise with the accumulation of time.
…
Xu Qing naturally likes to see someone come to make up for the loss. He has never seen such a domineering prince. He can make up for huge losses as soon as he wants. He is worthy of being a relative of the emperor.
Looking at such a domineering prince, Xu Qing said: "I will definitely control the newspaper for the prince, but..."
King Xian looked at Xu Qing and asked, "But what?"
Xu Qing said: "If...oh, I mean, if, if I run the business well and this newspaper really makes a profit in the future through legal means, then shouldn't this money belong to me?"
The Xian Wang looked at Xu Qing, a little confused. Didn't he just say that this newspaper would definitely lose money? Why is it related to profits now? Xu Qing is a person who is meticulous about everything. If it weren't for this, he would definitely be a loser.
I won't say this.
No, you have to find a knowledgeable person to ask him clearly. You can't agree to him so hastily. If you agree at this time, you will suffer a loss in the future, but it will be too late!
So, King Xian looked at Xiao Ruxue who was standing aside. The two of them went behind the screen and seemed to be discussing something.
Xu Qing stood there and waited alone.
behind the screen
The Xian Wang looked at Xiao Ruxue and asked: "Xue'er, is this newspaper really possible to make a profit?"
Xiao Ruxue shook her head firmly and said: "Father, it is impossible to make a profit! Every time we print one more word, we will lose a little more. Unless there is no money for paper and ink, we will use all the money we earn from buying newspapers.
It is barely possible to break even by paying the wages of the craftsmen and the newspaper sellers, but this is impossible. No matter how powerful Xu Qing is, it is impossible to supply paper and ink at no cost, so the daughter cannot think of a newspaper.
Is there any place to make money?”
When the wise king saw his daughter's answer, he immediately believed it. Now his daughter is no longer the little witch in the capital. She is the female shopkeeper in charge of Qingxue Study, and there are already several branches of Qingxue Study in Yongzhou City.
Got it!
It can be said that apart from Xu Qing, I think only my daughter knows the best about running a bookstore.
Since his daughter said so, the wise king believed it.
…
Xian Wang and Xiao Ruxue walked out of the screen and looked at Xu Qing and said: "If you really use your own means to make this newspaper profitable, then it is naturally your fault. As for the money gained from the profit, it belongs to you, but...
…”
Xu Qing looked at King Xian and asked, "But what?"
King Xian said: "Your profit is based on the situation where the newspaper's losses have stopped. In other words, you cannot let the national businessmen here make up for the losses. You can make your own profit over there. You are not making a profit. You are acting like
Xu Jian is so corrupt."
Xu Qing nodded and said: "Of course, please rest assured, Your Majesty."
The Xian Wang looked at Xu Qing who looked confident and asked suspiciously: "Do you really have a way to make a profit?"
This kid never does anything he's not sure about...
Xu Qing quickly shook his head and said: "No, no... there really isn't now... After all, the princess has told you the cost, right? It's difficult for newspapers to make money... Isn't this considering multiple possibilities... No matter how sure you are, who can