When Emperor Chongzhen saw Ni Yuanlu being so surprised, he immediately laughed and said: "Don't worry, just do it! If you think it's a good deal, you can also buy lottery tickets. The more the merrier!"
At this point, he added: "There are no restrictions on buying this lottery ticket. Anyone can buy it, and they can buy any amount. In other words, I hope that the more people can buy it, the better! But in order to avoid suspicion, everyone can buy it in any amount."
People who specialize in selling lottery tickets cannot participate!"
Although Emperor Chongzhen spoke with such confidence, Ni Yuanlu still felt that it was very unreliable. He wanted to say something, but he found that at most he was speaking based on imagination, which was not convincing.
Forget it, once you do it once, you will know whether it is a profit or a loss!
So, he bowed down to receive the order and said: "Wei Chen accepts the order!"
After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen thought for a moment and then ordered: "On my side, I will also ask the factory guards to publicize it and let as many people as possible buy lottery tickets."
Even if this matter is settled like this.
Ni Yuanlu did not dare to neglect the matter that the emperor personally told him, and quickly went to work on it.
There were ready-made rules, and the notices were quickly posted. They were posted everywhere in the streets and alleys of the capital.
Immediately, this announcement quickly attracted the attention of the people in the capital.
"Hey, a notice about the issuance of a welfare lottery, what is this?"
"You can win a hundred taels of silver for five cents. Is this crazy? How is this possible?"
"What, five cents can be exchanged for one hundred taels of silver, is that a lie?"
"..."
It has to be said that the first prize of the welfare lottery is really the biggest publicity stunt.
How much is five cents? It’s just a few steamed buns! But, what about one hundred taels of silver? It’s enough for a family for several years!
For example, a military household had about one tael of silver a month, which is only twelve taels a year. If it were one hundred taels, it would mean that you would have to work hard for nearly nine years without eating or drinking!
This huge difference in amount immediately attracted the attention of most people in the capital.
When men, women, old and young meet each other, they will talk about it immediately after talking about serious matters at most.
"Have you heard? The emperor has decreed that the Ministry of Household Affairs will be responsible for selling welfare lottery tickets. A lottery ticket only costs five cents, but the first prize is as much as one hundred taels of silver!"
"Oh, is it true? Tell me, what's going on with this lottery ticket?"
"It's very simple. It's two sets of numbers one to nine. In the red box, you choose five numbers from one to nine. In the blue box, you choose one number from one to nine. If you win all of them, you get the special prize, one hundred taels of silver.
ah!"
"Wait a minute, what does perfect mean?"
"After the lottery draw time comes, one person from the Ministry of Revenue, the Metropolitan Procuratorate, the East Factory, the West Factory, the Jinyiwei and the Palace will each go to a glass cover to select numbers. If the number selected is the same as the number you selected in advance, that is
Special prize!”
"Is that true? If I'm lucky, wouldn't it be possible to exchange five cents for one hundred taels of silver?"
"Of course! Also, even if you are not very lucky and only four of the red numbers are correct and the blue one is correct, that is the first prize, which is fifty taels of silver!"
"So good? Is there anything else?"
"Also, if you get three of the red numbers and the blue numbers are correct, it will be the second prize, and there will be ten taels of silver! In addition, there is a third prize. You only need to get two of the red numbers. Of course, the blue
You must also win the color number! This is the third prize, one tael of silver!"
"Haha, I don't ask too much, just win the third prize! Oh, by the way, there is another question, what if I win two special prizes?"
"What should I do? Just do it the same way. Just press a lottery ticket and redeem whatever prize you win! If you happen to win a special prize lottery ticket and you buy a hundred tickets, you will get ten thousand taels of silver!"
"Five silver coins is ten thousand taels. Wow, wow, wow, okay, okay, I can have this!"
"..."
For most people, they immediately focus on the bonus.
And for those who want to be decent, such as scholars, it would be too tacky if they just talk about bonuses.
"Your Majesty is trying to educate all the people in the world. He has really taken great pains to do this kind of loss-making business!"
"No, if someone wins the special prize, wouldn't it be a big loss!"
"But no matter what, I will definitely participate in this kind of good thing that is used to build schools so that more people can read and write. It is definitely not for those few silver rewards!"
"Yes, yes, yes, this is what the saints taught us. We are all scholars, how can we only have money in our eyes!"
"..."
Compared with these two classes, those businessmen are more savvy.
"Boss Wang, have you noticed that the most important thing about this welfare lottery organized by the imperial court is the blue number!"
"That's right, Boss Liu, let's do the math together and see how we can make money by buying this lottery ticket! At least we can make the hope of the jackpot bigger!"
"..."
Although there are many smart people who know that the imperial court will not engage in loss-making business, but what if, what if you win the jackpot? Even if you don't win, it is only a matter of five cents, and the loss is not big, so just treat it as
What a good thing!
With all these ideas, secretly encouraged by factory guards, almost many people are looking forward to the day when they can buy lottery tickets.
On the side of Ni Yuanlu, the Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue, he has been busy with this matter since the first day after he started working in the 17th year of Chongzhen. He was also very busy. It took about three days to get this matter ready.
This was also thanks to the plan given to him by Emperor Chongzhen. What he wanted to do at every step was already written down, so he didn't need to think about it anymore.
Of course, the lottery at this time in the Ming Dynasty could not be the same as in later generations, because there was no Internet, no television, etc.
Therefore, the plan Liu Weichao designed for Emperor Chongzhen was inspired by a TVB TV series "The Heroes of Yihai Heroes". There was a plot in which the protagonist Liu Xing went to buy a white pigeon ticket, but was cheated, and then the lottery ticket was faked.
The point is to check to prevent fraud!
In this era without the Internet and television, the work of verifying the sale of lottery tickets would be a bit more cumbersome, but it is an absolutely profitable business, and it is true.
No, on the day when the lottery was issued, ten long queues formed at the Hubu Yamen side of the courtyard wall where ten windows were opened early in the morning.
During the Spring Festival, the weather in the capital was definitely very cold. Although it didn't snow on this day, it was still dripping with ice.
However, the enthusiasm of the people in line can literally melt the ice and snow. Everyone is smiling at each other, saying good New Year and wishing for a first prize.
"Hey, Lao Wangtou, you're here too? How many welfare lottery tickets are you going to buy?"
"Not much, just buy three of them, whatever you want."
"There are only three of them. I'm afraid you bought them secretly yourself? Look at my house, we have already discussed it, so I will buy ten of them!"
"..."
On the other side, some people are imagining it even before they buy the lottery ticket!
"Brother Niu, if you win the special prize, you should treat me to a treat, right?"
"That's, absolutely, a treat! What about you?"
"If I win the special prize, I will have to change to a better house!"
"..."
There was even an extreme example. People in the queue were chatting and waiting. As a result, they suddenly heard the sound of quarreling in the queue, and then two people started to fight.
When the yamen officer who maintained order at the Ministry of Household Affairs saw this, he quickly ran over and scolded him. He just asked that question and couldn't help but laugh and cry.
What do you think?
It turned out that these two people were brothers. They were still waiting in line and had not bought any welfare lottery tickets, so they started talking about how to spend the special prize if they won it. As a result, they had different opinions, and the chat turned into a quarrel, and the quarrel ended later.
It turned into a quarrel!
He was scolded by the government officials and laughed by the surrounding people, so this farce ended without any problem.
Generally speaking, people queuing up to buy welfare lottery tickets are still harmonious after all. Some people even consult each other to choose numbers. Of course, some people are afraid that others will know what they want to choose.
The process of buying lottery tickets is also very simple. There is a blank lottery ticket in a window. After you go and get it, you choose the numbers, then pay the money and leave the deposit. The lottery ticket is considered to be bought.
Perhaps it was too enthusiastic and exceeded Ni Yuanlu's expectations. The welfare lottery tickets prepared for the first time were sold out in less than a day.
So, he quickly asked his men to print lottery tickets!
This situation is actually quite understandable.
During the Ming Dynasty, Beijing and Nanjing were the two largest cities, with populations as high as one million.
Moreover, the capital is a place where rich people gather in the world. Even ordinary people are richer than ordinary people in other places.
This welfare lottery makes people feel fresh for the first time. Not only can you win big prizes, but the reputation of buying lottery tickets is also very good. Welfare lottery builds schools and educates school-age children all over the world. This is a good thing!
Just like that, the momentum of buying lottery tickets is naturally very strong.
The advantage of this kind of two-color digital sales, and the lottery later, is that you are not afraid of buying, and the more people buy, the better!
After about three days of sales, it was already the Lantern Festival.
The Ming Dynasty's Lantern Festival started on the 11th day of the first lunar month, so Ni Yuanlu was a bit miserable and had to work overtime to prepare for the lottery ceremony.
On this day, it snowed heavily.
Although it's not snowing like feathers, it's snowing after all.
Under normal circumstances, in this kind of weather, few people go out. Wouldn't it be nice to stay at home?
But this time, outside the Meridian Gate, before noon time, there was already a sea of people.
Of course, these people were all people who bought welfare lottery tickets. Even though the court notice said that the lottery results would be posted and there would be a month to redeem them. However, they still came to the scene.
At noon, the bells of the Bell and Drum Tower rang, and then Emperor Chongzhen arrived!