Lu Ming

After the initial shock, Yu Bende quickly realized the extraordinaryness of Mr. Xiong, so he began to use clichés from Yaren.However, when he finally figured out what business Mr. Xiong was doing, someone reached out and tapped his forehead: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it turned out to be Mr. Xiong who was in the plaster and glass business. capital offense!"

Cement shipped from overseas has already become a material in short supply.Including glass and a small number of mirrors that have only recently appeared, these short-selling items have attracted a large number of "powerful" people in the capital to come to Jiangnan to purchase, not to mention local people.

So when Yu Bende knew that the person in front of him was the spokesperson of the plaster manufacturer, Mr. Xiong immediately turned into a shining golden man in his eyes, and Lao Yu hurriedly began to make amends and make friends.

"I'm just an ordinary businessman, just doing a small business, Yu Shuban doesn't need to be too polite." Xiong Dao has seen this kind of situation a lot, and he doesn't care.

But Yu Bende is different, who is not exquisite in this kind of profession, and he can't care about investigating the reasons for Xiong Dao's purchase of land at this time, so he made a decisive decision. Choose: Match.

What fit?It sounds simple, but the technical content is very high, and it needs years of practice and accumulation.For example, Yu Bende pointed out on the spot: There is a reed beach near the river outside Gaoqiao Town, and the deed is marked as official land, but that place is actually a hidden private port, where fishermen and salt dealers trade.

Then Yu Shuban pointed out with a smile: A certain place looks like a lake, but in fact it has been silted up during the Wanli period, and now it is the hidden field of a certain gentry's family...the kind that never takes lessons.

When Xiong Dao heard this, he couldn't help but put down his tea bowl, and looked at Yu Shuban seriously: "It seems that these subordinate officials are still underestimated!"

Master Xiong didn't expect that so many landmines were buried in the official documents after a long period of time.Looking at the smug smile on Yu Shuban's thin face, Xiong Dao realized that it would be difficult to do without this guy.

Although these mines will eventually be removed, with the help of people familiar with the situation, it will undoubtedly save a lot of time and energy in the early stage of demolition.

After quickly weighing the gains and losses, Master Xiong nodded: "I wonder if Yu Shuban will have time to go to the humble house tonight?"

"The master has a life, how dare the villain not obey?" Yu Bende smiled and cupped his hands.

That night, Luo Yuan, the small living room.

Xiong Dao sat on a chair and pushed a wooden tray over the table.At the same time, he stared into Yu Shuban's eyes and said slowly: "These 1000 taels is the first idea. I bought you to help me in the matter of land requisition, and there will be 2000 taels to thank Yi afterwards."

Although Yu Shuban received a lot of various income from the county government on weekdays, but a big deal of 3000 taels alone created the highest record in his career.

But at the next moment, Yu Bende pushed the tray back with a smile: "To tell the truth, Master Xiong, I don't lack the money."

"Oh? There's only you and me here. Brother Yu might as well open the skylight and speak honestly."

Yu Bende nodded: "May I ask, is there any place for Mr. Xiong to support villains in business?"

"Hehe, that's it..." Xiong Dao heard this, turned back and leaned on the back of the chair, picked up a box of "domestic" "Taijiang brand" cigarettes, took out one, lit it with a Zippo, and took a deep breath first. After taking a sip, he said, "Brother, are you ambitious?"

"Hey, for generations of subordinates, the lowly servants are not allowed to stand up. They just want to find a way to make money for the family, and I hope Master Xiong will do it." Yu Bende bowed his hands sincerely at this time.

This opportunity today is what Yu Bende has been wanting for many years.One must know that interlacing is like a mountain, his lowly labor can be carried out on his own one-acre three-point land, but once he crosses the line, no one will ignore him.It's okay to do a little business, but if you want to enter other righteous industries, the gentry behind the scenes won't even pinch him.

This situation is very similar to those Chinese detectives in Hong Kong in later generations: the large sums of black money collected can only be used to buy buildings for rent, or open a small tea house; Eat it dry and wipe it clean——Business is not about eating and drinking, and a few tricks within the rules can make a layman go bankrupt instantly.

So Yu Bende saw the opportunity this time: Master Xiong wants to buy so much land in this county, there is no doubt that he will cause a big wave.This time, Yu Shuban went all out to accompany him to be kidnapped. Once he succeeds afterwards, Mr. Xiong will always reward him with a serious way of making money.

……

Since Xiong Dao knew that the other party wanted something, he would naturally take the initiative, so he was more leisurely at this time, and said unhurriedly: "I don't know if you know, this is a business, but it requires capital Yes, 3000 taels of silver is not enough."

"It's easy to say!" Yu Bende probably thought it up before he came, his thin face was full of determination: "This land purchase, Yu will definitely do his best to help the master from the beginning to the end, and I won't take any money for the 3000 taels. It's a stepping stone."

"As for the cost of doing business, it's as much as you want. Someone Yu knows the rules."

Xiong Dao nodded slightly when he heard this: "I don't know what kind of business Brother Yu wants to do?"

Yu Bende finally waited for this question, and hurriedly replied excitedly: "Plaster, glazed window, makeup mirror, it doesn't matter which one is good, it depends on which meal Master Xiong is willing to reward."

"Hahaha, you really have a big heart!" Xiong Dao laughed loudly when he heard this: "The two generations of Luo family's gentry are now trembling in the capital. This prefecture in the south of the Yangtze River has hands and eyes Gentlemen abound."

Speaking of which, he knocked on the table with his finger: "No matter what kind of goods, even if I only give you the marketing right of a county, are you sure you can survive a month with a family of subordinates? What's more, the lowest agency right here is to distribute At the prefectural level, with your connections in Jiading County, you probably won’t be able to do it in Songjiang Mansion, right?"

"This..." Yu Bende couldn't help hesitating, he suddenly realized that he had missed a little bit: what should I do if the business is extremely prosperous?Before this, greed had captivated his eyes, so he didn't think about it that much, he only wanted to wholesale the goods and make money.

Now as soon as Xiong Dao reminded him, he immediately understood the meaning of the words - after all, he was an errand in the county government, and he had seen too many tragedies of being ruined by the gentry on weekdays.

"If it doesn't work, let the clan come forward." Yu Bende, who was experienced in accidents, came up with an idea immediately after finding out that the situation was wrong.

In Fuxian County in the south of the Yangtze River, to be able to secure the position of the chief book office, there must be someone behind it.The Yu family can be regarded as a big family, and naturally some members of the family have become officials.

However, this is completely contrary to Yu Bende's original plan - if the pressure is borne by the family, then most of the profits will naturally be taken away by the family.

"If that's the case, then I'll just go to Mrs. Yu, why bother grinding my teeth here?" Xiong Dao was not a vegetarian either, and in just half a day, he had found out everything about Yu Bende.

So after hearing Yu Bende's idea, he immediately rejected it.

Just like what Xiong Dao said, he can directly discuss with Mrs. Yu, the head of the Yu family, if he has reached a certain stage. , Xiong Dao and Yu Bende both knew that this road would not work.

"May I ask the master to point out a way?" Yu Bende thought for a long time, and found that he really couldn't find a way to deal with the gentry from all walks of life, so he could only let Xiong Dao decide in the end.

"My business is all unique. If you are not strong, you will bring disaster if you take it." Seeing Yu Bende nodding, Xiong Dao knew that the old official had figured it out, so he continued: "People like you should be honest. Let’s be one of the links in the supply chain, it’s not eye-catching, and you can make money.”

Although Yu Bende didn't understand what a supply chain is, he still understood the general meaning: people are willing to take him to play!So he hurriedly began to thank him without saying a word.

At this moment, Xiong Dao clapped his hands, and then the two young servants who were guarding the door came in.After the confession, it didn't take long for the two of them to bring in a bunch of things from the outside and gently put them on the table.

"These two are new products that will be sold in the Jiangnan area, and they are also my unique business. But now that the policy has changed, Brother Yu, you can set up a local workshop and focus on production, not sales. In this way, your pressure will be reduced. I’m too young, and then I’ll invest in some stocks to help you carry the burden, and the business will be able to continue.”

Chapter 338 Opening of Port ([-])

Seeing the two piles of things on the table, Yu Bende immediately reached out and took one of them to his eyes, and looked at it carefully.

It started with a round roller-shaped object, white, soft, and light.After Yu Bende touched it with his hand, his first feeling was paper.Then when he turned it lightly, a thin layer suddenly fell off the roll. After rubbing it with his fingers, it turned out to be paper!

However, this kind of paper is different from all the papers he knows: not only is it extremely soft, but it is also rolled up layer by layer like a bamboo shoot shell, wrapped like a round stick, and there are small needle holes on it when you look closely. There will be a string.

"I'm afraid it's not easy to write?" Yu Bende questioned, while looking at Xiongdao through the hole in the middle of the scroll.

Although he had never seen this kind of strange paper, Yu Bende was not a knife and pen clerk for half his life. He immediately judged that it was a kind of inferior paper: although it was whiter than all the paper he had ever seen, this kind of paper was too white. Not to mention, the pores are still large, and the ink will spread out as soon as it is touched, making it impossible to write at all. The worst straw paper on the market is this kind of virtue.

Xiong Dao didn't refute, but just said with a smile: "Tear off a few sheets and fold them up again."

Yu Bende stretched out his hand to tear the paper as he said, and easily tore a piece from the row of needle holes—this made him immediately understand the function of the row of needle holes.

"It's exquisite." After muttering, he began to fold the pieces of paper.However, in this fold, I found a difference: the paper of this era, whether it is high-grade bamboo wood paper or inferior straw paper, is afraid of folding.Even good paper will break if folded twice, not to mention bad paper, which will fall off when shaken.

But Yu Bende didn't break the piece of paper in his hand until he folded the palm-sized piece of paper to the size of a thumb.

Plain white, easy to tear, soft, durable... Yu Bende is not a fool, he now knows that this kind of paper is definitely not for writing, but where is it used?He had a faint feeling, but that layer of window paper just couldn't be pierced.

Just when Yu Bende was frowning and thinking hard, a voice came from beside him: "The so-called rabbit has three holes, and people have three urgencies..."

"Here, this thing is toilet paper!" Yu Bendmao suddenly realized, and patted his thigh vigorously.

Xiong Dao saw that he understood, so he smiled and said: "You take all the twenty volumes on the table, and when you go back, ask the masters and ladies of the rich family to try it, and your own family members also try it, and you will know the beauty after using it. "

Yu Bende nodded again and again, he already had a premonition with his rich life experience that this is a good thing that can occupy the "high-end market".

Speaking of toilet paper, before the Yuan Dynasty, China did not allow paper to be used to wipe buttocks.Because paper production was not easy at that time, wiping your butt with paper was a blasphemy to culture.

This situation was changed during the Mongol and Yuan Dynasties, because the Mongols did not use the rhetoric of the literati.After the Ming Dynasty, the toilet paper industry has also developed to a certain extent, the most representative of which is the "Baochaosi", one of the 24 yamen in the Inner Palace.

Yes, Baochaosi sounds like it prints money, but this yamen specializes in making soft straw paper for the emperor to wipe his buttocks, and it is a high-grade institution like the Wine and Vinegar Noodle Bureau.

However, institutions like the Baochao Division are special cases after all.In the 17th century, the vast majority of China’s population still used toilet chips (bamboo sticks) when it was convenient. The soft and slag-free papyrus was quite expensive to make, and only a few wealthy families could afford it.

And what Xiong Dao is focusing on now is this high-end market.

Originally, he planned to distribute writing paper in the Jiangnan area this year, but after the annual meeting, this idea was stopped because he would grab the jobs of ordinary businessmen.

So Mr. Xiong had no choice but to turn around, take the high-end route, fill the gap in the market, and produce toilet paper to wipe the buttocks of the masters and wives—it is a good thing to earn money from rich people with luxury goods. The flowers are also buried in the cellar, and the cabinet is very supportive.

"I don't know if there is a name for this tissue paper? How to manage this...industrial chain?" Yu Bende has now begun to think about how to proceed with the implementation of the project.

"This is called Jierou toilet paper. In the future, regular products will have outer packaging." Xiong Dao began to explain to someone: "My side will soon set up paper-making workshops in Fuzhou and Jiangnan, specializing in the production of toilet paper. There is no shortage of bamboo and wood, and it is a good place for papermaking. But Jiangnan is not bad, there is one thing that is plentiful and cheap..."

When Master Xiong said this, he stopped and looked at Yu Bende.But the latter is blessed to the heart at this moment, his eyes lit up and a word popped out of his mouth: "Cotton stalk!"

"That's right, it's cotton stalks." Xiong Dao nodded, showing a pleased expression of "you are very business-minded": "Whether it's cotton stalks or rice stalks, bamboo wood, I can use my technology to make this kind of cotton." Paper."

Speaking of which, Xiong Dao threw Yu Shuban a cigarette, and then helped him light it: "This workshop, you want to produce land, factory buildings, workers, and 1 taels of cash in cash. Well, if we provide papermaking secrets and production machines, we will split the bill at 55."

Upon hearing this, Yu Bende nodded slowly after thinking for a while: "I've done this deal!"

Yu Shuban seemed solemn, but in fact he was already happy in his heart - even if he got the secret technique of papermaking, he would have already made money, at worst, he would break up and start a new mountain, wouldn't he?However, he would never have imagined that without the sulfuric acid supplied exclusively by Mr. Xiong, he would not be able to make paper.Not to mention the machine, if a bearing is broken, you have to lie down.

"Yeah!" Xiong Dao added with a smile after taking a puff of cigarette: "In the beginning, I took 5% of the shares, and it was also to help you block the knife. Besides, you don't have the strength to be a channel at all, so you should be an honest worker first." The owner of the workshop is wonderful."

"But when you gain a firm foothold in the future, I promise you to repurchase shares at any time, and the price will be based on the current price."

When Yu Bende heard this, he wished he could kneel and kowtow to Master Xiong on the spot. If he refused to agree to such a condition, he would be mentally handicapped.

……

But there was a surprise later: there were more than 20 rolls of toilet paper on the table, and several black lacquered boxes stacked on top of each other.

When Yu Bende opened one of the boxes, he found that inside were square bamboo cards the size of a thumb, engraved with patterns, colorful and colorful, a bit like dominoes in a casino.

"This is?... a horse tag?"

"Of course! These are called mahjong tiles, which are much more fun than horse hanging tiles."

The horse tag is the predecessor of mahjong tiles. There are 40 tiles in the whole set, which are divided into four suits: Shiwanguan, Wanguan, Suozi and Wenqian.

Horse cranes were very popular in the Ming Dynasty, especially at the end of the Ming Dynasty, when the scholar-bureaucrats indulged in playing horse cranes all day long. After the fall of the Ming Dynasty, Wu Weiye of the Qing Dynasty even believed that the Ming Dynasty died of horse cranes in "Suiguan Jilue" .

Although this statement is biased, it also proves from the side the absurdity and idleness of the gentry class in the late Ming Dynasty.And the mahjong tiles launched by Xiongdao at the right time are aimed at the pockets of the scholar-bureaucrats: the 40-card mahjong can be played lingeringly, and the 144-card ultimate killer king, isn’t it a big deal? ... Just look at the people who fought on the mahjong table for three days and three nights in later generations.

Yu Bende quickly figured out the basics of mahjong, because there are not only mahjong tiles in the box, but also a beautifully printed drawing in his eyes, which not only has text explanations, but also various types of tiles.

Xiong Dao began to explain the operation of mahjong tiles to Friends Yu.Generally speaking, like toilet paper, factories are set up locally and then sold nationwide.

However, mahjong is different from toilet paper, which is easy to imitate, so Xiong Dao told Yu Bende that his own workshop will only produce high-end products in the future and follow the brand strategy.As for the low-end bamboo and wood mahjong imitated by folk craftsmen, let it go, it should be regarded as promoting employment.

So what is high-end mahjong?These are the boxes on the table.

These few boxes of sample mahjong are all machine-processed, with bull-domino faces, bamboo bottoms, and celluloid facets.In short, they are all made of composite materials, polished by mechanical processes, the surface is very smooth, and the cards are uniformly patterned high-end mahjong.

And Xiong Dao also told Yu Bende that if he wants to set up a factory, he needs to recruit a group of veteran craftsmen—in the future, he will launch handmade jade mahjong, jade mahjong, and Indian gemstone mahjong, which are exclusively for the top rich men.

After some business experience, Yu Shuban was scratching his head, wishing he could start rolling up his sleeves tomorrow to do something special and spend a lot of money... However, Xiong Dao told him: He can only choose one of the two businesses of toilet paper and mahjong. .

In the end, Yu Shuban had no choice but to go home with a lot of samples in his arms.

After returning home, he discussed with his eldest son who was working in the Yamen, and the next day, Yu Bende ordered his second son to pass the most famous "Embroidered Lady" in the county to his family.

Although this class of embroiderers is not the same as the "three aunts and six wives", but with their good needlework and eloquence, embroiderers are more popular in terms of going in and out of the back houses of rich families.

Of course, this life is not a good thing: "Use good needles to go in and out of everyone, because please use it to teach your daughters, and there will be many people who will lure you out of the cabinet in the future."

Yu Bende didn't invite this old woman to abduct people, but to order her to advertise—whether it's toilet paper or mahjong, in fact, the female relatives who stay in the back house every day doing nothing are more suitable sales targets.In addition, ladies and wives will only tell the embroidered lady whether the user experience of toilet paper is good or not.

This truth is the conclusion that Yu Bende and his eldest son came to after discussing for half a night.

So the embroiderer distributed the two samples to the back houses of several big families.

Later in the day, the feedback from customers started pouring in.Unsurprisingly, both products were wildly successful.

Treated with sulfuric acid, the only toilet paper that can truly be called "white" in this plane is not only extremely soft, but also can be divided into different sizes at will. Quite a shocking user experience.

Not to mention mahjong, someone asked for it to be delivered on the same day - it is not a problem to easily make up three or five tables in the back house of a big family, counting the wives, young ladies, younger children, third children, and aunts and sisters-in-law.

So the second son of the Yu family who went to collect user feedback was scolded bloody: If there is no product, what are you promoting here?

Chapter 339 Opening of Port ([-])

The rich families these days are different from those of later generations.No matter how rich people are in future generations, it is almost enough to hire dozens of employees in a mansion; but in this era, the number of servants in a large family is measured in hundreds, and the number of thousands is also very common, and there are all kinds of service occupations. , There are many categories, tailors and theater troupes are standard equipment.

Therefore, mahjong tiles are not difficult for big players.

After learning that this thing was out of stock for the time being, several big households immediately summoned carpenters and carvers——I didn’t agree with myself.

Although the improvised bamboo mahjong tiles are not as smooth and upscale as the samples, they can still be played, right?So it took only a few days of work, and the carving team "raised by the big family" quickly opened: it is not worth a lot of money, and a few pieces are sent to relatives and friends.

After hearing the news, Yu Bende was in a very urgent mood.However, there was no point in being anxious, he had more urgent matters to deal with now: the Yu family had a quarrel first.

The current situation is that the eldest and second son of the Yu family said that mahjong is a good business, but Yu Bende thinks toilet paper is good: Although it seems that this business is a bit low-level, it undoubtedly has more prospects for development, so everyone quarreled.

After two days of quarreling, the pressure from the toilet paper experience users suddenly increased: the big households can produce mahjong by themselves, but they cannot produce this kind of soft paper, so the pressure from the customers is naturally transmitted.

In this way, it helped the Yu family choose the project: if you don't hurry up, you will offend others.What's even more frightening is that if any gentry doesn't care about material issues and is willing to take a dip in the muddy water of "toilet paper"; now that the workshop has not yet opened and the profit chain has not yet begun to operate, the Yu family will easily incur some kind of Saturation blow...

So Yu Bende made a decisive decision: If he doesn't choose, he will be in the toilet paper industry, which is suitable for our family's identity!

After unifying their thinking, the Yu family immediately began to act.

First of all, the boss who works as a low-level servant in the yamen is responsible for realizing the family property: Although the Yu family has accumulated for several generations, the family property is quite solid, but it is impossible to take out more than 1 taels of cash at one time.In addition to the ones hidden in the family, there are also several properties that need to be pawned, and then they can be counted after borrowing from a good friend.

The second child of the vagrant started the preparatory work, such as recruiting workers.

As for Yu Bende himself, he was responsible for honestly going to the Xiongdao Mansion to report the results, finalize the follow-up matters of the workshop, and provide various professional consultations on the land acquisition.

……

At this moment in Luo Yuanli, there was a tense atmosphere in the demolition headquarters.