My Backyard is the Tang Dynasty
Chapter 199: Tour Chamber of Commerce!
After discussing the matter with Murong Shun, Li Yin went back to the palace. Cui Yingying brought a few maids chattering and laughing in the South Court. Seeing that it was still early, Li Yin went to Nanhe's workshop with Jin Daqian. I have already reported to him about the peanuts and sugar cane in 2010, so he also has to find time to see how the production is going.
Riding with Jin Daqian to Nanhe Workshop, the guards of the workshop immediately took Li Yin and Jin Daqian to find Tong Nian who was directing the production in the workshop. The sales of these two new products will start immediately, and Tong Nian came to the factory in person. The workshop supervises the production.
Today's Nanhe Workshop is huge in scale, spanning four or five miles from east to west, and is still extending to the south. The slaves and craftsmen in the workshop base come and go, like a market, very lively, the faces of the slaves There are smiles all over the face, very satisfied with the current life.
According to the rules set by Li Yin and Su Morer at the beginning, these slaves can freely marry wives and have children after earning enough points. Now the living area of the workshop is basically based on small families. The chamber of commerce will also routinely give maternity leave to slaves and maidservants. Any points needed for daily necessities should be exchanged with Shengtang chamber of commerce. Shengtang chamber of commerce is responsible for providing them. And the craftsmen have no worries, and devote themselves to production.
In addition to the welfare system of the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce, there is also an independent small market inside the workshop, where all the goods on the market can be sold, and the slaves can exchange points for copper coins, and use these money to buy something you want , the point system of Tang Dynasty Chamber of Commerce has now been integrated into every small place. The higher the points, the better life is. This is something that the servants all recognize.
"The number of people who come to the workshop every day to look for work is increasing. It is said that many people have the idea of coming to the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce and others to do farming at home." Jin Daqian also has a kind of pride in his heart that the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce is so prosperous now. I feel that he also participated in the construction of the original Shengtang Chamber of Commerce.
"Don't they care about selling themselves as slaves?" Today's Tang Chamber of Commerce, no matter whether it is a slave purchased from outside or a commoner who comes to the door, as long as you join the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce, you must sign a contract. If you become a slave, your future freedom will be restricted by the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce. Except for the stipulated rest time, you must stay in the base all the time, which is tantamount to selling yourself to the Shengtang Fair. As for the affairs of the chamber of commerce, the chamber of commerce of the prosperous Tang Dynasty has the right to handle it in accordance with the "Laws of the Tang Dynasty".
Jin Daqian shook his head: "The reputation of the Tang Dynasty Chamber of Commerce's treatment of slaves is well known now, and the common people still come for this, especially those homeless people. When they hear that the Tang Dynasty Chamber of Commerce is recruiting people, the door will be blocked. When His Royal Highness went to Songzhou, Tong Nian was recruiting people because of the peanut and sugarcane matter, and there was a sea of people in front of the workshop at that time."
Listening to Jin Daqian's chanting, Li Yin is satisfied with the reputation of the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce. Although selling himself as a slave, it is only a form of restraint, as long as he does not betray the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce. In fact, it is the same as a factory in modern society. Some people also saw this and asked to join the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce.
The guards took Li Yin and Jin Daqian to the south. The newly built workshops were all on the south side. On the way, Li Yin asked about the guards at the workshop base.
This guard also stayed in Shengtang Chamber of Commerce for a year. He also has a good understanding of various systems. He said that in addition to building a tall and long wall around the workshop and setting up several gates to manage entry and exit, the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce will also check the slaves every day. Check the number, and recently the Tang Chamber of Commerce has added a method to hunt down escaped slaves, which is to train dogs to track escaped slaves. Tried a few times with good results.
Li Yin was a little surprised, he had never taught them this method.
Jin Daqian saw Li Yin's doubts and said: "Su Mo'er taught this to the princess. Later, the princess asked the guards to try some, using the shepherd dog that His Highness bought last time."
Li Yin is happy, this girl can really mess around, not any dog can be used as a police dog, and fortunately the dog Li Yin bought is a German Shepherd, that is, a black back, otherwise she would not have made a joke.
After talking, a few people arrived at the oil press workshop and white sugar workshop. The guard went in and reported, and Tong Nian trotted out from inside.
"Your Highness, why are you here? This place is too noisy." Tong Nian said, with a smell of oil on his body, standing in front of Li Yin, the smell of oil hit his face even more.
Li Yan didn't care either, and said, "I want to come and see the production of such things?"
Tong Nian led Li Yin inside, and said: "The craftsman Tong Yu called is very responsible, and he left after teaching the servants. Now the servants have mastered the method of oil extraction, and now they can produce in one day. Twenty stones of oil."
The oil-pressing workshop covers an area of nearly 2,000 square meters and is located on the bank of the Nanhe River. This is to facilitate the use of waterwheels as power. The oil-pressing method used in the workshop is still the soil method of manual oil-pressing. Peanuts are ground into powder , steamed, put into iron hoops, and hammered with shapes. This technique is still used even in modern mountainous areas. There are 20 sets of such facilities in the workshop, and each set has six workers who are responsible for the division of labor.
Twenty stones of oil are enough to weigh two thousand catties, which is not too much, but it is not necessary to use such a large amount now. After all, the vegetable oil market has not yet opened, and it will not be too late to increase production after the market opens.
After watching the oil extraction process of the workers, Tong Nian seemed to think of something and said, "Your Highness, what should I do with the oil pancakes after the peanut oil is extracted?"
The oil extraction rate of peanuts is only half, and only half a catty of oil can be squeezed out of a catty of peanuts, which are still shelled. If in modern times, the oil pancakes are directly fed to pigs, but in this era, the pancakes are a good thing. With a full stomach, Li Yin said, "Have you tasted the peanuts?"
After the peanuts were harvested, Li Yin's subordinates all received these small benefits, and everyone shared dozens of catties of peanuts to try them out, and Tong Nian was no exception, "Tasted it, Your Highness, it tastes really good, so I think this It would be a pity if the pancakes were thrown away."
The oil-pressing workshop is running normally. Li Yin, Tong Nian, and Jin Daqian came out of the workshop. Li Yin pondered and said, "Well, some oil cakes are provided to the canteen of the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce, and some colleges also provide some for cooking soup. Or stir-fry and eat. First, let’s see how the reaction is. If you don’t like it, you can transport the pancake to the farm to feed the pigs. You can also sell it to the poor at a low price. For example, you can buy it for a penny. Selling ten pancakes is considered a good deed."
Tong Nian said as he walked, "Yes, Your Highness!"
Leaving the oil mill, two or three came to the sugar production workshop. According to historical records, in the middle and late Tang Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty was able to produce white sugar and rock sugar. It can be seen that the process of making white sugar is not complicated. Tong Yu arranged to come Some people also taught slaves the modern sugar making method.
Entering the workshop, Li Yin saw the white granulated sugar piled up in the tank at a glance. Li Yin took some and put it in his mouth to taste.
After the two new products came out, the next step was to promote the work. Li Min didn't plan to take care of this issue, and let Cui Yingying and Tong Nian figure out their own solutions. His future energy will be mainly focused on the management of Yizhou's military, political and legal affairs. The development of the company will be handed over to Taoyuan, and the sales will be handed over to the Shengtang Fair. After a year, they should have grown a little with Li Yin, and if they don't let them do it, they will never grow up.
The three of them visited the workshop and chatted. Tong Nian understood the meaning of Li Yin's words. He understood that Li Yin asked him to propose a promotion plan. He thought about it and said, "Your Highness, what about cooking oil?" The old slave already has a method, but I am afraid I will have to borrow it from His Majesty."
"Who?" Li Yin really wanted to know the solution Tong Nian came up with.
"Zhang San!" Tong Nian continued, "Currently, only Zhang San can cook with vegetable oil skillfully. The introduction of this vegetable oil will inevitably promote new cooking methods. This old slave has an idea, why don't let Zhang San know how to cook? Third, set up a place like a school to teach the cooks in various restaurants in Yizhou to cook. When they learn this kind of cuisine, they will need our vegetable oil, so that vegetable oil will naturally spread, and business travelers to and from Yizhou They will be very surprised when they taste new dishes, so they will be interested in this cooking oil."
While Tong Nian was talking, Li Yin kept smiling on his face, "That's right, I've made some progress. I'll lend you Zhang San after I get back. How it works is up to you."
Tong Nian said happily when he heard the words, "Yes, Your Highness!"
Li Yin was very satisfied with the inspection of the Shengtang Chamber of Commerce this time. After leaving the workshop base, Li Yin stopped by the shipyard not far from here. At this time, the keel of the treasure ship has been completed, and the hull and a complete set of steam equipment are under construction. It has been installed inside, and three large chimneys stand upright. The combination of modern and classic makes these behemoths have a special charm.
"Your Highness, what are those small square mouths for?" Jin Daqian was the boss who opened his mouth when he watched the treasure ship up close for the first time.
Li Yin looked at the square holes, each of which was three meters apart, three floors up and down, and each side added up to 120 square holes. Li Yin immediately understood that his calculation method was wrong at that time. It was enough to place one hundred and twenty cannons. This number surprised him. He did not expect that the treasure ship would have such powerful firepower. He secretly decided that no matter what, he must firmly grasp these monsters.
"That's where the murder weapon is placed." Li Yin said proudly. (To be continued..)