Tianliangyuan

Chapter 176 Another Big Profit!

Xu Zhaozhao nodded in admission of her mistake: "Yes, I didn't think much about it at the time, so I had someone make it to try it out. After that, I thought that since so many books had already been printed, I might as well put them on the market to see how they would go. Who would have thought that they would be so popular with students?"

Wang Changgeng said helplessly, "How can we not fawn over them? There's a huge difference in the amount of money involved! However, it's best not to make this public. Several aristocratic families are trying to find out who's behind this. You should be careful these days and stay in your residence."

"Uncle, don't worry, Zhaozhao understands. Besides, it wasn't just my family that did this; many local powerful families were involved. So even if someone wants revenge, they'll have to consider whether they can withstand the wrath of all those families!"

Wang Changgeng shook his head with a smile, saying that he had to admit his niece was truly clever.

She allied herself with local powerful clans, and she had specifically chosen those clans from different regions.

She refused to cooperate with those powerful aristocratic families because she knew that doing so would displease the emperor.

Xu Zhaozhao targeted large families with relatively weak power. In this way, with the combined forces of several parties, even top-tier families would have to think carefully about whether they could deal with so many families if they wanted to retaliate.

Moreover, now that movable type printing and ink have been officially approved by the emperor, they are essentially government property. So, what can those people do even if they are angry?

Xu Zhaozhao's actions, by sheer chance, aligned perfectly with the emperor's current national policy, which is why she was rewarded.

What Wang Changgeng didn't know was that all of this was part of Xu Zhaozhao's plan.

The reason he launched his attack first was twofold: first, to take this opportunity to strike at the Deng family and completely remove them from the sight of the nobility; second, to use their strength against them so as to attract the emperor's attention.

Now everything is going according to her plan. The imperial court has intervened, so everything that follows is no longer Xu Zhaozhao's concern.

However, their previous business can continue as normal without being affected; it's just that they will have to buy ink from the imperial court from now on.

Of course, Xu Zhaozhao is an exception.

She was granted special permission, after all, she was the one who presented the prescription, so Emperor Yong'an had no reason not to grant her request.

Upon returning home, Xu Zhaozhao ordered someone to fetch Gao Da Kui.

"Send people to various places to inform them that the formula for ink has been taken over by the imperial court and that it is forbidden to produce or sell it privately in the future. Tell them to stock up on more goods this month, but there is a limit: each household's order cannot exceed one hundred strings of cash."

"Yes, master."

"In addition, send them another message, saying that although the profits are not as good as before, they can still be profitable as long as they manage their businesses well. As long as they behave themselves, the court will not make trouble for them. Next month, I will introduce them to a new business, on the condition that they do not antagonize the court and know their place."

"Yes, I will definitely pass on the message."

"How is your eldest son recovering?"

"Thanks to Miss, everything is going in a good direction. Shouxin can now vaguely remember some things from his childhood. The doctor said that given time, he will definitely recover completely."

"That's good. Is he alright now?"

"Miss, they've all recovered."

Xu Zhaozhao nodded, still feeling that Gao Shouxin was a bit too young, and in his words, she always felt a psychological burden.

Where is Changsheng now?

Gao Da Kui was taken aback, not expecting the young lady to suddenly mention someone else.

“Miss, Changsheng is currently doing odd jobs in the manor. As you instructed, he is to learn ten characters every day. If he doesn’t learn them, he will be punished with a slap on the hand. So the boy is doing quite well now.”

"Just knowing how to read isn't enough; he needs to learn arithmetic too."

“They are both being taught. He and Shouxin are learning together, but I heard that he is quick-witted and is better at arithmetic than Shouxin.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhaozhao began to think more highly of Gao Da Kui.

The two children learned things together, and Gao Da Kui did not belittle Chang Sheng because of his own son, which shows that he is an honest man.

“Simply memorizing by rote won’t work. From now on, let the two of them stay with Uncle Zhong. Uncle Zhong is getting old, so let them run errands and learn how to deal with people. Once they’ve learned enough to recognize the characters, we can make other arrangements for them.”

Gao Da Kui didn't understand at first, but after he left Zi Yuan, he seemed to understand all at once.

Uncle Zhong was the highest-ranking servant in the Marquis's mansion.

Calling him a servant isn't entirely accurate. Xu Zhong used to be a personal guard who served the Marquis, and he even saved the Marquis's life on the battlefield. Otherwise, the Marquis wouldn't have trusted him so much and made him his steward.

The fact that the two children are working alongside the housekeeper, and that the young lady specifically mentioned that they should learn well, means that they will be allowed to manage things independently in the future.

Tsk, those two lads are lucky to have met such an open-minded and generous mistress.

Gao Da Kui became happier and happier as he thought about it, grinning the whole way.

Since that day, the steward, Uncle Zhong, has had two little followers. They even massage his back and pour him tea, showing great enthusiasm.

Seeing how clever the two were, Xu Zhaozhao felt that they could be trained.

However, Gao Shouxin was clearly not as agile as Changsheng, perhaps due to their living conditions over the previous ten years.

Before he was born, he was a beggar. He was very good at reading people's expressions and had suffered the most cruel humiliation in the world, so he had developed a thick skin.

Xu Zhaozhao felt that if these two were trained for another two years, they should be able to reach a similar level to Zhu Zi at the beginning.

With the ink deal settled, Xu Zhaozhao made a fortune before the court officially announced it, and from then on, it was no longer her concern.

However, she was the one with the lowest printing costs, and ultimately, she was the one who made the most money in the industry.

Once such a massive machine as the state is in operation, it is quite astonishing.

The craftsmen arranged by Gao Da Kui taught the more than twenty people in the Ministry of Works in less than a day. Then they each received their reward money and returned to the workshop.

With everything arranged, Zhu Zi and his group finally returned.

Zhu Zi presented the items, his heart pounding with anxiety the entire way.

He didn't know what was in the box. It was locked, and he didn't have the key. Besides, it was something his master had specifically requested, so he didn't dare to look inside.

But my curiosity still flared up from time to time along the way.

Fortunately, he managed to control himself.

"You did a good job, Dingxiang. Go to the small storeroom and get a bolt of pink cotton cloth, and also get a string of cash and a pair of silver bracelets for Zhuzi."

"Yes, ma'am."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Zi's face flushed slightly, and he lowered his head, saying, "Thank you for the reward, Master!"

Xu Zhaozhao decided to tease him: "These are all things for young ladies. May I ask, which one are you planning to give them to?"