flstandardbreds Chapter 994 The Making of an Empress
Chapter 994 The Making of an Empress
Chapter 994: Raising an Empress Xiao Han didn't lose heart for long before she came to terms with it.
There are plenty of smart people in the world; all she can do is try her best to provide fertile ground for technological development.
Zhao Qinghe has now made a name for himself in the Great Yun Dynasty because of the war on the northwestern border, becoming a god of war.
His achievements were so great that he was directly promoted to the second rank.
She was skilled in both civil and military affairs, and excelled in every position. This not only made her so powerful that she threatened the emperor, but also made Emperor Tai'an feel threatened.
Even other ministers who were interested in the throne were quite wary of Zhao Qinghe.
But what does it matter? Zhao Qinghe has dirt on each of them and knows where their weaknesses lie.
Xiao Han did not let Zhao Qinghe continue her aggressive attacks, but instead had her befriend officials and build her own power base.
Some things require someone to speak up for them.
Therefore, the time Zhao Qinghe spent developing his own power was also the time Xiao Han gave Xie Yi to develop his business empire.
Xiao Han provided Xie Yi with several ideas for physical business ventures.
For example, they could cultivate rose gardens, extract rose water to make perfumes and soaps, and target the high-end market.
Soap already exists in this time and space, but it is made with exquisite ingredients and is expensive, making it a luxury item for the wealthy.
Xie Yi only needs to place a magic stone underground in the rose garden to make the roses exceptionally fragrant and long-lasting, thus securing a place in the market.
After providing him with several ideas for physical business ventures, Xiao Han returned control of his body to Zhao Qinghe.
Zhao Qinghe had already received the task issued by the system to fully support Xie Yi's entrepreneurial endeavors.
Seeing such a handsome and noble business partner at this moment, it's no wonder my heart is fluttering.
Xie Yi had been warned by Xiao Han, so to avoid trouble, he released a trace of cold and aloof spiritual power after seeing Zhao Qinghe.
Sensing that the other party, though outwardly gentle and polite, was actually extremely arrogant, Zhao Qinghe was instantly sobered up, as if doused with cold water.
She quickly regained her composure and discussed with Xie Yi how to collude between officials and businessmen—or rather, how to support each other.
With Zhao Qinghe's support, Xie Yi quickly purchased a mansion in the capital and an estate a hundred miles away to grow roses.
He generously buried five magic stones underground in his 300-acre rose garden, then gathered flower farmers to plant them, thus beginning his real economy.
Of course, Boss Xie is not Xiao Han, who came from a working-class background.
He wouldn't do everything himself.
Since he had several hundred thousand taels of silver as start-up capital, he simply hired a manager at a high salary and then just gave orders verbally.
However, Xie Yi still felt that making money this way was too slow.
He then came up with another way to resell elixirs: selling health-preserving medicinal wines.
They directly acquired a winery at a high price, recruited many workers, and built a large winery.
The other steps follow the brewing process, then add some common herbs that can change the color of the wine. The only difference is the addition of the final elixir. You can get the prepared mother liquor from him and pour it directly into a certain proportion of the wine.
Following the principle of "one turtle, three pots of soup," one bottle of his mother liquor can be used to make several large vats of wine.
In order to sell at a higher price, all the liquor is packaged in custom-made, beautiful porcelain bottles, and the bottles are placed in custom-made wooden boxes.
In order to help Xie Yi open up the market, Zhao Qinghe personally delivered a small bottle to the homes of each high-ranking official.
The medicinal wine with added elixir powder has an immediate and noticeable effect on improving health.
It's more effective than medicine for relieving backaches, leg pains, insomnia, poor appetite, and other ailments.
Xie Yi's health-preserving medicinal wine became an instant hit, with demand exceeding supply.
Thinking that he would have to stay here for another eighty or ninety years, Xie Yi was afraid that he would not have enough elixirs, so he followed Xiao Han's scarcity marketing strategy and only cared about having small quantities and high prices.
The rose garden where the fairy stone was buried not only has rose seedlings that grow quickly, but also blooms abundantly and vigorously, and has a particularly pleasant fragrance.
Flying perfume and Flying soap quickly gained a foothold in the market, and others could not imitate them.
After all, its unique fragrance is incomparable to that of roses grown elsewhere.
The 300 mu of flower fields were soon not enough. To avoid Zhao Qinghe being attacked, Xie Yi purchased mountain land for planting.
It's just a matter of burying a few more immortal stones.
With these two golden goose hens, we can start setting up a non-governmental research institution.
Xie Yi felt that finding ways to make money was a way to pass the time, so he actively explored other ways to make money.
He is determined to become the richest man in the Great Yun Dynasty.
Although his money was all spent by his research team, the amount he earned is documented and verifiable.
In the ninth year of Zhao Qinghe's official career, a year before Xiao Han's planned forced abdication, the opportunity came.
Despite drinking health-preserving medicinal wine every day, Emperor Tai'an couldn't resist taking an excessive amount of aphrodisiacs in order to show his masculinity in front of his lover, which led to his sudden death.
After several years of management, Zhao Qinghe has amassed a group of supporters.
In addition, she had a lot of dirt on her competitors, and after a series of threats and inducements, she finally got everyone to nominate her as their successor.
In the twelfth year since Xiao Han arrived in the Great Yun Dynasty, her plan to become an empress has been successfully completed.
In fact, the Ministry of Works of the Great Yun Dynasty had a great many skilled craftsmen. National-level research teams also found it easier to recruit exceptional talent from across the country.
However, research teams are very expensive, and some research projects cannot produce results in a short period of time.
Following the system's instructions, after Zhao Qinghe took office, he established a state-owned enterprise to produce and sell some of the Ministry's unusual or profitable skills and tricks.
The money earned by these state-owned enterprises was used partly for public welfare projects and partly for scientific research funding.
Xie Yi's parallel efforts in both private and official research institutions will inevitably contribute to the advancement of society.
With Xiao Han's suggestion, the multi-spindle spinning machine was finally developed, which immediately revolutionized the weaving industry and reduced the price of cloth by a large margin.
Indeed, no matter the era, there is never a shortage of intelligent people; what is lacking is the stage and space for them to display their talents.
Thanks to the efforts of Xiao Han's research team, cement was developed ten years after Zhao Qinghe ascended the throne, in the eleventh year of the Xining era.
However, at that time, cement could not be used for road construction on a large scale. This was not only due to the imperial court's financial constraints, but also because horses were the primary mode of transportation at the time.
Cement surfaces are very harmful to horses.
However, the benefits of using cement to reinforce military buildings, such as walls and floors, and to construct reservoirs are obvious.
Xiao Han thought to herself that it wouldn't be too late to consider cement roads after the steam engine was invented.
She didn't believe that with the help of two immortals, herself and Xie Yi, the Great Yun Dynasty couldn't undergo earth-shattering changes.