Princess, he is rich enough to rival the country

Wen Qingxiao is not a person who likes to procrastinate, so when he went back that day, he brought Gu Yanshu's words to Wen Qingyan.

Wen Qingyan is indeed devastated by the matter of open source.

After all, Wen Qingyan knows better than anyone else that the emperor's respect for him is nothing more than a dream in a mirror.

If there is no progress in the matter of open source, it will inevitably make the emperor feel dissatisfied.

Now that I heard the words brought by my sixth younger brother, and thought of the few profitable shops under Gu Yanshu's hands, I know that Gu Yanshu is very capable in this regard.

Without any hesitation, Wen Qingyan handed a greeting card to Gu Yanshu.

Gu Yanshu's response was also quick, and the two met at Guiyuanju the next day.

When the two met, Wen Qingyan still didn't forget to thank Gu Yanshu for what he had said back then.

For this reason, Gu Yanshu exchanged pleasantries with him for a while.

It can be seen from Wen Qingxiao that the Wen family's education is excellent.

Since Wen Qingyan can be called the best young master of the Wen family besides Wen Qingxiao, his talents are also good.

After a while, the two chatted a lot.

As far as the two of them are chatting happily at this time, no one will believe it. Today is only the third meeting between Gu Yanshu and Wen Qingyan.

Although the conversation with Wen Qingxiao was extremely pleasant, Gu Yanshu did not forget that he met Wen Qingyan today to discuss business.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Gu Yanshu was the first to bring up the topic:

"I heard that the fourth son came in and encountered some troubles. It just so happens that I also have something I want to cooperate with the fourth son. Presumably Qing Xiao has already mentioned it to the fourth son?"

"Your Highness is talking about the cement road?"

Wen Qingyan asked with some uncertainty, after all, when Wen Qingxiao told him, he didn't say it was a cooperation with Gu Yanshu.

Gu Yanshu nodded slightly, and then put the prepared plan in front of Wen Qingyan:

"About the various benefits of cement roads, Qing Xiao must have talked to the Fourth Young Master. As for other details, the Fourth Young Master can take a look at this first."

This plan was rushed out overnight after Gu Yanshu returned to the mansion yesterday.

It is not accurate to say that it is overnight.

Because seriously, it took Gu Yan less than an hour to write this plan.

Don't look at how long Gu Yanshu has written, but the contents of this plan are very detailed.

Road construction is a big project, even if Gu Yanshu has a few hens laying golden eggs under his hands, if he wants to pave the cement road all over the sky, he will inevitably lose his property.

Don't say that Gu Yanshu can't do it, no one in Tianqi can do this.

Therefore, Gu Yanshu directly appropriated the contract system of later generations.

It is indeed not an easy task for one person to pay to pave the cement road all over Tianqi.

But what if this person only needs to pay for the construction of a concrete road for a city, or a town?

But anyone with some wealth can come up with this expenditure.

Therefore, Gu Yanshu's method is to break the whole into parts.

Divide Tianqi's territory into several sections according to the division of the city, and then look for investors for the construction of cement roads for each section.

From Gu Yanshu's temperament of never losing money, it can be seen that no businessman would be willing to do business at a loss.

Therefore, if these businessmen are willing to spend money to pave the cement road, they need to let these people find business opportunities on the cement road.

The set of sayings that "if you want to get rich, build roads first" is obviously not enough for profit-seeking businessmen.

After all, the economic flow brought about by the development of transportation cannot make those businessmen realize it directly.

So at this time, Gu Yanshu introduced another method for later generations:

Highway toll stations.

This cement road is placed in Tianqi, isn't it a highway?

As for how to establish and distribute the toll booth, Gu Yanshu also made a detailed division.

Taking the capital city as an example, whoever contracts the construction of cement roads in and around the capital city can build a toll station on it.

Every truck or horse-drawn carriage that passes on the concrete road, and every horse that passes on the concrete road, needs to pay this "toll".

Of course, in order to prevent people from being influenced by interests and go against the original intention of the imperial court to build cement roads to "serve the people", and set high tolls, the toll standards for each station must be set by the imperial court.

Of course, what Gu Yanshu said, which can relieve Wen Qingyan's urgent need and open up money for the court, is also above this toll booth.

The tolls collected by each toll station need to be divided [-]-[-] with the imperial court.

Gu Yanshu didn't bother to write down the messy rules about postmen and court officials being exempt from tolls.

He only briefly mentioned it briefly, and then wrote a sentence for Wen Qingyan to read and add.

Even so, Gu Yanshu's plan can be said to be very detailed.

Wen Qingyan is different from Wen Qingxiao, this is the third time he and Gu Yanshu have met, and he doesn't know much about the rumored Princess Li.

Seeing that Gu Yanshu can think of so many tricks when he is building a road now, he has mixed feelings in his heart.

Thinking that when he was struggling with the matter of open source a few days ago, he heard his sixth younger brother say that if someone in their Wen family was half as powerful as Princess Li, they wouldn't be so helpless.

At that time Wen Qingyan was still jealous, thinking that the sixth brother had a confidant and forgot about his elder brother.

But now, after seeing the detailed plan in front of him, Wen Qingyan just wanted to say one thing:

His sixth brother really thinks highly of his family.

And half as powerful as Princess Li?

Even if he could have one-tenth of the mind of Princess Li, he wouldn't be so anxious a few days ago!

"Actually, apart from building roads, I have many other ways to open source."

Gu Yanshu didn't know what Wen Qingyan was thinking in his heart. Seeing that Wen Qingyan didn't speak for a long time after reading the plan, he thought that Wen Qingyan was not satisfied with the plan.

In addition to the advantages of road construction, there are also many disadvantages.

For example, it is time-consuming and labor-intensive, with a large investment in the early stage and full results in the later stage, and the cement road also needs regular maintenance...

Gu Yanshu knew all this.

Among the many open source methods, Gu Yanshu regards road construction as the first choice, and Gu Yanshu can feel his own conscience and say that he does not have much selfishness.

So at this moment, Gu Yanshu only paused for a moment, and then directly said the following words:

"But among these methods, I still hope that the fourth son can take the lead in considering road construction."

"Although the Wen family is not good at business, opening a shop to do something like earning a living has never troubled the Fourth Young Master, but the Fourth Young Master did not choose to do so. I don't need to elaborate on the reason why? "

"So what the Fourth Young Master is looking for should be a method that is beneficial to the common people and can also generate revenue for the treasury. This road construction happens to be able to meet the Fourth Young Master's request."

Although the Wen family is a family of poets and books, they can also be regarded as a family of bells and whistles.

At least Wen Liu has never worried about money. If the Wen family really doesn't know anything about merchants, how can they support the huge expenses of the Mansion?

Wen Qingyan was so anxious that he never thought about opening a shop to do business. The reason for this naturally started with the classification of "scholars, farmers, businessmen and commerce".

Tianqi has such a hierarchy, and the reason is naturally consistent with the history of China.

One of the most important reasons is that it is easier to make money in business than farming.

If the status of merchants is not suppressed, farmers may abandon farming and go into business because of the idea of ​​"making quick money".

At that time, there will be no one to plow the fertile land, and sooner or later the country will fall into a situation where there is no food to eat.

Wen Qingyan was following the emperor's order to open up money for the national treasury, and his every move attracted the attention of others.

If Wen Qingyan takes the lead in doing business, it will inevitably make others feel that the imperial court has improved the status of merchants, and subtly change the status concept of "scholars, farmers, businessmen" in the hearts of the people.

Gu Yanshu really wanted to improve the status of the businessman in Tianqi, but it was definitely not now.

Now that Tianqi is still struggling with food and clothing, how can he easily change the national policy?

As soon as Wen Qingyan heard Gu Yanshu's words, he knew that he had misunderstood, and quickly explained:

"The way of building roads is very good, I was just a little ashamed just now..."

Whether it is building bridges and roads to benefit the people, or opening up the treasury to relieve the monarch's worries, these should be what he should think of as a courtier of Tianqi.

Now he still needs others to remind him, how can Wen Qingyan not be ashamed?

"There is a specialization in surgery, and the fourth son is serious."

Gu Yanshu supported his forehead, how come the Wen family are all virtuous?He quickly used the words that fooled Wen Qingxiao to fool Wen Qingyan again, and at the same time did not forget to change the subject:

"I don't know if the fourth son has any suggestions or doubts about this road construction, but it doesn't matter."

Wen Qingyan did have a lot of doubts in his mind, and after hearing the words, he no longer struggled with the fact that he was not as good as Gu Yanshu:

"I do have doubts in my heart. Your Highness is so troublesome about road construction, but it seems that it will not bring much benefit to His Highness and Prince Li's Mansion?"

For Gu Yanshu, Wen Qingyan could know a little bit about his character even from the few words his sixth younger brother revealed in his daily life.

From Wen Qingxiao's usual descriptions, it can be known that Her Royal Highness Princess Li is a typical businessman.

And what is the biggest characteristic of a businessman?

No profit can not afford to be early.

In Wen Qingyan's eyes, the benefits that this plan in front of him can bring to Prince Li's residence are not worth it when Gu Yanshu spends so much time trying to move him with affection and reason.

"How does the Fourth Young Master know that this is not beneficial to Prince Li's Mansion?"

Gu Yanshu picked up the teacup and took a sip, and smiled slightly:

"Let's not say that cement is needed to build roads. The formula of cement is only available in Prince Li's Mansion. Let's just say that sometimes, it is not only the superficial benefits that make people's hearts flutter."

"What do you mean, Your Highness?"

Wen Qingyan seemed to understand the meaning of Gu Yanshu's words, but at the same time, she didn't seem to understand.

Gu Yanshu did not answer Wen Qingyan's doubts, but asked him another question first:

"The fourth son thinks that if the cement road is paved all over the sky in the future, how much faster will the common people travel on this cement road than they are now?"

"It should be twice as fast on foot, three times as fast on horseback, and if it is raining... it can be nearly doubled on this basis."

Wen Qingyan thought for a moment before giving the answer.

This answer, of course, was not something Wen Qingyan took for granted.

Although Tianqi does not have concrete roads, places like Nancheng where rich businessmen gather, there are also bluestone roads paved with bluestone slabs.

Wen Qingyan's data was obtained by referring to Qingshiban Road.

After Gu Yanshu had the idea of ​​laying cement roads, he conducted a detailed study on the existing roads in Tianqi.

Of course, the reason for Wen Qingyan's conclusion can also be heard.

In fact, seriously, the cement road is even smoother and easier to walk than the bluestone road, so if you ride a horse, you can go faster.

Gu Yanshu did not correct this error at this time, but only asked Wen Qingyan another question:

"If ordinary people are like this, what if they are replaced by the army?"

As soon as Gu Yanshu said these words, Wen Qingyan's heart skipped several beats!

That's right!

Ordinary people can use cement roads to speed up their feet, so what about the professionally trained armed forces?

At this time, Wen Qingyan finally understood why Gu Yanshu said that it was not only the superficial interests that made people's hearts flutter!

How did Gu Yanshu help him think of a way to open source for the court and the treasury?

This is clearly paving the way for His Royal Highness Li Wang to go out again in the future!

It took Wen Qingyan a while before he suppressed the shock in his heart, his throat moved slightly, and then he asked another doubt in his heart:

"Why did His Highness choose to step down?"

The various benefits of road construction are almost needless to say, Wen Qingyan believes that no matter who brings this plan to face the saint, the emperor will definitely not reject it.

As a prince and concubine, Gu Yanshu is fully qualified to be the emperor in front of him, and he never used his hands to complete this matter.

"Of course it's because I want to recruit the Fourth Young Master."

Gu Yanshu was not surprised by Wen Qingyan's question:

"The eldest prince has not given olive branches to Mr. Wen on weekdays, has he? Naturally, Prince Li's mansion is also very moved."

The heir of the Wen family's poems and books has a very high status among the literati. If the Wen family can be made to surrender, it will naturally be of great benefit to Prince Li's mansion who is despised by the literati.

In addition, the five members of the Wen family, father and son, are all officials in the court. Not to mention Wen Xuefei who holds great power, but the next few sons also have a bright future, which is a great help.

"The lower officials think that the Wen family's attitude is already obvious."

Who doesn't know that the Wen family is quite close to Prince Li's mansion because of the sixth son?

Even though the Wen family didn't express their position publicly, and they didn't have much contact with Prince Li's residence in private, but in the eyes of others, the Wen family was still labeled as Prince Li's residence.

Regarding this, Gu Yanshu only smiled slightly, and looked up at Wen Qingyan's eyes:

"I don't know if Qing Xiao mentioned it to the Fourth Young Master, I, Gu Yanshu, will never treat my own people badly."

Even if Gu Yanshu didn't say this, Wen Qingyan knew about it.

Not to mention the servants in Prince Li's mansion, not to mention the few teahouses and taverns under Gu Yanshu's hands.

As far as this newspaper is concerned, Wen Qingyan has often heard his sixth brother mention Gu Yanshu's generosity.

The salary is sufficient, and there are many holidays and benefits.

Even after seeing Gu Yanshu's way of managing the newspaper, his sixth brother, who was clean-eyed and never worried about the affairs of the inner government, even made many suggestions to his mother after returning home.

For example, the monthly schedule of servants in the family is improved, and the system of five days off and two rounds of rest is adopted, etc.

But until now, Wen Qingyan didn't really realize it until he saw the plan put in front of Gu Yanshu's eyes.

Gu Yanshu's "will not treat one's own people badly", how far can it go.

At the same time, Wen Qingyan finally understood why the sixth younger brother, who had seldom been in touch with others before the accident, fell in love with Princess Li at first sight, and why he praised her so much after getting to know her.

After Gu Yanshu finished what he just said, he stopped talking, just lowered his head to drink tea, and lowered his eyes to look at the sketches performed on the stage downstairs.

Wen Qingyan knew that this was the time Gu Yanshu was giving him to think about, waiting for him to express his opinion.

If you don't accept this proposal, you are rejecting Gu Yanshu's solicitation.

Accept it, and from now on, the Wen family will unite with Prince Li's mansion to serve His Royal Highness Li Wang...

No matter which one to choose, it was no small matter for Wen Qingyan.

In all fairness, Princess Li is an excellent person, whether as a friend or as a lord.

Not to mention the relationship between Prince Li's Mansion and the Wen family, there was already a faint step beyond the boundaries between ordinary princes and courtiers.

"His Highness's plan is good, but it is not a small project. The qualifications of the officials are still too low to make a decision. I wonder if His Highness can allow the officials to return to the mansion and discuss with father and brother?"

Seizing the heir, standing in line... This is no small matter for any courtier.

Once Wen Qingyan expressed his position today, it would represent the attitude of everyone in the Wen family, and he thought he couldn't make the decision.

"It's natural."

For this answer, Gu Yanshu also nodded slightly, and agreed.

When Wen Qingyan got up to say goodbye, Gu Yanshu reached out and clicked on the proposal on the table:

"Since I gave this plan to the fourth son, it is the fourth son's belongings. Don't forget to bring it back."

Gu Yanshu's consistent principle is that there is no benevolence and righteousness in business.

Now that this plan has been given, even if Wen Qingyan's final answer is not what Gu Yanshu thought, Gu Yanshu does not intend to take back this plan.

Wen Qingyan also heard Gu Yanshu's implication, and looked at Gu Yanshu with a little surprise:

"Your Highness?"

"Let's just say thank you."

Gu Yanshu returned Wen Qingyan with a faint smile.

In any case, since Wen Qingyan took office in the Ministry of Household Affairs, he has caused many obstacles to the Minister of the Household Department and the lineage of the First Prince, and Prince Li's House has also benefited a lot from this.

Just for this point, Gu Yanshu will not lose money by sending this proposal to the Wen family.

Wen Qingyan heard the words, no more words, just slightly leaned over to Gu Yanshu, stepped forward to pick up the plan, and exited the room.

The rest of the Wen family also knew about Wen Qingyan's discussion with Gu Yanshu today.

At the same time, the few people were also extremely curious about what method Gu Yanshu would come up with so that others would willingly pay for road repairs.

Therefore, as soon as Wen Qingyan returned to Wen's residence, he felt the warm welcome from his father and brothers.

Knowing the thoughts of these people, Wen Qingyan didn't hide it, and directly handed the plan in his hand to his eldest brother Wen Qingshu who was closest to him.

Wen Qingshu was not too polite. After getting the proposal, he opened it and read it.

Seeing this, the rest of the people went directly to Wen Qingshu's side, and together they browsed the contents of the proposal.

After reading it, the shock in the hearts of several people was no less than that of Wen Qingyan when he saw the plan for the first time in the teahouse.

Even Wen Xuefei couldn't help admiring a few words:

"High! High! I'm afraid only Her Royal Highness Princess Li can come up with this idea!"

Wen Qingshu and the brothers couldn't help nodding their heads in agreement:

"I've heard the sixth younger brother say how powerful Princess Li is. It's an exaggeration for me to be the sixth younger brother."

At this time, Wen Er also seemed to have thought of something, with a strange expression on his face:

"So in those days years ago, the First Prince fought so many times with Princess Li..."

As soon as these words came out, the expressions on the faces of the other members of the Wen family changed somewhat.

It's not a short period of time for them to be officials in the court, and they all know the princes, especially the eldest prince.

As far as the eldest prince is concerned, if he fights with this person, isn't that going to deliver food?

It's no wonder that since King Li got married, the eldest prince's lineage has been retreating steadily... From this point of view, it doesn't hurt at all to lose!

I also thought that the marriage between King Li and Concubine Li was facilitated by the noble concubine and the eldest prince...

Wen San couldn't help muttering in a low voice:

"I don't know what the eldest prince and empress will think when they find out."

I'm afraid my intestines will regret it, right?

Of course, it is good that everyone knows this, there is no need to say it.

Regarding the matter of the eldest prince and the noble concubine, several members of the Wen family had already discussed it, and after a while, the topic of the few returned to the plan.

Wen Xuefei has been an official in the court for many years, so he naturally sees things more comprehensively than Wen Qingyan.

After a while, Gu Yanshu came up with the original intention of this "paving plan", such as open source can benefit the people at the same time, such as increasing the speed of marching, etc., guessed a lot.

When the few people were discussing, it was inevitable that they would ask Wen Qingyan from time to time what else Gu Yanshu had said besides this proposal.

In the end, it was inevitable to talk about Gu Yanshu's words of solicitation.

The study room, which was originally full of lively discussions, fell into silence as if the pause button had been pressed.

A few people never expected that the topic would be shifted to this place so unexpectedly.

As the father of several people, Wen Xuefei was the first to come to his senses:

"It's said that it's better to catch up sooner than later. If that's the case, why don't you take advantage of today's opportunity to discuss this matter."