Starting from a thatched cottage, the farmer embarked on the road to wealth through imperial examina

Hearing that Liang Jingcheng was willing to spend two taels of silver to buy it, Ye Changyan gained confidence.

"Not counting the cost of buying cattle and building a workshop, and excluding the labor cost, the material cost of this candy is only a dozen coins per kilogram. Including the packaging box, the cost of this two kilogram of candy is only a few dozen coins."

Mr. Cai and Liang Jingcheng couldn't believe their ears. Such delicious candy only cost a dozen cents. They both stared at Ye Changyan in amazement.

"Teacher, Jingcheng, you don't have to be surprised. Jingcheng is willing to pay two taels of silver to buy it, which means that if this candy is put on the market, it will be very attractive. In fact, if you take into account the costs of buying cattle, building workshops, labor, packaging, storage and transportation, the company's profits and taxes, and management, the selling price of this candy will definitely far exceed the cost of the materials needed to make it."

Liang Jingcheng had never come across these things before, and was a little surprised when he heard the series of costs counted out by Ye Changyan, but Mr. Cai nodded. This candy was not like eggs and vegetables. The cost of these raw agricultural products was relatively limited, but this candy had been refined, which greatly increased its value, but also made his costs soar.

Materials worth a dozen cents were transformed into candies. If they were sold for one or two taels of silver, people would buy them. This shocked Mr. Cai. Thinking about it carefully, he was even more surprised that Ye Changyan had such a business mind at such a young age. Could it be related to the fact that the old man of the Ye family was a shopkeeper?

Seeing that Mr. Cai and Liang Jingcheng were thinking about something, Ye Changyan continued to speak.

"As the saying goes, things are valuable because they are rare. At present, this candy is probably the only one in the whole Dasheng, so it is not surprising if it is sold for one or two taels of silver. When these candies can be produced and bought everywhere like glass and soap, their prices will naturally fall quickly."

Liang Jingcheng came back to his senses from his surprise, thought about it carefully, realized something was wrong, and asked.

"It's not easy for a young man to earn ten taels of silver after working hard in the county town for a year. If your box of candy really costs one or two taels of silver, how many people can afford it?"

When Mr. Cai heard that Liang Jingcheng could ask such a question, he nodded with satisfaction, turned to look at Ye Changyan, and waited for his answer.

"Jingcheng, do you still remember the mountain delicacies in my house?"

Ye Changyan did not answer but asked instead, only to see Liang Jingcheng nod and smack his lips twice.

"At that time, because everyone was chasing after wild delicacies, my house was surrounded by people. If I sold it for 5 taels per jar, do you think anyone would buy it?"

"I don't know about others, but at least I will buy it. My teacher likes it very much, so I am willing to buy it to honor him."

Although Liang Jingcheng's words sounded a bit flattering, Mr. Cai was sure that Liang Jingcheng would really do so.

"That's right. This candy and the mountain delicacies have one thing in common, that is, they are delicious. And these two things are only in my hands, so they have become rare."

Ye Changyan looked at Liang Jingcheng, saw him nod, and continued.

"Ordinary people are not my target. My target customers are the dignitaries. They can send people to surround my house for a jar of wild delicacies. Do you think they will be reluctant to spend a few taels of silver to buy a large jar of candy suitable for all ages?"

Liang Jingcheng found himself unable to refute. He turned to look at the teacher, who just smiled, twirled his beard and nodded slightly.

"In fact, the establishment of this workshop is, in a sense, a good thing that benefits the country and the people."

"Where to begin?"

"To build a workshop, a lot of building materials will be needed, and many craftsmen will need to be recruited. After the workshop is built, a large amount of raw materials such as milk and sugar will be needed. The workshop will need to recruit long-term and short-term workers, and the produced candies will need to be stored and transported. Just think about how much economic development this will drive and how much benefit it will bring to the people."

Liang Jingcheng thought about it and felt that this was indeed a good thing that would benefit the people. He nodded and listened to Ye Changyan continue.

"When this business sells goods, it has to pay commercial taxes. The more expensive the candy is, the more commercial taxes it pays. When the government receives taxes, it has more money to build roads, bridges, and provide disaster relief."

When Mr. Cai heard Ye Changyan mention taxation, he smiled at Ye Changyan and nodded slightly.

"Most of the people who buy these candies are rich people, which is equivalent to rich people paying taxes. Do you think this is a disguised form of wealth redistribution? From this perspective, is this a good thing that benefits the country and the people?"

Liang Jingcheng nodded, thinking that from the perspective mentioned by Ye Changyan, it could really be regarded as a good thing that benefited both the country and the people. Of course, he also thought that although both the country and the people benefited from it, the biggest beneficiaries in this process were actually the businessmen. However, businessmen are also the people. Although businessmen pursue profits, as long as they abide by the law and operate with integrity, there is nothing wrong with it.

Ye Changyan's words made Mr. Cai secretly admire that his young disciple was not only eloquent and clear-minded, but also that the views he expressed were well-reasoned and well-founded.

Although all dynasties have advocated emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce, since the previous dynasty, the popularity of high-yield crops such as sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn has filled both government and private granaries every year. The problem of famine is no longer a factor that threatens the stability of the court.

In recent years, there have been some arguments in the court encouraging the development of industry and commerce. It was shocking to Mr. Cai that Ye Changyan, a child from a poor mountain village in a remote county, could have some similarities with the arguments of those bigwigs in the court.

Mr. Cai has never clearly stated his attitude on whether to emphasize agriculture and suppress commerce or to encourage the development of industry and commerce. He has the conservative side of a traditional Confucian scholar, but he can also look at the long-term and observe the changing situation in the world. Although he is not a radical, at least he tends to steadily advance reforms, increase people's income, and enhance national strength.

It seems that this little disciple of his has an active mind and a long-term vision, which is not a good thing.

However, Your Majesty is getting older and has become more suspicious in recent years. The conservative officials in the court control the government and often suppress officials with radical ideas. The officials in the Ministry of Rites are generally conservative, so in the imperial examinations, students who tend to be radical are often suppressed.

My two disciples have good comprehension and quick thinking. It seems that in my subsequent courses, I will have to gradually guide them to learn the principle of restraining their edge and biding their time.

The three teachers and students spoke freely on this cold winter night. Many of Ye Changyan's views were novel and eye-catching, and Liang Jingcheng was able to quickly absorb and integrate them. Mr. Cai also gave some pointers, which made Ye Changyan feel that this first introductory class was very rewarding.

"Dong dong dong..."

There was a low knock on the door, and Lu Tingfeng gently pushed the door open and walked in.

Lu Tingfeng came in with three hot water bottles, placed them on the chair next to the desk, and then quietly left.

Mr. Cai looked out the window. The rain was still falling, and the cold wind was howling, with raindrops falling onto the window sill.

"It's getting late, let's stop here for today."

Ye Changyan and Liang Jingcheng also looked out the window, and seeing that it was getting late, they nodded.

"This Chu Garden was originally the old residence of an old friend of mine. Now my master and I are renting it out. The three guest rooms are occupied by me, Jingcheng, and Tingfeng."

As he spoke, Mr. Cai picked up a hot water bottle on the chair and continued.

"It's cold this winter, and the bedding is damp. Bring these two hot water bottles, and you two will sleep in the same room tonight."