Shipin Dalizheng

Uncle Du was a little anxious. "How can we give it to other families? This is the only time of year when sugar is available, right? I don't really understand, but once the sorghum season is over, there won't be any sugar left, right? I won't say anything about those small shops you originally signed up for. From now on, they will all belong to me. Don't ask me how or where to sell them. I want them all."

Rong Dashan had nothing to say. As long as Duke Du's Mansion could accommodate the food, they wouldn't have to look for other customers.

The matter was settled, and Third Master Du drove the car back. Du Zhong, who was in charge of the candy shop, was waiting anxiously. "My Third Master, we've been asking all day. The Duke's wife has been asking several times if we have the thin candy she wants that can be mixed with water. Do you have it? She has several old sisters who like it. Bring a few more jars."

"Yes, yes, yes."

Fortunately, I ordered ten cans of thin sugar, otherwise there would not be a single can left.

Seeing that the sister-in-law wanted thin candy, it was impossible to accept her money. She still had to tell her the price. There were other shops selling it in the market, but it was not as sweet as this one, and the color was not as good as this one, but they still sold it for 150 Wen.

"Treasure sugar is two hundred coins a jar. For other sugars, you can look at the purchase price and set your own price. For sweet wine, just add 20% profit. I need to go back to the mansion."

Mr. Du Sanye hurried back to the mansion and found Duke Du, who happened to be talking about the fan.

"It's just been built. Wow, when I went there, I heard that the Zheng family had signed some kind of alliance treaty. For one thousand taels of silver, they could take over the entire market within a radius of five hundred miles around Xingyang. They said five hundred miles, but Zheng Changzhi is such a ruthless person. If he can get it, he'll dare to take over five thousand miles. Our family needs to hurry up."

Uncle Du also wiped his sweat and said, "I was just about to say that time waits for no one. Whoever catches it first will make a fortune. Also, regarding the sugar matter, I have made a major discovery."

"What major discovery?"

Master Du San drove the others away and whispered to Duke Du, "That sugar is made from sorghum stalks."

Duke Du's eyes bulged out in disbelief, "Sorghum stalks?"

"I saw it with my own eyes. They were doing it in secret, but with hundreds of people involved, how could they leave their mark? They simply chopped the sorghum stalks and squeezed the juice from them to make sugar. I didn't go into the workshop to see how they squeezed the juice, but I saw the big pot in the yard. At mealtimes, people took turns stirring it. The residue from squeezing the juice out to dry covered half the road."

"Are you sure it's sorghum stalks, not sorghum?"

Third Master Du said, "I've only heard that sorghum can be used to make wine, but I've never heard of it being used to make sugar. Oh, and Prince Rong also makes wine. I brought a batch to sell in the shop. The flavor is quite unique, and I think the ladies will like it."

Duke Du has no interest in brewing wine. He has tasted all kinds of good wine. The wine brewed by Prince Rong may not be better than those brewed by century-old workshops.

But sugar is different. If sorghum stalks can be used to make sugar, he can open a sugar factory and earn 100% of the money.

"You have to start both of these things. You have to open a sugar factory and sell fans."

Mr. Du Sanye couldn't handle two or three messengers by himself, so he went to the Minister of Works' residence at night to discuss the matter.

The Minister of Industry was not polite and asked him if he wanted to join the franchise or what. If he wanted to join the franchise, he would pay 1,000 taels as a franchise fee, give them the blueprints, and they would teach him. If he didn't want to join the franchise, he could also order a large quantity and sell it to others for a higher price.

Mr. Du, who was deeply attached to the sugar mill, could not break the bank and opened a fan workshop far away, so he agreed to make custom orders for resale. The three grades were 80, 40, and 10 taels, respectively, with a minimum order of 100 pieces, and they could not be sold within the capital.

Mr. Du gritted his teeth and ordered 100 of each, thinking that even if he couldn't sell all the most expensive ones, he could keep a few for himself and give a few to relatives and friends, so there wouldn't be many left.

After discussing this, the next step is to prepare to set up our own sugar factory.

In Shangjing, several businesses that had heard the news went to the Minister of Works to discuss the matter. The Minister of Works was primarily interested in recruiting franchisees to earn money for free. Wholesale finished products involved raw material costs, labor costs, and the need to submit profits to the Ministry of Revenue, making it far less profitable than directly selling blueprints.

The Tang family fool, sent here by Young Master Zheng with a letter of recommendation, was truly a treasure. In just a few days, he had earned face in front of the emperor and money in his pocket. Almost all the workshops in the Ministry of Works were working overtime, day and night to rush the work.

Everyone else was smiling happily, but Rong Tang, who was going to close the shop, had a gloomy face that looked like ink was dripping from his face.

He took Rong Zhan and Rong Wanli to Jingxi County early in the morning to take back several cloth shops. However, when they arrived there, they found that the signs on the shops had been changed and read "Xu's Cloth Shop".

Rong Zhan checked the shop deed again and again, "Yes, No. 8 Yongning Lane. There's a soapberry tree in front of the door. This is it."

But even if the Yang family wanted to take over the shop, the sign should have said Yang's Cloth Shop. How could it be Xu's Cloth Shop?

When I walked up and asked, I found out that the man surnamed Xu was originally the owner of a cloth shop. A few days ago, the original owner wanted to sell the shop, so he scraped together money from all over, borrowed money, and bargained for money to buy these shops. He became the boss himself and just hung up the sign yesterday.

Rong Tang's face was cold, and Rong Zhan's face was also serious. When they walked into the shop, they asked the waiter, "Where is Shopkeeper Xu?"

The waiter was startled. Seeing that it was a nobleman with three or four servants, he did not dare to be careless and hurried in to call Manager Xu out.

Shopkeeper Xu has been feeling very proud these days. For many years he worked for others as a shopkeeper, but now he has become his own boss. He is still running a familiar business and has many customers for many years. It is a business that is sure to make a profit.

Although buying a shop is a bit against the rules...

Never mind, it’s other people’s business.

"Who is it? Who's looking for me?"

When I came out of the back hall, I saw these people coming into the shop, and I had a bad feeling in my heart.

Relying on the fact that he had been in the county for many years and knew many people in both the black and white worlds, he boldly asked, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

Rong Zhan sneered, "What are you doing here? Shopkeeper Xu, you know whose shop you are and whose shop this is, right? Don't you think you've been doing this for years and don't know that this is the property of the Jian'an Earl's Mansion in Shangjing?"

Shopkeeper Xu's heart was pounding, and he said stubbornly, "I don't care who owned it originally. Now that I've bought it, it's mine. If you don't leave, I'll kick you out. Come here..."

Rong Zhan slapped Shopkeeper Xu in the face, and the blood from the corner of his mouth couldn't be stopped. The waiter screamed and ran out, shouting, "Someone's being beaten! Someone's being beaten!"

Rong Wanli walked out, jumped up, tore down the signboard and smashed it on the ground, saying to the neighbors and passersby who had rushed over after hearing the news, "The prince of Jian'an is here to close the shop. If you want to watch the fun, stay away. I won't be responsible if blood splashes on you."

When everyone heard this, they all retreated to a safe distance. They were friends with Manager Xu, but the other party was the earl's son, and they, the common people, could not afford to offend him.

Shopkeeper Xu covered his face and ran out shouting, "I bought this! You Xihu people, come and help me! Go and sue the authorities!"

My mouth is swollen and my voice is changed.

Rong Tang pulled a chair to use as a door and sat down, holding the shop deed in one hand and clapping his other hand, "Alright, go and sue the authorities. This prince wants to know who you bought the shop from. The deed and the official certificate are in my hands."

Shopkeeper Xu was very panicked and suddenly regretted it, but it was too late to regret because this was his life savings.

"I bought it from Madam Jin. I have the sales deed here, so I'm not afraid of the county magistrate coming to investigate."

Rong Tang laughed out loud, "Shopkeeper Xu, this shop belongs to the Jian'an Earl's Mansion, and the owner's surname is Rong. If you said you bought it from Madam Rong a few months ago, maybe I wouldn't give you a hard time. But where did this Madam Jin come from?"