To get rich quickly, you need to be simple and rough

The Shen family's cotton flannel is truly exceptional. This amount of raw material can only produce 300 pieces before it is used up. However, the woolen material can produce about 2,000 pieces.

When it comes to business, even if the Shen family members bundle together, they cannot catch up with Shen Fu. The old man stretches out the cloth and puts it on the market little by little, putting a little bit inside and outside at the same time.

Scarcity makes things valuable; if you have too many of them, they will become worthless. After doing business for so many years, the old man's channels are extraordinary. It is not a problem for him to sell things in a roundabout way, and no one can blame the Shen family.

The Shen family played a trick of grafting, telling the Ming Dynasty that this was an imported product from the sea, and boasting to overseas countries that this was the top-quality fabric newly developed by the Ming Dynasty, specially for the top dignitaries.

In addition to its rare production, this cloth was sold at a very good price. A piece of cloth was priced at three hundred taels and no one bargained. Even if dozens of pieces were released every few days, they were still not enough to fill the gaps in the market.

It was a great honor for the dignitaries of the court to receive two rolls of lustrous velvet as a gift. It was priceless and hard to come by. I suppose it was said to be woven from mink fur.

How big is a mink? How much fur does it take to make a piece of clothing? Isn’t it expensive?

The Shen family has figured out how to use cloth. They only launch some high-end products, and usually use them at home to appear harmless.

No one in the court was curious about a family with no background like the Shen family. The head of the family, Uncle Shen, was a very smiling person. He always donated money enthusiastically when the county organized projects to repair bridges and roads.

He was very popular in the local area, and the servants of the Shen family also lived a good life. They could earn 500 wen a month, which was not a small amount and was generous no matter how you looked at it.

The Shen family thrived on farming, raising pigs, spinning and weaving, yet they managed to stay relatively low-key. The principle of quietly making a fortune while keeping one's head down was thoroughly implemented throughout the Shen family, from top to bottom.

No one in the Shen family has ever worn that precious, lustrous satin. Why would anyone wear such expensive material? Wouldn't it be nice to sell it for money?

Is that thing as comfortable as twill? Under Shen Yujin's leadership, the Shen family all likes twill cotton that has been washed several times. It is soft, sweat-absorbent, and breathable.

The Shen family has figured out how to live their lives. Seeing how simple their lives are, it would be uncomfortable for any family to take out tens of thousands of silver.

The Shen family was developing rapidly. The dividends received by each branch during the Spring Festival this year were very satisfying, and the servants also received triple their monthly wages.

Zhu Yuanzhang promoted sweet potatoes very successfully. This thing has a high yield. Although eating too much will cause heartburn, it is indeed a life-saving food for the people. Even the sweet potato leaves can be used to cook.

A nation of foodies will not miss out on any edible food. During the Chinese New Year, Zhu Yuanzhang had a rare moment of conscience and rewarded the Shen family with a Chinese character for "Fu".

After the eunuch had gone, Shen Fubao carefully framed the character "Fu" and placed it in the ancestral hall. After the ancestral worship was completed, it was carefully stored in a camphorwood box.

This is a treasure that can be passed down from generation to generation. Regardless of how good Zhu Yuanzhang's calligraphy was, just based on his status, this character "Fu" can be sold for money in the future.

After the spring plowing, Shen Rong brought Shen Yujin back to Hangzhou to celebrate with Aunt Zhang, the old housekeeper. Shen Yujin worked hard to prepare for the exam, hoping to get a good ranking in the autumn exam this year.

Only those who passed the Juren examination could go to Nanjing to take part in the spring examination in February of the following year. If they passed, they would become Jinshi candidates and could participate in the palace examination presided over by the emperor himself.

The first place on the list would be chosen by the emperor as the top scholar, the second as the second, and the third as the third. These three people would be given the title of Jinshi by the emperor, and would ride on horses and parade through the streets to show off their wealth and power!

The first place in the second list is selected and awarded the title of Jinshi. The third list is selected and awarded the title of Tong Jinshi. The first list can be appointed by the emperor himself, usually to the Hanlin Academy to gain experience. In addition to the second list, all other candidates must take the examination.

Those with outstanding academic performance were awarded the title of Shujishi and could continue their studies at the Hanlin Academy, while others were sent out to serve as officials.

The most miserable are the Tongjinshi. Although they have passed the Jinshi exam, they are not treated well and cannot be officials because they live in poor and remote areas with old people, young people, and no one cares about them. Therefore, Tongjinshi are generally called Ru Madam, which means that they look like the first wife but are actually a concubine.

It was still the smoking hot Imperial Examination Hall, and Shen Yujin began a new ordeal. Hangzhou in autumn was not cool at all. Jiangnan was a place where scholars gathered, and it was originally a hellish province for the imperial examination.

Coupled with the rampant mosquitoes and hot weather, only the best of the best could come out of the Imperial Examination Hall.

Shen Yujin was the outstanding person. When the imperial examination results were announced, there were huge crowds of people. At this time, the person announcing the good news came to the Shen family with gongs and drums. Shen Rong was standing at the door with his hands and feet shaking with joy.

"Congratulations to Shen Yujin from Renhe County, Hangzhou Prefecture, for placing fifth in the provincial examination. Congratulations, Master Shen!"

Shen Yujin was still able to hold on, but Shen Rong had already reached into his purse and gave all the more than twenty taels of silver in it to the yamen runner who brought the good news without even counting them.

The yamen runners were so happy that their teeth were visible. The Shen family was so generous that they announced this good news. This was a lucrative job! The yamen runners blurted out auspicious words as if they were free: "Master Shen is handsome and talented. I wish Master Shen a great victory in the imperial examination and a place on the gold list!"

Shen Rong immediately asked the escort agency to deliver a message to his father. Actually, the county would also send someone back home to deliver the good news. Shen Rong wasn't planning on going home; the Spring Examination was still waiting for him in February of next year.

In Jinling, if the emperor visits late, all the houses will be rented out. The Shen family is not short of money, so of course they don't want to stay in an inn where all kinds of people gather.

Shen Fu's idea was to buy a house in Jinling so that the whole family would have a place to stay in the future. After all, his family was now an earl's mansion, so even if they had no real power, buying a house would not be too eye-catching.

The Shen family gave up their house in Hangzhou, and the group followed the escort agency to Nanjing in four mule carts loaded with luggage.

Going out in ancient times was a hassle. You had to prepare firewood, rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, tea, bedding, pickles for eating on the road, fodder for livestock, boiled water in large gourds, firewood for cooking, and oilcloth to keep out the rain.

I had to carry a ton of stuff, including clogs and raincoats. Going on a long trip was like moving house. The roads were so bumpy and it made me want to vomit from the car.

Shen Yujin cursed this lousy road in his heart! This piece of crap could even knock out a stomach stone.

The escort agency was quite experienced and tried to stay in towns whenever possible, camping in the wild when they had no other options. Along the way, they also encountered small gangs of bandits who were trying to get them to pay.

The escort agency usually just displayed its name and gave a little silver to send off a small group of bandits. After all, one wanted the safety of people and goods, while the other wanted money.

For goods like these that are escorted by the escort agencies, they usually just pay tolls at checkpoints. Right now, the imperial court is busy pacifying the north and hasn't had the time to deal with these bandits yet!