hsntnovel Chapter 2732 Selling White Rice
Chapter 2732 Selling White Rice
Li Shen smiled happily after he finished speaking. He was very pleased that he had managed to make Duke Changsun Wuji of Zhao suffer a setback.
The three men watched Prince Ji laughing to himself, and felt a chill run down their spines. Was Prince Ji thinking of some treacherous scheme again?
"Your Highness, it will be difficult to drag Duke Zhao down with us. Duke Zhao is cautious and we may not be able to find any evidence against him."
Wang Xuance first threw a bucket of dirty water.
Changsun Wuji was the prime minister. He was meticulous and skillful, and not someone that an ordinary person could deal with.
Even Prince Ji wouldn't be a match for Changsun Wuji in terms of cunning.
"Hehe, who cares about being cautious or not, let's find out the truth first."
The provincial examination is about to begin this year. I cannot let them have it too easy. Go to the Imperial Academy and select ten students who are good at studying to participate in the imperial examination.
Tell the Ministry of Personnel that this is a talent recommended by Prince Ji's residence.
Li Shen smiled slightly. He naturally knew that Changsun Wuji was not easy to deal with. If he hadn't held the economic lifeline of the Changsun family in his hands last time, why would that old scoundrel have helped him?
Wang Xuance said no more, accepted the order, and bowed.
When Prince Ji does things, they often don't know his intentions unless he tells them.
"Old King, I have an even more important task for you. I promise to give His Majesty a belated birthday gift."
After much thought, I've finally come up with a plan. Go back and have someone make it happen.
The sooner the better, ideally within seven days.
As Li Shen spoke, he handed a piece of paper to Wang Hongfu. It was covered with dense writing and included a large drawing.
Wang Hongfu unfolded it and glanced at it, immediately understanding.
"Your Highness, rest assured, I will definitely make this within seven days."
"Yes, not only do you have to make it, but you also have to be precise. You can discuss this with the craftsmen in the workshop; they know more about it than you do."
Li Shen gave an instruction: what he was going to do had to be precise.
"Yes, Your Highness, I will certainly not fail in your mission. However, what kind of materials does Your Highness intend to use?"
Wang Hongfu glanced at the blueprints, then looked up and asked.
Li Shen thought for a while:
"Of course, use refined iron, no, refined steel, so it can be preserved for longer. If the workshop doesn't have it, get it from the Academy of Sciences; they should have plenty there."
"If you get this done well, you'll get a huge credit."
"I will do my best to handle this." Wang Hongfu was overjoyed. He had his salary deducted for a year last year, and this year he would finally see the money again.
Li Shen nodded, then asked Shi Tou to bring him his notebook, took a sip, and began to flip through it.
Finally, it stops on one page:
"Oh, right, there's one more thing. Give the blueprints for the sled to Xuan Ce and have him deliver them to the Ministry of Works."
The imperial court needs this to transport goods in the north.
Li Shen looked at the notebook and spoke again.
Li Shen had almost forgotten about the sled incident, having already agreed to it.
Wang Hongfu and Wang Xuance bowed and accepted the order, only to see Li Shen continuing to flip through his notebook.
"Huh?" Li Shen exclaimed, his eyes fixed on the notebook.
"Old Wang, how much rice do we still have left from Liaodong?"
Li Shen's notebook clearly stated that white rice is very expensive.
"Your Highness, there is still plenty. We don't actually need that much white rice to brew wine."
Wang Hongfu replied that brewing wine requires grains and even fruits.
Li Shen made all kinds of wine and had people constantly experiment with different rice mixtures to improve their effects.
Hearing that there were many more, Li Shen's eyes lit up:
"Hmm... You should first take out 10,000 shi (a unit of dry measure) and sell it in the East and West markets at a price of 100 wen per dou (another unit of dry measure)."
"A hundred coins a dou!!"
When Wang Hongfu and the other two heard this number, their jaws nearly dropped. Was Prince Ji being too greedy? White rice was only thirty coins a dou, and millet was only twenty coins a dou.
“Your Highness, this price is a bit too high. Rice prices are regulated by the imperial court. If His Majesty finds out about this price, he will probably punish you again.”
Moreover, if the censors found out, they would surely impeach the prince in court, accusing him of hoarding the people's hard-earned money and driving up prices.
Wang Xuanze once again fulfilled his duties as chief secretary and began to advise Li Shen not to cause any more trouble.
But why would Li Shen listen?
"Xuan Ce, you don't understand. This is Liaodong white rice, the most precious white rice. You've eaten it before, don't you think it's delicious?"
"This... is delicious, with plump grains, sweet and soft, but one hundred coins for a dou of rice is a bit too expensive."
Wang Xuance hesitated for a moment before speaking, "The white rice is indeed good, but the price is a bit high."
"Is it too high? Hmph, I think it's too low. After this batch of 10,000 shi of rice is sold, the next batch will be 200 wen per dou."
Li Shen snorted twice. He remembered that he had asked Li Chengqian for ten strings of cash per dou yesterday.
Today it's only 100 coins, that's incredibly cheap.
When the three heard Li Shen's offer, they were all speechless. They thought one hundred coins was too expensive, and he wanted to raise it to two hundred coins.
Ordinary people can't afford it either.
However, Prince Ji's words still had to be carried out. Fortunately, this matter had nothing to do with Wang Xuance, so if anyone was going to have a headache, it was Wang Hongfu.
"Don't worry, someone will definitely buy it."
After Li Shen's promotion today, those nobles will naturally follow suit and buy it. The next batch of white rice is prepared by Li Shen for those merchants.
At 200 coins per dou, there will definitely be people who want to try it out, and if they find it delicious, they will definitely buy it.
Especially for wealthy businessmen, they only earn a few strings of cash a month, so they have no pressure at all.
"Your Highness is truly talented and brimming with ability. I admire you greatly for being able to sell this ordinary white rice at such a high price."
Wang Hongfu's flattery followed closely behind.
This white rice was obtained by the prince in exchange for millet, one pound for two pounds.
The seller only had forty coins, and Li Shen didn't take any money when exchanging rice for rice.
Now, Prince Ji is offering 100 coins per dou (a unit of dry measure), making at least 70% profit – a sure way to make a huge profit.
"Haha, this is just a little trick of mine." Li Shen laughed heartily.
Wang Xuance secretly calculated that 10,000 shi of white rice, at 100 wen per dou, would be worth 10,000 guan if sold.
Those noble officials had so many people in their families; even if the servants weren't fed, their parents, wives, and children would still need several hundred bushels of grain.
At that time, every family had a large number of children.
"Old Wang, when you buy the rice, be sure to explain that it comes from Liaodong Province and has been growing for up to six months."
Only by absorbing the essence of heaven and earth and the spirit of the sun and moon can the grains be plump, sweet, and soft; long-term consumption can have great benefits.
After thinking about it, Li Shen still felt that he should tell this white rice a story, so that it would be worthy of its price of one hundred coins.
"Your Highness, what are the benefits of this white rice?" Upon hearing that it had benefits, Wang Hongfu quickly asked, as this was a selling point.
"Mmm...delicious, and very filling," Li Shen replied.
（2026年1月10日06:22:41，写了一晚上，紧赶慢赶七点前赶上了。
A lone traveler traverses a thousand miles, what fear is there of the desolate road ahead? (Time to sleep.)