Chapter 70: A Small Harvest
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Qingzhou.
A gentle spring rain marked the end of the long, harsh winter. Spring had arrived once again, and the February breeze felt like a pair of scissors, cutting through the remnants of the cold.
The arrival of spring was good news for Xiao Ming, but it wasn’t the only good news. The praise for the ox-powered waterwheel from the entire court had also reached Qingzhou, carried by the spring breeze.
Following this, eight hundred thousand taels of silver arrived in Qingzhou. However, this was just the appetizer. Along with it came a massive order from the imperial court.
“Your Highness, this plan is truly brilliant. Now that the ox-powered waterwheel has gained the Emperor’s approval, it is required to be used in all imperial estates and government-owned fields across the Great Yu Empire. Even the feudal lords have been stirred and have sent officials to place orders. Currently, the orders for the waterwheel’s rollers have reached thirty thousand sets, amounting to nine million taels of silver. After deducting costs, we stand to make a profit of six million taels.”
Li Kaiyuan was ecstatic. The Qingzhou Trading Company was now the sole official trading company in Qingzhou, responsible for distributing all goods produced in the industrial district to every corner of the empire.
At the same time, the Qingzhou Trading Company also handled external communications, such as securing orders. This time, in addition to the orders from Chang’an, there were also numerous orders from various feudal lords.
However, fulfilling these orders would take time. The silver wouldn’t flow into Xiao Ming’s hands immediately.
“Ah, cursed productivity,” Xiao Ming sighed bitterly. If not for the limitations of productivity, he could have earned even more silver.
Still, he was satisfied with the current situation. Perfume, soap, and “Drunken Qingzhou” were highly popular across the Great Yu Empire, bringing in a steady stream of silver. Just from these three products alone, the prince’s residence was now earning three million taels of silver each month.
However, while this amount seemed substantial, when spread across the various construction projects in Qingzhou, Xiao Ming was left with little surplus each month.