The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 228: Full Pay Makes You Invincible

The sky is still gloomy.

The hall of Miyun Palace was still brightly lit.

In order to ensure that the Ming army was fully paid and invincible, Wanli was trying every possible way to make money.

The transportation cost of the coal business is too high, so we can only mine nearby.

The problem is that we still have to explore nearby to mine.

Artificial drilling equipment has not been developed yet, so there is no way to do this for the time being.

How can I make more money next time?

Wanli scanned the area carefully again and then asked, "Doctor Li, how is our medicine production now?"

Li Shizhen said excitedly, "Your Majesty, this large-scale planting of medicinal herbs is different.

The medicines we grow ourselves and those grown in various villages and towns have gradually matured this year, and our production of medicines has reached more than 50,000 boxes a day.

I think we can continue to dig terraces in the Baihe River Valley, and the garrisons in various places can plant more medicine. This way, we can easily produce 100,000 boxes a day."

Well, now that we have enough medicinal materials, we can consider further expansion.

Wanli asked again, "Doctor Wan, how are the sales of the medicine now?"

It will naturally get better and better.

Wan Bangzhong also said excitedly: "Your Majesty, the sales volume of medicine in Beizhili alone is now more than 10,000 boxes a day.

People from all around heard that our medicine was easy to use and convenient, so they all came to buy it. Now we sell more than 10,000 boxes a day.

"Let's assume the gross profit is around ten wen per bottle, so one box is sixty wen, one thousand boxes is sixty taels, and ten thousand boxes is six hundred taels. Now we can make over a thousand taels a day just by selling ordinary medicine."

This is just the beginning. Once it is rolled out to the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty, there will be more than 100,000 boxes a day.

If it could be sold overseas, the output would probably be more than hundreds of thousands of boxes a day.

There are also cloth, porcelain, glass, etc. If these things can be dumped overseas in large quantities, it will be more profitable than buying medicine.

This is another contradiction. If the navy is not strong enough to engage in overseas trade, then it is not making money, but giving money to others.

There is no law on the sea now, and those colonial bandits believe in the law of the jungle.

If your navy is stronger than others, they will do business with you. If your navy is not as strong as others, they will just rob you!
It seems that the navy can no longer be delayed and must be developed quickly.

We have to plant the medicinal herbs quickly, otherwise there won’t be enough to sell next year.

Wanli thought about it carefully, and then said decisively: "Yuan Jing, you should ask the garrisons in various places to open as many medicinal fields as possible. Also, after the spring of next year, the soldiers of the Shenji Camp and the Shenshu Camp will take turns to come to the Baihe River Valley every month to dig terraces.

Each battalion rotates 10,000 men every month, digging non-stop until the Baihe River Valley is dug through. We've already recaptured the Beiping Xingdusi."

what?
How long will it take to dig through the Baihe River Valley?

That’s hundreds of miles!
Upon hearing this, Qi Jiguang cautiously said, "Your Majesty, won't we continue the northern expedition next year?"

Alas, wars are fought for money.

I don’t have that much money to give out military rewards now.

Besides, developing a navy requires money, a lot of money.

The key now is not to expand territory, but to make money quickly. Only a fully paid Ming army will be invincible.

Wanli thought for a moment and then explained, "Yuan Jing, we can't keep fighting. The soldiers also need to rest.

Moreover, after we expand our territory, we must gain sufficient benefits to support us in continuing to fight.

Now we have taken over and defended the Beijing Xingdusi. The initial investment in food, supplies, weapons and equipment, military rewards, and the construction of the city cost more than 10 million taels.

The problem is that we have not yet gained any benefits from the Beijing Xingdusi. Even the cattle, sheep and horses we captured are just cattle, sheep and horses, and have not yet been turned into money.

No one can sustain this kind of fighting. Next year, we must find a way to convert the resources of the Beijing Xingdusi into cash. Furthermore, the territories of Tumen Khan and the Tumed tribe are much larger than the Beijing Xingdusi. Once we take them, we must also consider how to hold on to them.

Their territory is thousands or even tens of thousands of miles in radius. Our current soldiers are simply not enough to guard such a large territory.

Therefore, we have to continue recruiting soldiers, not only for the Beijing camp, but also for the border troops, which requires a lot of food and wages.

I also want to wipe out the northern barbarians in one fell swoop and take over both the north and south of the desert. The problem is, this is impossible. Without money, we can't keep fighting this war."

Well, I'm really a little anxious. Without enough money, we can't continue this war.

Qi Jiguang nodded repeatedly and said, "Your Majesty is wise. I understand."

Well, I'm glad you understand.

The next step is to consider how to expand Wanshengtang Pharmacy.

If we expand the current production of medicines to cover the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty, it will definitely not be possible.

It would be good if we could increase the production of medicine to 100,000 boxes a day next year. This amount of medicine is not enough for the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty.

It seems that we can only expand to Nanzhili first.

There is also the largest shipyard in the Ming Dynasty over there.

Nanzhili, it’s time for me to go and take a look.

Wanli thought about it carefully, and then said decisively: "Doctor Li, please prepare more medicines. Next spring, we will go to Nanzhili to open a branch of Wanshengtang Pharmacy.

The territory of Southern Zhili is much larger than that of Northern Zhili, and the population there is more than twice that of Northern Zhili. Moreover, the common people there are also relatively wealthy. Most people should be able to afford our cheap ordinary medicines.

I estimate that 20,000 boxes of medicine a day alone are not enough for Nanzhili alone. If the merchants there sell our medicine to the five provinces of Jiangnan, the production of 50,000 boxes a day will definitely not be enough."

Southern Zhili is indeed larger and richer than Northern Zhili.

Li Shizhen nodded repeatedly and said, "I understand."

Wanli then gave detailed instructions: "Doctor Wan, you are responsible for preparing the manpower. Calculate the total number of doctors employed in the various prefectures and counties in Northern Zhili. Southern Zhili will need at least double that."

There are enough doctors.

Wan Bangzhong nodded repeatedly and said, "I understand."

It seems that this is the only way to go for the pharmaceutical business. It will be enough to get Nanzhili established next year.

The problem is that the gross profit of 50,000 boxes of medicine a day is only 3,000 taels, which is less than 100,000 taels a month. This amount of money is not enough.

Is there any other business that can make a lot of money quickly?
Selling cloth?
Wanli thought about it carefully and asked again, "Yuan Gong, how is the cloth business now?"

Duke Yingguo Zhang Yuangong quickly explained, "Your Majesty, we now produce over 30,000 bolts of cloth a day, and over a million bolts a month. With a gross profit of 60 wen per bolt, we can now make 50,000 to 60,000 taels a month just from selling cloth."

We've just started, and your cloth business isn't making as much money as selling medicine.

Wanli said very straightforwardly: "This is far from enough. We need to double the output every year. Next year we need to produce two million pieces of cloth a month."

what?
How many looms would this require?
The Duke of England thought about it carefully, then said cautiously, "Your Majesty, if we keep turning over the cloth like this, I'm afraid we won't be able to sell it all."

You don't have to worry about this. With the quality of Ming Dynasty's cloth, it will be no problem to occupy the world market.

The key now is money.

I must earn enough money to develop the navy.

This "enough" does not mean tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even millions of taels. If we really want to fully pay the Ming army, the money needed is tens of millions of taels.

The question is, where can I make so much money?
Wanli couldn't help but frown and fell into deep thought.

Duke Yingguo Zhang Yuangong was startled when he saw Wanli suddenly frown and stop talking.

Did he say something wrong?
(End of this chapter)