Chronicles of the Qin Dynasty

Chapter 197, Section 196: The World is in a Hustle and Bustle
The Red Woman is an extremely considerate chief secretary.

Two gold hairpins were presented, one on the left and one on the right.

The former, resembling a woman's item, is exceptionally delicate. The latter, however, is simple and grand, clearly more suitable for Wuyou.

The meaning contained within this made the two merchants tremble, as if something had leaped up from their chests, and then an electric current had struck their spines, causing an uncontrollable sense of dread to arise.

In the Qin state, as merchants, they were not entitled to use all the good things.

Silk, brocade, gold, jade, and jewelry.

Even someone as wealthy as Wuyou wouldn't dare wear a single jade pendant—that was their predicament.

But now, before the Queen has even given any instructions, she has already made an exception and gifted these two gold hairpins!

The significance of this is not merely to tell them to wear hairpins, but to foreshadow that in the future, people of their status could also rise to a higher social class!

The family, descendants, and even their own achievements will be inscribed in the family genealogy and passed down through generations!
Then there are those profit-driven transactions, those comments about "enriching the country and enriching families," and those effusive praises for their ability to facilitate the flow of goods...

All of this made the two of them devout and focused at this moment, wishing they could write down every word the queen said as diligently as the scribes beside them.

Thinking of this, the two exchanged a glance, solemnly accepted the gold hairpin, then personally put it on their heads, and bowed deeply.

"Please give your orders, Your Majesty. I will go through fire and water for you!"

The Lanchi Palace fell silent, while the historian stood by, sweating profusely, his pen never ceasing its strokes.

As the woman watched this scene unfold, for some reason, the hairs on her arms began to stand on end.

As if without her realizing it, she had witnessed some truly remarkable historical events.

Qin Shi smiled deeply, believing this was his way of rallying merchants, and quickly ordered, "In that case, let's hear my request."

Her needs are actually very simple.

Before the first heavy snowfall, we will push the supplies we want to promote to all the cold rural villages and towns, and to the poor people.

The supplies were supplied in complete sets.

Curved plow, wheelbarrow, pottery stove, honeycomb briquettes.

Inside the hall, people presented these items one by one.

The Quyuan plow, being made of wood, is too large, but it can be assembled using mortise and tenon joints, with the plowshare installed separately.

The wheelbarrow may seem simple, but it caught the eye of Wuyou and Mrs. Ba.

Another form that became particularly common and widespread in later generations was the three-legged cylindrical earthenware stove.

Then came three honeycomb briquettes.

Now there's no need for Qin Shi to explain everything in detail; attendants will come forward on their own.

First, light the honeycomb briquettes with a torch, then place them into the earthenware stove, aligning each hole with the briquette.

Next, a demonstration of accelerating combustion through the orifice and switching on/off the bottom blast furnace opening...

With just a simple explanation and an emphasis on not keeping the doors closed, the two businessmen's eyes lit up, clearly recognizing the enormous business opportunity.

Furthermore, the wheelbarrow was the most convenient tool for them to transport goods.

Moreover, as long as wood is used, even the poorest family, if they save up some money, might be able to order a carpenter's vehicle.

The curved plow, which is said to be used for tilling the land, cannot be demonstrated now. They will need to have their servants take it to the fields to test it before it can be promoted to various villages.

Their hearts pounded; they were clearly aware of the business opportunities hidden within these seemingly ordinary things.

But the most crucial question is how much the deal will cost and how to conduct it.

Coal is the most important military supply, and naturally it cannot be privately owned. Therefore, during the Qin Dynasty, the only question was:
"If you two successfully promote these items to every village, then you can take over the general agency for honeycomb briquettes in the entire Qin Dynasty." As for the proportion each of you will take over, that will naturally depend on the efficiency of your promotion efforts.

She didn't need to explain much; the two businessmen, who were very knowledgeable about the matter, already understood what "agency" meant.

This vast Qin Dynasty has far more than just a few thousand households.

Once even one family gets used to this product, it will become a steady stream of business!

After asking a few more questions about details, prices, and agency methods, Madam Ba spoke first: "I would like to ask Your Majesty to provide me with 30,000 honeycomb briquettes."

"Please allow me to take this earthenware stove back with me as well."

"Our Ba clan will travel around promoting this, and wherever we go, we will give away a wheelbarrow, a curved plow, a pottery stove like this for the village head and elders, and then some honeycomb briquettes..."

"After that, some of our clansmen became traveling merchants here and opened shops to sell honeycomb briquettes."

Since they couldn't monopolize the clay kiln business, local potters made and sold them individually.

If the price is cheap enough, people will naturally come to buy it when they are cold.

When making purchases, follow the Queen's advice: boil water on a ceramic stove daily, drink hot water often, and tell some stories about poisonous insects in the water...

Mrs. Ba is quick-witted and often travels around doing business on behalf of her husband's family. Now she has a complete set of business procedures.

Although Uyuyin was a step behind, he sold livestock everywhere. In fact, when it came to the wide range of his traveling business and shops, he had an advantage over Mrs. Ba!
But he was a step too slow, and now he could only say resentfully:

"Even petty people are like this!"

Qin Shi suddenly smiled.

However, this matter was just one of the tasks she was handling for merchants from all over the world. There was another task that was no less important than this major issue concerning people's livelihood.

"You two are merchants, and it seems that Wu merchants often travel among the Rong and Di tribes of the Western Regions, is that right?"

Wu You quickly cupped his hands in greeting: "That's right."

Qin Shi nodded: "I wonder how large the caravan is each time it travels? And whether it will attract the hostility of the Rong and Di peoples of the Western Regions?"

Wu You quickly replied, "Your Majesty, I often deal in livestock, selling the cattle and sheep of this tribe to other places, and then trading with them for salt, cloth, medicine, millet and other supplies."

"I have dared to say that I have already gained some reputation among the Rong and Di tribes, and the surrounding tribes are not afraid of me. If Your Majesty has any important matters to attend to, I will do my best to help."

That's good.

Qin Shi breathed a slight sigh of relief.

After all, given the strength of the Han Dynasty, Zhang Qian was captured several times during his missions to the Western Regions, a total of 12 years.

Now we are only exploring the various tribes in the Western Regions. Although we cannot travel as far as the Silk Road, it would not be a good thing if we were met with hostility along the way and wasted time.

She originally thought that the worst-case scenario was to quickly forge powerful weapons, raise strong people and horses, and then subdue the various tribes before engaging in trade.

But now that there is such a caravan, things are much simpler.

"In that case, I'll start a new business with you—sugar and tea."

"In exchange, you need to bring my personal guards along, and then explore all sorts of novel species. Plants, animals, mineral veins, and so on."

"Whether it's edible or not, as long as it's something that my Qin state doesn't have, bring back all the seedlings, seeds, or the plants themselves."

"Is it even possible to do that?"

　I'm here! See you next door.

　　(End of this chapter)