The Splendor of the Five Dynasties

Chapter 143 Technological Upgrade

As soon as he stepped out of the palace gate, Li Chongjin spat.

"Why is Old Wang everywhere? We've already explained everything, but he still drags us back to give us a scolding."

Zhang Yongde said, "Master Wang is worried that my father-in-law is too lenient with the younger generation, so it is only right that he be stricter."

Xiao Yi glanced at the invitation card in Shi Dechong's hand, which was only worth 1,600 guan. He was also displeased, but he didn't say anything.

He remained calm and composed.

Shi Dechong said, "If Prime Minister Wang passes away, he will certainly be posthumously granted the title of Prince."

"Hehe." Li Chongjin was amused and said, "Shi Dalang is quite a character. I'm leaving, my head hurts, I'm going to sleep."

Zhang Yongde said with a wry smile, "I shouldn't have invited Chongjin for drinks; it was quite a scene last night."

Xiao Yi then learned that they had drunk together afterward. The social atmosphere was already bad, and if the young generals were not disciplined, who knew what kind of people they would become? Wang Jun should be very strict with them.

"Is Brother Chongjin drunk and acting crazy?"

Zhang Yongde pointed to the dark circles under his eyes and said meaningfully, "You should avoid him."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yi thought to himself that he would probably have to fight Li Chongjin sooner or later.

"I've got it. I'll take Dalang to collect the money."

"Alright, go to the Privy Council to sign the document first, then go to the Inner Palace. Don't go to the Three Departments. The Inner Palace manages the Emperor's expenses, while the Three Departments manage official expenses. The process is slow, and they can cut corners."

"Thank you, Commander."

"You're too kind. We can call each other brothers in private."

Zhang Yongde was a shrewd and diplomatic man. He patted Xiao Yi on the shoulder and bowed slightly to Shi Dechong with a smile.

"Brother, farewell."

"General Zhang, please take care."

After everyone else had left, Xiao Yi noticed Shi Dechong's shifty eyes and realized that Shi Dechong was trying to build connections with the young generals by scolding Wang Jun.

But such cleverness was useless. In the Great Zhou Dynasty, he could crush Shi Dechong as easily as crushing an ant.

Without a word, the two locked eyes for a moment. Shi Dechong lowered his head, hunched his back, and handed over the letter, saying, "My lord, I have not failed you."

"No need for me, give it to Lao Pan."

Xiao Yi did not heed Zhang Yongde's advice to go to the Inner Palace, but instead went to the Three Departments.

While it's convenient to go to the Imperial Household Department today, they can only provide small amounts of money for emergencies. In the future, the court's purchase of telescopes will involve large sums of money, which will naturally have to go through the Three Departments—oh, provided the business goes smoothly.

In short, let's get Lao Pan familiar with the public first.

Whenever Lao Pan encountered an official, he would present him with a bag of prepared tea.

But when they arrived at Li Gu, the Commissioner of the Three Departments, they didn't see them off.

When Xiao Yi arrived, Wang Pu happened to be in the yamen. He beckoned him in and did not stop his discussion with Li Gu.

"Brother Weizhen, since the dynasty has just been established, is it alright to change the cowhide tax?"

"That deserves to be called a tax law? It's a law of exploitation by people like Su Fengji and Wang Zhang. Why should the court use up all the leather in the country? I, the three judicial authorities, declare that every day the tax law on Su's cowhide is retained is a day of utter disgrace."

Li Gu banged on the table loudly, and when he heard the noise, he turned around to look.

Xiao Yi had only met Li Gu once before, but now, after a closer look, he found that although Li Gu was a civil official, he was tall and strong, with a majestic presence. His every move was generous and passionate, and although he was nearly fifty, he still had the spirit of a young man.

"Greetings, Lord Li."

"Haha," Wang Pu laughed, "I will introduce Brother Weizhen and Young Master Xiao."

"No need for introductions, I've heard of him. He captured Su Niupi, which was a great relief."

"The people of the world have been oppressed for a long time, and finally they have met a good Minister of the Three Departments, so they can breathe a sigh of relief."

"How can a small corner of the land be considered the whole world?"

Xiao Yi was slightly taken aback by Li Gu's words.

With a fixed gaze, Li Gu's eyes were clear, possessing a chivalrous air rarely seen in the world of power.

Xiao Yi admitted that he couldn't have this kind of temperament. For example, he also had something to say about the cowhide tax. Rather than changing it, it would be better to abolish it. The court would no longer have to impose it, but instead, a special person would buy it. However, he had concerns and would not say it now, but would wait for the right time.

"General Xiao, what brings you to the Three Departments?"

"He came with Shi Jiadalang to collect money for manufacturing telescopes for the army."

Old Pan handed over the invitation at the opportune moment.

Li Gu took a look and immediately frowned, asking, "What could possibly cost eighty strings of cash?"

Xiao Yi could answer, but he didn't speak, instead looking at Lao Pan.

Shi Dechong understood, and feigned weakness, saying, "Lord Li, I am not in good health, so please have the old servants in the manor handle everything."

Old Pan was very nervous, rubbing his hands together, and said, "A telescope... Oh, to answer your question, Lord Li, having this allows one to see clearly into the distance, which is of great... well, great benefit on the battlefield. It is made of precious stone, and if the material is damaged during its manufacture, it will require..."

"Give it to me, let me see it."

Li Gu had a strong presence. He had no expression, and with just a simple sentence, he made Lao Pan turn around in a panic.

Xiao Yi still didn't show up, watching as Old Pan swallowed a few times and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Reporting to Prime Minister Li, only one was made, and it is with His Majesty."

Li Gu nodded and said, "You can come again tomorrow."

After leaving the Three Departments Office, Old Pan was quite ashamed and whispered, "General, I've messed this up."

"Don't rush, Master Li didn't say he wouldn't give it to us. We'll come back tomorrow."

"Yes." Shi Dechong leaned closer and whispered a complaint, "Are all the officials of the new dynasty so stingy? My lord, shall we go to the inner palace again?"

"No need."

Xiao Yi knew he was trying to get closer to him this way, but it didn't work.

With such a significant tax reduction, it's only right that the Three Departments (the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Personnel, and the Ministry of Justice) exercise caution in their spending. Li Gu's decision not to release funds simply because the emperor and the Privy Council signed a document demonstrates a responsible attitude.

"Where do you live?"

"I will return to my residence."

"Shi Zhai?"

"Yes."

Xiao Yi glanced at Shi Dechong and saw that his eyes were darting around. He didn't press the matter and instructed Lao Pan, "Have Wang Jiu take some men to protect Shi Dalang."

"Here."

They returned to camp for drills and selected new recruits for training.

Despite being busy, Xiao Yi still had Zhang Mantun hand over the roll call book for inspection in the evening.

"What's wrong with Lü Chou? He was listless during training today, and he didn't even show up for roll call this morning?"

"He had diarrhea and went to the city to seek medical help during the night."

"If you get screened out during the drills, don't say I'm ruthless."

"Hey, he's one of the best in martial arts, it's not his turn."

The next day, Xiao Yi got up early. At 1 a.m., Lü Chou was not there. He asked for leave, saying that he still had diarrhea.

After the drills, seeing that the three offices were almost ready to go on duty, Xiao Yi once again took Lao Pan and Shi Dechong to the three offices to collect their pay.

Upon entering the yamen, Li Gu saw them arrive, picked up the telescope on the table, and began to caress and play with it.

Xiao Yi had a bad feeling.

Sure enough, when Lao Pan handed over the invitation with both hands, Li Gu didn't even look at it before speaking.

"I'll guess for now. This object contains two crystals, one that reflects distant objects into the stone, and the other that expands the image to be seen in front of you, thus allowing you to see things as if they were close. Is that so?"

Old Pan couldn't answer, so he turned to look at Xiao Yi, who shook his head slightly.

Shi Dechong smiled and said, "Prime Minister Li, His Majesty purchased this item to observe the battle formation and anticipate the enemy's moves, thus preventing the sacrifice of soldiers. Why should the Three Departments obstruct it?"

Li Gu sighed, “If it is said that the stone is hard to find, nine out of ten pieces will be wasted during the grinding process, hence the high cost. However, at a price of eighty strings of cash, how can it be used extensively in the army? Shi Lang, you should think carefully before proceeding, lest there be no successor.”

After saying that, he took the notice, signed and stamped it, and handed it to Lao Pan.

Xiao Yi understood Li Gu's unspoken meaning—Li Gu could replicate the telescope, and he would definitely do so in order to reduce the court's expenditures, but he was willing to give Shi Dalang a chance to voluntarily lower the cost.

After leaving the Three Offices, Xiao Yi kept thinking about this matter the whole way.

Old Pan finally received 1,600 strings of gold ingots, carried a small box, and followed behind.

Back at camp, I sat down in the guardhouse.

"Old Pan, let's calculate how much money we can come up with in total?"

"Yes, this is the account book. After the general looked at it last time, he added several major income and expenditure items. He received a total of 2,000 strings of cash from Liu Yun and Li Hongjian, 117 strings of cash for crematorium expenses, 1,000 strings of cash for purchasing cotton cloth in Xiangzhou, 65 strings of cash for maintaining Taiping Palace, and 100 strings of cash for Mr. Li. Including other minor expenses, there are 698 strings of cash left, and 600 strings of cash are owed to Mr. Li."

Xiao Yi said, "Including what we got today, we can probably use about 2,300 strings of cash?"

"Yes," Old Pan said. "After deducting the cost of the telescope and repaying Mr. Li, there were six hundred strings of cash left. Then I repaid the young lady of the Guo family three hundred strings of cash plus interest..."

"Compensation?"

"General, it seems like it was a loss."

Xiao Yi felt a headache coming on. He did the calculations himself and found that after all that work, he had ended up losing a thousand strings of cash.

Old Pan comforted him, "General, this is just the first batch. Once we sell more, the cost will be spread out."

"They've decided to stick to this one deal. Once these twenty telescopes are handed over, they'll definitely be disassembled and studied."

"General, I just realized that the imperial court shortchanged us by eighty strings of cash."

"Forget about the samples."

"There's something I'm not sure if I should say... Mr. Li said that the general isn't suited for business, so perhaps... we should just give up on him?"

Xiao Yi tossed aside the ledger, took two deep breaths, and instead of backing down, his attitude became resolute.

He couldn't count on it. Without a sustainable source of income, all his plans to establish himself in this chaotic world were like a rootless duckweed.

If the current business model is wrong and there are no technological barriers, then build one.

"Li Mingyuan doesn't understand, don't listen to him."

"General, what should we do?"

Xiao Yi thought for a moment and asked, "Old Pan, how much is your salary now?"

"Reporting to the General, the provisions amount to six thousand coins, and the stipend to two bushels of grain."

"I'll give you double the amount, plus a monthly bonus. Would you be willing to lay down your arms and work for me?"

"Thank you for your guidance, young master. I was already prepared."

"Alright, go and bring Zhao Chu to see me."

Xiao Yi made a decision. He already had experience, blueprints, and more than two thousand strings of cash. Now it was time to upgrade the technology and take a step further.

Then let's build a factory and manufacture glass, so that people around the world can see what it's like.

(End of this chapter)