Chapter 47

In the capital, where power intertwines and people are numerous and talkative, it is hard to keep any secrets.

Therefore, what happened in the early morning court session soon became known to everyone in the capital.

Whether it was the cheating scandal in the autumn examination of the three provinces or the gambling agreement between the Deputy Minister of Revenue, Zhao Junchen, and the Crown Prince, Zhu Heyu, both incidents attracted countless attention and curiosity.

Of course, compared to the cheating scandal in the autumn examination, people were more interested in the gambling agreement between Zhao Junchen and Zhu Heyu. Although the former was far more serious, the people of the capital had a unique sense of pride. The cheating scandal in the autumn examination, though significant, happened in remote areas. The gambling agreement between Zhao Junchen and Zhu Heyu, though just a trivial matter of the court, took place at the heart of the capital.

Moreover, whether it was the Deputy Minister of Revenue, Zhao Junchen, or the Crown Prince, Zhu Heyu, they were both important figures, far more significant than a few candidates who were crying out for justice.

For a time, both in and out of the court, all eyes were on Zhao Junchen. Everyone wanted to see how he could use "proper means" to increase the revenue of the Ministry of Revenue by 200,000 taels of silver within a month.

This was not an easy task.

Would Zhao Junchen be promoted to Minister of Revenue, or would he be charged with "deceiving the emperor"? Everyone was waiting to see.

However, to the great disappointment of the "audience" with various thoughts, Zhao Junchen seemed completely unconcerned about the gambling agreement that would determine his future. For the next three days, he continued to attend court, work, and return home as usual, as if nothing had happened.

The only noteworthy thing was that during these three days, Zhao Junchen bought the largest cosmetic and soap workshops in the capital. However, using cosmetics and soap to increase the revenue of the Ministry of Revenue by 200,000 taels? Unless Zhao Junchen was crazy, it was impossible.

At least, in the minds of the people, such a thing was impossible.

However, the truth often lies hidden behind the facade. Few people noticed that in these three days, the best cosmetic and soap craftsmen in the capital had resigned from their old employers, either out of determination or under duress. For a time, the supply of cosmetics and soap in the capital was in short supply.

......

Three days later.

On this day, after the early morning court session, Zhao Junchen did not go to the Ministry of Revenue to work or return home. Instead, he took a sedan chair to the western part of the city.

Upon arriving at his destination, Zhao Junchen got out of the sedan chair and looked up to see a large courtyard with three sections, with a sign hanging above it that read "Yuerong Workshop."

This name was chosen by Zhao Junchen himself, derived from the phrase "a woman adorns herself for the one who pleases her."

It was now Zhao Junchen's property.

As soon as Zhao Junchen got out of the sedan chair, Xu Qingyan quickly came out to greet him, looking rather exhausted.

"Master, you're here."

Zhao Junchen nodded and patted Xu Qingyan on the shoulder, saying, "You've worked hard these past three days."

Xu Qingyan said matter-of-factly, "It's only right to work hard for Master."

Hearing Xu Qingyan say this, Zhao Junchen felt a warmth in his heart.

To be honest, Xu Qingyan was not a good person. He had done countless bad and immoral things over the years, and his abilities were limited. However, he was exceptionally loyal to Zhao Junchen and always considered Zhao Junchen's interests. He was the only person Zhao Junchen trusted now.

Having gotten used to Xu Qingyan always being by his side, Zhao Junchen was actually somewhat uncomfortable not seeing him for these three days.

While Zhao Junchen was reflecting on this, Xu Qingyan led him into the courtyard and explained, "As you instructed, I have taken over the largest cosmetic and soap workshops in the capital and concentrated them here. The manufacturing processes for cosmetics and soap are simple, and the tools are not complicated, so two courtyards are enough. The eastern courtyard is the cosmetic workshop, and the western courtyard is the soap workshop."

Zhao Junchen nodded and asked, "Have the craftsmen been invited?"

Xu Qingyan nodded and replied, "They have been invited. A few of them were quite loyal, and it took me a lot of effort, but fortunately, everything went smoothly. Now, the best cosmetic and soap craftsmen in the capital are all gathered here at Yuerong Workshop. However, they are still studying the formulas you provided and have not started work yet."

Seeing Xu Qingyan frown, Zhao Junchen smiled and said, "It's a good thing they are studying the formulas first. If they started work rashly, I would be even more worried. The manufacturing processes for these two items are not complicated, so there's no need to rush."

Unlike in later times, in this era, there was little concept of job-hopping. The cosmetic and soap craftsmen Xu Qingyan had found were all long-term workers of century-old brands, with generations of their families serving the same employers. Not only did the employers value them, but they themselves were also loyal to their employers. It was extremely difficult to poach them.

However, Zhao Junchen did not ask Xu Qingyan about his methods, whether by force or inducement. At this point, Zhao Junchen only needed the results.

After a moment's thought, Zhao Junchen said, "Take me to see the soap craftsmen first. I have something to say to them."

Xu Qingyan nodded and said, "Master, they are in the western courtyard."

......

Upon arriving at the western courtyard, Zhao Junchen saw a dozen soap craftsmen of various ages, both old and young, all the best soap craftsmen in the capital.

Some of these soap craftsmen looked excited, while others looked worried, likely due to the different methods Xu Qingyan used to poach them. However, at this moment, they were all studying the soap-making formulas Zhao Junchen had given them, with a serious attitude, occasionally discussing with each other.

Seeing their seriousness, Zhao Junchen nodded in satisfaction.

"Minister Zhao has arrived, quickly welcome him!"

At Xu Qingyan's call, the soap craftsmen noticed Zhao Junchen's arrival. Seeing his official robes, they all looked panicked and hurriedly knelt to greet him.

"Get up," Zhao Junchen said, casually finding a chair to sit on. After the craftsmen stood up, seeing their continued panic, Zhao Junchen slowly said, "From today, I am your new employer. I know that many of you were unwilling to come work for me, but that's fine. Loyalty is a good virtue, and I do not blame you. I only hope you can maintain this virtue while working for me. As for your former employers, I have already given them sufficient compensation. From now on, you no longer owe them anything. Just be loyal to me."

Hearing Zhao Junchen's words, the craftsmen responded in a scattered manner, but many still looked uneasy.

Of course, there were also many who looked hopeful.

Zhao Junchen smiled and continued, "Since you are working for me, I will not treat you unfairly. From today, all of your wages will be tripled. I will reward those who perform well and punish those who do not. From now on, you can form groups of three to five people and work on the soap formulas I have given you. The group that produces the soap first will receive a reward of 500 taels of silver per person. If you do well, I might even promote you to an official position. This is a rare opportunity, so you must seize it."

Hearing Zhao Junchen's words, all the craftsmen looked much more excited. Triple wages, a reward of 500 taels of silver, and the chance to become an official were far more important than loyalty.

"Thank you, Minister. We will work hard," the craftsmen responded, their voices loud and their spirits much better, though their responses were not as neat as they should have been.

"That's good."

Zhao Junchen smiled and nodded, not lingering, and then went to the eastern courtyard to speak with the cosmetic craftsmen.

In fact, the manufacturing processes for soap and soap nuts were not very different, both primarily using pig pancreas. The main change was in the processing of the pig pancreas and the use of wood ash instead of bean powder. These craftsmen were skilled, so producing the items in a short time was not difficult.

The reason Zhao Junchen also set up a perfume workshop was just an additional insurance measure.

After finding the cosmetic craftsmen, Zhao Junchen repeated what he had said to the soap craftsmen and then left without further delay.

Before leaving, Zhao Junchen reminded Xu Qingyan, "Send some trustworthy people to watch over here. These formulas can make us a lot of money, so we cannot let the news leak out."

Hearing Zhao Junchen's words, Xu Qingyan's expression became serious, and he nodded, saying, "Master, rest assured. I will send people to keep a close eye on this place."

Zhao Junchen nodded and smiled, saying, "I trust you."

......

For the next ten days, Zhao Junchen continued his routine of attending court, working, and returning home, as if he had completely forgotten about the gambling agreement.

However, occasionally, he would visit Yuerong Workshop to check on the progress of the soap and perfume production.

Zhao Junchen's actions did not escape the eyes of those who were paying attention. By now, people knew that Zhao Junchen was really planning to make a move with cosmetics and soap!

Many people thought Zhao Junchen was crazy. How could he possibly increase the revenue of the Ministry of Revenue by 200,000 taels using soap and cosmetics?

During this period, the eyes of the entire court looked at Zhao Junchen with strange expressions. The Crown Prince, Zhu Heyu, even mocked him several times in front of him. Even Emperor Deqing could not contain his impatience and summoned Zhao Junchen several times to ask about the progress and confidence, but Zhao Junchen remained calm, often responding with just one phrase.

"Just wait and see."

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ps: Returning to the normal update speed. I apologize for the fewer updates in the past two days.

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