The most arrogant in history

Chapter 269 Dumbhead.

Ye Kun smiled and said, "Since all the adults support it, let's start in the afternoon. I will calculate your salaries and send someone to deliver the salt. As for the price, I will reduce it by 10% and only calculate it at 90%."

The officials thought they had gotten an advantage, and they all clasped their fists to thank their boss for his care.

Only Wu Qiong seemed to have guessed Ye Kun's thoughts and remained silent.

Ye Kun ordered Wu Qiong:

"Master Wu, you will do the accounting immediately and distribute salt to each lord. You will give salt to each lord as the accounting is done. Including me, all salaries will be paid in salt. I will send a thousand personal soldiers to deliver salt to you."

Ye Kun’s current salary is three thousand shi of grain per year.

Converted into table salt, it is thirty stone of table salt.

Wu Qiong nodded, returned to his office to settle accounts and arrange for the distribution of salt.

Before the officials could react, several cartloads of salt had been sold to their homes!

Of course, Ye Kun's family had the most salt, more than ten trucks.

At the same time, merchants with information asymmetry were driven crazy by Zhuge Feng's drastic price cuts. They joined together to order salt, each purchasing 1,000 shi. They ordered 6,000 shi in total and paid the deposit early.

In just two or three days, salt flooded the Chengdu area.

Ye Kun sold at a low price and recovered a large amount of silver and copper coins.

Salt refineries also work overtime day and night, working at full capacity to refine refined salt.

Ye Kun took all the salt he had received and went to the textile factory and spinning mill and called Youde.

Director Youde smiled and said, "Master Ye, why are you so kind as to come and see me?"

"Yes, I miss you." Ye Kun held Youde's hand and said with a smile:

"I brought you several thousand kilograms of salt. You can distribute it to the workers, three kilograms per person, as a year-end bonus. Local workers can take the salt home after get off work in the evening; workers from other places can take turns to take holidays and send the salt home."

Youde was very surprised: "I've already given you wages, and you still want to give me a year-end bonus? And you want to give me so much salt?"

Three kilograms of salt are equivalent to ninety kilograms of refined grain, which is too much!

Ye Kun smiled and said, "I feel sorry for you and want you to be a good person. The workers will respect you as the factory director even more after they get rewarded."

Youde blushed and whispered, "Okay, thank you."

"How are you going to thank me? Is that all you have to say?"

"You go back first. I'll thank you again after I distribute the salt." Youde ran away with a smile and called a meeting for the backbone staff of the factory.

When the news of the year-end bonus was announced, all the workers in the factory were excited.

There was still a batch of salt left, so Ye Kun gave it to Aunt Wang and asked her to distribute it to her workers.

Then, Ye Kun transferred more salt to the troops, arranged for the troops to take turns to visit their families, and sent the salt back home.

Most of the common people and poor people living near Chengdu City obtained some cheap salt through various channels, and they all praised Ye Kun's good deeds.

The officials in Chengdu realized that the salt they had in their hands had depreciated greatly. They felt that they had been cheated by Ye Kun and were all unhappy, but they could only swallow their anger and endure it.

Ma Zhao dared to speak up and expressed his concerns during the meeting:

"Master Ye, our salt price has dropped too much, and you've given a lot away for free. I'm afraid no one will buy salt next year, and our income in Yizhou will be greatly reduced."

"My Lords, please listen to me." Ye Kun explained patiently:

"I understand what you mean. You are worried that people will store too much salt at home, which will affect the sales of salt next year. But you don't know that the consumption of salt in Yizhou is severely restricted because the price is too high.

If we used to sell 100 catties of salt every year and earn one tael of silver per catty, that would be 100 taels. If we lower the price and sell 500 catties every year and earn half a tael of silver per catty, we will earn more!

I guarantee that as long as we lower the price, our salt sales will at least triple and we will make more money!"

Wu Qiong said: "This is what Lord Ye said, I can't guarantee it."

Ye Kun smiled and said, "Master Wu, please calculate the annual profit of salt. If the total profit of the salt industry decreases next year, I will make up for it!"

If we just calculate the unit price profit, it will definitely drop sharply.

However, after calculating the total profit of the salt industry, Ye Kun felt that it would not decline.

The people have a demand for salt, and as long as the price is lowered, consumption will be greatly stimulated.

Only when the people’s salt intake reaches the required level will they be healthy, have the strength to farm and create more wealth.

Dumbheads like Wu Qiong and Ma Zhao would never understand this truth!

If he hadn't been worried about strong opposition, Ye Kun really wanted to raise the price of salt in one go so that everyone could have the freedom to eat salt.

The common people are so pitiful that they can’t even afford salt!

In private, Ma Zhao praised Ye Kun:

"Sir Ye, I really admire you for distributing salt. Even you, Gongsun Zhang, would not be able to accomplish this. The people of Yizhou will remember you."

Ye Kun smiled and said, "Will you still call me Ye Thief in the future?"

Ma Zhao bowed and apologized: "I plead guilty. This head is right here, ready for Lord Ye to take."

"What are you going to do with it? Make it into a skull wine glass, or kick it like a ball?"

Ye Kun rolled his eyes: "Come on, let's go to the toilet outside the city and see if the mud I made has turned into stone!"

In just a few days, the toilet was completed.

Ma Zhao followed Ye Kun to the outside of the city. Looking at the toilet that had been painted and was smooth inside and out, he knocked on it, touched it, and said with a silly smile:

"Master Ye, you are really capable. This mud has turned into stone. It's fun!"

"I need more skills, you will know later."

Ye Kun took Ma Zhao and other officials to the post station in Shaocheng.

There are two post houses in Chengdu, one in the big city, which is used to receive government officials;

One is in Shaocheng, receiving business people.

Shaocheng Posthouse is very large and is divided into two courtyards, east and west. Each of them is a large house with five entrances and many rooms.

Ye Kun expropriated the vegetable fields behind the posthouse and planned to build a commercial exhibition hall to display his own porcelain, wooden furniture, various small tools, and future glass products.

This will not only showcase the latest products and expand trading volume, but will also enhance Chengdu’s status and demonstrate its comprehensive strength.

This idea received collective support from Wu Qiong and others.

Ye Kun ordered the porcelain kiln factory to produce 5,000 white tiles to create an exquisite commercial showroom.

Due to technical limitations, the tiles can only be made in a scale of thirty by thirty.

The planning of the exhibition hall is divided into five parts, starting with the porcelain exhibition hall.

The craftsmen had already designed the drawings, and after Ye Kun's approval, they began to calculate various materials and prepared to start construction.

Ma Zhao was not in charge of finances, but he was always worried about spending money and opposed extravagance. He asked, "Master Ye, how much will this exhibition hall you mentioned cost?"

Ye Kun said: "I asked Wu Qiong to estimate it, and it will cost about five thousand taels of silver."

"Five thousand taels?" Ma Zhao frowned and asked, "Does this count as a large-scale construction project, a waste of the people's money?"

"I built a lot of buildings for the development of Yizhou and for the people of Yizhou. Look, have I added a single brick or tile for myself?"

Ye Kun threw out a bunch of economic theories: "Lord Ma is thinking about the people and wants to save money, which is of course good. But Yizhou is a big place, and we should be more generous when spending money."

Ma Zhao shrugged: "I'm just asking casually, I'm not in charge of finances..."

Damn it, you’re still talking so much about finances!

Ye Kun cursed in his heart and continued to work out the details with the designers.

Unexpectedly, there was a sudden commotion on the street in front of the post station, and many people rushed towards this side.

Tan Bamao was startled, drew his sword and shouted, "I'm afraid there are bandits trying to assassinate us. Be alert and protect Lord Ye!"

Chonk, bang, bang!

In an instant, swords were unsheathed and spears were raised high to protect Ye Kun.