karlmaks
Stories
4
Chapters
1,453
Words
2.3 M
Comments
0
Reading
7 d, 22 h
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"Your Highness, is this soap?" Wang Shijie’s eyes lit up as he reached out to take one of the soap bars. He had seen yi zi (traditional soap), but those were dark and dull, completely unlike this clean, beautiful, and aesthetically pleasing soap. "Wait, don’t touch it yet," Xiao Ming reminded him. "The soap hasn’t fully solidified; it still needs a day or two." This time, Xiao Ming had used a soap-making method similar to traditional handmade soap rather than full-scale industrial production.…-
895.6 K • Ongoing
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Wang Shijie had been in Chang’an for seven or eight days, bringing soap with him. Initially, this novel product did not attract much attention from the noble ladies. However, today, everything changed. Overnight, a long line had formed outside the Wang family’s shop in Chang’an. The people waiting at the entrance were housekeepers, maids, and attendants from various prestigious households, all with one purpose—purchasing soap. At the same time, word spread throughout Chang’an that the imperial…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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The workshop area officially began construction during the cold winter, and Xiao Ming suddenly found himself responsible for feeding over 900 additional mouths. With new recruits also joining the military camp, the number of people to feed quickly rose to around 3,000. The continuous drain on silver reserves made Xiao Ming feel immense pressure. Moreover, aside from commerce, he had no other means to quickly amass wealth. Therefore, whether it was setting up his own trading company or leveraging the Wang…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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The day after Li San returned, the imperial grant arrived in Qingzhou. With the court’s silver and the palace concubines’ down payments, Xiao Ming now had a total of 500,000 taels of silver at his disposal. In Qingzhou, this was an enormous sum, but for Xiao Ming’s development plans, it was a mere drop in the ocean. Moreover, 200,000 taels were deposits for perfume orders from the concubines, which meant a large portion had to be spent on purchasing raw materials for production—effectively…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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Qingzhou Eastern Military Camp. This was the barracks where the Qingzhou Army was stationed. Compared to its peak strength of three thousand soldiers, the camp now housed only a little over three hundred troops. Many barracks in the camp had been left vacant. In the past, these rooms were covered in cobwebs and thick with dust. But now, they had been cleaned out, and recruitment notices had been posted. Lately, a steady stream of people had been coming to enlist. In just half a month, new recruits would…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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Qingzhou City, Wang Residence. Wang Chengchou and Sun Yuanzhi sat facing each other in the main hall, with Wang Shijie seated below them. Ever since Wang Chengchou’s visit to the Prince of Qi’s residence, Sun Yuanzhi had been waiting at the Wang estate for news. Now that Wang Chengchou had returned and briefly recounted what had transpired, he slowly said, “Brother Wang, that was truly a close call. His Highness did not punish the Wang family, which shows that he still values your…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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"Any kind of edible oil will do." That was the last thing Xiao Ming said to Wang Shijie before sending him off. Right now, he had no intention of wasting too much time on the four major families. The only reason he was sharing profits with them was to maintain the illusion that they were still allies. In reality, Xiao Ming could not tolerate the existence of powerful aristocratic clans within his fiefdom. Such factions posed a severe threat to his rule. The Great Yu Empire was already suffering under…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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"Your Highness." Upon seeing Xiao Ming, Wang Shijie immediately cupped his hands in greeting, a fawning smile on his face. Xiao Ming feigned surprise and said, "Isn't this Brother Wang? What brings you here? What a coincidence." Wang Shijie thought to himself, I've been freezing out here in the snow for half the day just to wait for you. But instead, he said, "Your Highness, this only proves that we are fated to meet. I've heard that you've been keeping to yourself lately, declining visitors, and…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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Qin Chuanyun and Xiao Ming were both taken aback. They had expected Wang Chengchou’s first words to be a defense of himself, yet he had unexpectedly confessed right away. Xiao Ming looked at Wang Chengchou with interest and chuckled. “Master Wang, I haven’t even questioned you yet. Why are you already admitting guilt?” “Your Highness, some days ago, I inspected my estates in the various prefectures and discovered that my nephew, Wang Xuan, had been hoarding plow oxen and selling them at…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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"Of course, let's go. Prepare the horses," Xiao Ming called out loudly, snapping out of his thoughts. The graphite mine had been found, and the limestone mine had also been located. Although the mines hadn't been fully established yet, and systematic production was still a ways off, it was possible to extract some materials in advance. However, even extracting a small portion required significant resources. The laborers needed for mining and transportation had to be paid in silver. This was why Xiao…
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895.6 K • Ongoing
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