Hongwu Survival Guide

Chapter 323 How to deal with it
In the imperial city to the east of Jinling City, after being busy with the various etiquettes of the previous few days, Lao Zhu also wanted to rest for two days, and ordered someone to call the theater troupe in, and set a date for the family to listen to the rumor on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year. Also the long-awaited "A Chinese Ghost Story".

Just read the article, there is no singing image after all.

Unexpectedly, early in the morning, a thick stack of impeachments was sent in from Zhongshu.

This can be regarded as Lao Zhu asking for it.

It stands to reason that His Majesty the Emperor does not care about matters during the New Year’s Day, unless it is an important military event. However, as we all know, Lao Zhu is more diligent than other emperors, so he told Zhongshu that the more important memorials should be Bring it in as usual.

In the past few days, Lao Zhu will still take some time to check.

And that's it.

Then, early in the morning, I asked people to call my baby's 23rd generation grandson.

Because, this matter... we need to talk about it!
Lao Zhu felt that the 1000 taels of ad page was already quite high, so why did someone agree to offer 1 taels in a blink of an eye?
If it is really so valuable, even if it is calculated on the basis of 10 pages of advertisements per issue, 12 issues in this year, wouldn't it mean that after one year, it will be more than one million taels of silver.

It is still an income close to the amount of salt tax!
Lao Zhu was a little confused, why are things related to his baby's 23rd generation grandson so valuable?

As for the specific impeachment.

It is said that the 23rd generation grandson of his own family will sell the advertisements to his own company at a low price, or add some advertisements to serious national newspapers like "Daming Monthly", which is too childish and not solemn, and so on, but Lao Zhu didn't get much on it. The heart is nothing but the habitual chatter of a group of officials.Lao Zhu was already immune to this, and he persuaded Zhu Yuan to be at ease, after all, he was the emperor, and he would be talked about every day.

This meeting is no longer the East Pavilion, but the Dashan Hall in the southwest of the harem.

If the Daben Hall behind the Zuodong Pavilion of Fengtianmen is the study place for the princes, the Dashan Hall is Lao Zhu's private reading place, not only for office work, but also for a rich collection of books.

In the study room of the west room of the main hall of Dashan Hall.

When Zhu Yuan arrived, before he could salute, Lao Zhu had already waved his hand and pushed a stack of memorials over by the way: "Sit down, let's talk about this... 1 taels?"

The servant has already moved a chair opposite to Lao Zhu's desk.

Zhu Yuan took the stack of memorials, stepped back and sat down, and said with a smile: "I just met Mr. Song yesterday, and I said that I would write a memorial to my ancestors today, but I was preempted by others."

"One page of advertisement for 1 taels of silver," Lao Zhu said, "If it were me, I'm afraid I'd grab it too."

Zhu Yuan briefly glanced at the first memorial, but it was impeachment for enriching his own pockets, he had no intentions, put it aside, and continued to flip through the next one, while saying: "There are also skills in advertising, this time... Yuaner thinks , it’s a little messy.”

Old Zhu said with a smile: "If those merchants are willing to act like this and donate one hundred thousand taels of silver to the imperial court a year, I, the emperor, will be extremely happy."

"I think this is the key," Zhu Yuan smiled and looked at Lao Zhu: "Perhaps, they came here with this kind of idea and pushed the advertisement page to 1 taels of pages. On the one hand, there is indeed a demand for it." , On the other hand, it is also to express my attitude, for example, if I just want to give my family a better impression on my ancestors, then, if it is me, I will also spend 1 taels."

At home yesterday, Fu Shou only talked about the demand related to the development of the maritime trade industry.

In fact, Zhu Yuan could understand what the other party didn't say.

Spend tens of thousands of taels of silver, the first one, first of all, you can get a deep impression on him, the young Pingzhang, and if you go a step further, maybe your majesty the emperor will notice.Whether it's Zhu Yuan, Lao Zhu, or other dignitaries and dignitaries, as long as you notice it, or even go a step further and meet someone curiously, then the money will be well spent.

So it's not just about buying ads, it's about buying contacts.

Of course, Zhu Yuan also knows that in this line, as the editor-in-chief of "Da Ming Monthly", his contacts may be more useful than Lao Zhu, because of his influence on Ying Haisi and because of his Lao Zhu's influence here.

It's just that there is no need to elaborate on these.

Listening to what Zhu Yuan said, Lao Zhu also had his own understanding: "I know it's worth buying one for 1 taels... It's worth it. Heh... If there is one, what do you mean by 'need'?"

Zhu Yuan then talked about the further prosperity of the maritime trade industry this year after sorting out last year, and, in order to attract more partners, the demand for this advertisement is also a matter of course.

Lao Zhu nodded after hearing this: "Speaking of this, I also think of some accounts I read years ago, those maritime trade companies, the profits... are really rich."

After Zhu Yuan re-determined a series of maritime trade rules in Mingzhou last year, the first round of round-trip ocean trade departed from Mingzhou to Japan, Korea and other countries last summer, and then began to return one after another last winter, which has come to an end.

Even those maritime merchants who came back later will basically return to China before the end of February.

Otherwise, when the wind direction changes, you can only wait another year.

At the beginning, Zhu Yuan, in addition to the two state-owned companies, also divided up the two-tier shares of ten private maritime trading companies and handed them over to Lao Zhu, hoping that someone would use these shares instead of land to reward meritorious officials.

Lao Zhu hasn't done much for the time being, and has been holding the shares in his hands all the time, so he can check the transaction accounts of various maritime merchants at any time.

Just a few years ago, the total value of sea trade goods mainly returned to Mingzhou, Quanzhou and Guangzhou also exceeded 230 million taels.

This is not over yet.

In the next period of time, all those who can come back will come back, and the total value of sea trade goods may reach 300 million taels. Only this item, calculated according to 60% of the tax, can bring [-] taels of silver to the court.

Not to mention that there is another [-]% bonus.

Then there is the group that went to Nanyang last winter, which may be smaller than the ones going to Japan, Korea and other countries. When they return one after another in the summer, taking advantage of the south wind, there will probably be a transaction scale of 200 million taels.

The sum of the two dials is 500 million taels of ocean trade.

Although it is much worse than the peak sea trade scale of 1000 million to 2000 million in the Song Dynasty, this is just the beginning after all.

What's more, 100% of the tax is [-] million taels.

Probably another salt tax.

Whether it is the glass in the past or the sea trade in the present, Lao Zhu feels that it is all money.

Eyes full of money.

This is actually Lao Zhu’s confidence in starting the “Three-Year Plan” and many other projects such as opening a university. After all, as his 23rd grandson said, money represents resources. With resources, the court can do many things. And create that... virtuous circle.

Of course, Zhu Yuan also knew the relevant sea trade data, but after listening to Lao Zhu's emotion, he subconsciously advised: "After setting the rules and expressing the court's encouraging attitude, the volume of sea trade will definitely increase rapidly. However, ancestors, After all, trade is at the level of distribution. Compared with the imperial government collecting 100 million taels of tax silver from ocean trade, in fact, I would still prefer to see Yinghai Division catch 100 million more dans of fish, or the people on land produce a variety of fish. 100 million shi of grain. At this stage, even if we can move around in distribution, we must understand that the key is production, which is what can really generate resources, not allocate resources.”

"Heh, your reasoning, I see how knowledgeable you are, so I understand it," Old Zhu said, seeing that Zhu Yuan had roughly finished flipping through the memorials quickly, he asked, "How do you plan to deal with this matter in front of you? "

Zhu Yuandao: "First of all, the six-page advertisement of Zhiyongzhai must have been ruined. I didn't think so much at first, but I didn't expect them to be more enthusiastic than I imagined."

"It's a small matter." Lao Zhu remembered that Zhiyongzhai wanted to monopolize six pages of advertisements in a memorial, but he didn't take it to heart, thinking about it: "You can't lose our own family, you just keep two pages Well, still use 1000 taels of silver per page."

"I think so too, two pages are enough," Zhu Yuan said, "However, in terms of price, I think the ancestors can raise it a bit. 1 taels is too much and it's unsustainable. However, it can be doubled again." , to 2000 taels, it should be no problem."

Lao Zhu thought that "Daming Monthly" could earn another salt tax a year, but he also knew that this was a bit unrealistic. Hearing what Zhu Yuan said, he asked again: "Why is 1 taels... unsustainable? Tell me about the reason for 2000 taels?"

"The quotation of 1 taels, as I said just now, has commercial factors, but there are also non-commercial factors. This part of the factor... For example, if someone wants to attract the attention of the ancestors, then one time is enough. Next time , or even next time, if they want to advertise, there will only be commercial factors left. If they find out that it is still 1 taels, they will definitely not want to." Zhu Yuan explained, and then said: "As for the double times, to 2000 taels, this is also the result of this market verification, just now there is a memorial to impeach me for selling the advertising space cheaply, then, let’s take advantage of the trend and increase it, but it can’t increase too much.”

Lao Zhu was puzzled: "Why, 3000 taels, maybe it will do?"

"Maybe," Zhu Yuan said, "For 3000 two pages, if Zhiyongzhai advertises, from my boss's personal point of view, I think it's a bit higher. I originally planned to buy two pages at a time, so I might have to reduce the price." When it comes to the first edition, I originally planned to submit for one year, but maybe it will be reduced to half a year."

3000 taels of silver, roughly equivalent to 30 RMB.

Hundreds of years later, the top paper media, the full-page advertisement is probably the same price.However, the paper media at that time, even if they declined, still had a circulation of millions.

In comparison, after the "Daming Monthly" was reprinted, there are only 6 copies at the moment. Even if it is considered the top and even the only paper media in this era, it is pushed to 6 people at a time, even if it is also the consumption capacity of this era. The strongest upper layer of the pyramid has much less relative influence.

Anyway, as far as Zhu Yuan is concerned, his attitude will be different between 2000 taels and 3000 taels. Even if Zhiyongzhai makes more money, it is not suitable to burn advertisements for tens of thousands of taels a year.

Thinking this way, without waiting for Lao Zhu to continue, Zhu Yuan added: "Moreover, ancestor, this also involves an issue of 'initiative' and 'diversity'."

Lao Zhu didn't understand, but just signaled Zhu Yuan to continue.

Zhu Yuan said: "The price of the advertisement page is relatively low, 2000 taels. Then, after attracting more merchants, "Daming Monthly" will have more choices. If you feel that a merchant is not good, you can reject the other party and not publish it. Their advertisements. In comparison, if the advertising price is too high, there will be fewer merchants capable of advertising, and the monthly magazine will have less choice. For a magazine that guides public opinion, it is very important."

Speaking of this, Zhu Yuan paused for a while to digest, and continued after a while: "Diversity, as I just said, the price is low, and there are more types of businesses we can choose from. Otherwise, like this For a 10-page page, whoever bids the most will be given to the one with the highest price, and only the sea merchants will be left on the advertisement page. From a purely commercial point of view, as long as the magazine makes more money, it doesn’t matter if all the sea merchants are left But... "Da Ming Monthly" must not be a purely commercial magazine. For business, the attitude of the court should be "a hundred flowers bloom", and all walks of life must prosper. Then, when publishing advertisements in the monthly magazine, businesses from all walks of life should also be considered In terms of implementation, I think the number of similar advertisements in each issue of the magazine should be limited, for example, no more than one-third of the page.”

Old Zhu listened carefully, and kept nodding his head slightly. When Zhu Yuan finished speaking, he looked at his precious 23rd generation grandson with some emotion: "These... are all the knowledge of those hundreds of years later?"

"There are some knowledge of later generations, and some, which can be regarded as my free play," Zhu Yuan said, with a bit of a smile: "Ancestors, one method can be mastered, and ten thousand methods can be mastered. Just like my 'economics', for many As long as we grasp the fundamentals of things, we will know how to do the rest. The fundamental goal of "Da Ming Monthly" is to compete for the right to speak in public opinion from traditional literati, and at the same time guide the country in the right direction. According to these Fundamentally, on the one hand, even if we can make more money in advertising, we have to endure it and not let ourselves fall into a passive position, otherwise, the money may affect the discourse power of the monthly magazine. On the other hand, guide the country to The right direction, what is the right direction? This concept is too big, but when it is narrowed down to business, what the imperial court wants to encourage is to let a hundred flowers bloom, so when it comes to advertising, we must ensure diversity, which is fundamental.”

"A gentleman should focus on the foundation, and Dao is born from the foundation," Lao Zhu recalled that sentence again, and read it softly, nodding his head and said to the opposite side: "You are doing better than those Confucian scholars."

Zhu Yuan smiled and said, "Yuan'er thinks so too."

"Heh, I'm not being modest this time." Lao Zhu also smiled, and said, "There is a long-term direction, let's talk about this time, how to deal with it properly?"

Zhu Yuan thought for a while, and said: "About maritime merchants, as I just said, the court wants to show a long-term supportive attitude. Since this is the case, it will be more active this time. The 12 maritime merchants, whether state-owned or private, will be unified. Arrange for them all to be advertised."

Lao Zhu was puzzled: "This... there are only 10 pages of advertisements in total, isn't it enough?"

"If you do it together, you don't need to divide the pages," Zhu Yuan said: "Probably, list all the information of the 12 maritime trade companies together, at least one page, at most two or three pages, and you can get it done. Price Also unchanged, the 2000 edition will be shared by each company. Except for Zhiyongzhai and Haishang, the rest will be selected from different industries according to the principle of 'diversity'."

"That's it."

Lao Zhu thought about it for a while, and nodded when he thought it was all right. However, as soon as the words came out, he always felt that today's matter... seems to have more than enough meaning?
Zhu Yuan looked at Lao Zhu's expression, and quickly said: "My ancestor, do you still feel that there are some problems that have not been dealt with?"

Old Zhu Mie came over and said, "Since you think about it, why don't you keep it up?"

"The problem is very simple," Zhu Yuan said, "It's obvious, my ancestors, it's just one "Da Ming Monthly" and it won't be enough in a blink of an eye. So, taking advantage of the good price for the advertisement pages of "Da Ming Monthly" this time, on the one hand, With the money, the magazine itself can reprint some more, and I think it is also possible to make up 10 copies for one issue. On the other hand, it is time to organize other magazines.”

"What you said makes sense again, that's it." Lao Zhu said, shaking his head again: "There is another one, you also mentioned earlier, about this magazine... the corresponding law should be more clear, This time there was a 1 tael a page advertisement, those merchants saw it, and inevitably they would not move their minds to start a magazine. But this magazine, and that... newspaper, according to what you told me earlier Those principles cannot be established by just anyone.”

Zhu Yuan nodded: "Well, there are three things to add to this."

(End of this chapter)