Chapter 42: What Is Money? I Have Never Seen Money

Du Ruhui flipped through the meeting minutes once more, somewhat unwilling to give up, hoping to find some clues hidden within.

Although the documents recorded how many commoners were conscripted and how much material was expended for these projects, the payment of funds always ended with the note "to be resolved by the Prince of Yue," and then stopped there.

This was because Li Tai truly provided the supplies.

Logically speaking, if Li Tai had purchased such a vast quantity of supplies, he would likely have had to sell off both his chicken farm and his coal mine, and even that might not have been enough.

"Your Highness... you are truly generous and compassionate toward the people!" Du Ruhui, unable to discern the truth, could only offer praise.

However, Du Ruhui asked with a hint of curiosity, "Could Your Highness tell me how much money you have actually spent here? Two hundred thousand strings of cash, or three hundred thousand?"

"This money..." Li Tai scratched his head, smiling at Du Ruhui without answering.

The truth was, Li Tai hadn't even realized that in this era, infrastructure projects were supposed to cost money.

Generally speaking, the most expensive parts of infrastructure are the cutting-edge machinery, raw materials, and labor costs. Don't laugh at the underdeveloped infrastructure of other countries; in reality, every developed nation has gone through an era of being an "infrastructure maniac." It is only later, as technological progress fails to keep pace with rising labor costs—especially after basic infrastructure in major economic hubs is perfected—that these capital-intensive projects with long return cycles fall out of favor in capitalist countries. Of course, if their governments are willing to provide subsidies, infrastructure can still be built, but getting accustomed-to-laziness workers to move is no easy feat.

However, none of this mattered to Li Tai. The raw materials were dug up from the banks of the Gaoling River. As for labor costs, aside from the small, established corvée team that required wages, the other commoners were there simply for two meals a day. In this way, the material and labor costs that should have been the most expensive were compressed to the absolute limit.

As for top-tier equipment, Li Tai had left Du Chuke with a small team to work with Li Chunfeng. He instructed this Mohist team to find ways to research equipment that could increase efficiency and save effort; as soon as something was invented, it could be immediately tested. Li Chunfeng himself was a man who loved mathematics; when researching devices, he emphasized the stability of triangles and the precision of cutting. Ever since they defined centimeters and grams, the man had developed an obsessive, almost compulsive pursuit of precise data. Consequently, this Mohist team spent their time at Li Chunfeng’s place doing creative work, specifically researching new equipment.

It was painful work, but Li Chunfeng was thoughtful enough to arrange for ladies from the local brothels to come and cheer them on! At the very least, for now, the results looked promising.

Therefore, whether it was the canal project or the road construction currently underway, Li Tai couldn't help but think: What is money? I haven't seen any money! To talk to me about money in a feudal era is an insult to me, a successor of the Chinese nation who grew up after the Reform and Opening-up!

Well, Li Tai did pay, but only after he noticed some commoners were slacking off while hoping to just coast by for two meals. Li Tai, finally acting as a capitalist, could not tolerate people just scraping by—how was he supposed to realize wealth appreciation that way? So, Li Tai immediately changed the rules: moving a certain amount of bricks earned two bowls of rice. After that, if they continued, he would pay them by piecework in Kaiyuan Tongbao coins.

Because it was daily pay—the more they worked, the more they earned—these people immediately became active. Li Tai then opened a herbal tea shop next door, charging one coin for half a jin, and they could even fill their own gourds. Many farmers, exhausted from work, would spend that one coin, making them feel comfortable while he reclaimed the currency.

Of course, the most important thing was that the commoners of this era had no means to go traveling. Although they earned money, they still had to face the seven daily necessities—firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea. They needed these items, and if they wanted them, they had to buy them at the large shops! And as long as they spent money, it kept the currency circulating. For a local landlord like Li Tai, he certainly wasn't losing anything.

Additionally, it is worth mentioning that occasionally Li Tai would replace their wages with "coal vouchers." If they used these vouchers at the large shops to exchange for honeycomb coal, they would enjoy a ten percent discount. For the commoners, saving even a little bit was worth it! So, when they needed coal, they would sometimes choose the vouchers instead of the Kaiyuan Tongbao coins.

Because Li Tai controlled everything from the coal mines to the production lines and the final point of sale, he knew exactly what the value was. A ten percent discount meant he was still making a small profit. But for Li Tai, the most important thing was that it reduced the circulation of Kaiyuan Tongbao and got the commoners to accept a form of paper-based equivalent currency.

However, Li Tai knew that he could only control the coal. "It's a pity that the production of honeycomb coal is still not large enough, and the costs need to be further spread out. Plus, I don't have access to top-tier coal mines, so the appeal to the commoners isn't high enough. Otherwise, if I could change the standard from firewood to coal, I would dare to issue currency based on a coal standard! Right now, this is just small-time tinkering." Li Tai felt a sense of regret regarding his own limitations.

Simply put, Li Tai wanted to turn the entirety of Gaoling County into something like the state-owned enterprises of the seventies and eighties. As long as the state-owned enterprises thrived, the employees would depend on the enterprise from birth until death. In this process, one could often use bookkeeping to replace monetary transactions, and as long as supplies could be produced, the model could continue. This was a decent choice for initial capital accumulation. Of course, if one kept doing this forever, it would lead down the same path as the old state-owned enterprises, so it could only be considered a transition.

As for now, facing Du Ruhui's inquiry, Li Tai answered truthfully, "Zheng Fengchi helped quite a bit!"

"Zheng Fengchi again?" Li Shimin stroked his chin upon hearing this, feeling that Zheng Fengchi was perhaps being too proactive.

Du Ruhui narrowed his eyes. He had originally thought that Zheng Fengchi would lay low after the Retired Emperor's time, but he hadn't expected him to be stuffing women into Li Tai's entourage and gifting him such vast resources. Was he preparing to place a heavy bet?

If Zheng Fengchi knew what Du Ruhui was thinking, he would likely cry out in injustice. He might have had the intention of maintaining a good relationship with Li Tai, but he certainly hadn't intended to bet everything on him. After all, when it came down to it, he was still just a merchant, not a member of the aristocracy! Was this something a merchant should get involved in? One slip-up and his entire clan could be executed!

Aside from sending his granddaughter to Li Tai's side, Zheng Fengchi's relationship with Li Tai was more of a pure monetary exchange. Li Tai had granted Zheng Fengchi the three-year agency rights for down jackets, letting him handle the operations and sales himself. Truth be told, Zheng Fengchi had tried to produce down jackets privately, but the method of removing the greasy odor was secondary; the real problem was the cost. Zheng Fengchi bought ducks, only to find that one duck didn't produce much down. To get the material, he had to start a duck farm. Once the farm was set up, he needed egg-hatching technology to scale up production. Once he had that, the costs of coal and feed pressed down on him. In short, after going in circles, he realized that the cost of his own down jackets was higher than the price Li Tai charged him for the degreased and deodorized ones. This led Zheng Fengchi to give up the idea of self-production and sales entirely; it was better to just get the stock from Li Tai! For a merchant, asking them to do a money-losing business was worse than death.

Li Tai sold the agency rights to Zheng Fengchi, but required half in cash and half in supplies—especially basic necessities like rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea. He would take as much of these as Zheng Fengchi could bring. This was why the basic supplies at the Peacock Grand Mall never ran out—it was all thanks to the relationship between Zheng Fengchi and Li Tai.

These basic supplies held no appeal for top-tier nobles, but for the commoners at the bottom, who exhausted all their strength just to stay alive in this feudal age, these items were necessities, and almost all the money they earned was consumed by them. Through this orderly internal circulation and profitable external projects, Gaoling developed into a flourishing hub. The commoners indeed earned money, but they spent most of it right there in Gaoling. Meanwhile, the infrastructure they created with their own hands—canals, roads, and public toilets—continued to function and help Li Tai earn more.

Du Ruhui looked at the stack of meeting minutes, and suddenly, he looked up, his eyes tinged with a hint of red as he spoke: "If the Prince of Yue were given a large number of commoners, would you have a way to drive them to work just as you have with the people of Gaoling County?"

Li Shimin heard Du Ruhui’s words and glanced at him with some surprise. He naturally understood what Du Ruhui was aiming for. Li Shimin did not stop him, because he trusted Du Ruhui's judgment as much as his own.

"A large number? How large?!" Li Tai was stunned by Du Ruhui's words, even rubbing his hands together with a hint of anticipation. "Ten thousand people?"

"More!" Du Ruhui said, his expression calm and unwavering.

"More!?" Li Tai’s eyes turned into the shape of stars. "Where are they now?!"

"Perhaps they will arrive in a few days!" Du Ruhui said. "I hope the Prince of Yue will be satisfied then!"

"That..." Li Tai hesitated after hearing this, but then said to Li Shimin, "Father, if there really are over ten thousand people, could you send a troop of soldiers to be stationed here? They must obey my orders when necessary. Also, please have the Court of Agriculture open up the granaries for me."

"Isn't everything going well here? Why do you need soldiers from me?" Li Shimin said with a slight smile and a bit of confusion. Truth be told, he understood why Li Tai needed grain, but he didn't understand the need for troops.

"The vast majority of the people here in Gaoling understand and approve of me, so as long as I ensure they are fed, they will be willing to follow my orders and commands," Li Tai said, his expression calm but very serious. "But if ten thousand people arrive, their number will exceed that of the local Gaoling population, and riots might occur. I need an army to suppress rebellion if necessary. To digest a workforce larger than the population of Gaoling itself, one must maintain order and ensure the people adapt to that order!"

Li Tai knew why "relief through work" was so difficult to execute in ancient times. One problem was transportation; it made it impossible to quickly move grain to areas of famine, and without grain as a foundation, relief through work could not be implemented. The other problem was the hearts of the people. Chinese commoners were not like the Shudras or Dalits of India; ever since Chen Sheng shouted, "Are kings and nobles born with high status?", the Chinese people, if truly driven to starvation, were capable of sacrificing everything to pull an emperor from his throne. If you possessed wealth and grain but lacked the absolute force to suppress a riot, you would likely be looted in a moment of impulse. No matter if you were a time-traveler or not, in front of a mob, you would die just like anyone else!

In any case, Li Tai didn't consider himself the type who could "fight ten thousand." In reality, he doubted he could even fight one. So, he definitely had to hold onto Li Shimin's leg and have him send more people to protect him!

"Hmm!" Li Shimin nodded. "Since you have considered it thoroughly, I will grant you the post of Pacification Commissioner. The grain and troops you want will be sent to you in a while. What you need to do is maintain order in Gaoling County. In time, refugees from Guanzhong will arrive one after another; you need to gather them and keep them alive!"

"Ah... refugees?" Li Tai was slightly stunned by the term. Although he didn't mind, it was a bit different from what he had expected. He asked Li Shimin weakly, "About how many?"

"It hasn't been counted yet!" Li Shimin said, his tone heavy. "But compared to last year, it will only be more, not less!"

Li Tai didn't say much more, only promising Li Shimin solemnly, "Please rest assured, Father. As long as there is enough grain, I will certainly see that all these refugees are well taken care of!"

"With you here to share my burdens, how could I hold you back!" Li Shimin patted Li Tai’s head, feeling satisfied.

"Keming, you have seen what you came to see today. Let us return to Chang'an!" Li Shimin said.

"Understood!" Du Ruhui replied respectfully.

Du Ruhui knew that Li Shimin would not break up the partnership between Li Tai and Ma Zhou for the time being, as they were needed to deal with the wave of refugees caused by the great drought in Guanzhong.