Water Margin begins as a captain in Yanggu County

Chapter 58 Let me think about it again.
Just wait until the meal is finished and then walk back to the prefectural government office.

Luan Tingyu also asked: "General, a thousand horses is really unimaginable. The monthly expenditure of 100,000 strings of cash for the horses is an astronomical figure. There is also the cost of the knights. I am afraid that the general is stretched to the limit..."

To say that we are stretched to the limit is an understatement; the gap is indeed huge.

Su Wu also calculated: "A set of good armor costs 40 to 50 strings of cash. I won't say much. Three thousand armored men would cost 140, 150, 160, 170, 180, 190, 190, 190, 18 ...

In this era, metal products, coupled with delicate craftsmanship, are too expensive to afford.

The huge pressure also made Su Wu imagine what the scene would be like if he had an army of 3,000 people under his command.

Luan Tingyu also nodded: "Yes, with so much money, and the salaries of the soldiers, it is easier to support elite soldiers than to support lazy people. Not to mention too much, it is always necessary to pay two strings of silver per person per month..."

Su Wu shook his head and could not calculate anymore. If he continued to calculate, his dream would seem to be shattered. He now had less than 35,000 strings of cash in his hand.

Another example is that Liang Zhongshu of Daming Prefecture gave his father-in-law Cai Jing a birthday gift of 100,000 strings of cash.

The 100,000 strings of cash that Chao Gai robbed became the starting capital for Liangshan, but this 100,000 strings of cash was actually not a very large amount for Liangshan.

In the story, during the middle and late period of Liangshan, there were at least 30,000 to 50,000 people. If we really count them, out of a hundred thousand strings of cash, each person only has two or three strings of cash. How could they possibly support them?
But for a long time, life in Liangshan was pretty good. Why?
It’s still faster to make money by robbing! Rob Qingzhou, rob Dulonggang, rob Zengtou City, rob Gaotangzhou, rob Dongping Prefecture, and even rob Daming Prefecture...

They just robbed everywhere, and after they robbed, they ate meat with big mouthfuls, drank wine with big bowls, and divided the gold and silver with big scales...

Suddenly I felt that being a bandit was not bad.

A decent man like Su Wu was so worried about money that he had a headache.

I also remembered many stories, such as making perfumes, soaps, etc.

Su Wu asked himself, can I do it?

Yes, it is possible. After all, these are just basic physics and chemistry knowledge. The principle is not difficult. Just do more experiments and you will succeed.

Take soap, for example. This stuff requires a lot of animal fat. If it is mass-produced, where can we get so much animal fat? One hundred kilograms a month? Or five hundred kilograms? Or several tons?
How much soap can be produced and sold? How much animal fat can be produced in Dongping Prefecture? How many people are needed to collect it from other places? How to ensure that the animal fat will not spoil during transportation?

Not to mention vegetable oils, which are even more difficult to obtain than animal oils.

Even under the conditions of this era, the production methods must be extremely filthy...

Not to mention perfume. It’s not that alcohol is difficult, but spices are a limitation. Spices are luxury goods. In this era, some spices are, to some extent, perfume.

Perfumes with ordinary scents cannot directly bring about a revolution, and the market is actually not that big.

In addition, materials are scarce, and collecting and making them is extremely cumbersome. It might be okay to tinker with it yourself, but for large-scale production, there are countless problems to solve.

As for salt making, salt is originally a government business, and selling private salt is itself a way of the underworld. In this matter, you either do it or don't do it, there is no such trick.

As for things like purifying refined salt, in the final analysis, you either have to cooperate with the government or sell refined salt privately, which will only bring trouble to yourself and make you a target of public criticism.

After all, the issue is still about whether to sell private salt or to be a legitimate salt merchant under the government. There is no such thing as being so clever.

This was the limitation of the times. Unless Su Wu could rub the steam engine by hand on the spot, he would have fundamentally changed the mode and pattern of production. But Su Wu really couldn't do it.

Of course, it is not impossible to make a water-powered spinning machine or something like that. Su Wu actually cannot make it, but he knows the principle. He really does not have the time to waste on it.

These methods are really not feasible in front of Su Wu at this moment.

If you really want to make money, it is more realistic to go to the prefectural government office to get a wine-making certificate, then brew the wine and sell it. The wine of the Song Dynasty is really valuable.

Brewing wine...this thing has to be done, it's not difficult, Su Wu will get a license, and Meng Yulou will open a real store.

A genuine store is a store that has the license to brew wine and can sell it to the public.

Even the three villages of Dulonggang had a good grain output, and selling grain to Tokyo was a big business, and they could also be suppliers of raw materials for brewing wine. These two businesses could make a Song Dynasty man the richest man, and they were also long-term businesses.

You have to think of a side way! A side way that makes money quickly!

Along the way, Su Wu was full of thoughts, but he knew that the side door came from places that were not allowed by law, but it had to conform to the interests of the public, and he couldn't really lose his conscience...

After returning to the government office, Su Wu went to see the prefect Cheng Wanli to discuss important matters.

Cheng Wanli dismissed his attendants and sat with Su Wu in the study in the back court, just listening to what Su Wu said.

The more Cheng Wanli listened, the more frightened he became: "Are those Liangshan bandits and Dong Ping really coming back for revenge?"

Su Wu nodded seriously and solemnly: "It must be so, so this time we must teach them a lesson so that they will never dare to come to Dongping Prefecture again! Only in this way can we solve the problem once and for all, and then you can sleep peacefully."

He tried to scare him, but he also found Cheng Wanli's weakness. He was really afraid of weapons and personal safety.

Cheng Wanli's face turned pale: "You plan it yourself, you manipulate it yourself, and you must make sure that the thieves will never come to my Dongping Prefecture again."

"But in this matter, I still need your help..." Su Wu said again.

"Ah?" Cheng Wanli was stunned for a moment, then asked, "You just said to lure the snake out of its hole and catch the turtle in the jar. You don't want me to be the bait to lure the snake out of its hole, right?"

Su Wu immediately waved his hands and said, "No, no, when the prefect goes out, there are people leading the way, guards behind, and guards on both sides ring the gong. I am also following by your side. There are not many thieves, so they will not dare to take risks easily. Besides, normally the prefect would not go to such a remote place. If the prefect does not bring too many people and goes to a remote place, how can the thieves not suspect that there is a trick?"

Cheng Wanli nodded repeatedly, patted his chest subconsciously, and said, "Yes, yes, yes, I think those thieves will not dare to attack this government."

"I'm also afraid that they are secretly thinking about it every day..." Su Wu continued to threaten, but in fact it was just to make Cheng Wanli feel anxious.

"Then just tell me straight..." After being "threatened" twice, Cheng Wanli actually understood what Su Wu wanted.

Su Wu said bluntly: "Sir, who is Dong Ping most concerned about?"

Cheng Wanli stood up and said, "Absolutely not!"

"Sir, please be at ease, sir, please be at ease..." Su Wu had to comfort him immediately, and then said: "The Liangshan bandits want to rescue Liu Tang, and Dong Ping wants revenge. If the two join forces, I'm afraid their target is the daughter of your hand. If you don't lure the snake out of its hole this time, you will be targeted by the bandits day and night, and won't you never be at peace?"

Cheng Wanli sat down, obviously hesitant, not knowing whether to go left or right.

Why is it Cheng Wanli’s daughter?
The reason why Cheng Wanli's daughter could be exchanged for Liu Tang was simple. In the eyes of the husbands, Liu Tang was just a petty thief, not to mention the leader of the robbers. How could he be as valuable as Cheng Wanli's daughter?

When it really came to saving his daughter, Cheng Wanli went to ask Liang Zhongshu to bring Liu Tang to exchange for his daughter. How could Liang Zhongshu really offend his colleagues for such a small matter?

More importantly, Liang Zhongshu's father-in-law Cai Jing now has a close relationship with Cheng Wanli's benefactor Tong Guan.

Cai Jing had many ups and downs in his life because of the struggle between the old and new parties and the Yuanyou party struggle. The reason why he can still hold a high position today is that the most important one is that Tong Guan did his best to recommend Cai Jing in Hangzhou to the current emperor Zhao Ji again.

Therefore, Cai Jing and Tong Guan were considered to be a party and a community of interests at this time.

There is no need to say much about Cheng Wanli and Liang Zhongshu, so if Cheng Wanli's daughter was kidnapped, she could definitely be exchanged back for Liu Tang.

No matter how Su Wu thought, Cheng Wanli's daughter must be the target of Liangshan. The risk is small, the benefits are high, and it can meet the needs of both Liangshan and Dong Ping.

How could Cheng Wanli easily agree to use his daughter as bait? Even though he hesitated, he finally said, "Su Wu, this matter is really not something I can take."

Su Wu then said, "Don't worry, sir. I have prepared hundreds of elite and brave men, and some with superb martial arts skills. I will never let your daughter make any mistakes. I will even be there to protect her myself!"

Cheng Wanli looked at Su Wu, still reluctant to let him go: "Su Wu, it's not that I don't trust you. I know you are dedicated to the public and are a loyal and righteous person. You are willing to die for me. It's just... this matter... let me think about it again, think about it again..."

(Brothers, I love you!)

(End of this chapter)