I support the army through farming and business.

Chapter 27 Business
The autumn rain only comes back when it gets dark.

She ate a bellyful of tea and melon seeds, and chattered non-stop, "Miss, the teahouse outside is really bustling, full of people from morning to night. Luckily, I went there early and grabbed a seat early, otherwise my feet would be broken by standing all day."

Tang Zhao knocked on the table and said, "Get to the point."

Hehe, Qiuyu smiled ingratiatingly, "This servant and Song Sheng and the others went to several of the most famous teahouses in Luoyang. Each teahouse specializes in a different type of storytelling."

"The owner of Qingxiang Pavilion tells stories about talented men and beautiful women, the owner of Mingyin Fang talks about demons and strange things, and the owner of Hongsheng Hall talks about chivalrous men. They mix stories of successful candidates, reconciliations, family reunions, and love affairs—all of which are popular stories, and the shows are always packed."

Tang Zhao concluded, "In other words, no matter the subject matter, as long as it's melodramatic, it's popular."

Qiu Yu reminded, "Except for matters concerning the royal court."

Tang Zhao had an idea in mind. She closed her eyes and flashed through her mind the TV series and novels she had watched in her previous life. In a moment, she decided on the first novel.

"Chunfeng, prepare your pen and ink. I'll tell you to write."

The spring breeze placed the four treasures of the study on the desk, while the autumn rain stood beside him grinding ink.

"One thousand seven hundred years ago, at the foot of Mount Qingcheng, there lived a white snake named Bai Suzhen..."

That’s right, she chose the story that is regularly replayed during summer and winter vacations and is well-known to the post-80s generation - The Legend of White Snake.

Strange people and events, talented men and beautiful women, repaying kindness and returning love, and a happy ending, all of these stories touched the hearts of the people of Luoyang.

It will definitely sell well!
"Bai Suzhen devoted herself to cultivating and seeking immortality, but Guanyin Bodhisattva said that she still had unfinished earthly ties and could not achieve immortality. Bai Suzhen immediately asked Guanyin Bodhisattva for guidance."

Chunfeng wrote very quickly and finished writing almost as soon as Tang Zhao finished speaking.

"What solution did Bodhisattva Guanyin provide?" Qiuyu was so excited that she couldn't wait to ask.

Tang Zhao drank two full cups of tea before his throat felt better. He squinted at her and said, "To know what happened next, please listen to the next episode."

"Girl!" Qiuyu stomped her feet.

Chunfeng was also curious, but seeing the fatigue in the girl's eyes and brows, he gave up his curiosity. After he and Qiuyu helped the girl to rest, Chunfeng rubbed his sore wrists and went back to his room to rest.

Thinking about something, Tang Zhao woke up early the next day. After washing up, he read the notebook he had written yesterday again to make sure that there was nothing that was inconsistent with Dayu's values. After breakfast, he went to Qingmo Hall.

The Crown Prince's Consort Ming was arranging all the affairs of the palace today. Tang Zhao sat and waited while thinking about how to get her to join him.

"My Lady has been waiting for you for a long time," Ming said, and immediately went to the main courtyard to meet the guest after hearing the message.

"Calling me sister-in-law like that is alienating me," Tang Zhao said, trying to establish a relationship with me. "Do you want me to call you sister-in-law, Crown Prince's Consort?"

"I'm not used to that," Ming's smile deepened, "It's my sister-in-law's fault."

"What's the matter with my sister-in-law?"

"To be honest, sister-in-law, there is indeed something I want to discuss with you."

Tang Zhaodao said, "Sister-in-law, you know I'm a poor man. I don't know when the county lady's annual salary will be paid, and living on the monthly allowance from the government office is always tight."

Nanny Ming stood behind the Crown Princess, a look of displeasure flashing in her eyes.

He came to the Crown Prince's wife and cried poor, most likely to borrow money.

"So I wanted to do some business to make money, but my sister-in-law also knew that all my shops were donated to the court, so I came to ask for help."

Nanny Ming's displeasure was almost visible in her eyes.

This county lady is so shameless that she actually asked the Crown Prince's wife for a shop!

Even Ming thought so. She was thinking about which shop would be suitable for her dowry when she heard Tang Zhao continue, "I wrote a storybook and would like to ask my sister-in-law to help me see if I can sell it." Ming was surprised and took the thick stack of straw paper.

Tang Zhao coughed lightly, "It's a rough draft. I'm worried it won't be good enough and I don't want to waste paper."

Xuan paper is very expensive, and she was afraid that if she ran out of it, that poor guy Gu Ci wouldn't give her more.

Nanny Ming breathed a sigh of relief, but then a hint of disdain flashed in her eyes.

How can someone who grew up on a farm write anything good?

Chunfeng sensitively captured Nanny Ming's emotions and kept them in mind.

Ming quickly skimmed through it and found the plot to be compact and fascinating, and the wording to be incisive, graceful and moving. Although it was only the first chapter, it was clear that it was an excellent story.

"Your writing is excellent," Ming praised, gaining confidence in her money-making plan. "Which teahouse do you want to invest in?"

"I don't understand these things. I just want to write storybooks quietly," Tang Zhao explained. "I want to buy out the books directly from my family's bookstore."

"I heard that my sister-in-law's family owns several bookstores. I wonder if she would be willing to buy any of them?"

Ming was tempted. Her family owned dozens of bookstores throughout Jiangnan, where literature flourished. The young men and women from wealthy families loved storybooks and were willing to spend money to buy them.

Books are precious nowadays, and the cheapest handwritten copy sells for three to five hundred coins. If a bookstore prints it by engraving, it will sell for at least one or two taels of silver!
Ming dares to assert that the bookstore will sell at least hundreds of copies!

And more and more people buy it later.

Ming suppressed her excitement and asked, "How does my sister-in-law plan to buy it out?"

"One chapter for one book, ten taels for each. I guarantee the quality will remain the same in the future," Tang Zhao had thought long ago. "After I buy it out, I will never sell it to anyone else. Whether the book sells well or not is none of my business."

Ming also leans towards this idea. If the profits are divided according to the sales volume, it will cause a lot of trouble.

"This is not a trivial matter. I can't decide on my own," Ming said after weighing the pros and cons. "I have to discuss it with my parents before I can give my sister-in-law a reply."

"No problem, sister-in-law, just let me know after you discuss it," Tang Zhao was very easy to talk to.

Ming smiled more sincerely, chatted with him for a while, and then personally escorted him out the door.

After Nanny Ming and the others had gone far away, she whispered, "Does the Crown Prince's Consort really want to do this business with the County Lady?"

"My sister-in-law is short of money, don't I? Doesn't the palace lack money?" Ming sighed, "Don't forget, this year it is because the court gave military pay to the Northwest Army that our palace can breathe a sigh of relief. Otherwise..." She shook her head.

"Over the years, my family has subsidized the royal palace and the Northwest Army countless times. Even if the Ming family is wealthy, how long can it sustain itself?" Ming watched the smoke from the incense burner drift away. "If we don't find a way to increase our income, I'm afraid we won't be able to continue."

"Now that such a great opportunity is before me, how can I let it go?" Ming stopped Nanny Ming's advice. "I'll write a letter back. Whether I should continue this business or not is still up to my father and brother to decide."

Nanny Ming stopped trying to persuade her.

Ming quickly wrote the letter, tied it up together with the manuscript paper, and sent someone to deliver it back to Ming Mansion in Jiangnan at full speed. Then she continued to deal with the affairs of the palace.

"Miss, will the Crown Prince's wife agree to partner with us in this business?" Chunfeng told Tang Zhao everything about Nanny Ming's behavior and was very doubtful that this business could continue.

Tang Zhaocai didn't care about the attitude of a servant like Nanny Ming.

"Yes, in this world, no one can resist money."

Thanks to Hua Zhantou for the monthly ticket, and thanks to all readers for their support
Add another chapter today

The author will work hard to write

(End of this chapter)