Jian Wuzhong also got his wish to go to Qingzhou, entering the Qingzhou printing house to work. His grades were the best, and during his internship at the Luoyang printing house, his performance was also the best.
So good that the Luoyang printing house manager wanted to keep him.
But orders from above were paramount. Even if he was a promising talent, it wasn’t something the manager could keep just because he wanted to. Originally, he wanted to find him a nearby printing house so he could have a chance to return to Luoyang in the future.
But Jian Wuzhong insisted on going to Qingzhou, so the manager could only comply with his wishes.
Before leaving, Jian Wuzhong said to his younger brothers and sisters: “I’m going with the convoy escorting the type molds to Qingzhou, only taking two hundred coins for travel expenses. The rest of the settlement allowance and travel expenses I’ll leave for you all.”
“I’ve entrusted someone to cultivate our family’s land. Right now people don’t lack land, so it can only be kept from lying fallow. The compensation is just two hundred catties of grain per year. I’ve calculated—added to my wages, it’s enough for you all to live on.” He said: “While I’m not home, you must study hard. If you’re clever, go to the five-year program, then take the official examination when the time comes. If you’re even more clever, study a few more years and take the imperial recruitment examination in the future to serve the Great General.”
The three children younger than him agreed, reluctantly seeing him to the door.
Jian Wuzhong said: “Don’t worry about me. The printing house belongs to the Great General, and Qingzhou has County Magistrate Zhao as governor—it will definitely be safe, and life will be good. I’m also at ease with you all in the capital. If anything happens, go find the teachers, or there’s still the county office.”
Although they were a group of children, they had also experienced life and death, enduring many hardships. So they all trusted each other’s abilities.
Back then, in such dire circumstances, they had survived. Now the country was stable and they had the Great General’s protection—what danger could there be?
However, their hearts still missed each other, and they felt much reluctance.
Looking at his three younger siblings, Jian Wuzhong felt a faint regret rising in his heart. Perhaps he shouldn’t have gone to distant Qingzhou.
“Big Brother, go without worry,” his eldest sister Jian Jiruo said. “I will definitely take good care of our younger brothers and sisters.”
Jian Wuzhong touched her head and said: “Write me if anything happens.”
Jian Jiruo nodded vigorously.
As soon as Jian Wuzhong arrived at the Qingzhou printing house, he was put to important use. Because of his strong abilities, he was directly selected as team leader of the proofreading group, with a monthly salary of one thousand coins.
Zhao Kuan not only had the printing house and paper workshop built, but also constructed several rows of houses nearby, specifically for the craftsmen to live in.
Two people per room. Jian Wuzhong shared a room with another person. Inside there was even a writing desk. Though simple, it was perfect for studying—truly his dream room.
Jian Wuzhong immersed himself in work and study. After quite some time, he discovered that living here weren’t only printing house craftsmen, but other craftsmen as well.
His roommate said: “You only just noticed? Those other people are amazing. I heard they’re especially good at mathematics. They work with that group of salt workers evaporating salt, meeting with many managers every day. Often people from outside come to find them, bringing delicious food each time, or going out to eat.”
“So envious. If only I had that ability.”
Jian Wuzhong’s focus was different: “Evaporating salt? Does Qingzhou have salt wells?”
“Not salt wells, sea salt,” his roommate said. “I’ve asked around. Qingzhou is near the ocean, and in some places the sea salt content is high, so they can evaporate salt. It’s even faster and produces more than boiling salt from wells.”
“Oh right, people from the same row of housing all came to find me, asking me to discuss with you about setting up a small kitchen in the courtyard. After work every day we’re all so hungry. We’re all at the age when we’re growing, so we want to pool money together to buy some rice, flour, oil, and salt, then cook some food together when we get back in the evening.”
Everyone in this row of housing came from the Luoyang school—the oldest was fifteen, the youngest twelve. They were at that age when half-grown boys could eat their fathers into poverty.
The printing house cafeteria served two meals a day, which they simply couldn’t sustain on.
In the past, they would certainly have endured it, after all they weren’t earning money.
But now they were people with monthly salaries. Even being frugal, they still couldn’t resist wanting to eat their fill. The feeling of going hungry at night was truly difficult to bear.
Seeing Jian Wuzhong lower his eyes without speaking, his roommate leaned over and said: “I know you have a family to support. Don’t worry, we’re not eating anything extravagant. Every evening we’ll just mix white flour, wheat bran, and bean powder together to make soup, or knead flatbread, add two drops of bean oil and a little salt, just to keep our stomachs from being so empty.”
“It’s mainly because we’re too hungry and can’t sleep at night, but we still have to go to the printing house to work early in the morning.”
Jian Wuzhong asked about the current prices of rice and flour, then asked: “Salt is expensive. How much does salt cost?”
“Don’t worry, Qingzhou produces salt. I’ve already asked—it’s much cheaper than in Luoyang,” he said, taking out a small bowl. “This much salt costs only fourteen coins.”
Jian Wuzhong’s eyes lit up upon hearing this. “Really?”
“Would I lie? We not only asked those salt workers in front, we also went to look. Six coins can buy about this much.”
He gestured in the bowl and said: “If we’re careful with it, six coins worth of salt is enough for a family of three to eat for half a year.”
Jian Wuzhong calculated his wages and said: “Since Qingzhou’s salt is so cheap, I wonder if we could buy some and have someone send it back to Luoyang along with money?”
“No need. I already asked. I heard that starting next month, all salt must be bought from shops designated by the county office. The price will be the same in all commanderies and counties. By then, Luoyang’s salt price will also be this amount.”
Jian Wuzhong said: “The Great General is going to establish state-operated salt?”
“Exactly,” his roommate laughed heartily. “With the Great General managing salt, we need never fear salt prices skyrocketing. We’ll never be unable to afford salt again.”
When salt prices rose, they went crazier than grain prices. Two years ago, during Luoyang’s grain shortage, there was also a salt shortage. Prices directly shot up to where ten coins only got you a tiny pinch of salt. If you took two coins to buy salt, you could only buy what fit in one finger gap.
Jian Wuzhong looked outside and secretly vowed that he must do well at the printing house work, then leave the printing house to take the Qingzhou government examination and go work at the salt fields serving the Great General!
County offices everywhere had already prepared to sell state-operated salt.
Each county would open a separate window specifically to provide state-operated salt to general stores and peddlers in the county. They needed to register with the county office, and each purchase amount would be recorded.
The county office set a salt price range. They could only sell salt within that range. Not only would they be fined for exceeding this price, but they would also be fined for going below it.
Because the base price at which state-operated salt was sold to them was set there, selling salt below this price was basically a losing business. Where there was sacrifice, there must be demands.
They had to ensure state-operated salt circulated in the market. The best method was to use the price range to squeeze out the survival space for private salt.
All localities had begun preparing from the first day of printing and were now ready. For places lacking salt, sea salt from Qingzhou and Guangzhou had already been transported there.
For places not lacking salt, Zhao Hanzhang also dispatched troops and censors to ensure salt production from salt wells and salt lakes, confirming they were all in the court’s hands.
Starting from the first day of the third month, state-operated salt officially went on sale. Salt prices were unified nationwide, directly eliminating privately operated salt with fluctuating prices.