Transmigrated into a female county magistrate during a famine, leading her country to prosperity

Chapter 350: Distribution of Profits from the Cloth Shop

Some people present did not know who Ji Benchang was, but from what Yu Shizhang said, they could guess roughly.

——How many people can throw a tantrum in the Golden Palace and dare to covet His Majesty’s private treasury?

After that, everyone discussed again and finally decided that the final investment ratio of the cotton cloth workshop would be: 60% by Shen Zheng personally, 30% by the Tongan County Government, and 10% by the people.

As for profits, they will be distributed according to the investment ratio.

However, Shen Zheng gave 30% to the emperor, so the final distribution was: Shen Zheng 30%, the emperor 30%, Tongan County Government 30%, and the people 10%.

As Xu Zhubu was writing down the details, he heard Old Qiao muttering:

"Sir Shen paid 60%, but only 30% was shared... Why didn't the county government share 10% with Your Majesty, but instead Sir Shen alone got the share?"

Liang Fu pinched him and whispered:

"Keep your voice down. Thirty percent of the county government's funding was provided by the county government itself, and the county also provided the land, so it didn't take advantage of anyone."

Old Qiao pursed his lips, he felt that this was not the way to calculate.

The blueprints were all taken out by the little girl. Isn't the county government taking advantage of it?

Now the girl is still sitting in the position of county magistrate, but if the girl is gone in the future, then the county magistrate who will take office later will be like a successor who plants trees for the next generation to enjoy the shade, right?

"Okay, okay, okay, we'll divide it however you say."

Although Mr. Qiao and his partner lowered their voices, Yu Shizhang still heard their conversation.

He laughed out loud and thought of a solution for Mr. Qiao:

"The profits of the county government must not be shared with your majesty. After all, this is the county government and has no direct relationship with your majesty's private treasury."

"And Lord Liang just said that the county government provided funds and land, so it's not like they're just getting something for nothing. So even if they want to divide it, they should discuss it with the Ministry of Revenue or the Ministry of Works later to see if they can expand the scale or channels. But right now... there's no need to do that."

When Mr. Qiao heard this, his mouth opened wide: Can we play it like this?

Yu Shizhang didn't make his words too clear, but the people present were not stupid.

What he meant was that after Shen Zheng left office, the county government would be in the hands of the Great Zhou, not the next county magistrate. As for how the 30% profit should be distributed to the county government, it would be up to His Majesty to decide, not the next county magistrate.

For example.

If Your Majesty were to wave his hand and issue an imperial decree, Tongan County would be separated from Liuyang Prefecture and placed directly under the jurisdiction of the imperial court.

Now that the position of county magistrate has been taken away, what’s left to distinguish between yours and mine, the county’s and the court’s?

This is the method of the imperial court, this is the supreme imperial power.

——The so-called rules and regulations are nothing more than a word from the superior.

Xu Zhubu stopped writing and handed the paper to Shen Zheng, "Sir, please take a look."

Shen Zheng took a quick look and nodded:

"Master Xu, after the meeting is over, you will meet with Lord Shen. Once he has calculated the approximate cost, you will call the leaders of each village and tell them about this matter. The people will join voluntarily. If there are those who are unwilling, we will not force them."

"My subordinate understands."

Shen Zheng added: "Write another notice when the time comes, recruiting workers for the fabric workshops throughout the county. You should coordinate with Mr. Qiao on this matter, and recruit workers for each type of work according to the weaving steps and the number of looms. But remember, only the people of Tongan County will be recruited."

She paused as she thought of something, "As for the monthly salary... we'll discuss it when all parties are gathered together."

"Yes, my lord."

Shen Zheng handed the straw paper back to him, looked at him for a moment, and said with a smile:

"There will be a lot of things to do later, and you may not be able to handle them all by yourself. You should take care of it yourself this time, so you should hire an assistant for yourself. He should be trustworthy, and both he and his family should be clean. I am from Tongan County, so I would like to choose him first."

Xu Zhubu took the straw paper and hesitated for a moment, then smiled back at her and said softly:

"Sir, I am busy for now."

Shen Zheng did not force him, but just asked him to do things within his ability. If he was too busy, he would consider hiring an assistant.

Yu Shizhang found it funny that she was so eager to care about others, but ended up being alone:

"Now that we're talking about this, how can you, as a county magistrate, not have a maid to serve you? I think... you should assign two maids from home to you."

Shen Zheng refused without even thinking.

"My Lord, I am used to being free and easy, and I can take care of myself. On the contrary, when I wake up in the morning and open my eyes, I find someone guarding me out of the blue. I am not used to that."

"Humph--"

Yu Shizhang thought that she had lived a poor life in the past and had never learned to be more carefree, so he pointed his finger and scolded her.

"It's not a life of ease."

"That's right, my uncle."

Shen Zheng acted like a wimp and said with a bitter face: "This humble official is destined to be a hard worker."

"You have to endure the hardship!" Yu Shizhang said angrily.

Shen Zheng lowered her head and smiled.

Her mind still couldn't fully integrate into this world.

She felt that it was okay for someone to take care of her and she could just pay for it, but she couldn't accept the buying and selling of maids and slaves. Holding the other party's indentures was like holding their lives in her hands, so she had to stop doing that.

If I really am too busy in the future... I'll just hire an assistant.

Shen Zheng came back to her senses. "Okay, let's stop discussing the cotton cloth workshop. The next thing is the printing workshop. Principal Li, please explain it to everyone."

Li Hongmao had already memorized the movable type printing process given to him by Shen Zheng.

He stood up and began to talk.

Two quarters of an hour later——

Seeing that everyone looked confused, Li Hongmao could only elaborate:

"...Now that Master Bo has been invited back by Master, our printing house can officially start operating. The general process is that Master Bo writes the inscription, someone is asked to carve the positive text, and after the positive text is fired, the negative text is printed with clay. If all goes well, the movable type can be placed in the mold and printing can begin."

Except for a few people who already knew about this, everyone else gasped.

Yu Shizhang raised his head like a victorious rooster, but no one paid any attention to him.

Liang Fu felt that his breathing was not smooth, and it took him a while to recover. He glared at Shen Zheng and asked:

"Shen, Lord Shen, does Your Majesty know about this skill?"

Shen Zheng pursed her lips and shook her head.

"I have not yet reported this to Your Majesty."

"How can that be done!"

Liang Fu stood up and said, "Sir Shen, you must report this matter to His Majesty as soon as possible! How can you not be anxious about such an important matter? This concerns tens of millions of students in our Great Zhou!"

"Why are you in such a hurry? Slow down and you'll be fine!"

Yu Shizhang was unhappy, and he shook his sleeves and stood up to argue with Liang Fu.

"Shen Zheng had not invited me to write an inscription before, and the eight characters had not even been written yet. Why should I report it to His Majesty? Do you want to make him anxious in the capital? Of course, I should report it to His Majesty after everything is settled!"

He turned to Shen Zheng and said:

"Mr. Ben thinks that now is the right time. You can write about your cotton workshop in the letter."

Liang Fu sat back unhappily.

Who made him not hold a higher official position than Yu Shizhang, and not as good at speaking as him!