Chapter 397: His Royal Highness the King who loves his people like his own son
Zhang Fengnian's method was not very clever. The other small businessmen only thought about it briefly and understood their thoughts.
Immediately afterwards, the bidding prices became more and more cruel. Some people even directly quoted a price of 1,300 taels, which was lower than Zhang Fengnian and others.
Originally there were some big businessmen who were interested in taking over some residential projects. After hearing the price, they gave up completely.
If you really get it at this price, it's not worth it if the contract quantity is small. Even if you contract a lot, you won't make much money. It's basically useless.
"I declare that this bidding conference is officially over!"
"Those who do not succeed in bidding this time do not need to be discouraged. The next bidding meeting of the imperial court will be held in ten days."
Many businessmen who had not won the bid for the project were still depressed at first, but when they heard the news, they immediately cheered.
This is the first time the imperial court has held a bidding meeting, and everyone is still half-understood and not fully prepared.
Now, they have completely figured out how the imperial court plays.
Every businessman is gearing up to prepare for the next tender.
Liu Jiyang and Shen Xiong never stopped smiling.
"This time, thanks to Brother Zhang's strategizing, I was able to take advantage of the fire and come out on top."
"I will set up a table at Juxian Building tonight, and I must give Brother Zhang a toast."
When the bidding started just now, they still complained a little about Zhang Fengnian. The price they discussed was only one thousand four hundred taels of silver. In this case, ten houses could earn a total of two thousand or two thousand taels.
It sounds like a lot, but if three people split it, it would be a small profit.
As a result, as soon as Zhang Fengnian opened his mouth, he suddenly lost more than 500 taels.
Naturally, they will be dissatisfied with the other party's self-assertion.
But looking at it now, the price they quoted is actually pretty good.
After that, several people went to sign a contract with the Yamen.
"This is..." Liu Jiyang only glanced at the contract and his eyes widened.
"Brother Liu, is there something wrong with this contract?" Seeing that no one noticed them, Shen Xiong quickly came over and asked in a low voice.
Liu Jiyang handed the contract to Shen Xiong, still unable to believe his eyes: "Brother Shen, see for yourself."
Shen Xiong's reaction was no different from Liu Jiyang's. After taking a quick glance, he couldn't move his eyes away.
"This contract is really... really... Brother Zhang, come and take a look."
They have never heard of the court's contract.
If you just look at the words in the contract, even these businessmen would find it vulgar and too straightforward to look at.
But, in addition, this contract is so powerful that it makes their scalp numb.
It not only stipulates the obligations of both parties, but also the rights that both parties can enjoy. If any losses occur due to the court, the court will also compensate accordingly.
This was something they couldn't even imagine before.
Those adults above, if they don't take the opportunity to trick them again, they will all be in trouble.
The most important thing is that this contract is written in vernacular. Every clause is explained clearly and clearly. As long as you know the words, you can basically understand it.
Liu Jiyang and Shen Xiong have already decided that if they need to sign any contracts when doing business in the future, they must follow this standard.
"If you two brothers have no objection to the content of the contract, then let's sign it." Zhang Fengmin just glanced at it briefly and did not show much surprise at the content of the contract.
It seems that he has known the contents of the contract for a long time, which is why he attaches so much importance to this tender.
"My lord..." Before signing the contract, Zhang Fengnian asked the official responsible for signing the contract with them: "We are a few people bidding together. Is this name signed by one person, or does everyone have to sign it?"
The official in charge had a very good attitude and even had a smile on his face: "There is no requirement for this. You can nominate a person in charge if you are willing. It will be no problem if everyone signs."
"If something goes wrong later, we will hold the person responsible first according to the person who signed the name."
"If you have any questions about the terms of the contract, you can raise them now and I will answer them for you."
Liu Jiyang and Shen Xiong were still a little uncomfortable with the officials' attitude.
In the past, even a ninth-grade official would not have looked at them seriously.
After asking some questions that they didn't particularly understand, the three of them signed their names on the contract at the same time.
After careful inspection, the official told several people: "You can make preliminary preparations in the past few days."
"On how to build those houses, engineers certified by the imperial court will communicate with you later."
"Remember, the construction must be carried out in accordance with the engineer's requirements. Otherwise, not only will it fail to pass the acceptance inspection, but you may also have to pay liquidated damages."
The three of them naturally nodded in agreement.
Just as he left the house, Shen Xiong said anxiously: "Brother Zhang, I wanted to have a drink with you tonight, but now it seems we don't have time."
"With so many projects about to start, there will definitely be job recruitment everywhere. We have to recruit enough craftsmen and laborers as soon as possible. Otherwise, the cost will definitely increase a lot."
"Brother Shen is right!" Liu Jiyang also thought about this problem: "Especially qualified craftsmen, it will become increasingly difficult to find them in the future."
Zhang Fengmin said calmly: "Don't worry, dear friends, I have already taken care of this matter. We don't have to worry about manpower."
Liu Jiyang and Shen Xiong took a breath of air. This Brother Zhang really had a plan.
Zhu Han had already left when the medium-sized project ended.
He also took away Liu Ji, who looked like his worldview had collapsed.
It was completely unimaginable to him that the imperial court could still do things like this. When he was presiding over the construction of Yanjing before, money and various materials were spent like water. But the progress of rebuilding Yanjing was so slow that he wanted to kill someone.
As a result, after His Royal Highness came, he only held a bidding conference. Not only did he not have to spend any money, but he collected a lot of deposits first.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! And during the subsequent construction, the court does not have to worry much. It only needs to send the engineers mentioned by the King of England to supervise the quality of the construction.
Whether it's workers, materials, or other problems, it's all up to the businessmen themselves to worry about.
If it is done well, the court can complete its predetermined plan. If it is not done well, it can recover a lot of liquidated damages from those businessmen.
Previously, Liu Ji was worried about what would happen to the civilian laborers recruited by the Ministry of Works once these projects were stopped.
The result is that there is absolutely nothing to do.
Without even waiting for these craftsmen and common people to feel dissatisfied, the businessmen had already taken a lot of money to recruit people.
What surprised Liu Ji the most was that during the bidding process, the merchants' quotations were already very low. They could still use high prices to hire craftsmen and laborers.
In less than two days, the price of labor in Yanjing City has increased by at least 30% compared to before.
If only that was it.
When he asked His Royal Highness the King about this issue.
Zhu Han gave him a meaningful smile: "You don't need to worry about this. You just need to know that they will still make money even in this case."
"That's right." Zhu Han suddenly said seriously: "Don't think that after the bidding is completed, the court will really not care about anything."
"Businessmen are a bunch of guys who can't afford to do anything early. For profit, they will do anything."
"The court must strictly control all businessmen who invite bids to prevent them from tampering with the project. Once someone is found to be tampering with the project, no matter who is behind him, he will immediately be deprived of the contractor's qualifications and severely punished in accordance with the law."
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, my subordinates will keep a close eye on them and prevent them from doing anything else." Liu Ji solemnly promised Zhu Han.
His Royal Highness has already done so much. If His Royal Highness still has to worry about such a small matter, then Liu Ji might as well just die.
"I'm still relieved when you do things. I'm not worried about anything else, except for one thing. I absolutely cannot make the slightest mistake."
Seeing Zhu Han's seriousness, Liu Ji did not dare to neglect: "Please give me your instructions."
Zhu Han's eyes were blazing, like a sharp sword that could penetrate people's hearts.
"Businessmen cannot be allowed to default on any form of payment for any reason, or to embezzle the wages of craftsmen and laborers. As long as they are discovered, it will be regarded as murder and will not be tolerated!"
Liu Ji followed them and fought with Meng Yuan. He could clearly feel that His Royal Highness was really murderous.
While Zhu Han's determination was shocked, he also respected His Royal Highness the King more and more in his heart.
Throughout the ages, how many people have been able to do such a meticulous job for ordinary people?
"I will obey the teachings of the prince and never let any common people be wronged." Liu Ji had tears in his eyes and his voice was choked with sobs.
Zhu Han was a little confused. Why was Liu Ji so excited all of a sudden?
Forget it, as long as it doesn't delay business, he doesn't intend to interfere in other people's private lives.
"Go down."
Send away the somewhat nervous Liu Ji.
Zhu Han took his guards to a room in the temporary palace.
Here, it was originally a banquet hall, but now it has been converted into a classroom.
The craftsmen from the Ministry of Industry and the students who graduated from Huangzhuang were sitting on both sides of the building, clearly distinguished from each other.
At the front of the classroom, in front of the makeshift blackboard, was a young man of seventeen or eighteen years old, talking eloquently.
The students who have just graduated from Huangzhuang are okay. The craftsmen in the Ministry of Industry are all very old, and many of them have gray hair and beards.
At this moment, just like a primary school student, listen carefully.
He even picked up a pen from time to time to record knowledge points.
Especially those at the front are all world-famous masters. The projects they have participated in are basically at the palace level.
But now, on the podium, in front of a child who even their grandchildren thought was too young, he was respectful and did not dare to overstep the mark.
It all started two days ago.
Zhu Han directly deprived the Ministry of Industry of its rights and handed over the Yanjing Imperial City construction project to businessmen through bidding.
Moreover, the craftsmen from the Ministry of Industry are required to learn construction knowledge together with the students who graduated from Huangzhuang, and they also need an engineer certificate.
How can these experienced craftsmen look at those dolls that don’t even have all their fur?
Both Liu Shenhong and Zhang Yunjie almost collapsed the threshold of the Ministry of Industry, and those old craftsmen were stunned and didn't give them any face.
Of course, there are also reasons why officials from the Ministry of Works who were dissatisfied with Zhu Han were secretly stumbling upon him.
The two had no choice but to ask Zhu Han for help.
As long as the King of England personally gave the order, the craftsmen would not dare to disobey the King's will.
As a result, Zhu Han not only did not help, but also sarcastically said: "I and my brother asked you to come to Yanjing to give you a chance to practice. If you can't even do this well, then what's the use of you?"
?”
"Hurry and get out of the way and stay there quietly."
"By the way, when the time comes, don't say that you are my students or that you have anything to do with Xinxue. I can't afford to embarrass this person."
They all received Zhu Han's new education. Their knowledge was much higher than that of ordinary Ming people.
And at this age, it’s the time when you don’t take everyone seriously.
How could you hold back your temper after being so provoked by Zhu Han?
The Ministry of Industry doesn’t give you face, right?
Come directly to your door.
Anyway, these people were brought here by the King of England. Even the people from the Yanjing Ministry of Industry did not dare to do anything to them.
Originally, the craftsmen in the Ministry of Industry did not want to take up the challenge.
In their view, these students from Huangzhuang are just a bunch of dolls.
What's there to be happy about when you win a bunch of dolls?
Liu Shenhong and Zhang Yunjie discussed it privately and went directly to officials from the Ministry of Industry.
They said that if they lost, they would persuade His Royal Highness to change his mind and hand over the construction project of the imperial city to the Ministry of Works again.
The Minister of Industry in Yanjing could tell at a glance that the two of them were pulling a flag on a tiger's skin.
However, the bait was too fragrant. With the persuasion of other officials from the Ministry of Industry, I reluctantly agreed.
In their opinion, it was impossible for the craftsmen from the Ministry of Industry to lose. They just didn't know if Liu Shenhong and Wang Yunjie could persuade Zhu Han to change his mind.
The officials of the Ministry of Industry agreed, so ordinary craftsmen had no choice but to object.
They thought their conspiracy had succeeded.
Little did they know that Liu Shenhong and Zhang Yunjie had the same idea as them. In a game that was impossible to lose, it didn't matter how big the stakes were.
What no one expected was.
On the day when the students at Huangzhuang competed with the craftsmen of Yanjing, Zhu Han, His Royal Highness, also came to watch the battle.
Zhang Yunjie is young after all, so he can't help but feel a little anxious at this time.
"Brother, what if we lose? Do we really want to ask the prince to change his mind?"
Liu Shenhong nodded matter-of-factly: "I am willing to admit defeat. Since we have made a bet, there is no way we will regret it."
Zhang Yunjie immediately made a bitter look on his face: "Then aren't we ruining the prince's important matter?"
"You kid, are you stupid from studying? What does it have to do with us whether the prince agrees or not to what we ask for?"
"Senior brother...you!" Zhang Yunjie, who had been immersed in reading, saw the shamelessness of adults for the first time.