A Sixth-Rank Official
She snorted twice and said, "See, speechless now? If you still don't believe me, go investigate yourself and see whose things Zhiwei stole. If she really stole someone else's things and still dares to ask me to bring them to the palace for you to see, then she's really asking for trouble."
Xiao Ge is now completely convinced that Zhao Zhiwei who created this thing.
That's true. Zhao Zhiwei has both money and prestige now. Why would she give up such a good life to steal someone else's invention and commit the crime of deceiving the emperor? It's not worth it.
He didn't speak, but circled the spinning machine twice, watching the eunuch spin another pile of yarn. He asked, "What do you intend to do with this? It's not just for me to reward that girl, is it?"
From the collaboration on the safe and the printing press, he could tell that Zhiwei and his sister were absolutely obsessed with money.
Shangde went to great lengths to bring the items into the palace, not so that he could admire them and then have them studied and promoted by the Ministry of Works, but rather with the intention of making money.
Sure enough, Grand Princess Shangde responded, "We would like to cooperate with you to open a textile workshop together."
Before Xiao Ge could even entertain any other thoughts, Grand Princess Shangde continued, "It's not that I don't care about the common people or that I'm unwilling to let the Ministry of Works directly promote this thing. As you can see, this machine is very large and requires water power to operate, so it's not something ordinary families can afford. Even if you promote it, it will only benefit those powerful families and allow them to make money."
"Zhiwei put in a tremendous amount of effort to develop this machine. You're just giving it away for nothing, letting others make money. How can you face Zhiwei? People will say our Great Jin is stealing from others and bullying a young girl. You'll bear the infamy, Zhiwei's efforts will be in vain, and the powerful families will benefit. With money, they'll become even more unruly. You're raising a tiger to cause trouble. What's the point?"
Xiao Ge glared at him and said, "In your eyes, do you think your elder brother is a fool?"
"No, no, no, Your Majesty, you are the wisest and most intelligent man, otherwise how could you have ascended the throne? I'm worried that you're so devoted to the public good that you might be taken advantage of," Grand Princess Shangde quickly tried to smooth things over.
"Only a fool would be so easily manipulated," Xiao Ge scoffed.
He waved his hand. "Alright, you don't need to say anything more, I know about this. I won't ask for more, it's the same old rule, just give me 10%. As long as no one tries to steal my business, I won't interfere, so you won't have to hold yourself back."
Grand Princess Shangde rolled her eyes to herself again.
What's with the fear of them being held back? They just want to take the money and do nothing, to be hands-off managers. And they say it so nicely!
"One part, one part," Grand Princess Shangde readily agreed. "I've discussed it with Zhiwei, and we plan to open textile workshops all over the Great Jin. You can just wait to count the money then."
As for the fact that the workshop employed only women, she didn't intend to mention it. She wasn't stupid enough to preach feminist ideas in front of Xiao Ge, a grown man.
Anyway, the Emperor only needs to act as a patron and doesn't concern himself with the specifics. How things are handled and who is hired to do the work is their business, so there's no need to report to him.
"Open them all over the Great Jin?" Xiao Ge glanced at his younger sister. "What do you need so much money for?"
Although opening a workshop means having someone else manage it, eliminating the need for personal involvement, having another business always requires more effort to manage.
As the eldest princess, Shangde had her own fiefdom and many properties. Her husband and eldest son were also capable. Although her youngest son, Shen Feiyang, was somewhat unruly and only held a sinecure in the court, he was not a wastrel or a spendthrift.
Xiao Ge simply couldn't understand why Grand Princess Shangde was working so hard to earn money.
"Brother, have you ever worn coarse cloth clothes? Do you know how uncomfortable it is to wear coarse cloth clothes? With this spinning machine, the cost of spinning yarn has been greatly reduced; and if Zhiwei improves the loom, the price of fine cotton cloth will drop significantly, and the poor people of our Great Jin will be able to wear fine cotton clothes, and their lives will be further improved."
Xiao Ge nodded.
As an emperor, he understood better than Grand Princess Shangde what Zhao Ruxi's creation of this spinning machine meant. Such a highly efficient and high-output spinning machine, powered by water, would undoubtedly have a tremendous impact on the textile industry of the Great Jin.
It's not just the textile industry; using water power might inspire those in the Ministry of Works to create even more great things.
They established the Ministry of Works not only for management, but also to develop and promote good Ministry of Works to benefit the public.
What the Ministry of Works couldn't do, Zhao Zhiwei, a mere young girl, accomplished—a feat worthy of being recorded in history.
This will not only improve the lives of ordinary people, but also allow the Great Jin to profit from the lower prices of cotton cloth as merchants from neighboring countries transport the cloth to their countries. Which nation's people don't need to eat and wear clothes? The potential profits are unimaginable.
Thinking of this, Xiao Ge began to ponder what reward to give Zhao Zhiwei.
"Furthermore, we won't pocket the money we earn. Zhiwei told me that she wants to do some good deeds to improve the living conditions of women and children," Grand Princess Shangde added.
It must be said that Grand Princess Shangde, as Xiao Ge's sister, understands him very well and knows how to speak to him in a way that touches his heart.
She didn't talk about providing jobs for women or improving their social status; she only talked about improving the plight of women and children.
She is right. "Woman" refers to women, and "child" refers to their children. It improves the social status of women and allows them to make money. Not only does their situation improve, but the quality of life of their children can also be improved accordingly.
This is a good deed. They teach people how to fish, which is a great act of kindness.
Therefore, her statement was correct. As for her brother's misunderstanding that they were directly giving money to women and children or opening a charity, that was none of her business.
As expected, Xiao Ge was very Gao Xing to hear this and praised, "Good, good, good! I knew you were all kind-hearted and ambitious people, wholeheartedly for the good of the Great Jin. You and Zhiwei have both made great contributions."
After thinking for a moment, he said, "After the last painting competition, I said I would give the Earl of Suiping a position. But after looking around, I couldn't find a suitable one, and it's been delayed until now."
"It just so happens that there's a Subordinate Sixth Rank civil official position available at the Court of Judicial Review of Judicial Review. Although the Marquis of Earl of Suiping was originally a military officer, his health is poor, so a civil position would be more suitable for him. The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review Zhang Changshen, is an upright man, and Wu Zong is Zhiwei's senior fellow apprentice. Zhao Zhiwei also has a connection with the Court of Judicial Review. That place is perfect for the Earl of Suiping. I will issue an edict now to give him a decree, so that the Earl of Suiping's Residence can have some celebration. What do you think?"