The Great Tang's King of Provisions

Chapter 46: 10,000 guan!

That’s a bargain Upon arriving at the Cheng Family Restaurant, a delicious breakfast of fine food and drink was naturally served to Li Xuanba. This breakfast was quite good by Tang Dynasty standards, but unfortunately, it didn’t quite suit Li Xuanba’s taste, so he could only force it down. As Li Xuanba sat on the fifth floor, the top floor, eating his breakfast, merchants drawn by the scent of copper coins began to gather. Among them was indeed a representative from the Cheng family—Cheng Shizu, the family’s steward in charge of external affairs. Hearing this official’s name, Li Xuanba chuckled to himself; if you added the word “not” to it, it would mean “not up to the task.” Of course, given Li Xuanba’s status, he wasn’t about to put down his breakfast to receive these merchants, and the merchants, naturally, didn’t dare to rush him. So they all waited together on the second floor, huddled in a group and whispering among themselves. “I wonder, just how big is this big deal, anyway?” “No idea, but our Great Tang Emperor is the very first to be called ‘Tang Wang.’ Whatever he says must be true!” “Have you heard? Our Great Tang King is a divine being from the heavens—even the court historians can’t write down his name!” “Do I need to hear about it? It’s already spread all over Chang’an. My master had all the servants try to write down our King Tang’s name—hehe, they really couldn’t do it.” Although it had only been a single day, Li Xuanba’s name—one that even the court historians couldn’t write down—had already spread throughout the entire city of Chang’an and was rapidly spreading beyond its borders! However, this spread was limited to word of mouth, because the five characters “King of Tang Li Xuanba” simply could not be written down. After Li Xuanba finished his breakfast, Cheng Huai Mo ordered someone to clear the table and pour a fresh cup of tea. Only then did he summon the stewards—representing the merchants and noble families who had been waiting for the duration of an incense stick—to come upstairs. “We pay our respects to His Highness the Prince of Tang!” The moment they saw Li Xuanba—standing ten meters away—these merchants and their outer-gate stewards all instinctively stooped a notch. While their attitude couldn’t exactly be called obsequious, their manners were impeccable; after all, they were facing not only Li Xuanba but also the blades of Cheng Huai Mo and his men. “Sit!” Li Xuanba said indifferently, closing his eyes and paying no attention to the group of merchants before him. At this moment, Li Xuanba bore none of the playful demeanor he had displayed while tending to Li Yuan and the others in the Taiyi Hall. His face was utterly expressionless, and he exuded an air of supreme authority—as if he were someone who had long disregarded the lives of others. His words were simple and to the point; he was, in every respect, the Prince of Tang. This was not Li Xuanba’s natural demeanor, but one he was compelled to adopt—for at that moment, he was no longer Li Yuan’s son or Li Shimin’s younger brother, but the Prince of Tang! The Prince of Tang! Li Xuanba closed his eyes and, without raising his hand, said softly, “Huai Mo!” “Yes!” Li Xuanba merely called out Cheng Huai Mo’s name once, and Cheng Huai Mo immediately understood. Holding the small toothbrush, he walked over to the merchants and the outer-gate steward who were preparing to do business. Naturally, the first person to whom he handed it was the Cheng family’s own outer-gate steward. “Is this the ‘big business’ the Prince of Tang was talking about? It doesn’t look like much!” “What kind of bristles are these? They look like pig bristles. What are they used for?” “Isn’t this thing way too small? It doesn’t look like what you’d expect from a big deal.” The toothbrush was passed back and forth among the crowd. Li Xuanba heard every word of their discussion, but he didn’t even glance at it. With his eyes closed, he said, “This little thing is called a toothbrush. The name is simple, and its purpose is equally simple—it’s used for brushing teeth. It has three benefits.” “First, it replaces those willow twigs and won’t poke your mouth until it bleeds.” “Second, it can make your teeth very white and very clean.” “Third, brushing your teeth once every morning and once before bed each night is very beneficial to your health.” “Whoosh!” As soon as Li Xuanba listed these three benefits, the shrewd merchants all turned their eyes toward him—even though his eyes were still closed. Without Li Xuanba even having to remind them, they immediately realized that a toothbrush was something everyone needed—and that its value was immense. Although Li Xuanba’s eyes were closed, it was as if he could see the greedy glances of these merchants. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly, revealing a confident smile. “I won’t go into the manufacturing process just yet. I’ll simply outline three price tiers: the first tier consists of high-end toothbrushes, which can sell for ten guan each; the second tier is 500 wen each; and the third tier is 10 wen each.” “Huff… huff…” No sooner had Li Xuanba finished listing the three price tiers than the merchants and outer-gate stewards’ breathing suddenly grew heavy, and their eyes slowly began to redden! In the Tang Dynasty at that time, court officials had not yet been laid off; there were at least three thousand, if not five thousand, noble families in Chang’an, and over ten thousand moderately wealthy households. Considering just these two social strata, the high-end toothbrushes could sell at least 10,000 units, and the mid-range ones at least 20,000. Combined, these two categories could generate sales of at least 110,000 guan in copper coins. Even if the profit margin were only half of that, the profit would still amount to 50,000 guan. And that’s just Chang’an—what about the areas outside the city? How much would that amount to? As for whether these toothbrushes can actually be sold—if even a single household here learns they’re available, it’s likely every household will buy at least ten, for use by their family members, including the lady of the house and the young masters. The only question is: how much should this little item be priced at? Catching Cheng Huai Mo’s glance, Cheng Shizu bowed slightly to Li Xuanba and asked, “Your Highness, may I ask how much you intend to sell these toothbrushes for?” “Hehe!” Li Xuanba opened his eyes and smiled. He first glanced at Cheng Shizu, then swept his gaze over the merchants and outer-gate stewards who were staring at him eagerly, before replying with a faint smile, “The price is very reasonable: 10,000 guan. In addition to the manufacturing method for these toothbrushes, I’m also including the matching tooth powder. Furthermore, while any shop I authorize may produce these toothbrushes, if anyone is found to have copied them, their entire family will be executed!” “Phew… That’s a relief—it’s not too expensive!” “That’s a fair price! Although 10,000 guan is a lot to come up with all at once, as long as we sell a thousand high-end toothbrushes, we’ll recoup our investment right away.” “That price works! Prince Tang is truly benevolent!” Upon hearing the price Li Xuanba quoted, the crowd completely ignored the warning that “anyone who copies this will have their entire family executed.” They all gathered around—after all, if anyone actually did copy it, that person would never be able to make a living in the business world again. As for Li Xuanba’s price—exchanging 10,000 guan for several 50,000-guan deals—they could easily figure out which was the better deal. Hearing the merchants’ praise, Li Xuanba’s lips curled into a mysterious smile. Smiling faintly to himself, he said, “All right, I’ve named my price. Let’s see which of you wants to buy the manufacturing rights to this toothbrush.” “The Cheng family will buy it!” “The Changsun family will buy it!” “The Weichi family will buy it!” “The Cui family will buy it!” “The Lu family will buy it!” At Li Xuanba’s question, these merchants and outer-sect stewards spoke up in unison, not a single one left out, as if they didn’t even bat an eye at the 10,000 guan of copper coins.