Unlimited Resources: Raising a Minister with a Space Supermarket-Chapter 532 - 468: Public Opinion

Yu Xiaolian naturally wouldn’t refuse Su Jinghua’s request to write a letter to Su Jingyue. Times have changed; they no longer need to rely on others to send letters. As officials, they can use the court’s postal stations to send letters freely.

Su Jinghua ran to the cabinet on the kang, took out a letter he had written long ago, and handed it to Yu Xiaolian. "I’ll trouble you, sister-in-law!"

Yu Xiaolian tapped Su Jinghua’s forehead and said affectionately, "Why be so formal with your sister-in-law?"

Yu Xiaolian also inquired about what the female teacher had recently been teaching Su Jinghua. Upon learning that Su Jinghua was learning to write poetry, she reminded him to study well with the teacher before returning to her own room.

The roads in Yangcheng County primarily featured stone pavements on main streets, but most alleyways were dirt roads, becoming very muddy and difficult to traverse when it rained. Su Jingchen decided to first repair the county town’s roads.

Considering that some people might maliciously damage the cement before it dried, Su Jingchen stationed guards nearby after the cement was applied to the road until it fully dried.

The people of Yangcheng had heard of cement but never seen it, so on the first day of construction, the roadsides were crowded with onlookers.

Among them were some wealthy sons. When they saw the cement solidify into a firm slab, they were astonished and immediately expressed willingness to pay a high price to purchase cement.

They were very astute, quickly recognizing the wide applicability of cement. It was unknown how many days it would take to carve and polish a stone slab, but with this cement, as long as there was enough manpower, a defensive fortification could be built in a few days.

Su Jingchen wasn’t foolish enough to reject those who proactively offered money. Although he didn’t have ready stock, he and Yu Xiaolian hadn’t been idly handling this for so many years. Su Jingchen waved his hand grandly, "You can leave a deposit to reserve. Those interested can place a deposit with County Magistrate Li. However, the cement polishing process is slow, so to ensure everyone who needs cement can buy some, each household is limited to five cartloads, first come first served."

"Coincidentally, my outer wall weathered and I was planning to tear it down and rebuild. I’ll reserve five cartloads!"

"In the backyard of my inn, it gets uneven whenever it rains. Guests have complained more than once. I’ll take five cartloads of cement too; laying a cement road would improve the inn’s environment."

"Lord Su, how much Silver Coin is one cartload of this cement?" Some wanted to buy but were afraid the price was too high.

The cement factory employs two thousand workers daily, producing just over four hundred cartloads of cement, so it really can’t be priced too low.

Importantly, ordinary people wouldn’t consider buying it, so Su Jingchen wasn’t hesitant about charging the wealthy high prices, "Three taels of silver per cartload."

Hearing it was three taels, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Three taels isn’t expensive. I’d like to cover my yard with cement. Lord Su, my yard has three courtyards, and five cartloads aren’t enough. How about selling me a few more?" A bewhiskered Tu Feiyuan sidled up to Su Jingchen trying to get closer.

Su Jingchen maintained the stance of Lord County Magistrate, shaking his head, "No, five cartloads per household is the maximum. Even these five are available only after Yangcheng completes road repairs and you can fetch them.

However, even after the roads are finished, our Yangcheng Cement Factory won’t stop work, and you can have as many as you want then; it’s just a matter of time."

Tu Feiyuan squinted with his shrewd little eyes, flattering Su Jingchen with a smile, "My lord, I heard there’s a formula ratio for cement. If it’s not followed, it’s not sturdy. If we pay fifteen taels of silver for the recipe, that’d be awkward."

"Although the cement formula is a priceless treasure, this official doesn’t intend to profit from it. Benefiting the people and future generations is my original intention!" Su Jingchen spoke with official jargon but also with genuine sincerity.

Building a cement road doesn’t mean an end to maintenance, but at least there’s no need for annual burdensome repairs. If the cement road lasts ten or eight years, I’ll be quite satisfied.

After the roads are repaired, fixing the riverbank would solve the recurring, annual problem of repairs.

Tu Feiyuan initially had probing intentions, but didn’t expect that Lord Su was genuinely willing to share the cement formula with everyone.

In fact, Su Jingchen had long discussed the cement recipe with Yu Xiaolian. If they kept it to themselves, they could indeed earn a lot; cement might earn more than any of their businesses. But for the welfare of the people, they generously offered it.