Chapter 374: Book Factory
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
However, he planned to make a trip to the capital city this year to at least familiarize himself with the process.
Besides, Chu Heng did not want Ye Muyu to work too hard.
Ye Muyu pondered for a moment. “I remember that Young Master Xie has a restaurant in the county. Let’s set the banquet at the restaurant. I’ll cook with
Madam Hu.”
Chu Heng frowned. He did not expect Ye Muyu to be so honest.
He would also repay the two of them in other ways, but he understood Ah Yu’s character. If she said so, she would definitely persist.
In addition, Xie Yu and Du Heng really wanted to eat Ah Yu’s cooking.
“Yes,” he finally agreed. “You should try your best to just guide from the side.
Don’t tire yourself out.”
“Alright, it’s just a meal. It’s not considered tiring.” Ye Muyu smiled.
Chu Heng could not do anything about her, so he could only think of going back to Madam Hu and asking her to help.
“It’s getting late. You should go to school. I’ll go with Lu Chuan to customize the printing later.” Ye Muyu looked at the sky and said.
Chu Heng nodded and gave Lu Chuan a few instructions before leaving.
After Chu Heng left, Ye Muyu walked around the courtyard again. She saw that the two storerooms in the backyard were also clean and tidy. There were bookshelves inside, which were used to store books.
“Madam, are we going to the bookstore to print books now?” Lu Chuan asked.
Before Ye Muyu came, she had already learned that Great Chu’s printing technology was mainly controlled by the government, and the places where books were printed were called book workshops. Basically, they were all official stores.
The price of the official market was relatively high. A book that sold for two taels of silver would cost 700 copper coins just to print.
It was almost one-third of the price, not including the cost of the ink.
On average, a book that cost two taels of silver would cost around 900 copper coins to print.
No wonder the books were so expensive that the commoner students could only copy them.
Copying books also required money. To copy a book that cost two taels of silver, one had to pay 300 copper coins. Moreover, the book could not be damaged, and there was a time limit.
No wonder many people could not afford to study.
Not to mention the cost of buying books, there was also the cost of writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. It was a high price.
An ordinary able-bodied man’s daily income in Nanchang County was between 20 to 30 copper coins.
Just as Ye Muyu was lamenting about the exorbitant price of books, they had already arrived at the bookstore.
The book factory was not far away.
They arrived in less than 15 minutes.
There were two stone lions at the entrance of the book factory. The entrance was very clean. The door was not big, at least not comparable to the houses of some rich families in the county.
“Madam, I’ll go knock on the door.” Lu Chuan knocked on the door.
After knocking for a while, a gatekeeper came out.
The gatekeeper was a young man in his twenties. When he saw Lu Chuan, he yawned and rubbed his eyes. “What’s the matter?” he asked.
“Hello, Sir. My employer has opened a bookstore in the county. It’s not tar trom the book factory. She wants to come over and print books.”
“Did you bring the documents?” Because the book factory was owned by the government, the investigation was very strict.
Ye Muyu wanted to open a bookstore, so Chu Heng had even gone to the county government to get a business license. Once he registered, it meant that he would have to pay taxes in the future.
“We’ve brought it,” Lu Chuan said.
“Come in then.” The gatekeeper nodded.
Lu Chuan quickly retreated and waited for Ye Muyu to walk in front. He followed closely behind with his book box.
After entering the main entrance, they saw a courtyard that was 300 square meters in the middle. There were some books placed in the courtyard that seemed to be drying. On both sides was a round-shaped corridor..