Zhao Hanzhang had been wanting to do this for a long time, "I have already sent people to search for gold and silver mines. Once found, we will immediately refine them. I want to get the people of the entire world moving for the economic development of the citizens so the national treasury won’t fall silent due to lack of funds."

Even if Jiangnan and Jiangdong are currently out of their control, she wants them to mobilize for this country—they can reject "Zhao" coins, but can they refuse gold and silver?

Beside them, Zhao Erlang looked at this person and then that person, finally turning his gaze to Zhao Hanzhang, "Sister, is there a reward for finding silver and gold mines?"

"Yes," Zhao Hanzhang said casually, "Can you find one?"

"I can!"

Zhao Hanzhang immediately turned to him and asked, "What kind of mine can you find?"

Zhao Erlang responded confidently, "A gold mine!"

Zhao Hanzhang’s eyes lit up, and she pushed Fu Tinghan aside to grab Zhao Erlang’s hand and asked, "Where is the gold mine?"

Zhao Erlang: "In Yiyang!"

Zhao Hanzhang didn’t bother asking why he hadn’t reported it, instead directly asking, "Are you sure? Who discovered it, and how was it found?"

Zhao Erlang paused before answering, "A group of bandits discovered it, I took them down, and they confessed to me."

Seeing Zhao Erlang, who originally overflowed with confidence but now appeared somewhat unsure, Zhao Hanzhang released his hand and asked, "Has the gold mine been mined?"

Zhao Erlang shook his head, "No."

Her heart sank further, "Then how are you sure it’s a gold mine?"

Zhao Erlang pondered over his words, "I think it looks like one..."

Zhao Hanzhang: "Stop pondering, just tell me, what did Xie Shi say about it?"

Zhao Erlang felt a bit wronged; he had learned this expression from her, did he not execute it well?

"Mr. Xie told me not to tell Sister until it’s confirmed and then report it."

Listen to this, is it reasonable?

It’s not even confirmed yet, and he’s so confident in saying he found a gold mine.

However, Zhao Hanzhang didn’t blame him; instead, she smiled at him, patted his shoulder, and said, "Alright, leave it to me; I’ll go verify it."

Zhao Erlang had suffered quite a lot from his sister’s hands over the past two months, so he didn’t immediately feel happy upon hearing this, just tense, "What about my reward then?"

"As long as it’s a gold mine, I’ll make sure you get your reward; do you think Sister would embezzle your reward?" Zhao Hanzhang asked him, "What reward do you want?"

Zhao Erlang didn’t hesitate: "Money!"

Zhao Hanzhang waved her hand grandly, "Deal!"

She declared generously, "Once the gold is refined, I’ll give you a big chunk."

Zhao Erlang didn’t say a word.

Zhao Hanzhang, surprised, looked at him with appreciation, "Our Erlang is getting smarter, fine, how much money do you want, and when do you want it?"

Zhao Erlang cautiously tested, staring at his sister’s expression, "Once you’ve confirmed it’s a gold mine, give me twenty... thirty thousand."

Zhao Hanzhang raised an eyebrow and agreed without hesitation: "Alright!"

Zhao Erlang couldn’t help but glance at Fu Tinghan, wondering if he asked for too little?

Fu Tinghan couldn’t help but smile, "It’s late now, go rest. I’ll get the money tomorrow."

Zhao Erlang’s attention was diverted, "I’ll bring people back for the money after lunch."

After he left, Fu Tinghan turned his gaze back, "Do you think this gold mine is real?"

Zhao Hanzhang: "Sending people to check will clarify, but Xie Shi hasn’t reported it, indicating it’s uncertain; the chance of it being real is low."

Fu Tinghan: "Should I go along too?"

Zhao Hanzhang shook her head, "This task can be handled by the people below; you just returned, so get some rest first."

Times are different now; she has many people at her disposal and officials who understand mining, so sending them is enough.

What Fu Tinghan needs to do now is to arrange for the salt policy; once this year passes, their new salt policy will be announced, and there’s a lot to be done before then.

After discussing business matters with Zhao Hanzhang, it was already very late, and Fu Tinghan bid farewell and left.

His courtyard wasn’t far, just a three-minute walk away, and upon stepping out, he saw a figure pacing not far away.

He paused for a moment and stepped forward, "Erlang, why are you still outside in this cold?"

Zhao Erlang immediately ran up to him, "Brother-in-law, I’ve been waiting for you."

Fu Tinghan gestured for him to speak.

"Brother-in-law, do you think the amount I just asked for was too little?"

Fu Tinghan raised an eyebrow, "Are you asking about the money from me or the reward from your sister?"

"Of course, the reward," he said, then added, "Brother-in-law, if I claimed the money from you was also too little, could we possibly add a bit more?"

Fu Tinghan laughed heartily and said to him, "I’ll have to check the account book tomorrow before I can answer you. If there’s a lot, I can give you more."

"As for the reward your sister promised, I can tell you it’s not insignificant," Fu Tinghan said. "The average person wouldn’t get such a reward for reporting a gold mine."

Zhao Erlang was delighted to hear this, finally feeling at ease to go to sleep.

Before leaving, he couldn’t help but remind, "Brother-in-law, you promised me that if there’s a lot of money tomorrow, you’ll leave more for me."

Fu Tinghan nodded, sighing inwardly at what this good kid had been pushed to, when did Zhao Erlang ever worry about money?

But this also shows that he’s doing well as County Magistrate; only when managing a household does one understand the cost of daily essentials. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Bearing the expectations of Zhao Erlang and Zhao Hanzhang, Fu Tinghan visited Zhao Hu early the next morning.

Upon receiving Fu Tinghan’s card early in the morning, Zhao Hu was quite pleased and immediately ordered good tea, snacks, and a sumptuous meal to entertain him, even if he was here to ask for money.

Receiving Fu Tinghan with an enthusiasm different from how he treats Zhao Hanzhang, "If you hadn’t come, I would’ve gone looking for you. You’ve left your money here for a long time, and I figured you must’ve forgotten about it."

Fu Tinghan chuckled; he had indeed nearly forgotten, but now he remembered because he’s short of funds.

Perhaps knowing what he was thinking, Zhao Hu raised his eyebrows, saying, "It’s just you; if it were Third Lady, she wouldn’t forget a single cent, let alone so much money left with me."

Fu Tinghan said, "She has a better memory than me."

Zhao Hu snorted, reached out to take an account book from his servant and handed it to him, "Look, this is the account the porcelain kiln has made for you over the years."

Fu Tinghan opened it and read quickly, being sensitive to numbers, he finished it swiftly, feeling a bit surprised, "So much?"

Zhao Hu boasted, "Naturally. Since the craftsmen crafted new glazes, my porcelain kiln has been the first in Yu State, then rose to be the first in Central Plains. Though not yet the best worldwide, it isn’t far off."

He added, "Now the craftsmen can create different porcelain each year; not only do people in the Northern Nine States like them, but people from the south are even fonder, especially the crackled glaze they so admire."

The porcelain kiln has become one of the most profitable industries under Zhao Hu’s name.

Zhao Hu asked, "Do you want to withdraw all the money, or leave some deposited with me?"

Fu Tinghan asked, "Can I reinvest in the porcelain kiln?"

Zhao Hu replied, "I don’t lack money, but if you want to increase your stake, you can, by offering technology."

"In your Glass Workshop, don’t craftsmen exchange good techniques for money and shares? It’s the same with me. If you can improve the porcelain kiln as before, I’ll give you an extra half percent."

Fu Tinghan thought for a moment and shook his head, "It’s already beyond improvement, at least currently, I have no good ideas to improve it."

Zhao Hu’s gaze flickered, "Then you can trade something else; some craftsmen say porcelain can be half ceramic, half glass, yet they don’t understand glass crafting methods, impossible even if they want to. If you..."

Fu Tinghan cut him off by shaking his head and refusing.

The glass technology has remained firmly in Zhao Hanzhang’s hands, and he knew that Zhao Hanzhang would rather make it public than solely give it to the Zhao Family.

The Zhao Family, or rather Zhao Hu, already holds enough wealth, and Zhao Hanzhang wouldn’t further enrich him.

Seeing this, Zhao Hu understood and pursed his lips, not disappointed but simply puzzled about what exactly Zhao Hanzhang had instilled in Fu Tinghan to make him so wholeheartedly committed.

"Then will you leave the remaining money with me? I’ll give you interest; otherwise if you take it out, it might be taken by Third Lady before it’s even warm," Zhao Hu said, paused, eyes wide, "Are you taking money on behalf of Third Lady?"

To prevent Zhao Hu from misunderstanding Zhao Hanzhang, Fu Tinghan hurriedly explained, "Not for Third Lady, but for Erlang. He needs money right now."

Zhao Hu was speechless, "Isn’t that still for Third Lady? What’s the difference between Erlang and Third Lady?"

Yet, is the county government really short on money that Erlang has to ask Fu Tinghan for funds?

Now, he was worried his grandson...

Zhao Hu became uneasy, fearing Zhao Zheng might suffer at the county government, "Are you taking all this money?"

Fu Tinghan nodded, "I’m taking all of it."

The profits exceeded Fu Tinghan’s expectations, totaling eight hundred and ninety thousand coins; he’d thought getting even a fraction would be considered favorable.

For construction, Zhao Hu had money transported from Chen County and Xiping; if someone else demanded payment, he wouldn’t pay immediately, preferring to wait until he had ample funds on hand.

But for Fu Tinghan, Zhao Hu was willing to borrow from other places and not owe him.

He ordered the preparation of funds, and Fu Tinghan didn’t linger, immediately taking his leave, "Once the money is counted, should it be delivered, or send someone over to collect it?"

Currently, Zhao Hu had no idle people available, and he dismissed, "It won’t take long. After an hour, have someone come to collect it."

Fu Tinghan agreed, entrusting the task to Fu An, who would collect the money with a soldier at the scheduled time.

After delivering the silver, Fu Tinghan returned, sighing, "Once again, we’ll reconcile accounts at Xiping; why won’t the grand eldest allow Mr. Fu to wait a little longer? Next month, when our caravan returns and the goods are sold, eight hundred thousand will be readily available."

Zhao Hu glanced at him, "What do you understand? People like Ting Han are earnest and honest. If you exploit him once, regardless of future benefits, he won’t agree to cooperate again."

So, in business, one can offend Zhao Hanzhang but mustn’t offend Fu Tinghan.

On the business field, one’s not afraid of cunning people like Zhao Hanzhang but of honest ones like Fu Tinghan.

Zhao Hu said, "Prepare the horse and carriage, let’s visit the county government."

He murmured, "How did Zhao Hanzhang spend so much money before that Erlang still has to ask Fu Tinghan for money? And Zheng’er at the county government, how’s he managing?"