Li Er's level of seriousness exceeded Fang Er's imagination.
It was just like when Old Man Ma built a wall outside the breeding fields!
However, since Li Er was willing to take on this task,
Fang Er was happy to see it happen.
At least, Old Man Ma and the others wouldn't have to guard it day and night.
"Old Ma, you don't need to watch this anymore. These are guards from the palace, and they've taken over this matter,"
Fang Er said to Old Man Ma.
"Young Master, is this, is this truly the Emperor?"
Old Man Ma felt his legs go weak.
So, he had actually stopped the Emperor just now.
"Elder, there's no need to panic. You did the right thing. This type of wheat is indeed of great significance. An Zhi, you must reward him well later!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Old Man Ma quickly said.
"Heh heh, rewards are not important."
"Stopping the Emperor outside the gate."
"I can boast about it for the rest of my life after going back!"
"Leave the guards here."
Li Shimin then went to see the arquebuses and cannons.
When they arrived at the workshop,
Li Shimin, Fang Xuanling, and even Li Jing were all shocked.
Li Jing had only looked in the warehouse earlier.
He had not yet come into the workshop where work was being done.
A factory building of over a thousand square meters, with hundreds of people simultaneously producing finished cartridges.
Although there were fewer people compared to the Ministry of Works,
The efficiency of their work was faster than anything they had ever seen!
The people in the entire factory were divided into four groups.
One group made the casings for the finished cartridges.
One group measured and loaded gunpowder into the casings.
The next group loaded the projectiles.
The last group was responsible for packing the finished cartridges into boxes.
The boxes were wooden, wrapped in a layer of iron sheeting.
The inner layer that came into contact with the cartridges was lined with leather!
This was a requirement Fang Er had proposed after returning from Goguryeo last time.
He had used firearms to detonate Yeon Gaesomun's gunpowder.
Of course, he didn't want such methods to be used against him.
Although the enemy didn't have firearms,
They had fire arrows!
Boxes and boxes of finished cartridges were moved into the warehouse for storage.
Each box contained a thousand rounds.
Then they went to the gunpowder workshop.
Here, the division of labor was also clear.
Making saltpeter.
Grinding charcoal powder.
And processing sulfur.
Finally, it was all sent to a room far away from the workshop to be mixed into gunpowder.
All the workers wore masks.
These were specially made.
To prevent dust inhalation and illness.
Of course, they were not as good as N95s, but they were better than no protection at all.
During the entire gunpowder production process, no one was allowed to carry metal objects.
No open flames were allowed.
Entry and exit were guarded by members of the Tianhuo Army, who conducted body searches.
The manufacturing of firearms also had a clear division of labor.
After Li Shimin and the other two toured the place with Fang Er, they left content.
Two days later,
Zhou Mu from the soap workshop found Fang Er with a piece of soap.
"Young Master, we've already filled three warehouses with this stuff, should we continue making it?"
"There's this much already?"
Fang Er was a little surprised.
The warehouses at the workshop were basically the same size.
Each was two hundred square meters!
Three warehouses.
How much was that?
"What are the exact numbers?"
Fang Er asked.
"Reporting to Young Master, I didn't dare to stack them too high in the warehouses, for fear of crushing the ones below, so each warehouse only stores one hundred thousand bars."
"Three warehouses, a total of three hundred thousand bars."
"Hiss!!!"
Upon hearing the number reported by Zhou Mu,
Fang Er gasped.
"Damn! This is only a little over a month."
"That means the daily output is ten thousand bars of soap?
"No, I need to get that kid Changsun Chong to take this stuff away quickly."
So, he immediately mounted his horse and headed for Chang'an.
On the second floor of the Drunken Immortal Restaurant.
Fang Er found an empty private room.
He ordered wine and dishes, and also sent a waiter to invite Changsun Chong.
Changsun Chong arrived quickly.
As soon as the wine and dishes were served,
He came over with the waiter.
"Brother Fang, what can I do for you?"
"Sit down and talk."
Fang Er pointed to the chair opposite him.
"We have a lot of soap in stock, have you finished setting up your shop?"
"The shop is ready, and it's right near this Drunken Immortal Restaurant, so we can open for business anytime."
Changsun Chong pointed in the direction south of the Drunken Immortal Restaurant.
"It's over there."
"Alright, tomorrow you can have people come to the workshop to pick up the goods."
Fang Er was not surprised at all.
These influential figures, who among them didn't own a few shops in Chang'an?
"Okay, but Brother Fang, you didn't mention the price last time. How much should my brothers sell them for when they bring them back?"
Changsun Chong asked.
Fang Er calculated the cost price in his mind.
Then he said.
"If you pick them up from the workshop, I'll give them to you for twenty wen each. After you bring them back, you can sell them for thirty wen? How about that?"
"Ah? They're so cheap?"
Changsun Chong couldn't believe it.
He was a child of an official and a wealthy family.
He had no concept of a few wen!
"Don't worry, this price is just for ordinary people."
"Later, I'll get you a batch of high-end goods, exclusively for officials and the wealthy, and then, of course, it won't be thirty wen anymore."
"There will definitely be product grading."
"Alcohol is not a problem. Later, when spring arrives and flowers bloom, we can purchase petals in large quantities to make scented soap."
"Alright then, I'll do as you say, Brother. I'll have people come to pick them up tomorrow, and we'll start selling them to the public the day after."
Changsun Chong didn't understand, so he just did as Fang Er said.