That day, Shi Qingluo brought Xi Rong out to have dinner with Xi Rui and the others.
Xiao Hanzheng followed Mr Hou out.
The others had already arrived when Shi Qingluo reached.
To her surprise, Qi Yiyang was also there.
Xi Rui took the initiative to smile as he pulled out a chair for Shi Qingluo. “Please take a seat.”
Shi Qingluo raised her eyebrows and joked, “If you’re being so solicitous for no reason, you must be up to no good. Is this a Hongmen Banquet?”
Xi Rui smiled and said, “What are you talking about? I’m just admiring you.”
Liang Youxiao teased from the side, “Do we dare to host a Hongmen Banquet for you? If we host it today, we might be sent to the northern border tomorrow.”
Shi Qingluo wanted to hold her forehead.
It seemed that everyone thought that she was the one who had gotten rid of Xiao Hanzheng’s scumbag father.
She had really taken the blame.
She said unhappily, “Thank you so much for thinking so highly of me.”
Liang Youxiao came over. “Qingluo, what recipe did you offer this time?”
They were really too curious about this.
Actually, they were not the only ones who were curious.
The people around them were all curious. It was the emperor’s fault for not divulging any information at all.
On their way here, they met Qi Yiyang.
When this fellow heard that they were coming to have a meal with Shi Qingluo, he shamelessly followed them.
He just wanted to know what kind of formula Shi Qingluo had given him.
Shi Qingluo knew it.
She did not hide it. “Formula to make rubber.”
Previously, after telling the emperor about the formula, she asked the emperor if she could leak the formula to others and whether she and her few friends could also cut rubber and use it.
The emperor had agreed, so she did not have any scruples.
Liang Youxiao and the others had curious looks on their faces. “What’s rubber?”
Shi Qingluo had tinkered with it, so it definitely wouldn’t be bad.
Shi Qingluo replied, “It can be used to make the sole of a shoe, and it can also…”
She roughly explained again what she had told the emperor.
“Oh right, when the rubber is ready, I can also come up with a type of bicycle that can be ridden by one person. It’s more convenient than a scooter.”
Since they already had scooters, they should have bicycles too.
In the past, they did not have rubber.
Now that they could make bicycle tires, they could tinker with them.
When they heard her words, their eyes lit up. “This is good!”
Xi Rui asked, “How do we make this rubber? Have you made it?”
He had always loved skateboarding, and it was because it often snowed that he could not play now.
Otherwise, when he went out for a walk, he would always skateboard.
Now, he was also very interested in a bicycle that he could ride.
Shi Qingluo said, “No, rubber needs to be cut from a rubber tree. Only in a very hot place can this kind of tree grow.
“The emperor has already sent people to find rubber trees and cut the rubber.”
Xi Rui was a little disappointed. “Is that so? Then won’t we have to wait for a long time before using this kind of rubber?”
It was not good for them to be creative about things owned by the emperor.
It would take a long time for it to fall into their hands.
Shi Qingluo smiled and said, “If you are interested, you can also get your people to look for rubber. Then, you can hire the locals to cut the rubber and bring it back.
“I will draw the appearance, characteristics, and habits of the rubber tree. It shouldn’t be difficult for your family to look for it.”
Shi Qingluo felt that the emperor agreed with her.
It was also possible that he wanted to get the rubber out and popularize it as soon as possible.
After all, more manpower meant greater capacity.
If Xi Rui and the other families also joined in, the amount of rubber produced would be a lot more.
After a few encounters, she realized that the emperor was an old fox.
However, he was not the kind of person that people hated and liked to scheme against others.
It could be seen that the emperor really wanted to develop Daliang and let the people live a good life.
He was a wise emperor.
Hearing her words, the eyes of Xi Rui and the others lit up.
“Really? Our family can do it too?”
Shi Qingluo nodded. “Yes, I have already asked the emperor before that I planned to get a few of my friends to work with me on the rubber. The emperor agreed.”
“Qingluo, you are too kind.”
“Qingluo, you are a good friend.”
The few of them praised her one after another. They thought so in their hearts.
Shi Qingluo was indeed a good friend.
Even if she had something good, she did not forget to share it with them.
Shi Qingluo smiled lightly and said, “That’s right. Of course, I have to share the good stuff with all of you here. If there’s money to be earned, let’s earn it together. If we can have the limelight, we’ll share it together.”
“Yes, yes, if we have the limelight, we’ll share it together!” This was what Xi Rui and the others liked the most.
Liang Youxiao hurriedly asked his personal attendant to bring the full set of writing materials and had Shi Qingluo draw the rubber tree.
Not only did Shi Qingluo draw the rubber tree, she also drew the eucommia ulmoides and the cineraria.
The eucommia ulmoides and the cineraria could also extract rubber.
The cineraria was also one of the three main rubber-producing plants in the world.
Because she was suddenly invited to enter the palace that day, she was not fully prepared, so she only gave the emperor the rubber tree.
Later, when she returned, she recalled that the cineraria and the eucommia ulmoides could also extract rubber.
Moreover, these two plants were not as troublesome to grow as the rubber trees.
It was no problem to plant them in large areas where the climate was more suitable.
They could also be brought back and nurtured in the wasteland.
The adaptability of the cineraria was very strong.
However, its impact was also tremendous.
However, she also wrote down how to prevent and control their growth.
She had already given them to her young husband the day before yesterday who asked Mr Hou for a favor to send them to the palace.
In other words, the emperor could send people to look for three kinds of plants that could produce rubber.
After rubber became a common good, it wouldn’t require a long journey to obtain it.
Because she had sent it to the emperor in advance, she sketched it for Xi Rui and the others so that they could follow in the emperor’s footsteps and make a big profit.
They could also be in the limelight.
After all, rubber had just been produced.
In the first few years, it would definitely be a scarce item.
There would definitely be a shortage.
She then said to the few of them, “Oh right, these two plants can also be used to produce rubber. You can also ask your family to look for them together.
“If you find them, you can either plant them locally or bring back the seedlings or seeds. Then, you can open up a special barren land to plant them.
“If you succeed, you will definitely make a lot of money in the future.”
Xi Rui and the others’ eyes lit up again. “This is a good relationship!”
“Qingluo, you’re such a good friend.”
Who would complain about having too much money? Moreover, it would put them in the limelight.
Liang Youxiao, in particular, was not only thinking about how rubber could make money, he was also thinking of following Shi Qingluo to work on rubber-made things.
Xi Rong wanted to form a female army.
She was in dire need of money and was also quite excited.
The rouge shop that she and Shi Qingluo had opened had already reached Jiangnan and had dozens of outlets.
They earned quite a lot of money every month, but it was still not enough to maintain an army.
If she planted the plants in the fields that Shi Qingluo mentioned, it should be enough in the future.
Qi Yiyang saw the excited looks on their faces.
His heart was itching badly.
He couldn’t help but ask, “Qingluo, we can be considered friends. Can I come along and do it?”
He didn’t expect that he would receive such news if he shamelessly followed her.
He was a little regretful before, but now he was glad that he had become more shameless.
Before Shi Qingluo could say anything, Xi Rui raised his eyebrows first. “Why, Young Master Qi, are you going to hang out with us?”
Qi Yiyang remained silent, as expected, this guy was still so annoying.
