This bicycle was made entirely of iron and wood, and was very similar to the 28-inch large-bar bicycle he had seen in his previous life.
But there is no rubber in this time and space, so the wheels have no tires.
He heard that eucommia trees can make rubber, but he hasn't mastered this technology yet, but don't rush, take your time, it's too easy to arouse suspicion if you do it in one step.
The wheels of the bicycle in front of me are made of a mixture of wood and iron, similar to the wheels of this space-time carriage.
Now all the roads in Shengjing, including those outside Shengjing, are paved with cement. Even if there are no tires, you can run very fast after riding on them, with very little bumps.
After listening to his explanation, Sheng Hong looked at the hundreds of scrap cars in the warehouse and couldn't help but praise him again.
Awesome, Li Aiqing!
After Li Qiao rode it in front of his interview, he was eager to try it. However, it got dark early in winter, so Li Qiao suggested that the bicycle be sent to the palace so that he could learn it whenever he wanted.
Sheng Hong thought this proposal was reasonable, but he asked Li Qiao to follow him into the palace and wait until he learned Li Qiao before returning home.
Bicycling is actually easy to learn, and it is all about balance. It only took Sheng Hong an hour to learn it.
This speed is not slow, but Sheng Jun is even more powerful.
Even though Sheng Jun was old, he still had a better physique than Sheng Hong due to his military training. It only took him a quarter of an hour to ride his bicycle and walk freely in front of the Tai Chi Hall.
This bicycle is not as light as a real 28-bar bicycle, but Li Qiao originally did not intend to use it as a 28-bar bicycle. He positioned the bicycle as a toy.
Luxury toys for the rich.
There are too few novel gadgets in this time and space. Scooters have been around for several years but they are still popular. People riding scooters can be seen everywhere, whether in the city or outside the city.
The appearance of a bicycle is more complicated than a scooter, and it can walk without the need to put your feet on the ground. Such a new and interesting gadget will definitely attract rich people to rush to buy it.
What's more, this bike is far from bulky, and it can be ridden quite quickly by a grown man.
Horses are not allowed to gallop in Shengjing City. Except for the royal family, the rest of the people have to walk slowly regardless of whether they are riding horses or riding carriages.
Therefore, bicycles are actually quite practical and not just functional as toys.
Sheng Jun and Sheng Hong also had the same view. They asked Li Qiao to find craftsmen from the Royal Toy Store to make bicycles. There are many craftsmen in the Royal Toy Store and their craftsmanship is excellent.
However, the bicycle does not need to be shared with the Royal Toy Store. Li Qiao only needs to pay the Royal Toy Store the material fee and labor fee.
The father and son knew that Li Qiao spent money in many places. Since Li Qiao spent his money on the people, there was no need for the father and son to take advantage.
Now the father and son's pockets are not big, but they are not short of money. After all, the daily income from the gambling house is enough for them to smile.
The Royal Confectionery Shop is a luxury product, and in order to preserve the secret recipe, the manpower used when opening a shop in other places needs to be carefully selected.
Moreover, making the pastries at Royal Pastry Shop is quite tiring. The step of beating egg whites limits the quantity of finished pastries. As a result, the amount of money that can be collected is also limited.
But gambling houses don’t have this problem.
The father and son issued a strict order not to allow anyone to counterfeit mahjong and playing cards. Once discovered, it would be a serious crime of fined money or even having the house confiscated.
Therefore, if people want to play two games, they can only go to the gambling house.
There is almost no cost to run a gambling house. Just find a big shop, hire some people, and just wait and count the money.
So the father and son are really not short of money at the moment. Since the bicycle was invented by Li Aiqing alone, the money can only be earned by Li Aiqing alone.
Moreover, in order to advertise Li Qiao, Sheng Hong asked Zhao Cun, the captain of the Guards, to ride his bicycle up and down Taiping Street three times.
The effect of this advertisement was quite explosive. Regardless of whether they were rich people or ordinary people on Taiping Street, everyone was attracted to this car and their eyes couldn't help but follow Zhao Cun.
What the hell is this?
Some people knew Zhao Cun and stopped him to ask.
When I heard that it was Li Qiao's latest work, I could go to the Royal Toy Store to order one. The price of one was nine hundred and ninety-nine taels, and everyone in the circle was stunned.
Is this a robbery?
Do you dare to charge this price for a car?
However, seeing Zhao Cun moving around nimbly on this strange-looking car made those who were not short of money couldn't help but feel moved.
Quite interesting.
It’s really cool. Look, the whole street is staring at this car. Whoever rides on it will definitely be the most handsome guy on the street.
Many dandy boys want this kind of attention.
Moreover, he ran pretty fast?
The speed is not lost to scooters.
Also, Mr. Zhao has been riding for so long, and it looks like it has no wear and tear and is very durable. More importantly, Mr. Zhao personally said that the warranty is three years. If you want to repair it after three years, you can pay for it yourself. No need to completely replace...
So on that day, more than 20 people went to the Royal Toy Store to order, and Zhao Cun rode his bicycle three times on Taiping Street every day for five days in a row.
As a result, more and more people have seen the bicycle with their own eyes, and more and more people have gone to the Royal Toy Store to order it.
By New Year's Eve, the Royal Toy Store had received more than 5,000 orders.
Of course, this was not only bought by Shengjing locals, but also by some businessmen from other places.
In the past, many businessmen took the scooters made by Li Qiao to other places for sale. Now that a bicycle is here, businessmen from other places will naturally not miss it.
With so many orders, the Royal Toy Store is simply too busy.
So Li Qiao moved some of the orders to the school and let the students in the school make them.
In fact, Li Qiao felt that the price he set was really conscientious.
At this time, everything needs to be done by hand, but the chain is very complicated. If a bicycle is made, even if a carpenter and a blacksmith work at the same time, it will take three to five days.
Nowadays, not only Shengjing has cement roads, but also many places in other places are paved with cement roads. If these bicycles are taken by businessmen to other places, the price will definitely double.
So he was really conscientious in setting this price.
Moreover, he also clearly marked the price, so if you don't steal or rob, you don't have to buy it if you think it's not worth the price.
Luxury goods are all about a premium price.
Tao Zhu is very satisfied with the bicycle's ability to collect money. Over the past year, he has personally seen Li Qiao frown, ponder, and toss and turn over such an object. Now, a year's hard work has paid off, and a bicycle is priced at 999 taels. Silver, this is really not expensive.
At the New Year’s Eve dinner, the whole family sat around the dinner table and had a delicious meal. This year, the bicycles alone earned five million taels of silver. Of course, labor and material costs have to be deducted, but compared with the huge five million taels, Compared with the figures, this cost is nothing at all.
What's more, there will be children's bicycles as a money-making tool in the future.
Li Xiaorui liked his little bicycle very much. On the 23rd of the twelfth lunar month, Li Qiao gave him a small children's bicycle as a New Year's gift. Since then, his scooter has fallen out of favor.
Li Changfeng and Li Yunfan, who are about to turn five, also put their scooters aside to gather dust and only play with their bicycles every day.
Li Yuning's sadness about getting married far away was diluted by the joy of five million taels, so much money!
Li Yuning said directly to Li Qiao: "Fourth uncle, I think it is better for me to take some bicycles to Beihu Province, so as not to let others act as middlemen to make the difference."
"You kid, are you thinking about how to start a business before you get married?" Li Qiao was a little funny. After swallowing the dumplings in his mouth, he told her: "Just concentrate on preparing for the marriage, be a good bride, and don't worry about the rest. .”
"Yes, you are no longer a child after you get married. Business matters are trivial. The most important thing for you next is to get along well with Ming Xi and Ming's family."
Tao Zhu also said.
"Don't worry, Mingxi said his family is very good."
Li Yuning was not worried about this.
Ming Xi is the nephew of Governor Ming, and is separated from him by a second-rank official. Her parents-in-law are not Governor Ming and his wife, but Ming Xi's parents.
The Ming family used to be moderate landowners, but after Governor Ming became an official, the Ming family slowly became large landowners.
The children of the Ming family also studied and obtained fame.
But Ming Xi's father had no official position, just like Li Liang. His main task was to manage the Ming family's property in his hometown.
Therefore, she is not worried about her married life at all.
She knew her parents couldn't control her.
Moreover, when the marriage was first discussed, Governor Ming promised her to go out and do business if she wanted to after marriage, saying that if she stayed in the back house, it would be a dereliction of her talents.
Her mind is now divided into two, half is the longing for getting married, and the other half is how she can show off her talents after arriving in Beihu Province, so that the model of Lijia Shop can be quickly spread in Beihu Province.
"Although the Ming family is kind, you can't be too strong. Before you even get married, you are thinking about how to show your face after getting married. This is not good. The Ming family may not care, but there are still other people's eyes on you."
"After you get married, mix oil with Ming Ximi first, and then talk about doing business after a while."
Tao Zhushui looked at Li Yuning and said seriously.
Li Qiao couldn't help but nod: "That's right. Your mission is to live a good life with Mingxi and be a happy bride, just like Ershan's wife and Yu'an."
Business matters will come later.
Hearing this, Li Yuning felt a little shy, but even more moved.
Both of her uncles had her best interests at heart.
However, when it comes to business matters, Mingxi is more concerned about it than she is.
Mingxi was very excited when she heard that she was going to copy the model of Li's Shop in Beihu Province. When she and Mingxi met recently, they didn't discuss much about the marriage. The two of them discussed more about how to increase the number of people in Beihu Province. point income.
Since her two uncles wanted her to focus on her marriage, she would be obedient for the time being and wait until she left Shengjing to talk about business matters.
It's a long journey, two months, how can we pass the time if we don't discuss some serious matters?
Soon, the New Year's Eve dinner was over, but this year Li Xiaorui did not go back to the multi-functional leisure room in the front yard. He took his two uncles, Li Changfeng and Li Yunfan, to ride bicycles at the gate.
It had only been a week since he had the bike and it was still fresh.
It's so boring to stay in the greenhouse, and he's not allowed to play mahjong or poker. He might as well take his two uncles to play bicycles.
Li Changfeng and Li Yunfan thought so too.
Building blocks, Jiulianlian, Huarong Road, Go, etc. are not as fun as bicycles.
So, the three little guys rode bicycles at the gate of Li's house, and more than a dozen nurses from Li Ji were holding lanterns to provide light for them.
The laughter of the three people passed through the strong and tall wall and floated to the school grounds of the First Prince's Mansion in front.
The school ground was dark. Although there were lanterns lit in the four corners, the school ground was quite big and the lanterns in the corners were not enough for lighting.
Sheng Shiyu, who will be eight years old after the Chinese New Year, is running silently in this dark school field with his head down.
After a while, a familiar voice floated over.
"Uncle Changfeng, uncle Yunfan, ride faster, hurry up!"
