Chapter 18: Real Estate in the Late Eastern Han Dynasty

"For the average person, depositing their money into the bank to earn interest is the best choice. But for a family like yours, the Mi family, putting your money in the bank is a waste!"

After Lu Chuan arrived at the investment counter, he began with this conclusion.

Miss Mi curled her lip. "Then why don't you first explain what this 'investment' is all about."

"Investment is just that—investment. I intend to build an outer city outside the county town, and that requires..."

"Wait! What did you say? Build an outer city?"

Miss Mi was astonished. "Magistrate Lu, are you certain you want to build an outer city beyond the current Lu County town?"

The scale of Lu County was already immense; she had never seen a city this large anywhere in Xuzhou. By conservative estimates, Lu County was already three or four times the size of an average county town in Xuzhou. With the city already this vast, why was Lu Chuan still thinking of building an outer city? Did he want Lu County to completely surpass Luoyang and become the largest city in the Great Han Dynasty?

Lu Chuan countered, "Is there a problem with building an outer city?"

"Of... of course there is a problem! Have you calculated how much money it will take to build an outer city?"

"At least ten billion coins, perhaps even more!"

"Exactly! With such a massive sum required, can you even come up with it?"

"That is precisely why I need to attract investment. Young Master Jun, does your Mi family have any interest in investing here with me?"

Miss Mi shook her head. "Our Mi family has our own merchant caravans and plenty of capital; we can let our caravans conduct business. Why should we invest in you?"

"My returns are higher!" Lu Chuan seized the opportunity to explain. "Ordinary people only deposit money in my Lu Family Bank; a three-year fixed term earns them an annual interest of nine percent. But investing here with me? The returns far exceed that nine percent interest!"

"Far exceed nine percent? I wouldn't be so sure. Investment is like sending out merchant caravans—it can be profitable if done well, but if not, one risks losing everything!"

"True, you have a point. Investment is indeed similar to merchant trade and carries inherent risks. But don't you think that investing with me carries the lowest risk of all?"

"Why do you say that?"

"Because I am going to build an outer city."

Lu Chuan called over a bank clerk, had him bring over a map of Lu County, and began to explain earnestly to Miss Mi.

"Take a look. Just here in the current Lu County town, I have provided over twenty thousand houses and more than two thousand shops. You can calculate the value of these houses and shops yourself."

"How many? Twenty thousand houses? How can there be so many?"

Even though Miss Mi had already witnessed the prosperity of Lu County, she was still stunned by this figure. What did twenty thousand houses mean? Calculating five people per household, that was a population of one hundred thousand! A single county town, not even counting the surrounding villages, actually held a population of one hundred thousand?! If one included the surrounding villages, wouldn't the total population under Lu County's jurisdiction be in the hundreds of thousands? Looking across the world today, only Luoyang could surpass Lu County in population; no other county town could possibly achieve this!

Lu Chuan said smugly, "If you don't believe me, you can go and count them yourself. I have already laid the map out before you."

Miss Mi fell silent. Lu Chuan would surely not falsify the city map. If Lu County really did have twenty thousand houses, and one calculated the value at fifty thousand coins per house—a standard price in her own home county—that alone would be one billion coins! Yet, her home county was nowhere near as prosperous as Lu County, meaning the property values here would be even higher. It was not impossible for an ordinary house in Lu County to reach one hundred thousand coins!

These twenty thousand houses alone were incredibly valuable, not to mention the two thousand shops! Born into a merchant family, Miss Mi understood the value of storefronts all too well. Especially in a city as prosperous as Lu County, the returns a single shop could generate were unimaginable!

However, Miss Mi did not know that the value she calculated was not even on the same level as what Lu Chuan had in mind. If the twenty thousand houses only sold for fifty thousand coins each, it would be a gross underestimation of Lu Chuan's vision. His ambition was to develop Lu County into the most prosperous commercial hub in the world—a paradise for trade. The houses he built were not intended for commoners, but for the merchants arriving from all corners of the land.

How much money did the average person in Lu County have? Even if he priced a house at one hundred thousand coins, twenty thousand houses would only total two billion coins—barely the size of Miss Mi's dowry.

But once he showcased the commercial value of Lu County and merchants from across the empire gathered here, how high would the value of those houses soar? Hundreds of thousands of coins per house would not be an exaggeration, and those in prime locations could even fetch over a million! This was Lu Chuan's true pursuit.

Because of this, apart from a small portion allocated to those who had made significant contributions to the construction of Lu County, the rest of the houses remained unsold. They were only temporarily rented out to collect annual income. Before the commercial potential of Lu County was fully unleashed, selling the properties rashly would be a waste!

Beyond leveraging the city's commercial value, Lu Chuan had many other ways to boost property values. In the late Eastern Han Dynasty, Lu Chuan was undoubtedly the first to engage in the real estate economy!

After running the numbers in her head, Miss Mi realized that urban development was, in fact, an excellent investment project, and one that provided long-term returns. As long as Lu County existed, their investment would continue to yield profit. Furthermore, the value of a county town was not just in houses and shops, but in the vast value of its population. A large population meant not only a higher yield of grain but also greater demand, a larger labor force, and a bigger market! For a merchant, the market was life itself!

And since Lu Chuan was building an outer city, if all went well, its scale would surely far exceed the current town. What a vast market that would be! By investing in Lu County early, the Mi family could secure their returns the moment the city developed.

Having realized this, Miss Mi was truly tempted.

Seeing the change in her expression, Lu Chuan knew she was hooked. Now was the time to strike while the iron was hot.

"Young Master Jun, this is just the map of the current city. Let me explain my plan for building the outer city."

Miss Mi nodded. She was now completely captivated by Lu Chuan and eager to know how he intended to construct an outer city.

Lu Chuan cleared his throat and said, "Considering that building an outer city is a massive undertaking, requiring years to complete and an investment of up to ten billion coins or more, I have decided to divide the project into four parts. In simple terms, I am breaking it down into four two-year plans!"