Hearing the young man's words, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage immediately weighed the matter in their minds.
'The management fee is only 100 taels of silver per month, but it's 50 taels of silver for seven days a week! That's way too expensive!'
Thinking this, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang then said, "Isn't this intentional? A minimum of seven days' management fees must be paid. Who stipulated this?"
"Ahem, gentlemen, I'm sorry, but this is a regulation set by the county magistrate. Of course, there are exceptions. You can pay for one day's work, which is 40 taels of silver per day. Which would you like to choose?"
Upon hearing this, the group was stunned, wondering why the price was getting higher and higher.
"Hmph, how much silver would it cost to pay for a year?"
Zhang Shuo asked, displeased.
"Ahem, gentlemen, if you pay for a year, that's 360 taels of silver!"
At this moment, another young man quickly said, "Of course, gentlemen, you can even sell the carriage and horses to us. We offer very high prices. A horse costs 80 taels of silver on the market, but we'll offer 100 taels. The carriage costs 1000 taels of silver on the market, but we'll offer 1500 taels!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Shuo quickly asked, "Alright, can you buy carriages and horses in your city?"
"Gentlemen, there's a market in the county town that specializes in selling horses, but they don't sell horse-drawn carriages. However, you can buy a tool that's even more powerful and convenient than a horse-drawn carriage—a car!"
Upon hearing the word "car," the group was immediately startled, realizing that this was the mode of transportation Qin Hao had mentioned in his article.
"Oh, what kind of car is this?"
Just as Emperor Xuanzong of Tang finished asking his question, a sedan chair bearing the inscription "Great Tang Travel" drove out of the door and stopped beside them.
"Ahem, gentlemen, as you've probably seen, this is a car!"
After the young man finished speaking, a man with a pockmarked face got out of the car; it was Zhang Mazi.
"Zhang Mazi, you've finally arrived!"
At this moment, Zhang Mazi said, "The guests you mentioned are right here. Let me see, there are five of them, which is one person over capacity."
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage couldn't understand what they were saying about "overcrowding" at all; they were simply curiously examining the so-called "car."
At this moment, Zhang Mazi walked over and said to Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage, "Ahem, gentlemen, you are going to Taoyuan County, right? We can take you there!"
Upon hearing this, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage immediately asked curiously, "How exactly does this strange box move?"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Mazi also looked puzzled, and then said, "Ahem, gentlemen, I don't know either, but this thing is a means of transportation invented by our county magistrate!"
After some explanation, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage finally managed to load the 20 boxes of Xizhilang Jelly they had just bought into the trunk of the carriage. They then paid 100 taels of silver for the carriage and horse management fees and boarded Zhang Mazi's carriage.
"Excuse me, gentlemen, where are you headed?"
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage thought for a long time and decided that going directly to Qin Hao would not allow them to truly understand the people's plight. So they said, "Let's go to the inn in the city!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Mazi's mouth visibly broke into a wide grin!
"Ahem, that's excellent! I happen to know a guesthouse called Jiu Kenni Hotel. The environment and service are both very good, and it's cheap!"
"Alright, let's go to the Jiu Kenni Hotel!"
"Okay, and please fasten your seatbelts!"
With that, Zhang Mazi led Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and the others toward the highway in the city.
After Zhang Mazi drove away, the two young men in red hats burst into laughter, saying, "Wow, these fools! What a clever trick! The county magistrate's marketing tactic really works!"
"I wonder how much money Zhang Mazi and Sister Wang can swindle from them?"
"Haha, don't worry, these people are definitely from wealthy families. They can easily make several hundred taels of silver. Theirs should be even more, considering we can sell a bag of Xizhilang for 1 wen and still make 5 taels of silver a bag!"
"If a few more suckers like this come along, we could make a down payment on a house in Taoyuan County!"
(1 tael of gold = 10 taels of silver, 1 tael of silver = 10 strings of copper coins, 1 string of copper coins = 100 copper coins, 1 copper coin = 10 RMB)
Thirty minutes later, Zhang Mazi led his men onto the highway.
By this time, the sun was almost setting.
"Ahem, gentlemen, we charge for soliciting customers here!"
Upon hearing this, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage were completely dumbfounded, thinking to themselves that there is indeed no such thing as a free lunch.
At this point, Zhang Shuo asked, "How much will it cost us?"
"Ahem, not much, not much, just 100 taels of silver per person. But since this is your first time here, we'll give you a half-price discount, 50 taels of silver per person."
"What? Fifty taels of silver? Why don't you just rob someone?"
Zhang Shuo couldn't help but scold him.
Seeing this, Zhang Mazi quickly stopped the car and said nonchalantly, "Sorry, gentlemen, if you don't agree, you can get out of the car. I won't force you!"
"Hmph, I think you have a death wish. Do you know who you've messed with?"
A palace guard, who happened to be sitting in the back seat of the driver, grabbed Zhang Mazi by the back of his collar and scolded him.
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage immediately realized that they had been tricked!
"Hmph, what are you doing? I have a dashcam in my car, it will record everything. If the county magistrate catches you, that's a capital offense!"
"What? You've not only framed us, but now you've put us in a position of death?"
Zhang Shuo, his face also showing indignation.
"Hmph, who cheated you? If you don't agree, you can get off. It's not my fault if you don't ride with me. Besides, it was originally 100 taels per person, and I already gave you a 50% discount."
"Besides, we've exceeded the limit by one person. If the county magistrate finds out, we'll all be going to jail as labor camp inmates!"
"What? How come we've exceeded the limit by one person? And, exceeding the limit by one person means going to jail?"
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang also asked angrily.
"Hey, hey, don't try to scare me. Taoyuan County is a society governed by the rule of law, and I have a dashcam. Your actions have been recorded. If things get out of hand, I might only go to jail, but you could face the death penalty!"
Upon hearing this, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang became even more curious about the situation in Taoyuan County under Qin Hao's governance, and thus compromised.
"Alright, 50 taels of silver per person, there are 5 of us, so I'll give you 250 taels!"
After Emperor Xuanzong of Tang finished speaking, he immediately ordered Zhang Shuo to take out a 200-tael silver note and a 50-tael silver note.
Zhang Shuo looked at the two silver notes and felt a pang of heartache, but he still handed them to Zhang Mazi.
After receiving the money, Zhang Mazi's attitude immediately changed 180 degrees.
"Hehe, alright, gentlemen, are you all ready? We'll be at the Jiu Kenni Hotel soon!"
After saying that, he started the engine and slammed on the gas pedal.
Suddenly, a strong push-back sensation came, and the car sped off.
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage were astonished, wondering how the carriage could travel so fast.
Keep in mind that the group had been sitting for over 30 minutes, and the carriage had been moving very slowly, about the same speed as a horse-drawn carriage.
But after paying, the car sped off at breakneck speed.
Ten minutes later, the car exited the highway and arrived at a very secluded street.
Since it was now completely dark, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and his entourage were even more shocked.
The city's night view is absolutely stunning.
"This... this is heaven?"
Princess Yuzhen sighed.
"Hey, gentlemen, we've arrived at the Jiu Kenni Hotel!"
The group looked ahead and, sure enough, there was a large sign in front of them, glowing with colorful light, with the words "Jiu Kenni Hotel" written in large, golden characters.