But the Saudi King let the China Team stay there for free.
This showed how much the Saudi King valued China and Wang Yi.
It was also the first time the National Team players had visited the Linear City.
From far away on the bus, they saw a towering glass wall stretching across the desert and were struck by its futuristic, high-tech feel.
Once they entered the Linear City, they were even more astonished by its interior.
Outside, the desert heat was close to 50 degrees, but inside it was as cool as spring.
Plants were rarely seen in the desert outside, but greenery flourished here, as if they had entered another world entirely.
A river ran through the center of the Linear City, stretching from one end to the other.
Along its banks stood all kinds of upscale businesses: luxury stores, cafés, and the world's most advanced automated hotels.
There were also cinemas, shopping malls, and more.
Light rail trains constantly shuttled along the riverbanks.
All the light rail rides were free.
You could hop on a train and go anywhere in the city.
What surprised everyone was that the trains never stopped at the stations.
Instead, there were special train cars at the stations.
Before a train arrived, passengers could board one of these cars, which would then start moving.
It gradually accelerated until it matched the train's speed, just as the train swept into the station.
The cars would then connect to the top of the train.
A staircase would appear at the bottom of the car, allowing passengers to descend into the train.
That completed the entire boarding process.
Getting off worked the same way: passengers first entered one of the cars, which then detached from the train and gradually slowed down before they got off.