Chapter 44

On the first day of business at the Water Clan World, the shopkeeper brought the bill after closing at night; the turnover was 23522 taels of silver.

Even Zhao Bao was stunned; the Great King calmly glanced at his treasure count, still having 530 pieces, roughly calculated the cost, and it was simply a huge profit.

The Great King appeared carefree, waving his hand to indicate it was nothing, while inside he was overjoyed.

Having had enough fun, he finally regained his senses: 'Almost everything that needs to be bought in Secluded Prefecture has been bought; tomorrow there might be a little left, after that we'll have to rely on oxygen tablets.' The Great King knew this well.

In Secluded Prefecture, only those with a bit of money are few; such luxury goods are one-time deals.

Today sales are so good: first, koi fish and fish tanks are genuinely rare items; second, superstitious Great Jin people cannot resist the beautiful symbolism of koi; most importantly, these buyers all attended the tea gathering yesterday and wanted to give the Prince You face.

People can't go on giving him face every day just to get by; besides, he wants to develop Youzhou, not exploit it.

The king rubbed his chubby little chin, summoning Zhao Chuan and He Guang.

"I have twenty thousand tael of silver here. Now there is an important task for you. He Guang, take this money to the south and exchange it all for grain. Zhao Commander, you lead two hundred men to escort and ensure nothing goes wrong. Spend frugally; if you have any questions about grain prices, you can first check the city grain stores before departure. After Youzhou's tax reduction of ten percent, we won't be able to collect much grain, so if our mansion has space, let's stockpile some grain just in case." The king's first thought was dry rice; Youzhou's hunger index made him want to hoard grain whenever he had money.

He Guang and Zhao Chuan are both trustworthy; entrusting the task to them is reassuring.

The money isn't much; this trip counts as a preliminary scouting.

After the two accepted the mission and just left the study, the king heard a familiar chime.

The mission has new progress? Impossible—how could the people not be hungry after the drought reduced yields?

He hurriedly sent away Tong Chen, who had been waiting in the room, and immediately opened the Prosperity Dream panel; sure enough, a new bubble popped up.

【Congratulations, my lord, on unlocking the business skill! My lord, concerned for the people's safety and well‑being, you have initially formed the sense of responsibility of a city lord. Next, to support your lord's vigorous development of commerce in Youzhou, a new side quest is released. Do you accept it? Yes/No】

Hahaha! Do I even need to think? The king jumped up, bounced a few times on the spot, and clicked yes.

【Side quest: Please, my lord, earn 10000 tael of silver from commercial activities in the Great Jin, and 1000 ingots from commercial activities in the Myriad Worlds Homestead.

Quest reward: a commercial street stretching one kilometer ×1

Quest penalty: 10000 tael of silver

Quest time limit: 15 days】

The king is already a mature king; upon seeing this quest, he almost jumped up, wanting to overturn the table!

"How can there still be a penalty? How can there still be a time limit?"

The officials seem to know his mental state and pop up another tip: 【The main quest is still half unfinished; please, my lord, quickly complete this new side quest to help drive the main quest forward—this is all we can do for you, my lord, take care!】

The king can't stand the idea of being fined silver, but give him a commercial street—well, that's just houses, right? …Wouldn't it also recruit civilians to work to fill out the logic chain?

This is quite tempting!

The king gritted his teeth and decided to go all in.

He isn't particularly keen on a commercial street anyway; given Youzhou's current business environment, having one would just be for show, so why bother? Aside from basic survival needs, no shop in Youzhou has a market. Taverns and tea houses are always on the verge of closing, only occasionally able to accommodate passing merchants. The only places with any foot traffic are the general store and the grain shop, where people buy oil, salt, sauce, and vinegar, making things somewhat lively. Even if he had a ten‑thousand‑meter‑long commercial street, wouldn't it just sit empty!

But conscripting laborers is wonderful!

Bai Yang's shop had just opened its doors when he turned around and a little meatball bumped into his arms.

It's the heavy‑set king!

The king shoved the jade crown he was holding into Bai Yang's hands, saying, "Brother! The time has come to save my life—see if you can sell this for 1000 ingots. This is the regulated ceremonial crown of a princely lord, and I only have this jade one." The king began to sell off his possessions.

He felt that this was probably the only thing worth any money; he no longer bothered to worry about whether there would be enough caps later—everything was for the new mission, so he could sell it all!

Bai Yang looked it over and over, unable to put it down, turning it round and round; finally, with a sympathetic expression, he returned it to the king and said, "Isn't this the Myriad Worlds Homestead revenue task you were given?" He then took out all the family's belongings to sell.

The king nodded like a pecking chick.

Having successfully made Bai Yang adorable enough that he couldn't resist rubbing the king's noble little head, he said, "Based on my experience, to prevent cheating, this task has a requirement on the number of traders—selling to me alone definitely won't work.

The king was greatly startled and hurriedly rechecked the quest.

And sure enough, in a small corner he found a strange‑looking '!' icon; clicking it revealed the homestead quest's specific requirements, and indeed it clearly stated that the number of traders must be greater than or equal to ten.

The king almost let out a 'woof' and burst into tears~

To own a shop in the Myriad Worlds Homestead, you first need to buy a plot of land, then purchase building materials according to your wishes and start construction. The king hit a snag at the very first step—he can't afford land.

The king had activated the homestead for so long that he had never even thought of opening a shop; each day he just followed Bai Yang to pick up fish tanks, oxygen tablets, and copy printing techniques, and he was quite satisfied. Bai Yang's usual line is also, "You're still young; take it slow.

Who would have thought the officials couldn't stand his lazy way of lying around?

Bai Yang had no choice but to take the king to look at the Myriad Worlds Homestead's 'slums', saying, "I also earned enough ingots to buy land and open a shop by setting up a stall in the slums; that place gathers a large group of players who don't spend money. King, put your mind at ease—you're not alone, not everyone is a rich second‑generation, and you can still invest millions to settle in the homestead right from the start.

The king felt even more heartbroken, saying, "Am I not as good as a second‑generation rich kid? My family's Bai Li territory has been held for eleven generations, and I am a princely lord." Who has ever seen such a poor princely lord, or a princely lord whose domain is so vast yet so destitute!

Bai Yang: …Forgot, this kid was born a celestial dragon.

The two turned left and right, weaving through several bustling streets, arriving before a three‑story archaic archway, where the king realized he actually recognized these characters.

The large seal‑script characters read: Myriad Worlds Phoenix Assembly.

Upon entering, the inside was literally buzzing with voices; the crowd looked no smaller than outside.

But unlike the flashy or bizarre shops outside, here you start with just a bundle.

Before the king's eyes stood a youth with long hair tied in a daoist bun, sitting cross‑legged on a torn cloth, with several crooked little porcelain bottles laid out before him. The youth sensed the king's gaze, lifted his head, and glanced at him.

Perhaps the princely lord's regular attire is also misleading; the youth judged him to be a little fat sheep.

"Little brother, want to buy some elementary grain‑avoiding pills?"

"……What is a grain‑avoiding pill?"

This question is obviously routine for the pill‑selling youth; he explains patiently: "Just take my grain‑avoiding pill and you won't need to eat for three days, and you still won't be hungry."

The king's eyes lit up—this doesn't save grain?

Then came the youth's stammering quote: "Ten pieces for… just… three… hundred… ingots…"

The medicine-selling boy said: ten three-yuan treasures.

The king heard: ten three-hundred-yuan treasures.

The home garden's price difference earned a numb profit, the king was scared numb by the price. Converted to silver, one thirty-yuan treasure lasts three days, three days consume three hundred taels of silver?!

What family is this! We royals don't dare eat like this.

The king, upon hearing, knew the home garden officials again helped him convert; he could only show a poor smile to the little brother, 'Sounds interesting, when I have money I'll buy, little brother goodbye.'

Even Baiyang, who isn't short of money, isn't very interested. He asks the pill-selling little brother, "Do you have any higher-end pills? We don't lack food. For example, what about longevity pills? Life-extending pills? Or, do you have any life-restoring elixirs?"

The pill-selling youth: "…If I had those high-end pills, would I still be squatting here setting up a stall?"

Alright.

The Great King left the pill stall and was still pondering there; you wouldn't say, this chicken-rib grain-avoiding pill isn't completely useless. It's small and portable; in special situations when it's inconvenient to carry large amounts of dry rations, carrying a few of them can save your life in an emergency.

For example, the maternal uncle guarding the southwest border, or the scouts and spies sent out during military campaigns—the army can't afford to feed them, but special individuals can keep a few life-saving pills.

The Great King clenched his small fist, then ran back to tell the pill-selling youth, "Little brother, wait for me; once I've earned enough money, I'll buy your pills!"

He gave him that much support, and the youth was stunned for a moment, "Okay, then I'll give you a discount later."

Sure thing!