Chapter 150: The Prince of Zhenbei is a Business Genius

Early morning.

At the Xuancheng market, a loud, resonant sound of a gong rang out.

"Bai's General Store, now open for business!"

Dong dong qiang!

Two lion dancers, looking endearingly silly, stepped to the beat of the drums and danced joyfully in front of the shop.

The manager, dressed in a long robe, directed the shop assistants to hang the "Bai's General Store" plaque, with its red characters on a black background, above the shop entrance.

Several long tables were set up at the entrance, covered with a dazzling array of food.

Various brands of Ham Sausage were cut into finger-sized portions and placed on white porcelain plates.

Several flavors of self-heating Hot Pot were served in small wine cups, their fragrance wafting through the air.

Coca-Cola, Yuanqi Forest, Sprite... all were poured into small cups and arranged neatly.

Zhou Hei Ya braised snacks, Daliyuan cakes, and Oreo cookies were cut into small pieces and plated.

All the delicacies were placed at the entrance for customers to sample.

The shop entrance was crowded with commoners watching the excitement.

Everyone stretched their necks, jostling to push forward.

"How rare, to be able to sample a small piece without spending a single copper."

"Delicious! This hot pot can cook itself, and it's truly tasty. That sweet soup called Cola is also good."

"This sponge cake is so soft and sweet... I've lived this long and never eaten such delicious pastries."

The commoners of Daliang, thousands of years in the past, tasted food from a millennium later and were instantly stirred into a frenzy.

They simply could not imagine that food could be made to taste like this.

Too delicious!

Too tasty!

Having tasted the sweetness, the commoners swarmed into the shop, vying to make purchases.

The manager had to stand at the entrance, shouting at the top of his lungs to maintain order.

"Don't crowd, line up, one by one."

"Cola, Fanta, Yuanqi Forest... all drinks are one hundred copper coins per bottle."

"Cakes and Oreo cookies are fifty copper coins per box."

"Self-heating Hot Pot is three hundred copper coins per box."

Across the street at "Xinghua Restaurant."

Xiao Moting and Qin Zhan stood upstairs, looking out from the window.

He had changed into a dark, mysterious casual robe, which made him look even more strikingly handsome.

Seeing the sea of people at the entrance of the general store and the commoners jostling to buy goods, a trace of a smile could not help but appear in Xiao Moting's deep black eyes.

The long queue at the shop entrance stretched for an entire street.

Moreover, more commoners kept arriving upon hearing the news, joining the line.

Seeing the business was so booming, Qin Zhan admired Xiao Moting even more.

The prices of the goods were set by Xiao Moting; they were a bit more expensive than ordinary food, but still affordable for the common people.

"Prince, this move of yours to introduce samples for everyone to taste for free is truly brilliant."

"Once everyone tastes that the items are good, they spend money to buy them."

"However, Prince, why not sell Instant Noodles? That is the most popular food; if you sold Instant Noodles, they would surely sell well."

Xiao Moting looked across the street and spoke indifferently.

"Instant Noodles are to be sold to the Yuezhi Kingdom in exchange for rice. If they were sold at a low price in the general store and the Yuezhi Kingdom got wind of it, they would realize they had been swindled and would no longer trade white rice with us in the future."

Qin Zhan suddenly understood and admired him even more.

"Right, right, things are valued for their scarcity! We would rather not sell them than sell them cheaply."

At this moment, a spy disguised as a commoner came up, sweating profusely, to report.

"Prince, over three thousand taels worth of goods have already been sold, and there are still many people lining up to buy."

"Good." Xiao Moting nodded slightly.

Beside him, Qin Zhan was so shocked his jaw dropped.

"It's only been two hours since opening, and they've sold this much?"

"Yes, the goods were snatched up by the commoners as soon as they were brought out. The shopkeeper couldn't restock fast enough and had to call all the shop assistants to help."

Jia Shun also arrived.

Seeing that the goods in the general store were selling well, he grinned from ear to ear, his fat face crinkling like a chrysanthemum.

He hurriedly began to flatter him.

"Prince is wise; you are truly worthy of being the Prince of Zhenbei who shakes Beijiang. You are simply a genius at business! Prince, you really have a knack for doing business!"

"This official admires you; from now on, I will follow the Prince."

"From this day forward, in life I am the Prince's man, and in death I am the Prince's ghost. I hope for the Prince's continued care in the future."

He was overjoyed in his heart.

In the past, Jia Shun had constantly fawned over De Guifei, spending quite a lot of silver and giving many gifts, yet he hadn't gained much benefit.

Now, Xiao Moting had led troops to break into the Taishou Mansion and held a blade to his neck, forcing him to do business.

Jia Shun had been reluctant at first, but now that he saw the general store making money and he himself was getting rich, his mindset had changed instantly.

What was the use of fawning over De Guifei?

Not a single benefit.

Helping Xiao Moting do business, he could earn a fortune even if he just lay at home.

What De Guifei!

Jia Shun no longer cared; he had made up his mind to cling tightly to Xiao Moting's thigh!

Xiao Moting turned his head to the side.

"Official Jia, find someone to spread the news."

"Just say that the Bai's Grocery Store is looking for franchisees. Anyone who wants to open a shop only needs to pay a franchise fee of one thousand taels, and from then on, they can get goods from the Bai's Grocery Store at cost price to open shops all over the country, under the unified management of the Xuancheng headquarters."

"Fran... franchise?" Jia Shun looked curious and scratched his head, "This is the first time this subordinate has heard of this method, but it feels feasible."

Xiao Moting smiled slightly.

Of course it was feasible.

Because it was a business method he had seen in the videos Bai Wei had sent, and he had kept it in his heart.

The "Bai's Grocery Store" in Xuancheng was the headquarters, supplying goods to franchise branches all over the country; this could not only save on the costs of opening shops and manpower, but also quickly sell goods across the country to make money, and even collect a franchise fee—it was simply a sure-fire way to make a profit.

Jia Shun hurriedly bowed, "This subordinate will have people go and spread the news to recruit franchisees right away."

"Prince, this general is also extremely impressed." Qin Zhan also hurriedly spoke, his eyes filled with nothing but admiration as he looked at Xiao Moting.

Following such a business-minded Prince, how could the Northern Frontier Army possibly be poor?

It was only because the Prince had been fighting wars all this time and had no time to do business.

Otherwise, Beijiang would have long since become a massive fortune.

Xiao Moting picked up the Tablet and "Click!" took a few photos of the bustling grocery store.

This was Bai Wei's grocery store.

Now that she had gone to Yanjing to attend the Antique Exhibition, he would record all of this.

When Bai Wei returned, he would let her see it.

Xiao Moting stood in the restaurant, lowering his eyes to hide a trace of loss in his gaze.

His heart felt a little empty.

He missed her.

A few days later.

A motorcade drove into Yanjing in a grand procession.

Olive-green military vehicles escorted a Recreational Vehicle, carefully driving onto the main road.

On the bustling main road, pedestrians and drivers all stretched their necks, sizing up the Recreational Vehicle.

This Recreational Vehicle looked very ordinary, yet it was receiving the grand escort of six military vehicles.

Such treatment was reserved only for high-ranking figures.

What precious items could possibly be inside the Recreational Vehicle?

And what kind of big shot was the owner of the Recreational Vehicle?