Li Yu got the first real man-made Dead Sea, which was much better and bigger than the one in Jili State that was specially built for soldiers to swim in.
At the beginning of autumn, the Dead Sea, which had cost a lot of salt and manpower, appeared in Changning. It was a very mysterious thing. Those who had not seen the real Dead Sea and had not learned about specific gravity and buoyancy would not be able to understand the reason why the lake in Changning, which would not sink, appeared.
Even if everyone knew that the newly built artificial lake was filled with salt water, they would never know that it was the power of salt that allowed people to float on the water. The simplest example was why people drowned in seawater. It had nothing to do with salt, absolutely nothing to do with it.
It was still hot at the time. Changning's pottery was famous, and so was this artificial lake, named Sunken Lake.
The number of tourists here was no less than the number of tourists in the capital. Many of them were brought here by tour groups from the capital, which made Changning, a county that was not suitable for tourism, become famous.
The unsinking lake became a miracle. Rich people came here because of its fame, which made a business circle around the Sunken Lake in Changning County. There were people who bought local specialties, made snacks, boiled tea, and so on.
Especially the two-story houses around the lake that were built at the same time as the construction of the lake, they suddenly became valuable.
At this moment, Li Yu looked regretfully at the people going in and out of the houses around the lake. He seemed to be muttering to himself, "Good news, it's also good news. The county's tax revenue has increased again."
Hearing Li Yu's voice, Little Worm didn't say anything. He knew that Li Yu was regretting. When the young master of the Zhang family sent someone to discuss this matter, he asked whether they could buy salt here at a cheap price or let the Zhang Family and Wang Family build houses around the lake.
For the former, Zhang Family and Wang Family wouldn't interfere as long as they took out a large sum of money. For the latter, they didn't have to pay a single cent. Even the money to dig the lake would be paid by the Zhang Family and Wang Family.
In the end, Li Yu chose the latter, thinking that he could save a lot of money. Who would have thought that the unsinking lake would really appear. This was even more magical than the model in Boxin County and the zoo in the capital.
Those who could afford it all followed the tour groups to Changning. Renting out a house could earn them a lot of money.
It was the first time he had seen a place where even river water could be sold for money. A fence was built around the outside of the house, leaving only a few key entrances and exits. It would cost money to swim here, and it would cost money to eat here. When one came out of the water and found that they were covered in salt, it would also cost money to wash them with fresh water.
Others were not allowed to deliver water. If they wanted to bring their own water, they would be charged a portion of the fee and arranged to a separate location in the lake.
In the beginning, there were still people who brought them along. Later on, they realized that people in their positions would be looked down upon by people in other positions. The gazes of others were clearly saying, "If you don't have money, don't come. You can't even afford to pay for water?"
There were also people who wanted to take advantage of the difference in water prices to come and sell water. In the end, they found that after paying a portion of the entrance fee and deducting the tax, they were basically doing it for nothing.
"Milord, shall we go down and take a bath?" Xiao Chong exclaimed in admiration of the young master of the Zhang family and suggested to the gloomy Li Yu.
Li Yu shook his head. "No, I have to wash with water when I come up. It's nothing special. It's just not heavy. It's more convenient to practice swimming. How is the negotiation between the people of the Thousandage Chamber of Commerce and the people of the Xiao Bao?"
"Not yet. The people of the Thousandage Chamber of Commerce want to rent a two-story building beside the lake. They want to display their beautiful pottery and sell it. However, they are not willing to pay the rent. They say that it depends on the number of goods sold and that they will get a fifty-fifty share. This price is too low.
The young master of the Zhang family sent people here to say that the rent cannot be reduced. Moreover, they can only sign a contract every year. They can't sign a contract for ten or eight years. In the future, the rent will fluctuate according to the market price. The original contract was only signed for priority under the same conditions.
Moreover, the price of the pottery of the Thousandage Chamber of Commerce is fixed. After selling the goods, they have to give the young master of the Zhang family 30% of the profit after tax. The price is too high. I think the Thousandage Chamber of Commerce is regretting it. "
Xiao Chong explained the situation that Li Yu wanted to know.
Li Yu agreed. "Yes, the Thousandage Chamber of Commerce is still not convinced. They have lost a part of the pottery market in the northern part of Hebei Province. They have lost their monopoly on our market. The pressure of competition is also great. They still want to compete with Xiao Bao. Let's see how they will compensate me if they can't reach the sales result that we agreed on in two years."
"Your Excellency is right. The Thousandage Chamber of Commerce has overestimated themselves. The young master of the Zhang family is busy with other things in Jili Province. They can't deal with him easily. When the young master of the Zhang family finishes his business in Jili Province and has time to deal with them, it will be a disaster for the Thousandage Chamber of Commerce."
Xiao Chong, who had always regarded Zhang Xiaobao as a legend, said with certainty.
*****
News of the miraculous nature of the Sunken Lake spread at an extremely fast speed. People who were a little further away were moved to come over and take a look after sighing at the wonders of this place.
Only a small number of people didn't admit that the Floating Lake in Changning was a place that God sent to them.
Li Longji was one of them. Hearing all kinds of rumors, he took out the map of Changning and looked at it several times. He said to Gao Lishi, "How about going there again?"
"Your Majesty, you can't. We've already been there once this year. Going there again will be a waste of manpower and money." Gao Lishi had never seen a lake that didn't sink. He was curious, but he didn't agree with the Emperor's decision.
"What if we still let Xiao Bao and Cuckoo pay for it?" Li Longji thought about the last time he went out, he heard people report that Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan were using his name to solicit money. Very quickly, he felt that he should ask them to fork out the money again.
When Gao Lishi heard that his son and daughter-in-law had to pay for it, he thought that there were no new ways to make money. He was afraid that his son would lose money, so he said, "Your Majesty, it's just a lake that doesn't sink. I'll write a letter to ask Xiao Bao and see what he can do."
"He should have written a long time ago. He should have written a letter to me first. Why didn't he build one in the capital city instead of going to Changning? It's obvious that he didn't take me seriously and made me anxious. His crime is punishable by death. Also, he went to Jili State with a plan. He lied to me again.
Li Longji had also figured it out. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan had initially planned to go to Jili Province, just like how they had planned to go to Feng Province. They had taken a big detour to get him there and promised him a lot of benefits. However, it was much better than what they had promised him in Feng Province.
What else could Gao Lishi say? He promised, "Yes, I'll write it right away."
"Wait." The more Li Longji thought about it, the more sullen he felt. He stopped Gao Lishi who was about to leave to make arrangements. "One more thing. Tell them to send me more than ten hundred-year-old ginseng before the New Year. Xinluo is close. I don't care what tricks they use. Since they can cheat me, how can they not get ten hundred-year-old ginseng?"
Gao Lishi thought that the Emperor was going to give Xiao Bao and Cuckoo a heavy burden. When he heard that it was only ten hundred-year-old ginseng, he was relieved. A few days ago, Xiao Bao wrote a letter saying that he would send him twenty hundred-year-old ginseng before the New Year. He thought that ginseng was easy to get.
Gao Lishi nodded and left.
Li Longji opened the map of Changning again and pointed at the lake. "Next time, change the place. I won't be fooled."
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