NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 223.1
At this point, things had become very clear.
The artificial cave before them is very likely to have been constructed 3,000 years ago by people sent by the Heavenly Khan.
The reason for the cave’s winding and maze-like design is probably to prevent grave robbers from disturbing his eternal rest.
Although the treasure is right before their eyes, everyone hesitates at the sight of the dark entrance, wanting to enter but not daring to.
According to what the disciple from the Iron Sword Sect just said, there are too many more caves inside, and it’s easy to get lost without paying attention and not be able to find a way out.
Therefore, they must make thorough preparations before they can venture inside to discover what lies within.
As for what preparations are needed?
There are many!
Dry food, water, torches, flint, rope, and so on.
They even need to bring some “experts” inside with them. Otherwise, they might not be able to find the way.This immediately posed a challenge for everyone!
Following that, treasure hunters from all over began to set up camp nearby to prepare for another exploration.
The troops of Great Xia also stationed themselves here.
They had no intention of treasure hunting.
Instead, they set up a large pot, boiled water, cooked rice and vegetables, neatly arranged everything, and then shouted out loud, “Food! Steaming hot meals! Come and buy if you’re hungry!”
This loud shout attracted the attention of many people.
The treasure hunters all gathered around.
“Are you selling food?”
“Yes!” the soldiers nodded.
Looking at the steaming food, the treasure hunters couldn’t help but swallow their saliva: “How much for this meal?”
The soldier replied: “Five taels of silver per serving!”
The treasure hunters were outraged!
“You’re asking for five taels of silver per serving just this bland soup?”
“Yeah, there’s not even any meat, and you have the nerve to ask us for five taels of silver?”
“I’ve never eaten such expensive food even in restaurants!”
“You’re nothing but profiteers!”
The soldiers grew impatient: “If you’re not eating, then scram. Stop wasting time here!”
“You, you, you… This is such disrespect to consumers. Be careful, or I’ll complain to the higher-ups about you!” the treasure hunters protested strongly.
The soldier replied, “Then go ahead and complain. These are the prices set by His Majesty!”
The treasure hunters exclaimed: “F*ck!”
When the top beam is not straight, the bottom beam will be crooked. (TLN: If the people in charge don’t set a good example, then the people who follow them will also likely behave poorly.)
The treasure hunters were all helpless!
Looking at the steaming food before them and thinking of the hardships they endured traveling for treasure without a decent meal, spending five taels of silver to satisfy their hunger once didn’t seem unacceptable.
“Give me one serving. Here are five taels of silver!”
“I have a big appetite, so give me four servings! Here are twenty taels of silver!”
“I’ll take three servings, thank you!”
With many treasure hunters present eagerly awaiting food, it took less than half an hour for all the meals to be sold out.
A total of 500,000 servings were sold on the first day, earning nearly 2.5 million taels.
……
On the second day, the Great Xia soldiers set up shop once again.
“Food’s ready! Steaming hot meals for sale! Come and buy if you’re hungry!”
Treasure hunters once again gathered around.
“How much for one?”
“Can you make it cheaper?”
The soldier replied, “Still five taels of silver, no bargaining!”
The treasure hunters trembled with anger, “Five taels of silver for a meal again? You’re clearly treating us like sheep to be slaughtered!”
The soldier responded, “Buy if you want to eat. Otherwise, get lost!”
The treasure hunters exclaimed, “F*ck!”
They had traveled far and wide all over the rivers and lakes for many years and had never seen such arrogant businessmen!
“I absolutely won’t eat this!”
A young treasure hunter shouted, “I let it slide when you slaughtered me yesterday, but I’ll be a pig if you do it again! Let’s go, let’s not eat here. Let’s eat in the city where we won’t be exploited!”
There were immediate voices of agreement.
“That’s right, let’s go eat in the city!”
“Think of all the good food we could have in the city with five taels of silver!”
“No need to put up with this price and still eat bad food!”
The Great Xia soldiers smirked coldly, “Go ahead, we won’t stop you! Just a friendly reminder, the nearest city is four hundred li away! That’s 800 li If you go back and forth!”
“Even if we have to run 800 li, it’s better than putting up with your crap!” The treasure hunters were extremely agitated.
The Great Xia soldier replied, “I’m talking about the nearest city. As for the nearest food… it’s not 800 li, it’s 1600 li!”
“Huh? Why?”
The Great Xia soldiers sneered, “Because we’ve taken all the food within an 800 li radius! So, you’ll have to go beyond 800 li if you want a full meal. Isn’t that a round trip of 1600 li?”
The treasure hunters were internally screaming, “F*ck!”
One of them, pointing at the Great Xia soldiers in agitation, said, “You’re so malicious, to actually monopolize the market here!”
“You bully people too much! You can’t do this!”
“Aren’t you afraid that we will band together and attack you?”
The Great Xia soldiers sneered, “You should be grateful we’re giving you food at all. We’re not forcing you to buy it! If you have complaints, take them up with higher authorities. Consider it my loss if His Majesty gives you even a single word in response!”
The treasure hunters: “You’re so f*cking…”
“I’ll ask you one last time. Are you eating or not?”
“I… I’ll eat!”
Everyone reluctantly conceded.
Running 800 li away to find food was out of the question.
Even though they were martial artists with exceptional movement skills, running 800 li will cost lives!
A round trip would be 1600 li – who could endure that?
Especially with the treasure so close at hand, what if they missed it by a hair? Wouldn’t they regret it to death?
It’s frustrating, but spending a bit of silver on food wasn’t something they couldn’t afford.
So, the batch of food sold out once again.
To serve this group of treasure hunters, Great Xia provided not only food but also a variety of goods.
There were torches and fire starters, water bottles and gourds, easily stored dry cakes, tents and towels, wine and insect repellent, ropes, and even Luoyang shovels and dragon-seeking rulers prepared for everyone—it was truly everything one would need.
(TLN: Luoyang shovels & Dragon-Seeking rulers are tools related to archaeology and feng shui.)
The treasure hunters were deeply moved: “You guys at Great Xia are really thoughtful!”
“Of course!”
The Great Xia soldiers said proudly: “His Majesty said: the customer is God, the customer is the Almighty! Serving our customers is our inescapable duty!”
“Well said, Your Majesty! By the way, how much for these dry cakes?”
“These dry cakes are very cheap, only 3 taels of silver!”
The treasure hunters exclaimed: “Bitch! You call that cheap?”
The soldiers defended confidently: “How is it not cheap? Our dry cakes are specially made and won’t go bad even after half a month! When you enter the caves to hunt for treasure, you might end up staying there for days!”
“With these dry cakes, you’ll be able to hunt for treasure with ease! These aren’t just cakes. They’re literally an extra life, your life! Are you saying your life isn’t worth that much?”
The treasure hunters: “…”
“And how much for this water bottle?”
“Very cheap, ten taels of silver each!”
The treasure hunters exclaimed: “Bitch! You call that cheap?”
“How is it not cheap? What can you do with 10 taels of silver anyway?”
The soldiers retorted discontentedly: “A person can go without food, but not without water. This water bottle can carry water and save your life at a crucial moment! Isn’t your life worth more than 10 taels of silver?”
Everyone’s faces twitched.
To hype up an ordinary water bottle to the value of 10 taels of silver… that’s really something!
“How much for this torch?”
“This torch is not cheap but it isn’t expensive either. It’s only three taels of silver each! If you buy a bundle, it’s 30 taels!”
The treasure hunters exclaimed: “Bitch! You call that not expensive?”
“How is it expensive? As the saying goes: A person can go without food and even without water, but not without hope! In the darkness of a cave, the light from this torch can bring you hope! Isn’t your life worth more than 30 taels?”
“You f*ck…” The treasure hunters were dumbfounded.
***
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