Chapter 41: Wait Before You Talk

“Young Master Li is here!”

A shout startled a flock of duck necks.

Hundreds of people stretched their necks to look, each one wide-eyed and staring in awe, trying hard to crane their heads to get a better view. It was quite a bizarre scene.

“Young Master Li, is this weaving machine for sale?”

“Lord Li, I want one hundred machines, one hundred!”

“Young Master Li, this spell should be quite simple, right? How about we exchange some knowledge? I’ll offer you five hundred taels of gold.” Indeed, there were still some clever people around.

“Yes, yes, how about we exchange some ideas?”

…

After a brief silence, the scene finally erupted. Even with Fu Minghui leading numerous guards, they couldn’t hold back the frenzied merchants.

Li Xian smiled, but he carefully discerned every word being said. When he heard someone mention that “the spell is simple,” Li Xian’s smile widened. Sure, the technique was simple, but the imperial decree wasn’t; last night, he had played a clever game with His Majesty, all for the sake of dealing with these people.

Come on, come on, the trap has already been dug for you all.

After things settled down a bit, Li Xian took the initiative to step forward. “Thank you all for your kindness, but could you perhaps select a few representatives so we can discuss this openly and publicly?”

Soon, a few representatives were selected, a total of three.

“Greetings, Young Master Li, I am Guo Youcai from the Guo family.”

“Greetings, Young Master Li, I am Liu Shuren from the Liu family.”

“Greetings, Young Master Li, I am Huang Youquan from the Huang family.”

“Greetings to all three of you,” Li Xian smiled brightly. “Please wait for a moment.”

Without waiting for a response, Li Xian waved his hand to the people behind him. Yang Zhong, the head steward of the Li family, led some of the Li family attendants to carefully carry out two plaques encased in glass and hung them on the wall behind Li Xian.

“Industrial Expo” and “Colorful Textile Machine”—these were the two plaques, with a bright red imperial seal stamped on them.

As soon as the plaques were hung, the excited crowd suddenly fell silent, like ducks with their necks cut off. Their faces showed a mix of emotions, especially the three representatives who had just stepped forward, looking as if they had swallowed a fly.

Damn it! Why didn’t you hang those up earlier? You waited until we all stood out here, prepared our speeches and arguments, and then you reveal them. Too, too, too despicable!

Though everyone knew that the Great Xia Kingdom had become rotten to the core, who would dare openly defy an imperial edict? Even before the Emperor acted, their opponents could easily destroy them.

“Apologies, apologies,” Li Xian said with a bright smile, “if anyone has something to say, now is the time.”

Say something now? What’s there left to say at this point!

Seeing that no one was speaking, Li Xian continued, “Someone, bring out the chairs already. Why so slow?”

Over five hundred chairs, already prepared, were brought out and set up neatly. The crowd finally sat down in an orderly fashion. Li Xian’s expression became serious as he spoke, “Since no one has any questions, I will say a few things.

First, this textile machine is for sale. Since it’s displayed at this Industrial Expo, of course, it’s for sale. As for the price—500 taels of gold per machine. Each person is limited to purchasing one machine.

Second—”

“500 taels of gold? Young Master Li, are you crazy for money?” Li Xian hadn’t even finished his second point when someone interrupted with dissatisfaction.

But this time, before Li Xian could respond, Guo Youcai sneered, “Who’s the idiot here?”

Liu Shuren also sneered, “If you don’t know, just shut up.”

Why was he an idiot? It’s simple. The clever ones had already figured it out. Li Xian had clearly stated, “Each person is limited to purchasing one machine.” This was an unmistakable signal—you could buy it, disassemble it, and study it yourself. As for Li Xian, he was only making a one-time deal!

Li Xian observed the commotion around him without saying a word. After a slight pause, he continued, “Second, I hereby declare that the industrial age has dawned.

Industrialization means replacing manual labor with machines. You’ve already witnessed the power of the textile machine.

In fact, this engine can also be used on carriages, on ships, and in warfare. Yes, that rotating machine is called an engine, and it is the core of industrial power.

At this year’s Industrial Expo, we are only showcasing the textile machine. I hope that at next year’s expo, we will see moving vehicles and ships.

Next year’s Industrial Expo will be held on December 10th, lasting five days, at the same location.

At that time, I, Li Xian will work together with all of you to make this a grand event.”

“Wonderful!” Li Xian’s speech excited everyone. Almost all of them saw a glorious future through those few words.

“Everyone, please listen to me for a moment. As for the textile machines, it’s best to keep them within the borders of our Great Xia. We will purchase materials from abroad and sell our cloth to them.

Last night, I also met with His Majesty. The Emperor has expressed his intent to establish a large textile base, hiring commoners for work, and has agreed to keep the technology confidential.

I won’t say much more. I believe a national policy will be introduced soon.

I will remain here for the next three days, and you are all welcome to visit anytime.”

After speaking, Li Xian left casually. The merchants, however, immediately rushed to purchase textile machines. Unfortunately, Wu Lili, who was in charge of the machines, regretfully informed them, “Young Master said the machines can be sold, but only after two days, as we still need to run demonstrations. However, we are accepting pre-orders. Once you’ve pre-ordered, you can send your textile workers to operate the machines, and we’ll provide on-site training.”

“Then let’s pre-order!” Without a second thought, someone immediately placed an order. They also sent female workers from their own workshops to weave and simultaneously learn and receive training. Naturally, Li Xian’s little strategy was very well-received.

After pre-ordering the textile machines, Guo Youcai began to wander around. When he looked again at the fabrics being sold at a so-called “20% discount,” Guo Youcai no longer felt a sense of crisis but rather a huge business opportunity. After watching for a long time, he went to the glassware section and found the glass products to be incredibly beautiful.

This is the first exhibition, and it turned out to be quite small. After wandering around, they arrived at an inconspicuous corner—the Sea Soul Silk display area.

“Sea Soul Silk?” Guo Youcai was stunned. It was obvious that he had heard of the famous Sea Soul Silk. He followed the crowd inside. Upon entering, Guo Youcai squinted his eyes. In this small, inconspicuous corner, there was actually a small, luxuriously decorated hall. The walls were lined with glass cabinets, categorized into four grades: A, B, C, and D; each grade was further divided into upper, middle, and lower tiers.

Guo Youcai examined them bit by bit. Inside the glass cabinets was a mere three-inch piece of Sea Soul Silk, and next to it were two cards. One card read, “Exhibit, prospective buyers please enter the back hall,” while the other card displayed the price.

After seeing the price, Guo Youcai was stunned. “Grade D, lower-tier Sea Soul Silk, one meter costs four taels of gold.”

“One meter? What is that?”

“It is a new unit of measurement adopted internally by our ‘Brilliant Stars’ company, which will also be the standard industrial unit in the future. One meter is roughly equivalent to three feet. A piece of fabric is 10 meters; one-hundredth of a meter is a centimeter; one-tenth of a centimeter is a millimeter.

The diameter of this Sea Soul Silk here is 1 millimeter.”

“Who are you?” Guo Youcai looked at the person who had suddenly appeared in front of him.

“Hello, my name is He Wenlong. I am now responsible for the classification, cutting, and selection of Sea Soul Silk.”

Guo Youcai frowned, absorbing the information. “Can you get large quantities of Sea Soul Silk?”

“Yes, we trade them with the sea tribes in exchange for colored lanterns. Ten carts of colored lanterns can be exchanged for one kilogram, which is the equivalent of one ‘big jin’ in the current Geat Xia Kingdom, of Sea Soul Silk.”

“Oh…” Guo Youcai responded with no further comment.

He Wenlong smiled and turned away.

In the blink of an eye, evening had arrived. The small exhibition was already bustling with people; some came to seek opportunities, but more came to watch the excitement. There wasn’t much entertainment in this world to begin with, so how could they miss out on this lively scene?

At that moment, a cultivator flew into the air and shouted loudly, “Everyone, please pay attention. Please pay attention. Tonight at the fourth quarter of the Xu hour (8 PM), there will be a colored lantern evening show, during which seven crystal chandeliers will be auctioned, with a starting price of 50 taels of gold.”

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