Incognito Visit Sparks Frenzy in the Southern City's Downtown

...

Just as he turned into the precinct of the South City Cross Avenue, Wang Hao's footsteps abruptly halted.

He wasn't stunned by the grandeur—after all, he had drawn the blueprints himself. Rather, he was shocked by the sheer madness rushing toward him.

The wide, smooth cement road gleamed a clean grayish-white under the sunlight. The dilapidated desolation of the old South City—where sunny days meant being covered in dust and rainy days meant wading through mud—was completely gone. In its place was a true sea of humanity, with people standing shoulder to shoulder.

The newly built shops on both sides were uniformly constructed with black bricks and gray tiles, featuring flying eaves and upturned corners, and hung with massive, brand-new gold-lettered signboards. Silk shops, grain stores, taverns, teahouses, weapon smiths, exclusive glass boutiques... one next to another, with colorful banners fluttering wildly in the wind. It looked exactly like a modern commercial pedestrian street.

"Candied hawthorns! Sweet, sour, and crispy! Taste one for free!"

"Freshly steamed buns! Piping hot beef buns, thin skin and generous filling, dripping with juice at the first bite!"

"Royal glass hand mirrors! Secretly crafted by the Inner Court! Reflects so clearly you can count the fine hairs on your face! Ladies and misses, come take a look!"

The peddlers' cries, the merchants' haggling, the playful shouts of children running on the cement, and the rumbling of wooden wheels from fully loaded carriages rolling over the flat road—all mixed frantically together to form a vibrant atmosphere of worldly life.

Crowded! It was too crowded!

Pedestrians walked along the flat cement road, their faces brimming with novelty and excitement. No one complained about the congestion; instead, they were all desperately squeezing into the various shops.

"My goodness..." Sun Li's eyes widened as he drew in a sharp breath. He subconsciously moved to shield Wang Hao, terrified that some blind commoner might bump into the Lord of Ten Thousand Years. Was... was this still the dirt-poor South City? It was practically a cornucopia come to life!

Wei Zhongxian immediately seized the opportunity, his body nimbly squeezing in beside Wang Hao like an extremely dutiful tour guide. Spittle flew from his mouth, his face flushed with excitement as he lowered his voice to claim credit: "Young Master! Look! This Cross Avenue you personally designed is simply brilliant! It's divine!"

Thrilled to the point of dancing, he pointed at a bustling shop not far away. "Look at this! The shops on both sides were snatched up by the capital's merchants before the paint was even dry! The rent now is three times higher than the most prosperous areas in the Inner City! Even so, there are still people carrying chests of gold bars lining up outside our... outside my humble manor, begging to sign a contract!"

Swallowing hard, Wei Zhongxian pointed at the silk shop and continued, "Look at that Royal Splendor Pavilion. It just opened yesterday, and today I checked their cash flow. Guess what? In one day! The silver they earned in just one day equals half a month's revenue for those fabric stores in the old district! It's crazy! These merchants and commoners have all gone mad!"

Wang Hao nodded slightly. With a crisp snap, he folded his paper fan. His gaze swept over the shops along the street, taking in the novel sights, and a faint, satisfied smile played on his lips. "Not bad. It's even a few points better than I anticipated."

He knew perfectly well: combining infrastructure development with monopolized new products was an absolute dimensional strike when unleashed in ancient times. Silver? This was only the beginning.

"Let's go. We'll head over and check on our own shops next." Without stopping, Wang Hao walked straight toward the Royal Direct-Sale Stores located at the very heart of the street.

Just as they reached the entrance, Sun Li was nearly knocked off his feet by the surging crowd pouring out from within.

On the left was the Royal First Grain Store.

In front of the shop, the commoners had formed a long queue that even wrapped around into the next street. Gone were the usual shoving and panic associated with buying grain; instead, everyone wore an expression of reassurance.

Wang Hao stood to the side, observing quietly. He watched as the commoners who reached the counter carefully took out newly minted silver coins from their robes and handed them over. Once the manager verified the coins, clerks immediately carried out sacks of refined rice and white flour.

"Young Master, look," Yu Huatian stepped forward at the right moment. His sharp, cold eyes swept the surroundings of the grain store as he spoke in a low voice. "The promotion of the new silver coins is going extremely smoothly. The people have realized that these coins are of full purity, unadulterated, and beautifully designed. Moreover, our royal shops only accept this currency, offering fair prices and never shortchanging on weight. Nowadays, anyone in the capital who doesn't have a few new silver coins in hand would be too embarrassed to go out shopping."

Wang Hao watched the commoners walk out with bright smiles, carrying their grain, his gaze flickering slightly. Food was the heaven of the people. With grain prices stabilized and currency circulating freely, the foundation of the Great Ming could finally be considered truly secure. This was also the enterprise he valued most, second only to the Royal Bank. With so many silver coins being poured into the market, he didn't want inflation to hit so quickly, which was why he tied the silver coins to grain and luxury goods.

"Let's look next door." Wang Hao turned and walked toward the Royal Exclusive Glass Boutique on the right.

Before he even stepped through the doors, he heard women's gasps that bordered on screams coming from inside.

The glass boutique was packed to the bursting point. The noble madames and wealthy young ladies who usually never stepped past their front gates had lost every ounce of their usual reserve. With eyes glowing green with envy, they stared fixedly at the glass mirrors and crystal-clear glass wine goblets displayed on the counters.

"Oh my! This mirror... this mirror actually shows my crow's feet so clearly!" A plump lady, dripping with jewels, held a palm-sized glass mirror, trembling with excitement. "Manager! I'll take this mirror! And that glass vase too, wrap them all up for me!"

"You have excellent taste, Madam! These were crafted by the royal artisans, and this is the only batch in the world! The mirror is one hundred taels of silver, and the vase is three hundred taels. No haggling!" The manager stood with a perfectly straight back, showing no stage fright whatsoever before this crowd of high officials and nobles.

"One hundred taels? That's so cheap! I bid two hundred taels, this mirror is mine!" Another noblewoman standing nearby slammed a stack of Royal Bank banknotes directly onto the counter, her gaze so fierce she looked ready to eat someone.

The manager was a trusted eunuch specially selected and dispatched by the Inner Court, and he had a very sharp eye. Just as he was about to expertly pacify the esteemed guests, he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye of Wang Hao standing outside the door—dressed low-key but radiating an overwhelming aura—and Wei Zhongxian, who was smiling obsequiously behind him.

The manager's breath hitched, and his legs went weak as he prepared to kneel and perform a grand bow, but a single cold glare from Wang Hao instantly pinned him in place.

Being a clever fellow, the manager immediately understood. He forcefully straightened his bending knees, plastered on a fawning smile that was a hundred times more sincere than before, and trotted out to welcome them with a slight bow. "Oh my, noble sir, please come inside! Are you looking for some rare novelties?"

"No need to go in. Is business decent?" Wang Hao stood outside the threshold and spoke indifferently. His voice was not loud, yet it carried an irresistible majesty.

The shopkeeper's eyes were red with excitement. Lowering his voice, which trembled slightly, he replied, "Thanks to... thanks to the immense blessing of the noble ones! It's good! Too good! We are practically raking in gold every day! When these madams and young ladies saw our glass, they went absolutely crazy for it. Moreover, the common folks trust the 'Royal' crest above our door; they feel it's reliable and safe! Yesterday's stock was snatched up in half an hour. Today's goods were just restocked!"

Sun Li followed behind Wang Hao, craning his neck to look at the mountain of silver notes and gleaming white silver piled on the counter. His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. His lips trembled as he screamed internally: Good heavens! A transparent trinket burned out of broken rocks can actually sell for a hundred taels?! His Majesty isn't opening a shop; he's practically digging up dozens of gold and silver mines right here on the South City main street! At this rate, even the mice in the inner treasury will be crushed to death by gold ingots! The original shares claimed by the Directorate of Ceremonial on behalf of all the eunuchs are worth every penny. They might break even in just half a year. If this spreads across the entire Yingtian Province, or even the whole country, the profits and dividends would be unimaginable.

"Well done. I'll have the Inner Court record a merit for you later," Wang Hao dropped casually, turning to continue walking forward.

The shopkeeper was so thrilled he nearly fainted on the spot, bowing repeatedly at their retreating backs.

Wei Zhongxian was already so overjoyed he couldn't tell north from south. The more prosperous this crossroad became, the more it proved Eunuch Wei's competence. He sidled up to Wang Hao, the fat on his face jiggling as he smiled, and lowered his voice in an obsequious manner, "Young Master, look ahead! That tallest, most majestic three-story building in front of us is the 'Royal Mercenary Guild'!"

Hearing these words, the ever-stoic Yu Huatian's eyes flickered slightly, casting a cold glance at Wei Zhongxian. This old dog dared to claim credit for everything.

Wei Zhongxian didn't care about Yu Huatian's glaring daggers and continued to spit as he spoke, "Young Master, your ser... this lowly one strictly followed your orders to have the Eastern Depot directly manage this guild. Guess what? It's so booming in there right now that they're practically blowing the roof off! We've also gathered a lot of intelligence."

Wei Zhongxian grew more excited as he spoke, waving his hands and dancing about. "Those unruly grassroots martial artists, the guards from escort agencies, and those retired veterans who have nothing to eat—once they heard they could take bounty missions here to earn money and receive legal protection from the government, they all went freaking crazy rushing to register! Just from collecting registration fees and commission cuts, the silver is steadily flowing in like water! Moreover, using this front, the Eastern Depot has completely investigated all the previously uncontrollable martial arts factions around the capital!"

Wang Hao stopped in his tracks, a glint of sharp light flashing in his eyes.

His primary reason for establishing this Mercenary Guild wasn't to make money—that was secondary. The fundamental goal was to integrate, incorporate, and monitor the massive martial resources among the populace. Martial artists breaking laws with their strength? Nonexistent. Bound by capital and interests, even the most incredible martial arts heroes had to obediently work for him.

"Oh? Is it already this lively?" Wang Hao raised an eyebrow.

Just then, a rough, angry curse suddenly erupted from not far ahead, followed by the crisp sound of weapons being drawn. The crowd instantly let out a cry of alarm and scattered to the sides.

Pei Jingzhe's originally dead-fish-like eyes instantly erupted with terrifying killing intent. With a push of his thumb against the guard, his short sword unsheathed half an inch with a clink. Like a tightly drawn bow, he instantly blocked the space in front of Wang Hao, staring fixedly at the disturbance ahead.

Yu Huatian's eyes also turned cold. His right hand slipped imperceptibly into his sleeve, pinching three poisoned darts, ready to give the signal to clear the area at any moment.

Sun Li merely looked on and took a step forward.

Wang Hao, however, remained unhurried. He even reached out to pat Pei Jingzhe's stiff shoulder, pushing his short sword back into its sheath.

"Don't be nervous. Wherever there is the martial world, there is naturally excitement." Wang Hao narrowed his eyes, looking at the building ahead with the giant Royal Mercenary Guild plaque and the burly men confronting each other at the entrance. The smile on his face deepened. "Let's go. Follow this young master to see which immortal deity dares to act up in my... in this young master's territory!"