Section 089: The Market

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In the afternoon, one of Thunder Dragon’s subordinates, a man named Thunder Bird, came to Flame Yellow Village on his master’s orders and delivered a homing pigeon to Li Zhan. The pigeon was pure white, its feathers bright and glossy. It cooed softly as it cocked its head in Thunder Bird’s hands and examined Li Zhan, instantly winning his affection.

After taking the pigeon, Li Zhan asked Thunder Bird several questions about its daily diet, and Thunder Bird answered them one by one. At last, Thunder Bird bade Li Zhan farewell and returned to the tribe.

Carrying the pigeon, Li Zhan climbed to the second floor of the village hall and went to the window. He settled the bird there, then casually scattered some sorghum over the floor. The pigeon adapted to its new surroundings surprisingly quickly. It did not seem frightened at all; after cooing twice, it lowered its head and began to eat.

While Li Zhan watched the pigeon feed, his friend icon began flashing again. He opened it and saw a message from Wu Fan—

Wu Fan: Brother, I just heard that your tribe was attacked. How are things? Is everything all right? I still have more than a dozen militiamen at my disposal. Whenever you plan to launch a counterattack, give your big brother a call. I’ll help you get even!

Li Zhan smiled warmly when he read the message. His relationship with Wu Fan had long since gone beyond that of mere trading partners. Their connection was much closer to that of friends and brothers. Although Wu Fan’s concern had arrived a little late, it still filled Li Zhan with a warm feeling.

Li Zhan: Thank you for your concern, Big Brother. Everything is fine on my end. The tribe that attacked me belonged to Jiujiang County. Several brother tribes and I have already wiped it out.

Wu Fan: What? Wiped it out?! You’re ruthless, little brother! A few days ago, I just heard that you joined forces with more than a dozen tribes from Danyang County to destroy a tribe in Fuling County called Black Fiend or something. And now you’ve destroyed another one? It hasn’t even been a few days!

Li Zhan: Hehe, I’m actually a very honest and straightforward man. The phrase “simple and sincere” was practically coined for people like me.

Wu Fan: Give me a break. Only a ghost would believe that nonsense of yours. By the way, I’ve already produced five units of yellow dye, and I have about thirty units each of blue and red dye in storage. Do you need them urgently?

Li Zhan: If it’s convenient, Big Brother, please send them over. Some of the dye was contaminated when the tribe was attacked, so I’m in urgent need of supplies right now.

Wu Fan: All right. I’ll have a fisherman deliver them to you immediately. He should arrive before nightfall. But the fisherman will have to stay at your place tonight, so don’t forget to feed him. If my fisherman comes back hungry tomorrow, I’ll hold you responsible!

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Li Zhan: Hehe, don’t worry. We have plenty of sorghum rice here. Let him eat his fill.

…

An hour before dinner, the twenty villagers hired temporarily had finally finished dismantling the wooden palisade. The timber was divided into four piles and concentrated in the four cardinal directions. Li Zhan inspected everything as he walked by, and he was quite satisfied with the villagers’ efficiency and earnest attitude.

When it came time to pay them, however, Li Zhan found himself in a difficult position. The village had a considerable amount of gold, but very few copper coins—only a little over one hundred. After paying five villagers twenty copper coins each, almost nothing remained.

Li Zhan brought the fifteen villagers who had received no wages to the refresh point where the wandering players were leveling. After hearing what had happened, the players waved it off.

“It’s only twenty copper coins. It’s nothing worth worrying about. Just consider it a voluntary contribution to the village. We’ll be spending plenty of time together with Mayor Li in the future.”

“That’s right, Mayor Li. You really don’t need to trouble yourself over this. Whether these villagers are with us or not makes no difference. We haven’t suffered any loss at all.”

…

Although the players all insisted that the matter was insignificant, Li Zhan felt that handling things this way was inappropriate. It seemed almost like he was breaking his word. He was considering whether he should immediately go to Danyang to exchange for copper coins when one player’s words suddenly reminded him of something.

“Mayor Li, how is the market in the village coming along? Leveling here is much faster than it was in the county town. My villager has already reached his maximum carrying capacity and can’t do any other work. I can only set up a stall now.”

Li Zhan suddenly saw the light. Of course! How could he have forgotten about the market? Renting a market stall required a fee. Wouldn’t that directly offset the wages?

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Li Zhan addressed that player, as well as the others:

“The market in the village has already been completed. If anyone wants to set up a stall there, follow me back to the village and register now. Since it is only a small market”—upgrading it to a medium-sized market required an economic index of 12,000—“the number of spaces is extremely limited: two hundred stalls and thirty shops. You’d better hurry.”

The players immediately stopped fighting monsters and swarmed around Li Zhan, tightly surrounding him as they clamored over one another for stalls. After considerable effort, Li Zhan finally managed to quiet them down and told everyone who wanted a stall to follow him back to the village. He then squeezed through the crowd and led them home.

The newly completed market stood approximately one thousand meters east of the square, divided symmetrically into northern and southern sections by a stone road. Two rows of shops lined both sides of the road, while the main body of the market stood behind them. Inside were wooden stalls, one hundred in each section.

Li Zhan led the players to the stone road and had them stop there. The players gazed curiously at the market’s layout and architecture, nodding their approval one after another. Built along both sides of the village’s main thoroughfare, the market was destined to become the commercial center of Flame Yellow Village. Since it had only just been completed, Li Zhan needed to recruit merchants quickly. Everyone would have to offer their all to secure a favorable location; once the market was full, getting in would be far more difficult than it was now.

After looking around, the players began anxiously asking about the stall prices. Li Zhan thought for a moment. He had honestly never considered the matter in detail beforehand. He only knew that when Zhang Chong sold raw fish slices at a stall in Danyang County’s market, he had to pay ten copper coins per day. Flame Yellow Village was still far less prosperous than Danyang County Town, so its market fees naturally could not be based on Danyang’s rates.

After a brief consideration, Li Zhan replied:

“Ordinary stalls will cost five copper coins per day. Each rental period must be at least ten days and no more than three months. Anyone wishing to renew a rental must notify the village three days in advance.

“Shops along the street will cost fifty copper coins per day. Each rental period must be at least three months and no more than one year. Anyone wishing to renew a rental must notify the village half a month in advance.

“In addition, the fees for stalls and shops will be adjusted as the market expands. Stalls and shops that are already within a rental period will not be affected by price adjustments. However, anyone wishing to renew a lease will have to pay according to the new rates.”

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