Zhao Ji pointed at him and laughed: "I see, you came to me to ask for money, haha!"
"Hehe! You don't need to take too much. Even if the emperor plucks a hair, these soldiers will treasure it."
These words were actually meant to provoke him. As an emperor, if the things he took out were too light, it would appear too stingy and would be embarrassing.
Zhao Ji asked Cai Jing who was standing beside him, "Yuan Chang, they're looking for a prize, what do you think we should offer?"
"Your Majesty, no matter how much you give, it is a favor to your soldiers." Cai Jing squinted his eyes at the players on the field and said thoughtfully, "These soldiers are running around and their physical strength is greatly exhausted. Your Majesty may reward them with some pigs and sheep to help them replenish their bodies."
"Alright! It's settled... Shixun, tell them I'll reward them with ten pigs and ten sheep, and the winning team will receive an additional two taels of silver per member."
Zhang Shixun saw that his goal had been achieved and smiled: "Thank you, Your Majesty, for the reward. I will announce it to the public during the intermission."
During the half-time break, Zhang Shixun came to the center of the field and announced the emperor's reward. The whole audience cheered and shouted "Long live the emperor" to thank the emperor for his grace.
Zhao Ji smiled and waved to the cheering officers and soldiers.
The cheers from the lowest classes are what the emperor likes to hear the most. They are much more pleasant to the ears than the cheers of "Long live the emperor" from all the ministers at the grand court meeting.
Cai Jing was old and frail, so he took the opportunity to say goodbye to Zhao Ji, "Your Majesty, I am exhausted and will take my leave first."
"Oh! Yuan Chang, please do as you please. I will return to the palace after the game is over."
After Cai Jing left, the second half began.
With the emperor's reward, the game became more intense.
On the court, Gao Yanei was knocked flat on his back by Han Shizhong.
This guy had a strong desire for revenge. After getting up, he kept staring at Han Shizhong, and when Han Shizhong was dribbling the ball, he hit his waist from behind.
Han Shizhong stumbled, turned around and laughed, "Xiao Gao, your headbutt doesn't relieve the itch, haven't you eaten yet?"
After saying that, he shot the ball hard and it flew towards the goal.
The shot was powerful and fast, but the ball was a little off target and should not have gone into the goal. However, the goalkeeper subconsciously flew to save the ball, but he missed it and was hit in the face by the ball. The ball bounced back and happened to fall right in front of Han Shizhong.
Han Shizhong was overjoyed and rushed forward to take another shot, and the ball went into the net.
The game was tied at 1-1, and the field was filled with cheers.
Han Shizhong scored a goal and was ecstatic. He somersaulted several times, got up and ran half a circle around the playground.
"Interesting! Interesting!" Zhao Ji watched with great interest and wished he could go down and give the game a few kicks himself.
Zhang Shixun, knowing the answer, asked, "Sir, I've heard that you're an exceptional ball player. Is that true?"
This question hit the spot for Zhao Ji, and a smug smile appeared on his face.
Before Zhao Ji could reply, Liang Shicheng behind him interrupted, "The official's ball skills are legendary. They are superb. The ball seems to be glued to his feet. There are countless beautiful tricks."
Breathtakingly beautiful?
Is this a description of playing football?
This flattery is so low-class.
Zhang Shixun curled his lips secretly.
Zhao Ji was smug, as if he was the best, and he said, "Speaking of football, there are countless masters in this dynasty. Not to mention those from far away, Gao Qiu and Li Bangyan here are also outstanding players."
Although Gao Qiu and Li Bangyan were looking at the court, their attention was on the emperor. When they heard the praise, they quickly stood up to thank the emperor for the compliment.
Zhang Shixun continued, "Your Majesty, I have an immature idea, but I'm not sure if I should share it."
Zhao Ji stroked his beard and said, "Tell me about it."
"I want to build a big football field?"
"Football field?" Zhao Ji's eyes lit up and he turned his gaze to Zhang Shixun.
"Yes! It's a football field, surrounded by stands. It can accommodate at least 10,000 people to watch the game."
"Ten thousand...ten thousand people?" Zhao Ji was a little surprised.
"Yes! It can accommodate at least 10,000 people." Zhang Shixun further explained, "The capital has a population of one million. I heard there are quite a few soccer clubs, too?"
Zhao Ji corrected him, "That's called a garden club, not a ball club."
"After the stadium is built, invite all the gardens in the capital...garden societies and have them take turns playing. The winner will be the winner, and the loser will be eliminated. Finally, the strongest few teams will be left to compete in the championship and runner-up finals..."
As Zhao Ji listened, his eyes became brighter and brighter. Before Zhang Shixun finished speaking, he clapped his hands and said, "Good idea."
Wang Fu started to make sarcastic remarks: "It's a good idea, but don't forget, building this so-called ball...what is the ball?"
"court."
"Building a stadium costs money. I'd like to ask, who will pay for it? You can't ask the court to pay for it, right?"
When Zhao Ji heard this, he felt a chill in his heart. The imperial court was short of money and was crying poor at court meetings every day. He could forget about asking these officials to take money from the national treasury to build a stadium.
As for the inner treasury, it was not enough for Zhao Ji himself, otherwise he would not have gone to so much trouble to build the "Zaozuo Bureau" and the "Yingfeng Bureau", which were institutions to make money for him.
Zhang Shixun didn't even look at Wang Fu. He smiled and said to Zhao Ji, "Your Majesty, it doesn't matter who pays for the construction of the stadium. Let's put this issue aside for now and listen to what I have to say."
"You say! You say!" Zhao Ji was a playful guy who pursued novelty all his life. Just listening to Zhang Shixun's beginning had already aroused his playful heart.
“Once the stadium is built, you’ll have to charge for playing.”
"For money?"
"Of course we charge money. We've put so much effort into organizing this wonderful competition, it wouldn't be worth it for them to watch it for free, right?"
“Are people willing to pay to watch it?”
"It all depends on how the organizers run it. If it's well run, I'm afraid people will be scrambling to see it."
"Go on." Zhao Ji felt itchy in his heart.
"Tickets can be cheaper during the qualifying rounds, with one or two copper coins enough to get in. As the competition progresses, it will surely become more exciting and more interesting, so ticket prices will rise accordingly. By the finals, ticket prices might be as high as ten or even twenty copper coins."
"Ten thousand people, two hundred thousand coins!" Zhao Ji's throat moved up and down, and he was shocked by the number.
"It's far more than that. Let's say the early matches cost 100,000 wen, so this is 300,000 wen. However, the viewing experience varies greatly depending on your position on the field. For example, where Your Majesty is sitting now is the best seat for watching the game, so the fee is naturally the highest..."
Wang Fu scolded him, "How dare you accept money from the government? Do you want to die?"
Zhang Shixun didn't even look at him and thought to himself: With this IQ, how did he climb to the position of prime minister?
Zhao Ji glared at him and said unhappily, "Wang Fu, Shixun has made it clear. This is just an analogy... Shixun, please continue."
"Tickets are categorized into different levels. If you want a good seat, you have to pay more. If you want to drink tea while watching the game, you can, then you have to pay for it. If you want to eat snacks while watching the game, you can also, but you have to pay for them... Of course, the stadium has its rules. No matter who enters, you cannot bring food with you. You must buy it inside the stadium."
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