After renting the house, the supermarket was closed for three days. All the employees were busy repairing the damaged parts of the house and moving in things like sofas and chairs. For convenience, Ye Zhou also spent a huge amount of money to buy a solar generator in the system.
The solar generator can only be used by Ye Zhou and cannot be sold, and the price is not cheap.
But considering that it is convenient, generates electricity faster than solar energy, and is not affected by weather, Ye Zhou still bought it.
He is now numb when spending money and can no longer even tell whether something is expensive or cheap. This place looks very poor. After all, there is nothing here. Sugar and salt are luxuries.
Even the Lord of Chen had never tasted salt without a bitter taste.
But they are also very rich, and what they own is particularly valuable in this era.
A set of jade ornaments can be worth hundreds of thousands or even millions.
But people are very "cheap", a slave is worth only one gold coin, and it must be a strong young male slave.
However, there were not many slaves in Linzi because there was no hard labor, so even if there was slave trading, the market was not big.
Moreover, the slaves who came to Linzi were considered "lucky". If they were lucky, they would be bought by a noble family. Although the work was still hard and they had no days off, at least they could eat more, which was much better than following the slave masters.
Apart from this, Ye Zhou felt that the most amazing thing was that there were businessmen who gave him gifts.
And he went straight to the door of the house where he lived without telling anyone else.
Cao Er also felt strange when he came in to report: "He said he had something to ask the immortal."
Ye Zhou was very confused, but still said, "Let him in."
Soon, Ye Zhou saw the businessman who was going to give him a gift. The businessman was wearing an indigo-colored robe and his hair was combed meticulously, which made people worry whether his hairline would move back in a short time.
Ye Zhou was sitting on a chair. When the businessman came in, he bowed respectfully and then knelt on the mat in front of Ye Zhou after getting permission.
The businessman flattered Ye Zhou first, praising him from his appearance to his figure, and then from his figure to his ability. He talked nonsense for nearly twenty minutes before finally stating his purpose: "I came here to bother you this time because of an important matter. Please ask you to send your attendants away first..."
Ye Zhou winked at Zou Ming and Sarah who were standing next to him.
Neither of them said anything and left the room.
"Tell me, what's the matter?" Ye Zhou picked up the teacup. He was ready to listen to the other party's nonsense for another twenty minutes.
But this time the merchant didn't waste words, but went straight to the point: "I am entrusted by the King of Wei to invite you to come to Wei."
Ye Zhou almost spit out a mouthful of tea, but he remained calm on the surface, acting like a "master". He asked, "The King of Wei is thousands of miles away, how can he know me? Even if he knows me, no matter how fast a horse is, it probably can't run back and forth in such a short time, right?"
The merchant quickly said, "There is an envoy from Wei in Linzi, who is equivalent to the King of Wei."
Ye Zhou was a little surprised: "The monarch of Wei has become king?"
Now the Zhou emperor is still in existence, and the monarchs of various countries are still princes. To claim to be a king is to tell everyone directly that he is no longer under the control of the emperor.
The merchant quickly said, "The King of Wei did not become king himself, but was granted the throne by the emperor. Prince Yu was present to watch the ceremony on behalf of the emperor."
Ye Zhou nodded, knowing that what this meant was that King Wei had to go through formal procedures to be crowned king.
"I am a businessman like you. It doesn't make much difference where I do business." Ye Zhou put down the teacup in his hand.
The merchant said quickly, "What you have are all rare things in the world. In Linzi, these things are just toys for the princes and nobles to amuse themselves, but in Wei, they can greatly enhance the national strength of Wei! The King of Wei is a wise ruler who will surely give you a high position and a good job. What the Marquis of Chen cannot grant, the King of Wei can grant."
Ye Zhou: "Sir, since you came to see me, you must not be prepared to hide your identity. I'm afraid you are not a businessman, right? You are a spy for the State of Wei."
The merchant did not refute, and he was indeed not prepared to conceal his identity. He nodded slightly and said, "I am a Wei person, and I have received great favor from the King of Wei. Although I am a merchant, I also have a heart to love my country."
"I think you are not an ordinary person. Since you have something extraordinary, why don't you find a good buyer?" The merchant looked into Ye Zhou's eyes and said softly, "The King of Wei is generous. Whether it's fame or fortune, he can give you no less than the Marquis of Chen."
Ye Zhou looked at Wei Shang with a smile, he thought it was quite interesting. King Wei probably didn't know that a strange supermarket had opened here, but the people he left in Linzi had already started recruiting talents for him.
Are there really any secrets between countries?
He felt that every country had been infiltrated by other countries like a sieve.
Ye Zhou didn't have any "young bird feelings" towards Chen Hou, and he didn't think he had to stay in Linzi.
He was just too lazy to run. The road conditions here were bad, and it would probably take several months to travel from one country to another.
"The King of Wei is a great ruler!" Seeing that Ye Zhou didn't seem to be interested, the merchant quickly added, "The State of Chen is weak, even the royal city of Linzi is just so-so. Whether it's food, clothing or daily expenses, it can't compare with the capital of Wei. If you want to achieve something, Wei is the best choice."
Ye Zhou raised his eyebrows and asked him, "What career?"
The merchant gave Ye Zhou a look that said "I understand you, I understand you too." "Since you are so extraordinary, you must accomplish great things in this world. A man should be like this! If you serve the State of Wei, I can guarantee that you will be able to become an official and a prime minister. The position of prime minister in the State of Wei is vacant and is waiting for a good man."
"Can you give the position of prime minister of Wei just by saying so?" Ye Zhou leaned forward slightly, his eyes became sharp.
The merchant shuddered all over. The young man, who had been so lazy and looked particularly romantic just now, suddenly changed his expression and became as fierce as an eagle or a tiger. Even the king of Wei might not have such aura.
You can be intimidating without getting angry. There is no need to glare at people or lose your temper. Just a look is enough to make people convinced.
Wei Shang: "I can guarantee it!"
He lowered his head slightly and took out a wooden box from his arms: "This is the seal of our country."
This is the big gift he gave to Ye Zhou.
Ye Zhou was shocked. Isn't the Wei Kingdom too aggressive? They let a businessman carry the seal of a country around?
Is it that this era is too outrageous, or is it that he is not outrageous enough?
Seeing that Ye Zhou did not stop him, Wei Shang slowly stood up, hunched over and walked to Ye Zhou in small steps, and handed the wooden box in his hand to Ye Zhou: "Don't worry, sir. When I left Shangyu, my king entrusted this seal to me. When the Wei Kingdom hires people, it does not look at their background or family, but only their talent."
He also did not forget to drag down the State of Chen: "Unlike the State of Chen, the king and his subjects were in chaos, the king was not a king and his subjects were not subjects, and he only appointed officials from the royal family."
The Xiangyin is a seal made of jade. It is impossible to tell what kind of jade it is. However, here, the beautiful stone is jade, so it is easy to forge it.
It cannot be completely confirmed that this is indeed the seal of the prime minister of Wei State.
Ye Zhou thought about it and said to Wei Shang: "Thank you for your appreciation, sir, but I have no plans to leave Linzi."
He came from the border and almost broke his butt while riding his horse. He really didn't want to make another long journey to another country.
Wei Shang quickly asked, "Your Excellency, do you think the position of prime minister is unworthy?"
Ye Zhou shook his head: "It's not a matter of official position, it's just that the journey is too long and I can't bear the hardship."
Wei Shang: “…”
He never dreamed that this was the reason.
How much can you not endure hardship?
Wei Shang wanted to continue to persuade him, but Ye Zhou suddenly said, "Sir, do you want to stay for dinner?"
Generally speaking, when it is time for dinner, no matter how thick-skinned the guests are, they will not feel comfortable staying unless the host invites them to stay.
But Ye Zhou underestimated Wei Shang's face. When Wei Shang heard this, he immediately said, "Then I'm sorry to bother you, sir."
Ye Zhou was silent for two seconds, then shouted to Zou Ming who was waiting outside: "Zou Ming, take this gentleman for a walk."
Zou Ming walked in. He had also changed into the local people's clothes and looked particularly tall and straight. At Zou Ming's "invitation", the businessman could only stand up reluctantly and followed Zou Ming out, looking back every few steps.
·
There was actually nothing to see in the house. The corridor was okay at this time, but that was all. The merchant had traveled to many countries and even been to royal palaces, so he had no interest in this house, but he was very interested in Zou Ming.
He followed Zou Ming and observed his expression. After a while, he asked, "Excuse me, little brother, what did Lord Chen promise to you?"
As he spoke, he took out a gold cake from his arms. As long as Zou Ming stopped, he would immediately stuff the gold cake into Zou Ming's hands.
Zou Ming glanced at him with dark eyes.
The merchant took back the gold cake and smiled awkwardly: "I have no intention of harming anyone. My lord and you will not achieve anything if you stay here."
Today, Wei is the only state among the vassal states to claim the title of king, and almost everyone knows the ambitions of the King of Wei.
But it was also because of this that countless scholars rushed to Wei State to discuss business, as they all wanted to achieve great things in their lifetime.
The businessman didn't understand. He thought Ye Zhou didn't agree to him because he didn't believe the promise he made.
After all, in his opinion, the poor State of Chen and the small Linzi were not places where people could stay. Any normal person would definitely want to leave here.
Zou Ming really wanted to kick the noisy Wei Shang into the pond, but he held back. He couldn't just leave Wei Shang wandering around here alone, so he could only listen to Wei Shang's words and look into the distance to clear his mind.
Zou Ming didn't come back to his senses until Cao'er came over and told them to go eat.
Wei Shang followed Cao'er and the others into the room again, but he thought that he should have dinner with Ye Zhou. After all, there was no hostess and no Ye Zhou's children here, so it was normal for the host and guests to have dinner together.
But he didn't expect that when he entered the room, he would see everyone, including Zou Mingcao'er, sitting around a large round table.
There is more than one round table.
Wei Shang was dumbfounded, thinking he was daydreaming.
In his opinion, Zou Ming and the others were all Ye Zhou's servants. How could a master and servant eat together? This was really a disparity between the superior and the inferior!
But he didn't dare to speak. He needed help from others, so he decided not to interfere.
So under Cao'er's guidance, he sat in an empty seat.
"Serve the food." Ye Zhou said.
Wu Yan and the others quickly went to the kitchen, but Wei Shang's mind was still full of how to persuade Ye Zhou to go to Wei State.
As he was thinking, he couldn't think any further. The aroma of food came from outside, a strong fragrance, not just the smell of oil and salt, but a more complex smell that he had never smelled before, but it made him very hungry.
When the first dish was placed on the table, Wei Shang forgot everything.
He didn't even remember that he was sitting at the same table with a group of "servants", and he didn't think there was anything strange about the chair he was sitting on.
However, since no one else moved their chopsticks, Wei Shang did not move either. He watched as more and more dishes appeared on the table, including fish, meat, and various vegetables. Finally, someone brought him a bowl of rice. The white rice was steaming, and Wei Shang swallowed unconsciously.
"I'm sorry for the poor hospitality. Please continue, sir." Ye Zhou smiled at Wei Shang.
Wei Shang said quickly: "I have never seen or heard of these dishes before."
Ye Zhou picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks. After he started eating, others picked up their chopsticks.
After following Ye Zhou for a long time, the employees have become accustomed to this kind of food. They have meat almost every meal. In the morning, many people like to eat meat buns with a bowl of instant seaweed egg drop soup.
But Wei Shang had never seen such a scene.
They now eat separately, with a wooden table in front of each person. If a meal has three courses, it is considered very sumptuous.
Ordinary people do not separate meals at home, but basically they have only one dish. They should be thankful if they can fill their stomachs. Why pursue richness?
At first, Wei Shang only dared to pick up the dish in front of him - sweet and sour fish.
He was a little conflicted because he himself did not eat fish. Fish was mostly eaten by poor people.
Because the fishy smell is not only the smell of fish meat, but also the smell of soil. Cooking methods are limited, and many fish can only be boiled in water with salt.
In Wei Shang's mind, fish is fishy, so fishy that it makes people want to vomit.
But he still added a piece of fish meat with chopsticks and put it into his mouth with difficulty. The moment it entered his mouth, Wei Shang couldn't help but widen his eyes.
The expected fishy smell did not come, but instead there was a sweet taste, a combination of sweetness and sourness. The fish meat was white and tender, and I couldn't help swallowing it as soon as I put it in my mouth.
Wei Shang asked in disbelief: "Is sugar added to this fish?"
Wu Yan, who was sitting next to him, said, "This is sweet and sour fish, so sugar must be added."
Wei Shang said with difficulty: "This place is luxurious, I have seen it."
Using sugar to make fish! Only here can they be so generous!
Wu Yan smiled and said, "Why don't you try other dishes? Braised pork is also good."
Wei Shang glanced at the braised pork and asked, "Is it made from pork?"
Wu Yan nodded, and Wei Shang was curious: "But it's a wild porpoise?"
Wu Yan shook his head and said, "No, it's farmed wild boar meat, and it's not castrated, so it doesn't taste good."
Wei Shang blinked: "Can pigs be raised?"
In fact, the wild boars at this time all have fangs and are considered the bullies in the countryside.
Wu Yan: "Of course, before raising horses, did anyone know that horses can be raised?"
Wei Shang suddenly realized: "Brother, you are my teacher!"
Wu Yan: “…”
It's really easy to be a teacher.
Wei Shang ate with great relish. He even poured the remaining soup from the sweet and sour fish into the rice. After eating five bowls of rice, Wei Shang could no longer walk. He slumped in the chair, thinking that this chair was a really good thing as it could support him.
Seeing Wei Shang like this, Ye Zhou could only invite him to have dinner and let him rest here for another night.
However, after dinner, Ye Zhou took Zou Ming to the palace.
Mrs. Chen has brought the prince back to the palace. After all, she is the wife of the marquis, and many things in the palace need to be presided over by her.
The two men rode their horses and easily entered the palace - not because the soldiers guarding the gate knew him or because Lord Chen had greeted him.
But this palace gate is just a decoration! It is not closed at all! There is no one guarding it, and it is always in the state of "my door is always open" all year round.
Ye Zhou entered the palace and said to Zou Ming in disbelief: "I thought it was a rumor that the palace was not closed."
When he watched a video before and saw the introduction that the palace gates of many dynasties were not closed and people could enter and exit freely, he thought it was a marketing account making up stories.
It was also the first time that Zou Ming knew that the palace gate was just a decoration. Although he was not as shocked as Ye Zhou, he was also very curious: "Why did they build the palace gate?"
Spend so much money to build the palace gate, just to make it a decoration?
But they had no one to ask now, so they could only look around to see if they could find a palace servant who could lead the way for them.
There were not many people in the palace, probably because it was a family empire instead of a feudal dynasty, so the royal family did not need so many people to serve them. Ye Zhou and his companions searched for more than ten minutes before they found a page boy.
The servant boy looked less than ten years old. He was wearing a gray coat and had little flesh on his face and body. When Ye Zhou called him, he subconsciously wanted to run away, but Zou Ming rode over and blocked him.
The servant heaved a sigh of relief when he learned that they were going to see Lord Chen: "Nu Nu will take the adults there."
On the way over, Ye Zhou asked the servant: "Is the palace gate never closed?"
The servant boy whispered, "Lord Zuo Tu has imprisoned him."
Ye Zhou: "Besides him?"
The servant shook his head: "The palace gate weighs a thousand pounds, it is a heavy device, it will not be closed easily."
Ye Zhou didn't need to act like a master to a child: "Shouldn't it be easy to open it?"
The servant looked at Ye Zhou, as if wondering why he didn't understand, so he explained: "Once the gate is closed, there must be someone attacking outside the city, otherwise it would be difficult to open the gate. If the gate is closed at other times, if there is a flood in the palace, there will be no place to escape."
It turned out to be for safety reasons. Ye Zhou reluctantly felt that this explanation was acceptable.
The palace of the State of Chen was not big. Led by the servants, they soon arrived at the study where Marquis Chen was.
The servant boy said to them, "Please wait a moment, my lord. I will go and report to the Lord."
After saying this, the servant walked into the study.
Ye Zhou turned to Zou Ming and whispered, "Why didn't any assassins come to kill Lord Chen?"
The security of the palace is so poor, it would be strange if the king was not assassinated.
Zou Ming didn't say anything, but Ye Zhou could tell from his frown that Zou Ming couldn't understand either.
However, the person who came out to greet them was not the servant who went in to report, but Lord Chen himself.
"Immortal!" Chen Hou held up his clothes and walked towards Ye Zhou with excitement. He grabbed Ye Zhou's hand and shook hands with him.
Before Ye Zhou could react, Zou Ming had already stepped forward and grabbed the arm of Lord Chen that was holding Ye Zhou's hand, and said coldly, "Lord Chen, be careful."
Chen Hou then let go of his hand and kept apologizing: "It's Ji Menglang, it's Menglang, the immortal came at the right time, if the immortal didn't come, I would have sent someone to invite the immortal over tomorrow."
Then he led Ye Zhou and the others inside.
The study is not big, with bamboo slips on the bookshelves on both sides. There is only a lacquered table in the whole room, on which are a carving knife and bamboo slips.
Opposite the lacquer table was a piece of silk cloth with a map drawn on it in ink, which appeared to be a map of various countries in the Warring States Period.
However, some places are blank, probably because Lord Chen has not yet obtained the detailed topographic maps of those places.
Chen Hou then remembered to ask Ye Zhou why he came: "Immortal, why are you looking for me at this time? Is there something important?"
Ye Zhou shook his head: "Nothing serious."
Chen Hou just took a sip of water and nodded to Ye Zhou. Ye Zhou then said, "It's just a merchant from Wei who came to give me a gift and wanted me to go to Wei."
Chen Hou spat out the water in his mouth.
After spraying the water, he did not feel embarrassed at all. He put down the cup and said angrily: "Wei State has wolfish ambitions! It loves to use spies. Over the years, I don't know how many scholars from Chen State have been deceived into going to Wei State. When they left, they thought they would be entrusted with important tasks. After arriving in Wei State, they realized that the King of Wei was not short of talents."
"Nowadays, the countries are fighting each other frequently. There is no country whose monarch does not want to be king, but no country has the power to be king!" Chen Hou's voice became much louder. "If the King of Wei acts like this, all the princes can attack him!"
Ye Zhou understood: "Oh, you want to join forces to attack Wei?"
Chen Hou was stunned. He looked at Ye Zhou and said, "My Immortal, what is the meaning of the alliance?"
Ye Zhou: "The famous scholar Zhang Yi proposed the strategy of forming alliances to resist the strong and forming alliances to restrain the weak."
The Marquis of Chen repeated his words several times, and then he said, "That's right, that's right! The stronger Wei is, the weaker we small countries will be! Only when the weak countries unite can they resist the strong!"
"But alliances are always based on interests. Although they are easy to break up, as long as there is profit, they can form the most loyal alliance."
"The alliance is always broken by interests. The countries are united, but before they win the battle, they want to divide who gets which piece of land. They fight and take it, and they fall apart without fighting." Ye Zhou advised the Marquis of Chen, "Chen is a small country. I'm afraid that even if you win the battle, you won't get any benefit if people die."
The face of Lord Chen suddenly dimmed, but he still tried to fight for it: "Chen is indeed a small country. It naturally cannot send many troops in a war, and dare not ask for much land. Even if it is only two cities, it is enough."
He felt that if he asked for less, there shouldn't be any problem.
Ye Zhou was speechless and said, "Chen State and Wei State are not adjacent to each other. Even if you get the land, how can you take it over? Will the people of Wei listen to you? You still need to send troops and officials, and waste money, food, manpower and material resources. What do you want?"
Lord Chen: "...It's a city after all."
All monarchs are crazy about acquiring other countries' lands, no matter how far away they are.
Why does it feel like everyone is losing money when hearing what the immortal said?
Ye Zhou: "Make friends with distant countries and attack nearby ones. Didn't you say that all the vassal states are now at odds with Wei? Then you might as well make friends with them and help them in times of need. Maybe you will gain more benefits than kicking them when they are down."
Lord Chen looked at Ye Zhou.
Ye Zhou also looked at Chen Hou.
Lord Chen immediately straightened his clothes and bowed to Ye Zhou. Then he raised his head and asked with a burning gaze, "Immortal, please help me. I can only reward you with the position of Prime Minister. Please agree to this."
Ye Zhou: “…”
What’s going on today? Why does everyone want him to be the prime minister?
Can this official position be granted so easily?
Is the Prime Minister so worthless?
And...what does the Prime Minister do?
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