Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

On the outskirts of Pingwan County, a donkey cart strained, pulling goods and people along, its breath coming in ragged gasps.

Seeing the road gradually improving, Jingdi's mood began to brighten.

Before entering this area, the roads were all dirt tracks, but now the road was clearly paved by human hands.

Moreover, many people were walking towards Pingwan County.

This official road was already bustling with activity.

Even more amazing, quite a few people were riding bicycles!

Looking at this strange scene, Jingdi couldn't help but ask, "I didn't expect that outside the capital, so many commoners would be willing to ride bicycles? This road doesn't look very comfortable, does it?"

Fang Zheng nodded slightly.

It wasn't just uncomfortable; although it was a repaired dirt road, the shock absorption of bicycles at this time wasn't very good for this kind of road.

Those commoners riding bicycles looked like they were bouncing up and down; it certainly wasn't comfortable.

He guessed that riding like that for an hour or two would probably shatter their baskets...

However... as for why they would ride even if it was uncomfortable, Fang Zheng had some ideas in his mind.

Perhaps the commoners in this city received information and news faster, knowing that bicycles were popular in the capital.

So they were all willing to follow the trend, even if it was uncomfortable; after all, it represented a certain upper-class 'trend'.

In later generations, didn't some people play with the 'West Coast' style, wearing dozens of pairs of pants on their legs?

And some even more shameless people, in broad daylight, wore overalls and bumped their shoulders against the air.

So this kind of situation is very normal!

Fang Zheng said, "You see, so many commoners here are willing to ride bicycles, which at least shows that they have some money in their hands; otherwise, on such a road... how could anyone sell such impractical tools?"

"Hmm! That makes sense!" Jingdi's eyes lit up, and he began to carefully observe the passersby.

Upon closer inspection, he found that many people were in a hurry, but they didn't look sickly.

This situation was enough to ease Jingdi's mind a lot.

Jingdi perked up and wore a smile on his face: "I wonder what the scene inside the city is like? By the way, I heard that many city gate guards have the bad habit of secretly extorting the common people; will we have to pay any road tolls when we enter the city?"

"Probably not."

Fang Zheng pondered carefully.

He had once written a letter to warn Yang Fan to absolutely not engage in road tolls.

In addition, he had also sent the Embroidered Uniform Guard to station there and supervise the matter.

If Yang Fan was obedient enough, and the deployment of the Embroidered Uniform Guard hadn't changed, then there shouldn't be any problems.

When they arrived at the city gate, the flow of people gathered together, appearing very lively.

Many commoners were lining up to enter the city.

Fang Zheng stood on the donkey cart, craning his neck to look, and seeing the people in front of him entering smoothly one by one, he couldn't help but feel relieved.

It seemed that everything was fine; at least from the situation outside the city, Yang Fan's management was fine.

When it was finally Jingdi and the others' turn, the four got off the cart and entered the city.

Suddenly, the city gate soldier reached out and stopped the donkey cart.

"Wait a moment."

Fang Zheng was startled and quickly stepped forward and said, "Sir, is there a problem?"

The city gate soldier stroked his chin, walked around the cart, and asked, "Is this your first time here?"

Jingdi frowned slightly.

What he feared came true! The commoners in front had all entered smoothly, but when they saw that they had a donkey cart, they stopped them here.

This soldier must have seen that they had something to gain, which is why he acted this way.

Indeed... some things can only be discovered through private visits.

Seeing the city gate soldier coming over, Fang Zheng squeezed out a smile and said, "That's right, we are indeed here for the first time, sir. Can you be lenient?"

As he spoke, Fang Zheng handed over an apple.

The city gate soldier looked at the apple with disdain: "Who are you trying to fool? Do you think I'm lacking an apple?"

Impudent! He dares to ask for a high price?

Jingdi's anger rose in his heart, and he was about to step forward to argue.

Unexpectedly, the soldier then said, "Take it away, take it away! This is your first time here, you don't understand our rules here. Judging by your appearance, you want to set up a stall in the city, right?"

"I'm telling you, if you want to set up a stall, you can, there are specially designated places for you to set up. After you go in, first find someone to ask clearly, don't mess around."

"Also, if your donkey poops on the street, you have to clean it up, otherwise you'll be fined, understand?"

Jingdi stopped and blinked in confusion.

Huh... not extortion? It's actually a kind reminder!

Fang Zheng breathed a sigh of relief: "I see, thank you, sir! Have an apple."

The city gate soldier waved his hand impatiently: "Go in, go in, don't block the people behind you, who wants to eat your apple."

After the group entered the city, Wang Erzhu felt a little unbelievable and approached Fang Zheng: "Hey, Lu Zhong... the people here are really polite!"

Fang Zheng said with disgust: "Can you not call me Lu Zong? Call me Young Master Lu."

"Yes, yes, Young Master Lu, let's find a place to set up a stall!" Wang Erzhu's eyes were shining, looking around.

Pingwan County, this is Pingwan County!

Although the city looks about the same size from the outside, there are far more people here than in Xinzhang County!

The roads in the city have been repaired and look very smooth.

There are even more people riding bicycles than outside the city.

Everywhere are stalls selling things, and passersby talking to them.

The chaos reveals order, a lively and prosperous scene, even though it is morning, the atmosphere of everyday life is already overwhelming.

Even Jingdi couldn't help but be secretly surprised.

From what he could see, the people below were doing a reliable job.

Fang Zheng looked around and was quite satisfied, saying to Wang Erzhu: "Let's find a pawnshop first and pawn your ring."

Although Fang Zheng had mentioned it to him on the road, now that he said it, Wang Erzhu suddenly felt a little reluctant. Pawning it wasn't as cost-effective as selling it: "Young Master, this is a gift from you, it's not appropriate, is it? How about I just keep it?"

Fang Zheng sneered inwardly.

He saw through his little plan at a glance.

Keep it? You poor wretch, without capital, what will I use to sell apples?

"I'm telling you, it's not easy for you to sell this thing. The best place is a pawnshop! Moreover, the commerce here is prosperous, and pawnshops must be trustworthy. Isn't it better to exchange that ring for silver?"

"Of course, it's your thing, you can do whatever you want with it."

Wang Erzhu hesitated for a moment and took out the ring from his chest.

"Then I'll listen to you."

Since Young Master Lu said so, then let's do it this way, anyway, he doesn't understand anything.

He could see on the way that Young Master Lu's family was kind-hearted.

The commerce in the city was indeed visibly more prosperous than in ordinary cities, and there were quite a few pawnshops.

It didn't take much effort for the four to find a pawnshop that looked quite large.

Entering it, they saw a row of unusually high counters, separated by wooden fences, leaving only a small window.

Even with Fang Zheng's height of more than 1.8 meters, he had to look up to see the pawnshop clerk.

At the moment, there were quite a few people doing business inside.

Wang Erzhu licked his lips, feeling a little nervous in his heart. This was the first time he had seen such a scene.

Although he was a little timid, he felt two points more courage thinking that Fang Zheng was behind him.

Walking to the counter, before he could speak, the clerk behind the counter was already looking down and said in an indifferent voice, "Redeem or pawn?"

This person looked rustic and knew from his appearance that it was his first time here.

Although this kind of customer was easy to deceive, there was not much profit to be made, and the clerk felt a little impatient.

Wang Erzhu opened his mouth, stumbling: "Pawn... pawn."

"Bring the item up."

Wang Erzhu nervously took out the ring and was about to hand it up.

Unexpectedly, a hand stretched out from behind him: "Give it to me, I'll help you pawn it."

.......