Chapter 156 Cold and Hot

Qi Xuansu drove "Bu Yue" to "Ghost Kingdom Cave Heaven" and brought Liu Hu to the ferry.

Although it is called a ferry, it looks like a port. It is quite large. Not only do many passenger ships and cargo ships dock, but there are also restaurants, inns, taverns, tea houses, brothels, warehouses, and warehouses on the shore. In addition, there is a house with two entrances and back, with several signs hanging on it, including the Imperial Maritime Customs, the Taoist Maritime Customs Hall, and a certain Chamber of Commerce, which is half public and half private. It manages both the cargo ships and the inns and warehouses on the shore, and also takes care of the business of passenger ships.

Qi Xuansu and Liu Hu came to this small courtyard and went directly to the side hall with the sign "Passenger Ship".

This place is naturally not comparable to the spacious hall where flying boat tickets are sold, but it is not bad. It is somewhat similar to a pawnshop, with high counters, wooden fences, and small windows one after another. Some windows have people standing behind them, while some windows are empty and have signs saying "Sold Out".

After spending a short time with Zhang Yuelu, Qi Xuansu found that the old man's appearance might not be suitable for him. Although the white fox mask can change the voice, Qi Xuansu is a young man after all. His manners, demeanor, and behavior habits are not like those of a real old man. Anyway, Zhang Yuelu would never believe that Wei Wugui is an old man.

So Qi Xuansu simply changed his face to a young one, which was very handsome. Because his sleeves were damaged in the previous fight, he spent ten Taiping coins to buy himself a new set of clothes with good quality. He also looked decent, like a respectable gentleman.

In the East, it is called gentry, and in the West, it is called a gentleman, a class lower than the real dignitaries and higher than ordinary people.

Qi Xuansu came to a window and asked, "Do you have a boat ticket to Bohai Prefecture? Don't take a sea ship, take the Grand Canal. It's best to set sail immediately and don't wait too long."

There was an elderly man inside. Seeing Qi Xuansu's good clothes, he smiled and said, "Sir, there is one, but it's an iron ship, and the ticket is a bit expensive."

Since the Western ironclad ship technology was introduced to the East, not only have ironclad ships on the sea, but also smaller ironclad ships on the inland rivers. Although they are called ironclad, they are actually not armored to defend against artillery. They are just changed from wooden ships to iron ships. They do not rely on sails or manpower, but rely on coal burning. They can not only go upstream, but also faster.

However, due to the annual steel production, the priority supply to the navy to build giant ironclad ships is given, so there are not many such iron ships.

Things are rare and expensive, so the price of the ticket naturally rises. Even if it is not as good as the Taoist flying boat, ordinary people can't afford it. Only gentry will choose this kind of iron ship when traveling.

Qi Xuansu asked directly: "How much?"

The man introduced: "The rooms on the iron ship are of three grades, A, B and C, and the prices are naturally different. C is three yuan, B is five yuan, and A is ten yuan. A-class rooms have special waiters to serve, hot water for twelve hours, and three meals a day are prepared by chefs hired from Jinling Mansion. A respectable person like you..."

Speaking of this, the man paused and looked at Liu Hu beside Qi Xuansu: "If you bring a female family member, it is best to have an A-class room. . "

Qi Xuansu thought for a moment and took out two receipts: "Two first-class rooms."

The man put away the two receipts neatly, and then returned two beautifully printed tickets with a hint of ink to Qi Xuansu, and said: "The yellow pier, the iron ship with the flag of 'A 36' is it." Then he looked at the clock again: "The ship will leave in two hours, young master, please remember it and don't delay the time."

Qi Xuansu took the ticket, his face was calm, but in fact he felt a little distressed.

The double swords he bought for 2,500 Taiping money were broken by Zhang Yuelu, that is 1,250 Taiping money, gone.

He couldn't settle the account with Zhang Yuelu, not to mention that he had not yet cleared his suspicion. Even if he cleared his suspicion, he would get compensation from Zhang Yuelu, and then what? He still had to face Zhang Yuelu in the future. Wei Wugui's identity could not be hidden from Zhang Yuelu for a lifetime. When the truth comes out, Zhang Yuelu will think of this again, and Qi Xuansu will have fun.

In addition, although Qi Xuansu got a set of "Seven Phoenix Feathers" and several "Bliss Needles", the ammunition of the "Dragon Hand Gun" was also consumed. Not counting the ordinary armor-piercing projectiles, there were still four "Dragon Eye B II" and eight "Dragon Eye B III" left. The "Phoenix Eye B III" had been used up, and it was considered to be even.

Now Qi Xuansu is not a Taoist priest, let alone a fourth-grade priest, so he can't go to Tianji Hall to replenish projectiles. But if he replenishes from the black market, the price will at least double. With Qi Xuansu's current wealth, he can't buy much.

So Qi Xuansu had to be frugal and try his best to control the expenses of this trip within fifty yuan of Taiping money.

To be fair, fifty yuan of Taiping money is not a small amount. The Dao sect has set up a Xuanhuang Division to refine "Xuanhuang" to maintain the operation of the flying boat. Many Daoists are engaged in this kind of business. Each person's monthly salary is three Taiping coins, which is only thirty-six Taiping coins a year. If calculated according to the minimum standard, ten Taiping coins are enough for a family of three to spend in a year.

Fifty Taiping coins are already five years of expenses. Even if the minimum standard is not used, it is enough for two years of expenses.

This shows how expensive spiritual objects are, not to mention that there are treasures above spiritual objects, which are often tens of thousands of Taiping coins, and there are not many of them. Semi-immortal objects are even more priceless.

It can also be seen why Liu Futong's embezzlement of 100,000 Taiping money was considered a major case. A family of three spent 10 yuan Taiping money a year, 100 yuan Taiping money in 10 years, and 1,000 yuan Taiping money in 100 years. Based on this calculation, 100,000 Taiping money is 10,000 years.

According to Liu Futong's own confession, 100,000 Taiping money was mainly used to buy houses, keep women, and raise illegitimate children. In addition to the money for purchasing houses, there were also tens of thousands of Taiping money spent on these women and illegitimate children. Not to mention ordinary people, even Qi Xuansu, a quasi-fifth-grade Taoist priest who had experienced several deaths in the sword and sword, could not take out, and had never even seen it.

To put it bluntly, Qi Xuansu, a country bumpkin who had never seen money, had only gained some wealth in the past six months. If he suddenly became rich, except for buying spiritual objects, treasures, firearms and elixirs, or buying houses and land, he could not think of how to squander so much money just for pure enjoyment. His imagination was still stuck on going out to ride a flying boat and going in and out of the brothel.

Qi Xuansu and Liu Hu left this place and came to the yellow pier. They saw the only iron ship at a glance. It was so conspicuous. Compared with the wooden ships around, it stood out like a crane among chickens. It was extremely large and could carry hundreds of passengers.

Iron ships, as the name suggests, are made of steel and rarely have wooden structures. Because it is an inland river, not a seafaring ship, it is not equipped with artillery or sails, but tall chimneys instead.

In terms of beauty, chimneys are naturally not as good as beautiful sails. It makes people feel a little uncomfortable and uncomfortable. But they have to adapt to it.

This is an era of "cold and hot coexistence".

On the one hand, the men in black hold muskets and travel the world on ironclad ships. The truth is only within the range of artillery.

On the other hand, cavalry and cold weapons were still respected on land. With the blessing of magic talismans, iron armor that could resist fire guns appeared. Although the cost of cavalry was increased, the word "iron cavalry" became true to its name, especially the heavy cavalry with both men and horses wearing armor. They really rushed on the battlefield. Not only could they charge against fire guns, but ordinary chevaux de frise could not stop them at all. If the heavenly warriors personally wore armor and charged into the battle, ordinary city gates could also be broken.

The same is true for Taoism.

On the one hand, the Taoist Tianji Hall is committed to developing various powerful firearms. The "Dragon Eye" and "Phoenix Eye" series are famous all over the world, and there is a flying boat fleet that dominates the sky. Huasheng Hall develops various creations. Whether waste materials can become geniuses depends only on whether they want to or are worth it, not on whether they can. Even ordinary people can have great supernatural powers as long as they have a set of spiritual official armor. It can be said that they are taking away the fortune of heaven and man, not to mention various Yin objects and the legendary god-making project. These changes pushed the Dao Sect to the peak. From the Western Regions to the East China Sea, from Posa Continent to Fenglin Continent, the Dao Sect's reputation is known to everyone.

On the other hand, the Taoists who dominate the Dao Sect still value their own realm cultivation, prefer treasures and immortal objects, and rarely use firearms. After practicing to the extreme, there is no need to create gods. They are gods themselves, seizing the creation of heaven and earth, invading the mysteries of the sun and the moon, flying in the sky and hiding in the earth, calling the wind and rain, waving to create things, moving mountains and seas, and being omnipotent. One person against ten thousand people is not a vain thing. Therefore, with shortcuts such as firearms and spiritual officials, there are still many people who are keen on practicing Taoism and seeking immortality. The ancient swords, bows and crossbows, spells, and magic can still play a role.

This is a world that is changing dramatically, and it is also a world full of contradictions.