We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

Zhang Cheng quickly said, "How dare I, a mere official, instruct Your Highness?"

"Don't be so modest, just speak freely." Li Che smiled and picked up a piece of tofu. "As the saying goes, there must be a teacher among three people. This king opens the way for people to speak freely, so that more people can hear their voices."

Hearing what Li Che said, Zhang Cheng mustered up the courage and whispered:

"When I was in my hometown, if the wealthy families had extra grain, they would use traditional methods to make wine and sell it to the restaurant to increase their income."

"Now that the weather is getting colder, many colleagues secretly want to have a sip. It can warm the body and give the day a little more hope, right?"

Seeing that Li Che was silent, Zhang Cheng quickly acted panicked and said, "Your Highness, please forgive me. I lost my composure for a moment and said something stupid."

Zhang Cheng regretted it very much. The prince asked him to give suggestions, which was obviously a great opportunity for advancement. Why did he talk about wine?

The main reason was that Li Che was too friendly, and Zhang Cheng felt as if he was talking to a friend.

Li Che didn't care. Although he didn't like drinking, he knew the importance of wine culture to the Chinese people.

Before, Fengguo even had difficulty surviving, but now that life is better, what's wrong with everyone wanting to have a few drinks? It's just human nature.

He helped Zhang Cheng up with one hand and turned to look at Huo Duanxiao: "Is alcohol banned in Chaoyang City? Why don't I remember issuing a ban?"

Huo Duanxiao explained, "There's no explicit ban on alcohol, but apart from some officials in the palace, the city's petty officials and common people really can't drink alcohol."

There is a brewery in Chaoyang City, but it is government-run and the business is managed by the royal palace.

What is brewed is not all wine, but half liquor and half alcohol.

Most of the liquor was handed over to the caravans and sold inside the country.

Most of the alcohol was provided to the medical brigade and clinic, and the remaining part was sent to Fengguo University for students to use in experiments.

Even if there was confiscated wine in the palace, it would be distributed first to officials and soldiers.

The common people and petty officials like Zhang Cheng couldn't even get a sip of wine all year round.

Li Che nodded and said to the guard beside him: "Go, go to the storehouse of the palace and get a few jars of good wine."

"Yes!"

Looking at the back of his personal guard, Zhang Cheng finally came to his senses and said hurriedly, "Your Highness, this is unacceptable... I have done nothing for you, how can I accept your wine?"

"Old Zhang, don't say anything more. You treated me to a meal today, so I'll treat you to a drink. It's only right to reciprocate."

Li Che reached out and patted Zhang Cheng on the shoulder. The moment his palm touched the other person, Zhang Cheng trembled with excitement.

After a while, the personal guards brought a few jars of good wine, and Zhang Cheng naturally expressed his gratitude again.

Li Che encouraged them a few words before leading everyone out of the granary.

"This person is diligent and hardworking, and he's a useful talent." Li Che said softly, "Let the Ministry of Personnel investigate. If there's no problem, report him to the higher authorities."

Huo Duanxiao replied: "Yes."

Li Che sighed, "He gave me a wake-up call. Now that Feng State has settled down, it's time to improve the living standards of both officials and common people."

"How about this? Let's relax the regulations on private winemaking. The palace will sell the excess grain at a low price, allowing merchants to buy the grain and make wine."

"If you're short of yeast or don't know how to brew it, you can ask the alcohol factory to provide it. But the price needs to be standardized and you can't ask for exorbitant prices."

Huo Duanxiao bowed and said, "Don't worry, Your Highness. I will do it right away."

Wang Laosi, who was standing by, suddenly said, "Your Highness, I have something I don't know..."

Li Che squinted at Wang Sanchun's brother and said in feigned anger, "How come you've become so nagging? Just say what you want to say!"

"Yes." Wang Laosi smiled apologetically and said seriously, "I am responsible for the city's public security. Recently, I often see prostitutes entering and leaving the dark alleys in the city, as well as people in a hurry coming in and out..."

Li Che glared: "What's going on? Under my nose, something like forcing a good woman into prostitution is happening?"

Wang Laosi quickly replied: "I sent someone to check and found that there was indeed prostitution, but it was not forced..."

Li Che pursed his lips and looked at Wang Laosi, feeling a little confused.

Who would take the initiative to do this job unless they have no other choice?

Wang Laosi explained, "Most of them were originally wandering prostitutes, some were women of other races, and some were widows who had lost their husbands."

"These women have no one to rely on and no skills to rely on. Although they can receive a subsidy to avoid starvation, but..."

Although Wang Laosi only said half of his words, Li Che already understood.

Habits are terrible. Once you have made quick money, it is difficult to change them even if you change your environment.

"I feel that... there are quite a few bachelors in the city, and more than half of the soldiers in the army are unmarried..."

"Instead of letting them sneak around and affect the cityscape, it would be better to follow the example of Guan Zhong, the prime minister of Qi, and establish female brothels under unified management."

Li Che grinned. Wang Laosi's studies were not in vain. He even knew the story that Guan Zhong was the founder of brothels.

During the Spring and Autumn Period, prostitution in the traditional sense had already begun to appear among the people. Although the various countries did not enact corresponding laws to crack down on them, prostitutes were not protected by national laws.

This situation changed when Guan Zhong was in power in Qi State.

At that time, there were more men than women in Qi State. In order to ease social conflicts, meet the needs of bachelors, and protect decent women from harassment.

Guan Zhong then gathered more than 700 women and established a brothel, allowing these practitioners to operate legally under the protection of the court.

Later, many more prisoners of war were brought in to accommodate the female prisoners and find a way out for them.

Nülu can be regarded as the earliest official prostitutes. The State of Qi also collected a large amount of "pollen tax" through this, and the national treasury was also enriched.

Li Che doesn't think much of the pollen tax, but the inequality of sexual resources is indeed an issue that cannot be ignored.

Instead of letting them do things secretly, it is better to manage them in a unified way.

Li Che pondered for a moment, then slowly said:

"This method is feasible, but it cannot be too crude or too vulgar."

Wang Laosi was puzzled and said, "It's just a brothel. It has always been like that. How can it be elegant?"

Li Che looked at him with a smile: "You don't understand this, right? Go to the imperial capital and you'll understand. There's a huge difference between places like this."

"There are secret prostitutes, there are open prostitutes, there are brothels where people do the direct thing, there are brothels where people drink and listen to music, and there are also places of pleasure where people recite poetry and write prose and pretend to be elegant."

"There's a famous courtesan in the capital, highly sought after by talented scholars. Even if you spend a thousand taels of gold, you might not be able to get a glimpse of her."

Although Wang Laosi, who came from a bandit family, was studious, he had never seen the world after all, and was so surprised that he couldn't close his mouth.

No, are you city people all good at having fun?

But...why does Your Highness know these things so clearly and can talk about them like the back of his hand?

Li Che had no idea what Wang Laosi was thinking, and his mind was already active at this moment.

Although the ancients had many ways to seek pleasure, their scope was too shallow, not even one-tenth of that in later generations.

The so-called great vulgarity is the great elegance, and the so-called Tao is also the Tao.

Although Li Che was not a civil engineer in his previous life, he met several civil engineers when he was mining. Although he was not proficient in this field, he had some understanding of it.

The money earned by relying solely on physical needs is not only vulgar, but also will not amount to much.

The real money-making businesses provide emotional value!

All the clubs, bathhouses, foot massage parlors, and business KTVs in later generations, as long as they are a little bit high-end, follow this route.

I can completely copy the model of my previous life and create a unique and super-luxury den in Daqing that is far ahead of its time!

Not to mention anything else, there is a row of long-legged young ladies wearing cheongsams, hip skirts and black stockings at the door. As soon as they enter the door, they shout welcome and bend over to reveal their snow-white flesh.

The cheongsam was slightly slit, revealing rows of long legs that were longer than life.

Weren’t the ignorant ancients confused?

The service content should also be diversified, including bathing, listening to music, drinking and having fun, and going to the second floor.

The main idea is that you get as much money as you bring in and leave.

As long as the model is determined, this kind of den of brothel will not only be opened in Chaoyang City, but can be spread all over Daqing.

Of course, the first store must be opened in Chaoyang City.

Don’t underestimate entertainment venues. Once this epoch-making club becomes famous, it will attract countless businessmen to come to Fengguo to do business.

Daqing suppresses businessmen. Businessmen are not allowed to engage in politics and can only use the money they have to enjoy themselves.

All you need to do is provide them with privacy, dignity, and luxury, so that they can enjoy dignity and power that they don't have in the outside world, and you don't have to worry that they won't hand over the gold in their hands.

Just like the private room doors in the top clubs of the past life, which required special magnetic cards to open, the inside of the door was a completely different world, isolated from all the noise and prying eyes of the outside world.

There is only top-notch service, ridiculously expensive drinks, and a sense of absolute control built up by status and money.

This is the real profit core and the golden cage that ties up the top prey.

I need to create this sense of scarcity and belonging in another way in Daqing.

Of course, in such a high-end place, the waiters cannot be ordinary women.

Li Che has seen too many wooden beauties who only have beautiful looks, and too many arrogant women who rely on their talents.

This is absolutely not possible here. They must be top salespeople, providers of emotional value, and human radars that can accurately capture every look and every emotional change of the customers.

I need a well-trained top performing team that knows how to package and promote myself.

He was not afraid that the guests could not afford it, but that they would not come in. As long as the guests stepped through the door, even if it was a eunuch like Huang Jin, Li Che was confident that he would leave with a rouge smell on his body.

Anyway, this kind of top-notch luxury place doesn’t make money from ordinary people, but from dignitaries, wealthy businessmen and local tycoons!

"Go, go, go! I've got an idea!" Li Che suddenly said, "Go back home. I need to retreat and think carefully about opening a brothel!"

After saying that, he raised his leg and walked out quickly, leaving Huo Duanxiao and Wang Laosi alone looking at each other in bewilderment.

Although this brothel matter was also for the sake of the country, why does it sound so strange when His Highness says this?