Making you a son-in-law is not about making you conquer the world.

The area where Yancheng meets the mountain city has a natural and excellent port, which has been an important trading place since ancient times.

Now, the relationship between the city lord and the mountain city lord has warmed up, ushering in a rare situation of mutual benefit and win-win, and the dock sandwiched in the middle has become more prosperous.

Merchants came and went in an endless stream, and boats dotted the water like stars. The temporary gathering area was surprisingly showing signs of becoming a large city.

Lin Ping and his companions walked on the crowded road, with passersby on both sides and the constant hawking of vendors.

Here you'll find not only merchants from Jiangcheng and Shancheng, but also merchants from Yingtian Prefecture, and even people from the Southern Wu Kingdom who look like monkeys.

"A monkey from the South Vietnam?" Lin Pingding almost burst out laughing when he saw a short, dark-skinned man with pointed ears and monkey-like cheeks.

Humans living near the equator have very distinct features; the only thing on their bodies that is relatively white is their teeth.

The Southern Wu Kingdom belongs to Daye and shares the same language and script as the Wu Kingdom, but they always feel a bit awkward speaking it.

Perhaps only people with yellow skin can speak fluent Chinese, excluding Koreans and Japanese.

Don't let their small size fool you; these monkeys in South Vietnam are shrewd businessmen. With just a casual smile, they can make money.

They mainly sell fruit, which is popular with customers as it is sweet and soothing.

"Little monkey, give me a few bananas." Lin Ping bent over slightly, staring intently at the short man opposite him, showing great interest in the bananas.

He loved eating bananas even before he transmigrated, but unfortunately, bananas can only grow in tropical regions, and they don't exist in Jiangcheng.

He thought he would never have bananas in his life, but he never expected to find them here. He was determined to eat several at once.

The short man wasn't angered by Lin Ping's words at all. Instead, a pair of red lips appeared on his dark face, and he chuckled, "Alright..."

This gives off a feeling of being a waiter.

In addition to bananas, Lin Ping also bought some ripe mangoes and pineapples.

Because of the long sea voyage, these perishable fruits easily rot, except for the bitter and astringent bananas, which arrive at their destination just as ripe.

"Aren't you afraid of being poisoned to death?" Zhu Xiaoji kindly reminded him.

He had been here with his father before and had seen these strange fruits before. Although they smelled sweet, their bright colors were rather frightening.

“These people weren’t poisoned to death either, were they?” Lin Ping retorted.

If these fruits were truly poisonous, the monkeys of South Vietnam would have been captured long ago; why would they dare to openly sell them?

Initially, most people shared the same view as Zhu Xiaoji, but as more people started eating it, the market gradually opened up.

Although these fruits are of good quality and inexpensive, they cannot generate huge profits. After all, transportation is difficult and the quantity is small, so they cannot be sold at the price of gold.

Some people tried to plant bananas and mangoes nearby, but all attempts failed.

The reason behind this is clearly explained by our ancestors: oranges grown south of the Huai River are sweet oranges, while those grown north of the Huai River are bitter oranges.

Lin Ping was delighted by the bustling scene at the dock.

In his eyes, these were not people, but moving mountains of gold and silver. Maybe some fool would pull a boatload of silver ashore and happily exchange it for some ceramics and silk to take back home.

China has always maintained a trade surplus in foreign trade, which is why those foreign powers are envious.

Lin Ping's thoughts wandered, and he suddenly thought of a guy named Marco Polo.

This person once served in the Yuan Dynasty. After returning to China, he wrote a travelogue, which described the wealth of the Celestial Empire and how gold was everywhere, which further fueled the covetousness of Western countries towards the Celestial Empire.

Although the Yuan Dynasty did not exist in this timeline, it did not mean that Marco Polo did not exist.

He needed to be wary of the foreign devils in advance, not for any other reason than his nationalistic sentiments.

He even wanted to build airplanes and cannons to sweep across the entire Eurasian continent and, incidentally, destroy the tiny Japanese nation.

Suddenly, Lin Ping noticed that one of the monkeys wasn't doing well, and hadn't even made a single sale in half a day.

"Rain boots, rain boots, rain boots that keep your feet dry when you walk by the river," the little monkey shouted enthusiastically, holding up a black tube.

Since we're already here, how can we not give it our all? Otherwise, we'll lose everything.

The travel expenses for such a long journey must be considerable.

Lin Ping almost burst out laughing at the vendor's cries of "The food is fresh out of the pot and still steaming hot!"

That's incredibly talented.

"Little monkey, if I buy your shoes, will my feet stay dry?" Lin Ping asked meaningfully.

Of course he knew why the other party couldn't sell the shoes. People from Wu Kingdom love beauty. Wouldn't people laugh at you for wearing those dark shoes?

Moreover, the smell of rubber from a distance would likely scare away any customers who came out of curiosity to take a look.

"Of course." The monkey immediately put on rubber shoes, put his feet in the basin of water, and didn't take them out for a long time.

If not, the stench was unbearable, and Lin Ping was in tears and snot, even regretting asking those few questions.

Zhu Xiaoji and the others pinched their noses, looked at each other with disgust, and kept pulling Lin Ping away.

Shoes that won't get your feet wet? Sorry, we're not interested.

The little monkey also felt a little embarrassed, and a blush appeared on its already dark face.

"Hmm, not bad, not bad, really good. I'll buy these shoes." Lin Ping nodded in satisfaction, leaving the other person somewhat puzzled.

"You really want to buy?" the little monkey asked incredulously. He even secretly decided that he would never make rain boots out of rubber again. Wouldn't it be better to just sell fruit honestly?

"Buy it, the large size, is one ounce enough?"

"That's enough, thank you, Mom?"

Pshaw... You've got the wrong channel.

"Little monkey, where did you get these rain boots?" Lin Ping asked curiously.

This is his first business deal, and it will likely be his last.

He had nothing to keep secret, and said somberly, "It was made by burning a sap called rubber."

"It really is rubber! It seems the European naval fleet has already brought rubber trees to Southeast Asia!" Lin Ping was overjoyed, but he remained calm to avoid arousing suspicion.

Rubber is of great significance to Linping, and it is in dire need right now.

He could make pneumatic tires from rubber, which would not only increase the load-bearing capacity of the carriage but also extend its lifespan and even increase its speed.

If a horse-drawn carriage on an asphalt road is comparable to a green-skinned train, then a horse-drawn carriage with rubber tires is comparable to a high-speed train.

The fact that the rain boots softened and became sticky under the sunlight proved that the rubber-making technology was not yet mature, which ironically made Lin Ping who he is today.

This problem can be easily solved by simply adding some sulfur to the latex.

"How much latex do you have left on your boat?" Lin Ping asked unhurriedly.

Upon hearing this, the monkey from South Vietnam perked up and hurriedly said, "There are still ten large barrels left. If you want them, I'll sell them to you cheaply."

"How cheap?" Lin Ping asked with great interest.

"One hundred taels a bucket." The monkey chuckled, which masked his inner greed.

"I'm not buying!" Lin Ping turned and walked away.