When Flat Rabbit heard that Dao Xuan Tianzun had arrived, the swaggering confidence of the so-called "great hero" immediately reined itself in—just a little.
He stepped forward more cautiously than usual and cupped his hands.
"Greetings, Dao Xuan Tianzun."
Li Daoxuan smiled faintly.
"I just heard you talking about wanting to get your hands on the Prince of Qin's heir's money?"
"Exactly!" Flat Rabbit bristled at once, irritation spilling straight into his voice. "That Prince of Qin's heir is swimming in money. Absolutely swimming in it. What's more, after partnering with us, he takes a full forty percent cut of the profits—all thanks to our advanced technology. Not only did he do nothing, he's now even richer than before!"
Li Daoxuan tilted his head slightly.
"Seeing his wealth displeases you?"
"Yes! Extremely displeased!" Flat Rabbit grumbled. "If he earned his money honestly, I wouldn't say a word. But he did absolutely nothing—just lay there and watched silver roll in. Our advanced technology was never meant to line the pockets of idle rich."
Li Daoxuan chuckled.
"So… you want to rob him?"
"I do!" Flat Rabbit snapped his ancestral sword halfway out of its sheath, steel flashing. "This rabbit has roamed the jianghu for over twenty years, specializing in robbing the rich to aid the poor. People like the Prince of Qin's heir? They're my favorite kind of target."
Li Daoxuan merely smiled and shook his head.
Truth be told, Flat Rabbit wasn't alone in harboring such thoughts. Li Daoxuan himself had entertained similar ideas more than once. However, forcibly redistributing wealth was something that could only be done after establishing a firm political foundation and broad popular support.
For now—
"Hm? Wait."
A mischievous spark suddenly flashed through Li Daoxuan's mind.
There was another way.
Another way to extract silver from the hands of the rich—cleanly, legally, and enthusiastically.
"Flat Rabbit," Li Daoxuan said, "go fetch Wang Tang back. My plan has changed slightly."
Flat Rabbit blinked.
"Huh? Alright!"
He bolted out the door. A rabbit sprinting at full speed was no joke—within the blink of an eye, he caught up to Wang Tang, who had only managed to walk half a street away, and dragged him back.
Wang Tang steadied himself and asked respectfully,
"What further instructions does Dao Xuan Tianzun have?"
Li Daoxuan smiled.
"Earlier, I only intended to set up a simple hot spring. But now I've changed my mind. I plan to completely transform Huaqing Palace—turn it into a massive entertainment complex. We'll call it the Huaqing Palace Hot Spring Resort."
"Huh?" Flat Rabbit looked utterly baffled. "What in the world is that supposed to be?"
Wang Tang, however, narrowed his eyes slightly, already catching the scent of opportunity.
Li Daoxuan continued calmly, "If we rely on mortal laborers, it would take far too long to build a truly luxurious hot spring resort. I don't have that kind of patience. So this time, I'll directly bestow a fully formed hot spring resort from the heavens."
He smiled faintly.
"We'll use it to skim a little silver from the rich—encouraging them to loosen their purse strings."
Flat Rabbit still didn't understand a thing.
But Wang Tang had basically grasped the idea.
"Then I, your subordinate, should begin advertising in advance. This is primarily aimed at the wealthy, correct?"
"Precisely," Li Daoxuan said with a sly chuckle. "The poor are already struggling just to survive. How would they have the time—or spare silver—to travel dozens of li outside the city just to soak in a hot spring?"
He gestured lightly as he spoke.
"This resort will specifically target the rich. The most luxurious suite—we'll call it the Imperial Suite—cough—Royal Suite. One hundred taels of silver per night."
Flat Rabbit's eyes widened.
"The next tier will be Deluxe Executive Suites, fifty taels per night. Then we'll arrange family suites, single rooms, standard rooms… all starting at ten taels and going up."
Flat Rabbit sucked in a sharp breath.
"What?! That expensive? Would the rich really pay that much for just one night? They're wealthy, sure—but they're not fools!"
Li Daoxuan simply smiled, offering no explanation.
Wang Tang, on the other hand, chuckled knowingly.
"Master Flat Rabbit, don't try to understand the rich using a poor man's mindset. For places like this, the more expensive it is, the more attractive it becomes to the wealthy. If it were cheap, they wouldn't even spare it a glance."
Flat Rabbit stared blankly.
He truly did not understand.
"Are rich people idiots?" he asked sincerely.
Wang Tang shook his head.
"No. They aren't foolish at all. They simply don't want to live in the same houses or use the same goods as the poor."
He continued patiently,
"If something is cheap—so cheap that even the poor can afford it—then buying it won't distinguish the rich in any way. They lose interest immediately. But for items that clearly exceed their intrinsic value, with prices inflated beyond reason—things the poor would never even dream of paying for—those are exactly what the rich are eager to buy."
At this point, Wang Tang sighed softly.
"These goods don't offer proportional utility. What they offer is social distinction. The rich pay for that distinction—and to them, it's money well spent."
Flat Rabbit declared stubbornly,
"I don't get it. Not at all."
Wang Tang smiled gently.
"Not understanding is a good thing. It means Master Flat Rabbit is still pure-hearted and hasn't sought to separate himself from the poor. People like you are rare."
He paused, then added,
"Most people criticize the wealthy while secretly dreaming of becoming one of them. Those who curse the rich the loudest—once they get money themselves—will spend even faster than those born rich. They rush to drape themselves in gold and silver, fill their homes with coral and jade, all to shout to the world: I've joined the wealthy class. I only associate with the rich now."
He gave a shy smile.
"I almost fell into that trap myself. It was Master Flat Rabbit who pulled me back."
Flat Rabbit froze.
"Huh? Huh? When did I ever pull you back?"
Wang Tang replied earnestly,
"Just a little while ago."
Flat Rabbit scoffed.
"Nonsense! I don't even know what you're talking about. I didn't pull you back from anything! You're just spouting convoluted nonsense."
"Master Flat Rabbit is my guiding light," Wang Tang said sincerely.
Flat Rabbit shuddered violently.
"Ugh! Stop that! You're giving me goosebumps. Get away from me—don't you dare come any closer!"
Li Daoxuan listened quietly as Wang Tang finished.
While he didn't agree with everything, Li Daoxuan still gave Wang Tang an approving nod in his heart. To be able to think this deeply—and articulate it so clearly—was no small feat.
After praising Master Flat Rabbit, Wang Tang returned to business.
"Xi'an Prefecture is overflowing with rich households. We won't exploit the poor—we'll specifically target the wealthy. This approach will extract a large amount of idle silver, preventing it from being buried uselessly in backyards. Money that doesn't circulate brings no benefit to the economy."
Li Daoxuan laughed.
"Oh? Little Tang, your economics are quite solid."
Wang Tang flushed with excitement, energy surging through him.
"Dao Xuan Tianzun, I'm bursting with inspiration! I'll go write advertising copy immediately. Coincidentally, tonight our Stars Performing Arts Agency is hosting a grand concert. Nearly all the wealthy families of Xi'an Prefecture will attend. We can announce the hot spring resort there—give them a proper preview and build anticipation."
Li Daoxuan waved his hand.
"Good. Get it done as quickly as possible."
Ba Ge suddenly piped up,
"How can we 'get it done' if it's not 'hard'?"
Everyone: "..."
Wang Tang said flatly,
"I've always wanted to roast him."
Flat Rabbit stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"Sounds quite delicious."
Li Daoxuan added calmly,
"Spicy bird wings wouldn't be bad either."
Ba Ge: "..."