Novel Full Chapter 989 - 81: The Importance of Promotion
Chapter 989: Chapter 81: The Importance of Promotion
The last few days of the trade conference are for competitions, football matches, and polo matches. The final day is reserved for the military parade.
Polo has been around for a long time, seemingly passed down from the dynasty before the previous one, and then became very popular in the previous dynasty.
In the previous dynasty, polo was a game for the nobility. In the Great Zhou, polo remains a game for officials, as ordinary people cannot afford it because they cannot afford to buy horses. Regardless of the previous dynasty or the Great Zhou, the lowest price for a horse is at least several thousand coins, and even if ordinary people could afford to buy them, they could not afford to maintain them. The fodder a horse consumes in a year is also a considerable expense.
Since Johor and Siam, among other countries, submitted to the Great Zhou, they have been heavily influenced by the Great Zhou. Furthermore, the aristocrats of these countries, emulating the hobbies of Great Zhou officials, have also fallen in love with playing polo.
In the past, there was no such entertainment activity as polo in their countries. Since aligning with the Great Zhou, polo has become their most popular activity. Now, in these countries, anyone with some status plays polo. If you don’t know how to play polo, you will be looked down upon.
It is said that in these countries, polo competitions are held every year. Any man or woman who takes the top spot in a polo match becomes very popular. If they are not married, matchmakers would flock to their houses.
It is heard that in Siam, a merchant’s daughter, having taken the top spot in a polo match, caught the eye of the Prince, turning from a sparrow into a phoenix, and became the Prince’s concubine.
People from these countries come to pay tribute to the Great Zhou every year and play polo against the noble offspring of the Great Zhou. This is also one of the friendly exchange projects between the Great Zhou and these countries, but unfortunately, their strength is not very great, and they lose to the Great Zhou every year.
Even though they lose to the Great Zhou every year, it does not dampen these countries’ enthusiasm for playing polo. On the contrary, in recent years, they have become even more passionate about polo, hoping that one day they can beat the Great Zhou. If they can’t win against the Great Zhou in war, and they keep losing in polo too, that would be immensely humiliating. They want to gain some pride through polo, to suppress the Great Zhou’s prestige, but unfortunately, they can never fulfill this wish.
Having learned that this trade conference would also host a polo match, the noble offspring of these countries had been practicing for a long time to avenge their past defeats. They thought, if they couldn’t defeat the noble offspring of the capital, maybe they could at least beat the people from Swamp Prefecture. Prince Han is the Emperor’s own son; if they could defeat Prince Han, it would be equivalent to winning against the Emperor of Great Zhou. That way, they could vent their anger robustly.
Zhao Yao can also play polo, but he doesn’t particularly enjoy it. He thinks it’s not very interesting and not that much fun. He prefers playing football. When he was still in the capital, every time he left the palace, he would play football with four younger followers and even invited the children of ordinary citizens to join in.
Under his influence, the children of ordinary citizens in the capital came to love playing football. He also promoted football within the military camp, and the soldiers began to enjoy it as well. He frequently organized football matches, which attracted a large number of participants. Many years ago, football had already become popular among the common people of the capital and within the military camp.
Initially, the noble family looked down on football, considering it too rough compared to the elegance of polo. Moreover, football was also a civilian sport, and they believed it was not suitable for people of their esteemed status. Later, seeing that the Emperor also enjoyed football and even the Imperial Guard Camp held football matches, they gradually came to accept it.
Under the Emperor’s influence, football replaced polo as the hottest sport in the Great Zhou. Not only did the noble offspring play football, but even scholars and students began to play it. Football transformed from a crude and unruly sport into a refined and elegant activity.
Nowadays, besides the capital, other places also host various football activities or matches, which are extremely popular.
Last year, Zhao Yao introduced rubber footballs, making playing football even more enjoyable. As a result, rubber footballs became the most sought-after items, and Zhao Yao made quite a bit of money from this innovation. Merchants, officials, and scholars from the capital and other regions all sought to purchase rubber footballs from him. Officials even approached him for custom football orders.
Visiting merchants who came for the trade conference, aside from purchasing items like glass, soap, and medicinal materials from Zhao Yao, found it most crucial to buy footballs from him, often placing large orders. However, due to the complexity of making rubber footballs, Zhao Yao had to enforce buying limits. Because of the purchasing limits, these merchants raised the prices of rubber footballs themselves, allowing Zhao Yao to effortlessly make a significant profit.