The Second Master of the Red Chamber

Hearing Queen Jin's words, Jia Lian was slightly surprised.

Clearly, he hadn't expected that a woman who seemed like just a pretty face could say such a thing.

He continued to hold Queen Jin, his thumb caressing her delicate, tactile hip bones, then looked at Jin Shijia, as if seeking confirmation:
"Is your Korea really so poor that you can't even repay a mere 40 million taels in ten years?"

In response, Kim could only awkwardly explain with the phrase, "A lower country is not as good as a higher country."

Jia Lian paused for a moment before speaking, "I have been warmly received by the Councilor and the Queen, and it is my duty to share your burdens."

However, the emperor's command is difficult to disobey, and the prince cannot grant you a pardon for this debt.

However, I have come up with two ideas for you. Would you be willing to listen to them?

Jin Shijia nodded.

"First, isn't North Korea short of silver?"

However, our Great Wei is very wealthy, and even among the common people, silver is the common currency.

It can be said that wealth is everywhere in our Great Wei.

Although your Joseon Kingdom is somewhat poorer than the Great Wei, I have seen it on my way to the capital.

You not only have abundant grain production, but also produce a lot of ginseng and furs.

Each of these items is a highly valuable and stable source of wealth in my great Wei Kingdom.

Well then, it just so happens that His Majesty of our dynasty intends to open the seas to trade with other countries.

I may request permission from His Majesty to establish a special channel for civilian and commercial activities, as well as official and commercial activities, in Korea.

This will not only deepen exchanges between the two countries, but also promote economic and trade development.

In that case, you or your merchants can sell these good things from your Joseon Kingdom to my Great Wei and make a lot of profits.

In our Great Wei, silver is not restricted in its circulation.

In other words, however much money you can earn in my Great Wei, that's how much silver you can take away.

This should greatly reduce the pressure on you to repay this debt.

What does Your Excellency think?

Upon hearing this, both Jin Shijia and Queen Jin's expressions changed.

Is the Great Wei Dynasty actually going to open its seas?
It should be noted that the Great Wei Dynasty had imposed a maritime ban for several decades.

Merchants from other surrounding countries, and even from Western countries, found it very difficult to transport their goods to the Great Wei for sale.

Many countries know that the Great Wei is very wealthy, known as a land of gold, but they find it difficult to make money from it.

If the Great Wei were to announce the opening of the seas now, merchants from countless countries would flock here!

The food supply is one thing.

The fact that the Great Wei Dynasty could feed tens of millions of people tells us about their country's grain production.

Moreover, although this stuff is important to every country, the profit margins are fixed and won't be high except in exceptional circumstances.

But how could those who smuggle goods to the Great Wei for years not know how profitable ginseng and other such products, which are abundant in Korea, are?

Previously, it was smuggling, which required smoothing out various connections to sell to the Great Wei, resulting in significant losses.

If we could do business directly with the Great Wei in the future, one can imagine how huge the profits would be!
He had only heard about the wealth of the Great Wei from others before, but now that even Jia Lian had personally confirmed it, it must be true.

Therefore, although he sensed that Jia Lian's suggestion was ill-intentioned, Jin Shijia was still very interested and had no intention of refusing.

Even more so.

From Jia Lian's undisguised display of the wealth of the Great Wei, he understood why the other party would casually mention things like "a mere tens of millions of taels."

They must have been so accustomed to wealth that they are oblivious to the cost of daily necessities.

As a sense of longing for the Great Wei arose in my heart, I also understood why the Great Wei would demand such a high reward.

Seeing that Empress Jin and her brother seemed to be deep in thought, Jia Lian smiled.

In negotiations between two countries, especially when it comes to the distribution of benefits, it is common for each side to complain and portray themselves as as poor as possible.

He did the exact opposite.

It's all to create the impression that the Great Wei is incredibly wealthy. Asking for 50 million isn't meant to be difficult; it's just that this amount is nothing to us.

This can reduce the other party's resistance and hostility.

Of course, it could also arouse the other party's greed.

However, Jia Lian naturally wouldn't care about this.

After eight years of diligent governance by Emperor Ningkang, the Great Wei Dynasty, despite some setbacks, has generally developed in a positive direction.

With him in charge of military affairs, we have nothing to fear from the covetousness of any other country.

Furthermore, he is confident that he can push the national strength of Wei to another peak in the future.

So what if you know the Great Wei is rich? You still need the ability and courage to rob it.

If you don't dare to rob me, then you should honestly do business with me.

Once they begin trading with each other...

It's uncertain which company's product is more competitive, or who profits from whom.

Not wanting the Kim siblings to overthink things, Jia Lian suddenly asked, "I heard that the King of Joseon passed away recently. Do you have a candidate in mind for the new king?"

Without a second thought, Jin Shijia replied that the new king was the five-year-old youngest son of the old king.

Upon hearing this, Jia Lian's face immediately turned cold.

"Korea is a vassal state of our dynasty. The investiture of a new king should be decided by our superior nation. When did it become your place to act on your own and arbitrarily pass on the throne?"

Because Jia Lian's expression was too cold, Jin Shijia couldn't tell whether Jia Lian was genuinely angry or just pretending, so he quickly stood up to explain.

They said they dared not act on their own initiative and had already sent an envoy to the superior country to request investiture.

Only after the superior country agrees will they dare to allow the new king to ascend the throne.

However, the truth is that the new king had already been hastily enthroned under the arrangement of the siblings.

However, because he is too young, he, Jin Shijia, now completely controls the government, while the Queen regency him.

Jin Shijia also did not expect Jia Lian to use this as a pretext to attack him.

He was so humble because the circumstances were beyond his control.

In fact, the succession to the throne of Joseon kings has always been decided by themselves.

Those who are more sensible will proactively report to the higher authorities after taking office and ask for the leader's support.

Those who lack understanding will simply give perfunctory responses, which inadvertently damage relations between the two countries.

Seeing her brother acting like a child who had made a mistake in front of Jia Lian, Queen Jin quickly chimed in to his defense:

"Does the King of Pingliao wish to meet the new king... the new king's successor?"

It was our oversight; we should have sent him to pay his respects to the King of Pingliao immediately.

However, he was only five years old, and we were afraid that he would offend the Prince of Pingliao because he was too young to understand, so we had not introduced him to the Prince.

When the Prince of Pingliao sees him later, he must tone down his imposing manner and not frighten my son.

After all, by today's standards, the Prince of Pingliao can be considered his father...

As she spoke, Queen Jin gave Jia Lian a flirtatious wink and then ordered someone to bring over the new king of Joseon.

Jia Lian quickly waved his hand and said, "Forget it, let's talk about meeting the new king's heir later."

Let's get down to business tonight.

Even so, Jia Lian couldn't help but ask, "Is he really your son, your own flesh and blood?"

Queen Jin was taken aback, then rolled her eyes at Jia Lian, rested her head on his shoulder, and explained softly:
"I am not fortunate enough to have that."

He was born to one of our king's other women.

The woman died shortly after giving birth to her son. I, the king, pitied my childlessness and adopted him into my family.

Jia Lian was relieved. He had thought to himself that the woman he had just met didn't seem like someone who had given birth.

As for the claim that they pity her for being childless, that's just something to listen to, nothing more.

As far as Jia Lian knew, the old King of Korea was a foolish and incompetent ruler who only knew how to enjoy himself.

His sons were either killed or rendered useless by him.

Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a five-year-old kid who got to take the position.

Even his death seemed more complicated than Jia Lian thought.

Judging from various perspectives, it's all inextricably linked to the brother and sister in front of us. From this perspective, it's quite reasonable for them to have a son in advance to prepare for usurping power.

Of course, Jia Lian didn't care about any of these things.

It didn't matter who was in charge during the Joseon Dynasty; what he cared about was whether the other party was obedient enough.

Gently patting the Queen's shapely buttocks, Jia Lian continued:
"The suggestion I just made was to solve the problem of insufficient silver reserves in North Korea."

Next, what I'm going to talk about is how to solve your problem of heavy repayment pressure.

These days, I've seen quite a few beautiful women from your country.

Undeniably, compared to the women of my Great Wei, the women of Korea are indeed quite charming in many ways.

As Jia Lian spoke, he couldn't help but glance at the Queen Jin in his arms.

Queen Jin returned a coquettish look, and then her delicate hand, which was resting on Jia Lian's chest and caressing his pectoral and abdominal muscles, became even gentler, to the point of almost teasing his private parts.

Because of her discreet movements, Jin Shijia, who was below the steps, couldn't see clearly, but he could sense that the two were very close together, their affair burning fiercely.

When Jia Lian praised a woman from another dynasty, Jin Shijia chimed in, "As long as Your Highness is satisfied."

"I am indeed very satisfied."

If I am satisfied, I imagine that other princes and nobles of our dynasty will be equally satisfied.

Kim Yi-jung has stated that North Korea is unlikely to repay this payment.

How about this: Kim Yi-jung can offer your young Korean women as tribute to our dynasty.

As long as they are beautiful enough, I believe that the noble gentlemen of our dynasty, whether they are concubines or maids, would be very willing to spend money on them.

This is considered as you providing the manpower, while the noble lords of our dynasty are providing the money for you.

This way, not only will it ease your repayment burden, but you might even make a profit!

Jia Lian said with a smile.

He valued Korea not only because of its exceptionally advantageous and important geographical location for the Great Wei, but also because of its considerable population base.

In this era, population is the primary productive force.

If the goal is to acquire these people, then military conquest is not the preferred option.

Therefore, Jia Lian wanted to learn from a certain major Western power and engage in peaceful evolution.

First, force them to open trade, then station troops in their territory.

In this way, it won't take many years to completely penetrate it, inside and out.

Finally, by finding any opportunity or reason, they can legitimately swallow it up into their own territory.

As for making them offer women, that's just a side move to weaken North Korea's power.

Jin Shijia had no idea what Jia Lian was thinking. He only heard Jia Lian's suggestion and immediately felt enlightened.

Yes.

Their country is poor, but the noble lords of the Great Wei are rich.

Take this young Prince Pingliao for example, he looks very wealthy!

As a man, Jin Shijia understands all too well the attraction of beautiful women, especially foreign beauties, to those lecherous men.

Women, in North Korea, are neither lacking nor valuable.

Therefore, Jin Shijia was immediately tempted by Jia Lian's suggestion that the gentlemen of the Great Wei pay off their debt.

He suppressed his fear and asked hesitantly, "If we offer a woman as tribute, how much silver can we offset our debt?"

Jia Lian said calmly, "That depends on what kind of woman she is."

A woman of the queen's beauty is priceless.

As Jia Lian spoke, he raised his right hand, hooked Queen Jin's chin, and winked at her.

Queen Kim responded with a charming smile.

Upon seeing this, Jin Shijia immediately lowered his head.

From his perspective, he had every right to be angry that Jia Lian was harassing his sister and toying with the Queen of Joseon in front of him.

But for some reason, he felt a sense of relief at that moment.

I'm so glad I have a sister like this.

He felt that Jia Lian's sudden change to being so agreeable must be directly related to his sister.

Without keeping Jin Shijia waiting long, Jia Lian let go and said:

"If the council decides to adopt this proposal, I can decide to deduct ten to fifty taels of silver from each person's debt, based on their age and appearance."

So, is this price fair enough?

If the council can offer one million top-quality beauties, it will be worth fifty million taels of silver.

In that case, I could even report to the court and have all the fees you are required to pay waived.

There was nothing they could do; even the Crown Prince of this dynasty was captivated by the beauties of Joseon.

Jin Shijia's lips twitched; he had begun to understand the personality of this prince.

Not rigid.

A million top-class beauties?
Do they really think top-tier beauties are as common as cabbages?

You should know that he went to great lengths to get those ten virgins for Jia Lian!
But then again.

What's considered inferior, middle, or superior? It's all up to the person who decides.
There is room for maneuver here.

Therefore, if this method is to be used to settle the debt, it would be best to finalize the agreement while Jia Lian is still in Korea.

Otherwise, if someone else were to make the decision in the future, the price might be lowered.

Because of the information Jia Lian inadvertently revealed, he felt that Jia Lian's suggestion was to bring back a group of top-quality beauties to please the princes and ministers in the country, especially their crown prince!
If we calculate it this way, it seems that Jia Lian might not actually need that many spots.

But who cares? Since Jia Lian has asked, if we can get more women to pay off the debt, then we'll get as many as possible.

Anyway, there are plenty of women in North Korea, and it would be an honor for them to make some contribution to the dynasty.

Having said that, Jin Shijia already had a plan for how to handle this huge debt.

However, he still needed to go down and discuss the specifics carefully with his trusted advisors.

He had a vague feeling that this extortion by the Great Wei might not be a bad thing for him personally!

If he had previously worried about other powerful families in Korea opposing him, now that the Great Wei needs him to seize Korean interests, then they will protect him.

With the Great Wei and Jia Lian as his reliance, he will have nothing to fear in Korea.

At the very least, by using the money demanded by the Great Wei, he could suppress or even eliminate other competitors, allowing the entire Li Dynasty to be completely controlled by his Jin family.

Jin Shijia then stood up and said, "Your Highness's words have been fully remembered by this humble subject."

It is getting late, so I will not disturb Your Highness's rest any longer.

Goodbye.

After saying this, Jin Shijia bowed and turned to leave without any hesitation.

His attitude even surprised Jia Lian.

He didn't finish his sentence, okay?

That's alright. After all, it's a negotiation, and there's no need to explain everything at once.

The best approach is to peel away the opponent's defenses layer by layer and lower their bottom line.

Therefore, there is no rush to discuss the matter of stationing troops in the near future.

After all, they didn't have the right to refuse.

But you fucking invited me into the palace and then just left me like that? Is that really okay?
Aren't you afraid that I might take the opportunity to rest in your palace?
Jia Lian was right; Jin Shijia really didn't care.

As far as he was concerned, since the queen had already been slept with, there was no need to mention the other women of the king.

If he had even a shred of respect for the king, he wouldn't have let his sister kill him.

For him now, keeping Jia Lian happy and maximizing his own interests is the most important thing.

Furthermore, she looked at her younger sister, who seemed to wish she had been born into Jia Lian's body.

Even if he wanted to take Jia Lian away, the other party probably wouldn't agree.

So why would he bother with all that trouble? (End of Chapter)