Tang Dynasty: The poisonous scholar in the Eastern Palace, please abdicate and let the wise one take

Chapter 422: Concept of Maritime Trade

beef?

Su Chen looked surprised.

The laws of the Tang Dynasty prohibited the private slaughter of working cattle.

Therefore, if you want to eat beef, there are very few channels and it is difficult to obtain it.

Whenever an ox dies of old age, its body parts have already been reserved and ordinary people will never be able to see them.

But the piece of beef that Li Yuanchang brought was very firm, and it must have been from a good part of the oxen.

"I got this piece of beef with great difficulty. It was a lucky coincidence that you got it. Otherwise, you would not be able to taste such delicious food."

Li Yuanchang put the cut beef into the hot pot with a smile on his face, "Master Dai, you won't not eat beef, right?"

Dai Zhou shook his head. "Your Highness has prepared such delicious food for me. I am very grateful. How can I refuse it?"

How can you refuse such delicious food?
and.

If I really refuse, it will make Li Yuanchang unhappy.

You don't eat beef, do you want to report me in front of His Majesty?

If you eat...

We are all family, so not only can we enjoy the deliciousness of beef, but we also don’t have to feel resentful about it.

"Come on, let me have a taste."

Su Chen picked up a piece of beef with a smile.

As for the taste, it is not as delicious as imagined, but it is also very satisfying to the taste buds. It has less fishy smell than mutton and feels more firm.

"Not bad, not bad. It would be even better if there was tripe."

"What's there to eat with that thing?"

Li Yuanchang disagreed.

How can the tripe, a place filled with filth, be compared with such delicious meat?

"You don't understand this."

Su Chen smiled and explained, "In fact, beef tripe is the best thing. It has layers upon layers. As long as it is cleaned, brushed in hot pot, and served with a small dish of dipping sauce, it will not only taste unusually delicious, but also very chewy."

"Of course, it is not recommended for people with bad teeth to eat it."

"Hey, I think you're picking on me."

Li Yuanchang laughed and picked up the wine glass, "Come, let's drink together."

"Drink together."

The night is getting darker.

Li Yuanchang and Dai Zhou also left in a daze with the help of their servants.

During today's trip, Dai Zhou not only gained some inspiration, but also tasted the delicious beef. In addition, Su Chen and Li Yuanchang did not have much airs, so the conversation was extremely comfortable.

Otherwise, given Dai Zhou's personality, it would be impossible for him to leave the Prince's Residence in a daze.

Early the next morning.

Su Chen stood up amid the urging, tightened his clothes and looked outside.

"Your Majesty, Master Su Bin is here."

"Hey, this guy is here early."

Su Chen yawned and came to the main hall, where he saw Su Bin sitting there eating breakfast without any courtesy.

After seeing Su Chen, he smiled, put down his bowl and chopsticks, and invited Su Chen to sit down.

"Why do I feel like you are the owner of Prince Residence?"

"Just kidding, just kidding."

Su Bin waved his hand and said, "I heard that you were back, so I came here early in the morning."

Su Bin added, "Actually, I came here yesterday, but I felt the timing was not right, so I walked around outside the Prince's Residence and went back."

Su Chen asked in surprise: "You came last night?"

Su Bin nodded.

"Is it because of the King of Han and Dai Zhou that you didn't come in?"

"Yes."

Su Bin did not hide it and said with a smile, "I am just a businessman. It always feels a little awkward to sit with them."

"So after seeing the carriages of King Han and Lord Dai, I headed back home."

Su Chen nodded in understanding.

Su Bin seemed to be full, so he put down his bowl and chopsticks, wiped his mouth and said, "Actually, I came to Chang'an City a few days ago, but unfortunately, you went to Huzhou, so I left for a while."

"The reason I came to see you this time is actually because of business."

"Business?"

Su Chen pondered and said, "The soap business can no longer satisfy you?"

Su Bing smiled and said, "I knew you would guess my intention as soon as I arrived. Yes, I want to expand my business, but I don't have much idea at the moment, so I want to ask you to help me plan."

Su Chen rubbed his head and wanted to try other things.

"There is a business that is very profitable, but I am afraid you don't dare to do it."

"Oh?"

Su Bin's eyes lit up, "What business?"

"Maritime trade."

"Maritime trade?"

Su Bin frowned in thought.

Compared with the Silk Road on land, trade on the sea is not as developed as the Silk Road.

First of all, going out to sea to do business requires purchasing ships, and ordinary ships simply cannot withstand the wind and waves on the sea.

Therefore, it is necessary to build a large ship that can withstand the wind and waves at sea, and at the same time, it is necessary to recruit a group of sailors, or people with excellent water skills, to ensure the smooth sailing of the ship.

Secondly, it takes too long to do business at sea. Ordinary people simply cannot bear the long-term loneliness at sea.

Unlike doing business on land, even if they don't want to do it anymore, they can easily go home, or go to some brothel to relax and be in a better state of mind to deal with businessmen. But on the sea, there is nothing but sea water, and they have no chance to relax.

It is not only a test of one's patience, but the mental torture is unimaginable for ordinary people.

Therefore, although the shipyards in Jiangnan and other places are well developed, they also do business on the water and have never left the lakes and entered the ocean.

"Why do you say that?"

"How many people in the Tang Dynasty do business with other island countries or countries far across the ocean?"

"not much."

Su Bing said in a deep voice, "Most people who go out to sea to do business now only reach island countries such as Luzon and Ryukyu."

"Many people would only reach Japan, and then return to Tang Dynasty after selling all their goods."

“I haven’t heard of anything further away.”

Su Chen nodded, "The island countries that are closer to the Tang Dynasty are nothing more than Wakoku, Ryukyu and other countries."

"But these island countries only have so many resources, and a few fixed, larger chambers of commerce will take over all their business."

“So, if we want to become bigger and stronger, we must go further.”

Su Bin drank tea and thought about Su Chen's suggestion.

Heading towards the vast ocean in the distance, such difficulty and pressure are definitely not something that ordinary people can endure.

and.

No one can be sure that on the other side of the ocean there is a market large enough to bring them enough benefits!

“Is there really enough market on the other side of the sea?”

"of course."

Su Chen smiled slightly and said, "If not, why would I let you go to sea?"

"Wouldn't it be nice to follow Pei Mingli and his team and do some business in the Western Regions?"

Su Bin shook his head, "We can't beat Pei Mingli and his group."

Pei Mingli represents the Ministry of Revenue and the Tang Dynasty. Although he is the uncle of the current emperor, if he goes to do business with Pei Mingli, not to mention the goods they deal in, or whether he can compete with Pei Mingli, just the various voices in the court will make him and Li Chengqian feel irritated.

Therefore, he did not have much interest in doing business in countries such as Persia.

But going out to sea and heading deeper into the ocean is a big hassle.

“You can actually try it.”

Su Chen smiled and said, "If you want to start a new business, you can't avoid experimenting. If it works, it works. If it doesn't, the loss won't be too big."

"Oh?"

Su Bin looked expectant, "How do we try it?"

Su Chen called Sun Qiang and took out the map of the Tang Dynasty's territory. Su Chen raised his hand and drew a circle along the coastal prefectures.

"You enter the sea from the east of the river and go all the way south. If you can't stand the wind and waves on the sea, you can land at any time."

Su Chen pointed to some coastal states and said, "These places have ports. You can get any supplies you need in these places."

"If you can hold on, you can continue south, pass Ryukyu and Luzon, and reach Borneo."

Su Bin's gaze then fell on the locations of Kimche and Borneo.

These two places are the southernmost regions of the Tang Dynasty and are not within its territory.

If you take the official road, it will take at least half a month to reach Tangzhou in Lingnan Road, the southernmost part of the Tang Dynasty, and then enter the jurisdiction of Jime.

Su Chen continued: "After passing Gimhae and Borneo, if you continue walking along the coastline, you will arrive..."

“Where are we going?”

"No more."

Su Chen pointed at the map and said, "It's gone from the map."

Su Bing: "..."

Su Chen knocked his head and said, "Let me think about where this place is."

"Yes, it's the Lion Country."

"Lion Country?"

Su Bin was puzzled. "A country with many lions?"

Su Chen smiled and shook his head, "It's not a country with many lions, but because their pronunciation is very similar to lions, it is called Sinhalese in Sanskrit, also known as Lanka, so it is called the Lion Country after translation."

Su Bing thought thoughtfully, "So this is a Buddhist country."

Su Chen: "About the same."

"When you bring your ship here, you will find that this place is rich in all kinds of rare gems. If you transport them back to the Tang Dynasty, they will definitely be in short supply."

"What if we land for supplies?"

"Um……"

Su Chen pondered for a long time, and said slowly: "You may encounter an elephant, or you may encounter a sleeping maggot."

Su Bing: “???”

He could understand encountering an elephant, but a sleeping maggot?

What is this?
"dangerous?"

"It's not that dangerous, it's just that you'll feel..."

Before Su Chen even uttered the word "disgusting", he realized that India at that time should be called Sindhu. The situation should be a little better, right?

Not right either.

Wang Xuance just borrowed some soldiers to destroy him, and it seems like that's just a simple matter?
Su Chen scratched his head, feeling that this matter had touched upon his blind spot in knowledge.

"what happened?"

“I don’t know much about that place.”

Su Chen confessed, "I only remember that there was a related record in the Book of Han. From the southeastern country of Shentu, thousands of miles away, there were merchants from Shu, and some called it the country of Tianzhu."

"never heard of that."

"You will hear about it later. The left and right are not a strong country. Most of them believe in Buddhism."

(End of this chapter)