King of Song

Chapter 236 Tea Horse Road

"Envoy Lin, are you still used to being in Hehuang?" As the host, Dong Zhan asked softly, expressing condolences.

"Thanks to Zanpu's care, everything is fine!" Lin Zhao said haha, but he was really unhappy in his heart, what a wool!
Not to mention the dry climate, the most terrible thing is altitude sickness. Many soldiers in the imperial army have already had such problems.Fortunately, I had been prepared beforehand, and there were doctors to help in time to take care of me, so nothing happened.Of course, the most worrying thing is that the Tubo people secretly make things difficult, as if deliberately making things difficult, can life be easier?Dong felt really embarrassed to ask...

Dong felt laughed: "That's good!"

This guy is asking questions knowingly, sincerity makes people upset, right?
Lin Zhao muttered in his heart, stood up, and said, "His Majesty the Emperor asked this envoy to express condolences to Zanpu!"

Monarchs and ministers are different, and Lin Zhao represents the emperor of the Song Dynasty after all. In such a formal diplomatic occasion, etiquette cannot be ignored.The emperor of the suzerain country expressed his condolences, and respectful thanks were a must.

Dong Zhan had no choice but to stand up and bow respectfully to express his thanks.It's hard to say whether the emperor of the Song Dynasty felt it, but at least Lin Zhaosheng accepted the gift of Tubo Zanpu.

Aligu always felt weird looking at it, but it was all reasonable, and it was hard to say anything about things that were completely in line with etiquette.

No matter what Dong Zhan and Ali Gu thought, Lin Zhao would be satisfied, and it could be regarded as a small "revenge", and said with a smile: "Zanpu is too polite!"

Dong Zhan smiled mischievously and asked, "Your Majesty the Emperor, are the Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager safe?" Necessary condolences are still needed.

Lin Zhao smiled and said, "It's all good!"

"Please envoy Lin convey my greetings on your behalf!"

"it is good!"

After exchanging pleasantries, Lin Zhao knew that Dong Zhan must be waiting for him to get to the point, and immediately said, "This time I came to Hehuang, and I brought some gifts for Zanpu."

"Oh? What gift? Thank you for your kindness first?" Dong felt very much looking forward to it. What kind of conditions will the Song Dynasty offer?
As Lin Zhao's entourage, Su An handed the gift to Zanpu's attendant, and then handed it over. Lin Zhao introduced, "This is Longjing tea produced by West Lake. I hope Zanpu will like it."

tea?

This is something that the grassland people like very much. After all, they eat a lot of beef and mutton, which is relatively greasy.The tea is fragrant and can relieve greasy, which is the most suitable drink for them.

Dong Zhan then ordered someone to boil it immediately, and when it was served, the tea leaves were so fragrant that even Aligu couldn't help sniffing it lightly, he liked it very much.

As a Tubo Zanpu, he had tasted quite a few famous teas, but when he smelled the fragrance, Dong Zhan couldn't help his expression.

After taking a sip, I felt the fragrance on my lips and teeth, so uncomfortable, I couldn't help but praise it repeatedly.Obviously, it is the best.

"Good tea, really good tea!"

Lin Zhao smiled and said, "As long as Zanpu likes it!" This effect is what we want!
"Is there anything special about this tea? How much does it cost?" Dong Zhan asked softly, seemingly casually, and the meaning behind his words was self-evident.He knew that Lin Zhao would definitely not be as simple as giving him tea, the focus was on the things behind the tea.

Lin Zhao said with a smile: "It's nothing special. As for the price, outsiders can't buy it. Of course, Zanpu's favorite is naturally in short supply."

"Thank you so much for that!"

Lin Zhao continued: "I heard that Zanpu loves the people like a son, and there is such a fragrant and pleasant tea, so naturally I don't want to enjoy it alone, right?" First, I will put a high hat on you, and then continue with the following topic.

"Oh?" Finally got to the point.

"I heard that Tibetans like to drink tea very much, especially after eating a lot of beef and mutton, the tea is more fragrant and relieves greasy. However, the amount of tea that Tubo can buy every year seems to be very limited..."

Lin Zhao talked eloquently, but what he told was the truth.Dong felt is Zanpu, drinking good tea is no problem.But ordinary people are in a difficult situation. Most of the tea in Hehuang comes from Sichuan and Shu.When the merchants traveled a long way to bring tea to Tubo, the price had already turned up many times...

Knowing that tea is good for the body and life, ordinary people want to buy it, but they can't afford the high price.Even if you buy it, you can imagine the quantity and quality of the tea!

"Presumably Zanpu also hopes that the people of Hehuang can drink the fragrant and high-quality tea?" Lin Zhao looked at Dong Zhan with a smile and remained silent, but the meaning behind his words could not have been more obvious.

Dong felt laughed and said, "That's natural!"

Lin Zhao also laughed and said, "All the states and counties in the south of the Great Song Dynasty produce tea. If a trade route from the Great Song Dynasty to Hehuang is established, what does Zanpu think?"

"Business routes?" Ali Gu asked suspiciously: "Isn't there a trade route now? There are also quite a few Song Dynasty merchants in Qingtang City."

"There are quite a few, but they are all sporadic retail investors. Regardless of the scale and influence, the quantity and quality of the goods are very average, and the benefits brought to you and our country are also very limited."

Lin Zhaodao: "If the officials of the Great Song Dynasty and the Tubo side jointly form a trade route to transport goods to Tubo, what will Zanpu think?"

Lin Zhao then added another sentence: "Of course, the Song Dynasty is rich in products, and the goods are naturally not just tea..."

Dong Zhan and Ali Gu were both heartbroken. Although the Hehuang Tubo controlled the important Silk Roads, they could be considered rich, but the degree of material abundance was far worse than that of the Song Dynasty, and they were considered to be in the ranks of material shortages.

To put it bluntly, the situation of Tubo is not much better than that of Xixia.

Once the Song Dynasty closed the market, there was a serious shortage of supplies in Xixia, and the situation in Tubo was not much better.

So when Lin Zhao proposed to establish a trade route under the auspices of the government, how could Dong Zhan not be tempted?This is a real benefit. Not only can you benefit from it, but it can also greatly benefit the lives of the people in Tubo. Why not do it?But where in the world is there such a simple good thing?

Dong felt smiled and said, "Envoy Lin's idea is very good. I don't know what we need to do in Tibet?"

Lin Zhaodao: "It's not so much a trade route as it is a fixed official mutual market trade between our two states. Since it is a mutual market, it is natural to exchange what is needed and trade things. I wonder what Zanpu thinks?"

"What to change?"

"Horse!" Lin Zhao spat out two words in a deep voice.

After talking for a long time, this is the real topic. Lin Zhao came here for the horses, and there is no need to hide in front of Dong Zhan now.

It's just that the people didn't want it for nothing, but exchanged things for things, and the conditions offered were very generous.

Lin Zhaodao: "The Hehuang grassland is rich and produces a lot of horses. Your country must have more than enough for its own use. If it can be transformed into economic benefits, your country will also be happy to see it... That's why our country has It is planned to build a tea-horse road between Bianjing and Qingtang City..."

"Tea Horse Road?"

"That's right!" Lin Zhao nodded and said, "The rich products of the Central Plains, mainly tea, exchange for horses and leather from your country, exchange what is needed, and achieve a win-win situation for each other. I don't know what Zanpu wants?"

Win-win?

Dong felt hesitated for a moment. What Lin Zhao said was indeed very attractive. The most lacking thing in the Song Dynasty was horses.It is in a hostile relationship with Liao and Xixia, and it is destined not to get war horses from there. The only source is Longyou and Tubo.

In the place of the Fourth War in Longyou, it was very difficult for the people of the Song Dynasty to raise horses by themselves.The Hequ horses of Tubo are top-notch in terms of physique and quality, and they are first-class war horses.

In the past, the Song Dynasty also offered to buy horses from Tubo, but they were all traded in money, and the quantity was not particularly large.Of course, there were also some smuggling activities in the dark, and Dong felt might not be unaware of them.

But all in all, the scale is not very big!
Now that the people of the Song Dynasty made such a proposal, it was obvious that they wanted to stabilize the tea-horse trade market, and at the same time, there were naturally many horses that required trading.

Logically speaking, this is a good thing for Tubo.After all, there are so many horses that they are useless at all.At the same time, there is a relative lack of living materials. If it can be exchanged, it will be a good thing for Tubo.

But Dong Zhan seemed to be vaguely worried that the people of the Song Dynasty had obtained a large number of war horses, and would they threaten Hehuang Tubo when they became stronger?

Between countries, where is the eternal alliance?In the Northwest situation, there are three strong forces, and it is not very good for any one to be too strong.Only by checking and balancing each other can we have both sides...

However, Lin Zhao's offer was really good. After the establishment of the Tea Horse Road, it would bring significant economic benefits to Hehuang Tubo.This point is relatively much stronger than Xixia.

Although Xi Xia wants to marry the princess, what is the use of in-law relationship?In the face of national interests, a princess is really nothing and can be sacrificed at any time.Don't you see, through the ages, how many princesses who got married have a good death?When the two countries went to war, where did they consider their situation?

Lin Zhao's proposal was very attractive, and Dong felt a little tempted.It's just that this matter is of great importance, how can you easily agree to it?
Liang Yibu doesn't know what's going on?Isn't the conditions of the Song Dynasty just the capital for bargaining with Xixia?The opposite is also true, although the proposal of the Tea Horse Road is good, everyone wants to benefit the most...

"Okay, your country's proposal is very good, but it's a very important matter, and I need to think it over carefully. Let's discuss some details slowly. I don't know what envoy Lin wants?" Dong Zhan tactfully delayed the matter. down.

Lin Zhao naturally understood Dong Zhan's mentality, and said with a smile, "What Zanpu said is absolutely true!" The road has to be taken step by step, take your time, let's not rush!
On the side, Ali Gu murmured in his heart that the envoys of the Song Dynasty openly talked about the tea-horse road here.It is naturally impossible for those people in Dasanguan to be the official behavior of the Song Dynasty?So what exactly are their identities?What is the relationship with Lin Zhao?Could it be that he was just taking shelter along the way?
Ali Gu felt that it was necessary to remind his younger brother Sunan Dangzheng that he needed to be especially careful with those merchants.As for the horse transaction, it can only be postponed indefinitely...

(End of this chapter)