Chapter 98 The Second Meeting Between the Envoys of the Two Countries

Early the next morning, the Daqi envoys held a second meeting with Prince Jing and Prince Gong of Nanqiao.

After the two sides exchanged friendly greetings, the three envoys of Daqi glanced at King Jing's four-wheeled carriage with a rotten armrest and exchanged bitter glances with each other.

Prince Jing and Prince Gong saw them frowning and communicating silently, and they couldn't help but look at each other, both of them showing a look of understanding.

Prince Jing was the first to speak: "Since you have come from afar, why don't you go to my palace for a drink today?"

In the eyes of Prince Jing and his companions, the food in taverns outside was far inferior to the food prepared in their own palace, whether in terms of safety, hygiene, or taste. Inviting them to their own palace was also a way of making them feel at home, and they wanted to show their sincerity.

However, on the way to Prince Jing's Mansion, the three Daqi envoys shook their heads and sighed at the same time.

"I didn't notice anything wrong with Prince Jing's four-wheeled carriage yesterday. I just took a look and it's just as you said... Alas!" The second envoy looked worried.

The envoy's face darkened. "A prince chose to take us back to his palace instead of entertaining us at a grand restaurant. What does that mean?"

The third envoy took over the conversation, his tone heavy, "That means he doesn't even have enough money to entertain us, so he's trying to save as much as possible. Look at those two princes, their eyes are dark, it's obvious they were too worried to sleep well last night."

"Yes, one is mute and the other is paralyzed, this..." The envoy was so ashamed that he wanted to go back to Daqi to apologize immediately.

Holding someone's beloved little princess in his hand, using it to blackmail the other party into giving him money, and then not returning the princess even after paying the money, this is robbery! It's no different from the barbaric behavior of the past.

They also took the opportunity to stroll around Zhuque Street yesterday. It was quite deserted, with many shops closed in broad daylight, which further confirmed their suspicion that Nanqiao had become impoverished.

Little did they know that ever since Xijing was besieged by the wilderness and Daqi took away their Little Lucky Star, many people chose to take refuge with Daqi, bringing their families with them. Everyone believed that being closer to Little Lucky Star would bring them closer to good luck.

While having lunch, the envoys looked at each other with understanding.

Prince Jing and his family had long since grown tired of meat, and the wealthy and powerful in Xijing now all sought to eat vegetarian food and avoid greasy foods. If a family could afford a wide variety of vegetarian dishes, it was a testament to their wealth and nobility.

Therefore, most of the lunch at Prince Jing's Mansion was made up of vegetarian dishes, and each vegetarian dish was cooked with great color, aroma and taste. Even the radish could be carved into the image of a white rabbit eating grass.

The powerful people in Daqi had only enjoyed the freedom to eat meat for a few years. When they saw this table of delicious food, they looked at each other in indescribable expressions.

How poor is Nan Qiao that he has to carve a radish into the shape of a rabbit and pretend it is rabbit meat?

Look at that pumpkin, it is also carved into the shape of a crowing golden rooster, probably to make people imagine it as a chicken?

Hey, there was also that small bowl of pork rib soup, with only a few pieces, and they were embarrassed to eat it.

The portion size of each dish is so small, obviously because they don’t want to make large portions...

After lunch, both sides had different thoughts, and each became more certain of their suspicions about the other.

Prince Gong and Prince Jing had been influenced by Tian Bao over the years and had stopped wasting food! So after lunch, almost all the dishes on the table were gone, a behavior that made the three envoys of Da Qi feel even more ashamed.

Therefore, in the subsequent negotiations, both sides were mentally prepared to make concessions.

"Tianbao went to Daqi as a guest. I'm sorry to bother you. Our emperor specifically instructed that no matter how hard it is, the child must not suffer. So we at Nanqiao will show our full sincerity and mobilize the entire country to provide for Daqi."

After Prince Jing said these words in a deep sorrow, the three envoys from Daqi frowned and sighed.

The envoy lost his temper first and offered to lower the price drastically: "Just pay this amount. Princess, you are our guest after all. We can't charge you for all the expenses."

As he spoke, he dipped his finger in the tea and wrote two words on the table: Sixty thousand.

Prince Jing's heart suddenly sank, and he looked at Prince Gong in disbelief.

The two exchanged silent glances, both filled with confusion. Prince Jing suppressed his uneasiness and asked uncertainly, "Sixty thousand taels of gold?"

The second envoy heard his voice tremble slightly and looked at the first envoy intently: Are you going to have more again?

The envoy nodded slightly, and was considering how to lower the price even further when he heard Prince Jing take a deep breath, as if he had made a very difficult decision. "Nan Qiao is deeply grateful for Daqi's generosity! As a token of Daqi's hospitality to Princess Yongle, our emperor has specifically instructed that Liangzhou, which is close to the wilderness, be given to Daqi!"

The three Great Prayer envoys were all shocked. Envoy One widened his eyes and asked in disbelief, "You want to give us a piece of land?"

Prince Jing nodded reluctantly, "To be honest with you all, the barbarians are tyrannical and overbearing, and have repeatedly invaded Liang Province. The people of Liang Province have always lived in dire straits, so... that piece of land is relatively desolate. If Daqi doesn't mind, please accept Nan Qiao's kindness."

The Daqi envoys were so shocked that they didn't know what to say. They frowned and remained silent.

How poor is Nan Qiao? He actually offered to cede land...

Prince Jing and Prince Gong exchanged uneasy glances. Seeing their solemn expressions, one could only assume they were dissatisfied with this sincerity. After all, Liangzhou, as its name suggests, was a very desolate place. This was the most sincerity Nan Qiao could offer. After all, Tian Bao was in their hands, and they would surely come back to ask for benefits in the future. What if they gave too much the first time and couldn't afford it later?

Daqi must be allowed to taste some sweetness first, and then other sweetness can be slowly given in the future. Only in this way will Tianbao always be useful to Daqi and he will always be safe.

Both sides had different thoughts, and finally it was Prince Gong who broke the silence: "Aba Aba!"

Prince Jing observed his gesticulations and nodded in understanding. "My third brother has indicated that he will privately purchase ten boxes of fine salt. My Lords, what do you think...is this a good idea?"

The three Daqi envoys were so ashamed that they wanted to crawl into the ground. At this moment, they were really no different from robbers and bandits.

The envoys blushed and waved their hands, trying to show that they were not dissatisfied.

Prince Gong was so anxious that he immediately called out "Aba" a few more times. Prince Jing translated, "You gentlemen, do you think it's not enough? My third brother means that it is okay..."

"Enough! Enough! This is enough!" The envoy quickly decided the final result in shame and anger.

Prince Jing breathed a sigh of relief and gave Prince Gong a look that said, "This is all as I expected."

He knew that Daqi's ultimate goal was to obtain land and expand their territory! Using a piece of Liangzhou in exchange for the temporary peace of the entire Nanqiao was quite cost-effective!

The three envoys from Daqi were all educated people. They could no longer face the people of Nanqiao, so they stayed in Daqi Hall all day and never went out.

After Nanqiao prepared the silver, land deeds and fine salt, the Daqi envoy couldn't wait to leave Xijing.

On the other side, the Daqi Palace was busy with the funeral of the two princes.

While everyone was too busy paying attention to Ziwei Palace, Tianbao secretly summoned the little golden retriever hovering in the air.

Xu Laiqing stood by vigilantly and was about to give him some advice when he heard Tianbao ask a question that greatly interested him.