Chapter 136 Gift Giving
Imperial Envoy Liu even had a conspiracy theory that Prince Yu was deliberately using him to deal with Prince Li. Don't think he didn't know that Prince Yu had arranged assassins in his imperial envoy group.
But the princes are fighting each other, what can a not-so-small official like him do? But you are using me so blatantly, you are simply trying to kill me! I was killed by the King of Li today by mistake, who can redress my grievances!
Imperial Envoy Liu had made up his mind that he would secretly take revenge on Prince Yu when he returned to Chang'an.
At this moment, facing the fake King of Glory's weird look, he didn't dare to look at the real King of Glory's face. Even if there were no outsiders around, he had to act out the scene:
"I dare not, I did not expect that the prince would have such a hard time at the border. I will definitely report this to His Majesty."
Jin Sui just wanted to get rid of this person as soon as possible. After all, the polo match was too grand, and there were still many "illegal" transactions in the trade zone. If he saw it, it would be a topic of gossip.
He said directly: "Whether you want to report to His Majesty is up to you. I am used to it. No matter how hard it is, it doesn't matter. It is my duty to guard the border for Daxia."
The imperial envoy couldn't help but look at Gu Changxiao, thinking, this fake King Li is really good at speaking polite words.
"I have already prepared the medicine for the plague and presented it to the court. However, as you can see, I am ostracized by the nobles in Yan. It is very difficult to send a memorial back to Chang'an."
"There are many bandits and thieves in Yandi. If we send this good medicine directly to Chang'an, I'm afraid the road will be blocked. Since Lord Liu has brought so many people, I will feel relieved if you take them away."
Imperial Envoy Liu was overjoyed. He had never expected that the prince would be so magnanimous in the face of major issues! He did not even bother him at all and directly gave him the medicine.
He hurriedly said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. I will deliver the medicine to Luocheng safely and take the prescription back to the Imperial Hospital for the Imperial Physician to develop. I will also report to Your Majesty that the Yan nobles are too arrogant and Your Majesty is in a difficult situation."
But when the prescription was handed to him, he showed it to the accompanying imperial physician, and both of them turned pale and green: "If Your Majesty doesn't want to give it, why do you have to make things difficult for me? How can this be medicine? This is clearly swill!"
Jin Sui really didn't want to waste time talking to them, so he said to Gu Changxiao, "Explain it yourself! By the way, Cheng Yu has already prepared the New Year gifts for Chang'an. Let our people follow the Imperial Envoy Liu's team and send them back to Chang'an."
"I'm going to check on the game. The border town is in chaos. My Lord, please take your things and leave quickly. I won't let you stay overnight."
Jin Sui finished his words without pausing and fled away. Imperial Envoy Liu was just about to complain to Gu Changxiao about the fake Li King's rudeness and teasing them.
As soon as I saw Gu Changxiao's eyes, I felt a chill on the back of my neck and dared not say anything.
Gu Changxiao took them to the wounded camp and saw the medicine the wounded were using, which was what they called "swill".
He then took them to the place where penicillin was made. He showed them the production process, from the initial step of cultivating mold on the fruit peel to the final step of filtering it into medicine, and repeated what Jinsui had said to him that day.
At this point, Imperial Envoy Liu and the imperial physician finally believed that there really was such a good medicine! Gu Changxiao gave Imperial Envoy Liu the memorial he and Jin Sui had discussed and written, which was the "crying poor" memorial, which described how difficult the border town was and how miserable the people were.
He offered a good medicine prescription, not asking for a reward from his father, but only for some benefits for the border town. The Tartars could counterattack at any time, so he asked the emperor to give him the right to recruit soldiers, the right to allow refugees to settle in the border town, the right to collect grain taxes and corvée labor, and the right to open up trade...
The so-called commercial rights mean that the King of Li can issue commercial permits such as salt permits and wine permits in border towns, which are regulated by the imperial court.
The other one is, making money! That's right, the Great Xia Dynasty allowed the feudal lords to make their own money! Except for copper coins, gold and silver ingots can be made by themselves.
Jin Sui has been dissatisfied with the loose silver and broken silver on the market, as well as the various shapes of trading coins for a long time. Once she gets the right to mint money, she will definitely make beautiful and convenient silver and gold coins.
In fact, the princes already have these powers in their fiefdoms. Even if they do something excessive, as long as they don't rebel, the higher-ups won't investigate them.
It's just that the border town is too special and is excluded by the entire Sixteen Prefectures of Yan. He must obtain the privileges granted by the emperor's decree so that he can fight against the gentry with justification and not be afraid that they will go to Chang'an to accuse King Li of misbehavior at the border.
Jinsui thought that the most generous thing the court would give him was the right to trade, because they would definitely believe that the border guards were poor and hungry, so what could they do if they gave you the right to trade? But since you wanted it, the court would give it to you, just as a reward for offering good medicine, so as to avoid rumors that the court was too harsh on the King of Li.
The reason why so many privileges are listed is to confuse the audience.
Jin Sui also wanted to ask for maritime trade rights, but Gu Changxiao said frankly that it was not the right time yet, and that the court would not only not give it to him, but would also scold the King Li. Because the ban on the sea was a national policy, no one dared to open the door.
Jin Sui asked, "That's true, but I've long discovered that some overseas products are popular on the market. For example, the carpets and tapestries that Yan Jiu uses are not made in Da Xia."
Gu Changxiao's eyes narrowed, he shook his head and sighed: "The court's maritime ban only prohibits civilians and merchants. Many powerful people secretly maintain private ships for smuggling. With the strength of the Yan family, they can naturally afford to maintain a few ships."
"The powerful and wealthy colluded with each other and presented a valuable gift to my father. The loophole of the maritime ban had actually been opened long ago. It's just that they would never allow me to get involved."
Jin Sui said angrily, "What a double standard! Shameless! Just wait, when our border town has money, we will build our own ships and support sea merchants. What can the court do?"
Gu Changxiao particularly likes to hear Taoist Xiao Ji say such things, because it means that he will not leave, he will always stay in Border Town and accompany him to create the future of Border Town...
Then, when Liu the Imperial Envoy went to get the medicine, he saw the memorial from the King of Li and the New Year gift he was asked to bring to Chang'an. He no longer had any doubts. Since the King of Li dared to submit a memorial and send a New Year gift, it meant that the medicine could not be fake! Otherwise, it would be a crime of deceiving the emperor!
It is true that King Li had just committed another serious crime and was exiled to this frontier, but he believed that King Li would not be so eager to die.
However, when Imperial Envoy Liu glanced at the New Year gift sent by the King of Li, he could not help but remind him: "Although the gift is small but the friendship is great, this is too small."
Gu Changxiao said in a tone of Jin-year-old: "There is no way, our border town is poor!"
This one sentence left Imperial Envoy Liu speechless.
In addition to the matter of the good medicine, Gu Changxiao also reminded Liu Imperial Envoy of something that Jin Sui had told him many times: "Wei Qingquan, the Wei Chief, has just been transferred from the border town to Chang'an. If you meet him in Chang'an, please say hello to him on my behalf."
Imperial Envoy Liu was immediately moved. The prince actually cared so much about a minor official like the eighth-rank chief clerk under his command!
What’s funny is that Li Heng was initially afraid to come to the border town to get involved in this matter, but when he heard that Zheng Yun was dead, he personally brought people to ask if there was any help needed.
Our Prince Li was still very generous and kept half of Li Heng's men to "maintain order at the game." Well, he said that, but in fact he kept them to do hard labor.
Li Heng forgot the previous rumors for a moment. Anyone passing through the border town, whether human or dog, would be caught and forced to work.
The other half escorted Imperial Envoy Liu out of Yan because they brought too many good medicines and he was timid, especially after Jin Sui threatened him, saying that Zheng Yun not only raised horse thieves in Yan but also had them scattered throughout the sixteen states of Yan.
He was frightened and feared revenge from Zheng Yun's people. After all, before his death, what Zheng Yun shouted was not hatred for the real and fake King Li, but hatred for Liu the Imperial Envoy who framed him and made him fall into the trap in the border town.
In this way, Imperial Envoy Liu stayed in the border town for most of the day, and left with several carts of good medicine and New Year gifts to Chang'an.
Li Heng cordially escorted him out of Yanzhou. He had originally prepared generous gifts for Imperial Envoy Liu, hoping that he would say a few good words for him in Chang'an and get him transferred out of Yanzhou as soon as possible.
As a result, Imperial Envoy Liu did not dare to accept it. It would have been fine if he did not accept it, but he also asked Li Heng to take the gold and silver that Zheng Yun had given him to King Li.
Li Heng was a little surprised, because he was an official from Chang'an, and an imperial envoy at that. It didn't make sense for him to be so timid and so afraid of King Li!
You don't miss me, but you've gotten on a pirate ship and can't get off. The King of Li didn't even force you to do hard labor in the border town!
Imperial Envoy Liu said sincerely, "Lord Li did not see the scene where the prince beheaded Zheng Yun with a knife. If he had seen it, he would understand why I did not accept these yellow and white things."
Imperial Envoy Liu was deeply moved, both by the fake King Li's bravery and the real King Li's magnanimity.
For some reason, he suddenly felt that even if Prince Li was driven to the border and his power in Chang'an was eradicated by Prince Yu, given time, Prince Li would still be able to snatch the throne from Prince Yu!
Just because King Li came to the border town alone, he brought about earth-shaking changes in the entire border town in such a short period of time.
Prince Yu of Chang'an was still arrogant and domineering for Prince Li's abduction of commoner women, and asked the emperor to punish Prince Li. He was worried that he would marry a daughter of the Yan family and get the help of the Yan family to gain a firm foothold in the border town.
Compared with the two, Prince Yu's behavior is too petty. Prince Li's vision is much bigger than Prince Yu's! Therefore, even if he doesn't try to please Prince Li, just to make amends for his previous disrespect and restore his image in Prince Li's heart, Imperial Envoy Liu will keep the gold and silver.
What's more, he didn't dare to take the things Zheng Yun gave him back to Chang'an!
When Li Heng came back with a cart of gold, silver and jewelry to the border town, he was warmly received by King Li: "Oh, it's enough for you to come, why do you bring so many things!"
Li Heng: ...Your Majesty, your attitude changed too quickly! Moreover, the tone was just like a peasant woman talking to a visiting relative, the polite words were so fake that they gave me goose bumps.
Li Heng hurriedly said, "This was left by Lord Liu, who said it was Zheng Yun's dirty stuff."
Jin Sui picked up a golden Buddha statue and said, "Don't talk nonsense in front of the Buddha! How is it dirty? Lord Liu is really considerate. He knew that I needed materials for the construction of the border town, so he left so many treasures."
"Unlike some people who promised to build a road, but after several months, nothing happened."
Li Heng's temples were throbbing, and he said hurriedly: "The road is already under construction. If Your Majesty doesn't believe it, you can send someone to Yanzhou City to check it out."
Jin Sui smiled and said, "Lord Li said it himself, how could I not believe it? What's so good about the construction? I'll wait until it reaches the south gate of Border Town and then I'll see!"
Li Heng: ...We agreed that each of us would repair half of the building, didn't we? Your Majesty, have you forgotten?
But he didn't dare to ask now! Because of Zheng Yun's matter, although he didn't side with Liu Qinchao and Zheng Yun, he didn't help the prince either.
The prince didn't question him or punish him openly, but this road was obviously his punishment!
I could only grit my teeth and answer, "I will repair this road and ask Your Majesty to review it."
Jin Sui smiled with eyes curved, "With Li Zhoumu here, I feel much more relaxed! You should also stop looking so grim, go watch the polo match, it's quite lively there."
Li Heng made a smile that was uglier than crying, took one last look at the box of gold, silver and jewelry, bowed with tears in his eyes and left.
After leaving the King's residence, he almost shed tears. When he arrived at the stadium, he found that the game was not polo, but Cuju.
Because his face was so ugly, a team came to apologize: "Please calm down, sir, we lost."
Li Heng saw that it was the Yanzhou Army. This team was not composed of children from the aristocratic families. They were participating in the competition on behalf of the Yanzhou Army.
If they lose, they lose. Polo is originally a game for noblemen. He allowed the Yanzhou army to participate in the game to give face to King Li and make the game more lively.
But he still asked, "Who did you lose to?"
The leader pointed to the side sheepishly and said, "We lost to the Tuntian Battalion."
Li Heng almost slipped. "The Tuntian Camp has never played polo, and even their horsemanship was only learned after the prince came. How could you lose to them?"
It's so embarrassing! If he lost to any team of nobles, he wouldn't be so angry. This is a disgrace to him, Li Heng!
Then I heard that the Yanzhou Army and the Tuntian Camp were fighting the first preparatory match. The Tuntian Camp, which was busy growing crops and vegetables all day, defeated the well-trained Yanzhou Army in a magnificent way.
Li Heng was so ashamed that he said angrily, "The Yanzhou Army lost all its face in the battle against the Tartars. Now, you can't even beat a farmer in a polo match. You are just rubbing your face into the ground!"
The team leader blushed and said, "We can still play the resurrection match."
Li Heng said angrily: "Don't you think it's embarrassing? Forget it, quitting midway is even more embarrassing. It's up to you. I'm leaving now!"
Li Heng originally wanted to come and cheer up the Yanzhou army, but now he ran away without even showing his head, for fear that he would be seen by the vicious-tongued Yan Shiyi and others, who would definitely ridicule him severely.
The team leader felt very aggrieved! It wasn't that they were bad, it was just that the opponent was too strong! This Li Wang actually taught the art of war to the team. It was like using the Thirty-Six Stratagems to play polo. He was very good at playing the tactics of "making a feint to the east and attacking in the west" and "encircling Wei to save Zhao".
Conventional polo playing was no match at all! Many teams saw this game and immediately adjusted their strategies, so they temporarily changed to Cuju.
Yan Twelve Niang, along with a dozen maids, were busy counting the number of people who would buy the Thirty-Six Strategies. Before, they had all laughed at King Li for spending one hundred taels of silver per book, saying that he was going crazy due to lack of money.
And now watching this exciting polo match, uh, for the Yanzhou army, it was seeing the Yanzhou army being abused by the farmers throughout the whole process.
Only then did they understand the importance of the book "Thirty-Six Strategies". When they heard that King Li had authorized Yan Twelve Niang to buy the book, they rushed to buy it from her.
Only Yan Shiyi was the most proud: "My eldest brother is indeed far-sighted! He has read the Thirty-Six Stratagems thousands of times. When I was preparing the polo team, he gave me several training suggestions. They are very useful. I guarantee you will be defeated!"
Black Tiger warned in a muffled voice: "You can't beat our Black Feather Camp! I will beat you to pieces!"
Jin An quickly reached out to cover Hei Hu's mouth: "Don't say that, Young Master Shrinking Bird is helping Brother Wang Ye promote his book now!"
Hei Hu nodded repeatedly and bowed to Yan Shiyi: "Thank you for the publicity, Master Shuoniao. How about I treat you to a small hot pot?"
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