Chapter 181 Han Slaves in Northern Frontier
Jin Sui was touched and amused. It seemed that he had played the role of the King of Li very successfully. At least he had been recognized by the soldiers of the Black Feather Camp.
"I was forced to dress up as a prince before, but now everyone knows that I am a woman, how can I dress up as a man?"
"If you believe me, just tell the prince yourself. He may not be good at expressing his closeness to his subordinates, but he will listen to your opinions just the same."
Hao Duojin asked with a smile: "Boss Ji, I heard you and the head of the Yan family discussed doing business in the northern border. Is there anything we can do?"
The other soldiers said, "Yes, we need money to build new houses in the border town, buy land and settle our families.
Our products from Daxia are very expensive in Northern Xinjiang, it would be great if we could do some business as well."
Jin Sui smiled and said, "Of course! If you trust me, I will arrange it..."
Before she finished speaking, everyone nodded: "It's trustworthy! We all believe in Boss Ji."
Only Hei Hu asked worriedly, "Will this cause trouble for Boss Ji?"
Jin Sui was touched and said, "No! I was just worried about not having enough manpower! If you guys make a trip to the Northern Frontier with so much effort, the prince will support you if you make a little money."
The border soldiers used to be the poorest army, with the worst military supplies and salaries. A pair of boots from the Yanzhou Army was enough for a border soldier to equip a full set of equipment. But this will be broken in the future.
The Yan family has obtained the trading rights in the northern border, but the Yan family cannot maintain an army and needs Gu Changxiao's escort. So it is reasonable for us border soldiers to use this to earn some military expenses.
We are not asking the Yan family for tribute, nor are we blackmailing the caravan. We are just carrying the goods ourselves.
Jin Sui wrote a list, which contained the names of leather, herbs, and gemstones:
"These are in-demand goods. If you bring them back to Daxia, you can increase your profits dozens of times! If you don't understand, don't buy other goods. You have little capital, and you will lose money if you hold on to the goods.
I have asked Princess Toya's guards to act as guides. You can take this opportunity to collect a batch of goods from the nearby tribes. Don't collect too much, just the amount that the horses can carry.
If you don’t have the capital, I’ll lend it to you.”
The soldiers were overjoyed and thanked Jinsui again and again. Jinsui was also happy to share with them how to identify the quality of goods, evaluate their value, etc.
They nominated Hao Duojin to be in charge and gave all the money they had to Hao Duojin, and he and a few other smart brothers went to buy the goods.
Jin Sui said hurriedly, "Don't buy it with silver, it's not worth it. Exchange it with something. Sugar, refined salt, tea, and linen are in short supply in the northern border, especially in the cold winter."
After thinking about it, she took out some fruits and vegetables, tea leaves, refined salt, and sugar from the space: "These things are not valuable in our border town, but they will be valuable in the northern border.
For the first time, you can take these to exchange for items with the Northern Frontier tribe. See what they like, and bring more of these next time."
Hao Duojin hurriedly said that he would use the money to buy it from Ji Lao Da, and Jin Sui pretended to be angry:
"With our relationship, you call me Boss, how can I ask for your money? Just think of it as a gift from me, Boss Ji, to the brothers. Go and trade quickly. You will run out of time when the prince enters the royal court."
The soldiers were deeply moved and said that Boss Ji would be their boss for life! They would fight to the death at his command!
Jin Sui hurriedly said with a smile: "Don't let the prince hear it, otherwise he will think I want to kidnap you! By the way, where is the prince?"
Yan Jiu went to deal with his own shopkeeper, and Gu Changxiao hadn't seen him for most of the day.
Hei Hu said: "Torre came to see the prince, and the prince went to his tribe."
Hao Duojin whispered, "The prince must have something else to do. I saw the prince's personal guards bringing a secret letter to the prince."
Jin Sui asked Hei Hu to accompany her on horseback ride nearby. As soon as they left the camp, Hei Hu was pleasantly surprised to find a few fat hares not far away. He immediately drew his bow: "How can the rabbits in the northern border be so stupid? They don't even avoid people!"
Jin Sui stretched out his hand to stop him: "Don't hunt."
Hei Hu collected the arrow without asking any questions. Jin Sui saw a shepherdess in the distance, herding sheep with two little rabbits in her arms. It seemed that the rabbits were raised by her.
He hurriedly warned Hei Hu: "Be careful, the rabbits are digging holes, don't sprain your horse's hoof."
This place is not far from the royal court, and there are actually herdsmen raising rabbits. It seems that the news that the Han people collect rabbit fur and rabbit skins has spread.
Jinsui was secretly delighted and decided to build the wool spinning machine when he returned to the border town.
Looking up at the snow-capped mountains in the distance, she asked Hei Hu, "Do you know where Langjuxu Mountain is?"
Black Tiger scratched his head and pointed to the north: "It must be a thousand miles away at least!"
Jin Sui imagined that Huo Qubing in the Han Dynasty walked this road, chasing the enemy all the way to Langjuxu Mountain and drinking water from the vast sea.
I couldn't help but feel longing for it and reminded myself to first solve the problem of living in the small island country.
You are not a warmonger, why do you think about these things! Northern Xinjiang is really big! It is vast and sparsely populated, but the environment is harsh and the land is barren, so generations of talents in Northern Xinjiang have turned their eyes to the south, thinking about stepping into the Central Plains again and again.
Jinsui looked at the snow-capped mountains again. If Bater knew that if he crossed the snow-capped mountains and the desert towards the Western Regions and continued to go deeper west, there would be a fertile land called Tianzhu.
Moreover, the people there are not as tenacious and good at fighting as the Han people. Will they turn their eyes to the west and no longer think about going south? This is just like instigating the people in northern Xinjiang to raise rabbits and grow cash crops. It is a plan that needs to be promoted subtly over a long period of time.
Jinsui thought it was feasible. He had to describe Tianzhu as richer, with gold everywhere, fertile land for thousands of miles, and sheep and cattle being able to eat their fill at the doorstep. The river water was milky white because of the abundance of milk.
The seeds can be scattered to collect food, and the mountains and plains are full of valuable spices...
Haha, Jinsui's mouth curled up. Cover up my Taoist temple, and I guarantee that I can persuade the people in northern Xinjiang to run to the west.
It doesn't matter if you're afraid of getting lost, I can still provide you with a map! When Hei Hu saw Boss Ji staring at the shepherdess, he smiled. Well, how should I put it, he looked like a pervert seeing a beautiful girl.
Hei Hu reminded quietly: "Boss Ji, you are a woman now, you can't stare at a girl like this."
Jinsui: ...When I was a man, I didn’t look at girls randomly!
The two continued forward, and when they saw a large wheat field, Jinsui stopped and looked closely at the wheat seedlings, which were very small.
What’s funny is that people in northern Xinjiang also provide porridge, and they actually pour sheep dung eggs directly into the wheat fields without even fermenting them.
The grass in the field was much shinier than the wheat. Jin Sui picked up a piece and said to Hei Hu with a sly smile, "What do you think about me buying this grass in the northern border?"
Hei Hu was puzzled: "This is wheat field weeds. It is useless except for being cut and used as horse feed. What does Boss Ji want this grass for? It grows everywhere in the wilderness of our border town."
Jin Sui grinned slyly: “Hehe, it can’t grow in the wilderness, it has to grow in wheat fields, the grass seeds have extremely high medicinal value.
I told the people in northern Xinjiang that this grass seed is being bought at a high price. What do you think will happen if the news spreads?"
Hei Hu was not good at thinking, but when Boss Ji asked, he tapped his temples and tried to think. The more he thought, the more terrible it became!
He couldn't help but stare: "Then, when the autumn harvest comes, these fields will be ruined, and at most 30% of the crops will be harvested, all of which will be grass seeds!"
"Hiss, Boss Ji, are you really going to do this?"
Jin Sui praised him and said, "Not bad! Who said my Black Tiger is not smart? He is very smart! Are you kidding? If you can figure out a plan right away, how can the people in Northern Xinjiang not understand it? Just encourage them to grow cash crops. If you really encourage them to grow grass, Bater probably won't build a Taoist temple for me."
Hei Hu said sincerely: "Boss Ji, if you want to be an official in the court, you will definitely be able to become a prime minister!"
Jin Sui laughed: "Forget it, being a prime minister is so tiring!"
At this time, she saw many Han Chinese farmers working in the fields. She couldn't help but ask a Han farmer curiously, "Why are you farming in the northern border?"
The Han farmer looked at her warily and didn't answer at first. Jin Sui took out two pieces of black candy from the black tiger sleeve and gave them to him. He quickly looked around, put away the candy and whispered: "We are Han slaves captured by the people of the northern border from the border, and we are dedicated to cultivating the fields for the tribe."
Jin Sui and Hei Hu both felt uncomfortable and asked again, "Are there many Han people in the northern border?"
The man nodded: "Quite a few, almost all large tribes have hundreds or even thousands of Han slaves, some captured from the border, and some who ceded their land a hundred years ago and chose to stay in the northern border."
The cession of land was the battle in which Daxia recaptured the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan. Northern Xinjiang ceded Yan territory, but many people were left behind in Northern Xinjiang.
Jin Sui asked the last question: "So, do you want to go back to Da Xia?"
The man snorted disdainfully: "It's the same everywhere, we all work like slaves. In Daxia, we work as tenants for the nobles, and we still don't have enough food or warm clothes."
The man urged Jinsui, "Are you a merchant from Daxia? Hurry up. If they see me talking to you, I'll get beaten."
He didn't even make any requests to Jinsui. In this era, the lives of the lower-class people were really like weeds. The wind blew the weed seeds and they took root wherever they fell.
She sympathized with the Han people who were serfs in the northern border, but when she thought about the refugees in the mountains and forests of the border towns, how was their situation any different?
On their way back, Hei Hu saw how heavy Jin Sui's heart was. He was not good at comforting people, but he still tried to organize his words:
"Boss Ji, there are too many poor people in the world, and we can't take care of them all. You can make our people in the border town live a good life, which is already amazing!"
"The imperial court doesn't care about these Han people who are stranded in the northern border. Even if they flee back to Daxia, they are still refugees."
"Don't be sad."
Jin Sui sighed softly: "I'm not sad, but I feel a little depressed when I see my compatriots living so hard."
Hei Hu and his friends always talked about what they did in Border Town and thanked her, but only she knew that she did it for herself.
Looking at the Han slaves working in the fields behind her, perhaps she could do more, and make even the slightest change, but the situation would be much better for these lower-class people.
Well, it seems that the Taoist temple has to be built quickly. She had previously thought of using the Taoist temple to gather information about the northern border, and then to facilitate her business.
Now it seems that maybe she can do more.
Unexpectedly, I met Gu Changxiao halfway. He only brought two personal guards with him and his face was full of anxiety.
Jin Sui was startled. Could it be that there was something new going on in the royal court? Being in an enemy country, one really had to be careful at all times.
As a result, Gu Changxiao came to her and asked anxiously:
"Sui Sui, why did you go out with only Hei Hu? You should bring more people. Many of Lei Zan's henchmen have escaped. If they find out you are here, it will be too dangerous!"
Jin Sui said with relief: "I thought something had happened. So that's what you were worried about! Don't worry, I didn't run far. We have fish oil and firearms with us. If you dare to cause trouble, we will kill you."
She told Gu Changxiao what she had seen along the way: "I didn't expect there were so many Han slaves in the northern border."
Gu Changxiao's expression changed, becoming the deep and wise one he had when she first met him, unlike recently when he looked childish and paranoid.
His voice was hoarse, but his tone was firm: "One day, I will bring them home."
Jin Sui reminded quietly: "If returning home means working like a slave for the nobles, I guess the common people will not be happy about it."
Gu Changxiao's eyes flashed with a hint of sharpness, not only towards the Northern Frontier, but also towards the Daxia nobles. It was a stubborn disease, and if it was to be treated, it would be necessary to break the bones.
But if it is not treated, we can only watch the Great Xia Dynasty slowly decline.
Jin Sui said softly: "I will support you! To be honest, I am not that upset to see the refugees in the mountains, because even if they become refugees, it is the people's own choice.
But seeing these Han slaves really makes me sad. They were all forcibly captured by the people of Northern Xinjiang, and have been slaves in Northern Xinjiang for generations.
They have lost their home and country, and even less hope. Their lives are worth less than a sheep, and they just live numbly.
Gu Changxiao, when you have power in the future, you must bring these people home. Give them hope, so that they can stand up again and become upright Han people! "
Jin Sui's eyes were burning, she was trying to control herself and suppress her excitement. She saw her compatriots being treated like cattle and horses, and they were already numb.
That feeling, anger and sadness are not enough to express, it's the blood vessels burning and the soul roaring.
I came here through time and space, whether it was because of the gods or for some other reason, since I have come here, I must do something, leave something behind, and change something.
In the past, he was ignorant and took things one step at a time, but now, Jinsui has found his goal and is convinced of the significance of this trip.
I am a child of the flower-growing family. No matter where I am, I must not forget my mission. I want my compatriots to stand up and live uprightly! After setting this goal, Jinsui suddenly felt that everything else became lighter, such as love.
She glanced at Gu Changxiao. Love is such a complicated and luxurious thing. It is better to have it, but it doesn’t matter if you don’t have it. There are so many things that can be done in a limited time.
The two walked in silence for a long time, both of them were very worried. When they were almost at the camp, Gu Changxiao said, "I just met someone from the Northwest Camp."
Jin Sui was startled, and asked in a low voice, "What happened?"
"My father is seriously ill, Prince Yu is concentrating his power, cutting the Northwest Camp, reducing military spending, and sending his own trusted men to lead the army. My old subordinates are being marginalized and persecuted, so I plan to send them to the border town."
Jin Sui clapped his hands in support: "Once the envoys from the Northern Frontier arrive in Beijing, Prince Yu will have no time to manage the border town. We can take this opportunity to recruit talented people.
Let them all come to the border town. No matter how many come, we can accommodate them. Don't worry about military expenses. Once trade in the northern border opens, the tariffs alone will be enough for you to support 100,000 troops."
Gu Changxiao suddenly smiled: "So, I don't have to go to the Northwest Camp, we can go back to the border town together."
Jin Sui was confused for a moment, then he praised you for becoming rational, but the next moment he became childish again. "Don't you really want me to go with Yan Jiu?"
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