Chapter 451 Mother and Son Disharmony
"The Emperor wishes to live in peace with the grasslands. This official has submitted a letter regarding Suijin Town and you, Miss Song!"
Song Liyun was a little surprised. She was just doing business and could only make some money. Why did she need to write it in a memorial to report to the emperor?
She said tactfully, "I am just a woman, and what I do are trivial matters. How can I delay His Majesty's heart?"
Jiang Feng looked at her as if she were a monster: "The little things you said are not small at all!"
"Acorn vermicelli, barbecue ingredients, rapeseed oil, wool yarn, cashmere blanket, ox horn comb, ox horn button ornaments, cardboard boxes and paper bags, toilet paper..." Jiang Feng didn't get tired of it and counted them one by one on his fingers.
Only then did Song Liyun realize that she had accidentally added a little too much.
"...and milk powder!" Jiang Feng finally ended it.
Song Liyun smiled and said, "These...are nothing! I'm from a poor family. I'm tired of poverty, so I just want to make more money!"
Jiang Feng did not mention the emperor again, but said: "The Di tribe burns, kills and plunders Yunzhou every year. Ultimately, it is because of the lack of supplies and the means of survival.
Last year the situation was peaceful as there was no heavy snow, with only two small villages being looted.
In response to this situation, every generation of court officials either proposed marriage alliance to appease the rebellion or sent heavy troops to attack, but neither could eliminate the hidden danger.
The Emperor thinks your method of enriching the tribe is feasible, and has argued with the Queen Mother privately several times!
The prince and the empress dowager are not on good terms with each other, and the emperor is also controlled by the empress dowager?
Song Liyun’s mind was buzzing: Is this... something I can hear?
Will he behead her immediately to silence her?
She was nervous in her heart, but her face remained calm. She just listened to what Jiang Feng said.
As Jiang Feng continued his narration, Song Liyun gradually understood what he meant.
Although the emperor is now in charge of government affairs, he relies on the Empress Dowager and Duke Anguo for assistance in handling most of the state affairs.
One is the biological mother and the other is the biological uncle, which is normal.
In general political affairs, the three get along well.
However, there were disagreements on the issue of Dilu Wang Ting, a close confidant of the Wu Dynasty.
The Queen Mother wanted to arrange a marriage alliance, using gentleness to overcome strength. She believed that as long as the woman was smart enough, she could resolve the conflict between the two ethnic groups, or at least ease the annual border conflicts.
The Duke of Anguo was a soldier and did not believe that women could play any role in state affairs.
He insisted on heavily guarding the city, and the imperial court continued to station troops in Yunzhou, and wanted to restore the original army of 100,000 to have an overwhelming force against the Di tribe.
But this will inevitably increase military spending.
When the emperor ascended the throne, the problem of the Zhenbei Army's previously overdue military pay would naturally be resolved, but the Ministry of Revenue would certainly not be willing to increase military spending, as that would be another source of controversy.
The request of Duke Anguo to increase the troops has not been approved yet, but the emperor wants to use one tiger to suppress another. He hopes that Wu Chao will send troops and money to support his cousin Zhao Tingduo to become the leader of the tribal royal court and completely solve the problem of the Di tribe invading the border.
As soon as this plan came out, it was rejected by the Queen Mother and the Duke of Anguo, who said that he was young and naive.
Isn't it possible that this will only bring harm to oneself? The Wuda tribe has only more than 200 people. Even if the Zhenbei Army sends a 400-man Lei Battalion to conquer a piece of territory in the Mida River Valley, it will not be able to compete with the Di Lu royal court with more than 10,000 troops.
Whether in terms of manpower and financial resources, the Wuda tribe still relies on the Zhenbei Army. It is good enough that they do not become a burden to the Wu Dynasty. How can they entrust national affairs to a small tribe?
Moreover, the Dilu royal court and the Wu Dynasty had a tacit understanding for hundreds of years.
If the Wu Dynasty sends a large army into the grassland and arbitrarily disrupts the balance between the grassland tribes, the royal court will massacre the border town of Yunzhou.
In other words, the 400-member Thunder Battalion of the Wuda tribe was causing chaos in the Mida Valley, using the excuse of tribal conflict, which was consistent with tribal revenge.
Everyone knows that the Wuda tribe was exterminated twenty years ago, so the royal court will not intervene.
If the Wu Dynasty Zhenbei Army openly entered the grassland, it would be a declaration of war on the royal court, which has a certain say in the grassland, which is not what both sides want to see.
When Song Liyun heard this, her face changed drastically, she broke out in a cold sweat, and her fingers that were pinching the edge of her skirt turned white.
"Master Jiang, does the city garrison know this news?"
The decision to station troops on the grassland was made with Zhao Tinglei a year ago. If the Zhenbei Army was not stationed there, could Mida City still be built?
Jiang Feng has always been the little emperor's man. What does he mean by saying this to himself?
“Zhao Tinglei should have received the letters from the Queen Mother and Duke Anguo, and will terminate the agreement with you, but he does not know the Emperor’s intention.
The reason I want you to come here today is that you must set off for Hecheng as soon as possible and tell General Lei the emperor's intention.
We can continue to support the Wuda tribe, but we can no longer openly send troops to provoke the royal court. We must find another way."
When Song Liyun heard this, her heart finally settled down, but it was still pounding.
She used to laugh at Aunt Xu for surviving in the cracks, but now she understands that the Wuda tribe is truly dancing on the edge of a knife.
The Queen Mother and the court represented by Duke Anguo were not optimistic about the Wuda tribe. In their minds, Madam Wuya was just a concubine kept by Duke Anguo.
The Wuda tribe was not allowed to expand its military power to prevent it from provoking the Dilu royal court, so they were sent maids and craftsmen, but no weapons for fighting.
On the other hand, maintaining good relations with the royal court through marriage is a fairly standard foreign policy.
However, the Queen Mother and the Duke of Anguo underestimated the young emperor's determination.
The emperor was young and full of vigor, and was fearless like a newborn calf. He wanted to support and strengthen the Wuda tribe, to check and balance the Di Lu royal court, and privately contacted old friends like Jiang Feng.
The choice of the Wuda tribe is obviously a difficult problem.
One wrong step and everything could be wiped out!
Seeing Song Liyun remain silent, Jiang Feng knew that it was not a decision to be made lightly, so he reminded her, "The Emperor is very interested in your business. Why not let the tribe prosper first? If merchants from the Wu Dynasty hire escorts, the Dilu Royal Court cannot interfere!"
Song Liyun's heart moved, and a vague idea emerged: It is normal for a prosperous shopping mall to have a large-scale security team.
He was from the Wu Dynasty, the caravan was also from the Wu Dynasty, and it was normal that the guards were also from the Wu Dynasty.
The Zhenbei Army cannot show up, but they can change their uniforms and headgear.
Jiang Feng was afraid that his words would be too serious and would frighten Song Liyun, so he added, "Your business is doing very well, but it's obviously not enough. I have already written a memorial to the Ministry of Revenue, recommending that your pear blossom tissues and various paper bags be included in the imperial tribute."
Song Liyun's eyes lit up: Being selected as a tribute does not make money, but it can increase popularity and have an advertising effect.
With tribute as a cover, your own mall will be more confident.
But she also thought of a question: "Who is the Imperial Merchant?"
Jiang Feng hesitated slightly: "Yuzhou Bai family, you don't need to worry about anything happening."
Oh! That's the emperor's man, I don't know him!
The Qi family in Hecheng used to be a branch of the imperial merchants. A year ago, they were arrested by Zhao Tinglei for human trafficking. After the whole family escaped, they have not been seen since.
The Qi family in the capital had the help of the Princess Royal and the Empress Dowager, and they gave up their Haoran family property, took off the title of imperial merchant that had been passed down for decades, and saved their lives.
Now Yunzhou’s procurement is managed by the Bai family.
There is no imperial merchant in Yunzhou, and the Bai family is just a name. The Hecheng Garrison is the one that controls everything.
Now Jiang Feng asked Song Liyun to offer pear blossom tissue paper as tribute instead of grassland items such as sheepskin yarn, just to give her a chance to stand out.
(End of this chapter)
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