Diqin Designer

Chapter 524 Reciprocity, What the Qin Dynasty Needs
Afterwards, Wang Ling introduced other gifts, each of which amazed Euthydemus I and his entourage; they were all extremely rare treasures.

Although the gifts sent by the Qin people were all extremely rare treasures, Euthydemus I felt that something was missing, and he quickly realized what it was.

After the royal tombs were introduced, Euthydemus I asked, "I have heard that your country has a weapon called 'cannon,' which is extremely powerful. May we have a look at it, envoy?"

Upon hearing Eusidmus I's words, the Bactrian ministers in the hall all turned their gaze toward the royal tomb.

Yes, the Qin people also had those mysterious cannons. The Yuezhi people were defeated by the Qin people's cannons. If they could get cannons from the Qin people, they would definitely be able to easily defeat the Yuezhi people as well.

If Baselus hadn't reminded them, they would have almost forgotten that the Qin people also had cannons.

Wang Ling glanced at Euthydemus I, wondering if this foreign ruler was planning to take advantage of the Qin Dynasty's cannons.
Wang Ling said, "What Your Majesty has heard is true. Our Great Qin does indeed possess cannons, but Your Majesty has no opportunity to see them this time. Cannons are no ordinary weapons; they are a vital asset of our Great Qin. We did not bring any with us, and we are truly sorry!"

Upon hearing this, Euthydemus I was quite disappointed, but he couldn't say anything.

If cannons were truly as powerful as rumored, he, being a Qin person, certainly wouldn't have taken them to another country so easily. What if that country acquired the technology to cast cannons? Wouldn't that just cause him trouble?
Everyone has it; how can one family have it all?

As a nation, it naturally desires that other countries be weak while its own country is strong.

Just as Euthydemus I was about to speak, Wang Ling added, "Besides cannons, the armor and weapons of our Great Qin are also quite impressive. Although Your Majesty cannot see the cannons, Your Majesty can take a look at the armor and weapons of our Great Qin. Is Your Majesty interested?"

After listening to the translator's retelling, Euthydemus I pondered for a moment and immediately understood that the Qin people meant: We cannot show you our cannons, as we did not bring any, but in addition to cannons, our swords, spears, arrows, and armor are also quite good. Would Your Majesty like to take a look?

Euthydemus I understood the purpose of the Qin people's proposal: the Qin people wanted to showcase the superiority of their military equipment and attract them to make purchases.

The Qin people wanted to sell their weapons and armor!
But Euthydemus I became genuinely interested; he wanted to see how different the Qin soldiers' armor was from their own, and whether they were more powerful.

If it's stronger than theirs, it means it's stronger than those Western guys, and he wouldn't mind buying a batch.

No, the Qin people are going west. They will definitely sell their weapons and armor to those guys in the west. If he doesn't buy them and others do, wouldn't he suffer if there is a conflict with those guys in the west later?
If they have what we don't, then we're in danger. If we don't want to suffer losses in the future, we have to buy Qin's weapons and armor.

Was this also part of the Qin people's plan?

Euthydemus I, after a moment's thought, asked, "How will the messenger allow me to see this?"

Wang Ling said, "How about having the delegation's guards demonstrate it directly to Your Majesty in two days? As for the demonstration location and the items to be prepared, I'll have to trouble Your Majesty."

Euthydemus I said, “The location shall be the Bactra Stadium, shall we? As for what needs to be prepared, the messenger can inform me.”

Thinking of the large stadium he saw after entering the city, Wang Ling nodded: "As Your Majesty wishes!"

The Bactrian king chose the stadium as the venue for the demonstration, clearly with ulterior motives, but the royal family didn't care much. They simply wanted to showcase the superiority of Qin's military equipment and attract these people to make purchases.

After settling the matter, Euthydemus I said, "His Majesty the Emperor has sent you all as envoys and brought so many gifts. Is there anything we can do to help you?"

The Qin people sent these gifts not specifically to him, and he should reciprocate when others send him gifts.

Wang Ling smiled and said, "Your Majesty is too kind, but we do have something to ask of Your Majesty. Firstly, our Prince Li Nian has heard that your country has many books on scholarship and hopes that we can bring them back for him. We hope that Your Majesty will allow us to copy your country's works."

With Li Nian around, the Qin Dynasty didn't actually have much need for the knowledge and craftsmanship of the Western countries. The purpose was to understand the level of civilization development of the Western countries and collect their writings.

When he heard Wang Ling’s first request, Euthydemus I was reluctant to agree. What if the Qin people took back their advanced knowledge and became even stronger?
But when he saw the treasures displayed in the hall, he felt that he could not refuse them directly. At worst, he could hide the important knowledge and crafts and only let the Qin people copy the less important ones.

Having made his decision, Emperor Euthydemus I said, "Very well, let your scholars go to the library and see which works they like. If there are copies, they can take them directly; if there are no copies, they can make copies themselves."

After saying this, Euthydemus I asked, "Do you all understand our language? If not, I can send scholars to Qin to translate for you."

Euthydemus I had already planned to send scholars to Daqin (the Roman Empire), and this was merely a convenient suggestion.

But since it was ostensibly Euthydemus I's good intention, Wang Ling thanked him, saying, "Thank you very much, Your Majesty!"

At this point, Euthydemus I noticed that this was the second time the Qin envoy had mentioned Prince Li Nian, and asked curiously, "Who is that Prince Li Nian?"

Upon hearing the translated words, Wang Ling realized that the King of Bactria had mistaken Prince Li Nian for His Majesty the Emperor's son. He smiled and explained, "Prince Li Nian is His Majesty the Emperor's son-in-law. He was bestowed the title of 'Prince' by His Majesty because of his talent and wisdom. Prince Li Nian is a great sage of our Great Qin, with profound knowledge and outstanding talent."

Euthydemus I laughed and said, "So he is a great scholar who has been appreciated by His Majesty the Emperor of Qin for his talent."

He still believed that the young master Li Nian was the biological son of the Qin emperor, who was greatly favored by the Qin emperor and would succeed the current Qin emperor to the throne.

Wang Ling didn't elaborate on Li Nian's matter, but echoed, "Just as Your Majesty said!"

Seeing that Euthydemus I did not ask any further questions, Wang Ling continued, "Secondly, the scholars of our Great Qin are very interested in the doctrines of your country and wish to exchange ideas with the scholars under Your Majesty's command. We hope Your Majesty will grant us permission."

This was another reason for bringing scholars like Li Shiqi along: to spread some of the cultural ideas of the Qin Dynasty to these foreign lands through exchanges with local scholars, so that they would be influenced by the Qin Dynasty.

Although the initial impact may not have been profound, how could there be a deep influence if nothing was done first? Over time, through subtle and gradual influence, these foreign lands were distorted in terms of culture and thought into the shape that Qin desired.

This is why Li Shiqi was appointed as the deputy envoy of the mission.

Euthydemus I pondered for a moment and felt that the Qin people's request was not a big problem. Their scholars could communicate with Qin scholars and perhaps influence them.

Euthydemus I had full confidence in the scholars of his own country. Even if the Qin people possessed a decent culture, they were certainly superior. Could the Qin people really produce great scholars like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle?
Euthydemus I said, “Very well, you may set a time to exchange ideas with our scholars at the theater. If I am available at that time, I will also go and observe.”

Wang Ling then said, "Thirdly, I have heard that your country's horses are extremely fine and swift. I request that Your Majesty grant us some horses, both male and female."

When Wang Ling mentioned wanting good horses, both stallions and mares, Euthydemus I knew that the Qin people wanted to take them back to breed and raise them.

He was somewhat reluctant, because the Qin people's strength might increase after acquiring their horses.

But he was too embarrassed to refuse outright, so he could only reduce the number of horses given to the Qin people: "Fifteen stallions and fifteen mares, plus twenty geldings, how about that?"

Wang Ling hadn't expected to get many good horses from Euthydemus I; he just wanted enough stallions to bring back to Qin. Besides, they weren't just asking for horses from Bactria; they wanted them from each of the western countries they were going to visit.

Wang Ling smiled and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty! Fourthly, we would like to ask Your Majesty for some crops unique to your country. Your country is different from Qin, and the crops are quite different. Young Master Li Nian is very curious about your country's vegetables and fruits and asked us to bring back some!"

That's not a big problem, but it's their Bactrian specialty. Even if we give it to the Qin people, they'll still have to spend time and effort to grow it.

It's impossible for the Qin people to take it back, sow it one moment, and harvest it the next, with a yield far exceeding theirs. If that were the case, then we absolutely cannot give it to them.

Euthydemus I laughed and said, “Since our crops are so different from yours, could you bring some of your crops with you? I would like to see them.”

Wang Ling understood that Eusidmus I was being wary of them, but they genuinely only wanted to take some local specialties back with them. He replied, "We brought some with us when we set out. If Your Majesty wishes, we may share some with you."

Euthydemus I laughed and said, "That will suffice!"

Wang Ling then said, "Fifthly, I request Your Majesty to allow my Great Qin to trade with your esteemed state, that is, merchants from both countries may travel to each other's countries to trade, and neither side shall obstruct them."

There's no problem with that. Even if Wang Ling didn't bring it up, Euthydemus I and others would have done so themselves, expressing their willingness to trade with the Qin Dynasty.

The Qin people had so many wonderful things that the gifts brought by the Qin delegation alone were far from enough to satisfy them. Qin artifacts had a huge market in Bactria.

We can make a fortune by sending people to Qin to buy goods and then bringing them back to our country!
What troubled them was that the Qin people had many good things to sell them, but they didn't seem to have many good things to sell to the Qin people. They had to ask the Qin delegation what the Qin people needed.

After the two sides finished their discussion, Euthydemus I looked at the sky outside the palace and suddenly laughed, "I have been talking with you distinguished guests and have lost track of time. Although the conversation is pleasant, I am not hungry."

Wang Ling laughed and said, "If Your Majesty hadn't reminded me, I really wouldn't have noticed. Now that Your Majesty has mentioned it, I'm actually quite hungry!"

Euthydemus I laughed heartily and said, "In that case, the envoy should eat more later, so that our guests will not go hungry."

The gifts brought by Wang Ling and his entourage were carried away, and the banquet that King Euthydemus I had specially prepared for the delegation began.

The banquet was served in individual portions. After taking their seats, Wang Ling and the others were presented with exquisite tableware: gold wine cups, silver plates, and ivory spoons and forks...

The tableware was complete, but there were no chopsticks.

After Wang Ling and the others took their seats, Euthydemus I and his entourage observed them without instructing them on how to use the various cutlery, intending to see if these Qin people knew how.

They watched as Wang Ling and the others skillfully picked up knives and forks to cut food, as if it were nothing unfamiliar to them.

For Wang Ling and his companions, the food in Bactria was far inferior to that in the Qin Dynasty. The cooking methods were rather simple, and most of the food delivered was roasted. Moreover, when Wang Ling and his companions tasted it, they found that some of the roasted food seemed to be undercooked and was still raw.

The preparation was poor; some unpleasant odors were not removed, and a lot of spices were used, making the food taste strange to Wang Ling and the others.

Of course, this is also due to differences in eating habits. What the Bactrians consider delicious food might be considered unpalatable by the people of Qin.

The drinks served at the banquet were different from those that Wang Ling and others had drunk in Da Qin. There were also people at the banquet who would mix the drinks and add ingredients according to their own needs.

Not only were there food and drinks, but there were also song and dance performances. The performers were all young girls dressed in light clothes, swaying their waists and dancing exotic dances. The music came from instruments that Wang Ling and the others did not recognize. Although they did not understand a single word of the song, it sounded very novel and interesting.

Euthydemus I and others would sometimes tap their feet to the rhythm of the songs and dances.

When the singing and dancing ceased, Euthydemus I looked at the royal tomb and asked with a smile, "What does the envoy think of this compared to the banquet of the Great Qin?"

Wang Ling replied with a smile: "It is different from my Great Qin and has its own style. As for which is better or worse, it is hard to say. Because your country's culture is different from that of Great Qin, what I think is good may not be what Your Majesty thinks, and vice versa."

King Euthydemus I nodded and said, “Indeed, the two countries are different, and there are many differences between them, so it is not appropriate to directly compare their merits. Could the envoy tell me about the food, banquets, songs and dances of Great Qin?”

Wang Ling pondered for a moment, then replied, "The banquets of the Great Qin are similar to those of your country, and we often eat separately while enjoying songs and dances. However, if His Majesty the Emperor hosts a banquet, the etiquette is much more elaborate than that of your country..."

"But nowadays, when His Majesty the Emperor holds a banquet, he sometimes does not serve meals separately, but instead has the guests sit at separate tables, that is, several people sit at one table to eat and drink together."

"As for food, the Qin Dynasty has a wide variety of cooking methods, including roasting, frying, pan-frying, stir-frying, steaming, boiling... all kinds of flavors are available. Especially after Young Master Li Nian came out of seclusion to assist His Majesty the Emperor, the people of the Qin Dynasty have even more flavors in their food."

The cooking methods described by Wang Ling greatly surprised Euthydemus I and his entourage. With so many ways to cook, how many delicious foods could there be?

The Qin people seem to be superior to us in terms of food. We must send someone to Qin to see what kind of cooking methods they have.

But what does it mean that "Young Master Li Nian has come out of seclusion to assist His Majesty the Emperor"?
Unsure, Emperor Euthydemus I asked curiously, "Did Prince Li Nian live in the mountains before he assisted His Majesty the Qin Emperor?"

(End of this chapter)