Controlling mountains and rivers since the Warring States Period

Chapter 384 (Extra Chapter) Crassus's Quest for Qin (Part 1)

In the second year of the Tai Shi era of the Han Dynasty,
In the tenth year of Qin Tai'an,
Crassus, son of a wealthy Roman consul and one of the richest men in Rome, accepted the state's mission as an envoy to visit the Qin state in the east.

As Marius' reforms progressed, Rome's national strength gradually recovered.

This made the Romans gradually remember the Thrace region, which they had been unable to manage and preserve due to the chaos of the country. This region is now the Beidi Commandery of the Qin state.

That area was developed by the Qin people.
There are already signs of prosperity.
Goods produced within the four borders of the Qin state.

Furthermore, the precious Eastern treasures transported along long trade routes were gathered in the city of Yubi in the northern prefecture, and then transferred from there to Rome or the northern barbarians.

Jade disc!

What a beautiful name!
When the Qin people first built it, they only hoped to use this city to guard the throat of the Western Sea and protect their important land of revival.

But under the immense power of time,
The city not only became magnificent and fortified, but also revealed its jade-like beauty and wealth.

The Romans looked at this young, beautiful city, which also possessed great wealth, and their hearts were filled with excitement.

They wanted to hug her.
It's like embracing a lover who has stolen your heart and soul, making you wish you could be forever immersed in the flames of love.

But unfortunately,

This beauty is taken.

Although Romans were known for their wild private lives and were not ashamed of partying with all sorts of people,
But the Qin people, whose ancestors came from the far east and conquered the ancient land of Persia, did not like this.

They exercised strict management and intense attention to every inch of land they occupied, and were keen to make everything on the conquered land accept their culture and system, and to leave a mark of "since ancient times" on the land that had once been inhabited by others and now belonged to Qin.

Even more unfortunately,
The people of Qin were full of martial spirit, and the country was at its peak.

Rome, this young man who rose to power by sailing the seas and now covets other men's wives, may not necessarily be capable of taking two beatings without injury.

Therefore,
Rome decided to send diplomats to the Qin state to investigate their strengths and weaknesses.

If given the chance to let them reach out and touch the cracks in the Jade Wall, the Romans will take action!
If not,

Then we'll have to talk about it another time.

Against this backdrop,
Crassus, only twenty years old, asked his father, the consul, to appoint him as ambassador.

His father said, "This journey is very difficult, and the Qin people are also in great danger."

But Crassus countered by saying to his father, "No matter how dangerous it is, they are civilized. How could they, like barbarians, kill an envoy from another country without cause?"

"Moreover, I have heard that the Qin state has established close ties with the Han state in the east, and every year a great deal of goods are gathered in the Qin capital."

"If I could bribe officials in the Qin state to help me obtain favors and thus bypass the Balkans, opening up a secret sea route directly from Asia Minor to Rome, how much wealth could our family acquire!"

Rome was a country where commerce flourished.

After all, the area of ​​their territory is much larger than that of their land, and the latter is more scattered and not concentrated in one place.

Therefore, merchants who traveled to and from all directions, transporting goods and goods, were welcomed in Rome.

As a result, the Crassus family rose to become one of the most powerful families in Rome.

His father, upon hearing this, readily agreed, "Qin is indeed a place flowing with wealth. You can go and give it a try, and open up new sources of income for the family!"

then,

Crassus traveled by ship from Rome and first arrived at the Jade Wall City of the Qin state.

He needed to obtain the travel document from here, and then transport it to the port built by the Qin state on the Asia Minor peninsula, which was on the territory of the Xilong Commandery, to go to the Qin capital.

When they arrived at Jade Wall City
Crassus encountered the Thracian with whom he had previously clashed once again—

of course,

According to the Qin people, who were sometimes stingy and cruel, but at other times tolerant and magnanimous, Spartacus, who had been educated and adopted by the local officials, should be considered a normal citizen of the country.

The governor, following protocol, held a banquet for Crassus, the envoy, and presented him with a travel permit.

But Crassus did not leave immediately.

He stayed in Yubi City for a few days, taking in every corner of the city.

Spartacus was assigned by the governor to stay by his side in case this seemingly frivolous Roman merchant did anything bad to the city of Jade Walls.

For this,

Spartacus was very unhappy.
When Crassus sees something new and marvels at it, Spartacus would disdainfully use the language of the Xia to describe him:
"I don't know!"

"All you do is yell and shout!"

When Crassus subconsciously began calculating how much wealth those new gadgets could bring him,
Spartacus was even more disdainful.

"Those hateful merchants!"

"They only know how to seek their own interests, lacking both the bravery of a warrior and the simplicity of a farmer!" "If you were born in Qin, you would surely have met the same fate as those Maccabees!"

Maccabi National Park

It was a state established by wandering merchants that was casually destroyed when the Qin Dynasty was at its peak in the Yellow River region.

Those merchants later attempted to undermine Qin's government by buying low and selling high, inflating prices, and issuing loans privately. They were caught by the Qin people, their entire clan was executed on the spot, and the rest of them had their property confiscated and were enslaved.

"...What is he saying?"

Crassus, who was unfamiliar with the refined language of the Xia people, listened to Spartacus, dressed in the classic military uniform of the Qin people, babbling on beside him, and asked the translator arranged by the prefect.

"He's praising your talent in business!"

The translator replied calmly, "He said that if you had been born in the Qin state, you would have brought great joy to your family!"

Crassus didn't quite believe him.

But he was so obsessed with money that he didn't want to pay for a private translator himself.

and so……

That's good enough!

As long as Spartacus doesn't have any other ideas about his purse.

Crassus was too lazy to argue with him.

Until the day they left by ship,
As was customary, the prefect arranged for his adopted son to see off the Roman envoy as a sign of courtesy.

Crassus stood proudly on the ship, looking down at Spartacus below, then opened his mouth and spoke to him in the refined language of the lands he had painstakingly learned:
"You melon skin!"

Spartacus was enraged on the spot and almost jumped into the sea to hunt down Crassus.

Crassus, seeing his impotent rage, burst into laughter.

Shortly thereafter,

He arrived in Xilong County.

Over the years, this plateau region has also been developed in many areas by the hardworking gentry of the Chinese people.

As Krasus crossed the rolling mountains and hills, he saw many Qin people driving herds of cattle, horses, and sheep through the countryside.

Near the city, large tracts of land were cultivated.

The Qin people would grow wheat and various fruits and vegetables there. Even in the city, Crassus could find vegetables and fruits in the corners of houses and courtyards.

Crassus therefore lamented:
"The Qin people are truly a nation skilled in farming."

"I have never seen anyone take such meticulous care of a piece of land or have such exquisite taste in the food they eat!"

Anyway, for Crassus,

After arriving in Qin, he ate far more lavishly than he had in Rome!
The sheer variety of ways to eat steamed buns was dazzling enough for him, not to mention the other foods.

The Qin merchant beside him, who was a Roman envoy of high status, warmly invited him to accompany him and told him in broken Roman, with a smile, "The Qin people are not a separate ethnic group."

"The Chinese are the foundation of our identity."

The Qin people and the various Xia states,

It's just a branch on a big tree.

If the separation of the family property is approved...
Then the emperor of Qin would no longer be able to be the Son of Heaven among the various Xia states!

This is absolutely not possible!
Do you really believe that the Xia and Han people, who are separated by such a great distance, are your own kind?

Crassus was somewhat surprised by this.

"Of course!"

“Thousands of years ago, our ancestors taught us: The Chinese peoples are closely related and should not be abandoned!”

"Even after being isolated for hundreds of years, the Wu Kingdom, which fled to the southeastern Yue region, never forgot its identity as one of the Chinese states, and whenever it had the chance, it restored the tradition of wearing its hair tied up and its robes fastened on the right!"

"So how could we possibly abandon our ancestors, forget our origins, and sever ties with our fellow countrymen?"

His face revealed distinct foreign blood from his mother, and the merchant, who claimed his father was a descendant of the Bai clan of the Qin state, spoke with conviction.

Crassus listened to his words and his expression became somewhat solemn.

But he didn't say anything, he just started twisting the gemstone ring on his hand.

(End of this chapter)