Tang Dynasty: A Guide to Avoiding Pitfalls for Li Er at the Start

Chapter 206 Two thousand catties of silver? Are you trying to fob me off like a beggar?
The Japanese were stunned.

When she saw Wen He, for some reason, Xiao Yema felt a tightness in her heart.

His subconscious told him that this man from Gaoyang County was extremely dangerous.

However, he had no choice but to get close to Wen He.

Fireworks, papermaking, and tea frying.

These are all things that Japan needs right now, especially the first two.

It should be noted that Japanese nobles still use bamboo slips for writing, and they are so poor that they cannot even afford silk.

“You’re joking, Gao Yangxian. Ours aren’t rats.”

'I'm not a chicken either!'

Li Daozong secretly glared at Wen He.

Why is this little kid making such a comparison out of nowhere?

These Japanese, whether they're weasels or black weasels, how dare they compare me to a chicken?

“We come to convey Her Majesty the Queen’s sincerity.” Little Wild Horse bowed to Wen He.

Wen He stepped down from the carriage and came to him.

He was only ten years old, but in terms of height, he was already about the same size as a little wild horse.

"Didn't you call yourself the Emperor before? How come you're now the Queen?" Wen He scoffed and asked.

"The Queen?" Li Daozong was somewhat surprised.

He only knew that the queen of Silla was a woman, but he never expected that the so-called emperor of Japan was also a woman.

Little did he know that the current Japanese empress, later known as Empress Suiko, was the daughter of the previous king of Wa, and her husband was also the king of Wa.

She was also the first person in Japanese history to call herself the Emperor of Japan.

She is also the first female lead in Japanese television dramas.

However, this also led to the interruption of the first line of monarchical bloodline in Japan after her death, and the Japanese royal family changed from the main family to a collateral family.

"It was that person who was ignorant of the etiquette of the Celestial Empire and offended us. I hope that the magistrate of Gaoyang County will forgive us."

The little wild horse adopted a very humble attitude.

At least in Li Daozong's view, their attitude was sincere.

But Wen He knew that this nation's inherent weakness was that in front of the strong, they treated themselves like grandsons.

But if one day they realize that their powerful neighbor has declined, they will bare their fangs.

Little Wild Horse had come to the Tang Dynasty a long time ago. He was well aware of the Tang Dynasty's power, which is why he adopted this attitude.

But the Japanese, who had never seen the Tang Dynasty, had long regarded it as a piece of fat meat. If it weren't for the sea separating them, they would have pounced on it long ago.

But in the hearts of Xiao Yema and her ilk, they were incredibly grateful.

Fortunately, the sea provided a barrier; otherwise, Japan might have become a prefecture of this powerful nation long ago.

"You think an apology is all it takes to offend me?" Wen He chuckled lightly.

Seeing this, Li Daozong simply remained silent and watched Wen He perform.

Xiao Yema was taken aback, but he felt a little happy inside.

He thought Wen He's words were an attempt to extort money from him.

He had just said he was going to send a gift to Li Daozong's residence, but he hadn't mentioned sending it to Wen He, so he misunderstood and thought that he hadn't been clear enough.

He quickly added, "What the magistrate of Gaoyang said is absolutely right. I have also prepared some small gifts and will certainly pay a visit another day."

"A meager gift? You dare to come to my door with such a meager gift? Are you looking for a beating?" Wen He immediately rolled up her sleeves.

This startled the little wild horse, who quickly took a few steps back.

He was a little stunned.

If he remembers correctly, in the language of the Tang Dynasty, "薄礼" (bó lǐ) did not refer to a very small gift, but rather meant to be humble.

But how come this person...

Oh, right, he's only ten years old, he definitely doesn't understand these things.

Thinking of this, Xiao Yema quickly said, "Not at all. A lot of silver was sent from the country before. As the magistrate of Gaoyang County, I have prepared three thousand catties."

He said it in a low voice.

However, these words still clearly reached Li Daozong's ears, and he burst out laughing, losing his composure.

"How much, how much?"

Are these Japanese people really that rich?

Silver was given out by the kilogram.

Three thousand catties, that's forty-eight thousand taels of silver, which is about fifty thousand strings of cash at the current price of silver in the Tang Dynasty.

This little kid is going to be rich!

But his surprise was interpreted by the little wild horse as dissatisfaction.

Seeing this, Xiao Yema quickly added, "Your Majesty, I have prepared six thousand catties of this."

He grinned like a flower, giving away money as if he were receiving it himself.

"Cough cough."

Li Daozong coughed lightly twice to conceal his restless heart.

Six thousand catties! That's more than his family's monthly income.

“Your Excellency, this is not the place to speak. After all, you are a foreign envoy. Please come to the Court of State Ceremonial to speak.”

Li Daozong gently nudged Wen He.

The latter could tell from his appearance that he was blinded by money.

He's a prince, after all. Is it really necessary to make such a fuss?

Besides, even if you do take the money, do you think you can keep it?

However, since the Japanese were so generous, Wen He naturally couldn't refuse.

He accepted the money, but he didn't say he would actually do the job.

"In that case, please proceed."

Wen He said coldly, then tugged at Li Daozong's sleeve, ordering him to lead the way.

As for his indifferent attitude, the Japanese didn't take it to heart at all.

Little Wild Horse was worried that Wen He would ignore them.

The fact that they are now willing to negotiate with them means that there has been progress.

"Ono-kun, are these Tang people willing?"

A Japanese man next to him asked.

Little Wild Horse smiled and shook her head: "It'll be soon. People in Tang Dynasty China like to be reserved, but they are also very greedy. So the more we want to get, the more we have to give."

"But it's all worth it. What we give away now, we can take back later, as long as we are stronger than the Tang Dynasty!" A cold glint flashed in Xiao Yema's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

When he entered the Court of State Ceremonial.

Wen He and Li Daozong sat down on the left and right sides of the head of the table, respectively.

The servants of the government office then served tea.

"Prince Rencheng, Viscount of Gaoyang, regarding the matter previously proposed by the foreign minister, I wonder if His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Tang would approve it?"

After entering and bowing, Xiao Yemazi went straight to the point and asked.

Li Daozong took a sip of tea and was about to speak when he saw Wen He slam down his teacup.

The sound of the cup colliding with the table silenced him.

He turned his head in confusion, only to see Wen He say coldly, "Oh, I know. His Majesty understands your Japan. After all, crossing the sea is dangerous. Since you have come from afar, we naturally cannot let you go back empty-handed."

"That's why His Majesty specifically sent me here."

After saying that, he deliberately looked up at the little wild horse.

Upon hearing this, the latter was overjoyed and quickly replied, "Yes, yes, the magistrate of Gaoyang County is a first-rate talent in His Majesty's eyes. His Majesty attaches great importance to such an important matter by sending you here, and it is an honor for us."

"Ah."

Wen He straightened her clothes and gave a faint reply.

Li Daozong couldn't help but feel puzzled.

Didn't this little kid previously swear that the Japanese were dreaming?

Why did you suddenly change your mind after we got here?

However, he plans to take another look.

He had a feeling that Wen He was up to something, so he didn't interrupt him.

Wen He spoke with an air of nonchalance.

"As for tea, although it is rare in my family, I can spare some to sell to you. The price is negotiable. I know that your Japan is short of copper and doesn't have many copper coins."

"Yes, yes, thank you for your understanding, sir of Gaoyang County."

Little Wild Horse was overjoyed; he hadn't expected Wen He's attitude to change so quickly.

They even considered Japan's interests.

"Gao Yangxianzi is truly a kind person." Little Wild Horse looked deeply moved.

"I'll take care of this. How about ten taels of silver for one tael of tea? That's a great deal."

Since Wenhe's tea hasn't been promoted yet, Xiaoyezi naturally doesn't know how much the tea costs.

Besides, even if he knew, he would only assume that Wen He sold him good tea, not the kind of mass-market tea.

"That's excellent, excellent."

The little wild horse was satisfied, then looked at Wen He, waiting for him to continue.

Ke Wenhe took a sip of tea, smacked his lips a few times, and said to Li Daozong, "Alright, now that everything has been said, I will take my leave."

Having said that, he was about to get up.

But Little Wild Horse was taken aback.

He didn't come here just for the tea.

"Young master, are there any others? There are others."

He thought Wen He had forgotten and quickly reminded her.

Wen He looked at him suspiciously: "Others? What else? Didn't you come here today for tea? I've said all I wanted."

"Three thousand catties of silver, enough to buy tea, is already a discount I've given you."

Wen He smiled so kindly, as if she had done something great.

But Little Wild Horse was speechless and couldn't say a word.

Seeing that Wen He was about to leave, he quickly ran up to her.

"What are you doing? Are you trying to attack someone?!"

Wen He suddenly shouted, and before the little wild horse could react, he immediately yelled outside, "Black Armor Guards!"

"Shh!"

In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen armored soldiers rushed in from outside.

The young woman who had entered alone turned pale with fright and hurriedly waved her hands and shook her head, saying, "It's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. I had no intention of harming the county magistrate."

"Prince, may I speak with you in private?"

The little wild horse was terrified and quickly bowed to Wen He.

Seeing this, the latter cleared his throat, walked over, squinted at him, and asked, "Is there anything else?"

The little wild horse bowed obsequiously and smiled.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty desires more than just tea. Our nation holds the Tang Dynasty in high esteem, but alas, our country is impoverished, and our people suffer greatly."

"The Great Tang is a celestial empire, and I hope it can show some leniency. Your humble servant is willing to offer another two thousand catties of silver."

Even Little Wild Horse felt a pang of regret at giving away so much silver.

"Two thousand catties of silver? You're trying to fob me off with a beggar's money. It should be at least five thousand catties." Wen He shouted.

Xiao Yema felt a chill in his heart, gritted his teeth, and nodded, saying, "Alright, I'll do as the county magistrate says, five thousand catties."

"This is the right thing to do."

Wen He smiled, raised her hand and patted his shoulder, saying, "Since that's the case, then I'll make the decision and grant you the privilege of buying soap, which is something no other country has."

“Fat, soap, no, county magistrate, what I want are craftsmen, those who can forge iron and wood.”

Little Wild Horse quickly added, wanting to reach out and grab Wen He, but under the watchful eyes of the Xuanjia Guards, she dared not do so.

"You need a craftsman?" Wen He looked at him.

Little Wild Horse nodded quickly.

Wen He immediately scolded in dissatisfaction, "Then why didn't you say so earlier? Why didn't you say so earlier? You're wasting my time."

"Yes, yes, it was my fault, I apologize."

Xiao Yemazi suppressed the anger in his heart. If he could, he would like to beat the boy in front of him severely.

Wen He hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“Craftsmen, huh? Sure, but it’s not easy for the Tang Dynasty to support these craftsmen. How about this, I’ll make the decision again: 100,000 catties of silver for each craftsman.”

He then smiled.

His smile remained as kind as ever.

But Little Wild Horse felt like she was going crazy.

(End of this chapter)