Chapter 344 The prestige of the country, the danger of the country
The generous public uniform is actually not suitable for Ye An. In any case, he is still a boy of fifteen or sixteen years old and has not yet reached his prime. In the eyes of many people, he is just a child.
That's why Wang Zhen stood up and objected in the court that day. Lu Yijian didn't want Ye An to get involved, not because of anything else but because it wasn't suitable.
How could the majestic Song Dynasty, the power of a country, and the weight of annual coins be entrusted to a young man?!
But what Ye An wants is this effect, to be unexpected and to attack the opponent unprepared. This is the most commonly used strategy at the negotiation table, but the only thing that can win is not the strategy, but the competition of spirit and will. Of course, he also needs to rely on his own motherland as a source of confidence.
The Liao Dynasty envoy did not arrive, but the officials of Honglu Temple were setting up the meeting place in front of them. The two parties were not talking at the same table, but one person and one small table.
Sitting slowly behind the small table, Ye An felt that it was a bit nonsense. The negotiation between Song and Liao was about how big the annual currency was! And the Song Dynasty didn't even have an official from the Third Division. This was not only unreasonable, but also
Somewhat stupid.
In Ye An's view, the amount of annual coins should not be decided by himself as the "leader", but should be decided by the officials of the three departments who have a better understanding of economics and finance.
What I should do is to reduce the annual currency as much as the Song Dynasty can bear, and create more economic value.
The annual coins must be paid to the Liao Dynasty. This is a war indemnity between the two countries. It also involves the issue of national credibility. It is undoubtedly a sensitive topic and is also an issue decided by strength. Otherwise, the border of the Song Dynasty at this time of year
The army will not assemble in Zhending Mansion and other places.
This is not a joke, but the real truth. From the intelligence chief Chen Lin, Ye An already knew the general actions of the Privy Council, and the Liao Dynasty also responded accordingly.
From the beginning to the end, Chen Lin reminded him that a "talking talk" could not make the Liao people give up the big prize of Sui coins. After all, the Liao Dynasty's huge interests were involved, and these interests included many economic and political things.
One hundred thousand guan of money and two hundred thousand bolts of silk cloth were not a small sum for the Liao Dynasty. Although it was not a big deal for the Song Dynasty, the Liao people were on this basis.
Every year they change their ways to ask for more property.
Is Da Song rich?
Of course there is money. Every year, spices, rhinoceros horns, ivory, tea, porcelain, lacquerware, rice and silk fabrics are exchanged for some livestock such as sheep, horses, camels, etc. from the Liao Dynasty. Yes, even strategic materials such as horses can be purchased from the Liao Dynasty.
.
Ye An knew that the Liao Dynasty suffered a great loss, but the Khitan people did not understand what a trade war was, or Ye An's senior officials chose to turn a blind eye.
The Song Dynasty used this attitude and export trade to continuously earn money from the Liao Dynasty and form a trade surplus. The method was very primitive and simple, but the effect was amazing. The amount of tariffs collected from the market every year was huge.
Otherwise, when Cao used to negotiate for 300,000 yuan of silk, Emperor Zhenzong's first reaction was that there would be "fewer people" in Liao...
However, the "Alliance under the City" would feel this way, and the Zhenzong Emperor was quite capable, but the Han emperors would actually feel that the foreign dynasty wanted less money. No wonder such a dynasty would become smaller and smaller until it was destroyed.
A group of officials came over. They were all stunned when they saw Ye An, who was sitting alone on the small table in a daze. Then they came over and saluted him with folded hands: "I have seen Ye Hou!"
Ye An took a look at them and saw that they were all wearing the same cyan seventh-grade or seventh-grade public uniform, while he was already wearing the fifth-grade vermillion uniform.
It's very simple. Negotiating the annual currency is not dignified for civil servants, but after all, it is a "major event" related to national interests. Generally, a mid-level and high-level official will be promoted and dispatched, and most of the rest will be promoted.
As low-level officials.
What surprised Ye An the most was that Xia Song actually came too. He was a fourth-grade Taizhong doctor who knew Zhigao and was considered a senior official. However, he had not heard that he wanted to participate in this year's currency negotiation before.
Go to Liao Dynasty as He Zhengdan's envoy...
After a moment's thought, he understood, and Ye An showed a sly smile: "Never thought that Xia Zhi's imperial edict was included in this list? This is the Liao Dynasty's envoy to congratulate Zhengdan, so more Xia Zhi's imperial edicts need to be mentioned!"
Although it was sarcastic, Xia Song did not get angry, but smiled and said: "Yehou used three boxes of stone honey to pay off the debt of Daxiangguo Temple, so Xia took out his money early, which can be regarded as preservation.
I have obtained these belongings, but I wonder if Ye Hou has any backup plans?"
Ye An was slightly stunned. He never thought that Xia Song would have such a sense of crisis. Then he smiled and said: "What's the back-up plan? It's just a poor guy with poor skills!"
"Oh?! Is that true?" Xia Song leaned slightly closer to Ye An and said, "Don't worry, Marquis Ye. Although Xia has financial dealings with the clan, they have little connection. Marquis Ye does not need to be on guard!"
Just kidding, can you believe Xia Song's words?
Showing the most sincere expression, Ye An laughed and said: "What did Xia Zhigao say? How can an official in the same dynasty guard against it? Besides, if everything is not over, why use the betrothal gift for your mother-in-law to pay off the debt on your big day!"
Looking at the self-deprecating smile on Ye An's face, Xia Song raised his eyebrows. Like the young man in front of him, he didn't believe what Ye An said at all.
He just shook his head slightly and said: "Yehou is very clever. Xia just told Yehou that I have no hostility towards you. Even if I can't buy your house, I have never had any resentment. As an official in the same dynasty, you should put the country first."
, if Marquis Ye was not angry, he could have reprimanded him privately, saying that he should not have ridiculed the foreign ministers at the gate of Honglu Temple, which was unworthy of the dignity of the Song Dynasty... Moreover, it was Xia who arranged for people to receive the Japanese envoys...
"
Oh! I understand, Xia Song felt that he was going to make things difficult for the Japanese envoy at the gate of Honglu Temple because he was going to him, so he cursed "idiot" in his heart!
But on the surface, he was still surprised, and then he said with a serious expression: "The Japanese came to our Song Dynasty to defraud money. How could Xia Zhigao not see through it with his talent? It is really inappropriate to treat them with such dignity!"
Unexpectedly, the young man in front of him could actually see the secret. Xia Song smiled and said, "Oh? So Ye Hou saw through their intentions and deliberately ridiculed him. Was it because he had trouble with Xia?"
"It's natural!"
"But does Marquis Ye know why Xia did this? Why did the court do this? Could it be that all the Gonggun princes in the court couldn't see the Japanese's sneaky tricks?"
"It's just for the sake of fame..."
"Marquis Ye, be careful!"
Xia Song's face suddenly became extremely serious, and he stared at Ye An and said word by word: "In Ye Hou's opinion, the Song Dynasty was defrauded of money by small countries, and it was me, the Song Dynasty, who conspired to gain a false reputation, but the reality is quite different.
Far!"
Xia Song took a deep breath and guided Ye An to sit down with his bare hands. He also sat on the edge and said, "Is it possible that the Gonggun guilds above the court don't know about such ghostly tricks? It's just a helpless move.
, the kingdoms in the southwest have been in turmoil for a long time, the parties in the northwest are ready to move, and the Liao Dynasty in the north is peeking at our land of the Song Dynasty. We must not use weapons without authorization. How should we deal with it?"
Seeing Ye An suddenly stunned across from him, Xia Song nodded slightly: "It seems that Ye Hou has also seen me, Song Zhidong."
"If you can't use means or use weapons, you can only rely on building momentum to convince all parties. But is this kind of momentum really useful?"
Xia Song smiled contemptuously: "Ever since ancient times, the winner has always been the king and the loser! If foreigners had bowed to me, the Song Dynasty, for this reason, you and I would not be meeting each other in this Honglu Temple today! The momentum is not created just for outsiders to see..."
Needless to say what has been pointed out, Ye An smiled bitterly and said: "No wonder Mr. Jiu Jing told Ye An: Stone can be sharpened to turn dullness into profit; law can be sharpened to turn stupidity into wisdom! Emotions cannot restrain those people.
Got it!"
"Strengthening the trunk and weak branches is not a good practice! One year is like a year, one group is as strong as another group, how can we continue...how can we continue..."
Ye An rubbed his eyes. He actually saw pain and despair in Xia Song. This guy really has a heart for the country and the people! At least now, he has not lost his mind in the face of power and wealth.