A large-scale manhunt was launched in the city of Rome. Many foreign merchants, especially those from the East, became prisoners overnight. Their goods were seized and they were sold as slaves or used as gladiators. This storm Soon it spread throughout the Qin Dynasty, and many merchants who had never dealt in tea, or even silk and porcelain, were arrested.
A few days later, a public tea destruction meeting was held in the most famous arena in Rome. Hundreds of large wooden boxes were piled in the central square. It was said that they contained tea trafficked by Eastern merchants. In fact, Putimiu Si knew in his heart that during this operation, only a dozen boxes of tea were confiscated in the entire Qin Dynasty. Hundreds of boxes were deliberately placed just to bluff and show how much real money the Eastern merchants had made from the Qin Dynasty through tea.
In fact, Potimius himself liked drinking tea very much. There were not even one or two tea leaves in these boxes in the square. They only contained some dry grass leaves. The real tea leaves had been lost by Putimius and his team. The cronies divided it up, and of course the soldiers who were responsible for searching the caravan's residence did not forget to line their own pockets.
The arena was the favorite entertainment venue for senior officials and nobles of the Great Qin Empire. The circular grandstand was filled with people early. A line of Great Qin soldiers lined up to enter the arena. They poured pine oil on the pile of wooden boxes. The fire was ignited, and the audience burst into thunderous applause. In fact, most people were not interested in burning the tea except for pity. They were waiting for the gladiatorial performance later, and that kind of bloody scene was their favorite. like.
Although gladiator performances can often be seen, today is different from the past. This time, the gladiators who performed were not professionally trained gladiators, but foreign businessmen who were captured. These foreign businessmen had no combat training at all. Although They also wear armor and carry swords and axes, but even a layman can tell at a glance that they are not real warriors.[
However, Putimius issued an order, and only one of the hundreds of merchants present could survive, so a bloody melee ensued. The merchants clumsily waved their swords and axes, and the place was covered in blood. , screamed again and again, and the VIPs in the stands laughed so hard when they saw this group of amateur gladiators fighting so enthusiastically, it was even more enjoyable than the most popular female gladiatorial fight some time ago.
When the news came out, Kangju, Dawan, Wusun and other countries were all in mourning, because Liu Xin had long issued a decree prohibiting the Han caravans from continuing westward, and none of the merchants captured by Putimius There were no Han people, mainly merchants from several countries around the Western Regions. However, the losses suffered by Han merchants were not small, because at least half of the goods belonged to them.
The Han merchants who suffered huge losses did not dare to complain to the court because their "edge ball" had violated the court's regulations. On the other hand, they had already made a lot of money some time ago. A small loss would not break their muscles and bones, so they would not ask the court for help.
However, although Liu Xin did not allow the Han's caravan to have any contact with the Qin Empire, he secretly sent a team to Da Qin to inquire about the news. This team was actually established based on the disbanded Phantom Secret Agents. They are mainly responsible for gathering intelligence outside the borders of the Han Dynasty. Within the country of the Han Dynasty, they will not have any privileges, which is different from ordinary Han people.
With such a team, the news that Putimius issued a ban on tea and raided foreign caravans quickly appeared on Liu Xin's desk. Liu Xin was very angry that such a situation had occurred.
Although the prices of tea, silk and porcelain sold from the Han Dynasty to the Qin Dynasty were high, they were all fair trade. One was willing to buy and the other was willing to sell. Although the promulgation of the tea ban by Putimius did not bring much direct losses to the Han Dynasty, , and after leaving Da Qin, these products will not worry about sales, but in the long run, it will still have a certain impact on the reputation of Dahan products.
Liu Xin immediately informed the cabinet and the six ministries of the news. After discussion with Jushou and others, they felt that in this incident, neither Han merchants were arrested nor Han caravans suffered direct losses, so it should be handled in a low-key manner.
After careful consideration, Liu Xin also felt that the most important thing for the Han Dynasty was to recuperate and recuperate, and it was indeed not appropriate to raise more powerful enemies. At the same time, because the Han caravan that suffered losses did not seek help from the imperial court, he could completely stay out of the matter.
However, Liu Xin became more vigilant because of this. Although the distance between Qin and Han was thousands of miles apart, Putimius' actions made Liu Xin deeply worried. Such a domineering person, Really anything was possible, he had to prepare in advance.
It is undeniable that the changes in the Qin Empire still had a certain impact on the Han Dynasty. The most direct manifestation was the decrease in the inflow of gold and silver, but the impact on the entire Han economy was still minimal. Without the Qin Dynasty, the tea and silk of the Han Dynasty Porcelain and porcelain are still hot commodities in the surrounding countries, and there is no need to worry about sales. The Han Dynasty, which suffered from wars, is gradually recovering. Chang'an's street market is also becoming increasingly prosperous, and there is a faint tendency to catch up with Xiangyang in the past. Putimi Wusi's small actions did not attract much attention from the officials of the Han Dynasty. As the work of the Han Dynasty court gradually became more formal, the courtiers who had a certain amount of leisure began to reinvest their energy into one thing, which was to persuade Liu Xin Set up savings early.
In ancient imperial dynasties, establishing a crown prince was a top priority. Only by confirming the crown prince as soon as possible would the ministers feel at ease. However, the courtiers were divided into two groups on the issue of who should be crown prince.
One group is composed of ministers headed by Chen Gong and Cheng Yu. They propose that the ancestors' rule of establishing a direct descendant should be adhered to and Liu Bang be made the crown prince. The other group is composed of military generals such as Xu Huang and Zhang Fei and Ju Shou, who has followed Liu Xin for many years. Tian Feng, as the representative, believed that Liu Bang should no longer consider himself the eldest son since he had been adopted by Liu Chong, the Marquis of Juchao.
The two factions each held their own opinions, and they would argue endlessly every time they went to court, which gave Liu Xin a headache. In fact, before this, he and Ma Yun had already discussed a charter for establishing the successor, which was to see who established it for the big man. The greatest achievement, but before that, the ministers proposed that every edict issued by Liu Xin must be reviewed by the cabinet, so the charter they drafted to establish the successor was not passed because it was too controversial, and it has been shelved.
On this day, it was time for three days to go to court again. After Zhang Gouer sang the cliché "If something happens, report it early, and if it comes, withdraw from the court." Guo Jia stood up, cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I thought that the prince would be appointed early that day." position."