The Eldest Daughter Is Beautiful and Saucy
Chapter 1073: Whether there will be an alliance
Chapter 1073: Meeting but No Alliance
“Are you afraid that Great Zhou and Great Yan…will have to send troops on a long expedition to conquer Tianfeng Kingdom?” Bai Qingyan picked up the teacup and smiled. “If we want to conquer Tianfeng Kingdom, Great Zhou will have to borrow a passage from Xiliang. It’s a long journey… This deal is not worth it. Besides, Tianfeng Kingdom and Xiliang have a good alliance, so Xiliang will not borrow a passage from Great Zhou and Yan either.”
Xiao Rongyan continued, “Let’s not talk about the expedition and borrowing the road. There is a piece of sandy land around Tianfeng Country, and the sandy land is swallowing up the territory of Tianfeng Country every day. Great Zhou is not interested, and we Great Yan… are not interested either. The king of Tianfeng Country can rest assured.”
When Sar Khan heard this, he was secretly shocked. He did not expect that the Great Zhou knew so much about the situation in the Tianfeng Kingdom. He thought of… Cui Fengnian, the Great Zhou merchant who had just arrived in the Tianfeng Kingdom. Could it be that Cui Fengnian had found out all this?
If Cui Fengnian found out about it, why did Dayan also know about it? Did the Empress of Great Zhou tell Dayan?
However, this is not a major secret that cannot be revealed, so it is not that important.
As they were talking, Shen Jingzhong had already signed the alliance with Dayan. Liu Rushi personally took it and placed it in front of the table of Emperor Yan and Ninth Prince Murong Yan. Xiao Rongyan took a look at it and handed it to his own envoy, asking him to stamp and sign it.
Sar Khan did not want this meeting to only serve the interests of Yan State and Great Zhou. He clenched his fists and chuckled, saying, “Since Great Zhou and Yan State already know the current situation of Tianfeng State, I will just tell them directly…”
“The fertile land of Tianfeng Kingdom is gradually being swallowed up by the desert. If this continues, one day Tianfeng Kingdom may not have enough arable land and its people may have difficulty in getting enough food and clothing. So in order to avoid this, Tianfeng Kingdom is willing to rent the land and cities of Dayan, Dazhou and Xiliang at a high price, pay a one-time rent for ten years, and hand over 20% to Dazhou, Dayan and Xiliang every year after the grain harvest.” Sar Khan said with a smile, “This is what Tianfeng Kingdom wants in this alliance.”
What a clever plan…
Bai Qingyan picked up the teacup, raised his eyes and looked at Murong Yan calmly, the smile on the corner of his lips becoming more and more obvious.
The monarch of Tianfeng Kingdom is using such high-sounding words to encroach on Great Zhou and Dayan!
“The land and cities that Tianfeng Country rents are planned to be centered at the intersection of Da Zhou, Dayan and Xiliang. The three countries occupy the land just to gain a foothold and grow enough food to feed the people of Tianfeng Country.” Sar Khan said as he stood up and bowed to Bai Qingyan, Murong Yan and Murong Li. “As the king of Tianfeng Country, I just want to find a way to survive for the people. Otherwise, I would not have dared to hold this alliance of the four countries. Please take a look at the alliance letter… If you are not satisfied with the rent, we can talk again!”
The ministers of Yan State who followed Xiao Rongyan and Murong Li to the alliance meeting were talking about it. Shen Jingzhong, the prime minister of the Great Zhou, together with Liu Rushi and Shen Tianzhi, also put their heads together and said a few words.
Seeing this, Sar Khan bowed again and said, “Now that Xiliang has agreed, I also ask Emperor Zhou and Emperor Yan… and the Ninth Prince to help us. Don’t let the four countries form an alliance this time… If there is a meeting without an alliance, I will not be able to face the people of Tianfeng Kingdom!”
“The Tianfeng Kingdom wants to rent land and cities. Does it have to ask the Great Zhou and Yan Kingdom to relocate their people?” Bai Qingyan asked.
“Should we station troops inside the city?” Xiao Rongyan asked.
After Sar Khan sat down, he said, “After renting the city, we need to move in the people of Tianfeng to settle down and cultivate the land! Of course, if the rent can be lower, Tianfeng can also hire people from Dazhou and Dayan to cultivate the land. In that case, there is no need to move some of the people from Dazhou or Dayan.”
“As for whether to station troops or not, if we hire people from Da Zhou and Dayan to farm, we only need to leave some elephants to maintain order, supervise, and transport food and grass back to Tian Feng.” Sar Khan paused, “If we move in citizens from Tian Feng, Tian Feng will leave elephants to protect the safety of the people and the interests of our Tian Feng during the lease period, and also be responsible for transporting food and grass.”
Fearing that this would arouse the vigilance of Great Zhou and Yan, Sar Khan continued: “Of course, although we have rented the city and land, the territory still belongs to Great Zhou and Great Yan. Great Zhou and Great Yan can send garrisons during the lease period… Tianfeng’s army manages the city and land, and the armies of Great Zhou and Great Yan can play a supervisory role to ensure that Tianfeng has no other ideas.”
Clearly, he wanted to push further before he even got an inch, but he still pretended to be measured…
Bai Qingyan lowered his eyes and looked at the alliance treaty sent by the Tianfeng Kingdom, which had not yet been launched. If his guess was correct, the rent given by the Tianfeng Kingdom should be enough to impress people.
The situation of Tianfeng Kingdom’s land being swallowed by the desert is becoming increasingly serious. At this juncture… Tianfeng Kingdom’s proposal to lease cities and land is not deliberate. If it is also willing to pay a high rent, it is indeed easy to be tempted.
It seems that the monarch of Tianfeng Kingdom has put in a lot of effort and is willing to pay for the sake of Da Zhou and Da Yan…
The more this happened, the more Bai Qingyan could see that the king of Tianfeng Kingdom had great ambitions.
She raised her hand and unfolded the covenant sent by the Tianfeng Kingdom. Seeing this, Sar Khan smiled and picked up the teacup… He believed that even the noble Emperors of Zhou and Yan would be tempted when they saw the rent.
“By paying ten years’ rent at a time, isn’t Tianfeng Kingdom afraid of any changes during these ten years?” The envoy of Dayan could not help asking after being amazed.
“This lord has asked the point, so… Tianfeng Kingdom will leave some elephant troops to avoid being driven out before the lease period is up. I think… Emperor Zhou, Emperor Yan and the Ninth Prince of Yan can understand it!” Sar Khan laughed, “And our Tianfeng Kingdom is located on the territory of Da Zhou, Yan and Xiliang. The cities and farmland we rent are not large. If Tianfeng Kingdom really has any ulterior motives… Da Zhou and Yan have signed an alliance, which can be regarded as a deterrent to Tianfeng Kingdom.”
“As the king of Tianfeng Kingdom said, Tianfeng Kingdom is located on the territory of Yan Kingdom and Da Zhou. Aren’t you afraid that we will collect ten years of rent and then drive you out?” Murong Yan’s voice from behind the mask was low and carried a hint of mockery.
“Yan State and Da Zhou are both great powers. As long as an alliance can be signed today, everyone in Tianfeng State is willing to believe it!” said Sar Khan.
“Why is the king of Tianfeng Kingdom going through so much trouble? Isn’t it just a matter of wanting food?” Liu Rushi looked in the direction of the king of Tianfeng Kingdom, “Tianfeng Kingdom is short of food, so just buy food. The rent for these ten years will be changed into a deposit for ten years of food. Our two countries will accept it. Within ten years, 80% of the harvest from these places will be sent to Tianfeng Kingdom. If Tianfeng Kingdom is worried, it can send four or five officials to patrol permanently!”