What Zhao Ding said is true. Mutual trading between Huizhou and Huizhou was a strategy for the Song Dynasty to benefit from the pressure from the Jin Kingdom at that time. Apart from easing military conflicts, it had no other benefits for the Song Dynasty.

This is also how Brother Richard made his fortune.

In today's international situation, it is impossible for any of the three countries to kill one of them in one go. It must be after local regional frictions that they sit down and negotiate.

However, the reason why Brother Richard dares to sit here and negotiate with the Song Dynasty is because he knows that based on the current situation, the Song Dynasty, as a victorious country, may not have the strength to act arbitrarily.

For example, the Song Dynasty did not dare to really close down all the land markets in Jiangzhou.

He concluded that Zhao Ding was trying to intimidate him.

Brother Richard said: "Mr. Zhao, you can't talk too much."

"Have I ever finished my words?"

"Huizhou trades with each other, and a large amount of silk and tea from the Song Dynasty entered our country, and were even exported to the Uighurs through our country. These were also beneficial to the Song Dynasty."

Zhao Ding said with a smile: "I am not short of such a small amount of income."

You have less than 3 million people in Xixia. How many people can afford tea, silk and ceramics? Are there 10,000 people?

I’m afraid not!

I'm afraid many people in Xixia don't even have currency at home, and many places use barter.

Those who really need it are some big businessmen and a small number of powerful people.

Even if these people filled their homes with silk, how much would they add up to?

There are also Uighurs. Once the total demand is calculated, for the Song Dynasty, it is simply pitiful.

So when it comes to why ancient dynasties were unwilling to trade frequently with surrounding areas, was it because they were closed?

Close the hammer!

If you sit in the position of prime minister, and you look at the Central Plains Dynasty, you will see that there are fifty to six million people, hundreds of millions of people.

If you look at the surrounding small countries again, there are one million people?

Maybe the population of any provincial administrative region in the Central Plains Dynasty could beat the population of a surrounding country.

Once we calculate the purchasing power of the surrounding small countries, it turns out that only a small amount of people can afford it.

Do you want to tell the people in the Zaizhi Yamen: Hey, guys, for the sake of the Jade Emperor, let’s go trade with them?

All driving forces for human expansion are inseparable from interests.

Why did the Central Plains Dynasty expand to the Yinshan Mountains and not go north?

Because the Yinshan area is the critical point of 400 millimeters of rainfall. Although this critical point is vague, it is roughly the same.

Once you go further north, you won't be able to grow crops.

How about migrating people there to herd sheep?

The nomadic population is mobile, which is not conducive to the statistics and taxation of the Central Plains dynasty, that is, it is impossible to collect taxes.

The imperial court spent countless manpower and material resources to seize an area where taxes could not be collected, causing countless families to be destroyed and the country's finances to make ends meet. Only Liu Che could do such a thing.

And it also needs the assistance of the super woolen master Sang Hongyang, otherwise the country will be destroyed if you don't pay attention.

Of course, Liu Che's main purpose was to solve the border troubles, but in the meantime, Liu Che felt that he should establish the greatest meritorious service in history and completely destroy the most powerful foreign enemy in the world, otherwise he would be too sorry for his devilish head.

Going back to the trade issue with Xixia, it is actually the same truth.

I, the Song Dynasty, made no profit at all by trading with you, Xixia.

You know, many surrounding countries are eyeing our market in the Song Dynasty, begging to trade with us.

Are you Xixia?

How can a group of bumpkins in animal skins have the confidence to negotiate big international deals?

Faced with Zhao Ding's sharp questions, Brother Richard unleashed his astonishing calculation skills and settled accounts for the Song Dynasty from all aspects.

Finally, Zhao Ding stood up and left.

The first negotiation between the two parties ended in an unpleasant atmosphere.

After returning, Brother Richard truthfully reported the situation of the negotiations.

"I already know, Prince Jin, don't worry, let's talk slowly." Li Qianshun looked calm and calm on the surface, but in fact he was panicking inside.

In the first two years of trading with the Song Dynasty, Xixia made nearly one million yuan.

The Xixia Kingdom's annual tax revenue is calculated to be 50,000 yuan, which is not bad. It is very tempting to earn nearly twenty years of tax revenue in two years.

And this million dollars does not include Brother Richard's personal income.

If the Song Dynasty forcibly closed the mutual market now, it would be a nightmare for the Xixia monarchs and ministers.

So, people are always so greedy.

When people have no money, they feel grateful if they only need 10,000 yuan a month. When it reaches 10,000 yuan a month, they hope to have 30,000 yuan a month.

When I earn 30,000 yuan a month, I hope to earn one million yuan a year.

In the past, Xixia people would never have imagined that they could earn a million dollars in two years.

After earning so much, he was no longer satisfied. With his troops strong and his horses strong, he was able to do it again, so he decided to send out troops to directly plunder.

In the end a price was paid for it.

The second negotiation is on the eighth day of June.

Zhao Ding still insisted that the Huizhou mutual market was no longer necessary and demanded that the mutual market be shut down. As for Yinzhou, he would never return it.

As for the conditions imposed by the Xixia people in the second negotiation to bring the prince to Tokyo as a hostage, in Zhao Ding's opinion, it was optional.

At least he acted dispensable.

Of course, the conditions for the second negotiation also included an increase in the price of silk sold from the Song Dynasty to Xixia.

In the past, silk was sold at low prices to Xixia.

This time Xixia took the initiative to ask the Song Dynasty to increase the price, which also gave the Song Dynasty sufficient conditions.

However, after all is said and done, Qingbai Salt has not been mentioned. This is what both parties are really concerned about.

Seeing that Ambassador Song's attitude was very firm, both Li Qianshun and Brother Richard couldn't sit still.

The two of them settled an account for themselves.

From the beginning of the fifth year of Jingkang's reign, the war between Song and Xia began, and now in June, Huizhou's harvesting field has been suspended for half a year.

Xixia's original plan was to make a huge fortune from the war after capturing Shaanxi.

But the current situation is that Li Liangfu lost tens of thousands of people, Fei Tingrongju lost tens of thousands of people, Huizhou transactions were suspended for half a month, and Yinzhou was also lost.

How do you calculate a loss?

Based on the income of one million guan in the past two years, that is an income of 40,000 guan per month.

In other words, if he spends an extra month here with the Song people, Li Qianshun will lose 40,000 yuan, which is equivalent to more than one year of Xixia's tax revenue.

The same goes for Brother Richard.

Obviously, this account was extremely painful for both of them.

Moreover, a large number of conscriptions have affected local agriculture in Houtao and Hengshan. If time continues to drag on, the Xixia people cannot afford to delay it.

This is why everyone fights to the death on the battlefield.

Xixia won the war, so it was up to them to raise conditions. The Song Dynasty endured the pain and cut off their flesh, and there would no longer be such painful negotiations.

Li Qianshun said angrily: "What does the Song Dynasty want? Closing the Huizhou Forge Market is directly blocking the Qingbai Salt. This is absolutely not possible!"

I finally earn 500,000 yuan a year, you want to knock me back to 50,000 yuan a year with just one sentence?

Instead of doing this, it is better to fight again, push all the elites up, and use the Song Dynasty to consume everyone, and together we can take advantage of the Jin Kingdom!

King Shu Li Renli said: "Your Majesty, the Song Dynasty may think that we have made a lot of money in the past two years and used the money on military equipment, which has caused a threat to the Song Dynasty, so it wants to close the Huizhou Forgery Market."

"Then go and tell them that we can limit armaments."

"The monarchs and ministers of the Song Dynasty may not believe it."

Brother Richard was also very angry. He said, "Brother Emperor, I will go and talk to Ambassador Song again."

The third negotiation was on the tenth day of June.

Zhao Ding's time arrangement was obviously very particular, and he gave the Xixia monarchs and ministers a few days to digest it.

In the third negotiation, the Song Dynasty's attitude was still very tough.

Even at the negotiation venue, Sun Fu openly proposed to close the Huizhou Forgery Market and ask Xixia to pay compensation.

Brother Richard said: "Envoy of the Song Dynasty, we can limit the development of our country's armaments and we will not start war with China again in the future."

"You have promised me many times before." Sun Fu said unceremoniously.

"Song Envoy, the road cannot be cut off. We in Daxia still have a hundred thousand elite men who can fight. Do we have to fight to the death?"

The two sides started to quarrel again.
Chapter completed!