In Xining, there are two major salt lakes, Chaka Salt Lake and Chaerhan Salt Lake.
Chaerhan Salt Lake has high quality and long distance, so it is the best salt. Many people like to sell Chaka salt as Chaerhan salt.
The market price of a pound of Chaerhan salt is three cents, while Chaka Lake only costs two cents. If you look closely at the color and quality, the difference is not big. Who wouldn’t love such a price difference?
This is also the reason why Qalhan Salt Lake is far away, but people still come to buy and sell. The fake ones should always be mixed with real ones!
Sima Bu saw a team of more than a dozen yaks in the southwest corner of the salt field.
With his dark red skin and big eyes, he looks like a Tibetan at first glance.
The young man whispered: "If we only expected Han merchants to come to buy salt, the salt fields would have starved to death long ago. These are the caravans of the Weizang Kingdom, and dozens of teams come here every month."
"If you buy salt in their name, it's basically two cents per pound, which is very cheap."
"Why is it so cheap?" Sima Bu was puzzled.
"The imperial court gives preferential treatment to the Tibetan people." The young man said angrily, "Furthermore, they cannot afford the salt that is too expensive. They often use some furs or herbs to pay off their bills, and the salt officials take the opportunity to lower the price to make money."
"We occasionally exchange some salt with them for things..."
Sima Bu was overjoyed.
Aren't these caravans natural guides?
Using salt as a guide is enough to open up a caravan.
He was sensible and did not disturb Yanguan's price reduction, and at the same time he did not want to disturb his business.
After finishing his business, Sima Bu spent a lot of money to find someone as a guide, and then directly bought 20,000 catties at the price of two cents per catty, which was forty yuan.
Adding in one thousand kilograms of tea, the total value of the goods does not exceed one hundred yuan.
Afterwards, he called his associates in Xining, selected a dozen big men, hired ten herdsmen, escorted a dozen yaks, and headed towards Wei Zangguo.
This journey can be said to be extremely hard.
If the Ancient Tea Horse Road is only rugged and difficult to navigate, then the trade route from Qinghai to Tibet is much more difficult.
Endless desert, with scarce green, scarce water, and occasional sandstorms and other bad weather, it took a full month of walking for three thousand miles to reach Lhasa.
As for salt, the closer we get to Lhasa, the more expensive it becomes. Ten kilograms of salt are exchanged for a sheepskin, then five kilograms of salt, and three kilograms of salt.
Along the way, Sima Bu exchanged 10,000 pounds of salt and 500 pounds of tea for 200 pounds of cordyceps, 100 pounds of saffron, and fifty horses.
After all, saffron and cordyceps are both expensive Chinese medicinal materials.
The price of a Tibetan horse is 30 yuan or 1,500 yuan.
The total value exceeds five thousand yuan.
It can be said that fifty yuan of goods can be exchanged for a hundred times of income.
This profit is too scary.
When he arrived in Lhasa, he saw the prosperity of this Tibetan country.
Caravans of all kinds filed in, including Han Chinese, Mongolians, and Tibetans, all speaking various dialects, which could be said to be friendly to people.
The uneven ground is paved with stone slabs, the flat and low houses are very messy, there are no tall buildings or courtyards, and the roads are surprisingly wide.
What is also impressive is that temples can be seen everywhere and monks are everywhere, either walking or practicing meditation.
Pedestrians wore thick robes and loose clothes, looking pampered, followed by a large number of servants, wearing precious stones, gold and silver on their heads, which was extremely luxurious.
Occasionally, Mongolians would ride by on horseback, treating the city as a grassland, and their horses' hooves would hit the stone bricks loudly.
There were not many poor people in the streets.
“I never thought that Lhasa would be so wealthy.”
"Rich? That's true."
At this time, a businessman passing by smiled and said: "There are only three kinds of people on the plateau: nobles, monks, and slaves."
"Whenever you see people walking freely on the interface, they must be nobles. They own a lot of land and slaves."
"Little brother, you can see people's faces, why didn't you see him on the street?"
"I took a side road and came here."
Sima Bu was wary in his heart, but he was smiling on his face.
Well, he is too conspicuous as someone who did not come from the Tea Horse Road.
After changing the topic, Sima Bu started walking around Lhasa.
After the Heshuote tribe occupied the plateau, they implemented a series of Mongolianization policies, but they were integrated by the plateau. The distance between the two was too close.
For example, the implementation of Mongolian language and the popularization of Mongolian language have had little effect.
Even shamanism was integrated into Buddhism, and the essence was inherited by the Manchus and fled to Central Asia.
The royal court originally built in Shigatse eventually moved to Lhasa.
At this time, in the Potala Palace, Dayan Eqir Khan, who had been in power for more than 20 years, held a meeting.
He was sitting on the couch with a serious expression, but the white hair on his temples betrayed his body.
Similarly, sitting nearby is the fifth Dalai Lama, wearing a monk's robe and chanting Buddhist beads.
The one in the corner is not the young fifth generation Panchan, but the Dalai Lama's Diba (housekeeper) Lobsang Tudao.
With the death of Gushi Khan, the Dalai Lama gradually usurped the power of the Khan, forming a dualistic structure.
To put it simply, the Yellow Sect is led by Darai, and the Khanate is led by Dayan Khan, but the essence of the Khanate is controlled by the Yellow Sect, including the Shigatse and Lhasa areas.
King Khan and Darai reached a balance.
Naturally, as the general manager, Lobsang Tudao was equivalent to the prime minister, handling civil affairs for the lama. After all, people chanted sutras every day.
"The expedition to Ladakh should be suspended!"
As the prime minister of Dayan Khan, Timur said solemnly: "Now that Kang State is unstable, it is time for us to launch a large-scale expedition to regain our homeland."
"No!" Lobsang Tudao hurriedly spoke on behalf of the lama: "The Kagyu sect has been evil-minded and has been entrenched in Ladakh for a long time. We should destroy it in one go."
"We cannot let the Kagyu sect cause cholera to spread among the people again."
At this time, although the Yellow Sect was dominant on the plateau, there were still many residual forces in the corners.
For example, Bhutan is governed by the Kagyu sect, as well as Ladakh, which has a traditional Kagyu sect, and Sikkim is governed by the Nyingma sect. It can be said that the Yellow Sect has always been worried about those remnants.
Who knows when it will come back?
Of course, it is precisely because of this that these small countries have never been able to integrate and can only become dependent countries.
Timur said in a deep voice: "The most important thing for the Khan's court is the state of Kang. Did Diba forget that Li Zicheng was wreaking havoc on Tibetan Beijing? Even the temples will be robbed."
"The nobles and temples in eastern Tibet are living in unrest now."
During the battle between Kang State and Uizang, Kang State went hundreds of miles west to the Lari area, which was less than a thousand miles away from Lhasa.
It can be said that this fiasco directly contributed to the infringement of the Yellow Sect and was an important blow to the prestige of the Khan's court.
But the Yellow Sect doesn't have much hatred for the Kang state, or it can be said that it is keen on dealing with those small Kagyu states.
The Dalai Lama said nothing, while Dayan Khan spoke:
"The use of troops is inevitable. The Khan's court has been preparing for it for many years, and we must not let all our efforts go to waste."
Although his voice is hoarse due to his old age, he has a strong voice.
It took a long time for the Dalai Lama to agree: "That's exactly what it is."
Now, a consensus was reached.
At this time, Kangguo and Shunting were already bustling.
The noble military general faction represented by Li Laiheng and the civilian official faction representing the interests of King Kang competed for the right to speak.
The noble generals felt that after many years of truce, it was time to march westward, capture Lhasa, and completely annex the Wei Zang Kingdom.
The country of Kang had a small population and a narrow land, which could not satisfy the interests of the nobles. Everyone needed more land and population to accumulate wealth.
At the same time, as long as the war is won, the generals will have a great say in the court, and it is possible to completely overwhelm or even evade the royal power.
However, the civil servants supported by King Kang were not willing to initiate a war and asked the generals not to engage in border provocations.
He even specifically threatened the Ming Dynasty, not to disobey its orders.
This would actually make the general even more angry.
Although they were afraid of the Ming Dynasty, they did not respect or obey them and became more and more unruly.
One of the two parties wants to start the fire, and the other wants to put out the fire. It can be said that they are tit for tat.
As a Han merchant, Zhang Xin was shocked and helpless at the tense situation in Shunting after selling Yunnan tea cakes.
In a hurry, he bought herbs, furs, and horses without even saying a few words about the price.
"Boss, you've lost a lot of money like this!"
The waiter's face became anxious and he hurriedly said: "Let's take a look again, I guess it can be half a percent cheaper!"
"If you have money, you will spend your life!"
Zhang Xin scolded in a low voice: "You don't want your life, sir, I want to live for a few more decades!"
He packed his luggage overnight, which surprised the businessmen in the inn.
At this time, a thin man ran over and asked: "Why are you in such a hurry? Your boss is in a hurry to go back to nurse the baby."
Although he is not the shopkeeper of his own family, the waiter did not dare to get angry. He only said: "Maybe the boss has something urgent, so we waiters can just obey."
Seeing this, the thin man waved his hand, then quietly went up to the second floor, found Zhang Xin and put it away: "Zhang Naoke, what are you doing? You are in a panic."
"I heard that I lost money today, but what's the big deal? I, Zhao Dahu, don't mention anything else. I still have a sense of loyalty and can help you get it together."
Zhang Xin was stunned when he heard this, and his heart warmed up: "I have an urgent matter at home, and I need to go back quickly. I can earn this money at any time, but if I miss it, it will be lost."
"Oh?" Zhao Dahu said, turned around and walked away slowly. When he reached the threshold, he turned back:
"Since it's not about money, then your kid's parents are dead and his wife and children are fine. What's the emergency?"
"You and I have been friends for so many years and you still don't tell me this?"
"If you don't tell me, I won't leave tonight."
Zhang Xin was helpless by him and could only say: "I went to the horse market to take a look today. The prices have gone up but not down."
"Isn't this normal?"
"But food prices have also gone up."
Zhang Xin whispered: "We are not as good as those big merchants in Shunjing City. If they know anything in advance, we can only find out through clues."
"Horse prices are rising and grain prices are rising. Taken individually, they are nothing. But taken together, they are dangerous."
"The summer grain is being harvested!" Zhao Dahu was stunned and murmured.
He is also a traveling businessman. After thinking about it for a moment, he understood the key: "Is this going to be a war?"
"Okay, this is a good thing." Zhao Dahu said with a smile: "On this plateau, only Wei Zangguo can fight, so if the two countries fight, once they capture something, it will be a big deal..."
"You don't want your life?" Zhang Xin said in shock: "If you encounter soldiers and gangsters, you will lose everything and still make a shitty amount of money."
"As long as the people are there, the business will be there."
"I advise you to leave quickly!"
After saying that, regardless of the latter's presence, he packed it up directly.
When the sky was slightly bright, the caravan group left Shunting and embarked on their way home.
Zhang Xin didn't care too much about whether Zhao Dahu listened to his advice and could only leave it to fate.
Returning in a hurry, the group of people walked quickly, and after ten days, they descended the mountains and arrived at Yazhou.
Yazhou, Lizhou, Qiongzhou, Meizhou and Tianquan six divisions recruited Si and merged into Ya'an Prefecture.
This is Sichuan Bianchui, with Kang State to the west and Chengdu Prefecture to the east. It can be said that the location is important.
But, no matter how important it is, is it necessary to go to war in such a big way?
Almost every half an hour, a line of cavalry patrols the official road, which can be said to be extremely strict.
As for a businessman like him, he was put under guard and taken to a military camp outside Yazhou City.
After a while, Zhang Xin was taken to the big tent and met a young man.
In his twenties, although his face is a little tender, he has begun to grow a beard and carries an official position, which is quite scary.
"You are a merchant and have returned from Kang State?"
"Yes, General."
Zhang Xin hurriedly knelt down and said hurriedly: "Young man is coming back from Shunjing City. I don't know what offended you. I hope Haihan..."
"How is Kang Guo?"
"The Kingdom of Kang is very peaceful, but the prices in the market are gradually rising, and I also heard that those Jiedu envoys are rebellious and specifically against King Kang..."
"It's the defense envoy!"
Zhu Cunqu added something, and after hearing the end of his words, he said: "You are not allowed to leave Yazhou City in a short period of time, and the rest can do whatever you want."
Zhang Xin thanked him hurriedly and left the military camp.
Looking at the huge military camp, he said angrily: "I also have a background. Soldiers like this have no rules. I will definitely take a copy of it when I go back."
After saying this, he asked someone to ask who was stationed in that military camp.
The pedestrian glanced at him curiously: "Governor of Sichuan and Chongqing, you don't know this?"
"Governor of Sichuan and Chongqing?"
Zhang Xin was stunned, and his brain immediately turned into mush. It took him a long time to realize: "Isn't that the prince?"
"My dear, you are actually the prince."
For a moment, his legs went weak.
"It seems that the country of Kang is not at peace."
In the military tent, Zhu Cunqu pointed to the map behind him with a serious look on his face.
The chief of staff looked at the map and said: "I have already inquired about the information. There is a deep conflict between military generals and civilian officials. As for this war, under our promotion, both Weizang and Kang Guo are willing to start a war."
"Once the two countries go to war, I, the Ming Dynasty, have a reason to march to Kang State. It is called mediation and it is called occupying land."
"When the time comes, we will first devour Kang State, then drive out the wolves and swallow the tigers, and let the generals fight against Weizang."
"In this way, the two countries will be decided in one battle, and His Highness's reputation will surely be known to both the government and the public."
When Zhu Cunqu heard what he said, he couldn't help but feel moved.
Wasn't he serving as governor of Sichuan and Chongqing just to fight the war?
Military glory is what he has always longed for, and now he has achieved it.
"How are the soldiers doing?"
"The Beijing camp and the patrol camp are both good, and the soldiers are fierce and well-equipped. We are just waiting for the summer grain harvest..."