...

On the fifth day of December, Sunur Khan, the main hall of the Balantor Court...

"A Xue..."

"Brother Bao..."

Outside the palace gate, seventeen-year-old Murong Bao tried to break into the palace gate and was stopped by the guards. Seeing his fiancée Tuoba Xue unable to stop calling him before being carried away by several maids, he felt that he was so painful that he could not breathe...

"Axue, I won't let you get married. You can only belong to me! Waiting for me, I'll find a way!"

Murong Bao knew that he could not get Tuoba Xue out now. He used all his strength to shout at Tuoba Xue, then turned around and jumped onto the back of the horse, galloped away.

"Brother Bao..."

Seeing his lover Juechen leave, Tuoba Xue, who was less than 16 years old, covered her mouth and tried not to cry, but tears still gushed out like a dam breaking through...

After Murong Bao left, a foreign maid whispered to Tuoba Xue: "Prince, the Holy Emperor told me to live in the royal court during this period, don't go anywhere, and the room has been arranged. I will serve you well..."

Tuoba Xue was silent for a moment and suddenly asked, "Where is the Holy Emperor? I want to see the Holy Emperor!"

The maid replied: "The Holy Emperor is summoning all ministers to discuss matters, and I am afraid I will not be able to see you now..."

"I'll wait for him outside the hall!"

Tuoba Xue threw a word, turned around and walked quickly towards the main hall. The maid could not stop her and could only follow her closely.

In the main hall, Tuoba Hongye was having a heated discussion about the border trade with Liu Ce...

Most of the nobles and ministers in the hall remained in agreement with border trade. Among the tribes ruled by the tribes under the rule of each tribe, the wealthy ones were after all.

Most herders and slaves still have a hard life. They can slightly improve their situation and increase their dominance, so that these herders and slaves can be more grateful to their masters and work more loyally.

But some people also expressed opposition to this. He Dan'an, the owner of the embroidered blue banner, was very resistant to Liu Ce's trade and trade. He sneered:

"I really can't understand why we have to trade with a local force in Zhou State? Isn't it enough to just grab something if we lack?"

Tuoba Si stood up and retorted: "Master He Dan Banner, now we are different from the past. The management of such a vast territory of the grassland cannot solve any problem by looting alone.

Now our tribes of Monroe, together with herders and slaves in the Western Regions, and other grassland tribes that have joined us, have a rough count of no less than 30 million.

So many people naturally cannot be like when there were only a few million people in the past. Just by looting and tribute can last for a long time.

Not to mention other things, there is a huge gap in the salt needed by our grassland. How much fine salt can you get by grabbing it alone?

Instead of blindly conquering and obtaining materials by force, it is better to take a step back first and use our animals, fur and useless gold and silver.

In exchange for the Central Plains cloth, tea, salt and other things, we can further strengthen our own power, and at the same time lay a solid foundation for how to better govern the Central Plains in the future..."

He Dan'ang snorted coldly, knowing that he could not tell Tuoba Si, so he argued: "The people of the Central Plains are cowardly and incompetent, but they are very cunning. Even if they are willing to trade, who can definitely not be deceived by them?

You know, there was a businessman named Xu from the south in the Central Plains who used a porcelain bowl to exchange for a herder in my tribe's twelve sheep and two buckets of milk, which almost made them unable to survive the cold winter!"

Tuoba Si said: "It is different from the past. Liu Ce sent a transaction list. The price of the goods required for trading is clearly marked, and even the taxes are noted, so he is not afraid of breaking his promise..."

"snort……"

He Dan'ang snorted coldly again, not opening his eyes and saying nothing more.

"Okay, the matter of merging and trade with Liu Ce has been finalized. Today I came to you to discuss where to set up a trading post on the border of Xuanwu Pass. You all discuss it carefully!" Tuoba Hongye asked.

As soon as Tuoba Hongye finished speaking, Wu Gengji, the owner of the embroidered white banner, immediately said loudly: "Of course it must be set up around my royal court. Everything should be based on the interests of the royal court!"

When Tuoba Hongye heard this, his face darkened and he felt speechless about Wu Yang Geji's IQ.

Seeing that Tuoba Hongye was unhappy, Tuoba Si immediately said to Wu Yang Geji: "Wu Yang Banner, everyone said that it was a trade in the surrounding border. Wang Ting was more than 2,700 miles away from Xuanwu Pass, and the transportation of goods was very inconvenient.

In addition, if you set up a trading post around the royal court, aren’t you afraid of the Central Plains’ detailed work to inquire about the reality of the Nur Khan and Barantor, and to bring the safety of the Holy Emperor into unfavorable situations?”

Wuxia Geji's heart tightened, and he hurriedly knelt on the main hall and said to Tuoba Hongye: "Stop the anger of the Holy Emperor, it's a slave who is not very thoughtful, and he absolutely has no intention of that..."

Tuoba Hongye raised his hand and said, "Okay, I know that you are also considering the interests of the Monroe people. I will not blame you, but don't be jealous of Geji,

As the lord of the flag, please think twice before you speak in the future. Don’t say such unintelligent words again…”

Wuwei Geji hurriedly said, "I follow the teachings of the Holy Emperor..." After that, he retreated back to his position.

Tuoba Si felt that it was a bit difficult for the group of warriors who only knew how to ride horses and chop, so in the end, he had to propose this problem himself, so he said:

"Saint Emperor, since Liu Ce and the Auxiliary King have agreed to establish a trade office a hundred miles outside Xuanwu Pass, I suggest that the trade station be set up on the pasture between the embroidered red flags and the red flags.

It is also convenient for each department to trade in exchange for daily necessities. At the same time, it can also allow the two departments to send people to the trade center to monitor the every move of Zhongyuan vendors..."

Tuoba Hongye nodded: "This matter is determined according to the Prime Minister's intention. This is the case first. After the herdsmen of various departments meet the current needs of life, they will raise their troops south to march into the Central Plains!"

The matter has been finalized, and voices praising Tuoba Hongye sounded from the main hall.

However, if Tuoba Hongye could learn more about the development of the Far East, he would find that he had completely fallen into the pit that Liu Ce had dug for him.

Of course, this cannot be blamed on Tuoba Hongye. Although he is a hero of a generation, he has his own limitations in this era and has not noticed the series of evil consequences caused by economic colonization.

Since he decided to start a trade with Liu Ce, huge hidden dangers have been quietly buried...

After discussing the decision to start a trade with Liu Ce, it is time to talk about Tuoba Xuexia's marriage to Liu Ce.

In fact, marriage is nothing to the Monroe people and even the entire grassland. Before the Monroe Empire rose, countless tribes had married each other, and even after the Monroe Empire rose, it was even more so. Some married countries in the Western Regions, and some even married Sassanthemum and Dashi.

However, the basis of marriage is for profit. The difference from the marriage policy of Dazhou is that Dazhou gave away women to avoid being beaten, while Monroe used women as bargaining chips to ensure that the princes and nobles of those countries were firmly controlled by themselves.

Therefore, marriage and marriage sound no different, but the essence is very different, and the political status is also completely different.

However, the only thing that everyone cannot understand is why Tuoba Hongye wanted to marry a local warlord like Liu Ce? It was just because the trade was smooth? I'm afraid it wasn't that simple, right?

Tuoba Hongye glanced around the people in the main hall, and then said seriously: "I know, you all have doubts in your heart. Why did I suddenly let my brother's daughter marry Liu Ce?

In your eyes, all the people in the Central Plains are cowards, their kings are dizzy and incompetent, their ministers are all mediocre, and their people are as timid as rats, and they are not worthy of my appreciation, is that true?"

There was a silence above the main hall. Tuoba Hongye expressed everyone's voice. As he said, people like Liu Ce, who are not worthy of marrying the Monroe, let alone the princess of the royal family!

Tuoba Hongye paused, then stood up and walked off the throne, and began to walk in the hall.

His eyes swept across everyone in the hall, and finally stopped on Tuoba Si, glanced for a moment and returned to the throne, holding the dragon throne carved with the eagle spreading its wings, and said slowly:

"Liu Ce, twenty-four years old! He arrived in the Far East at the age of nineteen and defeated the invasion of the Hulun people, the overlord of the Far East. At the beginning of the following year, he took back the southern part of Jizhou from the Hulun people.

In June of the same year, he led 20,000 cavalry to upend the eastern grassland controlled by the Hulan people. At the end of the year, he launched another 100,000 troops to launch a full-scale war against northern Hebei.

After this battle, Jizhou was completely lost and became his foundation. The Hulan people's dominance in the eastern grassland began to shaky. That year, Liu Ce was twenty years old.

In the 371st year of Great Zhou, Liu Ce, who was only twenty-one years old, was ordered to enter the pass to quell the rebellion. In half a year, the crisis in the eight northern provinces was cleared by him in one fell swoop. The Hulan people were almost exterminated, and the eastern grasslands became Liu Ce's sphere of influence.

In the winter of the same year, he defeated Yuwen Zhou's army of 100,000 embroidered red flags at Xuanwu Pass. The next year, Liu Ce seized control of the Far East from the Jiang family, the largest clan of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

By this year, the 24-year-old Liu Ce had controlled the vast territory connected to the Far East and the North. He had been destroying the four forces of Zhao, Lin, Zhang and Pei, who lived in various provinces in the north for the past, and he had completely destroyed them.

I dare to ask you, most of you grew up on horseback. I would like to ask you, is such a man worthy of my admiration for him? Is it worth my marriage with him?

Who among you has the ability of Liu Ce to gain such a large territory in such a short time? Is it? Tell me! Who has the ability and courage!"

Tuoba Hongye's extremely majestic tone hit everyone's hearts word by word. Only then did they notice that Liu Ce was simply a war madman, the key was that he was only in his twenties...

Thinking of this, it is not unacceptable to the marriage with Liu Ce. All the grassland tribes respect the warriors, even if they are enemies.

"Of course..." After saying this, Tuoba Hongye sat back on the throne with a smile, "In addition, you must have known the letter Liu Ce gave me, and it is really arrogant.

Since he doesn't want the woman from Central Plains to marry, then okay, I will send the princess to marry him. He will have to accept it, and he will have to accept it even if he doesn't! In short, I can't hold this face if I recognize Liu Ce as my father-in-law, haha..."

Tuoba Hongye laughed dryly as he spoke, and the Mengluo people in the main hall laughed unnaturally when they heard this.

"Okay, Prime Minister, please negotiate with Liu Ce more about the establishment of a trade office. The sooner this matter is reached, the better. In this way, the less likely it will be to freeze some people in the winter, my husband and slaves will be able to freeze to death in the next year.
Chapter completed!