After Li Ke defeated the Visigoth army near the Strait of Gibraltar, there was no more army in southern Iberia that could stop him from advancing. Therefore, after a simple integration, he immediately divided his troops to attack the Visigoth city. In just a few days, all the coastal cities in the southern Iberian Peninsula fell into Li Ke's hands.

Moreover, Li Ke was already very restrained by himself. Otherwise, the entire southern part of the Iberian Peninsula would have fallen into his hands. But he knew that his troops were insufficient. Although he had incorporated some of the Visigoth troops, the loyalty of these people could not be guaranteed. The only one who could trust was the 50,000 firearm troops in his hands, and his defensive power was limited.

He had to eat one bite at a time, let alone occupy the land of other countries. Li Ke first occupied the coastal port and then sent some soldiers to guard it. If he encountered a large Visigoth army to attack, he could also use the navy to retreat calmly. After all, his troops were not large, and each soldier was very precious, and he would feel distressed if he lost one.

Malaga is located not far northeast of the Strait of Gibraltar. It is a very prosperous port city. Because it is rich in fishing salt, it has formed a city here as early as the Philipgis period. Later, the Romans occupied this place, and many Romans moved to this city, which made the port city very prosperous. Even after it was occupied by the Visigoths, the residents of the city still followed the Roman lifestyle and were not greatly affected.

After Li Ke occupied Malaga City, he felt that the port here had great development potential, so he temporarily used it as the garrison of the army, and his mansion was also here. Over the past period of time, he and Cen Changqian and other advisers were stepping up time to count the situation in various areas he occupied. At the same time, some adjustments were made to administrative and military aspects.

However, today in Li Ke's temporary residence, he was warmly entertaining a few acquaintances. These people were envoys sent by the Eastern Roman Empire. Among them, Silo was an old acquaintance of Li Ke and had the qualifications to go to the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, he was the leader this time. As for the other envoys, Li Ke had also seen them several times when he was in Constantinople, and he was barely called him an acquaintance.

"Your Highness King of Wu, it has been nearly two years since we parted. I didn't expect that when we met again, I would like toast your Highness on this Iberian Peninsula!" Siro raised his glass and toasted Li Ke with a happy expression.

Li Ke also raised his wine glass with a smile on his face and said, "Amistant Siro, you are kind. The trip to Rome that year also left a deep impression on Rome. Especially His Majesty Constance II and Empress Irina, we were even more enthusiastic. We were separated for two years. I wonder if they are in good health now?"

Siro knew that although Li Ke was asking Constance II and Irina, she actually only wanted to ask. After all, the relationship between the other party and Irina is well known in Rome, so she answered: "Your Highness, Queen Irina is in good health. But after His Highness left, she often lived in a manor outside the city and rarely returned to the Holy Palace to live."

Li Ke felt a little moved when he heard this. It has been almost two years since he and Irina separated. When he was in the Tang Dynasty, he often remembered the days when he was with Irina. This time he returned to the Mediterranean. He wanted to meet each other first, but he really couldn't live without him here. In addition, he had already threatened Rome when he entered the Mediterranean, so it was really inconvenient to see Irina.

After chatting for a few words, Siro finally began to tell his true purpose of coming to see Li Ke. He said with a cautious expression: "Your Highness, King Wu, we Rome and the Tang Dynasty are allies, and we naturally have a supportive attitude towards the Tang Dynasty's military operations. But I don't know why His Highness led his troops to the Iberian Peninsula and why did he fight with the Visigoths?"

Li Ke calmly picked up the wine glass and sipped it. He opened it slowly and said, "I believe that Ambassador Xiluo also knew about what happened two years ago. These Visigoths not only wanted to seize my ship, but even me were arrested as slaves. How could this great humiliation be tolerated? Therefore, after my father's consent, I brought some of my own troops to avenge my revenge!"

Li Ke had known that Rome would ask about his invasion of the Mediterranean, so he had prepared several excuses. At the beginning, he was going to use the banner of allies. After all, the Visigoths were also enemies of Rome. Now he was attacking the Visigoth Kingdom and was also helping Rome. However, later, the Visigoths took the initiative to attack him, which was simply an excuse to come to his door.

Xi Luo secretly curled his lips when he heard this. Although he knew the power of the Tang Dynasty than anyone else, he also knew that the Tang Dynasty would never send an army of tens of thousands of people to attack a considerable kingdom for the sake of a prince. Moreover, this kingdom is thousands of miles away from the Tang Dynasty. The cost alone is an astronomical figure, and even the Tang Dynasty cannot support it for a long time.

"So that's it. I just don't know how much revenge His Highness of the King of Wu wants to take revenge?" Xi Luo said helplessly. Although he sneered at Li Ke's reasons, he could not refute it, because the Visigothic Kingdom attacked Li Ke first. To put it in a small way, it was just a misunderstanding. At most, it would be a pleading for the Visigothic Kingdom to apologize. But to put it in a big way, it was related to the majesty of the Tang Dynasty and the safety of the royal family, which was enough for the Tang Dynasty to send troops to destroy the country and destroy the seeds.

"This is very simple. Our Tang Dynasty has always had a tradition. For enemies who violated the majesty of our Tang Dynasty, they always wanted to capture the other party's leader and then send it back to Chang'an to sacrifice to the Taimiao. Therefore, as long as the Visigoth king is captured, the matter will be over." Li Ke replied very easily, and from his tone, it seemed that it was an insignificant thing to catch the Visigoth king.

As soon as Li Ke said that, Siro and other envoys looked at each other and captured the Visigoth king. What is the difference between destroying the Visigoth kingdom? And by then, Li Ke completely occupied the Iberian Peninsula. Will the Tang Dynasty withdraw?

"Your Highness of the King of Wu, please ask me presumptuously. If you catch the Visigoth King, how will you deal with the land on the Iberian Peninsula?" Siro finally decided not to circle around and directly asked the most critical questions. Although Li Ke had been preparing for the establishment of a foothold in the Mediterranean for more than two years, among the Romans, except for Irina and Theodossi, others knew nothing, and many people even welcomed Li Ke's arrival again.

After hearing this, Li Ke looked at Xi Luo very calmly, and did not rush to answer. Instead, he seemed to think about it, and then asked: "If you capture the Visigoth King, then the Iberian Peninsula will also fall into the hands of our Tang Dynasty. However, this land is too far from our Tang Dynasty, so it is not easy to manage. I wonder what suggestions are there in Rome?"

Hearing Li Ke's words, Xi Luo's face immediately showed a look of surprise and said in a very excited tone: "His Royal Highness of the King of Wu is wise. If the Tang Dynasty wants to reach the Iberian Peninsula, it must take several months to take a boat, and also pass the Red Sea and the Suez Canal controlled by the Great Cannibal. With the current relationship between the Great Food and the Tang Dynasty, if the other party cuts off this line of transportation, then you will be in danger on the peninsula. Therefore, we Rome believes that the Tang Dynasty can hand over the Iberian Peninsula to our Roman Empire for custody. After all, this place was also our hometown at the beginning, and there was no problem in management."

As soon as Siro finished speaking, the other envoys spoke out and persuaded each other. The content was similar to Siro's words. It was nothing more than singing praises for the alliance between the Tang Dynasty and Rome, and then trying to take over the management of the peninsula from Li Ke for free.

Li Ke sneered in his heart, but he did not show any signs on his face. Instead, he spoke calmly: "Roman and our Tang Dynasty are firm allies. It's nothing to hand over a piece of useless land to you to manage. But if we want to conquer this place, we also need to spend a lot of manpower and material resources. If we give it to your country for nothing, it may have a bad impact on me. Therefore, I hope Rome can also show its sincerity!"

After Li Ke finished speaking, his eyes stared at Siro and others with a smile. He also understood what he said. If he wanted him to give up the Iberian Peninsula, he would have to pay the corresponding price. Of course, this is the foundation for Li Ke's establishment, and he would definitely not give up. The reason why he said this was just to make Rome retreat in the face of difficulties.

"Sincerity?" After hearing this, Siro frowned and exchanged glances with the envoys around him. A little helplessness flashed across each of them. At this time, they already understood that Li Ke was not easy to fool. If he wanted to get the Iberian Peninsula, he had to pay the other party's satisfaction.

The Iberian Peninsula is the largest of the three Mediterranean peninsulas, and the peninsula is surrounded by plains, with relatively developed agriculture, and in the middle there is a plateau, mainly based on animal husbandry, and also abundant iron ore. It can be said to be a very fertile land. It is not easy to find a price that can be exchanged for the cost of this land.

"Your Highness, what do you think? If the Tang Dynasty handed over the Iberian Peninsula to us for management, then we are willing to pay for it, but the specific amount is needed to ask Your Majesty for advice!" Siro had no choice but to propose a solution that was not a solution.

The price to pay for the satisfaction of the Tang Dynasty was nothing more than land, population or money. However, the Tang Dynasty had a vast territory, dozens of times larger than their Rome, and there was no extra land for exchange in Rome. As for the population and land, there was no need to mention it. The only thing left was to buy it with money. After all, as long as the price they paid was appropriate, the Tang Dynasty should sell this land that was too far away from the country.
Chapter completed!