Deposed Crown Prince: After three years of service on the frontier, the entire court knelt and begge

Nikolayevich Ries smiled and then spoke in a language that was not quite standard but was understandable to everyone.

"Thank you, thank you, we are very happy to be here!"

After Nikolaevich Riess spoke, Xiao Xiangqing and the others' expressions became quite interesting.

They became increasingly enthusiastic and ushered them inside.

Throughout the journey, they kept a very humble attitude.

This made these Slavic people hold their heads high.

After arriving at the main hall.

Mr. Qianlong then said, "Your Highness Rhys, may I address you as such?"

Nikolayevich Rees smiled and nodded: "Of course. Our names are far too long for you."

His words were still quite clumsy.

Xiao Xiangqing then spoke up, "Your Highness Ries, I've come here for two reasons. First, to introduce ourselves. Second, I believe we can deepen our cooperation..."

As Xiao Xiangqing spoke, she introduced herself and then introduced Xiao Zhan.

Xiao Zhan had no good feelings towards these Slavic people, for no other reason than that.

It's because their eyes are all on their foreheads.

After hearing these words, Nikolayevich Ries smiled and nodded, then went straight to the point with Xiao Xiangqing and the others.

He didn't dawdle.

“Your Majesty, since you are such a straightforward person, we will not beat around the bush with you! Our cooperation will definitely be in-depth, and this time we have brought many excellent merchants from our Slavic country.”

"We merchants will bring our precious treasures from our Slavic country, and in return, you can sell your local specialties to us!"

"In this way, trade will benefit both of our countries! So, our first request is that you open your ports to us so that we can trade here."

After Rhys got to this point...

Xiao Xiangqing was inclined to agree, after all, even if their port wasn't open, these Slavic people would still live there as if it were their own territory.

However, he always felt that the person in front of him, Rhys, was the kind of person who smiled on the outside but cursed on the inside.

I instinctively looked at Mr. Qianlong on the side.

Since becoming the national advisor, Mr. Qianlong no longer appeared mysterious and wore a monk's robe.

Instead, he took off his monk's robe.

Xiao Xiangqing was somewhat disappointed when she saw Mr. Qianlong take off his clothes.

After all, back then, he thought Mr. Qianlong was a wise and venerable man.

When he took off his monk's robe, he was revealed to be bald, with only a few hairs left on his head.

He was very thin and short, and he had lost most of his teeth.

Looking at him, he looked like a dried-up corpse, which was really unsettling.

However, no matter how ugly this Mr. Qianlong was, he dared not say anything.

After all, he may be ugly, but he is capable.

At this moment, Mr. Qianlong saw it, and Xiao Xiangqing looked at him for help.

Mr. Qianlong then answered in his place: "Your Highness Rhys, of course there is no problem! This is a good thing, and we naturally agree! With your help, our economy will surely take off."

Nikolayevich Riess listened to Qianlong's words and said with a smile, "Good, that's good! If possible, let us manage those ports. If we can manage the ports, we can save a lot of management fees. At that time, we can give you a 20% discount on the weapons you need in the future."

Mr. Qianlong agreed without hesitation.

Upon hearing this, Nikolayevich Riess asked with a look of astonishment, "Do you mean what you say?"

Mr. Qianlong smiled and said, "Of course it's calculated..."

Xiao Xiangqing chimed in, "That's right, of course it counts! All we need to do now is deal with that damned traitor Xiao Tao!"

Next, Nikolayevich made some trade demands, which included policies such as eliminating tariffs on imported goods.

Xiao Xiangqing and Xiao Zhan readily agreed, and even Nikolayevich was somewhat surprised by their quick agreement.

"Gentlemen, since you are so sincere... then we will also show our sincerity! This time, we have come with a powerful new weapon... compared to your weapons, this weapon is extremely powerful."

After hearing what Nikolayevich Riess said, they were initially slightly displeased.

Upon hearing that some of the weapons were quite powerful, they immediately became interested.

They followed the Slavic people, who had already prepared a large open space.

In the open space, there was a row of neat two-wheeled carts, with a large black iron pipe on each cart. All of these items were covered with red cloth.

Nikolayevich Ries then began to introduce himself.

"These are called mountain guns, and as the name suggests, they are suitable for mountain warfare. For example, your Xiao people like to ambush in the mountains and fields. If we set up these mountain guns on flat ground, we can attack those who are lying in ambush in the mountains and fields..."

Nikolayevich Riess gave a very enthusiastic presentation.

However, it seemed that these people from the Xiao Kingdom did not quite understand what they were saying.

Nikolayevich Riess immediately arranged for people to start testing.

A series of cannon shots rang out, followed by a series of violent explosions.

This piqued the interest of everyone present, their eyes gleaming with excitement.

"Yes! Yes! We want them!"

"That's right, Your Highness, we want to too..."

Nikolayevich Reiss wasn't surprised by their expressions and reactions at all, and immediately said, "So, the price..."

Xiao Xiangqing quickly said, "Your Highness, you said we're friends now. Since we're friends... just name your price. We'll accept whatever price you suggest without hesitation! Whatever price you say, that's the price we'll agree to. Is that reasonable?"

Nikolayevich Riess laughed and said, "Alright, then we won't ask you for more! One thousand taels of gold for a cannon, and ten taels of gold for a round of ammunition, what do you think?"

Xiao Xiangqing nodded: "No problem! We can... Let's start with a hundred cannons and five thousand shells."

Xiao Zhan nodded: "We'll also take a hundred cannons and five thousand shells."

Nikolayevich Riess listened: "Okay...but these are big deals! We need to collect a deposit."

Xiao Xiangqing and Xiao Zhan, being wealthy and powerful, both readily agreed.

At this moment, Mr. Qianlong said, "Your Highness, we have a request!"

Nikolayevich Riess was surprised to find these people so easy to talk to. He knew that the cost of making these mountain cannons was less than a dozen taels of gold.

These wealthy, foolish individuals actually agreed so readily.

It really proves the saying, "Foolish people with too much money."

"No problem! Since it's a collaboration, we'll naturally do our best to help each other in any way we can."

Mr. Qianlong smiled at Nikolayevich Ries: "I don't think using these mountain guns is simple, and hitting exactly where you point them is even more difficult... So, we were thinking that you could send some instructors to our area for training!"

Nikolayevich Riston immediately showed a troubled expression.

Qianlong, understanding the unspoken message, said, "Your Highness, rest assured... money is not a problem. As long as you are willing to send people... we can make an offer!"

Nikolayevich Ries was waiting for him to say this: "Such technical talents are normally a treasure of our Slavic nation. They're also top secret... However, Mr. Qianlong, seeing that you've come with sincerity, we won't ask for an additional five thousand taels of gold per year for a technical instructor!"

“Okay! We agree!” Qianlong didn’t even need Xiao Xiangqing’s consent.

Seeing how readily Mr. Qianlong agreed, Nikolayevich Riston immediately felt that he hadn't asked for enough.

After the two sides reached an agreement, Nikolayevich Riess asked them to provide them with some accommodations near the sea.

They also told Mr. Qianlong and his group that Nikolayevich Riess would continue to lead the deepening of cooperation between the two countries.

So that if they have any problems, they can go to them immediately.

The initial meeting went very well for both parties during the negotiations...

After all, each side has its own needs, and they have both gained something from this negotiation!

This would naturally be a win-win situation.

...

Meanwhile, in Kyoto.

Xiao Tao was also meeting with people from Fusang.

Cai Hui was the one who introduced these people from Fusang to each other.

The "noble people" that Cai Hui and Yun Fei had been referring to were none other than these people from Fusang.

At first, Xiao Tao was very resistant.

After all, Xiao Kingdom had always known about Fusang Kingdom, and for hundreds of years, the governors of coastal cities had always sent reports.

It is said that some Japanese pirates have invaded, and these Japanese pirates are people from the Fusang Kingdom.

So it wasn't just Xiao Tao, but in the minds of the entire Xiao Kingdom.

People from Japan always remember them as petty thieves and sleazy figures.

He never imagined that he would one day be cooperating with these people from Fusang.

Xiao Tao was sitting on the dragon throne, looking at the man who came over wearing a Japanese-style outfit, wooden clogs, and a very strange hairstyle.

The area around his head was shaved, with a small braid in the middle and a small tuft of mustache, making him quite eye-catching.

His appearance was rather sleazy.

The group of six entered the main hall.

Upon entering, he leaned on a katana in one hand and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty of Xiao Kingdom!"

Xiao Tao looked at them speaking in broken English, smiled and nodded: "Alright, take your seats."

These people from Fusang remained completely still.

Xiao Tao showed a puzzled expression: "Esteemed guests who have come from afar, please take your seats."

Cai Hui stood up and said, "Gentlemen, is there anything you are dissatisfied with about what we have done?"

Hearing Cai Hui's words, the people of Fusang said, "According to the rules of our Fusang Kingdom, after we pay our respects to you, you, as a subordinate nation, should pay homage to our Emperor from afar!"

The moment the people from Fusang uttered these words, the entire hall erupted in uproar.

Before Xiao Tao could speak, the officials on the side stood up and said, "Hmph... what nonsense are you spouting? When did my great Xiao Kingdom become a subordinate country? Your tiny Fusang Kingdom is called a superior country? Have you all eaten too much and ruined your brains?"

"That's right! You sea pirates are nothing but petty thieves and despicable swindlers... How dare you make His Majesty of Xiao Kingdom pay homage to a mere emperor from a tiny island like yours? Where do you get the audacity?"

...

These pedantic scholars, one by one, spoke with righteous indignation and showed no mercy in their scathing denunciation of the people of Fusang.

In fact, Xiao Tao usually hated these pedantic scholars, since they always liked to spout classical Chinese phrases.

He spouts nothing but benevolence and morality.

However, he secretly felt a sense of satisfaction listening to them reprimand these arrogant people from Japan.

Meanwhile, the faces of the Japanese envoys, who had been scolded, turned pale and then purple.

They looked at Xiao Tao with grim expressions and said, "Your Majesty of Xiao Kingdom, is this how your Xiao Kingdom treats its guests?"

Before Xiao Tao could speak, Cai Hui said, "Esteemed envoys, please calm down...please calm down...these ministers have misunderstood...misunderstood..."

As she spoke, Cai Hui gave Xiao Tao a meaningful look.

The noble person from Fusang that Cai Hui came into contact with was not one of these envoys.

However, she knew very well that the Fusang Kingdom was no longer the Fusang Kingdom of the past.

Actually, Cai Hui had already given Xiao Tao instructions before they met.

However, to everyone's surprise, before Xiao Tao could even speak, this group of pedantic scholars ruined things.

Xiao Tao was naturally aware of the current situation. The people of Fusang were no longer the same as before, and the weapons he needed most now were provided by them.

If we offend these people from Fusang too badly, they might turn around and support Xiao Xiangqing and Xiao Zhan.

He was truly heartbroken, because he now knew that Xiao Xiangqing and Xiao Zhan also had someone supporting them behind the scenes.

If the balance of power shifts, he's doomed.

After weighing the options, Xiao Tao said, "Guards! These gentlemen seem to have lost their minds. How could they treat our distinguished guests from the Xiao Kingdom like this? Take them away and throw them into the dungeon!"

The imperial guards naturally stepped forward, while the ministers cried out that they were wronged.

However, these envoys from Fusang (Japan) did not want the matter to end so easily: "Your Majesty, he can insult us, but he cannot insult our country! We cannot let them off so easily! They must pay the price!!!"