This time to negotiate the land on the east bank of the Rhine, Marin did not send an envoy, but went out himself. Anyway, soon the Worms Imperial Council was about to begin, and Marin simply went to Cleaver City to discuss the exchange of land, and then, with John II, Duke of Cleaver, went south to attend the meeting.

For Marin's arrival, John II, Duke of Cleaver, was naturally very welcome. After all, Marin was an important ally for him. Moreover, the military power of the North Sea State was very strong, and John II certainly did not want to offend Marin if it was not necessary. Moreover, the Hoffmanns and Lamarck were important partners in trade. Just acting as an agent for the refined sea salt produced in Beihai Country every year, the Lamarck family has made a lot of money. In the face of the God of Wealth, how can John II be lazy?

Therefore, regardless of whether the negotiations for this territorial exchange were successful or not, John II did not want to stiffen relations between the two sides. For this reason, John II attached great importance to Marin's arrival and personally went out of the city to greet Marin.

"Welcome, Grand Duke Marin, your presence is a great honor for Cleaver City!" John II enthusiastically led Marin to the royal palace in Cleaver. Then a grand feast was set up in the palace and fine wine was served......

But what makes Marin happy is that the food and wine in King Cleaver's Palace are basically from the North Sea Kingdom......

Although the ingredients of the food do not come from the North Sea Country, the recipes are all from the North Sea Country. However, the chefs of King Cleaver Palace don't seem to be very well learned, and the taste of Chinese food is slightly awkward. But in any case, these delicacies are much better than the medieval German dark dishes that John II ate before. Even the wine on the table is the "Royal Salute" that Marin has just launched......

This diluted two-pot head of more than 20 degrees, after being mixed with maple syrup, is not strong, but also has the fragrance and sweetness of maple syrup, which is very suitable for the taste of nobles. Moreover, the cork in the shape of a brass crown makes the "Royal Salute" suddenly full, which is very in line with the aesthetics of the great nobles.

In addition, even the Earl Grey milk tea drunk before the banquet was invented by Marin......

John II was obviously aware of this as well, so, during the meal, John II didn't say much. Because, the food and wine here are all in the style of Beihai Kingdom, and there is no need for him to introduce them to the guests at all.

After eating and drinking, Marin politely rejected John II's suggestion to dance and relax, but found a quiet room and discussed business directly with John II......

Marin didn't bother to go around in circles, but went straight to the point, directly expressing his desire to exchange the territory of the southern half of the Münster Episcopal State for the land on the east bank of the Rhine River in the western part of the southern half of the Münster Episcopal State and the junction of the Duchy of Cleaver.

"Forgive me, Grand Duke Marin, why are you so obsessed with acquiring this land? You know, you don't lack land right now. Moreover, this land is not your hometown either...... "John II also expressed curiosity about Marin's motives.

Previously, during the exchange of the kingdom of Marque, John II believed in Marin's reason that "wealth does not return to his homeland, such as brocade clothes walking at night, who knows". However, the land on the east bank of the Rhine in the Duchy of Cripple is still far from Marin's hometown of Bochum.

Marin had already made a draft of this, but he unhurriedly took out a map and pointed it to John II:

"Look, Lord John, here is a map of the Ruhr and Lipper rivers. Since moving to my hometown of Bochum, I will definitely invest more in building my hometown in the future. It is not difficult to imagine that Bochum, which is close to the Ruhr River, will prosper in the future......"

After a pause, Marin continued:

"And when it prospers, commerce will inevitably develop. When commerce is developed, transportation will be frequent. Now, the largest volume of cargo in traffic is ship. If you look at the map, the boat will have to pass through Mülheim as soon as it leaves Bochum. If the Duke of Berg were to set up a card to collect taxes, it would definitely cause me serious inconvenience......"

"And after passing through the Mülheim region, it enters the territory of your country. Then, sail into the Rhine. After that, it will turn to the Lipper River and enter the newly dug Münster Canal, which connects to the largest commercial port in the North Sea State, the Port of Emden......"

"Every time a cargo ship passes through your country's waterways, it will be taxed. If there are more ships, there will be a lot of tax deductions, and it will be very troublesome......"

……

"So you're going to get the east bank of the Rhine in my Duchy of Clive?" John II was a little dumbfounded. Because, the reason given by Marin is too strong - in order to evade taxes, directly buy the land where the tax card is located? That's......

As a result, Marin really nodded solemnly, and added:

"This is indeed an important reason, and another point is that the land between the Ruhr and Lipper rivers, and now the part of the Duchy of Criver is not mine, and I look uncomfortable and want to take it all......"

John II pursed his lips and said:

"Aren't there still two imperial cities, Essen and Dortmund?"

Marin shook his head and said:

"That's different, they're an independent imperial city, and there's no other territory. I bought it, where did the people over there go? So, they can't sell it. ”

John II thought about it, two imperial cities, the land is their own piece, and if they are sold, they will be gone, and they will definitely not be happy. It's different, and there are many other territories. But he still frowned and said:

"We are allies, and you want free navigation rights on the Rhine to you, so why go to so much trouble to get hold of that piece of land?"

Marin shook his head when he heard this:

"Lord John, you and I are indeed allies, and I believe that you have been exempted from the toll tax of the ships of the North Sea Nation. But can you guarantee that your son, who will surely be able to make allies with my son in the future? What about our grandchildren? The future is uncertain, so it is safest to get the land east of the Rhine in your hands. ”

John II nodded, agreeing with Marin's opinion. However, he regretfully said:

"As much as you're right, I can't give you that piece of land. You know, Duisburg, but it's the most prosperous city in the Duchy of Cliffor, and it's the main source of tax revenue in the Principality of Clifford, and I can't give it to you. In John II's hypothesis, the land on the east bank of the Rhine that Marin bought would have included Duisburg on the south bank of the Ruhr River. But Duisburg was the economic center of the Duchy of Cleaver and the number one source of taxes, and John II could not give it up.

"No, Lord John, you are mistaken, I never said I wanted Duisburg. Moreover, I am also aware of the importance of Duisburg for your country. So, the place I'm going to change is really just north of the Ruhr and south of the Lipper. As for Duisburg, south of the Ruhr River, I didn't think about it. Because, I know, even if I ask for it, you won't give it. ”

……