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A fierce light flashed in the slender and deep-set eyes of the Sassanid king Ardashir, his hand was tightly clenched, and the piece of wood that recorded the information of the Yue warship was broken into two pieces with a "snap", and when he heard this sound, the spy who was bent down and standing in front of him trembled, and knelt directly on the ground with a "plop". Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

Ardashir's breathing became thicker, a sign that he was going to kill, and the spy lay on the ground, not daring to move, sweating like rain, and soon the loess beneath him was wet.

"Get up and get out." Overhead, Ardashir's voice suppressed his anger, and the spy kowtowed as if he had been amnesty, turned around and fled.

Ardashir looked at the pool of sweat under his feet, lowered his head in frustration, spread his palms, looked at the piece of wood that had been crushed into pieces by him, and muttered: "Is there really no way to find out the secret of the Vietnamese warship?" ”

Several important ministers did not dare to say anything, and even Ardashir's most trusted brother, Akaz, kept his mouth shut. From the day the Sassanid Dynasty was established, Ardashir began to pay attention to the surrounding information, originally Yue did not enter his sight, after all, Tianzhu is far enough, and Yue is still outside Tianzhu, for Sasanian, the existence of Yue has no influence on him, even if Alexander hits the Ganges, he only controls the north of Tianzhu, there are still large areas of land that have not been conquered, Ardashir once thought that he and Yue will never have any intersection.

However, all this was soon shattered, not because of the envoys of the Yue Kingdom, which was not unusual, but because the warships of the Yue people dominated the sea, and the Han merchants monopolized the maritime trade, whether it was the Red Sea or the Persian Gulf, and almost all the goods were sold by the Han merchants almost overnight.

The first thing they feel is that the number of spices is less, and the price has risen, although the spices have been very expensive before, but as long as there is money, it is not difficult to buy, but now it is different, now the money may not be able to buy, of course, the spices that can be bought are also high-quality spices, you no longer want to buy those cheap defective products.

Along with the spices, there are exquisite silks, beautiful glassware and porcelain, all of which are fine, and each of them can make people believe that these are treasures that are hard to find, and once they get their hands, they can no longer bear to put down, so they can only obediently pay for them. Ardashir was a wise man, and at a time when many people were indulging in the fine goods brought by the Han merchants, he had already sensed the crisis: in this way, a large amount of money would be swept away by the Han merchants, and it would not take much to cause problems in the Sassanid economy.

At that time, Ardashir agreed to build a business with the Vietnamese, and on the other hand, began to build ships, preparing to compete with the Vietnamese for the right to trade at sea. The first item went well, but the second item was stranded as soon as it was progressed, because Ardashir found that his warship could not seize supremacy at sea even if it was built, the reason was very simple, his warship was similar to the Roman warship, inherited from the Phoenician warship, whether it was length, width or the number of soldiers on board, it was not the opponent of the Yue, at best it was not much different from those Tianzhu people who were beaten by the Yue, even if he could recruit excellent sailors and improve some combat effectiveness, But in the face of the powerful warships of the Yue people, he basically dreamed of victory.

Ardashir stopped shipbuilding, he wanted to inquire about what the Yue people's warships looked like before copying and upgrading, at least to build a warship similar to the Yue people, and then consider the issue of war with the Yue, for this reason, he sent a large number of secret agents to contact the Han merchants in various ways, and contact with the Yue people who went ashore for recreation, hoping to get information from their mouths. At the beginning, Ardashir was very surprised, the warships of the Yue Kingdom were about fifty Han feet, equivalent to one hundred and fifty wrist feet, which was twice as long as the Roman warships, and could carry thousands of people, not to mention that there were weapons on it, with such a volume, in the naval battles with collision as the main tactic, the warships of the Yue people had enough advantages.

What made Ardashir even more depressed was that he sent a large number of spies, but he couldn't inquire about the weapons of the Yue people, and finally sent people on the warships of the Yue Kingdom, but he only saw the ballistas on the medium-sized warships from a distance, and the weapons on the main warships still couldn't see anything, they could only see the frame on the deck, and it could be inferred that the weapons of the Yue people were hidden below the deck, and it was extremely difficult to see what the weapons below the deck looked like, sacrificing a few of the best spies, but still finding nothing.

It's not that Ardashir doesn't want to kill, he has killed more than a dozen people, but it still has no effect, which shows that it is not that these spies are incompetent, but that the Yue people are really tight-lipped.

As soon as he thought of this, Ardashir was very angry, and if he could not get the secret of the Yue warships, he would not be able to compete with the Yue at sea, and he would not be able to regain the right to trade at sea. He may be able to dominate on land, but without the maritime trade, Sassanid will be like a weaned child, he may grow up, but he will certainly not be very strong.

Ardashir was very angry, but he was not an impulsive person, he knew that he could not turn against the Yue people until he had enough strength, otherwise, once the Yue people cut off the trade route from the sea, the Sassanid would soon be in trouble, let alone fight against Rome, and even survival would be affected to a certain extent.

What's even more terrifying is that if the Yue and the Romans join forces, it will definitely be a big obstacle to his great cause of rebuilding the Persian Empire.

Ardashir pondered for a long time, and after discussing with the high priest of the Yuanjiao Sect, he decided to temporarily accept the mediation of the Yue people, and further establish relations with the Yue people, to see if he could take the opportunity to learn about the situation of some Yue warships, and then make a big plan.

Ardashir wrote a beautifully worded letter to Sun Shao, praising Sun Shao's kindness, and then expressing his eagerness to meet Sun Shao at sea, and at the same time sending two good horses as a tribute.

…… Lu Xun stroked his beard with one hand, held the book with the other, and read by bright candlelight, perhaps because of excessive use of his eyes, he is now a little dazzled, and it is difficult to see the handwriting if the book is not raised a little higher, although the books produced by the Yue Guo Bookstore have always been known for "paper white as cotton, words as big as money". The pot-bellied Sun Xiuying sat opposite, looking at her blackened husband, full of joy: "Will you come back this time and leave?" ”

"I don't know." Lu Xun stretched out his finger, dipped some saliva on his lips, turned a page of the book, glanced over the page, glanced at Sun Xiuying with a smile on his face, and raised the corners of his mouth: "Is Temu City okay?" I don't think it's as good as Yangon, and it's even worse than New Wu City. ”

Xinwu City is a city built by Lu Xun in the southern foothills of the Himalayas, and like Sun Shao's summer palace, it is a place with a very mild climate. Sun Xiuying takes Lu Kang there every summer to escape the heat, and the child in her womb was conceived last year.

"Xinwu City is good, but it's too deserted, except for soldiers, they are still soldiers, how can there be a special pastoral city." Sun Xiuying said with a smile: "Don't you see Kang'er, as soon as she returns to Temu City, she likes something, and she doesn't want to come back in kindergarten these days." ”

"What can you learn in kindergarten? Let him come back tomorrow and I will teach it myself. Lu Xun said disapprerovingly: "I don't know what Zhou Gongjin's daughter is learning?" I read every issue of "The New Classic of Mountains and Seas" written by her, and the writing is average. ”

"You have a high vision, so why don't you write a book for me to see?" Sun Xiuying said with a smile, although her tone was unconvinced, but her heart was sweet, of course she felt that Lu Xun's level was stronger than Zhou Yu, if Lu Xun was willing to teach Lu Kang to read in person, it would be of course the best.

"I don't have that much to spare." Lu Xun put down the book and rubbed his eyes. Sun Xiuying hurriedly got up and moved over, knelt behind Lu Xun, stretched out her hand to knead his shoulders for him, Lu Xun held her hand with his backhand, and persuaded: "Just let the maid come, you are pregnant, why bother." ”

"No way!" Sun Xiuying said angrily: "I just don't let those Yi girls and Japanese girls touch you, and you don't want to take them as concubines." If you want to take a concubine, I'll find you a few good women. ”

"Who wants to take a concubine." Lu Xun smiled and let go of his hand. Sun Xiuying gently pinched his shoulder socket, and happiness unabashedly revealed from her eyes. Lu Xun is the mountain in her eyes, she has to firmly surround this mountain, and she can't let other women go around it. As soon as she thought of this, she blamed her younger brother Sun Shao a little, and she had a bad idea to encourage men to take concubines. Lu Xun didn't mention it, but watching other people's families give birth to children one after another, she was actually very anxious, after giving birth to Lu Kang five years ago, she never got pregnant, which made her anxious to increase the population of the Lu family.

Knowing that Yi Nu's son can't compete with her son for inheritance, it is beneficial to her, but she still hopes that Lu Xun can have a few more real Han descendants, instead of those mongrels. Although the laws of the Yue Kingdom are not explicitly stated, everyone knows that these mongrels will definitely not be able to compare with the real Han descendants in the future. In the face of the interests of the Lu family and her own grace, she finally chose the former.

"Father!" Lu Kang, who was wearing a bun, ran in from outside, panting and standing under the hall, his little face was flushed, he looked at Lu Xun, pointed out the door, and wanted to say something, but he only opened his mouth wide and panted, and did not say it.

"What's the matter, such a gaffe?" Lu Xun sank his face unhappily.

"Big ...... The king is coming. Lu Kang was taken aback, the joy on his face disappeared, and he stood up straight, his hands arched in front of his chest in a regular manner, like a small doctor. Lu Xun just eased his face, and when he heard that Sun Shao was coming, he couldn't help but be taken aback, and was just about to get up to greet him, but after thinking about it, he sat back again, just straightened his waist, turned to Sun Xiuying and said, "Madam, the king is coming, you can avoid it." ”

Sun Xiuying wanted to speak and stopped, she wanted to say that her brother was here, what was there to avoid, but Lu Xun had this temper, so she could only go along with it, get up and pull Lu Kang to prepare to go into the inner room.

"Oh, hey, third sister, why did you run away when you saw me? With such a big belly, is it convenient? Sun Shao, who was dressed in civilian clothes, rushed into the main hall with an arrow step, and grabbed Sun Xiuying and smiled: "What, treat me as an outsider?" ”

Sun Xiuying helplessly squeezed her eyes at Lu Xun, who was sitting precariously, and whispered: "You speak first, and then my sister invites you to dinner." ”

"Hahaha......" Sun Shao let go of Sun Xiuying, shook his placket, sat opposite Lu Xun with a big red face, and said with a smile: "Brother-in-law is such a big family rule, is it that Kang'er is the most praised by Mr. in kindergarten, compared with him, those few in my family are simply wild monkeys." ”

Lu Xun's face did not change, he tidied up his clothes, and bowed respectfully: "General Wu's foreign minister, meet His Royal Highness King Yue." ”

Sun Shao was stunned for a moment, and the smile on his face stiffened. Sun Xiuying, who had already walked to the back wall, listened to it, sighed silently, stood for a while, and quietly left.

Sun Shao looked at Lu Xun who was lying on the ground, was silent for a moment, smiled again, and laughed, without telling Lu Xun to get up, he raised his hand and greeted: "Jingfeng, come in, go and brew the coffee first, your uncle has to kneel for a while, he has a lot of rules." ”

Lu Kai came in with a set of coffee-making utensils, looked at Lu Xun who was kneeling on the ground, worshipped, no, no, and finally had to bow down with the utensils, without saying a word, he walked to the side, lit a fire, and brewed coffee. Sun Shao didn't say anything, watching Lu Kai busy with his work, as if he had forgotten that Lu Xun was still kneeling aside, until Lu Kai brewed the fragrant coffee, he took a cup first, and then motioned to Lu Kai, who was sweating, to bring Lu Xun a cup.

Lu Kai smiled silently and bitterly, walked in front of Lu Xun with a cup of coffee on a white Yuzhang porcelain plate, knelt on the ground, and said softly: "Uncle, the king gave you coffee." ”

Lu Xun was already kneeling so that his legs were numb, his waist was sore, and his hands couldn't help trembling, but he refused to give up, and still thanked him with a glance: "Thank you for the king's gift." Then he straightened up and took the coffee, but his hand was a little unable to hold it, and he almost splashed on his body, but Lu Kai held it in time.

Sun Shao tasted the coffee, looked at Lu Xun and took a sip very elegantly, and laughed softly: "General Lu, how does it taste?" ”

"Very good." Lu Xun took a sip of coffee, his originally pale face suddenly eased up, he took a breath, and praised: "It must be a new arrival." When he was fighting in Tianzhu, because he often had to stay up late to read documents, drinking coffee to refresh himself was already essential, which was one of the few habits he changed.

"It was sent by the Romans, it was wild coffee from Axum (the ancient country of Ethiopia), and it is said that it does not produce a few pounds a year." Sun Shao put down the cup and said with a wicked smile: "I know that you are good at coffee, so I specially sent it to share it with you." ”

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Lu Xun is still tepid, and he is not shocked.

"No thanks, it's just this once." Sun Shao smiled and waved his hand: "The quantity is limited, I can only ask you to taste it." ”

Lu Xun frowned slightly, but his expression was a little regretful, just now, he had already felt the uniqueness of this coffee, but he didn't expect to be able to taste it only once, rather than so, it is better not to taste it. It's just that he has a strong kung fu surname, and when he thought about it, he suddenly felt that he had committed greed, and he hurriedly reflected on it in his heart.

Sun Shao saw his expression in his eyes, just smiled lightly, but did not break it. He gently placed the thin cup on the table and was silent for a moment: "Does the general know where these porcelain cups come from and who is supervising them?" ”

Lu Xun shook his head, although it was not the first time he had used such a fine porcelain cup, and he also knew that these porcelains came from Wu State, but where they came from Wu State, he didn't know, let alone who supervised it, and for him, who supervised it and what it had to do with him.

"It's supervised by Zigao." Sun Shao sighed faintly: "Zi Gao said a letter before, saying that in the end there is experience in porcelain, he is preparing to write a book "Yuzhang Porcelain Art", detailing the firing technology of porcelain, and now he is ready to write thirty volumes, one volume a year, and it will take thirty years to finish. ”

Lu Xun raised his head in astonishment and looked directly at Sun Shao: "Why?" ”

"When people live, they always have to find something to do." Sun Shao picked up the coffee cup again, and while drinking, he looked at Lu Xun: "Does General Lu have any similar plans?" ”

Lu Xun looked at Sun Shao blankly, not knowing what Sun Shao meant. Sun Shao looked at him for a while, smiled, shook his hand, and glanced at Lu Kai. Lu Kai hurriedly walked out of the hall, took a brocade box in the hands of Lang Guan who was waiting in the hall, then returned to the hall, knelt on the ground, opened the brocade box, took out a silk book from it and spread it on the ground, and slowly unfolded it. Lu Xun squinted his eyes, looked at the silk book that was gradually opened, and looked at it intently for a moment, then he exhaled softly: "Map of Rome, Sasanian, Guishan, and Han Dynasty?" ”

"Exactly." Lu Kai glanced at Lu Xun with admiration, when he first saw this map, he was stunned for a long time, there are many people who know the approximate location of the four countries, but the relative position of them is so clear is very limited. Sun Shao should know, and Chen Hai, Cui Qian, and Yue Hai, who often escort to the Red Sea, should also know, but Lu Xun has never been exposed to similar intelligence, and he can see it at a glance, which can only show that he has done a lot of preparation for these things in ordinary times.

Sun Shao put away his smile and said solemnly: "The Sassanid King accepted my mediation and was willing to sit down and negotiate with the Four Kingdoms, which is inconsistent with his usual surname. If something goes wrong, it's a demon, and I have to be prepared to deal with it. As you know, I never put my hopes on the shoulders of outsiders. ”

He looked at Lu Xun, the word "outsider" was bitten very hard, Lu Xun's eyebrows shrugged, and he immediately knew what Sun Shao meant, but he didn't say anything, as if he didn't hear anything, just looked at the map intently.

Sun Shao was a little disappointed, he had already made the situation so clear, Lu Xun was still a tendon, did he really think that I couldn't find a second person to preside over this matter? Yes, Cui Qian and a few of them are okay to charge into battle, and it is okay to sit on one side, but things like this sandwiched between Sassanid and Rome are not something they can handle, but this does not mean that Yue Guo can't find suitable talents, like Shen Xuan and Zhang Wen, they are all more suitable candidates, the reason why he chose Lu Xun is that he knows that he is still far from emitting the light he deserves, so he has to give him a chance, of course, it is inevitable because compared to others, he believes in Lu Xun, who is related to him.

But Lu Xun didn't appreciate it, then the matter had to be talked about, and it was really impossible for him to really put this task on the shoulders of an outsider.

(To be continued)