Tajik looked at the distant backs of Effantia and the others in a distracted manner, and did not move his body for a long time.

The Zhenjiang Army is really ruthless.

Seeing that he would never give up the 40,000 army, the other party opened his mouth and offered an exaggerated price nearly five times the total annual tax of the Shule Kingdom, and there was no room for negotiation at all.

At that moment, the scheming Tajiks really regretted even their intestines.

At the beginning, I shouldn't have followed the coalition forces to wade into the muddy waters of Metasequoia. Now it's good, not only did the meat not eat, but it also forced the family to this step.

For the safety of the Shule country, he has no choice, he must save his son as soon as possible, and even more so the 40,000 elite Shule soldiers. But the question is, where does the ransom money go?

There is no need to say anything about emptying the treasury, even if he sells all the pants of the king now, it is impossible to come up with such an almost astronomical sum of money in a short period of time!

-

"Your Highness, there are guests outside asking to see you."

Hearing the report of his subordinates, the old king Tajik came back to his senses slightly, and said weakly: "What bullshit guest, I don't see it!" ”

The subordinate was stunned, hesitated for a moment, and then continued: "Your Highness, the other party said that they are members of the Persian merchant mission, and they have come to pay a visit on behalf of Lord Aemini. ”

"The Persian merchant mission?" Tajikistan was immediately puzzled when he heard this.

Due to the geographical location, after the Persian merchant delegation came to the ghost desert in western Xinjiang, the first stop was the Chechi royal court, and later because of a series of accidents, the merchant mission never left the Cheshi country. They haven't even taken care of the Loulan Kingdom of the Western Frontier Alliance, let alone the distant Shule Kingdom. However, the politicians in Western Xinjiang were very aware of the importance of the Persian merchant mission in this special period, and they all had a strong desire to interact with it.

Among them, naturally, it also includes the Tajikistan, the king of Shule.

At this time, when he heard that the person who had come was a representative of Ameni, he hurriedly collected the frustration of being blackmailed just now, and ordered his subordinates to hurry up and invite the Persian guests.

In a few moments, a well-dressed and well-behaved middle-aged man was led into the tent by the attendants.

The middle-aged man smiled and saluted the Tajiks respectfully: "Below is Narij of the Persian merchant mission, on behalf of Lord Aemini, see His Royal Highness the King. ”

Tajik smiled heartily and said loudly: "It turned out to be His Excellency Honorable Narijah, who has been admired for a long time. Your envoy is coming, this king has missed the welcome, please forgive me. Please be seated, please be seated! ”

"Your Highness is too polite." Narij bowed again, then slowly sat down and continued, "Lord Ameni asked me to greet His Highness and send him his sincere apologies. Lord Ameni said that he has been in the West for so long, and because his beloved daughter has disappeared, he has not been able to visit His Highness in person, and I ask you to forgive him. Now that His Royal Highness had arrived near the court of Chechi, Lord Ameni had planned to come to visit, but the situation of the battle was complicated, and he was worried that he would cause trouble to you, so he sent his subordinates to make up for the disrespect. ”

Tajik hurriedly waved his hand: "Hey, what did Your Excellency say about this?" I have heard of the misfortune that happened to the beloved daughter of Lord Ameni, and I have also sent the Shule army to participate in the search for the whereabouts of the young lady. It's a pity that I haven't been able to help much, so I should feel sorry. Now that war has broken out again in the western region, and there is chaos everywhere, I pray every day that the god of flowers will bless the beloved daughter of Lord Ameni with a safe return as soon as possible. ”

"Thank you, Your Highness, for your concern, and I will convey these words to Lord Amyne." Narij held his right hand on his chest and replied in a sincere tone.

Tajik nodded slightly, and continued: "Now the alliance is engaged in a fierce battle with the remnants of the Holy Tang Army, I don't know if Your Excellency has any advice when you come this time?" ”

Hearing this, Narij smiled and said, "Don't dare to give advice." On behalf of Lord Ameni, I am here to discuss business with Your Highness. ”

"Talk...... Talking about business? ”

When the Tajik king of Shule heard Narijie mention the word "talk about business", his head suddenly widened. Of course, this is all due to the fact that Effentia's "business" was so exciting that it left a lot of psychological shadows on the old king.

Tajik sighed in his heart: Lao Tzu didn't open a shop to do business, why did he come to talk to me about business one by one?!

However, he thought so, and in the face of the plenipotentiary of the Persian Empire Ameni, Tajikistan still did not dare to slack off in the slightest.

He rolled his eyes and asked with a smile: "I don't know what your Excellency means by business?" ”

Narijah replied unhurriedly: "Your Highness, here's the thing. Since you and several allies raised the banner of rebellion and completely broke away from the rule of the Holy Tang, the entire Western Ghost Desert has fallen into a state of all-out war, and it has been more than a year now. During this period, not to mention the war-torn and poor lives of the merchants and people in various parts of the Western Xinjiang, the military expenses of the various countries in the alliance alone cost a huge amount of money. At present, the overall situation is basically stable, and the Western Xinjiang Alliance has also been formed, and whether it is the rest and recovery of the armies of various countries or the revitalization of economic and commercial affairs, they are all in the time of striving to go uphill. Therefore, we hope that in this process, we can contribute a little bit to our good friends in the western frontier. ”

"Oh? So how does Master Ameni plan to help us? Tajik narrowed his eyes and asked Narij as he pondered.

"Borrowing." Narijie spit out two words lightly, "We are willing to provide the necessary financial support to the countries of Western Xinjiang, whether it is gold or silver." ”

This can really be described as "just dozing and hand over a pillow", Tajikistan was still worried about money just now, and in a blink of an eye, a god of wealth fell from the sky, he suddenly couldn't hide his excitement and asked: "How to borrow?" How much can I borrow? ”

Narijie couldn't help but snicker in his heart, but on the surface, he was still as calm as water: "Lord Ameni said that this loan is very important, so the three countries with more strength in Western Xinjiang are Loulan, Chechi and Shule as priority customers. The share of the first batch of 20 million silver coins will be divided among everyone, and it will be taken on a first-served basis. ”

"I want it, I want it, I want all 20 million!" Tajik didn't wait for Narijah to finish speaking, and then shouted urgently.

Seeing Tajikistan's anxious appearance, Narijie forced a smile, so he said in embarrassment: "Oh, Your Highness, this is a bit difficult to do." What Lord Ameni means is that the 20 million silver coins are divided equally between the three of you, but now that you want them all, how can I explain to you when I go back? To tell you the truth, my first stop here is yours, and tomorrow I will rush to the front line to meet His Highness Alikjan and His Highness Gelhan......"

"You don't have to go to them!" Tajik hurriedly said: "Brother Narijah, you listen to my elder brother, the front line is in chaos, why take this risk?" Besides, Loulan's wealth is powerful, and that guy from Alikjiang is suspicious and sick, and he will definitely not accept Lord Aimeni's affection. This loan is very important to me, brother, and you must help me with this. ”

Narijah pretended to ponder for a moment and asked Tajikistan: "Your Royal Highness, I didn't mean to make things difficult for you. The countries of the western frontier are our friends, and it is really against the morality of doing business to do so. Unless ......"

"Unless what?"

"Unless you can give me a good reason, I can give Mistress Emmeni an explanation."

Listening to Narija's request, Tajik couldn't help but hesitate for a moment. Then, as if he had made a great determination, he told Narij about the defeat of the Right Army and the arrival of the envoys of the Zhenjiang Army to negotiate.

"Brother Narija," Tajik finally said, "I really don't dare to hide the truth from you and Master Ameni, and I am afraid that because I can't tell the truth clearly, I will delay the big thing." Now, you can understand my difficulties, right? ”

Narijie stared into Tajik's eyes and said, "Your Highness, the crisis you are facing is indeed not trivial, and for this reason, I think it should also be able to convince Lord Ameni to lend you all 20 million first." However, huge borrowing always comes with conditions and costs, you know? ”

The Tajik also stared into Narijie's eyes and nodded solemnly.

Narij continued: "The term of the loan is twenty years, with ten percent interest per annum. ”

Tajik's face was much more solemn, but at the moment he had no more room for bargaining, so he could only nod silently in approval.

Narij paused and then introduced: "We need your country to use the annual tax revenue as collateral for borrowing, and if you can't repay the loan when it is due, you can negotiate an extension of the borrowing period." ”

Tajik's face was even more ugly than just now: "What do you mean...... You want me to hand over the tax rights of Shule for twenty years, or even longer?! ”

"Or else?" Narijie seemed to have a grasp of the other party: "Does Your Highness have any better advice?" ”

Tajik let out a long sigh, shook his head bitterly, and then nodded.

Narij smiled leisurely and said, "Your Highness, in addition to our Lord Ameni, the royal family of the Persian Empire is also a shareholder of the loan to the Western Frontier this time. So, if there is any breach in your country, it will not only affect your good reputation, but also lead to armed disputes between countries, right? ”

Tajik was stunned for a moment when he heard this, and then hurriedly responded: "That's not going to happen, we can't do anything to breach the contract." ”

"That's all right," Narij clapped his hands lightly, "In this way, I will save myself from running to His Highness Alikjan and His Highness Gelhan." Tajik brother, your business is on me. With my mediation in front of Lord Ameni, the loan must be foolproof. ”

Tajik listened to Narijah say this, and although his heart was entangled because of the harsh terms, he was finally expected to redeem his son and army, so he couldn't help but be grateful.

After a few more polite words, Narijah suddenly said mysteriously: "Your Highness, I don't know if you have a basic concept of money?" Twenty million silver coins, if packed in medium-sized nanmu boxes, would require at least more than five thousand chests, which would have been transported in six or seven hundred wagons. In today's situation, we will ship the money to you, and you will transport it to the Metasequoia Army, how big is the risk of something going wrong in the middle, have you considered it? ”

Tajik was stunned when asked by Narijah, he really didn't know as much about this aspect as these businessmen who were used to doing business.

"That'...... So what to do? Tajik asked hesitantly.

Narijie smiled slyly: "It's better to go and call the representative of the Metasequoia Army, and let's sit down and sign a tripartite agreement." Wouldn't it be safer for us, as intermediary guarantors, to deliver the money directly to them, and then to supervise their release of the captives? ”