On his way back to the Imperial Study, Zhu Ci specifically sent someone to deliver a message to Cao Xue, telling him to prepare, as he would be sent on another mission to Ordos in a few days.
Although it was a bit exploitative of the Mission, reaching an agreement with Ordos one day earlier meant cutting off the Manchu-Mongol alliance one day earlier.
The oral instructions he gave to Cao Xue were not complicated.
Because the first time was merely a test of Duoheqin's intentions, Zhu Ci did not give Cao Xue much autonomy, but this time he could loosen the reins a little.
Zhu Ci told him his bottom line directly: the border market was acceptable, but if the Ordos wanted something, they would have to find a way to get it themselves. The Great Ming could not spare the hands right now, so they should forget about trading grain; the Great Ming itself did not have enough to eat.
Of course, the most important thing was to refuse political marriages.
Whether it is an Ordos princess marrying into Great Ming or a Ming princess marrying into Ordos, it is simply not allowed.
Zhu Ci's reason was very perfunctory. He stated: "Women are fragile; forcing them to leave their homes and marry thousands of miles away is simply too cruel. Let us not engage in such heinous acts on either side."
Heduoheqin might not agree with this reason, other officials of the Great Ming remained neutral, but Zhu Yihai and Zhu Yujian both wished they could kowtow to the Emperor.
Previously, they had all overlooked the possibility of Heduoheqin seeking to marry a princess of Great Ming; it was only when the Emperor's oral decree was issued that they remembered this point.
If Heduoheqin truly made such a request and the Emperor agreed, then the first to suffer would be the daughters of those two.
The Emperor is young, there is no time for him to marry and have children yet; currently, counting all the members of the Great Ming imperial clan, there are only Prince of Ning Zhu Ci, Duke of Xin Zhu Yujian, Marquis of Anguo Zhu Yihai.
The Prince of Ning has not married either, so then they would have no choice but to choose from the daughters of the two of them.
Among them, Zhu Yihai's daughter is in the most danger, because he is the lowest-ranking member of the imperial clan, he is only a Zongzheng—essentially the imperial family's head steward—possessing no real power. If the Emperor takes a dislike to him, he can be replaced at any time.
Only at this moment did many people in the imperial court realize that they could still marry a princess.
Thus, some people hinted to Zhu Ci: if the Emperor felt pity for the women of the imperial clan, it would also be acceptable to select a female official or a commoner woman to be titled as a Princess or a Commandery Princess.
Zhu Ci could not be bothered to argue with them about how everyone is human but possesses different values; he could not persuade those officials, those officials could not understand him.
Therefore, he simply said with absolute certainty, "In my life, I will never marry off princesses, never pay ransoms, never cede territory, never pay tribute."
As for phrases like "the Son of Heaven guards the nation's gates" or "a monarch dies for his country," there was no need to mention them for now. After all, saying such things might make those below worry that he would lead a personal expedition, after all, Nanjing could never become the nation's gates.
The twelve words spoken by Zhu Ci were a summary of the Ming Dynasty by future generations, rather than something anyone had actually said at the time. Therefore, when he spoke them with such firm and decisive resolve, everyone knelt down.
Zhu Ci told them to rise, acting as if he hadn't said anything extraordinary.
After all, when he said those words, he was only speaking for himself. As for future emperors.. who knew if they could achieve it, Zhu Ci did not care whether they could or not.
However, ever since Zhu Ci spoke those words, it seemed as if the officials of Great Ming had invisibly established a certain conviction.
This was also the first time Zhu Ci realized that the Emperor's style could influence the entire imperial court.
Cao Xue traveled through mountains and rivers, carrying the Emperor's verbal decree to Ordos. The negotiation process was far from easy, especially since the Ordos had been holding a grudge, determined to suppress the Great Ming.
Heduoheqin was extremely dissatisfied after hearing the Great Ming's demands.
He was even willing to marry off his daughter, but the Emperor of the Ming Kingdom actually refused to marry her, even going so far as to block all paths for a marriage alliance.
Given his temperament, he only wanted to behead all the envoys from the Ming Kingdom; they were far away, so even if he actually killed the Ming Kingdom's envoys, it wouldn't affect the Ordos.
However, when he thought of those weapons he had never even seen among the Russians, he felt a bit hesitant again; it made sense that the Ming Kingdom could regain its footing after being driven back repeatedly by the Jurchens.
After several rounds of negotiations, the Ming Kingdom's attitude remained quite firm, as they had successfully leveraged the Ordos's urgent demand for firearms.
Of course, the most important reason was that the price offered by the Ming Kingdom was very fair. The firearms currently possessed by the Ordos are all purchased from □□ and are all matchlock guns, whereas even the Birdlock Guns that Zhu Ci sells to them are more advanced flintlocks, their price is lower than what they pay at □□.
In the end, Heduoheqin decided to go through with the deal first. After all, as long as the firearms were in his hands, wouldn't he be the one deciding who to fight and who not to fight?
It was just that the Ming Kingdom seemed to have anticipated this long ago; they only agreed to sell him a small portion in the first batch, they sold even fewer Single-shot Rocket Launchers.
The official sent by Heduoheqin asked with a grim expression, "Does your Ming Kingdom not intend to do business seriously at all?"
After he said those words, all the Ordos warriors behind him placed their hands on their sword hilts.
As if he hadn't noticed the other party's threat, Cao Xue continued to speak calmly, "Since your side has agreed to the trade, you must surely understand that the price our side is asking is not high. One of the conditions under which my Emperor is willing to sell at a low price is the hope that your tribe can lend a helping hand. If your tribe intends to play both sides, then naturally, this business cannot proceed."
Hmph, since you are the ones coming to us for help, naturally we shall take the lead, when we fight will be for us to decide.
"It seems your side lacks the sincerity to do business. Very well." As Cao Xue spoke, he prepared to leave.
The Ordos official immediately said, "Are you not afraid that you won't be able to account for this to the Emperor of the Ming Kingdom when you return?"
Cao Xue gave him a strange look: "How could it be impossible to complete the task? There are many Mongol tribes; if your tribe is unwilling to agree, there will always be others who are willing."
Hahahaha." After laughing loudly, the Ordos official said, "Our country is currently the largest nation among the Mongols; what do those other small tribes matter?
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: We only need to maintain a cold, transactional relationship for the time being. Cat pushing a cart. jpg
Next update tomorrow morning at six o'clock~
Chapter 202
Cao Xue immediately said, "The largest is not necessarily the strongest; otherwise, why wouldn't your tribe dare to provoke the Khorchin?"
The Ordos officials were in no hurry to prove they did not fear the Khorchin; instead, they asked, "Do you really think those small tribes would dare to provoke the Khorchin? How many people do they even have? How long do you think they could survive once they are armed?"
Cao Xue smiled faintly. "My Emperor has said that when firearms are advanced enough, numbers are no longer the only standard for measuring war. For example, if one rocket launcher isn't enough, then two aren't enough, if ten aren't enough, what about a hundred?"
The Ordos official's eagle-like eyes stared intently at him, his brow slowly furrowed.
He suspected the other party was lying to him; the Ming Kingdom didn't even have enough grain now, yet they actually had surplus money to make so many firearms?
However, Cao Xue smiled, appearing to have no flaws and looking very composed.
After all, he wasn't wrong; the Great Ming indeed lacked sufficient grain now, primarily due to insufficient yields caused by weather conditions, coupled with the ongoing warfare, grain from the North could not be transported over. Furthermore, their His Majesty would rather lower prices and sell surplus grain to the common people than trade it with the Ordos.
But if we are talking about money.. they aren't actually that short on it. After all, ever since Zheng Zhilong led his people to surrender to the Tartars, the maritime trade routes have been entirely under the control of His Majesty and the Grand Secretary. These two enforce strict taxation, at least nearly half of the national treasury comes from the money sent by their merchant fleets.
The Ordos official stared at him for a long time before suddenly laughing, "It is not easy for an Envoy to travel from such a distance. Why not stay for a couple more days, so that we may fulfill our duties as hosts?"
Cao Xue did not refuse either. Trade between nations was quite different from ordinary people's transactions, negotiations involved long periods of deliberation; he was simply feeling a bit anxious in his heart, fearing that if he waited too long, it would be too late.
The people of Ordos were also discussing it, they had indeed taken Cao Xue's "threat" to heart.
Because they had witnessed the power of the Single-shot Rocket Launcher, in addition to that, the Ming Kingdom had also relented and said they could sell them an active-duty type of cluster rocket launcher called "Swarm of Bees," which they had brought this time, its effect was even more astonishing.
It was still the same thing: they couldn't bear to pass up the Ordos, but they had to consider the attitude of the Manchurian Jurchens when dealing with the Khorchin Mongols.
After many days of discussion, Heduoheqin finally made the final decision, saying, "Unifying the Mongols is an absolute necessity. Now that the Ming Kingdom's generals have already driven the Mongols back, if this continues, the Ming Kingdom might not even need us anymore. Our most important task now is to develop as quickly as possible; otherwise, if the Ming Kingdom wins in the future, conflicts will surely arise again."
He pondered for a long while before finally saying, "Go tell the Ming Kingdom's envoys that we can attack the Khorchin Mongols, but the Ming Kingdom must give us the method for manufacturing Single-shot Rocket Launchers."
Upon hearing this demand, Cao Xue could not help but marvel that His Majesty was truly prophetic.
Before he went on his mission, His Majesty had only told him that no form of marriage alliance would be accepted, that the other party might demand the formula.
Cao Xue was quite straightforward this time: "It is acceptable."
The Ordos officials, who had originally prepared themselves for a long, drawn-out argument, were stunned on the spot.
No, did they agree that easily?
What we want is the formula, nothing else. Once we have this, we won't need to buy yours anymore.
Cao Xue smiled and looked at him, "The formula can be sold to you, but you must keep your word."
The Ordos official looked at him suspiciously: "You won't sell us fakes, will you?"
Cao Xue immediately said, "My Great Ming is upright and honorable; if we can sell, we will sell, if we cannot, we will not agree. We would never stoop to such despicable means."
This was truly strange; the Ordos envoy felt somewhat uneasy, they couldn't help but wonder if they had asked for too low a price.
It was just that the other party had already agreed; if they were to go back on their word now, it would no longer be a transaction, but the creation of an enmity.
It had to be said that Cao Xue's "threat" had, to some extent, served its purpose.
The Ordos Mongols are indeed powerful now, but even with that power, they have failed to unify the Mongols. Aside from the Khalkha, who have already been defeated by the Jurchens, the Khorchin, who have allied with the Jurchens, there are still small tribes such as the Tumet.
If the Ming Kingdom truly provided them with real gold, silver, weapons, it would indeed be very troublesome.
Ordos agreed to their deal, but after leaving Ordos, Cao Xue made a detour to Guihua City.
His movements were not concealed at all. Ordos instantly felt a sense of crisis, even sending people to catch up with the mission to ask why they were heading this way.
Cao Xue said calmly, "I just want to see what the current situation in Khorchin is like."
Ordos Knight??
Are you trying to fool me?
It was a thousand miles from where they were to the Khorchin Mongols, which was one of the reasons why they had always been somewhat reluctant to agree to attack the Khorchin Mongols.
There was no need; they were so far apart, one in the west and one in the east, there was no friction between the two sides.
However, the Ming Kingdom's constant promise to help them unify the various Mongol tribes was truly enticing, the firearms were even more tempting, which is why they agreed.
Being this far away, if your Ming Kingdom's Emperor truly wants to know about the Khorchin situation, it would be easier to send someone from Nanjing to Khorchin than for you to travel from here!
Upon learning this, Cao Xue had a sudden realization. "I see. Since we are so far apart, my apologies, I have never been to Mongolia before, so I am not very familiar with the situation. In that case, I should return first to report the Batur Khunbul Khos's intentions to His Majesty."
The Ordos officials were likely very concerned that Cao Xue would contact tribes like the Tumet, so they escorted him all the way to the borders of the Great Ming before departing.
Cao Xue did indeed want to go and investigate the Tumet Mongols. Ordos was indeed too far from the Khorchin Mongols; if possible, supporting the Tumet Mongols in between would not be an option.
However, Ordos was under strict defense, so he could only temporarily give up on it.
They had just entered the borders of Great Ming when someone immediately approached Cao Xue and said, "Vice Minister, this official is willing to head to Guihua City to investigate the matter."
Cao Xue saw that it was actually the interpreter who had been following them all along. This interpreter was also the only person in the group who could speak Mongolian; it was said that he had previously been a caravan leader, specifically in charge of trade trips to Mongolia.
He asked, "Why do you want to go to Guihua City?"
This official finds what the Vice Minister said earlier to be very reasonable. The Ordos might not be reliable; if they are unreliable, it would be better to support tribes like the Tumet. They are closer to the Khorchin and have more friction with them. This official has also had trade dealings with them before, so it would be possible to meet their Jala E Zhen.
Cao Xue said, "This matter has not been submitted for imperial approval, so you wouldn't be able to do anything even if you went there."
This official only intended to test the waters, everything awaits Your Majesty's decision.
Seeing his persistence, Cao Xue said, "Very well, but I cannot give you too many people."
“Rest assured, Vice Minister. I will only bring my subordinates.”
Cao Xue agreed to his request, watching the man's retreating figure and unable to help but click his tongue in disbelief. These merchants were truly bold; once they saw a chance to climb the social ladder, they would risk their very lives.
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Author's Note: Zhu Ci: Wait a minute.. why are you guys starting your own side quests? *Cat shakes its ears in confusion. jpg*