Chapter 373: Complaining and Extorting Money (Ch 373)

As people expected, those foreign empires soon couldn’t hold on any longer.
The deduction above the sky continues.
But the scene presented this time was extremely shocking.
…
[The sixteenth year of Jingping, the end of the year.]
[“I’m afraid the empires outside the river basin will have a hard time this winter.”]
【Chen Huaixin smiled as he looked out at the snowy scene.】
[Now I can cook wine here and watch the steam rising, but the people in those distant empires are sad.]
【This is indeed the case.】
【The capital of Rome.】
【”What?”】
[“Some of the slaves ran away?”]
[“Yes, Your Majesty, they said they wanted to leave our empire and go to the Central Plains to survive.”]
[The king was stunned and felt terrible.]
[It is so bold that the slaves who I usually ignore can actually do such a thing. 】
[“How can this be possible? Where is their master?”]
[“Their master also ran away, and several nobles and tenants in their fiefdoms also ran away. It seems that they are going to do business. They stocked up goods before leaving, and took their families with them.”]
【“…”】
[Hearing this news, the king was so angry that he almost fainted. ]
【Why is this happening? 】
[It was clearly us who imposed sanctions on Yu Country, so why did so many of our own citizens leave? ]
[“Your Majesty, it’s not just the nobles. Some small merchants have driven up the prices of goods in many of our city-states in the past few months. It’s too late now.”]
【”What?”】
[The king took a deep breath, fearing that he might be short of breath, and could only tremble and lean on the side.]
【”What happened? Why would they do this!”】
[“Didn’t I increase the taxes? Where did those goods come from? Who asked them to go out to trade?”]
[The officials standing by were also helpless. ]
【By the time they noticed the situation was getting out of control, it was too late.】
[With the blessing of the economy, some nobles who enjoyed welfare benefits began to become jealous, and even slave owners who controlled slaves tended to go to other places to make money. ]
[“Your Majesty, our policy is indeed effective.”]
[“But it only affects us. Yuguo is not affected at all.”]
[“After they developed, they were basically able to get rid of us, but some important materials that were previously sold at low prices were directly cut off, and we were not prepared.”]
[The king’s eyes were empty, and he was completely stunned.]
[I never expected that I would be a clown. 】
[It turns out that they didn’t need me at all. I was just wishful thinking. After the policy was issued, it actually harmed the people. ]
[The most important thing is that it made a lot of money for those retailers and small trade practitioners. ]
【The king takes a deep breath.】
[“Send envoys to ask for peace, and bring your country’s treasures.”]
[“Bring more. You still have to keep your appearance.”]
[“Send a few more people. If they don’t follow the rules, someone can still deliver the letter. I hope Yuguo can show some leniency and stop this trade war.”]
【The king was very sad at this moment.】
[I never thought that such a thing would happen during my time in office. If my political enemies or other ruling officials realize that the situation is out of control, I am afraid that I will be replaced by the Pope in the next round. I have no choice but to do this.]
[“But your majesty, we and the Parthians…”]
Officials also wanted to remind the alliance.
【But the king had a face full of joking. 】
[“I’m afraid they’ve already started taking action. How can the relationship be so stable?”]
[“Unless it is a military united front, it cannot be relied upon.”]
【This is indeed the case.】
[In the capital of Parthia. ]
[“Send an envoy to beg for peace immediately. We cannot continue this trade war. I’m afraid our meat and silk and cotton fabrics will not survive this winter.”]
[“There’s also the damn tax discount issue. We’ll reduce it all to the lowest possible level. As long as Yu Country is still willing to ship, we’ll bear any cost.”]
【At this time, the Parthian king wanted to cry but had no tears. 】
【Roman was a wealthy family that survived until the coldest winter.】
[I have been badly cheated. ]
[Although the so-called economic confrontation policy is intended to establish barriers to restrict Yuguo, I didn’t expect that the people in the Hexi Corridor didn’t care at all, and their food, clothing, housing, transportation, food, clothing and daily necessities were not affected. ]
【On the contrary, their economic resilience has been severely damaged. 】
[Although the overall impact is not significant, people’s livelihood needs have been severely sanctioned. ]
【With the import of foreign goods gone, the previous demand gap began to affect daily life.】
[Small traders can still take advantage of the high costs to create a trade deficit, not only making a lot of money, but also affecting the original national trade regulation, and their credibility is even lower than that of a middleman. ]
[This is a bad move! ]
【So at the moment we can only spend more money to maintain the national system. 】
[If it were in the past, they would find it ridiculous and embarrassing, but now no one cares at all. ]
[Yuguo’s previous parity trade brought them cheap prices. ]
【But now as the benefits are being withdrawn, the real disadvantages of the trade war are emerging. 】
【Chang’an City.】
[Chen Huaixin is accompanying Ji Changxi and the others to enjoy the snow. ]
[Because there is a surplus of resources in the country this year, after closing the main channels of foreign trade, he used the national treasury to subsidize and bring in a large amount of income, while waiting for those foreigners to come. ]
[“Wouldn’t it be possible for us to arouse their hatred by doing this? If a war breaks out soon…”]
【Ji Changwei is a little worried.】
[Ji Changxi has been concentrating on research in the research institute, and only I would ask about the affairs of the court.]
【Chen Huaixin looked at the other person gently and smiled.】
[“No problem.”]
【“They won’t have a good winter.”】
[“If you want to start a war, you have to prepare the basic support. Their current situation is not optimistic. Even if you want to be hostile, you have to meet the qualifications.”]
[Soon a servant came over to report the news.]
[“Your Majesty, envoys from seven countries are seeking an audience with you. The leaders are Rome and the Parthian Empire. They are all here to ask for your help.”]
【Chen Huaixin shook his head slightly.】
[“Don’t worry, arrange for them to stay and take all the things they brought.”]
[“As for whether or not to meet them, I have the final say.”]
[“If you make a mistake, you must admit it. If you are beaten, you must stand up straight. Since they are ready to punish me, they must have the basic awareness of bearing the price.”]
[“There is no rush for other things. I have not yet decided whether to continue the trade, reopen the market, or continue trading…”]
“If they insist on a date for negotiation.”
【Chen Huaixin smiled grimly.】
[“We’ll talk when the winter snow has dispersed and the spring flowers are blooming!”]
Người mua: @u_307176, 10/04/2025 17:32