Chapter 682: The Roman Empire was very rich
Gan Mao said, "I've left this matter to others. Why, is there any problem?"
"No." Feng Quji said, "No wonder the Gan family doesn't know about it. In fact, during this trip to the Western Regions, they only visited these seven countries and came back."
"So that's it. I said that the original plan was to come back in three years, but the time was half earlier. This is the most important reason." Gan Mao suddenly realized.
The envoy from the Yuezhi Kingdom said: "Master Gan, Da Qin is actually very brave. It was able to reach the Western Regions. Even if it did not complete the thirty-six kingdoms, it was able to reach seven of our kingdoms.
Here, I can only say that I admire you. "
The Dawan envoy said: "We are indeed very impressed. I believe that in the future, merchants from Great Qin will not only be able to travel through the thirty-six countries in the Western Regions, but also reach the Persian Dynasty and the Maurya Dynasty."
The other messengers nodded.
Hearing this, Gan Mao smiled and said, "I see, then let's continue. In the future, it will not only be my Gan family, but also countless merchants in Great Qin doing business with the countries in the Western Regions.
However, now, you should continue to discuss with Prime Minister Feng. This is a state matter. "
Li Si said: "Master Gan, now we will discuss the Mauryan Dynasty and the Persian Dynasty. We need to know more about these two countries."
Gan Mao nodded and said, "Okay, I'll listen to it too, don't you object."
It seemed like he was asking, but everyone could tell that Gan Mao made it clear he didn't want to leave.
Feng Quji smiled and said, "That's great. Master Gan wants to stay, which is more than we can ask for. Come, bring us a pair of bowls, chopsticks, and chairs."
"promise."
The butler hurriedly brought everything over.
After everything was ready, Feng Quji asked: "Who is most familiar with the Mauryan Dynasty and the Persian Dynasty?"
The Parthian envoy said: "It is my country."
"Is it you?" Gan Luo was a little surprised.
Li Si immediately explained: "He is the envoy of Parthia. This is a powerful country. This is recognized by everyone. No one dares to challenge them.
Parthia also has a lot of culture and religious beliefs. In some places, religious power is greater than the power of the government. "
"What a strange country." Gan Mao said.
Li Si shrugged and agreed with Gan Mao's words.
The Parthian envoy said: "In fact, our country is not strange at all, and we are not only familiar with the Persian Dynasty and Maurya Dynasty, but also very familiar with the Roman Empire."
"You are actually familiar with the Roman Empire?" Feng Quji and three others exclaimed at the same time.
The Parthian envoy was surprised by their expressions at the same time, and asked cautiously: "Prime Minister Feng, do you three also know about the Roman Empire?"
Feng Quji said, "I've heard of the name, but I don't know the details."
"That is a powerful country. Even we, the Parthian Kingdom, are not willing to provoke such a country." said the Parthian envoy.
"Are they powerful?" Li Si asked.
"Very powerful, their soldiers are all warriors, and there is also a fighting arena, also known as the Colosseum.
A group of slaves were often arranged to engage in life-and-death fights there for the entertainment and gambling of the royal family, officials and nobles.
If the fight between slaves is not attractive enough, they will also capture some beasts for the slaves to fight.
For this reason, many slaves were sacrificed. " said the Parthian envoy.
His tone was very calm, as if he was talking about a very ordinary thing. Everyone present was the same, without any expression.
Because in the past, Da Qin could also see nobles using slaves for fun, letting them kill each other, and letting them fight wild beasts.
It's just that after Shang Yang's reform, anyone who has done military service on the battlefield can exchange military service for a title, even if you are a slave.
This resulted in the number of slaves in Great Qin becoming less and less in the end, but after the destruction of the Six Kingdoms, the number of slaves increased again.
But
Now it has been announced that slavery will be abolished, which means there will no longer be slaves in the world.
To be precise, the people of Great Qin no longer have slaves, but the Xiongnu on the grassland, or people from other countries, may become slaves.
After the Parthian envoy took a sip of wine, he continued: "The Roman Empire was very rich, and the royal family was very extravagant."
"How do you know?" Gan Mao asked.
"I was fortunate enough to serve as a mission to the Roman Empire. I will never forget the extravagance of the royal family in my life." The Parthian envoy recalled the scene at that time with a look of enjoyment on his face.
"Ahem..."
Feng Quji deliberately coughed twice to interrupt the Parthian envoy's memories, and asked, "Can you tell me specifically how rich the Roman Empire is?"
"It's very rich. If I have to say it, the goods of the Roman Empire are a little more than those of Great Qin. To be precise, their goods are different from those of Great Qin.
Many of their products come from all over the world, while Da Qin's products are almost all their own, which leads to a difference in wealth between the two. "
The Parthian envoy paused and saw that Feng Quji and others looked a little confused, so he explained: "It's like an apple. This apple is a fruit of Da Qin. One tael of silver can buy a pound.
But these apples could be bought in Rome for ten taels of silver per pound. "
"It's so expensive?" Gan Mao couldn't help but ask.
The Parthian envoy said: "The Gan family thinks it is expensive, but the Roman nobles think it is not expensive and is very cheap.
The most important thing is that no one in the Qin Dynasty would buy apples worth one tael of silver per pound, but in Rome, people would buy apples worth ten taels of silver.
The difference between the two is here.
Although Da Qin is rich, you only make money from your own people, which makes the country rich and the people have no money. This is actually wrong. "
"Haha..." Feng Quji smiled and said, "I know, so we formed a caravan and planned to sell Daqin's goods to all over the world.
However, the envoy would also like to ask a little more about how the Roman Empire was a wealthy country. "
"It's actually hard to say because the cultures of the two countries are different. The houses in the Roman Empire were mainly made of stone, while the houses in the Qin Dynasty were mainly made of wood.
But I can explain a banquet of the royal family of the Roman Empire, and you can imagine how rich they were. "
"Please speak." Feng Quji said very politely.
The Parthian envoy said: “The Roman royal family was keen on holding lavish banquets and celebrations to show off their wealth and power.
This is not just a banquet, but actually a display of human desires.
Needless to say, the banquet venue must be in the palace. The walls and pillars were painted white, and countless torches and candles lit up the entire palace.
In the palace where the banquet was held, there was a large swimming pool with all kinds of beauties in it.
Whichever one you like, just pick her up without taking her away. You can do whatever you want on the spot. "
