Regarding the complaints from the Japanese envoys, the King of Yue could only say:
"Now that Vietnam is transferring grain and grass, although you have lost some gold and silver, what you have gained is enough to fill your stomach."
Prime Minister Gongsun Qian on the side also plausibly said: "If our country does not turn around, how many people will starve to death in your country, and how many farmers will remain miserable?"
"Your country should be grateful to our country."
Hota Masatoshi said with an expressionless face: "Our country has always been closed to the outside world. We are only allowed to do business in Nagasaki. We only favor the country of Yue and allow us to go to Edo. What kind of favor is this?"
"If your country still has this attitude, then let's leave it at that!"
Gongsun Qian screamed in his heart, this kid has a very poisonous mouth.
He immediately smoothed things over to prevent the negotiation from breaking down: "Hahaha, our king married a princess of your country. If we don't speak the same language, how can we be so open-minded?"
"If your country has any requests, just ask them. Although our country is poor, we will definitely do whatever we can."
The implication is that we won’t do what we can’t do. Who makes us poor?
Only then did Hota Masatoshi reveal a smile: "I heard that the Yue Kingdom has multiplied a lot of military horses. I wonder if they can be sold to our country at a fair price?"
After hearing this, the King of Yue's expression changed and he smiled bitterly: "My army horses are mostly raised by the imperial court. They come from Heilongjiang and other places. They are Northeastern horses. There are not many of them in our country..."
"Ten taels of gold!" Hota Masatoshi said softly without squinting.
"Doesn't this make me violate the imperial court?"
"Twenty taels of gold."
"How about forgetting it? I also raise cattle and sheep here, and Edo should also like to eat them..."
"Thirty taels!" Hota Masatoshi said decisively: "As far as the foreign minister knows, a good horse in the Ming Dynasty only costs a hundred yuan, and a good horse only costs two or three hundred yuan."
"For an ordinary Northeastern horse, my price is really not low."
"If it's a precious horse, it's worth a thousand gold coins."
The King of Yue was confused: "For the sake of my father-in-law, I will let you!"
In this way, after some negotiations, Vietnam and Japan reached an agreement.
The country of Yue sells good horses to Japan at a price of thirty gold per horse, three hundred horses per year.
With this alone, Yue will be able to receive an additional 9,000 taels of gold, or 90,000 silver dollars, every year.
The trade between the two countries is extremely extensive.
The goods transported by Vietnam to Japan include furs, cattle and sheep, salt, grain, ironware, horses, etc., while Japan transports cloth, cotton, porcelain, lacquerware, copper, etc.
It can be seen from these trades that the country of Yue is short of people.
Cloth and other handicraft industries are short of manpower and cannot meet the country's demand, so they can only import from Japan.
Especially for winter cotton, Yue basically does not meet the planting requirements.
The total annual trade volume between the two countries exceeds 3 million yuan.
Among them, the Yue State, because of its vast territory and sparse population, obtained a large amount of gold and silver from exporting grain, cattle, sheep, furs, etc., with a net income of more than two million.
It is precisely because of this that the country of Yue can continue to develop.
"Your Highness, our country has 170,000 people, including 60,000 Japanese people, 30,000 court people, 20,000 Ezo people, 10,000 Mongolian people, and only more than 50,000 Han people..."
These Mongols were rewarded by the emperor and recruited by the King of Yue himself. They were important military support.
Gongsun Qian said softly: "Now, the immigration from Japan and North Korea can be suspended. Ten thousand people can enter the country every year. What is urgently needed are Han people."
"Slow down!"
The King of Yue rubbed his temples: "The people in our country have only been waiting for three years, right?"
"Yes."
Gongsun Qian was also surprised: "The location of the Yue Kingdom is excellent. Apart from being a little colder and a little barren, it's not bad at all. It's close to the DPRK and Japan, and across the sea is the Heilongjiang General's Mansion."
"I will go back to Beijing and win over some Han Chinese. I will also educate those Japanese and North Korean immigrants. The minimum requirement is to be proficient in Chinese."
The King of Yue said casually.
"I have been dispersing the people and living together with the Han people. The adults reluctantly refused to come, but the children are very fast. I think they will be able to speak Chinese in a few years."
Gongsun Qian showed a smile.
The King of Yue nodded and was about to leave, but Gongsun Qian stopped him:
"Your Highness, there is also a big island in the north of my country, Yue. Do you know?"
"What about Sakhalin Island?" King Yue was stunned for a moment, then thought for a moment and said, "I think I heard someone say that it's just to the north of us, across the sea, very close."
"This island was given to me by God as a gift to the country of Yue."
Gongsun Qian smiled broadly: "The island is no less spacious than our country. I heard that there are many sea beasts on the island. I don't know how much money it can be sold for."
"Now our country can send people to conquer it."
"I heard that the Heilongjiang General's Office is also interested in this place..."
The King of Yue hesitated for a moment, and then made up his mind: "I am going to the capital, and I must ask His Majesty the Emperor to come to this island."
"I would like to wish Your Highness all the best——"
…
On the streets of Beijing, there are particularly many soldiers wearing military uniforms these days.
Because of the Northern Expedition's return to Beijing and the transfer of border camps to Beijing, many soldiers accumulated a large amount of wealth and did not pour it out in this short period of time.
Beijing is a purely consumer-oriented city that produces almost no products and relies purely on the supply of Lumi from all over the world.
Although civil and military officials, ministers and nobles consume a lot, they only buy high-end products. In fact, the main force of consumption is the children of the Beijing camp.
The 200,000 Beijing troops and the 150,000 frontier troops mobilized and integrated with each other, allowing the 200,000 Beijing troops to maintain long-term protection around the capital.
This also means that there are at least 300,000 to 400,000 Jingying family members living in Shuntian Mansion and around the capital, maintaining surging spending power.
Since the main income of the family members is the military salary, which is not reduced by disasters but is abundant by rewards, it is extremely stable and they are the most important consumer force in Beijing.
There are four major camps in Beijing. Among them, Beida Camp is located in Yingzhou, more than a hundred miles away from the capital. It is the closest to the Great Wall and is the gateway to Beijing.
South Daying is near Marco Polo Bridge and Fengtai.
The West Camp is in Yuquan Mountain to protect this summer resort.
As for Dong Daying, it was in Tongzhou, guarding the capital's most important food concentration area and transportation thoroughfares.
Therefore, if there is any coup in the capital, West Camp and South Camp will be the fastest. The cavalry will arrive in one or two hours without any effort.
Because his family is centered in the capital, they live not far away. Even if it is a holiday, if they want to gather into an army, they can gather within a day as long as the military order is confirmed by the superiors.
"Winter clothes have been distributed——"
Soon after September arrived, Fengtai camp began to distribute autumn clothes, also winter clothes, because autumn in the north is really too short.
All of a sudden, the military camp became lively, and everyone started to line up to get them in order.
Many people keep their eyes on it, fearing that they will get something broken or old.
As the commander of the camp, the horse guard does not need to pick it up in person. He can have ten soldiers who will naturally pick it up for him.
He put wine and food on the table and drank alone, which was quite enjoyable.
Soon, the soldiers received their military uniforms.
Ma Wei glanced at it and immediately saw the military rank above:
A silver five-pointed star.
In an instant, his eyes widened and he smiled broadly: "I'm finally promoted."
In today's implementation of military ranks, the captain in charge of hundreds of people is generally a sergeant, and only the deputy captain is a right sergeant.
At the same time, the deputy battalion commander, chief of staff, and military judge all have the rank of left sergeant, while the battalion commander has the rank of staff sergeant.
The first-level military officer has a three-pointed star, which is sewn on the shoulder for easy identification.
At the level of captain, it is a five-pointed star, the captain is a crescent moon, the general is the sun, and the general is embroidered with the sun and moon at the same time.
There are also many rules in the army. First-class soldiers use copper wire, captains use silver wire, and captains use gold wire.
At the level of a general, the moon is embroidered with silver thread and the sun is embroidered with gold thread. The rules are strict.
He went to Beihai and came back. He was promoted from deputy battalion commander to battalion commander, and he also received the lifelong title: brave captain.
This is not a military rank, but a title.
The brave captain and the brave captain are all designed to reward soldiers who are brave in battle, as well as low-level officers who are not worthy of barons.
You can receive fifty silver dollars every year.
In the army, each regiment has only two places among three thousand men, and they are awarded to warriors and officers respectively.
This is also how he was able to jump from sergeant to right colonel and enjoy the treatment of captain in advance.
From this, a tradition was formed in the military: the rank follows the person.
As the name suggests, what matters in the military is not the official position, but the military rank.
For example, if he, the commander of the Beijing Camp, is removed from his post and appointed to the frontier army, he will no longer be the commander of the camp, but the deputy commander or chief of staff.
Unless he commits an unforgivable mistake, no one can lower his rank.
According to the fifth rank of sergeant, captain, captain, general, general (there are only two) and eighteenth rank, his right colonel is from the seventh rank, second only to the magistrate.
"Congratulations, Commander——"
All the soldiers congratulated one after another, with heartfelt smiles on their faces.
It is not common in the military to match high and low ranks. Generally, the positions are filled as the vacancies arise, and promotions are achieved within a few months.
When the time comes, these soldiers will also rise with the tide.
As the soldiers of the battalion, they enjoy the treatment of a corps commander, and if they are the deputy regimental commander, or the chief of staff, they enjoy the treatment of a captain.
This also means that once it is released, it will be very powerful.
Ma Wei laughed a few times, then stopped talking and looked at the military robes on the table.
In the military, military uniforms are generally made in summer and winter styles, with two sets in one style.
The rules are strict, like footwear.
Ordinary soldiers, below the rank of captain, can only wear walking shoes and are not allowed to wear boots.
Non-commissioned officers can only wear pigskin boots, captains can wear sheepskin boots, captains can wear cowhide boots, and only those who have reached the general level are allowed to wear deerskin boots.
The set in front of him was two pairs of sheepskin boots, which were quite exquisite in style and looked different from others.
In addition, there are stockings, belts, trousers, linings, etc., piled up on a table.
Although he has enough money to do what he wants, how can he be as comfortable as the imperial court?
As for the military robes, they were two military coats, occupying half of the table.
There is nearly ten kilograms of cotton stuffed in it, making it extremely warm when worn on the body.
This is a benefit.
Just when he was proud, suddenly the deputy battalion asked to see him.
"Aren't military uniforms issued at this time? What is he doing here?"
Ma Wei muttered.
After the popularization of the chief of staff system, the power in the military was basically divided into four.
For example, in his battalion, the chief battalion officer is responsible for directing operations, and the deputy battalion officer is responsible for baggage, food and other chores. He is a big housekeeper.
Needless to say, military judges control the discipline of the military, and at the same time record military achievements and daily speech and actions. They are known as the military's generals and supervisors.
The chief of staff is responsible for formulating march, combat, and training plans and is an important assistant to the battalion commander.
At this time, the military uniforms were issued, and the deputy battalion should be very busy.
After all, there are only twenty or thirty people under him, including the leaders of each team.
"Head, that's outrageous."
The deputy battalion commander was holding a pair of military trousers in his hand, frowning and complaining.
I saw that the black military trousers had a big hole at this time, and it was as wide as a fist. It could be said that the quality was extremely poor.
"Just make up for it."
Ma Wei said casually.
He has seen this kind of thing too many times.
Officers like him use fine linen, while ordinary soldiers basically use coarse cloth, which is made of pure cotton and carefully woven shuttle by shuttle on spinning wheels and wooden looms.
This is very common among people.
If suppliers and buyers are greedy, the quality will be poor.
The soldiers were used to it, so they often mended it. It was free, as long as they liked it.
"Commander, half of the cotton here is missing."
The deputy battalion said seriously.
When Ma Wei heard this, he jumped up: "Isn't this fatal?"
In the frontier army, there may not be a drill once a month, but in the Beijing camp, daily drills are indispensable. Even the big drill is once every ten days, and heavy snow cannot stop it.
The same is true, military robes are generally in the three-three-one model.
That is, three kilograms of cotton are used for tops, three kilograms of cotton are used for trousers, and one kilogram of cotton is used for shoes.
Only in this way can the soldiers keep warm and practice in the winter.
The reason why green is used is naturally because green dye is cheap and conspicuous in winter.
Three pounds of pants became one and a half pounds. In winter like Beijing, it is easy for soldiers to get frostbite.
"Damn it, how dare you take advantage of this to your death?"
Ma Wei said angrily.
The deputy battalion commander was also angry: "In the future, it won't matter if it's a pound and a half short, but now it's a pound and a half short. Isn't that fatal?"
At this time, the chief of staff also arrived and put on new clothes. Just when he was about to show off, he heard the news and became furious:
"If a soldier gets frostbite, wouldn't his absence from duty be serious? How can we still practice? Aren't we going to be scolded?"
"Don't the Yamen of the Beijing Envoy want to remember our mistakes?"
The chief of staff is responsible for the daily drills. If this is not good, he will have to take the blame.
Ma Wei also felt bad about this.
There are too many non-combatants, which is not good for his reputation.
No, he hesitated for a while and then said: "Materials for military supplies are basically contracted by imperial merchants. If you cut corners like this, I'm afraid it's a shame..."
It should be noted that the Beijing Camp is independent of the Ministry of War and the Fifth Army Governor's Office, and is managed by the Beijing Camp Envoy Department. The Ministry of War is only responsible for food and grass supplies when the armies go on expeditions. It has no control at all on weekdays.
Nowadays, Jingying is cutting corners like this, and its background is quite big.
"Go and ask if it's just me or the whole battalion."
Ma Wei said cautiously.
The deputy battalion commander and the chief of staff nodded and went to each battalion to inquire about the news.
There is good and bad in this news.
The robes of each battalion are different, some are thick and some are thin. It is obvious that cutting corners is not the norm, but only part.
At this time, Ma Wei breathed a sigh of relief.
If he had to deal with all the imperial merchants, he would not dare to do so. In part, he was right:
"I must file a complaint——"
