In the end, the topic went round and round and returned to the original issue of paying tribute.
This was the trigger for this war from the very beginning.
Therefore, when Zhu Jian was ordered to negotiate with Naha in the capital, one of his goals was to plug this loophole.
According to the agreement, the list of tribute envoys that Wala would send to the capital in the future should not exceed one hundred people, and the rewards would be based on the actual number of people who entered the capital.
This is already more than double that of the Yongle period, which is considered a concession.
But it was obvious that he was still not satisfied. The lion opened his mouth and asked for a quota of 500 people.
Ye Xian's words were very polite and his posture was very low.
However, Zhu Jian looked a little embarrassed.
During the previous negotiation, both parties were only at the intention stage, so not much effort was actually wasted.
But this time, as we entered the final stage of substantive negotiation of terms, Ye Xian's cunning and cunningness was fully demonstrated.
Recalling the entire negotiation process, Zhu Jian realized that he might have had plans for the current situation.
He first offered tribute to make things difficult, and then he didn't mention it. While pretending to be generous and sincere, he signaled King Bodu to propose conditions that were difficult for the Ming Dynasty to accept.
After they repeatedly refused and even took the initiative to push the negotiations to the point of near collapse, they first took action to bring the situation back.
After this tug-of-war, Ye Xian finally proposed the conditions for expanding the tribute envoy team. On the Ming side, it was obvious that it was not suitable and he refused.
Sure enough, seeing Zhu Jian's expression, Ye Xian looked a little unhappy again and said.
"Da Ming and I are sincerely making peace. You want the Supreme Emperor to return to the court, and I have not stopped you. If you want to send him back to the capital, but you are not allowed to take his rightful place, I will let you go."
"I am the only one who is sincere, but you always accuse me of being dishonest. The new emperor of the Ming Dynasty came to the throne and traded with the Chahar tribes in all kinds of goods. However, with my Wala tribe, we only allowed tea and horse trading."
"I, Pingzhang Angke, have doubts. You can just say that it is an old rule. If Wala pays tribute well, he will be rewarded. After all, it is my father who made an appointment with His Majesty Yongle, and I am willing to recognize it."
"You said you were here to make peace, but you refused to give in at all. How can you show your sincerity?"
Facing Ye Xian's question, Zhu Jian hesitated for a moment and answered.
"Grand Master, please don't be angry. We have been ordered to come here. Naturally, we are sincere and want to restore old friendship with the Grand Master and welcome the Emperor back. However, what the Grand Master said is indeed difficult to handle."
"Previously, the Grand Master sent envoys to the capital, and I treated His Majesty with courtesy and rewards. All the details of the peace talks had been agreed upon in the capital. Now, the Grand Master is temporarily talking about the throne of heaven, mutual trade, tribute envoys and other matters. How can it be that we are dishonest? ?”
Ye Xian's face was quite ugly, and the atmosphere in the venue was a little stagnant for a while.
At this time, Walaping Zhangangke, who had just raised the question, spoke.
"Master, it's getting late. Since we can't reach an agreement, we might as well take a break for two days and talk again before it's too late."
The sun was just setting in the west now, and it was still very early before dark.
This Angke was obviously telling lies, but he nodded and walked down the stairs.
With a cold face, he also said to Zhu Jian and others first.
"Then please invite your envoy and others to discuss it carefully. Tomorrow I will send someone to take you to see the Supreme Emperor. We will come back to discuss matters in two days."
After that, he got up first and left. Then, King Bodu and a group of Wala nobles also left.
Zhu Jian and the other three were left in a daze...
After nightfall, in the envoy's camp.
Zhu Jian and Yuan Bin were sitting across from each other.
Strictly speaking, Yuan Bin was not an envoy of the mission, but a close servant of the Supreme Emperor. Therefore, he did not participate in this negotiation, but stayed in the camp to wait for news.
At this moment, after listening to Zhu Jian's narration of some of what happened at that time, Yuan Bin couldn't help but frown and asked.
"Sir, as you see it, what does it mean first?"
Zhu Jian and the other two looked at each other and were about to speak when a guard from the mission suddenly came in to report.
"My lord, King Bodu is outside asking for an audience. He said he has something important to discuss with some adults."
King Bodu?
Thinking of what happened during the day, Zhu Jian frowned subconsciously, thought for a while, and asked.
"Did he come alone? Did he hide himself?"
The guard replied: "With dozens of guards accompanying me, it doesn't look like I came in private."
So, Zhu Jian glanced at Li Shi and Luo Qi inquiringly, and they nodded lightly.
So, Zhu Jian said: "Invite him in."
Immediately, the three of them stood up and tidied their clothes, and Yuan Bin also stepped aside.
Not long after, the camp tent was opened, and the figure of King Bodu appeared at the door.
Zhu Jian and others came forward to greet him and welcomed King Bodu in. After everyone sat down, he asked.
"Your Excellency came late at night, but what do you want to say?"
At this moment, King Bodu was not as arrogant as he was during the day. Instead, he was more peaceful and said with a smile.
"I came here to send a message for the Grand Master. During the day, we had some conflicts during the peace talks. The Grand Master said that he really sent Naha back to the Emperor sincerely. When he sent Naha to the capital to meet the Ming Emperor, he had no intention of opening a mutual trade. The increase of tribute envoys is actually a union of various tribes in the Wara Nai. Although the Grand Master is regarded as the master, he does not do whatever he wants."
There is some meaning in what he said.
Zhu Jian's eyes flashed and he asked, "What do you mean by this?"
King Bodu pondered for a moment and then explained.
"Among the nobles who were sitting with the Grand Master during the day, there is Angke Pingzhang, the Alazhiyuan of Wala, who must be known to the noble envoy."
"However, in addition to the two of them who are our magistrates and Pingzhang, Ala is the leader of the Batut tribe, Angkenai is the leader of the Turgut tribe, and several other nobles who have not spoken are also from their own tribe. Lord."
"Increasing mutual trade and increasing tribute envoys are exactly what they want. You should have noticed that during the peace talks, the Grand Master tried to silence them many times, but in the end it was useless. Therefore, the Grand Master Send me to deliver the message.”
"The Grand Master is really sincere in promoting the return of the Emperor to the capital, but your envoy must also be considerate of the Grand Master's difficulties..."
This hint is obvious enough.
However, Zhu Jian thought for a moment and continued to ask.
"Your Excellency said that I don't understand. Since the Grand Master is the lord of Wala, why can't he settle the opinions of the various tribes? What's more, my emperor is in the headquarters camp of the Grand Master. Why does the Grand Master need to look at other people's faces?"
King Bodu frowned, unsure for a moment whether the Ming official in front of him was pretending to be stupid, or if he really didn't understand.
After thinking for a while, he continued: "Your Majesty, you should know that although the last battle was not what the Grand Master wanted, the troops united and the army suffered heavy casualties."
"We have served the Supreme Emperor for several months and taken good care of him. Now he is sent back. All the tribes have returned to their old camps. The herdsmen also need food and other supplies to survive."
"In previous years, it was not just the Grand Master's headquarters that sent envoys, but all the ministries sent envoys. Today, the Ming Dynasty has limited the number of tribute envoys to a hundred, and the main ministry is still insufficient. How can all the ministries have no complaints?"
After some explanations, King Bodu finally came to his senses and said.
"If the various ministries refuse to resign, they are afraid that the peace talks will reach a deadlock again. Even if the Grand Master sincerely sends him back, it may not be possible for a while."
"What the Grand Master said during the day is already to appease the various tribes. As long as your envoy agrees, we will be ready to welcome him back to the capital soon."
To put it bluntly, there are still benefits...
For this reason, it would be inappropriate to pretend to be confused, so Zhu Jian pondered for a moment and spoke.
"Of course we know the sincerity of the Grand Master's peace talks, and we, the Ming Dynasty monarchs and ministers, do not want to start war again. However, the return of the Emperor is also the wish of the Ming Dynasty monarchs and ministers, and it cannot be changed."
"Since the emperor's northern expedition, I have sent several envoys to His Majesty to bring gold, silver, wealth and silk to reward various tribes. It can be said that he is very kind."
"Now that the peace talks have been agreed, Your Excellency also said that the number of tribute envoys needs to be increased. This matter is not trivial. Although we are envoys, we may still not be able to resolve it for a while. Please also ask Your Excellency to report our difficulties to the Grand Master. .”
King Bodu's face was a little ugly, but Zhu Jian's words already revealed his intention to see off the guest.
So, he had no choice but to stand up and said.
"In this case, I will go and report your envoy's message to the Grand Master first. You will meet with the Supreme Emperor tomorrow. After two days, the Grand Master will talk to you again."
After saying that, King Bodu bowed, turned around and left the camp...
