The envoy had mixed feelings along the way, and the mission was not completed. After returning, he still didn't know how Hu Jiya would treat him, so he returned to the military camp with an uneasy mood.
Annan camp.
Seeing that the envoy had returned safely, Chen Zheping, who was sitting at the head, breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but secretly said:
If he can return safely, that means Annan Kingdom can still be saved!
Hu Jiya still had a cold face and asked first:
"How did things go? What did the Ming officials say?"
The messenger lowered his head and stammered out the conditions proposed by Li Jin:
"They... they said peace talks were possible, but... they just made a request. They needed... we needed fifteen million taels of silver..."
"Fifteen million taels?"
Hu Jisao immediately widened his eyes and said angrily:
"Why don't they grab it!!"
Thinking of that pretty-faced general, when I first saw him, I just thought he would accomplish nothing with his body and flesh. Unexpectedly, he was actually so arrogant, and every time he opened his mouth, he opened his mouth like a lion.
Hu Jiya felt furious and had nowhere to vent the anger in his chest.
"boom!"
The tea cup on the table was smashed to pieces by him, and he said angrily:
"Where does that pretty boy think Annan is? He opened his mouth and asked for 15 million taels. Wasn't it 10 million taels before? Taking advantage of Annan's defeat, he dared to increase the price arbitrarily. This is simply shameless and despicable. What’s the difference between behavior and banditry?”
"The great Ming Dynasty actually raised officials who behaved like villains. They are obviously bandits, how shameless!!!"
Hu Jiya's face turned red with anger and he cursed indiscriminately. The entire camp was filled with his roar.
When the others heard the sound, they were immediately frightened and trembling. They lowered their eyes and did not dare to say a word. The messenger on the side was so frightened that he lay on the ground for fear of getting into trouble.
Chen Zheping saw that Hu Jisao kept scolding, but there was nothing he could do, so he immediately asked cautiously:
"Hu Aiqing, if Ming Dynasty demands this, then... what should we do next?"
Hu Ji Yao showed his fierce look and turned his head to glare at Chen Zheping, who was so frightened that he quickly shut his mouth.
Hu Ji Ya was breathing heavily, obviously very angry, and said every word through gritted teeth:
"The Ming Dynasty asked for 15 million taels of silver. This is basically blackmail. They just thought that we were defeated and wanted to take the opportunity to blackmail us."
After everyone in the tent heard this, they were all silent, because this is the fact. They Annan are losers, and they can't defeat the Ming Dynasty no matter what. What else can they do except follow the requirements!
Having said this, Hu Jiyou looked angry and seemed to have made a huge determination:
"Ten million at most, any more would be delusional."
Ten million taels, even if it was reduced by five million taels, it still made everyone's scalp numb.
The people of Annan were small and weak, and they relied on agriculture for their livelihood. These ten million taels were the tax revenue of Annan for twenty years. How could they have so much money to give to the Ming Dynasty?
Even if it is given, then...what will Annan Kingdom do in the future?
At this moment, Li Hao, the minister of household affairs, stood up and said tremblingly:
"Your Majesty Prime Minister, the treasury currently does not have that much money."
When Hu Jiya heard this, he stared at the other party and roared with a ferocious expression:
"If you don't have it, you have to have it. Or do you want to be the first to die?"
Li Hao was so frightened by the roar that he couldn't help but take two steps back, lowered his head, not daring to look into Hu Jima's gloomy eyes.
Hu Jiyou snorted coldly and continued:
"If we don't have money, we have to find ways to get it. We can't defeat the Ming Dynasty, but we can't wait to die."
"Send officials to the countryside to collect taxes for the next ten years. No matter what, we must collect the money first."
"If it is still not enough in the end, the civil and military officials will dig out the remaining money and make up for the shortfall."
After Chen Zheping heard this, he was shocked. He wanted to collect ten years of tax revenue at once. What is the difference between this and letting the people die!
Seeing the angry Hu Jima, Chen Zheping had to bravely say:
"If we do this, those people will also starve to death."
"When the people are in danger, the country is in danger. When the time comes, it will definitely cause an uprising among the people, causing internal and external troubles. Annan is in danger!"
Hearing this, Hu Jiya scolded Chen Zheping mercilessly on the spot:
"Do you want the people to starve to death, or do you want to starve to death yourself?"
"If we can't get the money out, none of us can survive, let alone those people!"
"Whoever doesn't want to pay for it himself should work hard to collect ten million taels of silver."
"If you don't even get enough, you have to pay for it yourself!"
Chen Zheping had no choice but to close his mouth, not daring to say another word, while Li Hao silently retreated like an ostrich. As the saying goes, a dead Taoist friend will not die a poor Taoist.
The people must be dead. In this case, it is better to think about how to raise these ten million taels of silver first, so as not to have to pay for it by ourselves.
In this way, the envoy set off again with a mission to the Ming army camp.
After the envoy left, Hu Jiyou forced Chen Zheping to issue an imperial edict to forcibly increase Annan's taxes and collect taxes for ten years to tide over the difficulties.
Chen Zheping was very reluctant to issue an order at first, because he knew that if he issued an order and forced innocent people, he would definitely be reviled by the people in the world, and he would probably die faster by then.
But Hu Jiyou didn't care about Chen Zheping's reputation at all, and directly threatened him with his life without saying a word.
Chen Zheping had no ability to resist Hu Jishen's cruel methods. In the end, he had to compromise again, suppressing his inner fear and lowering the tax decree.
...
Inside the Ming Dynasty military camp.
"My lord, general, the envoy from Annan Kingdom is outside asking to see you!"
The attendant said respectfully to Li Jin and Fu Youde in the tent.
Li Jin waved his hand and said:
"Let him in!"
"yes!"
Fu Youde asked with a puzzled look:
"Master Li, why do you summon the Annan envoy again and again? It is obvious that Annan Kingdom cannot afford 15 million yuan. Isn't it a waste of time to go back and forth like this?"
"Wouldn't it be better for us to capture Annan directly and take the money to return to Beijing to resume our lives?"
Li Jin smiled and said:
"It doesn't have to be like this. After all, idle time is idle. We have to give Annan a chance. Maybe Annan can collect fifteen million taels of silver?"
In fact, Li Jin still didn't say anything in his heart. It was precisely because An Nanguo couldn't get it together that he had to let them get it together.
The two were talking, and the envoy walked in under the guidance of the attendant. As soon as he entered the tent, the envoy bowed and saluted the two. This time he looked even more humble than the last time.
The messenger was seen hunched over, smiling extremely flatteringly and saying:
"Two adults, the envoy is here again. It is an honor for the envoy to come to your camp many times. It is also the envoy's lifetime to meet the two adults..."
"stop!"
Regarding the envoy's string of compliments, Li Jin felt a pain in his balls and interrupted directly:
"You, if you have something to say, say it quickly. Don't beat around the bush and waste my time."
Fu Youde also sarcastically said:
"It's just that you talked a lot of nonsense. My brain hurts from listening to it. If you fart, let it go as soon as possible. Holding it in won't do any good!"
"Yes, yes, sir."
The messenger's face turned red when he was told this, and then he revealed the purpose of his visit:
"The envoy came here this time to express that Annan is willing to apologize to the Ming Dynasty and pay 10 million taels of silver."
"Also... I also hope that Ming Dynasty will become a powerful country and have peace talks with Annan."
After speaking, the envoy looked at Li Jin with an anxious look on his face, with hope in his eyes, but Li Jin's next words caught him off guard.
