Chapter 4783: Battleground

Chapter 4783: Battleground
Since the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the Japanese sent a large number of envoys to the Central Plains to learn all the advanced knowledge of the Central Plains dynasties, including the system, economy, architecture, medicine, etc., which prompted a huge leap in the social development of Japan.

The knowledgeable people in Japan began to try to implement the "Rigomoku policy" on their territory, that is, to make the many forces that originally ruled the local areas autonomous according to the region, so that they formed administrative divisions similar to the "county system" of the Central Plains dynasty.

However, this policy involves too many local customs and conflicts of interest, and requires huge manpower and material resources as well as interest coordination, so it is only an idea and has not yet been truly implemented.

But the basic system had already begun to take shape, that is, the "country" throughout Japan, but before the final integration was completed, it had to come to an abrupt end due to the sudden invasion of the Ainu people...

The area where Chikushi Province is located is at the southern end of Japan, relatively close to the Tang Dynasty and Goguryeo. It has had frequent trade with these two regions since ancient times, so it is considered one of the more prosperous regions in Japan. Wu Meiniang, on behalf of the royal navy, did not allow the Yuan family to surrender or stay in their ancestral land and drove them to Chikushi Province, which was not a bad idea in Yu Baoning's opinion.

At least there's still a glimmer of hope, and they won't send a large army to kill us all in the future. What else is there to be dissatisfied about?
Yuan Xiancheng said bitterly, "You don't know that Japan is now being invaded by the Ainu people. The Ainu people are advancing from north to south like a broken bamboo. The Japanese are retreating step by step. Now more than half of the Japanese are crowded in Kyushu Island, which they regard as their 'last ancestral home'. How can they allow outsiders to interfere? If the Yuan family is settled here, they will definitely be regarded as the same mortal enemy as the Ainu people. They may not dare to oppose the Tang people's arrangement, but they will definitely fight with me to the death in secret... I'm afraid that the descendants of the Yuan family will never have peace."

Yu Baoning remained silent. It seemed that the Yuan family was very likely to be involved in the endless war with Japan, and their descendants would never have peace... But what did this have to do with me?
He looked at Yuan Xiancheng and said, "Today, in order to help your Yuan family, Madam Wu scolded me in public and ordered me to return the money I received from you. I took risks, worked hard, and even lost face, but in the end I got nothing. It's really depressing. It's okay for me, I just regard you as a friend, but I used my family's connections and power for your sake, but in the end I got nothing and I can't explain to my family."

Yuan Xiancheng spread his hands helplessly: "What else can I do? The family's wealth accumulated over a hundred years has to be handed over to the navy. There is no money left to thank you for your help. Even how to survive after going to Tsukushi Province has become a problem. Only this kindness will always be remembered in the hearts of Yuan's descendants. In the next life, I will repay you with a favor."

Yu Baoning thought about it and could only sigh helplessly. Who could have thought that Wu Meiniang would not only take all the money of the Yuan family, but also send the Yuan family to Japan? As Yuan Xiancheng said, they needed the navy to transport them to Japan. They got on and off the ship under the eyes of the navy. It was difficult to hide a piece of gold. How could the clansmen, family generals, and slaves, who totaled thousands of people, survive in Chikushi?
I can't go farming...

He felt more and more unlucky. He thought he could extort a huge sum of money from the Yuan family, and use the wealth accumulated by the Yuan family for generations to befriend Wu Meiniang, and indirectly please Fang Jun to eliminate the previous grudge. This would be the best of both worlds. However, he did not expect that the Yuan family's wealth was swallowed up by Wu Meiniang, and he did not get a single cent.

His expression inevitably turned cold, and he said indifferently: "Our two families have been friends for a long time, and the trade between us is not just one or two years. There must be some incense and affection between us. I feel guilty for not being able to help you, so what's the point of talking about gratitude? But you are going to Japan, which is surrounded by wolves and it will be difficult to survive. You should make preparations early."

Yuan Xiancheng's eyes lit up: "Please teach me, sir!"

Today, the Yuan family is at the end of their rope, with no land or money. They are banished to a remote place like Chikushi Province and don’t know how to survive. Since Yu Baoning said "make preparations early", there must be a way for him.

"I'm sure your soldiers and servants are all good fighters, right?"

"I wouldn't say they are good at fighting. To this day, the former slaves have scattered, fled, or died. The only ones left are some loyal and righteous men."

When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. Ever since the tragic death of Yeon Gaesomun and the fall of Pyeongrang City, the once glorious and prosperous Yeon family naturally declined. After escaping from Pyeongrang City, they were chased all the way by the Tang army and had to hide in the mountains and ravines to survive. Only one in ten of their family soldiers and servants were left.

However, because of this, the remaining family soldiers and servants are all loyal elites, and this is also the last bit of wealth of the Yuan family.

Yu Baoning took a sip of tea and said, "Don't say that I don't remember our past friendship. When you leave, I will give you a hundred Tang swords, a hundred spears, a hundred bows and crossbows, and a hundred war horses to support your entire clan to gain a foothold in Tsukushi."

"You are truly... our Yuan family's reborn parents! Your gift of so many weapons is like a grace of rebirth to the Yuan family!"

Yuan Xiancheng was so grateful that tears welled up in his eyes. Ever since the fall of Pingrang City and the fall of Goguryeo, the Yuan family had been like a rat crossing the street, and everyone wanted to kill them. How could anyone take the initiative to lend a hand? Moreover, it was the most sophisticated weapons of the Tang Dynasty. With these weapons, it was enough to arm an elite force of more than a thousand people, and it would not be difficult to gain a foothold in Tsukushi.

"Who said it was given to you?"

Yu Baoning's face turned black. He didn't get a single hair from you, and now he has to lose so many military weapons and equipment?
Do you think I look like a fool?
"When Yuan entered Japan this time, he was surrounded by wolves and almost in dire straits. It is conceivable that he would be caught in a war with the surrounding Japanese. It is extremely urgent to find a way to survive. Farming is too slow, mining is too tiring, and even maritime trade is limited in scale and cannot be a big deal. Why not just fight to support the war?"

Yuan Xiancheng misunderstood Yu Baoning's intention and felt a little embarrassed. He asked hurriedly, "How do you support war by fighting? I'd like to hear more about it."

"Nowadays, the development of Datang is changing with each passing day. Not only is the infrastructure design and construction in various places in full swing, but mining, smelting, water conservancy and other industries are also thriving, all of which require a lot of manpower. But every citizen of Datang is extremely precious. It is impossible for them to go to the dark mines to dig, and it is even more impossible for them to smelt iron next to the hot blast furnaces. Therefore, the people who are now undertaking these hard work are war criminals, prisoners, and slaves..."

Yuan Xiancheng suddenly understood something as if he had suddenly realized something: "Sell the Japanese captives to the Tang Dynasty?"

Yu Baoning stroked his beard and nodded: "Although the court never explicitly decreed the slave trade to be legal, because a large number of people were urgently needed to support domestic construction, they turned a blind eye to it and adopted a tacit approval strategy. As a result, the number of slaves imported into the country each year was no less than 100,000."

Yuan Xiancheng's eyes twitched, he gritted his teeth, and sighed dejectedly, because the slaves imported into the Tang Dynasty in recent years were mostly Goguryeo captives, and among them, "Silla maids" were even more famous. Those noble families in the Tang Dynasty would be embarrassed to go out if they didn't have a few Silla maids at home...

But he also understood Yu Baoning's meaning. Since the Yuan family lacked the means of survival after going to Japan, they might as well rely on these thousands of elite soldiers to take the initiative to provoke a war to capture the surrounding Japanese, and then turn to the Tang Dynasty.

The Luoyang Yu family became the Yuan family's partner in the Tang Dynasty...

As expected, Yu Baoning could not hide his excitement: "You, the Yuan family, will be responsible for arresting people in Japan, and my Yu family will be responsible for selling them in the Tang Dynasty. The price must be the highest in the industry. When the money for the military equipment provided by the Yu family is repaid, the profits will be divided equally between the two families. What do you think?"

Yuan Xiancheng only thought about it for a moment and then agreed.

If we talk about the military strength of the Tang Dynasty, Goguryeo, and Japan, we should rank them in this order. The Tang people are undoubtedly the best in the world, but in addition to the strong individual combat power of their soldiers, their military equipment also has a great advantage. The horizontal swords, Mo Dao, armor, and bows and crossbows produced by the Tang Dynasty are the best in the world. The elite soldiers of the Yuan family, equipped with the standard equipment of the Tang army, will definitely crush the short-statured and poorly equipped Japanese.

It is indeed difficult for the Fumi clan to survive in Chikushi Province surrounded by the Japanese invaders, but if they could sell the captives to the Tang Dynasty in exchange for more daily necessities and military equipment, it would be a completely different situation. This deal was indeed made.

Besides, Yuan Xiancheng had no choice...

……

"So that Madam Wu can know that Yuan Xiancheng has agreed."

After pacifying Yuan Xiancheng, Yu Baoning immediately returned to report to Wu Meiniang.

Wu Meiniang was still sitting behind the pearl curtain. After hearing this, she said calmly, "You did a good job. From now on, the trade with Yuan family will be yours. But now, since there is a conflict between heaven and earth, the business will not get involved, and the court will not intervene. All the consequences will be borne by yours."

The Tang Dynasty neither encouraged nor opposed the slave trade, but from a national perspective, it would never encourage such a thing. This was the responsibility of a great country and was not tolerated by Chinese culture. Now the aristocratic families were secretly engaged in the slave trade to make huge profits, but no one knew whether there would be legislation in this regard in the future. Whether it was a business or a family, they would never openly participate in such things.

"Don't worry, Madam Wu. I know what to do."

Yu Baoning didn't care about the consequences of this matter. He only cared about whether he could eliminate the rift with the Fang family and whether he could use this to open up a way to make huge profits. As long as both goals were achieved, he would be a hero of the Yu family.

It would save my brother from writing to me from Chang'an to scold me every other day...

However, he very much agreed with Wu Meiniang's intention, and he didn't even know that although the "Dong Da Tang Trading Company" had been expanding in recent years and extending its trade tentacles to various foreign countries and island countries in the East and South Seas, it rarely adopted a massacre strategy against the indigenous people of those places. Instead, it supported one group, suppressed another group, and won over another group, sitting on the sidelines with its huge military force and reaping the benefits.