Chastity Layman 2

Chapter 660
In the Tai Chi Palace.

Li Shimin looked at the list sent by the Zhengshitang, and frowned more and more, "Is there a mistake, how can these ordnance be sold at this price?"

A bow and ten arrows cost 80 renminbi, a horizontal knife [-] renminbi, a crossbow [-] renminbi, and a set of Mingguang armor [-] renminbi. One hundred arrows are equivalent to A bow costs tens of thousands of dollars.

As for the horse, the price is better, not so exaggerated, but it still reaches [-] yuan.

"This is a list from Duke Wei."

"Call Qin Lang to ask what's going on."

Li Shimin felt that it was impossible for the Japanese to be so stupid, how could they accept such an outrageous price.The payment reported by the Japanese for this big purchase is as much as 10,000+ taels of silver for the armaments alone.

When Qin Lang rushed to the palace, Li Shimin was still amazed.

"What's going on here? Did you send me the quotation for the Japanese? What about the deal? Even if you make a quotation, you can't open your mouth like this."

"Your Majesty, the list in your hand is correct, this is indeed a transaction list."

Li Shimin's mouth was wide open. As the emperor who is about to conquer the world, he is very aware of the production cost of these ordnance.

"One piece of Mingguang armor requires 120 cobblers, 80 blacksmiths, and [-] craftsmen for Mingguang armor, plus the cost of fuel, leather, iron and other materials. Take the recent report of the Military Supervision as an example. , will not exceed [-] yuan, why did you sell it for [-] yuan?"

"Your Majesty, please listen to the minister's explanation. Your Majesty actually has a misunderstanding. It is true that the cost of my Great Tang Mingguang Armor is not high, but there is a reason for this. It is because of our powerful military workshop system in our Great Tang that we have a large number of highly skilled craftsmen. , as well as a large number of helpers and buddies, as well as the newly improved standard parts in our workshop, assembly line assembly, not to mention our developed iron ore mining, and the cost of iron and leather materials is low, so that the cost of our armor depends on it. It doesn't seem high."

"But in fact, apart from Tang Dynasty, I dare to say that there is no other country in this world that has such organizational and production capabilities. Powerful countries, but their equipment is much more expensive."

"As far as I know, in Rome, a metal-reinforced leather helmet is worth three bulls and costs six Roman ducats. A pair of armor needs six bulls, and a good sword and scabbard cost three Half a bull."

"A spear and a shield cost one bull, and a war horse costs six bulls."

"They equip a fully armed cavalry, which is about the same as buying 23 bulls. No matter how simple a peasant spearman is, it needs the money of several bulls to equip it."

"In the Japanese country, their weapons are manufactured at a lower level, which makes the cost higher. The cost of a set of rough full equipment produced by the Japanese country is twice or even three times that of Rome. The value of the manor is also worth four or five sets of armor."

"A piece of armor costs the price of fifteen or even twenty oxen, and a full set of armor can reach the price of fifty oxen."

"And the Mingguang armor produced by my Tang Dynasty, even if it is the most common, is far superior to that made by the Japanese, and it has to be delivered to their door across the ocean, and you can pay for the goods first, and sell for [-] yuan. I think it is true. It is already very fair. Our construction cost is low, that is our own ability, and we have the right to enjoy the benefits brought by the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty."

After listening to Li Shimin, he estimated in his mind that a big bull can be sold for four to five thousand dollars in Tang Dynasty, and it is calculated on the basis of five thousand dollars. A full set of equipment for a cavalry in Rome costs 23 bulls, which is 110 yuan. through.A piece of armor costs [-] yuan, which is not cheap.

The Japanese technology is even more backward, and the cost of their weapons and equipment is two or three times that of the Futu people. The set of armor sold for [-] yuan is actually not much higher than their cost, and Datang's Mingguang armor is of course cheaper than theirs. better.

Thinking about it this way, it makes sense for the Japanese to pay such a high price for these armored weapons.

It wasn't that Qin Lang sent the wrong order, or forced to buy and sell.

"It's just that Japanese people buy so much, can they really afford it?"

10,000+ taels of silver, Li Shimin has to be moved. After all, the output of gold and silver in the Tang Dynasty was not high. During the Wude Dynasty, the annual silver output of the Tang Dynasty was only more than 2 taels.

"There are many Yinshan copper mines in the Wa country, and the wealth is concentrated in the hands of the royal family and local tyrants. They have money."

Li Shimin suddenly became interested in the impolite Japanese country.

"Tell me about this country, and how do you know it so well?"

"I used to be a governor under orders." Qin Lang replied.

Ever since, Qin Lang turned into Li Shimin's lecturer, and told him the simple history of the Wa Kingdom, the lineage of emperors and ten thousand generations, the myths of Amaterasu, and the rise of the Yamato Kingdom and the unification of the islands.

Another example is the ambition of the Japanese nation for the Korean Peninsula, the gradual loss of the Imina area, and the reforms led by Prince Shotoku when the ancient empress was introduced, the strife of nobles such as the Soga family, the resistance of the Japanese under the slave system, and so on.

Li Shimin was very curious when he heard this.

"I didn't expect that there would be a queen in Wa Kingdom, who could reign for 36 years and die well?" Li Shimin felt that such a thing could not happen in the Central Plains.

How can a woman be the emperor?

"Your Majesty, Queen Tuigu's original name was Nutabe. She not only served as the Emperor of Wa for 36 years, but also was the princess of the No.20 Ninth Emperor Kinmei. "

"However, before becoming the emperor, Empress Utabe was the empress of No.30 Emperor Minda."

"Wait!" Li Shimin was confused. "What is the relationship between this Emperor Kinmei and this Emperor Minda?"

"Father and son."

Li Shimin was surprised, "Emperor Minda married his younger sister as empress? His own younger sister?"

"Yes, there has always been a tradition of marriage by blood relatives in Japan, in order to ensure the purity of the royal family's blood. Emperor Minda and Empress Utabe are half-brothers and sisters. The first empress of Emperor Minda married Hirohime, and Empress Utabe The princess is his second queen."

"It turns out that brothers and sisters are intermarried, this country is too chaotic!" Li Shimin sighed.

After the death of Emperor Minda, the fourth son of Emperor Minda, the eldest brother of Emperor Minda, succeeded to the throne as Prince Yongming.

It's just that Utabe's brother had only been emperor for two years before he got smallpox and died.

Another younger brother of Utabe, Prince Anahobe, wanted to ascend to the throne of the emperor. He knew that the two major powers in the court at this time were the Monobe family and the Soga family. My clan, at that time Suga was the minister of the court, and the minister was the post in Dalian second only to the Monobe family. The Monobe held military power, and Suga was in charge of finance.

While he was in the mourning hall, he wanted to rape his younger sister, Udabe, in order to make her obey him, so as to get Suga's support to sit on the throne. As a result, Udabe would rather die than obey, alarming the mourning hall officials.

Therefore, Utabe firmly opposed Prince Anhobe's succession to the throne. The Soga family supported his niece, and Prince Anhobe turned to the Monobe family for support. As a result, a large-scale civil war broke out between the Monobe family and the Soga family.

In the end, the Monobe clan was defeated and destroyed, and the Soga clan took the opportunity to take charge of the government alone, and supported his nephew, Prince Horaibe, to succeed him as Emperor Sujun. Use the brother of the emperor tomorrow.It's just that the emperor was dissatisfied with Suga Mazi's seizure of power, showing resentment.

Soga Mako simply found an opportunity to kill Emperor Sujun. After the death of his nephew Emperor Sujun, the heirs of Emperor Kinmei had died, and the sons of Emperor Minda and Emperor Yongmei were too young.

Supporting other branches as the emperor, the Soga family was worried that they would not agree, and finally chose to choose, so they had to support the empress dowager's niece Utabe as the emperor.

After the father and three brothers served as the four emperors, they experienced a large-scale civil strife. After a court coup, the 38-year-old Utabe succeeded to the throne as the No.12 third Japanese emperor in the 30th year of Sui Kaihuang. A female emperor.

"Is it true that Wa Kingdom could not find anyone to inherit it?" Li Shimin exclaimed.

"That's not true. In fact, the empress dowager hoped to support her son, Prince Takeda, to succeed him. However, although the Soga family had eliminated the Monobe family, there were still many anti-Soviet forces in the court. They proposed to support Min Prince Hirohiko Oshisaka, born to Hirohime, the first empress of Emperor Tatsuya."

"Because the eldest prince is the elder brother of Prince Takeda, Soga Mako and the Empress Dowager did not force Prince Takeda to succeed him immediately, but planned to use the Empress Dowager as the transitional emperor, but soon after the Empress Dowager took the throne, Prince Takeda He died of illness, so Empress Tuigu came to pick his nephew, Prince Sudoto, as the regent prince. Prince Shotoku’s father is Empress Tuiku’s half-brother, Emperor Yongmei, and his mother is Emperor Tuigu’s half-sister.”

In order to maintain their own power, the Soga family finally allowed Empress Tuigu to be the emperor until she died of illness in her 70s and reigned for 36 years.

"I can't imagine that the history of the court is so complicated in a small country of Japan." Li Shimin was thoughtful, as if thinking of the court battles at the beginning of the founding of the Tang Dynasty.

But in comparison, it is simpler, at least there is no powerful foreign relatives and officials to intervene.

"This Su Wo family is a bit like Yang Jian from the Northern Zhou Dynasty. Is Su Wo Cangma, the deputy envoy of the Wa Kingdom, also from this Su Wo family?"

"Returning to Your Majesty, Su Wo Cangma is the nephew of Su Wo Mazi, and also the current patriarch of the Su Wo clan. He is currently the minister of the Japanese court, and has power in the court."

Li Shimin nodded, and muttered in his mouth, "Foreign relatives intervene in politics, power ministers disrupt the country, and princes fight for the throne... we have to guard against it!"

(End of this chapter)