Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 914 0909 [The Ming Emperor is the King of Kings]

Fulk went out with gold and silver coins, originally intending to buy some oriental treasures and find out about that mysterious country.

Now he could only leave the gold and silver coins in the oasis and send a team of infantry soldiers to guard it. Then he took his army and his wife and rode to the vicinity of the fortress on horseback - if he could negotiate, he would negotiate, if he couldn't negotiate, he would flee on horseback.

The Helim Fortress was built not long ago and is the southernmost stronghold of the Crusaders.

Fulk stopped a few miles away from the fortress and sent people to contact the Ming officials. The two sides agreed to send ten people each to talk in the wild.

Envoys such as Cheng Yu, Yu Yunwen, and Hu Quan are still in the Seljuk tribe. The leader of this group is called Qian Chen.

Qian Chen was the third son of Qian Jingzhen, the former imperial consort of the Song Dynasty. His father had recommended Zhu Ming because of his poetry, and his eldest brother also had some friendship with Zhu Ming.

Before this, he had been working as a minor official, and eventually rose to the sixth rank.

For the sake of his future, Mao Sui volunteered to go abroad as an envoy, hoping to be promoted after returning home.

"Are you the king of this place?" Qian Chen had no idea what the Crusades were.

Fulk observed the cavalrymen around Qian Chen. Except for the slightly short horses, their weapons and armor were all elite. He did not dare to act rashly, and returned the greeting while riding on horseback: "Hello, I am King Fulk of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. May I ask what your title is?"

After translating, the Arab merchant reminded, "They value the title. If the title is too low, they may not discuss it anymore."

Qian Chen smiled coldly: "My father was the Duke of Kangguo of the Song Dynasty, and my mother was the eldest princess of the Song Dynasty. Now that I am in the Ming Dynasty, I don't bother to talk about any titles with you. Any envoy of my Ming Dynasty is more noble than the kings of you foreign countries!"

The Arab merchant said, "This man is also a noble. His mother's status in the East is equivalent to the sister of the Roman emperor. His father is a duke."

After listening to the translation, Fulk was immediately in awe. He bowed again and said, "I am very pleased to meet you, Your Excellency. Since you are such a noble noble, we can seriously discuss the ransom."

"Fifty thousand taels of silver are needed to redeem the fortress, not a single tael less," Qian Chen said.

The Arab merchant translated: "More than 13 Jerusalem silver coins, not a single silver coin can be missing."

Fulk said, "I will only give you 3 silver coins. If you need more, I will lead the army and take it back myself!"

Qian Yan smiled and said, "You're welcome anytime."

Fulk asked: "You came from the far east, can you keep soldiers to guard the fortress?"

"If you don't want to redeem it, I can sell the fortress to the Green Arabs," Qian Yu said.

Fulk laughed. "The Egyptian king? He is a famous tyrant who is only interested in killing people. He slaughtered nobles in his country wantonly, and no nobles dare to go to the royal city anymore. He will not pay to buy the fortress, because he cannot defend it even if he buys it."

Qian Chen lowered the price and said, "Forty-five thousand taels of silver."

Fulk said, "Forty thousand silver coins."

"See you on the battlefield." Qian Yan reined in his horse and turned around.

"Wait a minute!" Fulk shouted.

Qian Yu asked, "Have you thought it through?"

Fulk said: "I will only give you 5 silver coins, but I promise to buy all your goods."

Qian Yu questioned, "Do you have that much money? Your country seems to be very poor."

Fulk said: "I will pay for some treasures first, and the subsequent gold and silver coins will be delivered soon. After this trade is successful, I can buy Ming goods for a long time in the future."

Fulk certainly didn't have that much money, but the merchants in the Mediterranean did!
After the Crusaders captured Jerusalem, they killed all the local pagans, causing a serious shortage of population in the city.

While they continue to lure immigrants from Europe, they are also luring persecuted Christians in Syria.

Gradually it gained popularity and merchants also appeared.

Merchants from Genoa, Pisa, Venice and other countries established communes (commercial areas) in various cities of the Crusaders and helped the Crusaders transport the European immigrants who had been deceived.

The four Italian maritime republics all signed trade treaties with the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

The Crusaders launched a frantic attack to capture Helim and built a fortress in the port of Helim in order to gain access to the Red Sea and obtain Eastern goods from Arab merchants.

However, the Crusaders did not have any decent fleet in the Red Sea, and the Egyptians did not allow merchants to trade in the Crusaders' ports.

Fulk suddenly had an idea and decided to turn a bad thing into a good thing!

The conflict between him and his wife was nothing more than a struggle for interests between outsiders and local nobles.

As long as they could purchase Ming goods for a long time, they could resell them to Italian merchants. The huge commercial profits could be shared with local nobles, while at the same time they could make friends with the four Italian maritime republics.

If the deal goes through, Fulk's position as king will be secure.

Qian Yu thought for a moment and said, "Okay. We can put the issue of redeeming the castle aside for now. Let's finish the deal first."

Fulk asked, "Can I go to the fort and inspect the cargo?"

"If you are not afraid of being killed, then follow me." Qian Chen said with a smile.

Fulk said: "You have come from afar, you certainly don't come here to kill people. If you want to occupy land, you don't have to occupy the barren Hailim. So, you are here to make money. If I let you make money, you will not kill me, but will protect my safety."

Qian Yan nodded and said, "You are a smart person."

Fulk sent people back to the oasis to get gold and silver, and then took his wife and army and followed Qian Yan straight to the Helim Fortress.

When they were still two or three miles away from the fortress, Qian Chen said, "Your army is not allowed to go any further. You can bring a maximum of 30 people with me to the port." There were not many Ming army troops in the castle, only three hundred people.

But there were still 600 sailors who went ashore and entered the castle to assist in the defense.

Fulk and his group of thirty people were not allowed to enter the fortress and were taken directly to the transport ship to inspect the goods.

Boxes of different kinds of cargo were carried out, and the boxes were pried open and the samples placed on the deck.

"Oh my god, what treasure is that?"

Queen Melisande's eyes were shining, and there was a glass mirror in front of her reflecting the sunlight.

Fulk asked, "Can my wife come and see it?"

Qian Yan smiled and said, "Of course."

Melisande carefully held up the glass mirror, which was far inferior in size and purity to the one presented to the Seljuk Sultan.

But it was enough to drive Melisande mad.

The Queen of Jerusalem, the future Queen of Jerusalem, looked at her beautiful face in the mirror and couldn't help but want to cover her face and cry.

Fulk asked, "How much is this cargo?"

Qian Chen lied, half-truthfully, "It's not easy to make, and it's worth five thousand taels of silver. Look at the frame, the gold wire inlaid in it weighs two taels. Not only is the craftsmanship of the inlaid wire top-notch, but the big pearl on the top is also a good product. The mirror surface is polished with natural top-grade crystal, which can only be polished by the imperial craftsmen of the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty. As for the paint on the back, it is a secret that cannot be disclosed. We sailed tens of thousands of miles here, and only brought three mirrors."

Of course there are not just three glass mirrors, but thirty, and they are sold along the way.

A country only sells one side, and things are valuable because they are rare!

As Qian Yan explained, Melisande finally discovered the pearl: "Is this a pearl?"

"What else do you think it is?" Qian Chen said, "This pearl is very magical. It grows naturally into a flower pattern, and it is a flower that radiates light like the sun."

Cultured pearls!
This technology existed in the Northern Song Dynasty, and Buddha pearls appeared in the Southern Song Dynasty.

They would carve a Buddha out of some material and then stuff it into a pearl oyster and raise it for a few years. This method could fool European aristocrats until the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Melisande examined the pearl carefully, and the more she looked at it, the more she felt that it was real.

The selling price is five thousand taels of silver, which is 13333 silver coins.

Of course it's expensive, but it's also cheap.

This is a glass mirror that cannot be found in the West, and it is inlaid with pearls that look like natural flowers!

Melisande took the mirror in her arms and said to her husband: "Buy it, and I will make peace with you and acknowledge you as my husband and king."

"Okay." Fulk agreed immediately.

Neither the husband nor the wife were fools. They had been fighting overtly and covertly for several years. Unless one of them died suddenly, neither of them could win.

Now there are many treasures from the Ming Dynasty. They can work together and make a lot of money by reselling the goods.

Melisande held the mirror in her hands and whispered, "This thing is priceless. Those merchants of the Republic will go crazy. Only show it as a sample, don't sell it to them, and don't tell them that there is only one mirror. They will surely return to their respective republics and bring countless gold and silver by ship, asking us to take them to trade."

Fulk said, "We can't let merchants come here."

Melisande said: "Of course not, this port is ours. But we don't have enough money, so we can borrow from them. The more money you borrow, the more rationed goods you will get!"

The couple who used to fight each other are now discussing how to make money together, and they are even trying to get something for nothing.

Fulk smiled and said, "Let's go check out other treasures."

Mirrors are scarce here, so you can certainly make the most of them.

But silk and porcelain do have a market price. Although they are extremely expensive, you can't just treat people like fools.

"Silk, such beautiful smooth silk!"

"Praise for the porcelain. I will eat from it every day!"

Melisande replaced the mirror and continued to examine the samples of the goods. Suddenly, she touched the velvet and said, "What is this?"

Qian Yan smiled and said, "Velvet."

Melisande suddenly asked: "You are from the Ming Dynasty in Seris, right?"

Qian Yan nodded: "Yes."

"Does everyone there wear silk?" asked Melisande.

"Many civilians can afford it," Qian Yu said ambiguously, "We have a variety of fabrics for everyone to choose from."

Melisande turned to her husband and said, "I remember that there was a Roman scholar who visited Jerusalem ten years ago. He told me many stories from the classics, including Seres. He said that the king of Seres' real title was the King of Kings, not the son of the sky god!"

Fulk muttered to himself, "The King of Kings? No wonder such a precious treasure can be brought out for trade."

(End of this chapter)