Great Zhou Empire: Kill Zhao Kuangyin at the beginning

Chapter 549 "Zhou Bao Treaty of Friendship and Commerce" (Special thanks to book friend 2023...0703 for the monthly ticket!)

Samuel was startled and said:
"Prime Minister, is it possible that Emperor Chai Zongxun of Zhou sent an envoy here to harm Bulgaria?"

Gate Road:
"Your Highness, in my opinion, the Emperor of Zhou has just conquered Kievan Rus, and civil riots still occur from time to time, while the Star Religion is still maintaining a stable rule, so they should not intend to plot against our country immediately.

The Eastern Roman Empire and the Great Zhou Empire are allies and relatives. Basil II's sister Anna married the Emperor of Zhou. I believe that the Emperor of Zhou sent an envoy this time because of the war between our country and the Eastern Roman Empire."

The three of them were silent for a moment, and Marshal Levsky said:
“Your Highness, Bulgaria and the Green Caliphs have joined forces to attack the Eastern Roman Empire, and victory was a sure thing.

If the Great Zhou Empire intervenes in this matter, it will be very difficult to destroy the Eastern Roman Empire."

Samuel groaned:
“If the Great Zhou and the Eastern Roman Empire form an alliance, they can dominate the East and the West, which is extremely disadvantageous to other countries like us.

I took advantage of the fact that the Eastern Roman Emperor Basil II was conquering the military nobles and the domestic instability, and spent a lot of money to persuade the Green Arabs to join the war against the Eastern Roman Empire. This is a golden opportunity to destroy the Eastern Roman Empire, our country's eternal enemy!

The strategic focus of Emperor Zhou was originally on Angkor and the Mayan continent. Who would have thought that he would lead an army to attack Kievan Rus as soon as he returned to the country? Now his influence has expanded to Europe. If he asks me to stop attacking the Eastern Roman Empire, what should I do?
Our army is currently equipped with nearly half of the army's divine arm bows. Can we fight against the Great Zhou?!"

Levski hesitated and said:
“Your Highness, the Great Zhou is not only the country that invented the Divine Arm Bow, but also has firearms such as the “Yansu Cannon” and the “Kaixi No. 33”, which are incredibly powerful.

In my opinion, whether in terms of the number of troops, weapons and armor, or the combat effectiveness of the soldiers, Bulgaria is far from being a match for the Great Zhou!"

Kazha sighed:

“Your Highness, the Great Zhou is the country that invented gunpowder after all, and the Zhou people’s application technology of gunpowder is far superior to other countries.

It is not appropriate for Bulgaria to be at odds with the Great Zhou. Your Highness should treat the envoy sent by the Emperor of Zhou with courtesy. "

Samuel was quite reluctant. The Zhou people had forcefully entered the pass, and now he was expected to treat the envoys with courtesy?
However, thinking about the fact that Kievan Rus had been at war with his own country for a hundred years and neither side could do anything to the other, and that it had no power to fight back against the Zhou army and its country was destroyed within a year, Samuel had no choice but to swallow the humiliation.

After the king and his two ministers discussed for a while, Samuel issued an edict, ordering the border guard Petrov to send troops to escort the envoys from the Great Zhou, and ordered the officials of the prefectures along the way to give them a good reception.

On August 7, the 45th year of Kaixi, Xue Ying arrived in the capital city of Sofia along with Bulgarian officials, escorted by 5,000 Longxiang Guards led by Hu Lian.

After being arranged to rest in the official residence for a night, the Bulgarian King Samuel summoned the Great Zhou envoy Xue Ying in the main hall in the front yard of the palace.

After presenting the diplomatic gift list, Xue Ying read out the emperor's edict and said:
“Your Majesty, the Eastern Roman Empire and the Kingdom of Bulgaria have been neighbors for generations and should have lived in harmony.

The Emperor of the Great Zhou Empire could not bear to see the two countries at war for years and the suffering of the people, so he specially ordered me to come to your country as an envoy to put an end to the war between the two countries."

Samuel said:
"Your Excellency, thank you for coming all the way here!

However, Bulgaria and the Eastern Roman Empire have been attacking each other for hundreds of years, and both have ruled each other, so the grievances are deep-rooted.

This king is willing to present a great gift to His Majesty the Emperor of your country, and only asks that His Majesty do not interfere in the affairs of our two countries. "

Xue Ying said:
“Your Highness, the Eastern Roman Empire is our ally and provided a lot of help when the two countries joined forces to deal with the Star Religion world.

Moreover, his sister Princess Anna is the favorite concubine of His Majesty. Now that the Eastern Roman Empire is in trouble, His Majesty cannot ignore it. Your country also regards Nestorianism as its state religion. How can you join forces with the Green Caliphate, a country of the Star Religion, to attack the Eastern Roman Empire, which is also a Nestorian country?
If Your Highness does not obey the order of His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Zhou, His Majesty will send a large army to attack Bulgaria!

The fate of the country depends on your Highness's thoughts, so please be careful!"

Samuel was furious. It had never happened before that an envoy from another country dared to threaten him in person.

Since the war with the Eastern Roman Empire broke out the year before, they had the upper hand and captured seven states in a row. Even the Eastern Roman Empire itself sent envoys with heavy gifts to ask for peace several times.

Samuel said:
"Bulgaria has been established for hundreds of years and has been at war with neighboring countries, but no country has ever been able to destroy Bulgaria!
Although the Great Zhou has the most powerful military force in the world, if you are overbearing and tyrannical, I am not afraid of your army coming to attack me."

Xue Ying knew that Samuel was reluctant to give up the seven states of the Eastern Roman Empire that he had already taken, so he smiled and said:

"Your Highness, when you launched an attack on the Eastern Roman Empire, you were only after the wealth brought by land and population.

Our Emperor has said that if Your Highness is willing to return the seven states of the Eastern Roman Empire in accordance with the imperial decree, His Majesty is willing to open mutual trade markets on the borders between Kievan Rus and Khwarezm, which are adjacent to your country, and only impose a 20% tax on goods.

As long as the two countries trade with each other, the money your country can earn is incomparable to that of the seven states of the Eastern Roman Empire.
If you don't obey your majesty's order, Kievan Rus will be a lesson for you!"

As the most populous, vast and wealthy country in the world, if Bulgaria had fully traded with the Great Zhou and established trading posts on the border, the money it could earn would probably be more than its domestic tax revenue.

Bulgaria has a land area of ​​over one million square kilometers and a population of only seven million, while the Greater Zhou Dynasty covers an area of ​​over 3 million square kilometers and has a population of over million.

Bulgaria is rich in rose perfume and wine, which are high-end products that only the upper class can afford in Europe. If it can enter the market of the entire country of Da Zhou with low tariffs, and ordinary people in Da Zhou can afford them, the money Bulgaria can earn will be astronomical.

When Samuel was still hesitating, the Prime Minister Kazha advised:

"Your Highness, what the Great Zhou angel said makes perfect sense.

If we can fully trade with the richest and most powerful country in the world, our country's fiscal revenue will surely increase greatly, which will be a mutually beneficial thing for both countries!
With the Great Zhou mediating, Your Highness can withdraw his troops from the seven states of the Eastern Roman Empire, and there is no need to worry about the Eastern Roman Empire raising an army to retaliate in the future."

Samuel knew that Basil II, the Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, had greatly increased his treasury due to friendly trade with the Great Zhou in the previous ten years, which was why he dared to mobilize his army and attack the unruly military nobles in the country.

Samuel pondered for a long time, and finally made a decision. He said:
“Since your emperor is so kind and righteous, I am willing to obey your emperor’s order, return the seven states and the Eastern Roman Empire, and return home.

I wonder when the border trade market between the two countries that your emperor has promised can be opened?"

Xue Ying, Hu Lian and others were delighted. Xue Ying smiled and said:

"Your Highness, given the efficiency of our government and the large number of merchants, the border trading grounds between the two countries can be fully established within three months.

May the trade between our two countries prosper and we remain friendly countries forever."

(End of this chapter)