Chapter 493 Bringing Peace to the World

On May 13, the 12th year of the Qingli calendar, the envoys of the Song Dynasty left the Chola Dynasty with satisfaction, carrying an arms order.

This trip to the Indian Peninsula was very fruitful.

And their next destination was the Chalukya Dynasty, located on the west side of the Indian Peninsula.

After that, they went north to the Solanki Dynasty and the Samara Dynasty, and then entered the Persian Gulf and arrived at their destination, Baghdad in the Middle East.

At this time, they were only more than 2,000 kilometers away from their destination. According to Tan Wenxue's estimation, if everything goes well, they will arrive in Baghdad in late June.

At that time, they will stay there for a month and leave at the end of July, because they will not need to go to various countries on the return trip. Except for stopping at ports along the way to replenish supplies, the rest of the time will be full speed.

Therefore, they should return to the Song Dynasty within three months, so they can return at the beginning of November at the latest.

Even if there are delays on the road, even if it is delayed for two months, they should still be able to take envoys from various countries to participate in the grand celebration on January 1st of the following year before the end of December.

Although the nearly ten-month round trip was indeed a bit rushed, at least for now, the journey was smooth, and the itinerary and process were all as planned.

Soon, about ten days later, in late May, they bypassed the Indian peninsula and arrived at the Chalukya Dynasty.

The Chalukya Dynasty was the Maharashtra state of India in later generations. Its capital was called Kalyani. In later generations, it had another very famous name-Mumbai!

It was midsummer, the Indian peninsula was very hot, the sun was scorching, the sky was clear and white, the sea was blue and clear, and the dock outside Kalyani was bustling.

This season was when the sea routes were busy. Hardworking Arab merchants traveled to various docks on the eastern route. From time to time, huge fleets of ships could be seen on the sea, slowly coming in with the power of the monsoon.

There were people coming and going on the dock, many ships were docked on the side, and many dock workers came in and out, carrying all kinds of spices and goods. The smell of Indian specialty spices on the dock lasted for a long time.

Compared with the Chola Dynasty, although the military strength of the Later Chalukya Dynasty was slightly inferior to that of the Chola Dynasty in the south, it actually had more advantages in economic and trade.

Because it was closer to the Arab Empire, most Arab merchants would go to Kalyani to buy spices, then go south to bypass the Indian Peninsula and Sri Lanka, and then go east through the Bay of Bengal and go directly through the Strait of Malacca.

The advantage of doing this is that there is no need to waste time crossing the Palk Strait between the Indian Peninsula and Sri Lanka to go to the capital of the Chola Dynasty, Oraiur, and the journey will be relatively much shorter.

So in this case, the Later Chalukya Dynasty was richer than the Chola Dynasty.

Therefore, even though its martial virtue was slightly inferior to that of the Chola Dynasty, it was the country with the largest territory and population in the Indian Peninsula, and the richest country, but it could hold out for a hundred years with the Chola Dynasty, which was full of martial virtue.

It can be said that if the Later Chalukya Dynasty and the Chola Dynasty were placed in the East, then the Chola Dynasty was like the Liao Dynasty, and the Later Chalukya Dynasty was an enhanced version of the Song Dynasty.

During the more than 100 years of fighting, both sides were strong and weak at the same time, and were finally destroyed by other rising dynasties.

The two countries can be regarded as old rivals who have loved and hated each other for a hundred years.

At this moment, the fleet of the Song Dynasty's envoys passed by a fleet of Arab merchants heading south for several miles, and then the mighty fleet entered the port.

The officials at the port were also very surprised to see such a large fleet, and hurried over to ask what was going on.

Soon, the translator and guide on the ship, the great merchant of Chalukya, Payara, got off the ship to negotiate with the other party.

Knowing that the other party was an envoy from a great country in the far east, the port officials did not dare to neglect it and immediately reported the situation to the king of Chalukya.

Like Jatiraja Chola I, the king of Chalukya, Sumitra I, also immediately stopped what he was doing and personally brought a group of monks, nobles, princes and ministers to greet them.

Just as the Chola Dynasty said, there was no conflict of interest between the Chalukya Kingdom and the Song Dynasty. On the contrary, they had a complementary relationship in trade, so they treated the Song Dynasty envoys very warmly.

Under the reception of Sumitra I, the envoys first passed through the slums outside the port and then entered the city of Kalyani.

This place is indeed much more prosperous than the capital of the Chola Dynasty, Oraiyur. Not only is the city larger and more populous, but the business atmosphere is also very strong. There are all kinds of shops and vendors in the streets and alleys.

Walking on the street is like walking in the kingdom of spices. White pepper, black pepper, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, black cumin, green fennel seeds, cumin, cinnamon, grass fruit, cardamom, pepper, coriander seeds, etc. are all available, which is overwhelming.

Various local people wearing headscarves and Arab merchants shuttled between them, making Kalyani one of the important hubs of global trade today.

It can be said that apart from several top-ranked commercial cities such as Bianliang, Hangzhou, Quanzhou, Guangzhou, and Chengdu in the Song Dynasty, Kalyani was already a very prosperous trading city at this time.

After all, although the Middle East is the main gathering area for Arab merchants, the wars there are too frequent. Even if there are world-class commercial cities such as Baghdad and Tehran, the damage caused by repeated wars has made it difficult for them to continue their prosperity.

Therefore, Kalyani may not be the most prosperous city in the world, but it must be one of the most stable cities.

Even in the Hundred Years War with the Chola Dynasty, both sides only affected the border, not the capital in the hinterland.

"Guests who have come from afar, I welcome you on behalf of the Chalukya Kingdom."

King Valo I of the Suami Chamber brought everyone into the palace, and then led a group of dignitaries, placing his right hand on his chest, and bowed to them.

"Your Majesty, you are welcome."

This time, everyone was no longer flattered, and everyone politely returned the favor.

It’s not hard to guess the reason for the other person’s respect.

As old enemies, the Chalukya Kingdom and the Chola Dynasty have been fighting for almost a hundred years since the founding of the country.

Both sides are bound to have internal responses in their respective countries, just like the Liao and Song states.

I am afraid that the news about the arrival of the Song Dynasty envoy in Orayur was known to Varro I of the Secret Chamber for a long time, and maybe the other party also knew about the arms transaction.

Therefore, it would be foolish if Lord Vara I of the Secret Chamber did not pay attention to it.

"We have prepared a sumptuous banquet for the distinguished messenger, and hope you will feel the same joy as at home."

Valo I of the Secret Chamber said with a smile.

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Everyone responded politely again.

Then they sat down in the palace, and the banquet was followed by singing and dancing, which was very lively.

In the afternoon, we had three rounds of wine and five tastes of food.

King Varro I of the Secret Chamber seemed to be under the influence of wine. When the banquet was almost over, he asked: "I heard that the envoy passed by Orayur when he came?"

"Yes."

"I don't know how it is with Orayur here?"

"Forehead"

Several people are in trouble.

It is human nature to praise them in front of their master and speak ill of their enemies.

But this is obviously unethical.

Zhang Youwei reacted quickly and said: "Orayur is a city along the river, and it is outstanding among the cities along the river. Your Highness's capital is located on the seaside, and it is outstanding among the cities along the seaside."

Hearing the words of the translator, Sarmivara I was obviously not satisfied with the answer. After all, he believed that his capital was more prosperous and wealthy than the capital of the Chola Dynasty.

However, since the envoy has cleverly deflected the conflict, it is not good for him to continue to ask questions, otherwise it will make both parties more and more embarrassed.

King Salamishivara I said: "My Chalukya Kingdom has a larger population and is richer than the Chola Kingdom. Why should the envoy go to the Chola Kingdom? It would be better to come directly to my Chalukya Kingdom."

"Although it is a bit of a detour to go to Zhuluo, but the king's orders are on his side, we must invite all countries that have trade relations with our Song Dynasty to participate in next year's court meeting."

Tan Wenxue said: "We also know that the Zhuluo and Chalukya are old enemies, but we, the Song Dynasty, are committed to bringing peaceful coexistence to the world, so if you are willing, we hope that you can shake hands and make peace."

"Peace? Shake hands and make peace?"

After hearing the translation, King Varro I of the Saṃsāra wanted to laugh and said, "Since you want us to coexist peacefully, why do you sell firearms to them?"

really.

It seems that the previous test firing at the Oraiure pier could not be concealed and then covered up.

Tan Wenxue said without changing his expression: "Your Highness does not know something. We are doing this because the Song Dynasty does not sell them. In the future, people will sell them. Liao and Xixia both have firearms. If they secretly sell them to the Zhu Luo in the future, Zhelou Qicai will be in danger. ”

He added: "Now that we are selling firearms openly, Chalukya naturally knows about this. If Chola has firearms and Chalukki also has firearms, then both sides will be wary of each other, which will naturally bring about peace. "

"Forehead"

Valuo I of the Suamishi Room hesitated for a moment and asked the guide next to him to translate: "What countries are Xixia and Liao?"

The guide's interpreter replied: "It is the country to the north and northwest of the Song Dynasty."

"Do they have firearms?"

"Yes, the Song Dynasty has been at war with them in the past few years, but"

"But what?"

"But I remember that Xixia seemed to have been wiped out by the Song Dynasty."

"Then ask him, hasn't Xixia been wiped out?"

"yes."

The guide informed Tan Wenxue of the problem.

Tan Wenxue said: "Although Xixia was destroyed, their remnants fled to the Western Regions with firearms. The Western Regions are connected to Dashi. What's even worse? When another Dashi empire rises, how can you resist it?"

"Forehead"

This set of logic caused the CPU of the brain of Valor I, the Chamber of Secrets, to burn out, because he found that it seemed to make sense.

If the Song Dynasty did not sell firearms, what if the Liao Kingdom and Xixia did sell them in the future?

Although he had information gaps and didn't know what countries Xixia and Liao were, and he didn't know whether the remnants of Xixia had gone to the Western Regions with firearms, this did not prevent Valuo I from the secret room from feeling justified.

Since there are already three countries in the East that have firearms, he doesn't even know about the other two countries, and one of them has perished. But if the Zhu Luo Kingdom hooked up with the Liao Kingdom, or if the remnants of Xixia went to some countries to the north of them and let those people secretly buy firearms, wouldn't something big happen?

So now that the Song Dynasty has come over in a big way and provided firearms to both sides, it means that neither side is strong alone and has the ability to destroy the other side. Doesn't this achieve some kind of restriction or balance?

broken.

My head feels so itchy, I feel like I'm going to grow a brain.

Varro I, the secret chamber, felt something was wrong. As for what was wrong, he couldn't explain it, so he could only laugh and said: "That seems to be the case."

"That's it, just like Greek fire. If the food merchants only sell Greek fire to the Chola Dynasty and not to you, then how can you resist the attack of Greek fire?"

Tan Wenxue said with a smile: "Weapons are equal only if both sides have them. In this way, both sides have the ability to destroy the other, thus forming a deterrent. Only in this way can we bring peace, right?"

"Okay."

So Varo I had no choice but to say: "Then please ask the envoy to sell us a batch of firearms. We will spend more money to buy more firearms as much as the Zhuluo Kingdom buys."

He had already heard about the power of the firearm. Once it was fired, the other side roared and exploded.

So naturally hope for more.

But Tan Wenxue shook his head and said: "Reporting to your highness, King Chola spent a lot of money and hoped that we would not sell the artillery to you. We agreed to the other party's request."

King Varro I of the Suamishi was shocked and said: "How can you do this? You still say that you are here for peace and you only sell firearms to them. So what should we do if they use your firearms to attack us?"

"Your Highness, don't worry."

Zhang Youwei immediately smiled and smoothed things over: "It's just that the artillery was not sold, but we have better firearms."

"A better firearm?"

"Yes, we also have grenades, muskets, and rocket launchers. Their power will not disappoint His Highness."

"That's great."

King Valo I of the Secret Chamber said happily: "Can you demonstrate it for me?"

"certainly."

Everyone nodded.

It is even more the same now in the Chola dynasty.

The Song army demonstrated the power of muskets, grenades and other weapons to Vallo I of the Secret Chamber.

Strictly speaking, the combat effectiveness of artillery and these equipment is not equivalent.

After all, even the artillery that was eliminated by the Song Army still had no problem shooting two to three kilometers.

Once a war breaks out, grenades with a range of fifty meters and black powder flintlock guns with a range of four to five hundred meters are no match.

However, the number of artillery purchased by the Chola Dynasty was relatively small. They could sell more grenades and muskets to the Later Chalukya Dynasty. Even if the two sides fought, it would still be enough to rely on grenades and muskets to defend the city.

Anyway, it has always been the Chola Dynasty that attacks and the Chalukya Dynasty that defends. On the border, what the Chalukya Dynasty lacks the most are bunkers and cities, and artillery can't penetrate the city walls.

Seeing the power of Song military firearms, Valo I of the Suami Chamber did not hesitate anymore and immediately placed an order for a large number of firearms and other firearms.

Including landmines, rocket launchers, muskets, and grenades. With these weapons, if the Chola Dynasty did not prepare tactics and used up all the artillery ammunition prematurely, it is hard to say that the Chalukya Dynasty could counterattack the Zhula Dynasty. Luo Dynasty!