The Tang dynasty's sudden support of Rahman with so many weapons and equipment naturally attracted everyone's attention. Ordinary people just joined in the fun and talked about national affairs for fun. However, the people sent by Charlemagne, Rahman's supporters, and the opposition in the kingdom attached great importance to this matter.
Charlemagne and Rahman had just had a fierce war not long ago. At this moment, although they tried to mend their relationship in the name of peace talks, the relationship between the two sides was still not good enough. At this moment, when they saw the Tang dynasty supporting Rahman with so many weapons and equipment, they were naturally quite nervous.
The opposition in the kingdom was bent on overthrowing Rahman's rule. Naturally, they did not want Rahman to get the equipment of the Tang dynasty. When they saw the Tang dynasty supporting Rahman with so many weapons, they were naturally very uneasy and scared.
As for Rahman's supporters, they were also very concerned about this batch of weapons. After all, these supporters belonged to different factions and represented different interest groups. With so many weapons and equipment sent by the Tang dynasty, they definitely wanted a share. How much they could get was something they needed to seriously consider.
After receiving the news, Charlemagne's subordinates could not wait to send the news back so that Charlemagne could be prepared.
The opposition in the Rahman Kingdom also sent the news back to the mountains so that their leader could be prepared.
As for Rehman's supporters, they immediately went to the palace, preparing to ask for more weapons and equipment to strengthen their armed forces, so that their status in the kingdom could be more stable and they could have more say in their words. In short, it was for the sake of their own interests.
Of course, at this moment, they did not know that Ang Lee had provided a lot of technical materials. If they knew, they would probably fight for it until their heads bled.
"Your Majesty, the ministers are anxious to see you."
The attendant said.
When Rahman heard this, he smiled faintly and nodded, indicating that he agreed.
When had he ever refused these ministers when they wanted to see him? They could see him whenever they wanted. After all, his status was not stable enough.
However, this time, Rahman found a way to deal with these supporters. He had a lot of technical materials supported by Ang Lee. Only he knew these materials. As long as Ang Lee did not say anything, no one would know. In this way, he could give these technologies to the people he liked at will.
Among all of Rahman's supporters, some were very powerful, some were very loyal. In short, there were all kinds of situations, and he had been trying to balance these intricate relationships.
Borrowing the heaven-sent opportunity of technological support, La Tomei would naturally lean towards the weaker but more loyal supporters. Once these technological information were given to the weaker but more loyal supporters, they would quickly form a new faction. From then on, they would be able to better neutralize the existing factions.
For an emperor, the more factions he had under his command, the safer his throne would be. This was because a large number of supporters could check and balance each other, so no one dared to be disrespectful to the king. Thus, the king's status and prestige would be enhanced, and everyone would be in awe of the king.
"Hahaha! Your Majesty, you've heard that the Tang dynasty has provided us with a lot of weapons and equipment. Quickly distribute them to everyone! We need these weapons! "
"Yes, yes, yes, there are so many weapons. Quickly distribute them!"
"The weapons of the Tang dynasty must be of good quality. Equipping the weapons of the Tang dynasty can greatly improve the combat effectiveness of our army. The sooner we are equipped, the better. After all, the soldiers still need some time to adapt to the use of the new weapons."
"The Tang dynasty will not give us weapons for no reason. They must want something in return! I don't know what they want. "
The ministers began to talk loudly as soon as they entered the room. They were quite disrespectful to the king.
Rahman looked at the ministers with a smile and said, "Everyone, our previous analysis was not wrong. The Tang dynasty has indeed taken a fancy to our Gibraltar. Therefore, they are willing to exchange these weapons for Gibraltar. In addition, the Tang dynasty has also promised that if the Ottomans attack our country from the south, the Tang dynasty will not agree and will definitely organize a military operation against the Ottomans. Therefore, we are not at a loss. After all, there is not much land there, and it is impossible to grow food. The only valuable thing is the port. We have no shortage of ports in the south, so it is not a problem to give one to the Tang dynasty. In the future, the Tang dynasty will provide us with more assistance."
These were all true. Rahman did not tell these ministers about the technical assistance information, so as not to cause a bigger fight among them.
"Your Majesty, Gibraltar is my territory. The Tang dynasty is using so many weapons to exchange for Gibraltar. These weapons should all be given to me."
One of the ministers requested.
"No, you only have 3,000 soldiers under your command. Can you use up so many weapons? At most, I will give you more. We should also have a share. "
"Your Majesty, the troops in charge of defending the north should get these weapons first. After all, the threat in the north is the greatest now."
"The threat in the south is not small either. The rebels are mainly entrenched in the south. We should give priority to equip the troops in the south. The most important thing is to eliminate the rebels first. Charlemagne hasn't made a move yet. If he rashly strengthens the defense in the north, it will weaken our sincerity in the peace talks."
"Charlemagne is not here to negotiate at all. The war in the north may break out at any time. We must strengthen the defense in the north first."
Many ministers argued endlessly. They all wanted to divide up the Tang dynasty's weapons.
Rahman had a lot of technical information in his hands. Naturally, he did not care about them fighting over the Tang dynasty's weapons. Therefore, he was not anxious at all and appeared to be very leisurely.
"Everyone, don't argue. I have seen these Tang dynasty's weapons. They are a little different from our weapons. The soldiers need to familiarize themselves with them before they can use them normally. Therefore, all the troops and horses need to be equipped with some. The imperial guards in the palace also need some. If they are useful, we can buy them from the Tang dynasty in the future. The price will be cheaper than if we copy them ourselves."
Rahman stated his decision.
Most of the ministers were satisfied. As long as they were equally divided, they naturally could not say anything. After all, these weapons were exchanged with the port of Gibraltar. They did not have any actual losses.
The minister who used to own the port of Gibraltar was very unhappy. His face was very ugly. But because he was weaker, he could only sulk.
"I have written the list of weapons distribution. You can get your weapons and send them to the army as soon as possible!"
Rahman said.
All of the Ministers happily went to receive their weapons, and only the unhappy Minister did not leave.
"Your Majesty, I am the most loyal to you. We are all refugees from the Khorasan. Why are you partial to them?"
The confidant said unhappily.
Lachman chuckled and said, "I naturally know this, but these weapons are nothing. Raising soldiers requires money, and if you don't have enough wealth, no matter how many soldiers you have or how many weapons you have, it will be useless. This time, the Great Tang not only gave us a large number of weapons, but also some technical data. I feel that you are most suited to have them."
After that, he handed some technical information to the confidant.
"Tang dynasty's steel smelting technology, cement manufacturing technology, gravel and sand needed for concrete."
The confidant read these and was a little confused at first. But soon, he understood that this was a technology that could make money.
Not to mention other things, just the new steel smelting technology alone could enable him to achieve a higher output and quality of iron ore. Naturally, he could make more money.
Seeing that the confidant's face finally eased, Rahman said, "There is a lime mine in the mountains near Gibraltar. You can build a cement workshop there. The Tang dynasty will send people to help you. The products produced will be sold to the Tang dynasty first. When the output increases, we can supply ourselves. The iron ore needs to be improved according to this method. The gravel and sand also need to be improved according to this requirement. Then, we can sell them to the Tang dynasty."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I was wrong just now."
The confidant hurriedly apologized.
Rahman said generously, "It doesn't matter. Go and prepare early! I hope your cement factory can produce products soon. "
"Your Majesty, rest assured. I will work hard. I will always be your loyal subordinate."
Apart from expressing his gratitude, the confidant did not forget to express his loyalty.
Because there had long been rumors that the Tang dynasty had designs on the Rahman Kingdom's Gibraltar, when people saw the Tang dynasty transporting a large number of weapons to Rahman, they naturally thought of this problem. Therefore, the news that Rahman ceded Gibraltar to the Tang dynasty quickly spread. Whether it was true or not, in short, almost everyone believed it.
The remaining forces of Yusuf, who were active around Cordoba, were naturally quite frightened after hearing this news. Rahman ceded a piece of land in exchange for the support of the Tang Empire. This was naturally not good news for them.
In addition, since the internal strife of the new Abbasid Dynasty, they had lost all kinds of support from the Khorasan. They could only rely on their own abilities. After all, the territory of the Abbasid Dynasty had shrunk greatly. Egypt was occupied by the Ottomans, and the Arabian Peninsula had become someone else's territory. Their only remaining core Khorasan territory was divided into two parts, and Abdullah in the northwest had become a splinter force.
They could no longer get the support of the Khorasan, but Rahman had gained the support of the Tang dynasty's weapons by sacrificing part of the land. Therefore, the situation had become even more unfavorable for them.
Therefore, these rebel forces were very anxious, and the only thing they could do was to bewitch the people. They wantonly spread Rahman's betrayal and reduce Rahman's prestige to achieve their own goals.
However, the effect of this was really very ordinary because there was no unified patriotism education in this era. Almost everyone was selfish. This was human nature, and there was nothing worth talking about.
Therefore, the propaganda of these rebels did not have much effect. It was almost impossible to arouse the anger of the people because this was a deal between the Rahman Kingdom and the Tang dynasty. The ordinary people did not suffer any losses, so they naturally did not want to care about these things. Living their own lives was the most important thing.
The various powerful interest groups also did not care about these things. After all, they had previously discussed with Rahman that they could sacrifice the interests of Gibraltar when necessary. Moreover, this port was the territory of a certain minister. As long as this minister did not have any objections, the other ministers and interest groups would not have any objections. Others would lose land and they would gain weapons. Such a good thing was hard to come by!
The minister who lost the territory of Gibraltar would gain several technical materials of the Tang dynasty from Rahman. The benefits he gained were even greater. He was the biggest winner.
In this exchange of interests, the only ones who suffered losses were the rebels of the Rahman Kingdom and Charlemagne, who was far away in the north.
After Charlemagne's subordinates sent the news back to the north, the whole empire, including Charlemagne himself, turned pale with fright. They were very vigilant about the Tang dynasty's support of Rahman's weapons.
Because they had seen the excellent weapons of the Tang dynasty with their own eyes, Charlemagne's subordinates all felt that Rahman's combat strength would be greatly enhanced after receiving the weapons from the Tang dynasty, and he would be a great threat to their empire.
Since his subordinates generally believed that Rahman's strength would be greatly enhanced after receiving the support of the Tang dynasty, Charlemagne had no choice but to believe it. He felt that he had to find a way to deal with the current crisis.
Strengthening the border preparations for war was a must, and the peace talks could not be stopped. In addition, he had to find a way to contact the Tang dynasty and strive for the Tang dynasty's support.
However, when he heard that Rahman had sold part of his land in exchange for the weapons from the Tang dynasty, Charlemagne felt a little apprehensive.
After all, no king was willing to give up his territory. This was an act of betrayal, which was despised by many ambitious kings. Charlemagne was the same. As the greatest king in the whole of Europe, Charlemagne cared a lot about his reputation. It was obviously difficult for him to accept ceding his territory in exchange for help. However, if he did not cede his land, Charlemagne did not know what else he could take out to exchange with the Tang dynasty. Gold, silver, and jewelry were good things, but the Tang dynasty did not lack these at all. If Rahman obstructed him, things would be more troublesome.
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