The Red River originated from the Dragon Tiger Mountain in Dali, Yunnan Province. Because of the red shale formation in the basin, the water was bright red, which was very special. It had the same beauty as the famous Jinsha River.
Like a winding red dragon, it flowed through 17 counties in Yunnan Province and finally converged into the Annan Yuechi Pool, crossed the famous Red River Delta, and finally converged into the Beibu Bay and entered the South China Sea.
Hanoi, the capital of the Annan District, was located in the northwest of the Red River Delta, located on the right bank of the Red River. The rolling red river flowed slowly from the side of the city, and the whole city was surrounded by the Red River embankment.
That was where the name "Hanoi" came from.
This was an ancient city with a history of thousands of years. It had been the political, economic, and cultural center of Annan since the 11th century AD. It was rich in historical relics and was full of scenic spots and historic sites. It enjoyed the reputation of the "Land of Millennium Relics".
It had to be said that this city had a lot of ties with China, and it was an old land of China.
In 111 BC, Emperor Wu of Han established Jiaozhi County, and Hanoi was within its scope. In the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Song established Songping County in the Hanoi area, which governed Changguo County. In the Sui Dynasty, it was changed to Songping County and became the administrative center of Jiaozhi County.
Hanoi was founded in 621 AD as Songping County under the jurisdiction of the Annan Protectorate in the Tang Dynasty. It was the political, economic, and cultural center of northern Annan at that time. It was nicknamed "Purple City", and later changed to "Luocheng" and "Daluocheng".
In the late Tang Dynasty, Hanoi became the military governor of the Jinghai Army.
Why was Hanoi so high in Annan?
The terrain of Annan was long and narrow, a bit like a capital "S". There were many mountains in the territory, and the mountain range was long. With Haiyun Mountain as the boundary, it was divided into the south and the north. The climate of the two places was very different.
Whether from the south to the north or from the inland to the coast, Hanoi was the only place to pass. Its geographical location was very important, and it had the largest river port in the north.
Therefore, Hanoi could become the center of Annan.
Hanoi in the game was also a magnificent city. Because of the influence of China's culture, it was also divided into the inner city and outer city. The inner city was divided into three parts: the Forbidden City, the Imperial City, and the Capital City.
The place where the King, his concubines, their descendants, and their attendants lived was called the Forbidden City. Surrounding the Forbidden City was the Imperial City, where the officials' offices were located. The streets, markets, and residential areas outside the Imperial City were the capital.
The imperial city's imperial gardens had beautiful scenery. The forbidden city's pavilions were resplendent. The capital city's pagodas were tall and there were many temples. The architectural style was influenced by the Tang Dynasty's culture and had a classical beauty.
Moreover, Hanoi was located in the subtropics. Due to its proximity to the Beibu Gulf, the climate was pleasant. It was like spring all year round, with abundant rainfall, lush vegetation, and hundreds of flowers in full bloom. Hanoi was known as the Spring City of Hundred Flowers.
There were a few wide and straight streets in the city, with Hoàn Kiếm Lake as the center. They radiated out in all directions, and tall evergreen trees grew on both sides of the streets.
The names of the streets in the capital were very interesting. They were named after trades, such as Leather Shop, Copper Shop, Cotton Shop, Sugar Shop, Hemp Shop, Peach Shop, Sail Shop, etc. Leather Shop Street specialized in selling leather goods, while Copper Shop Street specialized in selling bronze wares.
Every street was basically controlled by the big Chamber of Commerce.
Leather Shop, Tongchun Shop.
The entire leather shop was the property of the Tongchun Chamber of Commerce. Tongchun Shop was the Chamber of Commerce's headquarters. The Chamber of Commerce's boss was surnamed Chen. He was born in a famous merchant family in Hanoi. Not only did he deal in leather goods, but he was also involved in copper, cotton, sugar, and other industries.
Two months ago, the Tongchun Chamber of Commerce welcomed a mysterious merchant who said that he had a way to help the Tongchun Chamber of Commerce transport goods to the Great Xia Dynasty for sale and make a high profit.
This person kept his word.
On the eve of the Spring Festival, the first batch of goods successfully arrived at Beihai Port, making Boss Chen a big profit.
Businessmen were born to pursue profits.
'Das Kapital' once said, "If there is a 50% profit, capital dares to take risks; for a 100% profit, capital dares to trample all human laws; for a 300% profit, capital dares to commit any crime, even at the risk of being hanged."
In view of the tense relationship between Annan and Great Xia, the Lord of Haifang City, Ruan Tianque, had long said that any Chamber of Commerce was prohibited from carrying out maritime trade with Great Xia, and violators would be severely punished.
This ban not only applied to the Chamber of Commerce within Haifang City, but also applied to the Chamber of Commerce in Royal City.
As the only remaining Lord of the Annan District in the wilderness, Ruan Tianque's words still carried a lot of weight. In recent years, there had been no trade and commerce between Annan and Great Xia.
Precisely because of this, once trade was carried out in secret, the profits would be surprisingly high, comparable to smuggling.
It wasn't that the Chamber of Commerce in Hanoi hadn't thought of secretly carrying out trade with Great Xia, but the entire Beibu Bay was under the inspection of the Great Xia Navy. Without the help of an expert, their merchant ships simply couldn't get close to Beihai Port.
Having tasted the sweetness, Boss Chen didn't care what kind of extraordinary means this newly acquainted merchant had in Great Xia. He directly addressed him as a brother. As soon as the Lantern Festival ended, he prepared a batch of goods for the second transaction.
This time, the goods were loaded onto five merchant ships and went all the way south along the Red River.
Looking at the caravan going down the river, Boss Chen couldn't hide his greedy expression, and a trace of fanaticism flashed in his eyes. According to the current situation, if this secret trade route was maintained, the Tongchun Chamber of Commerce would rise rapidly.
It wouldn't be impossible for it to become the largest Chamber of Commerce in Hanoi.
Just as Boss Chen was thinking about making a fortune again, an unforeseen event suddenly happened. For some unknown reason, and no one knew who leaked the news, but when the originally extremely secretive caravan passed through Haifang City, it was suddenly stopped.
The judicial yamen of Haifang City investigated and sent people to investigate. The truth of the Tongchun Chamber of Commerce being suspected of violating the territorial ban and privately trading with Great Xia was immediately revealed.
When Ruan Tianque got the news, he was so angry that smoke was coming out of his nose. Not only did he seize the five ships of goods, but he also arrested all the people involved and brought them to justice. He wanted to try these people according to the laws of Haifang City.
If nothing unexpected happened, they would probably be sentenced to death directly.
The leader of the caravan was Boss Chen's second son, who was extremely shrewd and capable. When he got the news, Boss Chen was so scared that his face turned pale. He pleaded with his connections everywhere, hoping that Ruan Tianque would be lenient.
However, Ruan Tianque was determined to kill the chicken to warn the monkey, and he didn't care about any feelings at all. The Great Xia Dynasty was the biggest taboo in Ruan Tianque's heart, and it was an existence that gave him nightmares from time to time.
Whoever dared to touch this taboo, Ruan Tianque would kill them.
Even the Annan royal family was in cahoots with Ruan Tianque. Not only did they turn a blind eye to Boss Chen's bitter pleas, but they also used this as a reason to list the Chen family as guilty of treason and wanted to confiscate the Tongchun Chamber of Commerce.
This time, Boss Chen was really in a desperate situation.
At this moment, the mysterious merchant appeared again and found Boss Chen.
"You still have the cheek to come! Tell me, did you leak the news to Haifang City? You are pushing me into the fire pit. "As soon as Boss Chen saw this person, he immediately became furious and had a ferocious look on his face.
He had long forgotten that just before the caravan set off, the two of them still called each other brothers.
The mysterious merchant was very calm. "Why would I leak the secret? What good would it do me? Besides, if I were the one who leaked the secret, would I be stupid enough to come see you again? "
"This …"
Boss Chen's expression froze. "This matter is extremely secretive. If it wasn't you, who else could it be?"
"I think there should be a mole."
"A mole?!" A cold light flashed in Boss Chen's eyes.
The mysterious merchant explained, "Only the people of the Tongchun Chamber of Commerce know about this business. It's hard to guarantee that there are no spies from other chambers of commerce. When your enemies see that you are about to make a fortune, how can they not torture you to death? "
"I was too careless!"
Boss Chen closed his eyes in pain and was ready to accept his fate. Since ancient times, businessmen did not fight with officials. This time, he had fallen into the hands of Haifang City and the royal family at the same time. He was really powerless.
The mysterious merchant smiled slightly. "It's not that there is no turning point."
"Brother, do you have a good plan?" When Boss Chen heard this, he immediately became spirited. His fat body nimbly jumped up from the chair. "As long as you help me get through this difficulty, I will reward you handsomely."
As long as he could escape this disaster, he would even call Boss Chen father.
The mysterious merchant asked, "Who are you doing business with?"
"Great Xia," Boss Chen blurted out.
After being stunned for a moment, Boss Chen came back to his senses. His expression instantly became very depressed and dispirited. "Don't tell me you want me to ask Great Xia for help? Why would they care about me? "
In Boss Chen's eyes, Great Xia was a colossus with tens of thousands of businessmen coming and going. Why would they negotiate with Annan Province just for a smuggler?
"How would you know if you don't try?" The mysterious merchant tried to tempt him and said with a smile, "It just so happens that I know a senior official in the Great Xia Commerce Department. As long as you write a letter asking for help and explain the reason, I can help you submit it. Great Xia has always attached great importance to free trade and the protection of the Chamber of Commerce. I think they will not ignore your life and death. "
Boss Chen had been forced into a desperate situation. At this time, he could only make a desperate attempt. He gritted his teeth and wrote a sincere letter asking for help according to the mysterious merchant's instructions.
After handing the letter to the mysterious merchant, Boss Chen said earnestly, "Please, as long as you can solve this crisis, you will be my biological father and the great benefactor of the Tongchun Chamber of Commerce in the future."
The mysterious merchant laughed in his heart. In just a short conversation, this person's address changed several times in a row. He really had the face of a merchant.
On the surface, the mysterious merchant remained calm and collected. He put away the letter and said with a smile, "You can rest assured that I will immediately rush to Shanhai City. Wait for my good news."
"Please!"
…
For the next week, Boss Chen was anxious.
On the 15th of March, things finally turned for the better. Relying on Boss Chen's letter for help, the Chamberlain of Great Xia sent a negotiation letter to the royal family of Annan Province and Haipang City through formal diplomatic channels, hoping that Annan Province would respect the right of the Chamber of Commerce to free trade and handle the case in accordance with international trade rules.
According to the statement of the Chamberlain of Great Xia, it was just a fine.
When the royal family of Annan received the negotiation letter from Great Xia, they were hesitant. They left behind a special envoy from the Chamberlain of Great Xia and stated that they would give a reply to Great Xia after serious discussions.
What about Ruan Tianque? He was so angry that he tore the negotiation letter into pieces.
"Insult, this is a blatant insult!" Ruan Tianque yelled angrily.
If he really agreed to the request of Great Xia, Ruan Tianque's prestige in Annan Province would be ruined. If he did not agree, he was afraid that he would immediately face the next move of Great Xia. Ruan Tianque was in a dilemma.
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