He suddenly remembered something and asked, "I heard the Emperor of Da Liang has been on the throne for over fifty-five years?"
Wang Canghai replied, "Indeed! When the Emperor of Da Liang ascended the throne, he was only one year old! After he came of age, he purged several powerful court officials and their factions, finally consolidating his power. With the support of the Zhenguo Marquis Qin Feng, he expanded his territory southward, and the nation's strength reached an unprecedented peak!"
"He was once marginalized but managed to regain power. It's impossible to achieve this alone; he must have relied on those aristocratic families, right?" Liang Xiao asked again.
Wang Canghai nodded and immediately explained the situation of Da Liang's aristocratic families to Liang Xiao.
The aristocratic families of Da Liang were deeply entrenched and more rampant than those in Da Gan. The Yan family, in particular, monopolized the powers of the Ministry of Revenue, Ministry of Rites, and Ministry of Personnel. The family head, Yan Liu, had served as the Left Prime Minister for over twenty years, his position unshakeable.
Even the Emperor and Qin Feng had to make certain compromises with these aristocratic families...
Liang Xiao mused, "Perhaps the Emperor of Da Liang was pushed to the brink by those aristocratic families. Announcing my status to the world this way is also a way to warn them: don't push him too far, or he might even cede the empire of Da Liang to Da Gan rather than hand it over to them..."
Xiao Qing and Wang Canghai's expressions changed, and they immediately understood.
This was the only plausible explanation!
"That makes sense!" Wang Canghai sighed for a moment and analyzed, "Regardless of whether the Second Young Master Liang goes to Da Liang or not, the Emperor of Da Liang has achieved half of his objective. As for the other half... he might genuinely want you to go, but he should also know that it's almost impossible for you to do so."
Xiao Qing snorted, "We'll see. There's no way I can go this year."
"That's right, at least not until His Majesty and the驸马 have their child," Ning Xuejun added.
Xiao Qing's face instantly turned red, and she shot Ning Xuejun a look, as if to say: The Prime Minister is still here!
After careful consideration, Liang Xiao also wrote a personal reply, stating only, "I am honored by the great kindness of the Emperor of Da Liang. I will consider this journey, but alas, national affairs are pressing, and I am temporarily unable to travel south."
Xiao Qing also wrote an imperial decree in response, which was ambiguous and neither a clear refusal nor an acceptance.
For her, the entire Da Liang was less important than her beloved.
Da Liang was located in the south, and its summers were even hotter than those in Jiangnan. If Liang Xiao were to suffer from unfamiliar conditions, or if Da Liang's aristocratic families were to suddenly rebel, Da Gan would be too far to provide assistance.
Regardless, the news of the Emperor of Da Liang's imperial decree had spread throughout the capital of Da Gan and the various regions of Jiangnan. The people of Da Gan were all proud.
To be invited by the ruler of a nation in such a humble manner was a testament to their An Guo Hou's prestige! In the palaces of the Guishuang Dynasty, the King of Guishuang finally received news from Da Gan.
"Are the military arms of Da Gan, especially the crossbows, truly that formidable?"
Upon receiving an affirmative answer, the King of Guishuang almost roared his command: "At all costs, hurry and imitate them!"
Stepping out of the palace, the King of Guishuang looked up to the east, "This land full of gold, even '朕' (Zhen, Imperial We) like this culture, was transmitted from there. No matter what, I must conquer it before my elder brother..."
"But Your Majesty, Da Gan has an An Guo Hou who can kill half a million men..." a frail old minister weakly reminded him.
The King of Guishuang trembled and angrily retorted, "Cooperate with other countries, exchange military arms, and in the future, we will jointly attack Da Gan. Can he, Liang Xiao, have the ability to be in multiple places at once? If we don't plot against Da Gan, will Da Gan spare us? While they are still absorbing the spoils of war, quickly strengthen our own military!"
The ministers dared not speak.
The King of Guishuang also felt disheartened.
He had spoken harsh words, but he also knew that at present, no force dared to be the first to provoke Da Gan. They all kept their heads down, quietly improving their own military equipment.
Da Gan had defeated the barbarians and struck terror into the hearts of all.
The Peacock Dynasty, Da Liang, Xianbei, Izumo Kingdom, Taiji Kingdom... and even the Tianri tribe far to the west, all began to reform their national military systems and weapons, inadvertently initiating an arms race.
Liang Xiao had, of course, considered this situation. Da Gan also needed to continue upgrading its military equipment.
However, Xiao Qing's gold would eventually run out. Relying solely on the reform of the salt tax and the increase in contract taxes was insufficient to support such massive expenditures.
This was also why Xiao Qing had not accepted the twenty million taels from Liang Xiao and Gongsun Ye. The Son of Heaven could not engage in business, but Liang Xiao and Gongsun Ye could generate wealth, and in times of fiscal crisis, they could also support the national treasury, leaving some surplus funds.
In the West Palace Villa, Liang Xiao and Xiao Qing sat together, looking at the list on the table.
There were still over thirty thousand catties of usable sulfur, which could only produce a limited amount of gunpowder.
This list included dozens of types of ores and hundreds of medicinal herbs. Sulfur was naturally listed among them.
As a key ingredient in gunpowder, Liang Xiao was extremely cautious about the secrecy and protection of sulfur, preventing the outside world from connecting black gunpowder with sulfur.
Whether transported or traded, this sulfur was always mixed with a large batch of other materials.
Xiao Qing had profoundly understood the power of the gunpowder barrel. Without the gunpowder barrel, it would have taken the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers to breach the barbarian city fortifications in Helan Mountain!
Now she understood why Liang Xiao was unwilling to widely promote black gunpowder, why even the use of gunpowder barrels had to be personally supervised by him, and why he had stationed Gongsun Ye's personal guards at the An Guo Hou's mansion for supervision.
Preventing foreign enemies from stealing it was only one aspect.
Once black gunpowder became widespread, it could very well lead to widespread suffering in later generations!
Those personal guards from the Ding Guo Hou's mansion also understood the gravity of the situation. After their families were provided with comfortable living conditions, they were willing to bravely serve Liang Xiao, ready at any time to manufacture gunpowder barrels.
"Your Majesty, the envoy from Izumo Kingdom, Ito Masamune, has sent one hundred thousand taels of silver and ten thousand catties of sulfur!"
Ning Xuejun rushed in to report, causing Xiao Qing to be both surprised and delighted.
Sulfur in Da Gan was as precious as gold.
Ten thousand catties of sulfur were enough to produce one hundred thousand catties of black gunpowder, equivalent to about two thousand gunpowder barrels!
Ito Masamune was anxiously awaiting in the Honglu Temple, pacing back and forth in the courtyard at a speed comparable to traveling.
Only when Liang Xiao and Wang Canghai arrived to meet him did Ito Masamune approach with a fawning smile, bowing respectfully to Liang Xiao.
Liang Xiao observed this, and his heart became solemn.
This man was adaptable, insidious, and vicious; he would be a menace in the future!
It was a pity he was an envoy, and Da Gan would not easily trouble a foreign ambassador.
"An Guo Hou, our country has sent silver and sulfur for the soldiers of Da Gan to keep warm!" Ito Masamune quickly said.
"It's been eight months, and it's already late autumn. What use is this sulfur now?" Liang Xiao said with disdain.
"It can be used for warmth in winter too..." Ito Masamune chuckled dryly.
Liang Xiao pondered for a moment, then impatiently waved his hand, "Accepted! Da Gan has received the intentions of the Izumo Kingdom. Ambassador Ito, you should reside at the Honglu Temple for the time being!"
"Sulfur is as precious as gold, doesn't An Guo Hou know that..." Ito Masamune was somewhat unwilling.
"I'd rather you tribute gold! True gold fears no fire, while sulfur burns away easily. Is there any comparison?" Liang Xiao taunted.
Ito Masamune fell silent.
The Izumo Kingdom had heard of Liang Xiao's "Heavenly Thunder" and was considering whether it was related to sulfur.
But judging by Liang Xiao's reaction, there was no connection...
Wang Canghai, standing nearby, quickly smoothed things over, "An Guo Hou, you mustn't underestimate the efficacy of sulfur. Sulfur is not only for keeping warm; its medicinal value is very high. The people of Da Gan need it, Ambassador Ito..."