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"What should I call you, my friend?" Tuli stood there and looked up and down at the 'Hu man' in front of him. The Hu man with a beard smiled, "The respected second khan, the youngest name is Shi Jian."

"Shi Jian, surnamed Shi?" Tuli looked at the bearded man a few more times, "Can you be a Sogdian?"

"Khan is indeed extremely wise. The youngest one is the Sogdians, a native of Zhaowushi. He once lived in Suiye City. Later, when he was young, he followed his father to the Central Plains to run a business. The Han people called us Xinghu." The bearded man said, and he said it in Turkic and then in Sogdian.

Tuli looked like this, nodded, and relaxed his vigilance.

The Turks were not unfamiliar with Sogdians. In the eyes of the Turks, the Sogdians were called Hu people by him. In the Western Regions, there were the nine surnames of Zhaowu, Cao, Shi, Kang and other countries, all of whom were once from Yuezhi. They lived in Zhaowu City in the north of Qilian Mountains. Later, they were destroyed by the Huns and went west to the Pamir Mountains. The branches and sects divided into kings, and Zhaowu was regarded as the clan. There were nine surnames such as Kang, An, Shi, and Mi, so they were called the nine surnames of Zhaowu.

Because the nine surnames of Zhaowu must pass on the Silk Road, they are also the best at doing business.

They are known for their good at doing business and have long manipulated the redeem trade on the Silk Road. As early as the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was Sogdian Jahu in Luoyang.

Over the past few hundred years, Sogdian merchants started to operate small-scale businesses in the initial part, and came from the competition with Indian merchants, Bactrician merchants, etc. and stood out. Under the protection of the Turks, they connected Byzantine in the west, connected China in the east, and established a wide range of commercial networks in the Eurasian grasslands from Crimea to the Sanhan Peninsula.

These Sogdians were not only responsible for East-West trade, but also the middle of trade between nomadic peoples and farming peoples.

It can be said that the Sogdian merchants were the most famous merchants of this era and the most successful businessmen group, comparable to the Jewish merchants in later generations.

Whether on the Turkic grassland, in the Western Regions, or in the Central Plains, Sogdian merchants were everywhere, and seemed to be mingling in every place.

As early as the Southern and Northern Dynasties, there were immigrant tribes established by the Jiu surname of Zhaowu in Guzang and other places.

There are settlements of the nine surnames of Zhaowu in Xuanye, Puchanghai, Yizhou, Dunhuang, Suzhou, Liangzhou, Chang'an, Lantian, Luoyang, Hebei, northern Guannei Road and other places.

In the Central Plains, many of the nine surnames of Zhaowu were scattered in various places. Their settlements often had their own commanders, called leaders of all sizes, and even had their own city lords during the war, such as Yizhou.

The Sogdians are famous for doing business, and on the Silk Road Sogdian merchants do big business.

They formed settlements on the Silk Road, bringing luxury goods, precious metals, population, livestock, and transporting silk.

When the Sogdians did business, they formed caravans and stayed at a place to form settlements. The leader of the caravan was named Sabao. They left behind one person, one person went forward and another, forming a trade network on the Silk Road.

The bearded man told Tuli Khan.

Their family used to be from the Shi Kingdom, but later the family did business in Suoye City. Later, when he was a teenager, he came to the Central Plains with his father. Then he stayed in the settlement of the Sogdians in the Central Plains, living and growing up here.

There were many Sogdian merchants, and their family ran a business group. His father came to the Central Plains and later went to Luoyang. Then he used it as his base to spread trade to the Central Plains and develop their family's business.

"What business is your family doing?" Tuli smiled and asked the bearded man to sit down, then poured a glass of wine for the beard and another glass for himself.

The bearded man took the wine and said thank you respectfully.

"Our family has many people in Saiye, with my uncle and brother there. They are responsible for organizing the goods transported to the Central Plains, mainly gold, silver and copper, spices, medicinal materials, and the little girls and boys. Why are there so many lascivious men in Chang'an and Luoyang? These are all brought by our Sogdian merchant group."

The bearded man told Tuli that they acquired little girls and boys in Byzantium, Persia and other places, and then selected them and sent them to the Central Plains to train in the Central Plains for a few years. When they grew up, they became the beards and servants who were deeply loved by the Central Plains nobles.

The goods transported from the broken leaves will be transported to Chang'an and Luoyang, and the big bearded man is the person in charge here. Then he poured silk to the broken leaves, and also sold some tea, porcelain, etc.

According to the bearded man, their family is engaged in this kind of trade between the East and the West. The silk tea and other leaves sold in the Central Plains were actually not sold in the nine kingdoms of Zhaowu, but in the Persia and Byzantine empires.

This Tuli knew that in recent years, the Western Turks were able to go from a branch of the Turks, later to later confronting the sect leader, and now becoming the lord of the Turks, there was a very important reason, that was, the Western Turks conquered the nine surnames of Zhaowu, and then controlled the Silk Road. The Silk Road provided great wealth for the Western Turks, and even became an important weight for him to check and balance Persia and Byzantium.

This bearded Shi Jian is a Sabao.

Behind each Sabao, there is a large merchant group. A merchant group, at least hundreds of people, has strong strength. For example, the Shijian family is no longer an ordinary merchant group. Their family has a base camp at the east and west ends of the Shuye in the Western Regions and Luoyang in the Central Plains. They have several large caravans constantly traveling between Luoyang and Shuye, reselling and trafficking precious goods.

Their trade routes are thousands of miles away, passing through many dangerous areas, and the relationship between black and white along the way is excellent and can be unobstructed.

These people even have good relationships with government officials in various places. For example, the Tang Dynasty court had good relationships with many Sogdian merchants in the Central Plains, and they even often donated to the court.

Tuli no longer doubted Shi Jian's identity as Soddian Sapau, but he was still a little confused. What did he do if this Sapau was not staying in Luoyang?

"The new emperor of the Tang Dynasty was a robber, and the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty was even a thief. I had been in Luoyang for decades and had settled in Luoyang during the Northern Zhou Dynasty. I went through Zhou and Sui, Wang Shichong and others, and then to Tang. Although there were wars in the past, our relationship with the rulers has always been good. After the Tang controls Luoyang, we have also had a good relationship with the court and donated a lot of money to them. However, since the new emperor was in power, our lives have become increasingly difficult."

······

As Shi Jian’s accusation, things became clearer and clearer.

Shi Jian turned out to be a Sogdian businessman with a very identifiable status in Luoyang. In Luoyang, he had hundreds of subordinates, traded every year and made great profits.

However, when the new emperor succeeded to the throne, all kinds of troubles came. First, they imposed commercial taxes that they had not had before, and they had to pay a lot of more taxes a year. The Tang Dynasty government was still able to control the Sogdians very strictly, and they had to apply for a temporary residence permit. They had to pass the customs and had to apply for road quotations and pay tariffs.

Over the past year, the tax paid increased a lot.

What's even more annoying is that the disaster in the northern Central Plains began last year, and the imperial court tried every means to ask their merchants for money.

In the end, they were driven out of Luoyang, and they had no choice but to go to Taiyuan. But life in Taiyuan was not easy. In short, even the officials of the Emperors of the Tang Dynasty were all robbers.

They were forced to pass in Central Plains.

"I want to take revenge on the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty. When I heard that the Khan's army was heading south, I deliberately left the customs quietly just to help Khan."

Tuli remained silent, "How to help?"

"Since I was forced to come to Taiyuan from Luoyang, I also began to seek a new trade route. I originally wanted to open up the trade route from Taiyuan to the Li Khan Court, but this trade route was just opened, and the war in the south of the Mo was encountered again. Then the Tang army took the opportunity to occupy Jie Li Khan's territory, and our business could not continue."

"Khan, I know that Li Jing is guarding Mayi now, and sent generals to guard Yanmen Pass, Loufan Pass, Taixi Pass, Turkic soldiers and horses cannot cross the Great Wall for a while. I happened to have some way, and knew that there was a small path near Loufan Pass, which could secretly cross a small group of people. I am also familiar with several officials in Loufan Pass. As long as I give them a large sum of money, I believe that they can let us pass through the customs. At that time, we bribed the official to let us pass through the customs in the name of smuggling, but at that time, Khan arranged a small team of elite troops to sneak in first, then pretend to be my subordinates, and follow me to enter Loufan Pass. At that time, we suddenly attacked."

"We are doing something inside and sending a call to Khan, who will send troops to attack outside. At that time, we should cooperate inside and outside, and we are not afraid that Loufan Pass will not be broken. Once Loufan Pass is broken, the Great Wall Defense of the East Army of Tanghe will break a big hole. No matter how powerful Li Jing is or how dangerous Yanmen Pass is, what?"

Suddenly, my breathing became rapid.

If it can really be as Shi Jian said, it is really possible that Lou Fanguan will be taken away.

Going south from Mayi, you must pass two passes, one is Yanmen Pass and the other is Loufan Pass.

Loufan Pass is also a dangerous pass, guarding an important valley tunnel. Although it is not as dangerous as Yanmen, you cannot go straight to Taiyuan like you pass Yanmen, or go to Weizhou to connect to Hebei. However, if you can break Loufan, the gate will be opened to the south.

"What do you want?" Tuli asked. Everyone in the world knows that the Sogdians are the best at doing business and are the best at doing business. He doesn't believe that Shi Jian just wants to take revenge on the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, so he comes to take risks and lead the way for him.

If Shi Jian dared to tell him the same trick as before, such as revenge, Chuli planned to pull the group of people out and chop them up.

"Khan, I have only one request, hoping that Khan can make me a military merchant of Khan. At that time, Khan attacks Hedong and the trophy he seizes can be sold to me."

Hearing this request, he suddenly smiled.

Following a large army and becoming a military merchant, it will of course be very profitable. The purchase price of the silk, gold, silver and other things that the soldiers robbed will be very cheap, and such a business will be quite profitable.

But this makes Tuli believe that this person is worthy of trust.

"There is really a path like that. Are there really people who can let you enter the city in Loufan Pass?"

"Of course, Khan can select a team of elite soldiers to follow my entourage back."

"Where are you?" Tuli asked.

Shi Jian smiled, "I'll stay with Khan."

Tuli smiled. What reason does he have to not believe Shi Jian in this way? "Okay, then that's it. Ben Khan will leave you here to have a good chat. Don't worry, if things are done, what you promised you will not change at all."

"Of course I believe Khan." Shi Jian picked up the wine glass and toasted, "Otherwise, I wouldn't have come."

"Hahaha, I love to hear these words, come and drink!" Tuli raised his glass happily and drank it all...
Chapter completed!