Chapter 145

Li Er and Fang Xuanling's eyes lit up simultaneously.

Books!

Yes!

It was books!

Ever since seeing so many books at the roadside stall, Li Er had been left with a profound impression in his mind.

At the same time.

There were still many huge mysteries in his heart that remained unsolved.

How could Great Qin mass-produce such a huge number of books?

The handwriting was neat, and they were high-quality yet inexpensive!

If this were in Changancheng, it would be an unimaginable spectacle!

Books were extremely rare consumables in the Great Tang and even the entire world.

Why were the aristocratic clans so powerful?

When tracing it to the root cause, wasn't it because they monopolized resources related to knowledge, such as brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, and books?

Without knowledge, there was no insight!

Those illiterate commoners could never enter the halls of power to seize their interests!

From another perspective.

The aristocratic clans were forcing the Imperial House to rely on them.

Even...

Depending on them!

This was the dilemma of the rat near the vase!

Li Er knew this all too well, but he was helpless.

After all, the technology to produce brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones was not in the hands of the imperial court.

If those aristocratic clans were angered, they could burn the precious books passed down for thousands of years and take the technology for brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones to their graves.

Then the Great Tang would truly be finished!

Precisely because of this.

Li Er was urgently eager to know the secret of how Qin Mu could mass-produce books!

"It seems you have all thought of it."

"Correct, it is indeed books!"

"Besides books, there are also brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones!"

"Qin Mu once took me and Changle to a place that specialized in producing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones."

"Seeing it was truly breathtaking."

"It only takes the time to brew a cup of tea for a complete set of brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones to be produced!" "In terms of both quality and quantity, the production has already far surpassed our Great Tang." Empress Zhangsun recalled the scene when Qin Mu had taken her and Changle to the Academy. At that time.

Qin Mu was bored, and Changle had been pestering him.

So, on a whim, Qin Mu took the mother and daughter to the Academy.

This included the production of brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.

Yet, beneath what seemed like a casual arrangement, it was actually carefully planned by Qin Mu!

His goal was to let Empress Zhangsun and Changle see these things!

First, even if Empress Zhangsun and Changle watched for three days and three nights, they could not learn the technology to produce brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.

The reason was that the true core technology was not there!

Second, Qin Mu wanted to showcase Great Qin's unique technological advantage.

Only by holding advantages and technologies that others do not have can one have sufficient strength to check and balance others!

Qin Mu had long anticipated that the Great Tang would send envoys.

After all, the war at the front had reached a stalemate.

And he held the Great Tang's Empress and Princess in his hands.

As long as Li Er was not a fool, he would definitely send someone to negotiate.

As the saying goes, war is the continuation of politics!

Once the fighting is over, it is time to sit down and talk.

What is negotiation?

It is having things in your hands that others do not, which allows you to maximize your interests in the negotiation!

This was the fundamental reason why Qin Mu took Empress Zhangsun and Changle to the Academy.

He wanted to use these technologies to lure the Great Tang, thereby achieving his goal of shearing the sheep and harvesting the leeks!

"Hiss! I truly didn't expect that Qin Mu, all by himself, could develop a country to such an extent."

Li Er gasped, feeling a sense of apprehension in his heart.

This brat was truly too terrifying!

Fang Xuanling nodded solemnly, expressing his deep agreement.

How could he not be formidable?

His own life had nearly been lost at his hands!

"Your Majesty, this is a once-in-a-thousand-years opportunity!"

"If we can obtain the technology for producing brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, and books through trade, perhaps we can break free from the aristocratic clans in the future and let the Great Tang truly take flight!"

Empress Zhangsun said earnestly.

Li Er clenched his fists, his heart surging with emotion.

In his mind, he could already see the image of the Great Tang taking flight in the future!

"If it is truly so, trade is indeed an advantage for us!" Li Er frowned and continued: "But this Jiannan County..."

Qin Mu had proposed more than one condition!

He demanded that Jiannan County be ceded to their Great Qin.

"Your Majesty, that is not a difficult matter."

"Our Great Tang is powerful; Jiannan County is merely a small place, a few dozen miles in radius. Even if we lose it, we can easily take it back in the future."

"Moreover, Jiannan County is far from the heartland of the Central Plains, and the road is full of winding hills. Guarding this place requires a massive amount of manpower and resources; it is truly like a chicken rib."

"Furthermore, trading a Jiannan County to get back our Empress and Princess, and even to obtain the technology for producing brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, and books—we are not at a loss!"

Fang Xuanling spoke like an old, cunning merchant, a sly smile appearing on his entire face.

Once these words were spoken, even Li Er was tempted.

That's right!

A tiny Jiannan County—couldn't he take it back later?

Besides!

Compared to his empire, what did a Jiannan County count for?

What was the most important thing right now?

It was to fundamentally dismantle the aristocratic clans.

Otherwise, for the Great Tang to catch up with Great Qin's speed of development would be nothing but a pipe dream.