Chapter 307: Setting Exorbitant Prices

“Please go ahead, sir!” Li Qing’an picked up the teapot and poured him another cup of tea.
Yan Zhuang took a sip before slowly saying, “My plan hinges on Prince Qing, Li Cong.”
Li Qing’an seemed to realize something and smiled, “So you mean sending Prince Qing to Dunhuang?”
“That’s exactly it. If Shazhou becomes Prince Qing’s permanent residence, then the general can naturally station troops there. Of course, if Prince Qing focuses on Hexi, Shazhou still belongs to Hexi. But if he focuses on Anxi, then Shazhou essentially belongs to Anxi.”
Li Qing’an strode back and forth with his hands behind his back. Yan Zhuang’s idea was indeed good—using Prince Qing as a pretext. As the governor of Longyou Circuit, he was responsible for pacifying all the barbarian tribes in Hexi and Longyou. Staying in Kucha would make it difficult for him to oversee Hexi and Longyou, but staying in Dunhuang would allow him to oversee all regions in name. It was indeed a good plan. As for whether Prince Qing would agree to go to Dunhuang, Li Qing’an wasn’t worried. With Yan Kai around, Prince Qing was nothing but a tool to him.
“This matter isn’t urgent for now. We can discuss it after the war against Tubo starts. It’s best if you can create some opportunities to give Li Cong a legitimate reason to go to Dunhuang.”
“I understand, sir. I’ll arrange this. Additionally, I’d like to discuss the food supply issue with the general.”
In Suiye, Yan Zhuang was in charge of various military supplies, with food being the top priority among them. Now that Li Qing’an was also highly sensitive to food issues, he became worried upon hearing Yan Zhuang’s words.
“What’s wrong with the food?”
Yan Zhuang sighed slightly and said, “There are 200,000 dan of grain stored in Suiye. I thought it would take months for the immigrants from the Central Plains to arrive, but they’ve already arrived in large numbers. We’re short of food!”
“How many have arrived already?”
Li Qing’an frowned. He had indeed forgotten about the immigrants. Most of them traveled from Beiting to Suiye, escorted by hundreds of officials along the way.
“Before I arrived, 9,300 households had already arrived, and more are still coming. If their number increases to 30,000 within two months, we’ll need at least 50,000 dan of grain to settle them.”
“What if it’s 100,000?”
Li Qing’an knew full well that due to the disaster in Hedong, the imperial court had decided to send immigrants to Anxi as a solution. Even just the 300,000 disaster victims entering Guanzhong needed to be relocated to Anxi—far more than 30,000.
“If they arrive gradually, it’s manageable. But if they all arrive within two months, the 200,000 dan of grain in Suiye will only be enough to settle them.”

Li Qing’an stood up, put on his coat, and said, “Prepare a carriage for me!”
At that moment, a bodyguard outside reported, “General, an envoy from the Abbasids requests an audience!”
He had been about to go find him, but now he had come on his own—perfect. Li Qing’an wasn’t in a hurry. He sat down, picked up his teacup, and said, “Take him to the guest room to wait. I’ll deal with some government affairs and then come.”
…
In the guest room, Mansur sipped his tea nervously. Although he had signed a peace treaty with the Tang emperor in Chang’an, once he entered Anxi, he gradually realized that signing the treaty with the Tang emperor might have been merely a formality. Whether he could actually be released depended on Li Qing’an’s attitude. He regretted not having built a good relationship with Li Qing’an in Chang’an.
After finishing a cup of tea, still seeing no sign of Li Qing’an, the bodyguard promptly brought him another cup. Mansur patiently finished another cup, but Li Qing’an still didn’t show up. Finally, unable to hold back any longer, he stood up and headed toward the door. An old man was slowly sweeping the courtyard.
“Excuse me, your general…”
Mansur lacked the confidence to continue asking. The old man didn’t even lift his head—there was a language barrier! Helpless, Mansur returned to his seat and picked up a piece of pastry to eat. Suddenly, he remembered something, brought the pastry to his nose, and detected a faint smell of lard, which scared him so much that he quickly put it down. At that moment, footsteps were heard outside the courtyard.
Mansur was overjoyed and quickly stood up. Unexpectedly, it was the same bodyguard who had poured the tea earlier. The bodyguard smiled apologetically and poured him another cup of tea. Mansur sighed and sat down disappointedly—the bodyguard also didn’t speak his language.
The bodyguard poured water and left. Mansur felt disheartened and slowly took a few sips of tea. Suddenly, he sensed something. Looking up, he saw Li Qing’an standing at the door, smiling at him.
“Ah!” Mansur quickly stood up and placed his hand on his chest in greeting.
Li Qing’an bowed and said with a smile, “I’m sorry. Someone came to report on military matters, so it took a while. I’ve kept you waiting.”
Perhaps because Li Qing’an was familiar with the Abbasids, Mansur felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity toward him. He quickly smiled and said, “General, please don’t be polite. It’s me who came unannounced and disturbed your work.”
“Hehe!” Li Qing’an laughed and waved his hand. “Please sit down, Your Highness.”
“Please sit down too, General.”

The two sat down, and the bodyguards brought them tea. Li Qing’an picked up his cup and sighed, “It’s been less than two months since we last parted in Chang’an, but it feels like so much time has passed—seems as if years have gone by. How strange time can be; it truly fills one with emotion.”
“So the great general is also sentimental? I never would have thought!”
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Mansur pondered for a moment before saying, “I just signed a contract with your emperor in Chang’an. The emperor personally agreed to release the Persian prisoners of war. I came to Anxi this time to ensure this is carried out.”
With that, he took out the contract and handed it to Li Qing’an, smiling, “Please take a look, Great General!”
The smile vanished from Li Qing’an’s face. He took the contract, examined it carefully, then placed it on the table and said, “Your Highness, the contract is correct, but I cannot act on it alone. I’m sorry, Your Highness!”
Mansur’s heart sank. As expected, it wouldn’t be easy. Li Qing’an had been present when the contract was signed and even participated in the negotiations, yet now he refused to acknowledge it.
“Then what do you need in order to act?”
“Your Highness doesn’t know the rules of my Tang Dynasty. To carry out this contract, I need official approval from the court. Otherwise, there’s nothing I can do.”
“And when will that approval arrive?”
Li Qing’an took a sip of tea and replied nonchalantly, “I’m not sure about that. Alas! The court is becoming increasingly inefficient. It could take a year at the earliest or half a year at the latest. If Your Highness is in a hurry, perhaps send someone to Chang’an to urge them—maybe they’ll hurry up.”
Mansur was no ordinary person. He was the crown prince of the Persian Empire and extremely shrewd. Of course, he could tell that Li Qing’an was trying to delay things. Even if the official approval arrived, Li Qing’an would find reasons not to act. Such tactics of procrastination were easy to employ. By the time Mansur finally obtained the approval after much effort, Li Qing’an might invent some excuse and refuse to release the prisoners, delaying things for three or five years without any problem. The key here was a exchange of interests. The Tang emperor might care about face and not have considered this, but the prisoners were in Li Qing’an’s hands—they were his captives. How could he release them so easily? Putting himself in Li Qing’an’s shoes, Mansur would do the same.
Mansur understood all this, but he had said too much earlier—that official approval was absolutely necessary. Changing his words now might hurt both of their reputations. He wanted to say that they had already released a thousand Tang prisoners, but that claim was too trivial to rely on. His lips moved, but no words came out.

At this moment, Li Qing’an picked up the contract again, examined it carefully, and then smiled, saying, “Besides, our emperor only agreed to release them, not necessarily for free. So this contract still needs further discussion.”
Mansur perked up. Li Qing’an had finally spoken—he was right; it was either a decree from the court or a matter of compensation. Mansur realized that there was no need to go to Chang’an at all; talking with Li Qing’an was sufficient. All he feared now was that Li Qing’an wouldn’t speak up. As long as he did, the Abbasid Caliphate was willing to pay whatever amount was required.
Mansur quickly smiled and said, “Of course, we didn’t say we’d take them away for free. As long as the great general is willing to release them, we can discuss a ransom. I wonder how much the great general wants?”
“Hehe! I feel a immediate rapport with Your Highness. Talking about money seems a bit vulgar. But I remember Your Highness saying that although Arabs consider everyone their brother across the world, they don’t casually owe favors to strangers. I understand Arab customs and won’t put Your Highness in a difficult position. A proper compensation will suffice.”
“I wonder what ‘proper’ amounts to?” Mansur knew Li Qing’an’s idea of proper compensation would certainly not be a small figure, but he still had to redeem twenty thousand prisoners. He could only prepare for the worst.
“Your Highness, I’m actually a reasonable person. I don’t want any war reparations. I only want what’s rightfully due to me. Let me do the math for you!”
The more nicely Li Qing’an spoke, the more worried Mansur became. He nodded and said, “Please go ahead, Great General.”
Li Qing’an slowly took a sip of tea before calmly explaining, “First, there’s the food for the twenty thousand prisoners. Half a year has passed since last October. The prisoners consume a lot. Everything they eat, wear, live in, and use costs money. The Abbasid Caliphate must compensate for this—that’s one point. Second, there’s compensation for mining silver. I plan to release these prisoners after they’ve mined silver for five years. Out of respect for Your Highness’s sincerity, let’s shorten that to three years! Half a year has already passed, so there are still two and a half years left. During these two and a half years, the prisoners need to mine a certain amount of silver, and the Abbasid Caliphate must also compensate me for that.”

Man Sul’s eyes almost popped out. The compensation in the form of food was one thing, but they also demanded compensation for mining over the next two and a half years—how much would that be? It was an unimaginable figure. Man Sul already understood that Li Qing’an was asking for an exorbitant amount. Yet, the twenty thousand prisoners from Syria and Khorasan were of great significance, especially since the families of the prisoners from Syria were starting to cause trouble. If those valuable soldiers weren’t redeemed, it would affect the caliph’s throne—something the caliph had repeatedly emphasized before leaving. Under no circumstances could the prisoners be left unredeemed.

With no other options, Man Sul gritted his teeth and said, “General, please be clear! How much exactly?”

Li Qing’an smiled slightly and replied, “I don’t want money. All I want is for the Great Tang to give me Turkestan.”

“No! That’s impossible!”

Shocked, Man Sul stood up and shook his head firmly. “Under no circumstances can land be used as payment. If that’s the case, we have nothing to discuss.”

“Then, Your Highness, this concludes our negotiations. In five years, I will release them. As for how many will be left by then, I have no idea.”

“Then I take my leave!” Man Sul said angrily before turning to leave. Li Qing’an didn’t call him back; he simply watched his retreating figure with a smile, saying nothing. As Man Sul reached the gate, his pace finally slowed. He sighed—how would he explain this back?

Man Sul walked back slowly and bowed deeply to Li Qing’an. “General, it’s the first time in my life that I’ve begged someone. I implore you to release our prisoners. We’re willing to agree to any terms other than land.”

Li Qing’an showed a troubled expression before finally sighing and saying, “Very well! I admire you as a hero. Please sit down and discuss this.”

Overjoyed, Man Sul realized that as long as land wasn’t involved, anything could be negotiated. He sat down again and said earnestly, “General, there’s no need to haggle further. I’ll pay at the highest slave price in the market—1,500 dinars per prisoner. In total, that’s 30 million dinars. Does that satisfy you?”

Li Qing’an quickly did some calculations in his mind. Converted to food, it would amount to two million bushels. He didn’t need money—he could mint his own silver coins—but he urgently needed food. So he asked, “I wonder how much food there is in your warehouses in Sindh and Punjab?”

Manzur tilted his head and thought for a moment. Sindh and Punjab were both renowned grain-producing regions with abundant supplies. The grain there fell under his jurisdiction. Although much of it had already been transported to Damascus, there was still plenty left, and he remembered clearly the remaining stock.

“Converted to your country’s measurement, it’s about 2.5 million dan of grain.”

Having said this, Li Qing’an no longer hid his demands. He slowly said, “Then I’ll formally state my conditions!”

“General, please speak.”

“First, release all Tang army prisoners immediately. Even if they are dead, return their ashes.”

“No problem. We’ve already done that. All Tang army prisoners of the Abbasids have been returned to Samarkand. There are no dead prisoners.”

“Good!” Li Qing’an nodded and continued, “The second condition is that all the grain in Sindh and Punjab—2.5 million dan—be handed over to us as ransom. Grain is delivered, and prisoners are released. As soon as the grain is delivered, I’ll release all the prisoners.”

Although this condition exceeded the 30 million dinar ransom proposed by Manzur, it was far better than ceding Turkestan. Besides, as he had said himself, he would agree to anything except land.

Manzur agreed without hesitation. “Good! Let’s make it a deal. I’ll use all the stored grain in Sindh and Punjab—2.5 million dan—to exchange for our 20,000 prisoners. I hope we can sign a written agreement.”

“No! No written agreement. You swear by Allah, and I’ll pledge with my reputation. We’ll meet by the Amu Darya River in northern Khwarezm. You give us the grain, and we return the prisoners.”

Manzur was no ordinary person. Since Li Qing’an refused a written contract, he didn’t insist. Instead, he placed a hand on his chest and solemnly said, “I, Manzur, swear by Allah to faithfully fulfill the terms we’ve agreed upon. All the grain will be delivered to the Tang army within two months.”

Li Qing’an also spoke solemnly, “I, Li Qing’an, also solemnly promise that as long as the Abbasids fulfill their terms, all Abbasid prisoners from the Battle of Talas will be released one by one within two months. I will never break my word!”

The two extended their right palms and struck them together in the air, marking the completion of the formal negotiations for the exchange of prisoners. As for official documents, both of them knew well that their existence was no longer important.