The Zoroastrian temple of Malacanda, Ahura Mazda is watching all this. On the high platform of the sacrifice, in a copper disc several zhang in diameter, three half-human high bronze horses are evenly facing three directions, and only the front half of them work together to carry a silver fire altar, and the sacred fire burns in the silver altar, bringing light to the originally dim temple.

Countless people are lined up under the altar, holding 'balsam branches' (pomegranate branches) in their hands, and chanting reverently along with the chief priest on the altar. It was the Saint Anahita, dressed in a white robe, with her jet-black hair draped around her waist. The face is beautiful and cold, and the delicate and slender body does not make people have the slightest evil thoughts, but feels extremely holy.

Anahita also held the emerald green 'Balsam Branch', the quadrangular gold earrings fell to her ears, and the silver collar was around her beautiful neck, and she sang in a heavenly voice:

"O Mubed, please light the flame,

Let the veil of darkness burn in flames;

Ancient teachings are alive and well today,

Thou shalt not blaspheme the god of light. ”

As soon as Anahita's voice stopped, all the people in the temple sang in unison, "Ashem Wohu," and after singing this phrase, they recited in unison, "Atta Ahu." Yata Ahu. After the recitation, he sang, "Ashem Wohu." ”

The chanting of the crowd was short, only four short verses, but the majesty of the crowd contrasted sharply with the coldness of Anahita, and they sang the praises of the sacred fire and the god of light. It is only at this time, under the gaze of Ahura Mazda, the god of light, in the face of the holy and cleansing fire that the troubles of the world are briefly forgotten. Light and darkness, good and evil, are the eternal themes of humanity, not trade and profit.

But when the sacrifice was over, and the people who had drunk the hemp juice withdrew from the main temple, they immediately returned to becoming philistines and cunning merchants. Maracanda was the center of Sogdiana, the home of all Sogdian merchants. Because of that white silk from India, the Sogdians from all over the world returned, because someone was destroying the trade that belonged to them.

"It's not the silk of the Qin Ni Kingdom." Afritti has repeated this phrase countless times. Before the annexation of Bashu by the Qin state, the silk of the Bashu was often transported to India along the Yunnan-Burma trail, and after the annexation of the Bashu by the Qin state, this road was basically extinct, and the Qin people controlled all trade. "This is the silk of the Oriental Zeni!"

"Great Mazda," said Gaza, returning from Seleucus, chanting the temple to call everyone's attention, and when all had looked, the servant at his side stepped forward and offered several horses of silk of different colors. "It was silk bought from Persia, and the man who sold it told me that a huge ship had brought them from the East."

"Oh, oh——!" The people in the side hall were dumbfounded, they had known that it was only India, and had never thought of Persia.

"It's a Chuni person, it must be a Chuni person!" In the midst of an exclamation, it was as if he had been struck by lightning, and his whole person trembled.

"Obaka, why do you say it's a Chuni?" As the most honorable person in the city of Maracanda, Kang Motian asked.

"Because ......" said that the Chuni were just a conditioned reflex, and he tried his best to think about it after the words came out, but fortunately he finally thought of the reason why he said this: "My servant Hu Tansazhi first met King Chuni on a huge ship. The people of Chuni even demolished their royal palace in order to build ships. ”

"Perhaps it was the Persian merchant ships that arrived in the East." The description of the caravan was not convincing, and there was also an arcade in the east that objected. "Even if there were huge ships in the Chuni country, they would not be able to reach India. According to the revelation of the God of Light, the world seems to be a big bird in flight, with its head in the easternmost Zeni, Hosa (Indochina) is the left wing of the bird, India is the right wing of the bird, Persia is the belly of the bird, and Egypt is the tail of the bird. The bird's head can only be aimed at the east, it cannot look back on its wings in flight, turn to its belly. ”

It was customary to interpret reality in the canon, and Alder's words were echoed by many, and then someone stood up and said, "It must be that the Seleucid merchant ships arrived in the kingdom of Zini and bought a whole shipload of silk." Until this whole shipload of silk is sold out, we can only stop the silk trafficking. ”

The profits of overland trade must be maintained at a relatively high level, otherwise it will not be able to support the consumption of caravans. Occasional cross-selling has happened before, and the right thing to do is to stop selling silk in case the price falls.

"No!" Gaza, who had returned from Persia, was completely opposed to this practice. "The silk sellers have said that the ship will come every year after that, and they have advised the merchants there that until they come next year, the silk should be sold in its entirety and not hoarded."

"Oh!" The sound echoed through the side hall again, and Gaza continued: "This is why silk sells for only a thousand drachmas. My proposal is to sell all the silk as soon as possible, and after next year it may be worth only five hundred drachmas, and in another year it will be worth two hundred drachmas......"

The side hall was silent at this time, and Gaza's meaning was very clear, that is, it was better for any merchant group not to do silk business in the future, because the Persian merchant ships would take away all the silk business.

"I disagree!" Alder was the most opposed, and from the Yu and Rong people, he made a great profit by selling Qinni silk. "I don't believe that the Persians can monopolize the silk business."

"That's your business." Gaza motioned to him. "The caravan of the Gaza family doesn't sell silk anyway."

As he spoke, the door of the side hall was suddenly pushed open, and a servant came in bent and bent in, and whispered in his ear when he found him. He was still wondering if it was the Chuni ships that sold silk to India and Persia, and he forgot everything.

"The great god Ahura Mazda," he shouted, before he said, "The Mahatul people want us to buy 20,000 sets of armor and 20,000 swords and 20,000 spears from Chuni, and they want us to traffic at least 2,000 sacred horses to Chuni. ”

The Mahatule were the rulers of Sogdiana, and the Sogdians were unable to resist more than 90 years ago, and they still are. For more than 90 years, the will of the Greeks was second only to the will of God, and they demanded from the Sogdians. It was not difficult to sell armour and weapons, but it was undesirable and difficult for the Sogdians to sell Sogdiana's divine horses to the East.

The Sogdians were only merchants, not warriors, they did not raise horses, they could sell a few, but it was difficult to sell two thousand divine horses to the state of Chu. This required the purchase of horses from the Sagar people, from Dawan, and from the kingdoms of the Stone Kingdom. The reason why the divine horse is a divine horse is because the horse is a gift from God, and how can an Oriental who does not believe in Hu Tian be worthy of having a divine horse?

"You can buy Chuni armor and weapons without selling them." Someone said. "The Chuni people just won't let us sell to Qinni."

"But the Persians are selling their horses to Chuni." In addition to receiving instructions, he also received information, "The Mahadula told me that the Chuni merchant ship had opened a route to Persia, and that the shipload of silk was carried by the Chuni ship. ”

"Really?!" Everyone looked at Obaka, and many felt incredulous.

"The Mahatulars were worried that the Seleucid envoys would ask Chuni to forbid the sale of armor and weapons to us, so they asked us to sell the horses to Chuni." He explained what was going on in a helpless tone. The Sogdians were merchants, and although the merchants had unlimited money, they hired only a small number of warriors. They could not resist the governor of Sogdiana, nor could they rebel against the state of Chu.

He only informed everyone of the unfortunate but helpless news, and then he got up and left, and the governor Eutidemus was waiting for him to discuss the trade with him.

"If you can bring back those armor and weapons safely, I will ask His Majesty the King to exempt you from your business taxes for three years." In the governor's palace, when he had finished bowing down, Uttidemus said.

"Lord Doge, I'm just worried about what we're going to do in exchange for two thousand divine horses." He did not dare to disobey Eutydemus, so he could only do as he wanted, and then make some demands.

"I can send troops." Uttidemus Road. His gaze shifted from Aprakha's body to the painting of Apelès hanging on the opposite wall: Ares and Aphrodite were naked and in a presumptuous intercourse. The Greeks loved nakedness and preferred sex.

"If that's the case, then we won't be able to ship anything." Golbatka advised. It was then that Eutydemus took his eyes off the hot exchange and looked at him, waiting for his advice.

"If they can get Chuni's armor too......" Grebalka pondered. Weapons and armour were controlled goods in any country, and although the Sogdian caravans passed north of the Syr Darya River, those states never inspected the caravansera's goods. The Sagur are nomadic, and caravans sometimes encounter them, most of the time they cannot, and even if they do, they only offer a rich gift.

If you can exchange Chuni's armor for Shenma, and then use Shenma to return the armor and weapons to Chuni, the whole business will be complete. Anyway, Eutydemus wouldn't have come up with a drachma for this.

Eutidemus was silent about this. Bactria, located in the northeastern corner of the known world, is an enemy in all directions except the south. The Seleucids, the Panis, the Sagurs, and the barbarians who haunted from time to time.

"How many sets of armor do you need?" He asked.

"A suit of armor for a horse." The Way of Grebegar. "In addition, there is also a Chuni treasure knife, which must be indispensable."

"I agree." Uttidemus did not hesitate for long, he had already made a choice among many enemies. "Make sure the armor is brought back safely." He concluded with an emphasis.

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