Outside the gift list, the various tribes of the grassland also presented a map, which marked the territories they had claimed over the years.
Looking at the thick stack of maps in his hands, Li Shimin couldn't stop smiling.
See!
It was common knowledge that there were many small countries in the Western Regions.
And these guys from the grasslands had actually acted as boundary markers for these small countries!
This meant that all those small countries were now completely surrounded by the Great Tang. If the Great Tang did not agree, they wouldn't be able to step outside their doors. How shameless was that!
However...
"Hahahaha!"
"I really like this map presented by all of you, my esteemed ministers!"
"Issue my decree!"
"In the new capital, designate ten districts to allow the various tribes to relocate!"
"From this day forward, the leaders of the grassland tribes shall be enfeoffed as Earls, bearing their tribal names!"
Upon hearing this, Ballemenggan and the others all prostrated themselves.
"Your subjects express their deepest gratitude for His Majesty's divine favor!"
Territory, and such things, were not the most important matters to them!
The most important thing was to latch onto the Great Tang's mighty influence!
From the day they submitted, they had dreamed of obtaining an official position and entering the imperial court!
As they led their warriors further and further, this thought became increasingly intense!
There was no comparison without contrast.
The lives of those nations outside the civilized world could not be compared to those of the Great Tang's citizens. Only the Great Tang was paradise!
After expressing their gratitude, the tribal leaders withdrew, and the next batch of congratulatory guests stepped forward.
To the surprise of the Emperors present, these were all barbarians in strange attire.
"Niuniudan·Yinyuanyuanqian from the Kingdom of York, congratulates the mysterious Eastern Emperor on his capital relocation!"
A fair-skinned man with golden hair stepped out of the ranks first, placed one hand on his chest, and bowed his head to Li Shimin on the city wall.
The Kingdom of York?
Li Shimin turned to look at Fang Er.
"Boy, where is this so-called Kingdom of York located?"
"King Kun, wait a moment, let me find it!"
Before Fang Er could answer, Qin Shi Huang took out a world map from his embrace.
This map was the current global map, and each of the Emperors already had a copy.
Spreading it out on the city bricks, Qin Shi Huang carefully searched for a long time with a magnifying glass.
"Damn it! It's here!"
He pointed to the location of the Kingdom of York, exclaiming in shock.
There, it was north of the English Channel, and part of what would later be known as Britain.
Li Shimin was also surprised, but in front of so many peers, he deliberately appeared very calm.
He coughed twice and looked at Niuniudan·Yinyuanyuanqian below.
"I have felt your sincerity!"
"Having traveled such a great distance, what congratulatory gift have you brought me?"
Upon hearing this, Niuniudan's expression turned somewhat awkward.
On their way here, they had undergone intensive training. They understood many simple Tang words and could speak them awkwardly.
They had clearly heard the gift list from the grassland tribes nearby. Thinking of the gifts they had brought, they now seemed so inadequate.
But since Li Shimin had asked, he dared not not answer, so he could only brace himself and say.
"Your esteemed Eastern Emperor, this humble king has brought one thousand gold coins as a congratulatory gift."
One thousand gold coins...
The surrounding citizens who heard the number were all stunned.
This was outrageous!
How poor!
Only three types of people could afford to buy houses in the new capital in advance: scholars, wealthy merchants, and the local residents who were relocated.
But even the relocated residents were now at least ten-thousandaires.
One Yuan here was the silver dollar that Fang Er had commissioned to be minted, and it had now become the circulating currency of the Great Tang.
Above the silver dollar, there were also gold dollars, with an exchange rate of one to ten.
With the opening of trade, more and more merchants ventured out of the Great Tang and traveled to various countries in the Western Regions, and their currency was also brought back to the Great Tang.
For the citizens of the Great Tang, one gold coin from the Western Regions was almost equivalent in value to one gold Yuan from the Great Tang.
This meant that even the poorest households in the new capital could come up with one thousand gold Yuans!
They could not imagine that a king who had traveled from thousands of miles away could only offer a gift comparable to their own savings!
No one thought that Niuniudan was intentionally offering such a small gift to disgust them, after all, he was still a king.
Then, there could only be one reason, and that was that he could only offer this much gold...
"Damn, what a pauper!"
"No offense, but my family's current savings are seventeen thousand! If converted to gold coins, that's also one thousand seven hundred!"
"Come, come, my family's passbook is all here, look, twenty-three thousand Yuan!"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, it seems that if I go to the Western Regions, I can also be a king?"
"Bah! Look at this so-called King of York, what is he wearing? That's silk!"
"Exactly, does anyone in our Great Tang still wear silk? It must be pure cotton, and fine spun cotton made from long-staple cotton produced in Kucha!"
"..."
Although these citizens had tried their best to lower their voices out of politeness, their words still reached Niuniudan's ears. At this moment, he only wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Two months ago, he was still enjoying his life when suddenly a spore-class spacecraft descended from the sky, throwing the entire Kingdom of York into a frenzy.
In their eyes, this was a god!
Only gods could fly in the sky!
But when the Xuanjia Army revealed their identity and demanded that he come to the Great Tang to witness the ceremony, he was stunned.
In the distant East, there was such a powerful empire?
They could actually fly in the sky!
With the intention of learning, he immediately agreed and packed all the gold coins he could gather from his castle.
Upon arriving in the Great Tang, he was accommodated at the Honglu Temple, awaiting the grand ceremony.
Of course, during this period, the Great Tang provided them with food and lodging.
After tasting the delicacies of the Great Tang, his self-proclaimed delicious York cuisine instantly became pig slop. Oh, no, the pigs in the Great Tang no longer ate raw food!
And before he came, he was eating half-cooked pork chops...
The women of the Great Tang further captivated him, with every smile and glance they gave easily surpassing his castle's queen by eight streets.
Although he didn't know that the women serving him were just migrant workers from Wa, the land of the rising sun...
The two months of waiting had been a heavenly experience for him.
But...
His congratulatory gift was only one thousand gold coins!