Chapter 445: Liaodong Governor
Ou Zanghua naturally would not make things difficult for the Mongolian delegation on such a matter. A few days later, he arranged for the two sides to meet in the Honglu Temple.

In addition to the two Hatuns, there were also translators from the Honglu Temple and the Jinyiwei at the scene. Their conversation was also recorded in detail, although it was just a simple greeting.

In August, the sky in Beijing is high and the clouds are light, with white clouds of various shapes and sizes floating in the clear sky.

In the early autumn, only the clouds in Beijing are more beautiful.

With the return of Emperor Zhengde to Beijing, negotiations with Mongolia officially began, and the two sides held their first peace talk in Chengping Hall of Honglu Temple.

The chief envoy on the Ming side was naturally the Minister of Rites Ou Zanghua, and the deputy envoy was the Minister of War Lu Wan. The lineup was worthy of Mongolia.

After they sat down, the Minister of War Lu Wan pushed the documents prepared in advance by the Ming Dynasty in front of Alchuborot and Busanamuslai.

First, Mongolia pledged loyalty to the Ming Dynasty and resumed paying tribute.

Second, the Ming Dynasty will send officials to manage the Tumochuan and Kharchin tribes, and the Mongolian forces must withdraw from these two areas.

Article 3: Mongols are strictly prohibited from crossing the border to invade and sheltering fugitives.

Article 4: All losses in the border war launched by Mongolia shall be borne by Mongolia, and Mongolia needs to compensate the Ming Dynasty with 40 million taels of silver.

Article 5: Mongolia has the obligation to capture and send back to the Ming Dynasty any important criminals who escape from the Ming Dynasty.

There were thirteen demands in total, and Busan Namusi felt a dull pain in his temples when he saw them, especially the first one, which they could not accept no matter what. Tumochuan was a region that Dayan Khan attached great importance to and was regarded as the focus of future grassland development. How could he easily give it to the Ming Dynasty?
Sure enough, Alchubolot beside him angrily slammed the document on the table and said through gritted teeth: "Mongolia will never agree to these conditions! The Ming Dynasty has no sincerity at all."

"Don't worry!"

Lu Wan said with a smile: "If Lord Khalkha is dissatisfied with anything, I can explain it to you."

Alechu Bolot said firmly: "Tumochuan is the heart of Mongolia. How can we allow Ming officials to get involved there?"

Busan Namuslai quickly agreed, "As for the 40 million taels of silver, it is an astronomical figure, and Mongolia cannot afford it."

"Then let's talk about 40 million taels of silver first!"

Ou Zanghua took out an account book without haste and handed it to Alchubolot, who was standing opposite him. He continued, "This is the loss caused by the harassment of the border of the Ming Dynasty since Dayan Khan ascended the throne, as well as the various expenses of the Ming Dynasty in this war. As the Celestial Empire, the Ming Dynasty only recovered its losses and did not ask for compensation from Mongolia. This is already magnanimous!"

When Alchubolot opened it, he immediately burst into laughter: "May I ask you two gentlemen, why does the Ming Dynasty waste one million taels of silver on food every time it sends out an army? In the May War alone, the food loss was an astonishing seven million taels! Do you two gentlemen think that we Mongols are easy to fool?!"

Lu Wan took over the topic, with a warm smile on his face, and explained: "This is also a helpless move. Every time the Ming Dynasty deploys troops, it needs a large number of farmers to help. They are also the people of the Ming Dynasty and they also need food. Therefore, the large loss of food is reasonable."

"If you don't believe me, Lord Khalkha might as well go to the capital and pick a restaurant to taste the food. Without thirty or forty copper coins, it would be difficult to fill your stomach. After all, the Ming Dynasty has its own unique national conditions and customs. I hope the Lord can understand."

"The medical loss is five million taels? Isn't it too high?" Busan Namuslai pointed at one of them and asked with a dark face. Lu Wan said with a melancholy face: "Because the number of our wounded is huge! So the demand for herbs is naturally extremely urgent, and the daily consumption of various emergency medicines is like a stream of water, which is difficult to count. Take this Changbai Mountain ginseng for example, as long as the soldiers still have a breath, they can hold a piece of ginseng in their mouths for half an hour. However, such a precious Changbai Mountain ginseng is worth tens or even hundreds of taels of silver."

Ou Zanghua sat aside, listening to Lu Wanhu's serious explanation, and could not help but respect him. This man is suitable for diplomacy, and it is a waste of his talent to be the Minister of War.

The two sides had an extreme tug of war over the loss of 40 million taels of silver, and the first day passed beautifully.

After several days of discussion, Ou Zanghua finally came up with his own plan. Mongolia would compensate the Ming Dynasty with 10 million taels of silver, and the remaining 30 million taels would be converted into other materials.

For example, if Mongolia fought a war of tens of thousands of people for the Ming Dynasty, it could offset two million taels of silver.

The rest of the cattle, sheep, horses, and even young girls were all clearly priced.

But looking at Alchuborot's expression, he obviously intends to fill this hole with war.

When the Mongols conquered the Eurasian continent, they relied on fighting to support the war, and they were familiar with this approach.

Alchuborot even felt that the soldiers who survived ten battles involving tens of thousands of people must be the most elite.

When the time comes, we will counterattack the Ming Dynasty and make them return double what they took away today.

If Ou Zanghua knew what Alechu Bolot was thinking, he would only wish him to work harder.
Then, the two sides once again launched a fierce negotiation on the ownership of Tumochuan, and this round of negotiations lasted even longer. No matter how eloquent and sincere Lu Wan was, Alechubolot stood firm and did not give in. His attitude was extremely firm.

In the end, Alechubolot even said bluntly: "If the Ming Dynasty wants Tumochuan, please send troops to conquer it! Only when the Mongols no longer exist will Tumochuan truly become the territory of the Ming Dynasty!"

Seeing this, Ou Zanghua and Lu Wan also knew the Mongols' bottom line.

After the two told Emperor Zhengde the news, Boss Zhu hesitated. He looked at the map in silence for a long time before saying, "Then give up Tumochuan and take back Duoyan, Taining, and Fuyu."

The so-called three guards of Doyan, Taining and Fuyu actually correspond to the Chifeng area in later generations.

The Kharchin tribe coincides with the present-day Chengde area.

Only by bringing these two major regions under control can Liaodong and Nurgansi truly become a stable part of the Ming territory, thus avoiding the risk of being cut off by Mongolian forces.

Moreover, for the capital, this move will greatly improve its safety factor. At the same time, it can also effectively reduce the defense pressure of Jizhou Town, allowing it to be relieved and better play other roles.

"As for the post of Governor of Liaodong... let Xi Qing take it!" Emperor Zhengde turned to Ou Zanghua and asked, "What do you think, Ou Qing?"

"Your Majesty is wise!" Ou Zanghua replied with a folded hand, "Mr. Xi is proficient in military tactics and is also an expert in managing people's livelihood. With him in charge of Liaodong, I think the Left Envoy will have a much easier time."

(End of this chapter)