"Unless what?"
Prince Dada's eyes lit up. He had thought that Great Liang wouldn't release such precious resources, but he didn't expect there would actually be an opportunity. He couldn't let this chance slip away.
The Xinma Empire is an island nation. Although fishing can sustain a livelihood, the demand for food is still enormous. After all, you can't eat fish every day; you still need some staple foods.
He had eaten this potato before, and it suited his taste perfectly. Moreover, it had an extremely high yield. It would be wonderful if he could get the seeds.
Seeing the other party's eagerness, Lin Yi couldn't help but feel a surge of joy, thinking to himself, "This fake Prince Dada is so impatient; it seems the Xinma Empire is under considerable food pressure. If we don't offer you some good stuff, we'll be letting our potatoes down."
In fact, compared to the previous concerns about potatoes being targeted, the management of potatoes in Great Liang is now much more relaxed.
In the past, there was always the worry of being targeted by others, which would lead to various forces intervening to hinder the development of Xiliang, causing them a lot of trouble. But now it's different. Great Liang has already dominated this continent, and no one else can shake Great Liang anymore.
Even if some potato seeds were leaked, it wouldn't be a big deal, since Great Liang has the ability to retrieve the leaked items and bring back even more.
Therefore, it's not unacceptable for Lin Yi that the Xinma Empire wants to acquire potatoes. As long as they have enough leverage, what's wrong with giving them some seeds? After all, he won't lose out.
To put it bluntly, even if they plant potatoes now, they will ultimately belong to Great Liang.
According to Great Liang's future strategy, the Xinma Empire is clearly also within Great Liang's territory. Their planting of potatoes now is merely helping Great Liang promote potatoes.
After all, even if he gave them potatoes, it would take at least one or two years to fully promote and operate them, and that would be enough time for Great Liang to complete its entire ocean layout.
Moreover, the Xinma Empire is a completely new continent, and it has many things that Great Liang needs.
All sorts of intelligence!
Local specialty!
Mineral resources!
Even excellent cultural and technological advancements are valuable; it would be good to learn from and absorb them.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but laugh and said, "Prince, this potato is a divine product that our Great Liang has researched at great expense. It is the ultimate strategic resource of Great Liang, so it is impossible for it to be passed on to outsiders."
However, if the other party can offer something of equal value, we can exchange it!
Prince Dada thought he had no chance after hearing what was said before, since the other party had described this thing as too amazing, mentioning that it cost a huge amount of money and was an ultimate strategic resource, which was really too frightening.
Upon hearing that they could exchange, he exclaimed excitedly, "Exchange! Of course, exchange!"
It would be foolish not to replace it!
Regardless of whether these potatoes were produced by Daliang at Great Liang, their production volume is common knowledge and cannot be faked; the Xinma Empire needs them.
However, a problem arises: this commodity, comparable in value to potatoes, is not easy to obtain!
He glanced at Xinier beside him, who was also frowning, pondering how to exchange for the high-yield potato. He naturally wanted to keep the good stuff for himself, but if he didn't give them anything good, Great Liang wouldn't honor their agreement.
This is really difficult!
The two exchanged a glance, both seeing the difficulty in each other's eyes, but this matter absolutely could not go wrong.
The significance of potatoes is self-evident. If they could be brought to the Xinma Empire, it would be a tremendous achievement with lasting benefits.
Furthermore, we didn't initially plan to exchange these items, so we didn't bring many good ones. Now that this matter has suddenly been brought up, we need to discuss it carefully before making a decision.
After exchanging a glance, the two decided to go back and discuss it.
Prince Dada stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, we still need to go back and discuss this matter carefully, to see what we can offer in exchange for the potatoes from Great Liang..."
"Alright!"
Lin Yi nodded slightly and didn't try to keep them; it was better for them to take the bait themselves.
He sighed, "Although I would like to send your Empress some potatoes, I'm afraid the court officials would not agree. If you offer something of value, I think I can persuade them."
He offered a profound and insightful observation.
Only things of value are truly good things, and only things that are necessary for the growth of Great Liang.
"Understood!"
Prince Dada's lips twitched; he instantly understood.
This is him reminding himself that he wants good things. Indeed, those who can become emperors are often the most shameless.
He couldn't help but mutter, "It seems that Great Liang doesn't care about ordinary things and won't give us a chance to exchange them for potatoes. They want the roots of the Xinma Empire."
Things that can influence the fate of a nation cannot be recovered without something of value.
With heavy hearts, the two left the palace.
Watching their retreating figures, Zhao Gao's face darkened.
He slowly stepped forward from the side and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, this Prince Dada is actually an imposter. The Xinma Empire is clearly fooling Your Majesty. Should we punish them?"
In his view, the fact that the other party had fabricated such a key figure was a blatant disrespect to the Emperor, and such a person deserved to die.
Moreover, the Xinma Empire harbors malicious intentions; otherwise, it would never have acted so rudely.
"We'll talk about that later. Right now, the most urgent thing is to confirm the existence of the Xinma Empire!" Lin Yi shook his head and said in a deep voice.
While no enemy will offer you a priceless gift, it's always important to be meticulous in everything you do. This will help you maintain the upper hand in collaborations and gain a deeper understanding of the ocean.
"This servant understands!" Zhao Gao said no more and stepped aside.
Lin Yi looked at the Xuan Niao to the side and said in a deep voice, " Xuan Niao, can we confirm the other party's identity? Is there any suspicion that they were switched?"
He had no doubt about these people's foreign identities, as their physical characteristics spoke for themselves. However, whether they were from the Xinma Empire required further verification, which he had previously instructed the Net (Net of Heaven) to investigate.
It's not that he's cautious, but rather that such matters require careful consideration.
He had managed to fool the West using Huo Qubing and Xue Rengui back then, and he didn't want to be outsmarted by them now. So, to avoid future embarrassment, it was better to investigate thoroughly.
"Your Majesty, rest assured, the Net has already reported back that the enemy did indeed come from the south of the sea, landed in the south, and came through Sima Yi's defense zone. Our people have been watching them all the way, so there is absolutely no suspicion of switching them."
"The only question is whether the Xinma Empire still exists. I've already contacted Zhou Yu about this, and I believe we'll get back to him soon!" Xuan Niao explained.