Zhao Zhen could see clearly that the most effective way for the Song Dynasty to deal with Xixia was to squeeze and block it through daily necessities, which could weaken the combat effectiveness of Xixia to the greatest extent.

Economic sanctions on foreign races were not the only ones in later generations. Various embargo policies have been initiated since the Han Dynasty, let alone the Song Dynasty.

However, in the Song Dynasty, such methods became more diverse. Needless to say, the development of the steel industry in the Song Dynasty had far exceeded that of any country of this era, and even the agricultural tools were completely ironed.

This was a very difficult thing in ancient times. Agricultural production played a very important role in increasing production efficiency, reducing labor costs, saving physical strength, etc.

Xixia just reigned the country, and the capital of national strength was all wealth plundered from the Western Regions. When these wealth were not converted into fuel for the country's advancement, they were squeezed out by the Song Dynasty through trade activities.

Tea is a necessity for nomadic peoples. For the Song people, tea is a drink and an attitude towards life. For the nomadic peoples, tea is an indispensable medicinal material.

The diet of nomadic people is mostly dry, hot, greasy, and difficult to digest, such as beef, mutton, milk. Tea is rich in vitamins, tannins, theophylline, etc. The fruit and vegetable nutrients lacking by nomadic people can be supplemented.

In addition, a large amount of aromatic oil in tea can dissolve animal fat, reduce cholesterol, and strengthen blood vessel wall toughness. The function of tea can make up for the missing links in the dietary structure of nomadic peoples.

The Song people could not drink tea, but the Xixia people and the Liao people should not have tea for a day!

Zhao Zhen was not so stupid that he could directly close the market. If the market was closed, the Xixia people's demand for tea and cotton would force them to invade the Song Dynasty. This was a common method used by nomadic peoples to seek markets by war.

If Zhao Zhen had certainly not afraid of the threats of the Xixia people in the past, this would have been an opportunity to temper his warriors. But now the Song Dynasty is about to begin its second military exercise against the Liao Dynasty, and he would not want the Xixia people to go south to rob.

Therefore, the court has not been closed, but the price has increased a lot. The merchants in the Song Dynasty were still loyal to the country. After the imperial edict was issued, they immediately sold necessities of the Xixia people at the court's guidance price.

The increase in prices did not harm the interests of merchants, but instead could sell more goods. However, the attitude of the people of Xixia continued to become worse as the prices increased.

The merchants in the Song Dynasty didn't care. If you have the ability, don't buy it! Everyone knows that the people of Xixia cannot do without tea, and the place in Xixia does not produce tea. This throat is pinched in the hands of the Song Dynasty for more than a day, but only now is the Song Dynasty's strong national strength and military power that can truly make good use of this key.

While raising prices, there is no need to worry about the Xixia people coming to cause trouble.

Of course, the price of buying is high, and the taxes imposed are also high. Everyone from big merchants to peddlers and pawns understands this truth. The Song Dynasty was exploiting the people of the Western Xia and putting pressure on the newly-appointed Emperor Li Yuanhao.

The merchants in the market made a lot of money. After all, the taxes were based on proportion. Even if there were more, how much could they be? The merchants wanted the court to collect taxes, so that the court could protect them with a high sound.

All the Countries were in the territory of the Song Dynasty, which was to protect the safety of merchants. It was also because the main sources of goods traded in the Countries came from the Song Dynasty.

The court was originally in Yanzhou, but with the advancement of the Song Dynasty, it has now been placed at the junction of Yanzhou and Hongzhou. The troops and horses of the two states are rushing for assistance at any time to eliminate the possibility of the Xixia people going wild.

Of course there are frictions. The just founding of Xixia gave Dangxiang people a lot of confidence, and the transactions between merchants were also full of gunpowder.

Not to mention verbal friction, beating people and causing trouble is common. The Song Dynasty has always treated them in a cold manner. As long as it provokes trouble, the officials in the scene will blacklist the Xixia merchants and prohibit him from coming to buy and sell goods in the future. This is a deterrent to the Xixia people.

Huo Laoqi had withdrawn from the Liao Dynasty to the Song Dynasty. He had been engaged in foreign trade for many years and was naturally assigned to the Song Dynasty. On the one hand, he was on the land of the Song Dynasty, and on the other hand, he was also a literary official. He didn't have to worry all day long, nor had to deal with swords and guns.

The sun rose high, and Huo Laoqi started his day's work with a wine gourd, inspecting the scene.

The Fiery is a place for the Song Dynasty to trade with foreign ethnic groups. For the Song Dynasty, it also has the role of controlling border trade, providing economic benefits, and securing borders and sowing distances. Such Fiery is often unpredictable due to changes in political relations.

As the presiding leader, Huo Laoqi is mainly responsible for maintaining order in the court, and has allowed merchants to trade according to the price of the court. Recently, it is an extraordinary period, and the investigation and punishment of Qingyan is very severe.

He, Huo Laoqi, had already arrested many Xixia people who were selling green salt in the court, and without exception, they were whipped in public and dropped on the flagpole to show their public.

Those who are hard can survive, but those who are weak will hang themselves directly on the flagpole.

For Huo Laoqi, dealing with these people should be a warning to all, otherwise the official documents of the Song Dynasty would be useless for the Western Xia. Local protectionism is something that exists in any era. For Huo Laoqi, it is natural to protect the merchants of the Song Dynasty.

He always smiled when dealing with merchants in the Song Dynasty. After all, he also showed himself as a merchant in the Liao Dynasty.

"Shopkeeper Gu, is the business very good recently?" Huo Laoqi greeted his usual drinker. The wine in his gourd did not come from this business, so he naturally became familiar with the shopkeeper.

Instead of answering, Manager Gu took out a cloth bag and secretly showed it to Huo Laoqi: "Huo Tiju, what are you doing?"

Huo Laoqi looked closely and saw that the things in the cloth bag were white under the sun: "Qing Yan?! You are the one who kills you so much that you don't want to die? The official family issued a strict order, and once you find out, you will be merciless!"

Manager Gu waved his hands repeatedly and said, "Don't talk nonsense, this is not green salt! Look at the color, and then look at the fineness. This is the sea salt from our Song Dynasty. I want to sell it to the people of Xixia!"

Huo Laoqi looked at it for a long time and nodded slightly, "Well, you really have nothing to do with your brain, right? The people of Xixia lack this portion of sea salt? They can't even use green salt!"

"Haha, Huo Tiju, you don't know anything about this. The green salt of our Song Dynasty can prevent goiter! The people of Xixia are rushing to ask for it!"

Huo Laoqi frowned and said, "Can our Song Dynasty sea salt really prevent and treat goiter?"

Seeing that he didn't believe it, Manager Gu raised his voice and said, "Of course! The genius doctor Wang Yi, who said in person, my family is related to Tokyo City. This is a true thing and cannot be faked!

Besides, the court stipulated that the green salt of the Xixia people was not allowed to appear in the market, but it did not say that the sea salt of our Song Dynasty could not be sold to the Xixia people! This is also for the profit of our Song Dynasty. You don’t know that the sea salt of our Song Dynasty is as numerous as a small hill. Even if we are brought to sell it every day, it will not affect the salt price of the Song Dynasty!”

Huo Laoqi nodded slightly: "That's right, I still have to ask the court. Don't buy sea salt first. It's not too late to sell it when the court hears news. It's very fast!"

Manager Gu nodded helplessly and said, "Well, this matter is up to you, but we can agree that our Fengxiang Business is the first one to ship, so don't stop him!"

Huo Laoqi laughed: "Of course I won't stop you. I wish you good sea salt will be sold well, and I will also help our Song Dynasty to extricate the anger. When Xixia monopolized green salt, it was annoying! But you owe me a good meal of wine, don't forget!"
Chapter completed!