Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War

The Kingdom of Nubia, or it should be called the Kingdom of Kush to distinguish it from a certain mobile phone manufacturer, has been a place that has had close exchanges with Egypt since ancient times.

Speaking of which, the history of civilization in this place is really not short. It was born alongside Egypt and was affected by Egyptian radiation. It can be traced back to three to four thousand years. It can be said to be an ancient country, but it is a bit lacking in civilization. At most It can be regarded as the secondary civilization of Egypt.

In Egyptian documents and murals, Nubians exist more as tributes, slaves and mercenaries, and are in a relatively low position.

Around 1800 BC, a political power emerged in this place, and then it was conquered by the Egyptians for several hundred years in 1500 BC, and its independence was restored again in 1100 BC. After that, this country had wars and peace with Egypt, and even had a period of prosperity. Around 700 BC, black people from Nubia took advantage of the good opportunity of Egypt's civil strife to conquer the Kingdom of Egypt and established the 20th Kingdom in Egypt. The Five Dynasties, also known as the "Black Pharaohs".

After the 25th Dynasty collapsed due to the Assyrian invasion, the Nubians returned to their homeland and continued to maintain the previous state of war and peace, which is still the case today.

The famous literary work "Aida" should actually tell the story between Egypt and Nubia. I don't know why Nubia was gradually confused with Ethiopia. Maybe it was because this country no longer existed at that time.

Generally speaking, the exchanges between the two sides are mainly based on trade and contribution, supplemented by war. Generally speaking, Nubia is not as strong as Egypt. Only when Egypt declines can they see the opportunity to go north and annex land. .

Now, facing Cleopatra's question, the prince calmly said: "That's not true. In fact, it was your Majesty the Queen's garrison at the border who made the first move. They plundered our livestock. , The reason is that the central government does not provide them with military pay, so they can only make a living by being bandits. "

Cleopatra rolled her eyes slightly. Even if this was true, it could only be said that the other party's reaction was obviously excessive. From the reports she received, the other party had dozens of plundering activities across the border, plus those who had not There may be hundreds of reports.

She didn't want to argue with the other party at the moment, she just wanted to know what the other party wanted.

"You might as well be blunt and tell me what the Nubians are asking for?"

"We require more food imports, and we mainly exchange livestock and wild animals as before. In addition, we also hope that you can hire more of our warriors and be merciful to give them a way to make a living."

Hearing this, she flatly refused: "Both of these are difficult to handle. We have just experienced a war and do not need mercenaries. Moreover, we are not self-sufficient in food production now. If you want food, we have to go to Parfi and Syria." , North Africa and other places, it costs a lot to go back and forth. We are completely losing money using the previous exchange ratio, so I ask you to exchange it with gold. "

This place is called nub, which means gold mine in Egyptian. It is naturally a place that produces gold. Due to the import of luxury goods such as silk and spices, a certain amount of gold and silver flows out of the Roman Empire every year, so the Roman Empire is still relatively short of gold. Gold and silver, or in other words, there was no country in the ancient world that did not desire this stuff. Gold was the reason for everything. Now that he has the opportunity to do business with the other party, Orville must be looking for the other party's gold, and the same is true for Cleopatra.

The prince also knew the importance of precious metals and could not easily agree: "Gold is okay, but we need to increase the exchange ratio, like 40%."

"Don't even think about it. If you want to take advantage of this opportunity to extort money, it's better not to open your mouth."

"This is not extortion. Her Majesty the Queen, please calculate the cost. How much money will it cost to send the army south? As long as you agree to our exchange ratio, we guarantee that we will not commit any crimes on the border in the future, and we will also help you solve the border problems. Those armies that don't obey your command.

We now have more than 40,000 soldiers. Even if you want to start a war with us, you will have to go through a lot of troubles. It is better to spend some money to settle the matter. With the wealth of Egypt, I'm sure it's not a price you can't afford. "

"10%, that's my bottom line." Cleopatra wanted to bargain a little.

"Thirty-and-a-half percent, it's impossible to get any lower."

Seeing that the negotiations were at an impasse, Orville tapped the table with the knuckles of his right middle finger twice, indicating with his eyes that Cleopatra would give him a chance to speak, and the other party readily accepted it.

Orville immediately stood up and looked at the other party condescendingly: "Listen, if you want to fight so casually, my legion will be with you at any time. You can't even defeat the Egyptians, but the Egyptians were conquered by the Greeks, and the Greeks were conquered by us. Conquered by the Romans. Egypt was an ally and protector of the Roman Empire, and plundering them was a provocation to the empire.

If you really want to fight now, turn around and leave and go back to the boat. You won't get a grain of food, and my army will follow you down the river. Let us use a battle to decide who is the master of the world. .

I don’t think you have the courage now, do you? Let me guess why you want food so urgently. I heard that the land in Nubia is gradually turning into desert and wasteland recently. This is probably the fundamental reason why you want food, right? I also heard that the Aksumites (Ethiopia) in the south are also eyeing your land. Can you really spare tens of thousands of people to fight my army openly now? I don't think so. "

Orville had the concept of world map and world geography in his mind. He knew what was happening in Sudan now. The desertification of land caused by environmental changes was almost unsolvable with the knowledge and technical means of the ancients. Due to the desertification of land, Nubia's agriculture and animal husbandry declined seriously, which was fatal to an ancient country.

Since the last few decades, Nubia has been declining and shrinking until it was annexed by the Ethiopians in the south around 350 AD. Orville hit the nail on the head and hit the pain point of these people.

The prince's expression was a little ugly: "You are really straightforward. Is going to war with us really what you want? Many people will die, and it will also affect your country's finances. You may not be sure to win. We are familiar with the terrain and have unparalleled courage."

"Maybe I will lose something, but I am sure that you will eventually lose your country. I should have added Britannicus to my name, and I don't mind adding Nubicus."