I am Li Shen and Li Shimin, the free kings of the Tang Dynasty

"A merchant from the Hashim family?"

Li Shen knew nothing about the history of West Asia and Eastern Europe in the seventh century. He only knew about Byzantium, Persia, Egypt and so on.

"Yes, Your Highness, we are just servants of the Hashim family."

Faisal also confirmed it.

"Is the Hashim family so powerful? They are able to provide your merchants with thousands of soldiers and four warships.

These things are worth a lot of money. If he just gives them to you casually, isn't he afraid that you won't come back?"

Li Shen is very interested in this kind of historical stuff.

He judged that the Hashemite family should not be simple. The four warships plus the supporting supplies were already worth a lot of money.

What's more, they were given thousands of soldiers and weapons and equipment.

In the Tang Dynasty, even some small noble families did not have such strength, and even if they did, they would not trust the merchants below to use it.

There must be supervision by one's own tribesmen.

"Your Majesty, the Hashim family is a very powerful family in our Arab world."

Amis replied.

"Oh? Tell me, how powerful is he? This is something that I am very interested in."

Li Shen stood up and walked towards the group, with Shitou holding a chair behind him.

Li Shen sat down in front of the group, his face full of gossip, all he needed was a handful of melon seeds.

“The Hashemites are a very powerful family in our country, they own a lot of territory and have an army.

We are just a small caravan of our family."

Amis briefly explained the situation.

Li Shen pricked up his ears and waited for a long time, then asked doubtfully:

"Gone?"

"Gone."

Amis nodded.

"Are you kidding me? Huh?"

Li Shen stood up suddenly and glared angrily.

"Is it just that simple? Explain clearly how this family has such a great influence and why it is so powerful.

These two sentences alone are not enough to pay for that chicken leg."

"Your Highness Prince Ji, calm down. Calm down. We don't know what Your Highness wants to know. If you want to know, just ask directly.

We must say everything.”

Faisal quickly stood up and calmed the furious Li Shen.

“You say he is powerful, but I want to know why he is so powerful. Could it be that this Hashim family is a royal family?

Or do they have many powerful people in the court?"

Li Shen sat down and asked directly.

“Your Highness, our country, which you call the Kingdom of Great Tang, has no royal family.

We nobles are all represented by our families and obey the will of God.

Our ruler is called Caliph, which means successor.

As the successor of our religion, the Caliph managed all religious affairs and the entire Arab Empire.

As Muslims, we all have to obey the orders of the Caliph because he represents the will of God."

This time there was no need for Amis to reply, Faisal just spilled the beans.

“I am asking why the Hashemite family is so powerful, since you said the caliph is the administrator of the empire.

In other words, this Hashimite family produced a caliph?"

The Caliphate was also an Arab empire. It was a theocratic regime, and the Caliph was the supreme leader of the country.

The caliph is also the supreme spiritual leader of their sect.

A word from the true God can drive countless warriors crazy.

“Your Majesty, although the Hashemite family has not produced a caliph, it has produced a Prophet Muhammad who is more honorable than the caliph.

He is the messenger of the true God, guided by the true God, accepted the mission of the true God, and spread the teachings of the true God.

The Caliph is only the successor and heir of the Prophet. "

When Faisal said this, his eyes were shining and his face was full of piety.

So amazing? Li Shen thought to himself as he looked at Faisal.

"So that's how it is. Your successors choose the caliph from within the sect, not hereditary."

Li Shen finally understood that the leader of the Arab Empire was selected from within the religious sect.

"Well, your prophet, Muhammad of the Hashemite family, was quite great. He did not pass on his position to his descendants."

Li Shen admired such a person, who was willing to give up such a huge empire to others.

“Well, our prophet had no son, and when he returned to the embrace of the true God, he did not have time to designate a successor.

Therefore, the church was divided into two factions. One faction believed that the candidate for caliph should be determined by the Muslim community based on personal ability, qualifications, and prestige, that is, to select the best and most capable.

The other faction advocated that the caliphate should be inherited by the descendants of the prophet, that is, they insisted on the theory of bloodline and advocated the hereditary system of the caliphate.

The former are called the inheritors, and the latter are called the followers.”

Now that it was said, Amis didn't hesitate and told everything. He knew more than Faisal and the others.

"Well, since you are from the Hashim family, you must be a follower."

Li Shen smiled slightly. There are great people, but there are just not many.

Li Shen also understood this. If Li Shimin abdicated and gave way to a wise man instead of choosing his own son, he would choose an outsider.

I'm afraid that the royal family would not agree. Not to mention the royal family, even Li Shen would not agree.

“Yes, Your Highness, we are indeed followers, but of course we are not qualified to be followers yet.

We are just making money for the Hashemites.”

Amis nodded in acknowledgement.

"It seems that things are not very peaceful inside your Arab Empire, right?

Even if there is faith, it is to restrain the people, and your nobles are still fighting for power.

Faith is nothing more than an excuse to attack others and a way to gain power for oneself."

Based on the information currently received, Li Shen analyzed that the Arab Empire was not a monolithic entity.

Even if there are religious constraints, the upper class people don't care about them.

"That's... indeed."

Amis hesitated, but nodded.

“Well, our initial conversation was very successful, and I still believe what you say for now.

I hope our subsequent conversation will go as smoothly.

You just need to answer whatever I ask you.

Don't worry, I won't ask about the core secrets, and you won't know them either."

After digesting their words, Li Shen concluded that they probably did not lie to him.

They are a caravan under the Hashemite family, earning wealth for the Hashemite family.

After the death of Prophet Muhammad, the religion was divided into two sects.

Because the Hashemite family has a prophet, they are unwilling to lose their leadership position and are fighting against that faction.

Haha, Li Shen laughed secretly, isn't the purpose of making wealth to fight against the other faction? It seems that this year's leader, the Caliph, has nothing to do with the Hashemite family.

(First of all, let me solemnly state that this is just a novel.

I revised this paragraph several times while writing it. I was a little scared while writing it, and finally I changed all the unnecessary names and just used the word "religion" instead.

Once again, I have to state that this is not directed at anyone, it is just necessary for the plot of the novel.)