1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3684

Compared with the countries we have dealt with before, negotiations with the Arabs are undoubtedly a new test.

The Arabs at this stage did not have a unified regime. Instead, each tribe implemented autonomy on a tribal basis, and the tribes established cooperative relationships through various means such as sects, marriages, and alliances.

The good news is that the power of these tribes is relatively limited, far less than that of a country with a complete system. Whether using force against them or using other means to bribe and win them over, the difficulty will be relatively low.

But the bad news is that the rule of these tribes is far less stable than that of the country. Even if a cooperation agreement is reached, its continuity is difficult to guarantee. There are too many unpredictable factors that can affect the effectiveness of the agreement, such as the replacement of tribal leaders, wars with other tribes, and interference from the outside.

Although Li Yuande claimed that he had dealt with Arab businessmen before, he was actually far from familiar with them. He actually had no clear idea of ​​what conditions he should offer to convince the other chiefs to accept cooperation and give up the land of Haisab.

Qian Tiandun did not give any clear instructions, but only authorized the two of them to make their own decisions and negotiate the terms of cooperation with the other party. As long as it could facilitate the transfer of Khasab, they could relax the terms and see what the other party wanted and try to satisfy them.

After all, Li and Dong had no official status in the fleet. Although they were authorized to represent Hai Han, no matter what terms they agreed to, the final decision-making power still lay with Qian Tiandun. Even if he agreed to some outrageous terms, Qian Tiandun still had room for redemption.

While they were on their way to negotiate with the Shihu tribe, the huge fleet could not wait any longer and had to continue its mission of exploring the Persian Gulf.

In addition to their respective entourages, Qian Tiandun also equipped them with a platoon of armed guards, and also arranged for a warship and a supply ship to stay in Khasab, waiting to pick them up when they return.

After staying in Khasab for two days, the fleet set out again. With the assistance of local Arabs, Dong Shangyi and Li Yuande's team will accompany the Arab caravan to the Shihu tribe in the southern interior. The round trip is expected to take at least half a month.

Qian Tiandun's sailing plan was to sail westward along the southern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Persian Gulf until reaching the Mesopotamian Plain at the northwest end of the Gulf, and then turn back east.

After the fleet entered the Persian Gulf, the number of ships traveling on the sea decreased significantly compared to the Strait of Hormuz, and most of them were just small fishing boats driven by coastal fishermen.

The further west you go, the more desolate the scenery becomes. Looking ahead, the horizon is covered with yellow sand, as boundless as the sea, which is breathtaking.

But even in areas with such a harsh natural environment, there are still some human inhabitants. The unique survival ability of the desert people is as tenacious as those drought-resistant plants rooted in the sand.

After traveling westward for several days, the fleet arrived at the Qatar Peninsula.

If Khasab near the Strait of Hormuz is just an informal territory of the Ottoman Empire, then the Qatar Peninsula, which was incorporated into the Ottoman territory a hundred years ago, can be regarded as its orthodox territory.

The Port of Doha on the east coast of the Qatar Peninsula was merely a fishing port in the eyes of Hai Han soldiers, but it was considered a medium-sized port in the Persian Gulf during this period.

This place was conquered by the Portuguese in the last century, but the Ottoman Empire soon returned and drove the Portuguese out. Although Doha's location is not a good place, it is a densely populated area compared to remote areas like Khasab where no one competes for it.

The people here are more knowledgeable than the folks in Khasab. When they saw the Hai Han fleet sailing into the open sea, they couldn't help but feel a little panic, thinking that war would once again come to this port that had been peaceful for a hundred years.

However, the Hai Han fleet quickly sent a small boat into the port to inform the other party that the fleet was just passing through and hoped to enter the port to obtain supplies.

The local officials were very cautious and did not allow the Hai Han fleet to dock at the port. They only agreed to provide the fleet with all the necessary supplies and to report their sailing plans in the Persian Gulf. It was obvious that they were on guard against uninvited guests at sea.

In order to reward the soldiers who had been traveling for a long time at sea, Qian Tiandun ordered the purchase of hundreds of cattle and sheep to provide food for the fleet. For a time, the price of livestock in the small port of Doha soared, and live sheep were sold out.

In addition to being a place for the replenishment of supplies, Doha Port is also a trading port. Locally produced spices, limestone incense burners, gold thread embroidery, Arabian wool carpets and other specialty products are all very popular among foreign businessmen.

It’s a pity that Dong Shangyi and Li Yuande had other tasks and did not come with the ship, otherwise these two people would have made a large purchase in Doha Port.

While the special operations division's troops were feasting outside Doha Port, Dong Shangyi and Li Yuande were eating sand in the desert.

They set out on the same day as Qian Tiandun. The special operations division fleet had already traveled more than a thousand miles, but their caravan had only gone a hundred miles south of Khasab.

From Khasab to the south are hills that stretch for more than a hundred miles. The route is winding and circuitous, so one can only move forward slowly on horseback. It took several days to walk along the way. After leaving the mountains, we changed to camels and entered the desert.

The two originally thought that the desert was relatively flat and they would be able to travel faster, but they never imagined that the desert was actually hills made of sand, which were undulating and very loose, and their travel speed would not be much faster than in the mountains.

Moreover, once the wind starts to blow, the yellow sand that covers the sky will reduce visibility to an extremely low level, and the camel caravan will have no choice but to stop to take shelter from the wind, often for several hours.

When the sandstorm passes, the terrain in the desert will change immediately. It will be difficult for outsiders like them to tell the direction. They must be led by local Arabs to get back on the correct route.

Even though they wrapped their heads tightly with scarves and even wore glass goggles, sand that came from nowhere would still blow into their mouths and noses, and even when they swallowed saliva they could feel sand in their throats.

Although the special warfare division has specially equipped marching rations, most of them are not suitable for consumption in the desert environment. Needless to say, those that need to be heated by fire, there are few firewoods in the desert. Self-heating rations must first be filled with water in the heating bag, which is also not suitable for the current water-scarce environment.

So before setting off, they specially purchased a batch of food from the Arab caravans traveling with them, such as dried meat, nuts, baked bread, dates, etc. These foods that have stood the test of time and are obviously more suitable for dining in the desert.