1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3780

Due to the limited number of participating troops, the military parade did not last too long, but for the newly established Xihu Kingdom, this was the first time in history.

Prior to this, the warriors of the Xihu tribe had always maintained the form of a militia organization, obeying orders from tribal elders and chiefs. They had never existed as professional soldiers, let alone held a military parade like today.

When Abdullah and his son saw their troops marching in a neat formation, they knew that their cooperation with Hai Han was not in vain. All their previous worries and concerns were gone with the military parade.

At least in terms of military, the assistance provided by Hai Han has greatly enhanced the strength of Xihu. These warriors selected by the tribe have only completed a hundred days of training in Fubo Port, and now they look like a decent army.

Of course, their actual combat effectiveness still needs to be tested in actual combat. The father and son thought of the fact that Hai Han once said that it would make the Xihu tribe the overlord of the southern side of the Strait of Hormuz. At that time, they thought it was just empty talk, but now it seems that it is really possible.

However, given the old chief's current physical condition, it is unlikely that he will lead the troops to battle personally. The glorious mission of achieving hegemony will probably have to fall on the shoulders of young Abdullah.

After the ceremony, a grand celebration banquet began.

All the people in Fubo Port, no matter which country or side they are from, can participate in this banquet without any threshold.

As the host, Hai Han prepared hundreds of sheep, as well as a large number of chickens, ducks, livestock, and seafood for the celebration. Hundreds of large pots were brought out, each filled with fresh ingredients.

These sheep were not raised by Hai Han at Fubo Port, after all, the limited local vegetation could not withstand the destruction of the sheep. They came from Persia across the strait and were used as a symbol of the official trade between Abbas Port and Fubo Port.

Qian Tiandun bought the sheep out of his own pocket to show his goodwill towards Persia. He was sure that as long as the Persian merchants came to Fubo Port, they would be able to earn back the money they spent on the sheep in a matter of minutes.

The governor of Bandar Abbas, Bayim, did not come to Bandar Fubo to watch the ceremony in person, but sent his confidant, the merchant Batiya.

The last time Qian Tiandun visited Hormuz Island, he met with Batiya who had landed on the island secretly. Qian Tiandun also learned from this that the seemingly hostile Persia and Portugal also had private trade activities, and Batiya was one of the merchants engaged in such smuggling activities.

Qian Tiandun guessed at the time that Batiya had an official background, otherwise he would not be able to do such underground business. This time Batiya took the initiative to confirm his guess. The real boss behind the scenes was actually Governor Bayim.

Batiya is one of the few Persians that Qian Tiandun has met so far who is an expert on Hai Han, so Qian Tiandun has a good impression of him.

During the banquet, Qian Tiandun took the initiative to find Batia, who was ignored by everyone, and asked him about his impressions of attending the ceremony at Fubo Port.

Batiya knew exactly what Qian Tiandun wanted to ask, so his response was very direct: "Dear General, please forgive me for being frank, but from Persia's perspective, I don't want to see a new country appear in this region."

Qian Tiandun smiled and said, "Tell me your reasons." Seeing that Qian Tiandun did not show any anger, Batiya boldly continued, "Any new force that appears in the Strait of Hormuz will be regarded as a competitor by our country, because it will definitely affect our country's control over the strait!"

Qian Tiandun said: "But the establishment of Xihu Country is actually an exception. There are three reasons. First, Xihu Country currently does not have the ability to control the strait waterway. They only have some small fishing boats, which are not suitable for military missions at all."

"Secondly, Xihu is a vassal state of our country, and our country has always maintained a friendly attitude towards your country, so Xihu will definitely live in harmony with your country."

"Third, the independence of the Hijra Kingdom from the Ottoman Empire actually weakened the Ottoman Empire. Although the effect will not be immediate, I think your country should be happy to see it happen."

Bhatia also laughed after hearing this: "General, you know our country so well that I really don't know how to refute you."

The first two reasons Qian Tiandun mentioned are actually insignificant. Even if Xihu is now determined to go to war with Persia, its strength is unlikely to pose a real threat.

For Persia, the value of the establishment of the Hijrah State lies in the third point raised by Qian Tiandun, which can weaken the old rival Ottoman Empire.

Persia was not sure how the Ottoman Empire would react to the Hijrah's unauthorized establishment of a nation, but if Persia established diplomatic relations with the Hijrah at the first opportunity, Constantinople would certainly regard this as a hostile act by Persia and send troops to attack the Hijrah.

Therefore, the governor of Bandar Abbas, Bayim, was extremely cautious about this and specially selected Batiya as a representative. Although he was a non-official, he had dealt with Hai Han before, so he could represent Persia in the event in a private capacity, which would not cause much impact.

Qian Tiandun asked Batiya about his impressions of the ceremony in order to test the Persian side's attitude. If they could maintain good relations with Persia, it would not only be beneficial to the operation of the Xihu nation after its establishment, but would also have a positive effect on Hai Han's long-term operations in the Persian Gulf region.

Qian Tiandun could see that Batia was very cautious about this sensitive topic. He seemed unwilling to expose the true attitude of Persia and even wanted to mislead him intentionally.

Qian Tiandun took the initiative to change the subject and said, "The last time I met with you on Hormuz Island, we talked about the development direction of the Persian Gulf. Do you still remember?"

Bhatia nodded and said, "I still keep in mind the general's profound remarks on the situation in the Persian Gulf."

Qian Tiandun said: "I don't dare to say that, but I can tell you for sure that the maritime trade in the Persian Gulf is about to enter a period of rapid development, because our country has confirmed that it will build a Maritime Silk Road to connect the East with the Persian Gulf."

"Fubo Port is an important part of this huge plan. In the future, our country will continue to increase its investment in Fubo Port and build it into a truly large port. I hope your country can realize this and take advantage of this development opportunity to make the connection between Abbas Port and Fubo Port closer."

Batia did not respond to Qian Tiandun's expectations, but subconsciously asked back: "Assisting the Xihu tribe to establish a country should also be part of this huge plan, right?"

Qian Tiandun just smiled when he heard this, and did not directly respond to this question. When talking to a smart person like Bhatia, many things do not need to be explained too clearly, and the other party should be able to understand.