1635 Han style rises again

Chapter 796 Mughal's Deep Intervention
July 1664, 7, Surat, India.

Su Dengwen, the big shopkeeper of the Indian Trading Company in Surat, first looked up and down the two Indians in front of him. They looked ashen-headed and gray-faced, with a slightly dark complexion, and then showed a trace of imperceptible contempt.Then he held out his hand for them to sit down, and ordered an Indian maid to serve tea.

Sviraj Patil picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip of this miraculous drink from the East, and then looked up at a local Indian beside Su Dengwen, but didn't speak for a while.

"Tell him that the people in this room are the most important personnel of our company. If you have anything to say, you can speak it directly without any hesitation." Su Dengwen said to the interpreter beside him indifferently.

After listening to the interpreter's words, Sviraj Patil nodded and signaled his companions to open the two leather bags they carried. After untying the rope, countless gold and silver coins and jewelry inside were immediately revealed.

"What do you need to buy?" Su Dengwen glanced at the two leather pockets on the ground filled with coins and jewelry, took a teacup, and took a sip slowly.

Do these Indian soil turtles think that this uncle has never seen money?Roughly estimated, the two bags of belongings are only worth more than one hundred thousand Hanzhou silver dollars. The money I passed in minutes is tens of millions of dollars.

"We need sharp steel knives, sharp spears, and muskets and cannons that can resonate on the battlefield." Sviraj Patil said in a deep voice, "This money is considered as a deposit for the first transaction. "

"You want to buy weapons?" Su Dengwen put down his teacup and leaned forward, "Which kingdom or faction do you represent?"

"You Qi people sell things, do you still need to ask the identity of the buyer?"

"As for the sale of other goods, we naturally don't ask the identity of the trader." Su Dengwen stared at the other party's eyes and said with great interest: "However, for goods such as ordnance and weapons, we must know the identity of the buyer. Otherwise, the officials and generals of the Mughal Empire will definitely come to trouble us."

"You Qi people are afraid of the Mughals?" Sviraj Patil sneered.

"Of course!" Su Dengwen said with a smile: "After all, we are all in the territory of the Mughal Empire now, under their control and protection."

"However, a few months ago, the army of the Mughal Empire failed to protect the safety of this city." Sviraj Patil said disdainfully: "This city was conquered by the brave Maratha people." Break through, and be robbed of all the wealth here."

"Oh, you mean the attack on Surat City in January." Su Dengwen blinked his eyes, "The Maratha people looted the entire city, but they turned their backs on foreign forces like us and didn't Violation."

"Shouldn't you show some gratitude to the Marathas for this?"

"Why, you are here on behalf of the Maratha people?" Su Dengwen immediately understood.

"If you Qi people sell us arms and weapons, you will gain the kindness of General Sivaji."

"...Sivaji is the leader of the Maratha resistance." A black-clothed guard officer stationed in Surat changed his expression, leaned over and whispered to Su Dengwen.

Jatparathi Sivaji was born in the Maratha aristocratic Ponsir family. His father, Shaji Ponsir, served in the Sultan of Bijapur at the time, and his mother, Jicha Bai, was a devout Hindu .During this period, many Hindus living in India were mainly ruled by three true god regimes, the Mughal Empire in the north, and the Sultan Kingdom of Bijapur and Gokanda in the south.

From about 1655 Sivaji seized some weakly defended outposts of the Bijapur sultan, and in the process he defeated a group of influential Hindus who openly supported the Bijapur sultan.At the same time, Sivaji's courage and military prowess, as well as his severe punishment of Hindu oppressors, won him widespread respect, and followers flocked to him.

In 1659, the Sultan of Bijapur sent Afjar Khan with 2 people to attack Sivaji.Sivaji feigned defeat and lured Bijapur's army to the mountainous area with complex terrain. On November 1659, 11, during a false surrender, he killed Afchael Khan and took advantage of the situation. Raided, won a big victory, and got a lot of weapons and supplies, Sivaji became a powerful local power in the Deccan region overnight.

With the rise of Sivaji, it has begun to gradually threaten the stability of the southern territory of the Mughal Empire. For this reason, the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb appointed his uncle Shaista Khan as the governor of the Deccan in 1660, responsible for advancing Suppress Sivaji.As a result, Shaista Khan was victorious and then lost, and in January of this year, Sivaji raided and sacked the rich city of Surat, picking up a lot of spoils.

Su Dengwen's expression froze when he heard the words of the officer in black.

Grandma, this person is a rebel force from the Mughal Empire!If the Mughal officials learn that they are connected with the Maratha people, it will inevitably bring unpredictable risks to the trading company. Destroyed once.

"Why don't you go to the Dutch or the Portuguese?" Su Dengwen was about to get rid of this big trouble, "They should have the goods you Maratha people need.... We Qi people don't do this business."

"Don't do this business?" Patil showed a sneering expression on his face, "As far as we know, you Qi people sold countless military supplies to the Mughals, including powerful siege artillery. Our city of Pune was bombarded by the heavy artillery provided by you so that the Mughals could occupy the city. You and those Europeans refused to sell us weapons, I am afraid that they are more afraid of Moghuls The power of the Woer people!"

As a businessman, Su Dengwen has a certain degree of immunity to such sarcastic remarks.Just kidding, selling weapons to you under the eyes of the Mughals would be too disrespectful to the Mughal Empire.We are a trading company, not an arms dealer. In the next few years, we will continue to make a living in the Mughal Empire!
"Wait a minute!" Just as the representatives of the two Maratha people were about to pack up their things and leave the room, the officer in black guard beside Su Dengwen stopped them.

"I'm curious, if we sell weapons to you, how will we hand them over to you?... Are you going to pick up the goods in Surat City?" the black-clothed guard officer asked with a smile.

"Are you really willing to sell us weapons?" Patil's eyes flashed a hint of surprise, "As long as you sell us weapons, we can agree on a delivery location on the west coast, and then you can just ship the weapons over. !"

"That's right, you can dock anywhere on the west coast of India, and you can pick a remote fishing village port at will, and you can deliver the goods." The black-clothed guard officer nodded, and then asked: "However, I have a more suitable place here." The place of delivery. It is neither under the control of the Mughal Empire nor under the jurisdiction of the Sultanate of Bijapur."

"Where?"

"Bombay Island."

"...it seems to be a stronghold controlled by the Europeans."

"That's right, it used to be the place where the Portuguese used to be, but now it belongs to the English. Therefore, you need to dispatch troops to capture it, and then use it as an important window for receiving foreign supplies. It is said that there are only a few hundred Englishmen on Mumbai Island, and It’s still a newcomer, and the defense facilities are not perfect. If you launch a surprise attack and occupy it, it shouldn’t be difficult.”
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Port Mucha, Ottoman Empire, August 1664, 8.

Four warships belonging to the Indian Fleet of the Qi State Navy are quietly moored in this small port of the Ottoman Empire adjacent to the Red Sea. On the deck, with the cool sea breeze blowing, I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

A few months ago, they had just completed the task of escorting seventeen Mughal Empire ships on their way to Mecca for pilgrimage.They then sailed along the east coast of Africa as far as Zanzibar Island.Along the way, the hydrological and geographical conditions were inspected in detail, and the previously rough charts were gradually refined and improved.

Subsequently, the fleet visited the Seychelles Islands, more than 1000 kilometers northeast of Zanzibar Island.The earliest record of the discovery of this island is that in 1502, the Portuguese Vasco da Gama discovered the archipelago on his way to India and made a short stay.But the Portuguese were not at all interested in this broken archipelago far away from the African continent, leaving this beautiful archipelago scattered across the vast Indian Ocean.

However, the Qi State Navy, which intends to manage the hegemony of the Indian Ocean, has developed a strong interest in this archipelago.If you start from India and sail to southern Africa through this archipelago, the voyage will be shorter and safer, which has important strategic significance.

Therefore, He Zongyuan, the deputy commander of the Indian Fleet and Lieutenant Zhaoxin (Colonel), ordered a Lieutenant Ren Yong (Lieutenant) to take more than ten naval officers and soldiers, and more than 60 Cochin servants to land on the largest island among them, and began to establish The stronghold announced that the archipelago would be under the jurisdiction of Qi State.

After leaving sufficient supplies, the fleet then turned around and returned to the Red Sea area, preparing to provide escort services for the followers of the Mughal Empire who participated in the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca last year to return to Surat.

For the princes and aristocrats of the Mughal Empire and many ordinary believers of True God, they worked tirelessly across thousands of miles of sea waves, and spent a lot of money to go to Mecca for pilgrimage.Ask a god, worship a Buddha, is it necessary?
"I still think that our Chinese gods and Buddhas are the best to serve." A naval sergeant lay on the side of the ship, looking at the houses with whitewashed walls in the port and the magnificent spiers of the true temple in the distance, muttering : "As long as there is a Buddha in your heart, you can worship anywhere. It's not like these true God believers who have to travel so far to worship."

"If there were not so many high-ranking officials and nobles from the Mughal Empire who came here to worship Buddha, we would not have received the generous rewards from them on the way?" A naval sergeant was playing with a string of crystal clear beads. Skewers, it is obvious that you can't put it down.

"Old Zhang is telling the truth." Another sergeant of the navy smiled and took a sip of his wine, "These Mughals are really generous, and if you show a little bit between your fingers, it's worth 30 yuan. Hey , You said, would those officers have received more rewards? After all, when they stopped briefly on the way, they all boarded those Mughal ships one by one."

"That's for sure!" The naval sergeant who was playing with the beads had a look of envy in his eyes, "We have served those Mughals comfortably along the way, just like their guards. Those who are rich Noble lord, when you are happy, money will be poured over. No wonder, the officers and soldiers of our Indian fleet are all scrambling to provide escort for these Mughals."

"I heard that these Mughals were often robbed by pirates on their way to Mecca on their pilgrimage." The sergeant who was drinking said: "With so many fat sheep, it's no wonder that many pirates miss them." You didn't see that the Mughal ships were full of gold, silver and jewels, as well as a lot of cotton cloth and spices. This would take one or two ships casually, enough to feed the pirates for several years!"

"Really? Hey, you said, if we eat up all these Mughals on the way, wouldn't everyone become a millionaire?"

"Haha..." The naval officers and soldiers all around burst into laughter.

"Hey, look, is that the guest we are going to escort has arrived at the port?" Suddenly, a naval officer and soldier pointed to the countless sails that appeared outside the port.On the ships entering the port one after another, the towering triangular sails are tied to a girder, and the girder is hung on the forward-leaning mast, a typical Indian ship type-Gujarat ship.

The boats came from Jeddah and were loaded with Mughals who had gone on the Hajj to Mecca last year, as well as coffee and gold from the trade.

Gold has always been the favorite thing of Indians. It is not only a symbol of wealth, but also a kind of spiritual comfort. From princes and nobles to ordinary people, they will spend their entire lives for themselves and future generations. Maybe accumulate some gold more.In many Indian religions, gold has a special meaning, representing wealth and auspiciousness, and is even revered as the goddess Lakshmi.

It is precisely because of the belief in Lakshmi that countless Indians believe that wearing gold can bring them good luck.Influenced by religious culture, Indians raised gold to the supremacy, not only endowing it with a legendary color, but also integrated it into folk culture.For example, there is a giant bird Garuda in Indian mythology, and its image is "garuda".Another example is that in vast areas of India, all married women must wear gold jewelry such as gold necklaces.

As for the Mughals purchasing a large amount of coffee, a beverage that is rich in Ottoman and Arabian regions, after Gein Aurangzeb became the emperor of the Mughal Empire, he issued a series of strict rules of the true God, prohibiting officials, soldiers, and Ordinary people drink for fun.

Under such circumstances, tea from Daming and Hanzhou, as well as coffee from Arabia, became popular drinks in the Mughal Empire and were in great demand.As a result, Qi obtained a large amount of tea supply by controlling the coastal trade of Daming, coupled with the negligible domestic tea production, it earned huge profits from India every year.

However, the cotton cloth business that Qi State has been promoting has been a mess. Except for a small amount of high-end dyed cotton cloth, which is profitable, most of the ordinary cotton cloth shipped can only rely on the monopoly methods of Indian trading companies to forcibly sell them to Cochin, Qiulong, etc. A southern state.

Without him, the Indian region, including the Mughal Empire, has been the main producer and supplier of cotton cloth in the world for hundreds of years. Qi State wants to completely replace the local cotton cloth market in India with only more than ten years of cotton cloth development. It seems a little unrealistic.

"There are pirates infested near a small island in the northwest of Mucha Harbor?" He Zongyuan, commander of the escort fleet, frowned after hearing an officer's report, "Did the Mughals say where the pirates came from? Arabian pirates? Or Western pirates? How many ships do they have, and how is their firepower equipped?"

"Sir, when the Mughals passed by that small island, they only heard from the natives on the island that pirates visited there, killed people, and robbed cattle. As for the origin of those pirates, the number and type of ships, and They don’t know the firepower configuration at all.” The officer who reported said with a wry smile: “So, the Mughals may have panicked because of this, and the Mughal prince asked to take his attendants aboard our warship.”

"Bullshit!" He Zongyuan scolded, "We are warships, which are used for fighting, not their shelter fortresses. Besides, the living conditions on the warships depend on their arrogance and expensive appearance. Are you used to it? You go and tell them that our four warships will escort them, unless some pirates don’t open their eyes and want to seek death, this journey is enough to ensure their safety!"

(End of this chapter)