1635 Han style rises again

Chapter 866 The Privileges of Qi People
November 1671, 11, Cairo, Egypt.

It is said that all Ottoman cities are equivalent to a small Istanbul: baths, real temples, covered markets, and more.All cities enforce zoning laws that separate communities, especially at night.When the market is open, there are always crowds, people of all religions mix together, and various trade associations are also open to everyone.

At night, however, the city center is closed, like the great commercial centers of later ages, the guards come and go, and the people of the districts stay in their homes.Strangers had little opportunity to wander the streets, crime was rare, and travelers were concentrated in hostels.If they have nothing to do and hang out for their own pleasure, people will often look suspiciously at them.

The cities of the Ottomans seem to pay more attention to private life than public life. There are few buildings like huge squares and libraries in the cities of Qi that mix private and public spaces.While there are open spaces, such as arenas, for example, these have traditionally been a rough patch for pitching a tent or playing sports.

Like all cities in the empire, the bazaar in Cairo, the capital of the Egyptian province, was always patrolled by a powerful judge.He knew the fair price for tripe soup, and where a bolt of cotton cloth came from, and he was always on the lookout not to let the peddler shoddy it.Judges manage the market in strict accordance with the teachings of the True God religion, and traders are not allowed to make excessive profits. The profit is generally controlled within 10% (the ghost knows how they calculate the cost and selling price), even if the profit of the goods purchased from afar is difficult to estimate must also be subject to this restriction.

Cairo is the only Egyptian city that the Ottomans can completely control - the other city is Suez, which was taken over by the Ottomans because it was attacked by the Qi people a few years ago and destroyed the rule of the local Pasha right.The civil administration in Cairo is extremely meticulous and strict, and any residents who seriously violate the laws and teachings will be given the most severe punishment.When walking through the streets, there is a high probability that you will see one or several corpses of "criminals" that have been hung for public display for three days.

In the territory of Ottoman, there are many commodities that are prohibited from being sold to foreigners. For example, cotton in Egypt is exclusively used by the Imperial Guards to make uniforms. However, driven by profit, these prohibitions are often in vain, and cotton will still be smuggled out along with many goods. In addition, there are linen from the Nile, brocade, velvet and mohair from Bursa, coarse wool from Plovdiv, fine wool, silk and high-end carpets produced by Jews in Edirne and Thessaloniki.

After the Ottomans turned Egypt into one of their provinces, Cairo began to decline irresistibly, and its prosperity was no longer there, especially Egypt's foreign trade plummeted.Gein, Istanbul banned European merchant ships from entering Egypt for trade activities, and the Portuguese opened up routes to India and the East, controlling the trade and transit trade between Egypt and the Mediterranean region.

All of this led to the sluggishness of Egypt's foreign trade and transit trade, and interrupted Egypt's trade links with Eastern and Western countries.Cairo and Alexandria, which used to be trade centers and distribution centers for imports and exports of various countries, have gradually become depressed and desolate towns.

But more than 20 years ago, the Barbary pirates exchanged a large amount of industrial products and oriental-specific commodities from the Hanzhou mainland through the slave trade, and then transited in Cairo, which gradually revived this declining city.

After Qi State and the Ottoman Empire established formal diplomatic and commercial relations, more and more commodities were imported from Hanzhou, India, and Persia, making Cairo an important commodity distribution center. Merchants along the Mediterranean Sea would come here to buy goods from the East Indies and India. Spices and cotton cloth produced in the region, as well as industrial products such as perfume, clocks, glass, soap (or soap), porcelain, tea, sugar, etc. from Qi.

The Ottomans themselves don't actually do much business, but they collect taxes from businessmen, import and export are no exception, and they are willing to provide preferential trade policies to any country that promises stable supply.The first country to enjoy this treatment was France in 1534, which was allowed to enjoy a reduced tax rate, buy off a limited number of Ottoman goods, and re-export whatever it chose.

To avoid friction, the French were granted extraterritoriality, which effectively amounted to the collective responsibility system used by the Ottomans for their subjects.Manage yourself, the Ottomans say, or share the consequences.Other nations soon scrambled to claim preferential treatment, and the British got it in 1567, followed by the Dutch five years later.More than ten years ago, the Qi State from the Hanzhou continent also obtained this kind of trade privileges and extraterritorial rights.

I heard that not long ago, the people of Qi obtained the lease right of two ports in Egypt and the road construction right from Suez to Cairo from Istanbul.This move made businessmen from European countries jealous, and they were even more surprised by the close cooperation between Qi and Ottoman.

You must know that if the Qi people obtained the management rights of a certain port along the Red Sea, it might not mean anything, because the control of the Ottomans there is much weaker than that of more than 100 years ago, and the area along the Red Sea is not Ottoman. core of man.

However, the ports along the Mediterranean Sea have always been regarded as forbidden by the Ottomans and will not be easily touched by anyone.Otherwise, the Ottomans would not have fought with European Catholic countries in the Mediterranean for hundreds of years, let alone repeatedly competed with the Venetians for Crete.You must know that the Mediterranean Sea is regarded by the Ottomans as their own back garden, and it is the core interest of the empire.Although their navies are currently somewhat behind those of the European Catholic nations, they will go to great lengths to rule out any potential threat to the Empire's hegemony in the region.

As for why the empire granted such privileges to the people of Qi, and even leased them a port on the southern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, the Ottoman governor in Egypt, Orkai Sahan, understood the good intentions of the great vizier in his heart.

More than 100 years ago, in order to fight against the common enemy-the Habsburg dynasty, the empire had formed an alliance with France and strengthened the relationship between the two countries with economic interests.Although this alliance was denounced by European Catholic countries as an "evil alliance" and "the sacrilegious combination of the lily and the crescent", it is undeniable that the alliance between the two countries realized the strategic intentions of both sides towards the Habsburg dynasty. .Subsequently, the armies of the two countries took joint military operations in the Mediterranean for many times, which made the Habsburg dynasty unable to get rid of the fundamental strategic dilemma of fighting on the two fronts of the European continent and the Mediterranean.

However, this alliance that lasted for more than 100 years was shamelessly betrayed by King Louis XIV of France a few years ago. In 1664, when the Ottoman Empire attacked the Habsburg Dynasty, it was strongly resisted by the European coalition forces. It was defeated in the Battle of St. Gotthard and had to retreat to the south bank of the Rab River. Wa Treaty.In this war, France sent more than [-] officers and soldiers, and pointed their guns at the former allies.

This made the Grand Vizier of the Empire feel the anger of betrayal, but also a little bit of fear.Around the Ottoman Empire, looking around, they are all enemies, and there is no ally they can rely on to share the military pressure for the empire.

Although Qi State is thousands of miles away, it has always maintained a relatively gentle and friendly attitude towards the empire.A large number of industrial products produced by them were transported to the mainland of the empire through Egypt, some of which were used for their own use, and some were re-exported to Italy, France, the Caucasus, and Europe, which gave the empire good commercial benefits.

In addition, the heavy siege artillery and light land artillery provided by Qi State to the empire, as well as a large number of high-quality flintlock guns, have greatly enhanced the combat effectiveness of the Imperial Ganisari Legion (called the Guards Legion by Europeans). Both played an active role in the wars of the Habsburg dynasty.

More importantly, Qi is not a Catholic country, and it also shows a relatively moderate attitude towards the True God religion, which also makes His Majesty the Sultan and Grand Vizier of Istanbul feel a special kindness.That's why Grand Vizier Ahmed Koprulu leased Damietta, a small fishing village on the southern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, to Qi State, and allowed them to build a road from Suez Port to Cairo, trying to lead this southern New World country to Qi State. For the empire's strategic alliance partner.

The Ottomans were not at all worried about whether the Qi Congress would use the small fishing village of Damietta as its base and would do things that would harm the interests of the empire in the future.The Qi people are tens of thousands of sea miles away from this place, and they need to go halfway around the world to enter the Mediterranean Sea, and the surrounding areas are all imperial territory. With a light flick of a little finger, any unruly behavior of the Qi people can be crushed.

Don't look at a few years ago, the Qi State formed a huge expeditionary fleet, which attacked thousands of Suez Pasha's troops very simply and neatly, and repelled the other two local Pasha's armed forces who took advantage of the fire.But all this happened with the acquiescence of the Ottoman Empire.

According to the feedback from the imperial ambassador to Qi, this country has a large and well-trained navy with nearly a hundred warships, which are actively active in the surrounding areas of the Indian Ocean.But their army is very weak, less than 1 in total.The powerful Ottoman Empire can mobilize more than 3 troops at any time on the European battlefield.Even in the Egyptian region, [-] or [-] people can be collected by gathering Pasha armed forces and Mamluk cavalry from all over the country.

Therefore, for the empire, Qi may covet the Indian Ocean, Egypt, and even the Arabian region, but it is limited to the expansion of economic power, and most of the ports and strongholds it seeks are also to better maintain and protect them. business interests.

"The instruction I received from Istanbul is to cooperate with you Qi people to receive the Suez Port and Damietta Port, and coordinate the local Pasha on the line from Suez to Cairo to create convenient conditions for you to build roads." Egyptian Governor Olkay Sahan squinted his eyes and looked meaningfully at Duan Wenxun, the representative of Qi State in Egypt, "Moreover, in the order of the Grand Vigilante, you are prohibited from maintaining any force. Therefore, if you want to build a fort near the port of Suez, is it right?" What's the point?"

"Governor, although you have stationed more than [-] guards in Suez City, the security situation is still not optimistic." Duan Wenxun listened to the translator's translation and said with a wry smile: "The nearby tribes have been in and out of Suez Port from time to time. The surrounding area poses a serious threat to the merchants and goods of our Qi country entering and leaving the port. In addition, with the growing prosperity of the Suez Port, is the Governor not worried that there will be some ambitious local pashas who want to seize it? Of course If the governor is willing, he can also send more guards to the city of Suez to protect this port with great commercial value."

Governor Sahan smiled, stretched out his hand to pick up the wine glass on the table, sipped it slowly, and did not respond to what Duan Wenxun said.

"Actually, we didn't want to build a fortress in the port of Suez." Duan Wenxun leaned over, picked up the jug, and filled Governor Sahan's cup with wine, "We just want to build the warehouse there a little higher. A little bit, a little bit stronger, in case you encounter the tribal armed forces or the Mamluk cavalry under a certain Pasha, you can hold on for a while and wait for the rescue of your Ottoman Guards."

"Then you Qi people still want to arrange artillery and equip muskets in that solid and tall warehouse?" Governor Sahan asked.

"Your Excellency, our personnel stationed in the Port of Suez are all businessmen and fellows, without any experience in the battlefield. If we don't have some artillery and guns, how can we rely on the necessary defensive facilities to resist the attacks and looting of illegal armed forces?"

"If you do this, the Grand Vizier's authority will be offended, and even a provocation to him."

"The grand vizier won't come to Egypt." Duan Wenxun said with a smile, "As for the remote Suez Port, he won't even come."

"You Qi people are just so insecure." Governor Sahan shook his head and said: "Five years ago during the Suez World War, the pashas and surrounding tribes all over Egypt knew that you Qi people are not easy to mess with, so why would they attack you so easily? ?... But I still want to warn you that the dignity of the Grand Vizier cannot be offended, and the authority of the empire cannot be challenged. The warehouses you build in the Port of Suez should not be too obtrusive. The artillery and guns held by the guards , and don’t be too ostentatious. After all, the whole of Egypt is under the jurisdiction of the empire.”

"Thank you, Governor, for your kind reminder." Duan Wenxun said with a smile: "To express our gratitude, our businessmen from Qi have already sent some Han Zhou's "native products" to the Governor's Mansion, please Governor to enjoy."

Upon hearing this, Governor Sahan had a satisfied smile on his face.

He has served as the governor of Egypt for ten years, counting as the longest-serving governor in the previous term.I thought that if I failed in the political battle in Istanbul and was kicked to Egypt, I am afraid that I could only waste a few years in Cairo and stay away from the center of power.

Unexpectedly, the relationship between the empire and Qi became increasingly close, and under the strong intervention of Qi's sea power, it broke the Portuguese and Dutch's trade monopoly in the Indian Ocean region in one fell swoop, and re-established a stable east. trade routes.Numerous manufactured products of Qi State and unique oriental commodities flowed continuously through the Red Sea into Egypt, and then exported to the mainland of the empire and the Mediterranean coast.

A large amount of foreign trade and transit trade made Suez, Cairo, and Alexandria, which used to be backwaters, gradually flourish, and accordingly drove businessmen from Arabia, Persia, and India to continue to flow into Egypt.

The flow of business, logistics, and people means that countless materials and wealth are continuously flowing into Egypt, which in turn creates more tax revenue for the empire. In addition, various weapons and weapons provided by Qi are also transferred from Egypt, which suddenly makes the Egyptian governor His position has become important, and he has also received special attention from His Majesty the Sultan and the Grand Vizier.

As the agent and supervisor of the empire in Egypt, Governor Sahan also obtained a lot of wealth from the increasingly prosperous local trade.The merchants of the State of Qi are more knowledgeable and interesting, and from time to time present him with various "native products", beautiful Persian slave girls, crystal clear Hanzhou pearls, cloisonne and porcelain that are works of art, exquisite pure gold pocket watches, and a lot of lovely Gold and silver coins.

In return, Governor Sahan also provided comprehensive security services and various trade conveniences for the merchants of the Qi State. The ban on trade profits not exceeding 10% in the teachings of the true God has never been implemented on the merchants of the Qi State, and even the payment required by the empire Import and export taxes are also left to the people of Qi to declare by themselves.

In Egypt, Qi people have gradually become a relatively special group, and they enjoy more trade privileges and political privileges than merchants from other countries.Not only the dignitaries in Cairo will try their best to win over them in order to obtain more commodity agents, but the pashas from all over the world will also spare no effort to win them over. Here you can get some high-quality weapons that can strengthen your own armament.

(End of this chapter)