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Chapter 1116 Mixed joys and sorrows
In view of the prior agreement, Piyali did not explain the details of the transaction with Wang Datou to his companions. Only when he saw the weapons did he feel safe and bold to tell them everything.

"...Brother Piyali, are you just renting the port? Please don't overthink it. I think the conditions are a bit too easy. There may be other purposes behind it. We must be cautious."

All the Mamluk nobles and Bedouin tribal leaders present felt that the transaction price mentioned by Piyali was not reliable. Leasing the port to compensate for the cost of weapons was not a condition at all, but a matter of course.

Someone immediately raised doubts, saying that something must be wrong. They were about to take up arms and fight the Ottoman defenders, and they couldn't take such a big risk without knowing what they could gain and what they would lose.

"I asked that question before, and Mr. Kanameburu gave me a detailed answer, which I think is quite reasonable. He said that he was Japanese and was employed as a navigator on a Portuguese merchant ship in his early years, and gradually became a captain.

Later, he bought a piece of land in Luzon Island, planted tobacco with the Chinese in the Ming Dynasty, and established a tobacco company specializing in the sale of cigars. The business was very large, with businesses in Japan, the Ming Empire, Ayutthaya, Burma, the Mughal Empire, Persia, Portugal, the Netherlands and England.

But he ran into big trouble in the Red Sea. The Ottoman Navy not only seized his cargo, but also hanged the captain and the owner of the cargo in the port of Jeddah on the charge of selling tobacco.

Unfortunately, the owner of the goods was Mr. Pianjiabulu's younger brother, which explains why he generously offered his assistance after hearing about our situation.

If he could cause some trouble for the Ottomans, or even win to some extent, he would not only avenge his brother, but also use the port of Suez to expand his cigar business.”

Piyali was not unfamiliar with this question, because he had asked it before. Although the two were business partners and had a good personal relationship, this matter was beyond the scope of ordinary friends being able to provide help, and no one would believe that he had no ulterior motives.

Sure enough, he had a plan, but the things he was planning to do had nothing to do with him. No, it couldn't be said that they had nothing to do with him, at least they had a high degree of overlap in dealing with the Ottomans.

"Cigars are good things, they can make people quiet here!" After hearing this explanation, most people present agreed. According to Islamic law, smoking is prohibited, but the nobles only abide by it on the surface, and they are not so pious at home.

But there are some things that can be done but not said. Just when everyone in the room fell into a brief silence, the Bedouin elder Muhammad began to praise, publicly.

"No matter what his reason is, he is our friend. Brother Piyali, can we bring the goods ashore now?" But no one present showed any dissatisfaction, as they were all paying attention to the guns and cannons floating on the sea.

It's not that they look down on the elder, but the Bedouins are special. Although they are also Muslims, they live a pure nomadic life, wandering in the desert Gobi all year round, and rarely interact with outsiders except their families and camels.

The more closed the group is, the less it cares about the opinions of outsiders. The Bedouins are very pious, but they have a unique understanding of life. In a difficult environment, they do not follow the so-called rules and regulations. They eat, drink and smoke as they should. No one regards them as apostates because of this, but few outsiders are willing to approach them either.

"Padishah, the defenders in the north of the city are the least active. If you can send me 20 more artillery pieces, the possibility of breaking the city within 10 days is relatively high!" On the 20th day after Wang Datou's merchant ship arrived at the port of Suez, Murad IV also gained something outside Baghdad. The siege of more than a month was not carried out with full force, and most of the time it was the slave cannon fodder who charged forward. It looked lively, but it was actually a feint to test the weaknesses of the defenders.

"30 guns, I'll give you 30 guns and 2000 guards. Take down the North City in 10 days... What for? Who let you in? What are you going to do!"

Upon hearing that his men had found the weakness of Baghdad, Murad IV was extremely proud. Just as he was about to give his generals more specific instructions, a dark shadow flashed outside the tent, and a man with disheveled clothes, dusty face, and a black feather on his head rushed in.

"Dear Padishah, I am a messenger from Egypt, working for Hussein Pasha. Here is his handwritten letter, it is very urgent!" He turned out to be a Sipahi cavalryman from Egypt, but with an extra black feather he became a messenger.

"…Damn the Mamluks! Damn Hussein! What was the situation in the city when you left Suez?"

The content of the letter was very simple, only one page, but Murad IV's reaction was very intense, his face turned red, his breathing became rapid, and the veins on his neck became prominent. He managed to suppress the ups and downs in his heart, but his tone could not calm down.

"I did not see Hussein Pasha. The letter was sent out of the city by the captain of the guard. He was seriously injured at the time, and blood was all over his horse. He only asked me to deliver the letter to the outside of Baghdad as quickly as possible and hand it to the respected Padishah in person."

Being questioned so fiercely by the Sultan of the Empire, the messenger could not help but become nervous, and his speech became stammering and a little confusing. After a lot of effort, he finally got the order of his words right, but forgot to answer the key points.

"The Padishah is asking you about the situation in Suez. Tell us what you saw and heard!"

At this time, the general in the tent spoke. He saw the danger from Murad IV's expression and body movements, and was afraid that this tough Sultan would draw his sword and kill the messenger, and then he would not be able to get anything out of him.

"I heard from the captain of the guard that there were about 2000 rebels under the command of several beys. They rebelled without warning in several places at the same time and besieged the military camp and the Pasha's mansion. He rushed out from the roof with his guards and robbed the rebels' horses before breaking out of the encirclement, but he was shot twice and he probably won't survive."

With the persuasion of others, the messenger calmed down a little, thinking and talking at the same time. But he could only hear what he heard, because his camp was outside the city, and he didn't see any rebels at all, let alone know the situation in the city.

"More than 2000 people are enough to surround the military camp and the Pasha's palace? Are the local troops unarmed, or are they rebels themselves?" Murad IV was still very dissatisfied with this explanation, and then raised another crucial question.

At this time, we must understand the scale of the rebellion. If we can rely on the local and surrounding Sipahi cavalry to suppress it, there is no need to send the imperial army all the way there. What exactly caused the rebellion and who was responsible can be discussed slowly after the Battle of Baghdad is over.

(End of this chapter)