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Chapter 1164 A two-pronged approach
"Your Majesty, I and the hundreds of Yericheni under my command would never dare to stay in the Ottoman Empire. We don't know where the Ming Empire is, what it looks like, or what we can do.

If you allow us, we would like to continue to serve Your Majesty and the Ming Dynasty as soldiers. Although many of us are old, we have fought for decades and are no worse than young people. "

At first, Delvish answered the questions carefully. After chatting for a while, he felt that the Ming emperor had a good temper and was not a tyrant who killed people at every turn. So his brain started to work active. Having just saved his life, he started to think about how to live a better life in the future.

"Let's not rush to think about the future. A Ming official has been detained by the Sultan. Do you know his situation?"

Delvish's proposal is in line with Hong Tao's plan, but it is not now, and it is unlikely that these hundreds of Guards Corps soldiers will be formed into an army. The specific arrangements will have to be carefully considered after the war. At present, in addition to the siege, there is another more important thing, Wang Datou's life.

"... He said, he said..." The interpreter and Dervish muttered for a long time, but ended up hesitating as if they were in great trouble.

"Just say it directly, don't be afraid." At this time, Hong Tao felt a little regretful. He should have brought a few officials from the Ministry of Rites who were proficient in Persian, Arabic and Turkic. Even if there were three people translating together, it would be more convenient than these two Arabic interpreters.

"He said that the Ming official that His Majesty the Emperor wanted to rescue was imprisoned in Damascus, and he was willing to lead his subordinates to rescue him." The Arabic interpreter was not delaying on purpose, but the request raised by Dervish was too easy to cause misunderstanding, and he was afraid that it would provoke the emperor's wrath and cause him to suffer the consequences.

"Can you ask him in detail how he plans to save him?"

Hong Tao did not suspect anything, nor did he think that this surrendered general had any bad intentions. As long as he led his people to surrender, it would be difficult for him to gain the trust of the Ottoman Sultan again. Rather than risking being beheaded and rebelling again, it would be better for him to stay with the Ming Dynasty. Even if he was not reused, at least his life was not in danger.

It was not until dawn that the two Arab interpreters took great pains to explain Dervish's plan. He planned to lead some of his men to bypass Basra and head to Damascus, and bring Wang Datou out as a member of the Guards Corps Qiaoerbash, nominally sending him to Istanbul, but actually secretly bringing him back to Fao.

This method sounds a bit too simple, but it is not unrealistic if you think about it carefully. The news of the defeat of Fao City may spread, but it is unlikely to spread to Damascus in a short time which army was defeated and which general was captured.

If the Ming army could reach the city of Basra quickly and keep close to Tabar Pasha, leaving him no time to worry about too many deployments, the details of the battlefield would be leaked even more slowly.

Qorbash was already a mid- to senior-level officer in the Guards Corps. When he arrived in Damascus, it was enough to convince the local Pasha that he was sent by the Sultan. Along the way, no provincial militia dared to question the Guards Corps, so the success rate was relatively high.

The main reason is that if they don't do this, if Basra or even Baghdad is captured by the Ming army, Wang Datou may be escorted back to Istanbul as a bargaining chip.

According to Dervish, the reason why Murad IV suddenly changed his mind and did not negotiate with the nobles who rebelled in Suez was because of one person, the envoy of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand IV. He certainly did not know what the two talked about, but he was the one who brought the envoy from the port to the palace with his guards. A few days later, Murad IV ordered the Grand Vizier to lead the army south and completely gave up the idea of ​​negotiation.

"I'll give you 100 men. You can choose your own camels and horses. Go and prepare now. I'll arrange a ship to take you to the sea off Aqaba, and then take you to the port on a rowboat. Pick you up from Damascus and go directly to Aqaba. As long as you get on the ship and go out to sea, it will be a great achievement!"

Having an interpreter to relay messages back and forth is also beneficial, as it can slow down the pace of the conversation and leave more time for thinking. Hong Tao listened and pondered. After Dervish had expressed his meaning, he had a rough judgment and decision in his mind. It was worth a try!
But I couldn't go to Damascus by land. It was nearly 2000 kilometers round trip, which would take more than a month. I couldn't wait. Fortunately, Damascus was only 500 kilometers away from the port of Aqaba. It was faster to go by sea, and it was easier to avoid the army led by Tabar Pasha.

In addition to changing the route, Hong Tao also ordered the surrendered army to stage a drama in the trench area, deliberately making a lot of noise, with fire and volleys of gunfire, making it seem like the battle was very fierce, so that it would sound more like the defenders were fighting to the death to the last man in the city.

After a full set of plays, they dug more than a dozen large pits by the river and threw the bodies of the defenders into them for cremation. In this step, they also specially asked some residents of Fao City to help transport and bury the bodies, further confirming the illusion that all the defenders were killed.

As for whether it would work or not, Hong Tao had no control over it. He could only do his best and leave the rest to fate. This was all he could do for Wang Datou. Whether he could rescue him alive in the end depended on luck.

Moreover, Dervish was not 2% reliable. If he took the opportunity to escape, he would still be out of reach. The most important task at the moment was not to save people but to kill people. He had to do his best to quickly reach Basra and deal a fatal blow to Tabar Pasha and his more than troops.

Only by defeating this Ottoman army can the road to Baghdad be smooth, and there is no need to send a battalion of warriors to fight desperately in every city. Wang Datou's life is his life, and the lives of the warriors are also their lives. They are all his students, so he cannot be too partial to one over the other.

In the operation of transporting the army up the river to Basra, the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce, which was trapped in the city due to the war, provided great help. They took the initiative to provide the location of the rowing boats hidden in Faao Port, and donated the three double-decker rowing boats and boat slaves belonging to the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce for the Ming army to use.

With the assistance of these ships that are more suitable for inland navigation, the navy's deployment of troops became easier. Some of the naval guns were transferred to the decks of the rowboats, and six rowboats led the way, followed by the remaining sailboats, and then 6 soldiers riding requisitioned camels followed along the coast, and then they marched upstream in a mighty manner.

Hong Tao also chose a Portuguese double-row galley as his flagship. This thing has very flexible steering capabilities. With the cooperation of experienced boatswain and rowers, it can almost turn around on the spot. It is perfect for a coward like him.

"Mr. Lisboa, I am very grateful for the help you and your Chamber of Commerce have provided, and I will keep it in mind. However, this is a military operation and there are certain dangers. It is best if you do not accompany us."

Why are the Portuguese so attentive? Hong Tao firmly believes that it is not for justice, nor for a good impression of Ming Dynasty, nor for worshipping him. It must be related to interests. But there is no time to carefully think about their thoughts at this time and place, nor does he want to talk about business during the march.

(End of this chapter)