Starting in Saarhu, it is a bit difficult to make a comeback.

Chapter 261: Divide the Persian Empire (please subscribe for monthly tickets)

The location of Bandar Abbas is exactly guarding the Strait of Hormuz, the outlet of the Persian Gulf.

Its geographical location is very important. China not only occupied Bandar Abbas Port, but also sent troops to occupy Hormuz opposite Bandar Abbas Port.

After occupying Hormuz, it is equivalent to closing the outlet of the Persian Gulf.

To ensure control of Hormuz, tens of thousands of Indian laborers were transported here from Bombay, India.

The Chinese Empire will build permanent bastions and forts here to completely control this key place.

At that time, all merchant ships entering and leaving the Persian Gulf must pay a certain amount of "travel money" to China. This is a sure-profit deal.

Although the Chinese invasion and blockade of the Persian Gulf made the Persian Emperor Safi very angry, he is currently unable to send more troops to recapture it.

Because his old rival, Murad IV of the Ottoman Empire, had begun a full-scale attack on the Persian Empire.

The Ottoman troops were divided into three groups, starting from the Georgian region of Transcaucasia in the north, attacking Tabriz, the old capital of the Persian dynasty, in the middle, and approaching Baghdad, the most famous city in the Mesopotamia, in the south.

Murad IV can be said to have spent his capital this time, and the Ottoman Empire's three-pronged army was no less than 15 people.

He even used the most elite "Star and Moon Legion" of the Ottoman Empire.

Due to long-term fighting with Europeans, the Turkish army's firearms level at this time was already very high.

The entire "Star and Moon Army" consists of 30,000 people. They are not only equipped with the latest flintlock muskets, but also have many heavy cannons.

In addition to powerful firearms, they also have the most elite Sipaxi cavalry in the Ottoman Empire.

These heavy cavalry are the main force of the Imperial Guard. It can be said that the Star and Moon Legion is the most valued force by the Ottoman Sultan.

At this time, the Safi Dynasty was faced with enemies on both sides.

The Chinese Empire in the east wiped out 4 Persian regular troops around Kabul.

It also included 1 fully armed new musketeers and Persian heavy infantry.

This left the entire eastern region of the Persian Empire empty of troops.

Fortunately, after the Chinese captured Kabul, they did not further attack the Khorasan region where Persian rule was relatively weak.

Although they occupied Bandar Abbas and Hormuz in the south of the empire, compared with the Ottoman offensive, these areas seemed too far away.

Therefore, Safi still concentrated the main force of 15 troops to face the menacing Ottomans.

Although the northern battlefield is closer to the Persian mainland, Safi is most worried about Baghdad.

This city, which spans both sides of the Tigris River and is only more than 30 kilometers away from the Euphrates River, is not only the capital of the two river basins, but can even be said to be the greatest city in the entire Islamic world.

The ownership of Baghdad also determines the ownership of the entire Mesopotamia.

Therefore, the Ottoman Army of the Star and Moon was also placed in this direction of attack.

However, the Persian army guarding Baghdad should not be underestimated.

The Persian Emperor Safi deployed 6 troops here, 3 of whom were the Persian Empire's new imperial army equipped with European guns, and also deployed the Persian Empire's heavy armored cavalry and infantry and hundreds of various artillery pieces.

Even the Ottoman "Army of the Stars and Moon" would have to pay a huge price if they wanted to capture Baghdad.

Murad IV, who led an army of 15 to attack, was determined to win.

Soon the Ottomans occupied Georgia and Armenia in the Transcaucasus.

Even Tabriz, the former capital of the Persian Empire, was captured by the Ottoman army after holding on for a month.

Two of the three armies have already achieved great victories.

But the battle in Baghdad was extremely difficult.

The Persians relied on the cannons on the city to successfully repel the Ottoman attacks time and time again.

Although the Ottoman Sultan's Star and Moon Legion is elite, it is at a loss at this time.

The new Persian army, which was also equipped with advanced flintlocks, was not afraid of them, and the Sipaxi heavy armored cavalry for which they were famous could not function at all in the face of a large number of muskets and heavy artillery.

In the past month, the Ottoman Star and Moon Corps had killed more than 10,000 people, but they had never entered Baghdad.

The angry Murad IV mobilized all the Ottoman troops on other fronts to the Baghdad front.

The Ottoman army currently gathered here has reached 100,000 people.

Even the Ottoman army, which had captured Tabriz, did not continue to advance into the heart of Persia and instead moved south to support Baghdad.

After all, the Persian mainland is mostly plateau and mountainous, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack.

It is obvious that Baghdad has now evolved into a decisive battle between the two sides.

The Persian Emperor Safi also realized this, and soon he ordered the 3 Persian troops assembled in Basra to support Baghdad.

As a result, the number of troops invested by both sides near Baghdad reached as high as 18.

Seeing this scene, Li Shizu shook his head.

Although Baghdad is a large and fortified city, the Mesopotamia region in which it is located is not inherently dangerous.

It would be a good idea to send tens of thousands of troops to stay here to contain the main force of the Ottomans.

But it is not so wise to concentrate more than half of the main force of Persia to fight the Ottomans here.

If it were him, he would definitely not fight the Ottomans in Baghdad.

Instead, it will attract the Ottomans to the mountains of Persia itself, where the chance of defeating the enemy is much greater.

The Persians and the Ottomans were fighting fiercely in Baghdad, and the Chinese army was also eager to try.

The soldiers all took the initiative to ask Li Shizu to attack the eastern region where Persian troops were empty. In this way, they would definitely be able to capture the Persian capital Isfahan before the Ottomans.

However, Li Shizu was not in a hurry. In his view, his occupation of Hormuz had cut off the British East India Company's supply line for delivering supplies to the Safavid dynasty.

The fall of the Safavid dynasty was only a matter of time.

He was not in a hurry to occupy these areas. What he wanted to consider was how to defeat the Persians at the minimum cost.

As the supply line continued to lengthen, to be honest, he felt that the troops in his hands were already somewhat stretched.

At this time, Lu Xiangsheng, the right minister of the Ministry of War, actually came to Bandar Abbas Port.

This was the first time that the imperial court sent regular officials from the six ministries from the central government to the front lines of the Western Regions after my father returned to Beijing.

Presumably Lu Xiangsheng must have brought his father's will.

Li Shizu quickly took Zheng Sen and others to the dock to greet them.

Unexpectedly, what Lu Xiangsheng brought this time was actually a huge fleet, including 6 sail battleships.

When these tall sailing battleships approached the port, they caused a huge sensation, and Bandar Abbas Port was packed with people.

Both the local Persian people and businessmen from all over the world rushed to witness this grand event.

The most eye-catching among them are undoubtedly the flagship Wuchang and Changsha with a displacement of up to 3500 tons.

This is simply a mobile sea fortress. In addition to the huge fleet, Lu Xiangsheng also brought 2 Tianxiong troops that he personally trained.

This is the largest reinforcement sent from China since Li Shizu's independent campaign.

Everyone present was also very excited. Such a large investment showed that China intended to expand the scale of the war.

After settling the Tianxiong army, Lu Xiangsheng read His Majesty's imperial edict to everyone.

Li Xianzhong approved the plan to ally with the Ottoman Empire to carve up Persia, and the reinforcements this time were not just the 2 Tianxiong troops brought by Lu Xiangsheng.

There were also 5 reinforcements transferred to the northwest from the Central Plains of Shaanxi and other places.

However, these people took the land route and were commanded by Wu Sangui and under the command of Xiong Tingbi.

The targets were the Persian vassal Khanate of Bukhara, and the Kazakh Khanate to the north.

Lu Xiangsheng himself will serve as the supervisor of the Western Military Region and assist Li Shizu in his next actions.

In addition, Lu Xiangsheng also brought a family letter from Queen Haqiya to Li Shizu.

It has been almost two years since her son went to the Western Regions. Not only did he marry the Mughal Queen, but he also completely took over the command of the empire's western front. Hazia naturally missed him very much.

In addition to expressing love and care, the letter also conveyed some important information to Li Shizu.

The fact that his father appointed him as the Governor-General of India and given full authority to command the army on the Western Front aroused discussion in the court.

Mainly officials such as Li Sanshun and Yan Mingtai who assisted the prince believed that this move was likely to cause the division of territory in the Chinese Empire.

In the future, Li Shizu will even threaten the status of the crown prince.

Although the eldest brother Li Shengzu did not come forward, these people were all "princelings" and the founding fathers of the Chinese Empire.

Even the always strong father had to take into account the feelings of these important officials in the court.

That's why Lu Xiangsheng, the right minister of the Ministry of War, was appointed as the supervisor of the army.

Haqiya asked Li Shizu not to act wildly and rebelliously, so as not to fall into the trap of his mouth.

However, Lu Xiangsheng is not a "princeling". He is his father's son, so there is no need to worry about this.

Originally, Li Xianzhong wanted to take charge of the imperial army again, but the prince's long-term supervision of the country led to signs that the "princeling party" in the capital was getting bigger.

Therefore, the father decided to sit in the capital to stabilize the rear.

Li Shizu never expected that while he was showing off his talents on the Western Front, he would actually arouse the fear of the courtiers.

But think about it, I own a huge territory in India.

Although the Sixth Division has always been under the control of the elder brother, due to Zheng Sen's relationship, the East Ryukyu Company is likely to be on his side.

This is an extremely wealthy country. It has land and soldiers, and it is supported by the "money bag" of the East Ryukyu Company and its maritime power.

It would be strange if it didn't arouse some people's fears.

However, he believed that his father and elder brother would handle these matters well, and now he just focused on opening up territory for the empire.

There is also news that the Japanese daughter Emperor Xingzi whom his father married is pregnant.

If he is a boy, then his younger brother will inherit the throne of the Japanese Emperor in the future.

In addition, his third brother Li Xingzu was sent to the East Ryukyu Company to learn trade, and his father intended to let him participate in the affairs of the East Ryukyu Company.

It seems that my father is also re-establishing checks and balances.

With the support of 2 Tianxiong troops, Li Shizu can now mobilize as many as 8 troops.

The most important thing at present is to carve up Persia with the Ottoman Empire.

The main forces of the Safin dynasty were concentrated near Baghdad.

The Ottomans have sent envoys many times to urge them to march into eastern Persia in order to share the pressure for them.

It seems that the proud Ottoman Sultan Murad IV is really anxious.

It would not be in the interests of the Chinese Empire to allow the Persians to win the Battle of Baghdad.

Nowadays, the eastern border of Persia is empty of troops. In addition, in order to fulfill the covenant and pull the Ottomans, Li Shizu finally decided to attack Persia in a large scale.

The 30,000 Chinese troops on the northern route, led by Li Yan, headed west from Kabul.

After capturing Herat, they headed straight for the Khorasan region in northeastern Persia.

This was originally an area where Persian and Uzbek forces intertwined. Seeing the decline of the Persian Empire, the Uzbeks here launched riots one after another to welcome the Chinese to come and liberate them.

The Chinese army captured Shahrud, the capital of Khorasan, without encountering much resistance.

Li Yan knew that these Uzbeks wanted to establish their own khanate.

Now that China has just occupied Khorasan, it needs the support of the Uzbeks. After promising to give the Uzbeks a high degree of autonomy, they have become a "leading party."

With the cooperation of the Uzbeks, the Chinese army completely controlled Khorasan and headed west into Tehran, an important town in northern Persia.

The fall of Tehran meant that the entire northern Persian defense line was completely penetrated.

The Chinese army soon joined forces with the Ottomans on the northern front in Qazvin, southwest of Tabriz.

At this time, the only areas controlled by the Safavid dynasty were the Mesopotamia basin centered on Baghdad and the southwestern region of Persia itself.

While the Northern Route Army was advancing vigorously, the South Route Army was not idle either.

Li Shizu left 1 people to guard Bandar Abbas Port and Hormuz on the other side.

Together with Lu Xiangsheng, Hui led an army of 4 to attack Isfahan, the capital of central Persia.

Isfahan is located in the valley of the Zagros Mountains and the Kuhru Mountains, with the Zainde River passing through the city.

Although the city of Isfahan is very tall, the main force of the Persian Empire at this time was all in Baghdad in the west, and there were only 3 troops guarding the capital.

These troops were not the new army of the Persian Empire. Facing the Chinese attack from the north and the south, the Persian Emperor Safi did not dare to defend the isolated city.

He left his uncle Lafas to lead more than ten thousand old and weak people to defend the isolated city.

He fled with 2 troops towards Abadan, an important town in southwestern Persia.

On the eighth day of September in the sixth year of Qianxi, the Chinese army occupied Isfahan, the capital of the Safavid dynasty of Persia.

After entering Isfahan, Li Shizu quickly ordered the Persian palace, library and mosques in the city to be protected, and quickly restored security in the city of Isfahan.

According to the treaty with the Ottomans, the east of Isfahan belonged to China and the west of Isfahan belonged to the Ottoman Empire.

Today, China has occupied most of Persia from Tehran in the north, to Isfahan in the middle, and to Bandar Abbas in the south.

Therefore, Li Shizu did not send troops to pursue the Persian Emperor Safi who fled west.

Of course, this was also intentional by Li Shizu. It was best for the Persian Emperor Safi to die in the hands of the Ottomans, so that the hatred between the Persians and the Ottomans would never be resolved.

It is more beneficial for China to rule the Persian region!

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(End of this chapter)