People in the Song Dynasty were lawless

Chapter 501: Shocking the West
The chaos in Baghdad continues to grow.

Murders and looting occurred frequently in the city, and screams and wails were heard everywhere.

Only the docks in the East City area were relatively peaceful.

Tughril is not stupid. Since there is no need to provoke the Song Dynasty now, there is no need to provoke the Song Dynasty.

So Chagar was responsible for strictly controlling the soldiers and prohibiting them from approaching the diplomatic delegation.

In this respect, the Tuglile brothers were smarter than the Central India.

Wang Xuance was originally very happy when he was sent as an envoy to the Kingdom of India.

As a result, a rebellion broke out in Central India, and the Tang envoys were killed. Only Wang Xuance and Jiang Shiren escaped.

Wang Xuance then borrowed several thousand people from Tubo and Nepal and destroyed the Central India Kingdom.

Perhaps it was because although the Tang Dynasty had a sharp military force, it ultimately failed to reach the Kingdom of India, which led to the local people's lack of proper respect for the Tang Dynasty.

But in today's Song Dynasty, the world situation is different.

Tughril witnessed the rapid demise of the Black Khanate and heard about the power of the Song Dynasty's firearms.

Therefore, the Seljuks were much more cautious than the Indians in terms of being prudent and were unwilling to provoke those who had not yet become their enemies.

It is no wonder that he would achieve great things in the future and establish a vast Seljuk Empire.

At this moment, the Song army sent people to maintain order on the dock. The Seljuks did not dare to approach, so one side of the dock was relatively safe.

However, the panic had caused considerable personnel unrest, and various squeezing, trampling and falling into the water accidents had dealt a heavy blow to ordinary people in Baghdad.

A large number of people huddled near the dock because at this time the periphery had been surrounded by the Seljuks and no one was allowed to approach. None of them knew whether the Seljuks would launch a surprise attack on the crowd.

As a result, many people retreated step by step, resulting in continuous stampedes. If the Song army had not suddenly stepped forward to maintain order and sent a guard to stand on the periphery, the situation would have been even more chaotic.

"The Song Dynasty envoys are ahead, no troops are allowed to enter! If you dare to get close, you will be killed!"

On the street near the city at the dock, Liu Chengwu, commander of the Guangzhou military camp, drew the ring-handled sword from his waist and shouted towards the street entrance ahead.

A Song man who was doing maritime trade in Baghdad was shouting at the other party in the local language.

But unfortunately, the Seljuk Turks spoke a different language from theirs. Tughril was able to communicate with Kaim only because he learned Arabic.

So the other Turks couldn't understand it at all.

But the black muzzle of the gun pointing at them still made them feel a little uneasy. The Turkish generals on the periphery who originally wanted to intimidate them hesitated and reported to the Turkish nobles.

It happened that Talib Ruber was leading the troops here. When he learned about this, he ordered the Turks to retreat a little and stop squeezing the living space of the people of Baghdad, forcing those people to jump into the river.

"Governor, these untouchables deserve to die. The Song people didn't even draw their swords from their waists, but just pointed iron pipes at us. What is there to be afraid of?"

The Turkic general asked in great confusion.

"Humph, now is the critical moment for the Khan to conquer Baghdad. We must not cause any trouble. We know the power of the Song army's artillery. We must not provoke them easily. This is the order of the Khan and the Deputy Khan."

Talib Ruber scolded.

"Yes Yes Yes."

The general had no choice but to go back and convey the military order.

The docks correspond to the streets, which are crisscrossed, and teams of Turks are slowly retreating.

This situation made the Song army soldiers guarding every street entrance breathe a sigh of relief.

In addition to the ironclad ships of the Jinghai Army, the Guangzhou local imperial guards also dispatched a 2000-man musket infantry team to follow them on this journey south.

The 2000 people were divided into four battalions, each with 4 people, with a battalion commander and two deputy commanders, who were under the command of Wang Shining of the Jinghai Army.

But their numbers were still too small. It was not that they could not kill all the Turks, but they had to ensure the safety of the delegation, and most of them were on board.

Therefore, there was only one battalion left to maintain order. This battalion was divided into 10 teams, with 50 people in each team controlling 10 streets. The rifles could cover the entire street, and no matter how many Turks came, they would be killed.

But they could only guard 10 streets. The wharf was several miles long, so there were more than 10 streets. If the Turks rushed out from other streets, it would inevitably cause large-scale riots among the people.

If a stampede occurs, unless they fight their way out of the crowd, they will be overwhelmed by the crowded crowd, causing unnecessary casualties.

This is also the reason why it is not easy for the Song Dynasty to intervene.

If we intervene rashly, not only will we not be able to allow the Song Dynasty to gain its own interests, but we may also cause casualties among our own personnel if we are not careful. Therefore, we must think twice before acting and not let our own people be buried in a foreign land.

Before the Turks surrounded them, Wum found a boat downstream and rowed hard to get close to the dock. What made him despair was that the Song fleet was surrounded by Baghdad's ships.

Although those merchants could not seek direct protection from the Song Dynasty, some of their ships ran to the Song Dynasty fleet, which trapped the Song Dynasty fleet itself.

It's inevitable that people feel a little bit amused and helpless.

However, the good news was that there were so many ships that the Song people used anchors to secure them. In order to prevent the people's ships from being washed away, they tied them together with ropes.

This allowed them to even walk right over on the boat.

With the help of more than a dozen guards, Wum walked through the connected ships and came to the outer ships of the delegation.

The diplomatic mission's fleet was naturally well-designed, with a defense fleet composed of outer sea vessels forming a circle.

The delegation was protected by three layers of defense inside and outside, and at the same time, the ironclad ship was placed on the easternmost side of the river, which was the outermost side, and blocked the way, creating a gap.

In this way, if an accident occurs, the ironclad ship will come out of the encirclement of Baghdad's ships first, and the remaining ships will retreat one after another and evacuate to the east bank of the Tigris River. Naturally, there is no need to worry about being unable to move.

That is to say, the Tigris River is one of the mother rivers of the Mesopotamian Plain. The width of the river in the Baghdad section is about 0.48 kilometers, or 480 meters, which can accommodate so many crowded ships.

Otherwise, if the fleet encountered a small river, it would be difficult for them to even turn around.

Wum arrived at the periphery and struggled to inform the person in charge of the outer ship of his identity. He then reported the matter to Tan Wenxue, Zhang Youwei and others one by one.

"It seems that the Caliph is anxious."

"How can we not be anxious? The Turks have already come charging in."

"I thought that as fellow Sunnis, the Turks would not start a massacre in the city."

"The barbarians' habits never change. Moreover, after attacking a city, it is customary to continue looting in order to boost the morale of the army. There were many such incidents in the late Tang Dynasty."

"Oh, let him come over."

Tan Wenxue chatted with Zhang Youwei for a few words, and then asked someone to bring Wum over.

Wum's small boat was towed all the way, passing by those large ships, and finally arrived under the main ship, where she was led onto the ship.

Seeing Tan Wenxue and Zhang Youwei standing there with their hands behind their backs waiting for him, Wumu hurried forward, put his right hand on his chest, bowed and said, "Dear guests, I am Wumu, serving as Sulta."

Saladin translated it for them. Sulta was the official in charge of all affairs in Baghdad, which could be understood as the prefect of Kaifeng in the Song Dynasty and a senior Abbasid official.

It was just that during the Buyid Dynasty, the decrees of the Abbasid Dynasty could not leave the palace, so high-ranking officials including the vizier (prime minister), mufti, governor of Baghdad, and sultar had no real power.

Tan Wenxue and Zhang Youwei also bowed politely and said, "Sulta is polite."

Umm said: "The messenger said that because the Buyeh family was on good terms with you, it was inconvenient for you to help. Now that the Buyeh family has been destroyed, the Caliph would like to ask you for help, is that okay?"

"Well, in principle, it's possible, but."

Tan Wenxue started to put on some pretense.

"But what?"

"But the Seljuks also sent people over just now."

"But they are just traitors of the Caliphate. We are the masters here."

"Of course we understand, but we have a saying in the Song Dynasty that the past is the past and the present is the present."

"I know that the Bushiwe family is weak, and this time the opponent is strong. The previous conditions are naturally no longer applicable. So the Caliph has another explanation for coming out this time."

Wumm gritted her teeth and said, "In addition to the conditions promised before, the Caliph is willing to give you another 1,000 kilograms of gold, 10,000 kilograms of silver, and the remaining spices, carpets, jewels, and medicinal materials totaling 300,000 kilograms."

According to the exchange rate, the price of these things should be around one million guan.

For example, one thousand kilograms of gold is equivalent to twelve thousand kilograms of silver. Add ten thousand kilograms of silver, and at the rate of sixteen taels per kilogram, that would be three hundred and fifty thousand taels of silver.

The total value is 35 guan, which may be slightly higher in terms of purchasing power.

The rest of the things may not be that valuable in the Middle East, but after being shipped to the Song Dynasty, their value will skyrocket several times or even dozens of times.

For example, one tael of silver could buy hundreds of kilograms of pepper locally. In the Song Dynasty, the price of a kilogram of pepper usually fluctuated around 0.6 guan, and the highest could reach one silver dollar, which means one guan of money per kilogram.

This is just the cheapest pepper; other spices, carpets, jewelry and medicinal herbs are more expensive.

Even if 200,000 kilograms of the 300,000 kilograms are cheap spices, the remaining 80,000 kilograms are carpets, 19,000 kilograms are medicinal materials, and 1,000 kilograms are jewelry, the total value is still more than one million strings of cash.

Therefore, this is a huge sum of money, which can instantly create a super rich man even in the Song Dynasty.

In comparison, the Chola Dynasty spent 18 kilograms of gold to buy a cannon, and with various supporting facilities, the total value was only about 38 strings of cash.

However, that was a business with the Chola Dynasty, while this is to help people restore their regime, so the situation is naturally different.

What's more, these things will be of great value only if they are successfully transported to the Song Dynasty.

At least in the Middle East, according to the prices of the Song Dynasty, only gold, silver and jewelry are worth some money, and the value of other things is greatly discounted, and the total value will not exceed 500,000 strings of cash.

After all, it is common practice that everything is cheaper in the area where it is produced.

For example, if 2000 kilograms of spices were sold at a price of kilograms per guan, it would only cost guan. Carpets are all woven by local handicrafts, so the price is not too high.

So Tan Wenxue and Zhang Youwei looked at each other and smiled.

Then Tan Wenxue said, "Two thousand catties of gold, twenty thousand catties of silver, three hundred thousand catties of spices, two hundred thousand catties of carpets, three thousand catties of jewels, and thirty thousand catties of medicinal herbs."

Wumu opened her eyes wide and said, "This is too much."

"Don't be impatient." Zhang Youwei stretched out his hand to signal Wumu not to get excited, and said: "Sulta, you need to think carefully. We can help you repel the Seljuks, but have you ever thought about what to do if the Seljuks come back after we leave?"

"This"

Wum hesitated for a moment.

Zhang Youwei continued, "So in order to ensure that this doesn't happen, after we help you repel the Seljuks, we will leave some artillery and grenades and tell you how to use them. This will definitely allow you to have the ability to protect yourselves. I don't think your Caliph would want the Seljuks to attack again after we leave, causing you to lose your kingdom again."

This sentence made Wum stunned, and then he started to think.

Yes, what the other party said makes sense.

The Song people could only save them temporarily, not forever. After the Song people left, they would still need the ability to protect themselves.

Although it was indeed painful to spend this money, the Caliph, as a religious leader, had countless believers supporting him, so he still had this little money.

Secondly, by repelling the Seljuks, they could obtain the inheritance of the Buyhi family and provide them with supplements.

Money is just something outside of your body. Only when you have a secure position and power can you last long.

Wum raised her head and looked towards the city center again. Above the tallest tower, a black flag was swaying in the wind.

He gritted his teeth and said, "This has exceeded the bottom line given by the Caliph, but you are right. We must be able to protect ourselves after you leave. I promise you!"

"Pleasant to work with."

Tan Wenxue and Zhang Youwei looked at each other and laughed.

Wang Shining beside him said, "Send troops?"

"Send out the troops!"

Tan Wenxue's eyes flashed with coldness as he said, "In addition to being able to gain a lot of benefits from this battle, the most important thing is that it will make my Song Dynasty famous in the West."

"Then send troops!"

Wang Shining said: "Let's start according to the original plan."

After saying this, he raised the flag in his hand.

The lookout on top of the main ship saw this and immediately waved the flag.

Immediately afterwards, the ironclad ships on the periphery roared and headed towards the east of the river.

Afterwards, a large number of Song army ships began to maneuver at the dock, and they all broke out of the encirclement of surrounding small boats through the gap.

Their actions caused quite a stir.

Fortunately, there was still a battalion of soldiers at the dock, so order among the local people in Baghdad could still be maintained.

But the Turks in the distance were a little uneasy and didn't understand what the Song army was trying to do.

But they soon knew what the Song army wanted to do.

After emerging from the surrounding fishing boats and merchant ships, the Song Dynasty set sail and headed north, cutting off the retreat route of the Turks in the upper reaches of the Tigris River.

They sailed south all the way to the south of Baghdad, and then the soldiers from the other three battalions got off the boat and lined up to enter the city from the south.

This was a tactical strategy that Wang Shining and his team had prepared long ago.

Naturally, the Turks did not send tens of thousands of troops into the city to plunder. It was difficult for horses to pass through the city as there were many steps and the terrain was narrow. Only a small number of generals rode horses, and the rest dismounted and entered the city to kill.

Therefore, most of the horses were left in the north of the city, and at least half of the Turks stayed in the rear to guard the horses.

The Turks were coming from the east and trying to cross the Tigris River, so the Jinghai army headed north and bombarded the Turks' rear camp with artillery, killing their horses and the remaining Turks.

The infantry entered the city first from the south where there were fewer Turks, clearing the way with rifles and clearing obstacles street by street.

This, combined with a small amount of artillery cover, was enough to clear out the Turks in the south of the city.

There are about 10 to 20 thousand Turks in the city now, burning, killing and looting everywhere. The 1,500 soldiers, plus the 500 soldiers at the dock, will form a siege. It will not be difficult to eliminate these Turks who have dismounted and are not in formation.

Soon, the Song army began to implement the original plan, and the first gunshot was heard in the south of the city not long after.

This is a yellow powder rifle, which is no longer the original black powder flintlock rifle and is extremely powerful.

Before long, the Turks who were looting on the streets south of the city were caught off guard, suffered heavy casualties, and ran towards the north of the city screaming.

Soon after, the news that the Song army had launched an attack on them spread quickly, and all kinds of whistles and trumpets sounded in the city, making it even more chaotic than before.

"Kill!"

“Shoot, shoot, shoot!”

"The Turks dress completely differently from the locals, and they all aim at the point."

"Don't let any one escape!"

"Bang bang bang!"

A group of newly organized Turks ran into the street and shouted at them: "Kill."

The next second, gunshots rang out, rifle fire rang out, and dense ammunition formed a terrifying fire network on the street. No one could survive.

The rest of the Turks were terrified. Seeing their comrades falling down inexplicably, they no longer looked as ferocious as before. They dropped their scimitars and turned to flee, shouting in panic, "Monster, monster!"

For a moment, the city became even more chaotic.

Because most of the Baghdad residents who were still on the streets had been killed by the Turks, only the Turks roaming around were left on the streets.

Therefore, the Song army had almost no obstacles and no psychological burden, and they pulled the trigger when they saw anyone.

The Baghdadis who were hiding in their homes and surviving in the city heard the voices of the Turks outside, which were originally showing off their might, but soon turned into screams of the Turks. They curiously opened the windows upstairs and peeked out.

Suddenly, a strange army appeared in the city, holding long black barreled weapons everywhere, the nozzles seemed to be able to spit out flames, and every time a flame was spit out, a Turk fell down.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

At this moment, even more violent sounds were heard.

The naval fleet in the north fired a salvo of artillery.

The Turkic camp in the north of the city was in chaos in an instant, with countless people killed or knocked down by the explosion.

In particular, the horses were frightened and kept fleeing, causing the camp that had just been built to fall into ruin in an instant. Horses were running everywhere, and the Turks who blocked the way were all trampled to death by the horses' hooves.

At this moment, Tugril, Chagar and others in the city were almost going crazy. Bad news came one after another, making them lose their composure.

"What's going on? What's going on?"

"It's the Song people. The Song people are on the move."

"How many of them are there? How could they defeat you so quickly?"

Chagar, who was in charge of the city's army, first heard the sound of gunfire outside, then saw his own soldiers fleeing like tides, and soon heard reports from his subordinates, and became furious.

They had an army of 50,000, with another 30,000 outside the city, and a lot of troops were stationed near the dock to guard against the Song people.

As a result, they were defeated as soon as they came into contact.

"The Song people are monsters. They are very far away, and the long pipes in their hands can spit out flames, and then the soldiers fall down one after another."

The general who reported the incident said in shock, "No, they are scarier than monsters, too scary."

"waste!"

Chagar drew his sword and killed the general with one blow, then shouted to the people around him: "Blow the horn immediately and assemble the army."

"Yes!"

The other generals were startled and hurried to blow the horns.

But it was obvious that the Turks in the city had been dispersed long ago, and the Song soldiers, divided into teams of fifty, began to clear out the remnants.

For the Turks, the city's streets were crisscrossed and it was difficult for their cavalry to maneuver.

For the Song people, the narrow terrain was also not conducive to concentrated shooting by the rifle teams, so it was better to act in a dispersed manner.

Because more than ten people standing shoulder to shoulder can fill up the street, and the remaining soldiers can guard each alley and be careful of the Turks hiding around, and they can completely cover a street.

So it is easier for them to play to their strengths by acting separately.

Just like the rifle era in later generations, it was no longer an era of arranging battle formations, but an era of small teams forming firepower networks and dispersing attacks.

This can prevent the enemy from intensive fire and artillery coverage.

Under the attack that was ahead of its time, in less than half an hour, the Turks in the city were either killed or fled the city, and only a very small number remained.

The Song army also sent a team of 50 people to the Abbasid Palace as soon as possible, drove away Tughril who was still there, and protected the Abbasid Caliph Kaim.

At that time, Tughril even wanted to kidnap Kaim, but he was protected by Kaim's remaining guards. When the Song army came, Tughril saw that he had failed to break through Abbasid's inner palace, so he had to flee in panic.

After another half an hour, the Turks in Baghdad had been almost wiped out, and the Song army rushed out of the city.

The Turkic camp outside the city had long been razed to the ground by naval artillery fire, and a large number of Turks fled to the northwest because their horses were frightened and fled in that direction.

By the time the sun set in the afternoon, there were no more Turks in Baghdad. The gunfire in the city gradually died down, and the city returned to its former tranquility.

a few days later.

Word gets out.

Shocked the entire Western world!

(End of this chapter)