The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 14
January 1, Ali Qapu Palace, Isfahan.

Under the guidance of two Persian eunuchs, Zhang Guangping, the Minister of Qi in Isfahan, walked through the vast Imam Square and came to the Ali Qapu Palace on the west side. Then he saw the exhausted Imperial Shah Su. Dan Hussein, and more than a dozen ministers with solemn expressions.

"I heard that your country sent an army from Bushehr Port to Isfahan?" Imperial Grand Vizier Muhammad Qulihan Shamru asked directly.

"Your Excellency Grand Vizier, I don't know where this rumor came to your ears?" Zhang Guangping was shocked when he heard the interpreter next to him. He glanced at the silent Shah on the throne from the corner of his eye and said, Then his expression remained unchanged and he asked in a calm tone: "Our Da Qi Empire has always cherished its friendship with your country and has always led your country as our most important strategic partner in the Gulf region. Under such circumstances, how can our country To violate the dignity of your country and rashly send an army to sneak into Isfahan?"

"The City Guards received news that a huge caravan from your country arrived in Isfahan ten days ago, accompanied by hundreds of guards. They behaved like soldiers. It is said that the caravan was near Kazerun The mountainous area was attacked by a large group of bandits. During the battle, whether it was the weapons they held or the offensive formation they deployed, they were the same as your army. How should your envoy explain this?"

"Your Majesty the Great Wei Qi." Zhang Guangping smiled bitterly and said softly: "In recent years, the public security in your country has been unstable and the gangs and mobs have been rampant, which has greatly affected the businessmen of our Qi country traveling around your country. For this reason, merchants The team had to hire more armed guards to ensure the safety of merchants and goods. Facing the more vicious bandit mobs, ordinary people who had never experienced battlefield fighting were simply unable to deal with it. In this case, the Grand Vizier What kind of people do you think those businessmen would choose to protect their wealth and lives?"

"What do you mean by your envoy, those caravan guards are all retired soldiers of the Qi State Army in the past?"

"As Grand Wei Qi said, those escorts must be composed of retired soldiers from our Qi army." Zhang Guangping said with determination.

Do you Persians still dare to send troops to the trading station outside the city to arrest all the army officers and soldiers and torture them? !
"Your Majesty, there are rumors in the market that the Qi army has arrived in Isfahan. I have found out that it is completely false." In fact, Muhammad Quli Khan Shamru did not want to get to the bottom of this issue and cause trouble for the empire. .Immediately, he turned his head, put his hand on his chest, bent his back slightly, and said respectfully to the Shah: "I wonder if your Majesty still has the words to ask questions?"

"Now that the facts have been clarified, there is no problem." Emperor Shah Sultan Hussein waved his hand and said impatiently: "Qi has always been on good terms with the empire and will never do anything to offend the empire. Even if Qi really sent an army to Isfahan, it would not do anything to harm the empire. Oman invaded our Gulf islands and raided the coastal towns of the empire, but Qi used a powerful naval fleet to drive them away. Only by staying away can we ensure the safety of the empire's maritime borders. Furthermore, many of the Imperial Guards have military instructors from the Qi State who carefully guide them and help the imperial army become familiar with firearms drills. They have made arduous efforts to improve the empire's military strength. Popular opinion , do not trust gullibly, so as not to damage the traditional friendship between Qi State and the Empire."

As he said that, the Shah glared at Rostam Khan, the commander of the Guards, and believed that when the Afghans invaded in large numbers, it was purely extraneous to accuse the Qi people of intending to offend the authority of the empire and the Shah based on only some market rumors.

Even if the Qi people really sent a small force of more than 50 people to Isfahan, it would not mean that Qi wanted to make some dangerous move against the empire.It should be noted that the capital of the empire is a huge city with a population of more than [-], and the number of garrisoned Imperial Guards and Shah Guards combined totals more than [-].

What can a small army of several hundred people do if they come here?
Moreover, I heard that the group of merchant guards who were suspected of being soldiers did not enter the city at all, but stayed in their Qi people's trading station in a very orderly manner, waiting for the trade caravan to return.

The Shah believed that the reason why the Qi people organized a team of powerful armed guards to come to Isfahan was not only to escort the caravan through the hinterland of Persia, where security was getting worse and worse, but also probably because of the current tensions in the empire. He was somewhat concerned about the security situation and wanted to transfer the Qi family members staying in Isfahan and the large quantities of Persian specialties purchased to the seaside in advance.

As a country from the distant Hanzhou continent, apart from coveting the exclusive trade interests of the empire, could they still pose a direct military threat to the empire? ——
"This Persian princess is so beautiful!" Xu Kuiyuan turned his head reluctantly and whispered.

"Concentrate on your duties and don't peek like this!" Li Yanliang glared at him and said angrily: "She is a princess, not ordinary people like us can make up our minds casually." "Sir, I know her. She's a princess, how dare she have any ideas about her?" Xu Kuiyuan argued: "I didn't just look at her because she looked good, so I secretly took a few more glances."

"I am overseas and should be careful with my words and deeds at all times to avoid tarnishing the image of our Daqi army." Li Yanliang said with a straight face.

"Yes, sir." Xu Kuiyuan responded, but he was quite disapproving in his heart.In the battle formation, soldiers risked their lives to fight and did everything they could, regardless of their military image.I heard that a few years ago, in order to suppress the resistance forces in the Kingdom of Aceh, our Daqi army implemented extremely cruel methods. Not only did they destroy villages and burn fortresses, but they also carried out indiscriminate massacres in more than a dozen cases.As for the looting, rape, prisoner abuse and other incidents that occurred during the purge, there were not a few.

The officer in front of me had just graduated from the military academy for a year, and he had some idealism in his heart. He imagined a violent army as a perfect army of benevolence and righteousness.

Of course, compared to the armies of other countries in the world, our Daqi army can be regarded as a "force of benevolence and righteousness". At least it did not burn, kill and loot indiscriminately during the war, let alone carry out large-scale barbaric massacres.

When I was young, I heard the elders in the village say that during the Jiashen period of the Ming Dynasty, Qing captives entered the country, and countless massacres occurred throughout the land of China, such as the Ten Days of Yangzhou, the Three Massacres of Jiading, and the Massacre of Guangzhou... ..., it is reported that dozens or hundreds of cities were bloody massacres, and countless civilians were killed. Even the Denglai area where Daqi used to rely on as a mainland base was massacred by those ferocious Qing captives. It can be described as ferocious. Famous.

After all, those shocking massacres happened a long time ago, and they also happened in the ancient land of China. As an ordinary soldier born in the powerful and wealthy Qi State, Xu Kuiyuan was unable to have much empathy at all.In his view, the sufferings suffered by the people in those poor and weak countries and regions are entirely their own fault.Who allowed your emperor and government to be so poor in governance that the entire country was in dire straits, civil strife arose, and the country was in danger of subjugation!
It was said that the beautiful Persian princess in the courtyard was the niece of the Shah of their empire. Due to the political strife between the DPRK and China, she was forced to flee the country with their Qi caravan to avoid death.

What a pity, in this old and declining empire, even the royal family members and the beauties of heaven are facing the threat of death at any time and have to go into exile.

Li Yanliang checked the vigilance of several guards and glanced into the yard pretending to be casual.But he saw the Persian princess sitting on a stone bench, looking up at the tall cypress tree in the yard, lost in thought.She has a delicate face, clear facial features, a high nose and deep eyes, and is extremely beautiful.

"The Qin family has a good daughter, and she names herself Luofu. ... When the young man sees Luofu, he takes off his hat and wears a bow. ..." Li Yanliang couldn't help but a poem "Mo Shang Sang" from the Han Dynasty Yuefu poured out in his mind.

Princess Nasheed Mirza seemed to feel something, and looked sideways towards a corner of the courtyard.

A young man with an oriental face was looking towards her, with a tall and straight posture and a resolute face. His eyes showed a bit of curiosity, a bit of surprise, and a bit of sympathy.

Princess Nasheed Mirza smiled politely at him and nodded slightly, then stood up and walked towards the house behind her.

(End of this chapter)