Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

In the Battle of Delhi, the Imperial Guard suffered 10,000 casualties, but annihilated more than 50,000 Mughal troops. More than 20,000 surrendered soldiers and prisoners were captured. One prisoner with a special status was taken to the tent of General Alatan Cang, the general in charge of the southern campaign.

"So you're the Mughal official who surrendered?" The man glanced at the bound prisoner kneeling on the ground and asked arrogantly.

“Reporting to the General, I am Mirsaman Ibn of the Mughal Empire. I fear your army’s might and dare not resist. Therefore, I have led several hundred of my men to surrender,” Ibn said obsequiously, his eyes full of pleading and flattery.

"Hmm," Alatan Cang was satisfied with his attitude. Although he had won the Battle of Delhi, he had also suffered heavy casualties. Currently, the army occupying Delhi had fewer than 70,000 combat-ready men. To rule such a vast territory as the Mughal Empire, a shortage of troops was inevitable. Therefore, he had considered using the more than 20,000 surrendered soldiers and prisoners to find a loyal representative to lead them in serving the Davidic state. Among the captured generals, this man named Ibn held the highest rank, but he lacked backbone. Surrounded by the guards, he dared not fight a bloody battle and surrendered without firing a single arrow. He was a good candidate. He slowly asked, "What kind of official is Mirsaman? What exactly does he do?"

“Mirsaman means steward of the palace, responsible for managing the daily affairs within the palace,” Ibn replied, bowing his head.

"The Grand Eunuch? So you're quite familiar with the Mughal palace. Get up, untie him," Alatan Cang softened his tone. Suddenly, his eyes flashed. "That Aurangzeb brat calls himself the 'Conqueror of the World.' He's been waging war all these years, he must have plundered quite a lot of treasures. Where is his private treasury? And where do his beautiful concubines, princes, and princesses live? Do you know?"

Hearing this, Iben felt a sense of relief, knowing that his life was temporarily spared. However, having to betray his former master to save his life was something he found hard to accept, and for a moment, he was speechless.

"What? You don't know?" Alatan Cang sneered.

Iben was startled, immediately realizing he had no choice but to make the guards believe he was useful to them if he wanted to survive. His voice trembled as he said, "I know the Mughal treasury, the residences of the Queen, concubines, princes, and princesses, and I am willing to take over the treasury with the General. However—"

"Just what?" Alatan Cang asked sharply.

“However, most of the princes have come of age and are stationed in other regions, leaving only Prince Muhammad Qam Bahish, who is still a minor in the capital. Prince Bahish was deeply favored, and before the great war, the late emperor ordered his chief bodyguard, Asfjah, to escort him out of the city to join the late emperor’s uncle, Shaysta Khan. He is no longer in the city. Most of the princesses have also come of age and married out of the country. Currently, only Queen Nurjahan, Princess Odipri, and Princess Zina Tenesa remain in Delhi,” Ibn hurriedly explained.

"How is this possible? The emperor of the mighty Mughal Empire only has two women?" Alatan Cang expressed his disbelief. Indeed, he couldn't believe it. The Great Khan of the Great Kingdom of David had more than a dozen concubines with titles, and countless female officials who were favored without titles. He himself had married eight wives. Aurangzeb, known as the 'Conqueror of the World,' should have had countless beauties. How could his entire harem only have one empress and one imperial concubine?
“This is absolutely true. The late emperor strictly adhered to the teachings of the Quran and lived a simple life. He indeed had only one queen and one concubine,” Ibn replied with a wry smile.

"Hmph! Useless old man," Alatan Cang said disdainfully, "In that case, you take us to the Red Fortress to capture Aurangzeb's queen, concubines, and princess, and then take over the imperial treasury."

“Yes,” Ibn said in a low voice.

Alatan Cang smiled with satisfaction. This kid led the Wei army to capture the Mughal queen, concubines and princesses, and helped the Wei army take over the imperial treasury. It was as if he had offered his allegiance to the Kingdom of David. It would be difficult for him to turn back now!

The arrogant guards opened the gates of Delhi and marched straight to the Red Fort, the residence of Emperor Aurangzeb. It went smoothly, yet also with some setbacks. They succeeded in seizing control of the palace treasury, capturing vast quantities of rare treasures, over 900,000 taels of gold, over 5 million taels of silver, and numerous silks, satins, tea, and porcelain. What pleased Alatan Cang most was the "Peacock Throne." When the commander saw that the base of the throne was made of gold, inlaid with numerous diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and pearls, and that the backrest was decorated with enamel peacock sculptures, the tail of which was inlaid with a dazzling array of gems, he was stunned. He exclaimed, "Only the Great Khan is worthy of such a magnificent throne!" He immediately ordered it to be transported to Dadu as a gift to the Great Khan of Lotus. Unfortunately, things didn't go smoothly. The Mughal queen Nurjahan and her consort Odipri displayed the same fortitude and courage as their husbands, setting themselves on fire before the guards entered the palace. Only a dozen or so charred corpses were recovered. The twenty-four-year-old unmarried princess, Zina Tenesa, also disappeared without a trace. Palace servants reported seeing her riding out of the city before the guards entered, and her whereabouts were unknown. Alatan Cang was somewhat disappointed that he couldn't capture any of the Mughal royal women of high status and escort them to the capital. As the Great Khan's childhood playmate, he knew his master's temperament well and could only sigh inwardly that the women in the Mughal harem were indeed a bit too fierce!
However, something even more frustrating was yet to come. A messenger arrived from Dadu with urgent news: the Great Khan of Lotus had ordered Prince Suhebalu of Chen to lead 20,000 cavalrymen, including Prince Dushihuor of Khorchin, Prince Norbu of Henjirige, Prince Biligundala of Ongniud, Duke Alashan of Zhongguo, Marquis Chuyi of Arukorchin, and Earl Souse of the Left Wing of Ongniud, to reinforce the Indian battlefield. Judging by the speed of the Mongol cavalry, they were expected to arrive in Delhi soon.

This greatly frustrated Alatan Cang. If the war was going poorly, having this reinforcement would naturally be a good thing; but now that he had already won the decisive battle, even the Mughal emperor had been killed, and Prince Chen's status was far higher than his own. His arrival meant that his credit for conquering the kingdom was being divided considerably. But frustration aside, it was a tradition of the Great Khan for princes to lead armies. The Great Khan often said that only those descendants tempered by war were worthy of the noble surname "Ikmin'an," and all adult princes had experience leading troops in battle. Prince Chen, Suhebalu, was the son of the Great Khan and Consort Erdeni Bumba, and was greatly favored. Now that he was fourteen, leading troops in battle was inevitable, and he could only obey.

What Alatan Cang was unaware of was that, besides training his son, the Great Khan of Lotus had a deeper consideration: the Mughal Empire was thousands of miles away from Dadu (Beijing), vast in territory and rich in resources, with a large population. Although Alatan Cang was loyal to him, there was always a possibility of unforeseen circumstances. What if a general commanding a large army and occupying such a vast territory harbored rebellious intentions in the future? After much deliberation, he decided to appoint a prince to oversee him. Sending another prince would inevitably alienate loyal ministers. Sending the young Prince Chen, who had not yet achieved any merit, would only make people think that he wanted to train the young prince, thus fulfilling his supervisory role without alienating Alatan Cang.

The mind of an emperor is unfathomable and cannot be easily fathomed by his subjects. (End of Chapter)