I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 887: Actively Learning and Applying Ming History Books

Seeing the expressions on the faces of the people opposite him, Shen Wanxiang quickly stopped talking.

Ugh!
There is no way to deal with the backward history and culture. Even the anecdotes I want to tell are incomprehensible. The task of promoting Chinese culture to the world is a long and arduous journey!

Shen Wanxiang was too lazy to explain and directly said the solution, "Mr. Kodaban, you can follow your country's tradition and go to Isfahan."

Kodaban and Ostagu were stunned and looked at each other. Ostagu said hesitantly: "According to tradition, Prince Kodaban should go to Herat to guard the Khorasan region."

"Khorasan?" Wang Yongji shook his head and said, "No, Khorasan is too far away. If something happens in Kazvin, it will be too late by the time we rush over there.

Isfahan is the best, not too far and not too close.”

Kodaban was surprised and asked, "Something happened in Qazvin? What happened? Why didn't I know what happened?"

Shen Wanxiang said calmly: "Sir Kodaban, if you stay in Qazvin, nothing will happen. But if you leave, something might happen."

Kodaban is short-sighted, but he has a very clear mind.

He pushed up the bridge of his nose with his glasses, which were the high-definition glass myopia glasses he had bought in the capital of the Ming Dynasty.

"Mr. Shen, you mean that if I leave Qazvin, Kizilbash will cause it to get into trouble."

clever!

Seeing Shen Wanxiang nodding with a smile, Kedaban understood what was going on.

Ostagu also understood, but still had doubts.

"It is against tradition for the prince to leave Isfahan, so he needs to find a good reason."

Shen Wanxiang waved his hand, "Think about this carefully. We are not familiar with your country's traditions and cannot give you good advice.

But I think Ismail II and his gang would like you to leave Qazvin as soon as possible.

They will be restless the day you are in Qazvin."

Makes sense!
Kodaban and Ostagu were more clear-headed.

Ten days later, Persian Shah Ismail II announced the appointment of his brother Khodaban as the Governor of Isfahan and concurrently the Governor of Abbas, responsible for trade with the Ming Dynasty.

Ismail II gave his brother a clear task: to expand the port of Abbas, promote trade with the Ming Dynasty, allow more Ming goods to land in Abbas, and then be transported by land to Isfahan, where they will be transferred to various parts of Persia.

Then Ismail II cunningly sent a Ming envoy delegation led by Shen Wanxiang and Wang Yongji to Isfahan to negotiate with Kodaban.

It is clear that Persia only wants to do business with the Ming Dynasty and does not want to talk about anything else.

Kodaban and Ostagu were both angry and happy!

What made him angry was his younger brother Ismail II's short-sightedness!
Persia and the Ming Dynasty had many common topics, the most important of which were the Khanate of Khiva and the Khanate of Bukhara.

The Khanate of Khiva was established in the Khowarazm oasis area on the lower reaches of the Amu Darya River and the southern shore of the Aral Sea.

The Bukhara Khanate was established in the Transoxiana region, with Samarkand as its capital at first and then moved to Bukhara.

Both countries were founded by Uzbeks, and the region is populated by Turkmen, Karakalpaks, Kazakhs, and Tajiks.

These two countries have always been the biggest destabilizing factors on Persia's eastern border.

His father, Khan Tahmasp I, had been at war with the Bukhara Khanate for many years.

When he was fifteen years old, he defeated the Bukhara Khanate army in the Battle of Gam. Huchunchi Khan of the Bukhara Khanate was injured and died soon after.

The father Khan continued his advance and finally recaptured the Eastern Khorasan region and Herat which had been seized by the Bukhara Khanate.

Later, his father Khan supported the Mughal Sultan Humayun to restore his country, thereby obtaining Kandahar, occupying half of Afghanistan, and gaining an advantage in the war with the Bukhara Khanate.

The Ming Dynasty launched operations in the Western Regions, successively destroyed the Yarkand Khanate and the Kazakh Khanate, and occupied the Seven Rivers Steppe and the Kipchak Steppe.

At that time, the Khan realized that he could join forces with the Ming Kingdom in the east to destroy the Bukhara Khanate and the Khiva Khanate in one fell swoop and eliminate the biggest threat to Persia in the east.

That's why he sent himself and Ostagu to the Ming Dynasty.

Now you say that Persia and the Ming Dynasty have nothing else to discuss except trade!
My father Khan’s coffin lid can’t hold it down anymore!

Do you know that from the time I was sent as an envoy to the Ming Dynasty until now, the Khanate of Bukhara and the Khanate of Khiva have been driven out of the Transoxiana region step by step, and all have been squeezed into the narrow strip south of the Amu Darya River, from the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea to Afghanistan.

It was crowded with Uzbeks, Turkmens, Tajiks, Afghans, Karakalpaks and Kazakhs. I heard that they were almost becoming a mess.

What does this mean?
This shows that the Ming Dynasty was very powerful, especially its Mongolian cavalry. After being equipped with muskets and artillery, their combat effectiveness was no worse than that of the Mongolian cavalry that marched westward three or four hundred years ago and frightened countless people.

The Persians have been fighting the Uzbeks for decades, and are also very familiar with the Turkmen, Tajiks, Afghans and Kazakhs. They know their fighting capabilities and are all ruthless people.

As a result, they were driven out of the Seven Rivers Basin, the Kipchak Steppe, and the Transoxiana region by the Ming Army like cattle and sheep.

Merchants returning from the east said that the tribes that were driven out now did not even have the courage to look north.

The slightest disturbance in the north would scare the tribe into moving overnight.

How ruthless must the Ming army be if they could scare these ruthless people like this?

What a great opportunity! We could join forces with the Ming Dynasty and defeat these guys in one fell swoop. We could then each support one or two puppet khanates to serve as buffer states between Persia and the Ming Dynasty.

Well, the buffer state is something Kodaban learned in Ming.

Completely resolve the threat on the eastern front. This is the great opportunity that my father Khan has always dreamed of.

Kodaban was extremely angry because his younger brother gave up such a good opportunity.

But besides being angry, there was also a bit of joy.

My younger brother was busy fighting for power in Qazvin, and by throwing the Ming Dynasty envoys to me, he was actually giving me the initiative of a great opportunity.

Kodaban, along with his wife, six-year-old son Abbas Mirza, and his own guards, left Qazvin with Shen Wanxiang's envoys and headed straight for Isfahan. "Mr. Shen, what should we do next?"

"Let's talk about it when we get to Isfahan."

When they arrived in Isfahan, Kodaban asked again, "Mr. Shen, we are in Isfahan now."

"Now you can send a secret letter to Istanbul."

Kodaban and Ostagu were confused and looked at each other, thinking that the Ming people's plan was unfathomable.

After the letter was sent, Shen Wanxiang and Wang Yongji were not idle either. They first helped Kodaban to "attract investment" in Abbas and build it into a free port.

No matter who the ship was, whether from the Ottomans, Portugal, or India, it could enter and trade freely, and it soon became a commercial center covering the Persian Gulf region.

At the same time, with Isfahan as the center, it opened up Qazvin and Tabriz in the north, Herat and Kandahar in the east, and Kermanshah in the west, and the business was booming.

In the spring of the eighth year of the Wanli reign, the snow on the mountains had just melted when the Ottoman Vizialala Mustafa Pasha led his troops into Georgia and besieged Tbilisi, an important transportation hub in the Caucasus.

The importance of the Caucasus region was clear to everyone in the Persian court. In order to establish his authority, the newly enthroned Ismail II personally led tens of thousands of guards and tens of thousands of Kizilbash troops drawn from various places to march north.

Due to the dangerous terrain of the Caucasus, if the Persian army attacked from the Azerbaijan region in the east, they would definitely be blocked by the Ottomans at the most dangerous pass in the Kura River Valley, the Kazakh Castle.

There, one man could hold off ten thousand. The Ottomans only needed to send three to five thousand men to defend it, while the Persians, with more than 100,000 men, could not take it even after attacking for half a year.

So one of Ismail II's most wise confidants suggested going through Armenia, going around Tbilisi's flank, cutting off its access to the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman troops would surely be thrown into chaos, and then victory could be achieved in one fell swoop.

Ismail II followed the plan and personally led the main force through Armenia. However, as soon as he reached the Cheldr Lake area where the Ottoman Empire, Georgia and Armenia met, he fell into an ambush set by Lara Pasha.

The Persian army was defeated, with nearly 100,000 soldiers killed or wounded and more than 30,000 wounded. The Royal Guards fought desperately to protect the injured Ismail II and fled back to Tabriz.

Lara Pasha pursued the victory and captured Yerevan, the central city of Armenia. Ismail II continued to flee in a hurry and ran all the way to Tabriz.

Soon, the Persian defenders of Tbilisi, cut off from external aid, surrendered.

When the news came out, there was an uproar in the Persian government and the public.

Dilibis and Yerevan were only barely saved by Tahmasp I, who led the Persian army and fought bloody battles with the Ottomans several times, and even chose to give up the remaining areas of Mesopotamia.

As a result, Ismail II lost these two important cities not long after he ascended the throne.

How can he have the nerve to sit on the Shah's throne?

In Isfahan, Kodaban was shocked when he received the urgent letter. He immediately found Shen Wanxiang and Wang Yongji who were collecting Persian classics and "artworks" everywhere.
"Mr. Shen, what did you say to the Ottomans?"

"I just want to remind Sokollu Pasha and Lala Pasha about some of the current developments in the Persian court. These two are both heroes of the time. They know that Persia is unstable internally, so they naturally know what to do."

Kodaban narrowed his eyes, "You expect our Persian army to lose?"

"Your forces in the temple all have their own agenda. It's fine if you don't send troops, but you will definitely lose if you do." Shen Wanxiang spread his hands, "I only know that you will definitely lose, but where and how you will lose, I'm not a god, I don't know."

"That's enough." Kodaban sighed, "Is this what you call killing someone with a borrowed knife?"

"Good, Kodaban. You know our Thirty-Six Stratagems of Killing with a Borrowed Knife."

"Mr. Shen, Mr. Wang, if I ascend the throne of Shah, is Ming willing to cooperate with Persia to deal with the Khanate of Bukhara and the Khanate of Khiva?"

Shen Wanxiang and Wang Yongji looked at each other, their eyes full of uncontrollable joy, "No problem. You Persians need to stabilize the eastern front, and we Ming Kingdom also need to stabilize the southern front of the western front."

Wang Yongji added: "For the sake of the peace of our Ming Dynasty and your country, I have no choice but to make India suffer a little more."

That's right!

The Ming Dynasty exerted pressure from the north, and Persia exerted pressure from the west. The Bukhara people, Kyrgyz people, and Khivan people who were squeezed in the middle had no choice but to flee to Afghanistan.

The mountainous area is rugged and not rich, and cannot accommodate so many soldiers and people. As a result, the Afghans and some Bukharans, Kyrgyz and Khivans had to cross the Khyber Pass and flee to India.

After waiting for a few more months, Shen Wanxiang and Wang Yongji packed the first batch of books and "artworks" to be shipped back to the Ming Dynasty, and transported them to Gaolang Port via Abbas's ships, where they then transferred to Ming ships and were shipped back to the country.

In September of the eighth year of the Wanli reign, after several months of secret negotiations, all parties finally reached an agreement, and Ismail II, who had been bedridden, finally "died suddenly".

The court, courtiers and Kizilbash leaders sent envoys to Isfahan to welcome Kodaban back to Qazvin to ascend the throne.

"Mr. Shen, what should we do next?"

After Kodaban received the diplomatic envoys into the city of Isfahan, he immediately came to ask military advisor Shen Wanxiang.

"Tell them that you must take the throne of Shah in Isfahan. If you don't go to Qazvin, tell them to come to Isfahan."

Kodaban was stunned. "Are they willing to come?"

"Lao Ke, it's not you who wants to be the Shah, it's them who are begging you to be the Shah! When you ask for help, you should have the attitude of asking for help!"

Kodaban was enlightened.

If we don't take advantage of them now, we will be taken advantage of by them when we get to Qazvin.

After another two or three months of negotiations, Qazvin finally agreed to let Kodaban ascend the throne in Isfahan.

In the spring of the ninth year of the Wanli reign, an auspicious day was chosen in Persia, and the Persian royal family, ministers and local nobles gathered in Isfahan to support Kodaban's accession to the throne.

Having just accepted the loyalty and worship of his ministers, Kodaban hurried to find Shen Wanxiang.

"Mr. Shen, what should we do next?"

Shen Wanxiang and Wang Yongji looked at each other and answered mysteriously, "Of course it's killing people to establish authority."

"Kill someone to establish your authority?" Kodaban was shocked. "Who to kill?"

(End of this chapter)