Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War.

Chapter 335 Nabataeans
"I don't know much about military issues, so I may need you to explain in more detail. What is the current level of our navy?" Cleopatra asked without hesitation, openly admitting her knowledge gaps.

"To be honest, we can barely protect ourselves. The Arabs in Yemen or the Aksumites in southern Nubia are no match for us. But as you know, the main forces are in the sea area between Alexandria and Cyprus to maintain order, and it is impossible to transfer them away. Most of our ships are too heavy to be towed away from land, which can easily cause irreversible damage to the ships.

So if we really want to count, we can only count our fleet in the Red Sea."

Orville couldn't help but shrug when he talked about the latter part. The number of their fleet in the Red Sea was very limited, and they even had difficulty in protecting themselves.

After returning from Greece, Cleopatra obviously realized a problem - the current situation around Greece was too chaotic, and transferring the navy would definitely lead to pirates from there coming to rob, a consequence that neither of them could accept, so the existing military force must not be diverted.

Cleopatra continued, "It seems that we don't have many options. Mercenaries or shipbuilding, roughly speaking, there are only these two."

"That's about it. Do the math. Will the treasury still allow us to build ships?"

"Speaking of money, of course we have some. The confiscation of the temple has eased our financial situation, but we don't have much spare money. Our recent expenses have been quite high, with the reorganization of the army and the construction of national projects. The spare money must be used to redeem land and repair cities. I can only give you this much with the money I have." Cleopatra raised her hand and showed a not-so-satisfactory figure. It could only be said that it was barely okay after Orville added a few points himself.

"In addition, we have to consider another problem - our timber reserves are not enough. Egypt is not a place that produces a lot of timber, especially the high-quality timber used for shipbuilding. We have to import it from other places, and the round trip costs are relatively high. Because we buy a lot of goods, there are not many surplus goods in the hands of foreign timber merchants. If we want to buy more, we either have to increase the price, or we have to import it from more distant places such as Gaul and Iberia, which costs much more."

Cleopatra could not fight a war but she was good at settling accounts and she calculated every bill clearly. After listening to her, Orville's idea of ​​the size of the navy was much smaller.

To be fair, he didn't want to use mercenaries, because they were unstable and had the risk of betraying his own people. It was better to build ships and train soldiers by himself. It was also better to use Vikings, because they came from other places after all, and their foundation was very weak, so it was easier to control them. Most of the sea mercenaries were local tyrants, and Orville didn't want to use such people, nor did he dare to use them.

Seeing through Orwell's thoughts, Cleopatra tried to give him some advice: "Why not ask the emperor to solve the problem? Since we are opening up trade routes for the entire Mediterranean world, this shouldn't be difficult, right?"

Orville flatly refused: "We are similar to you Greeks. We have a lot of internal strife and peace. If the matter is exposed to my father, the Senate will definitely know about it. They are a bunch of insatiable pythons. Unless you want to share our vested interests with these people, forget it."

If the matter is raised to the level of "opening up trade routes for the entire Mediterranean world", then people from the entire world, or the world's high-ranking officials, will certainly flock here like vultures, vying for a share of the pie. Orville now intends to accumulate funds through foreign trade, and at the same time, he does not want those people to know too early and thus alert the enemy, so he must be kept secret. What happened in the eastern part of the empire must be resolved in the eastern part of the empire. After thinking for a while, Cleopatra mentioned another name: "How about Herod Architas II? We, especially you, have always had a good relationship with him, and we have had a lot of business cooperation. If we ask him to hire a navy, will it be a little more reliable?"

"They do have some naval power, but it is limited to the eastern coast of the Mediterranean. The most I can ask him to do is to provide some sailors and timber. The impact on the overall situation is very limited."

This made Cleopatra a little stumped. After thinking hard for a long time, a cold light flashed in her eyes: "I have another idea, but it sounds a little cruel. This is the only solution."

"You tell me, I'll listen."

"We will now secretly send out a small merchant fleet, pretending that they are returning with spices from India. All configurations and personnel composition should be similar to the fleet that Ivar attacked. Remember to make them look miserable, preferably in tatters, and with slightly weaker armed forces.

We will start to return halfway through the voyage, and the fleet will sail close to the Nabataeans' waters. Once those people take action, I don't need to say much about what happens next, right? The Romans often take advantage of the situation, and I don't believe you won't do it."

The so-called Nabataeans are generally the residents of present-day Jordan and surrounding areas. They are considered a branch of Arabs. After the decline of the successor Seleucid Empire, they took advantage of the ruling vacuum to rise and became a relatively important force in the Red Sea. They make a living by commerce and animal husbandry, and are now in their heyday.

When it comes to this nation, perhaps not many people know about it, but when it comes to Aqaba (the city in Lawrence of Arabia) and the ancient city of Petra, more people probably know about it.

The ancient city of Petra was an important city and economic and trade center of the Nabataeans. It was also one of the most important commodity distribution centers along the Red Sea coast at that time. A large number of commodities would be transported to this city and then transferred to Parphi or Egypt by camel caravans.

This city will decline due to economic and political factors in the future, but it is still a prosperous big city now. Cleopatra wants to target these people. Unlike pirates on the sea, these people can escape but the temple cannot. The city is here. To strangle the throat of the city is to strangle the throat of these Nabataeans. They also have a strong navy and can help Orville ensure the safety of the area around the Red Sea.

In addition to things on the water, the tribute from this wealthy city itself is also considerable. These merchants also control a large number of desert trade routes, which can bring amazing profits. For Cleopatra, who is a little short of money, this is a big fat blood bag, the kind that a few bites of it can help Egypt recover quickly.

(End of this chapter)