The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 160 Why negotiate terms if we can take it?
Jacob Friedman fled before the battle of Algiers.

But he stayed outside the city for a few days and confirmed information from various sources through some of his employees.

Confirming the fall of Algiers and the reports of those pirates were true, the Ming Dynasty really had rifles with a long range, a fast rate of fire and a very high hit rate.

Then he immediately rushed to Rabat, the capital of Morocco, to meet with the Moroccan Sultan Mohammed III.

Friedman warned Muhammad with a deliberately exaggerated tone:
"The Ming Dynasty should have occupied Algiers and Tunisia, and will continue to attack Morocco. Your Majesty the Sultan must be prepared.

"The soldiers and officers of the Ming Dynasty were extremely cruel, and would kill, burn, and rob at the slightest dissatisfaction.

"The pirates in the Sultan's jurisdiction have robbed merchants from the American Kingdom of the Ming Wu Wang Alliance, and have become enemies with the Ming.

“Once captured by the Ming Dynasty, your entire clan will be exterminated, which means all your relatives will be beheaded and executed.

“At the same time, the performance of their weapons and equipment far exceeds that of other European countries, and conventional line infantry tactics are simply unable to confront them head-on.

“Based on the experience of Tripoli and Algiers, I believe that only by having soldiers change into ordinary civilian clothes and hide in the city to deal with the Ming army can we save our city and civilians.

"Your Majesty the Sultan should also change into civilian clothes and leave the palace, hiding in the mountains and forests outside the city or directly go abroad."

After listening to Friedman, Mehmed III seemed to be shocked:

"Are you serious? Will the Ming people really execute the entire family of a captive? Why haven't I heard of such news?"

Friedman nodded seriously:

"Yes, it's absolutely true. There is a kind of criminal law in the Ming Dynasty called 'clan execution', which means killing the whole family.

"Not only will they kill the couple and their children, but also all relatives who have a common ancestor five generations back."

Mehmed III opened his mouth wide:
“This is horrible, but we can’t possibly implement the method you mentioned.

"If we hide our soldiers among the citizens, they will most likely be betrayed by them."

Friedman spread his hands and said:
"This is the only way I can think of at the moment. If you think it's impossible, you can escape now.

"If we hold on, we don't need to hold on for too long. The situation will change within a month at most..."

Mehmed III frowned and remained silent for a few seconds:

"No... maybe there is another way..."

Friedman asked subconsciously:

"what way?"

Mehmed III suddenly raised his head and ordered:

"Guards, capture this Judas!"

The four guards around him immediately rushed up and grabbed Friedman's body.

Friedman was shocked:
"Are you crazy? It's useless to arrest me. The Ming people are coming. You will all die. You will all die!"

Mehmed III stood up from his throne:

"You damned Judases, there is really not a single truth coming out of your mouths.

"Why didn't you tell me that the Ming people had powerful shrapnel shells and rapid-fire rifles with a range of hundreds or even thousands of meters?
“On the contrary, I have never heard that the Ming people would execute all captives and their entire families, especially tribal leaders who surrendered voluntarily.

"And you told me they would do that? To trick me into fighting the Ming to the death?

"My subordinates and I have never kidnapped merchants from the American Kingdom. Those things were indeed done by pirates.

“Now Ming and Spain are allies, and the two sides have cooperated to attack Algiers.

"Morocco can no longer remain immune. The more intense the resistance now, the more severe the retaliation will be in the end.

“If I adopt your strategy, relying on all the civilians in the city, and deal with the Ming soldiers in the city, it may completely infuriate the Ming officers.

“I can hardly guarantee that they will not learn the wheel method that the Mongols used.

"Now, you, the Judas who instigated the North African tribes to become enemies of the Ming Dynasty, and all the pirate leaders who kidnapped American merchants will be my gifts to the Ming Dynasty.

"I will lead the entire Morocco to open the city and surrender, and I should be able to gain a good status in the Ming Empire."

After hearing what Muhammad III said, Friedman was so angry that he was mad and regretted it so much.

I didn't expect the other party to be so sensitive and decisive.

When he realized that things were impossible, he decided to surrender and regarded himself as a gift.

Friedman, feeling extremely frustrated, tried his best to fight for it:

“Most of what I said was true, including the fact that the situation would change within a month.

"You only need to hold on for a month, and there is a high probability that you will maintain your current independent status and power.

"If you surrender now, you will lose everything."

Mehmed III ignored Friedman's final attempts to persuade him, as the man's credibility had been ruined.

Mehmed III gave the order seriously and watched with his own eyes as the guards chained Friedman and locked him directly in the basement of his own palace.

Then he began to prepare gifts for the King of Wu of the Ming Dynasty, the officers and soldiers of the Ming Dynasty.

He also arranged for a fleet to patrol the sea around Rabat with a white flag, and if they encountered the Ming fleet, they would directly invite them to go ashore.
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The Wu State and American high-level officials in charge of the North African operation discussed for most of the day, and finally decided that they should follow the king's requirements to the greatest extent possible.

We still have to fight as quickly as possible.

It was finally decided to split the troops into two groups, with the Japanese Army responsible for attacking Tunisia and the American Expeditionary Force responsible for attacking Morocco.

Wu's riflemen also split into two groups to support the battle in two directions. On April 1787, 4, the two armies launched an attack at the same time.

The situation in Tunisia is indeed as Xu Qing investigated. Because of the plague three years ago and the bombing of Venice, it has basically lost its combat effectiveness.

The Japanese army launched a direct ground offensive and quickly broke through the local defenses.

They basically did not encounter much resistance, and it took only more than three days to capture the city of Tunis and the port of Bizerte.

The Governor of Tunisia, Abu Mohammed Hamuda ibn Ali Pasha, surrendered.

The progress in Morocco was even more unexpected.

As the Ming fleet approached Rabat, it encountered a Moroccan patrol boat flying a white flag.

The other side surrendered directly and accepted the takeover by the Ming landing troops.

Then he sent people to the Ming fleet to explain the Moroccan Sultan's intention to submit.

This means that they captured the merchants who instigated the North African pirates to become enemies of the Ming Dynasty, and captured all the pirates who hijacked American merchants.

And invited the Ming army to go to Rabat to receive these criminals.

The Moroccan Sultan's condition was that the entire territory of Morocco be completely open to the Ming Dynasty and that the Alaouite family serve as the hereditary governor of Morocco.

The Ming Dynasty promised to protect the personal safety and social wealth of the Alawi Sultanate and local people.

After listening to the report, Li Anbang was obviously a little surprised:

"Could this be a false surrender and an ambush?"

However, Chief of Staff Zhang Beining smiled and said:
“Although we cannot help but prevent it, the possibility is not high.

"The Moroccans are quite clever. They probably knew they couldn't resist, so they decided to surrender.

“We can first send a small force ashore and ask the Sultan of Morocco to come out of the city and surrender in person.

“Demand that they hand over the defense of the city directly to our forces.

"If the other party is willing, then it is true surrender. If they refuse, then it is a fraud."

Li Anbang asked subconsciously:
"What about the conditions of the Sultan of Morocco?"

Zhang Beining said directly:

"Of course we can't agree to that. We can capture the city directly and occupy Morocco directly.

“We are also ready to capture it, so why should we give them any promises?

“Retaining these original local tyrants will directly affect the future stability of the city.

“But since they have taken the initiative to surrender, they will certainly not be left without any care.

“As soldiers, we can only promise to protect Sudan’s own wealth and life.

"As for the other conditions, he will have to apply to the King and His Majesty himself."

Li Anbang nodded gently:
"That's right. We can't make any additional promises to them. We are only responsible for taking over the occupied areas. If they refuse, we will launch an attack.

"Anyway, in half a month at most, the Suez temporary railway will be completed, and by then we can conquer it no matter what."

Li Anbang sent a staff officer with an interpreter ashore on a steamboat to explain the Ming Dynasty's conditions to the Moroccan Sultan Muhammad III.

After hearing this, Muhammad III became worried. Complete surrender could only guarantee his own safety...

After hesitating for a while, Muhammad III bargained with Li Anbang's representative:
“If the Great Ming General cannot agree to our promise, I need to arrange for someone to ask His Majesty the Great Ming Emperor and His Royal Highness the King of Wu.

"Then we can't just hand the city over to the Ming army. We can wait for the response from His Majesty the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty and His Royal Highness the King of Wu."

The staff member arranged by Li Anbang responded very directly:
“You hand over the city, and we will take over the city.

"You are one of the foreign leaders who voluntarily surrendered to the country, and your majesty and the king will grant you status according to this standard.

“If you refuse to hand it over, we will capture it ourselves.

"You are the leader of the foreign captives who resisted the heavenly soldiers, and His Majesty and the King will punish you according to the corresponding standards.

"I'll give you an hour to think about it. When our fleet reaches the shore, we can either go ashore to take over the city or attack and seize it."

When Muhammad III heard the translated words, he felt extremely sad and depressed.

The Ming people left no room for bargaining.

But it is understandable that since the Ming Dynasty could take over the city, why should it accept its own conditions?
What can be obtained on the battlefield must also be obtained at the negotiating table.

Otherwise, don't talk and just keep fighting.

After hesitating for forty minutes, Muhammad III finally could not hold on any longer and decided to accept the Ming military officer's request.

Arrange followers to follow the Ming Dynasty's staff on board to welcome the Ming Dynasty's army ashore.

After receiving the news, Li Anbang arranged for most of the warships to continue floating on the sea and sent a regiment ashore to control the dock first.

Mohammed III and others stayed on the dock without making any gesture of resistance.

Then Li Anbang, as the commander of the operation, finally arrived at the dock and accepted the surrender of Moroccan Sultan Mohammed III.

After the two sides introduced themselves to each other, they held a simple entry ceremony to allow the Ming army to take over the city of Rabat.

Also handed over were the merchant Jacob Friedman and all the pirates who had participated in the hijacking of American merchant ships.

(End of this chapter)