The Sun and the Lion

Murad glanced at the riders who were still following him, and Barik on the side was still persuading: "Your Majesty, I still object to you doing this. Our remaining strength is already negligible, and we have not won over Malik or the Governor. Support. If you attack Safawi’s team rashly, the consequences will not be something we can afford.”

"Maybe, if I fail this time, I will hide in the depths of the desert." Murad was unmoved. He thought he could still run to a holy land deep in the desert to live in seclusion.

This was not the first time this group of exiles had plundered. After Murad fled into Syria, he failed to win acceptance from the Mamluks. The belongings carried by these exiles were not enough for them to last for long. After realizing that things were not going to turn around, Murad decided to rob Iranian caravans on the road to maintain their livelihood and save travel expenses.

After Murad heard that Ibrahim sent an envoy to Egypt, he planned to play a big game. If you succeed, you will not only get a large amount of property, but also sow discord between the two countries and increase Ibrahim's distaste for the Mamluks.

The riders who were waiting for their prey checked their equipment for the last time. Because it was difficult to obtain ordnance supplies, the riders were ordered by Murad to carefully care for and maintain their equipment after losing a lot of ordnance. By increasing revenue and reducing expenditure, these bandits can achieve sustainable development.

"Here you come, Your Majesty." The scout dismounted and quickly ran to Murad's side.

They chose to intercept the envoy in the mountains along the coast, which not only facilitated concealment, but also allowed them to quickly carry the stolen goods and flee north to the Ottomans to sell the stolen goods.

Murad personally went from the reverse slope to the top of the mountain to observe.

"Assault, catch them off guard!" Murad immediately ordered, and the riders rushed out quickly, rushing from the hillside to the road, and fired a few arrows along the way.

But this wave of operations was of no use. The ones protecting the mission were not ordinary caravan guards, but Qizilbash. Moreover, Assad and others were returning, so the return gifts from Anasir were not as many as what they had brought, and the entire team was not so bloated.

"Where are these idiots from?" When the red heads saw someone dared to ambush the diplomatic mission, they responded to the enemy in confusion. Their arrows were more accurate than the horse bandits, and they shot down several horses before they even engaged the enemy. bandit.

As soon as they fought, the horse bandits felt something was different. The guards in front of them had sophisticated armor hidden under their robes, and their combat skills were unmatched by ordinary caravan guards. What they didn't know was that the red heads took off their red hats and wrapped their white turbans around their helmets after entering the country to avoid suspicion.

The horse bandits concentrated their strength on one point, and they gathered all their troops to attack the center of the team, which gave the red heads an opportunity to surround them.

Murad, who was still observing the battle on the hillside, discovered that the other party was trying to surround his own riders, but he had already sent out all his men, and there was no effective communication method to notify the frontline riders to respond.

"Even if there are dozens of pigs, it will take them several hours to catch them!" Murad was furious and incompetent, and then said to the military chief who was still following him: "Let's go, let's leave now." Then he hit The horse turned around and prepared to leave.

Balik drew his sword and stabbed Murad's mount hard enough to frighten it. Murad was caught off guard and was thrown off his horse, and then he saw that his legs were stabbed through.

"You...what are you doing, Barik." Murad looked at Barik in shock as he put the knife back into its sheath and took out the rope.

"Do you think that if you hand me over, you can still be the leader of the Bonak tribe? You have heard about Arabian Iraq, right? Your tribe has long been destroyed by the Safavid butchers. Besides, you and I Same, betrayal, surrender and rebellion, insulting their faith..." Murad persuaded nonchalantly, but Barik just silently tied Murad into a rice dumpling and put him on the horse.

After getting on his mount, Barrick looked back at the battlefield: the horse bandits who rushed down to Zhutou had already sent, and the red heads were searching up the mountain based on the prisoners' confessions.

Barik has made up his mind. As the bandit leader, Murad has been offered a reward by the Syrian authorities. He can escort him to Aleppo to receive the reward and then go north to try his luck in Asia Minor under the control of the Ottomans. The chaotic border areas may It can bring him some opportunities.

At the same time, the red heads who had cleaned up the battlefield had learned the mastermind of the attack based on interrogation.

"Yusuf, it seems that you have such an important task to do as soon as you take office." Assad joked to the Aleppo consul. This attack involves the remnants of the Aries Dynasty, and things can't just stay like this. .

"Dear Vizier, if Murad really gets the support of the Mamluks..." Yusuf was a little uneasy. Maybe the other party would make fun of the diplomats. The Venetian consuls often had disputes with Italian businessmen. jail.

"Then this is not a matter that you and I can handle. After the report is reported, the King of Kings will argue with Malik." Assad shrugged.

"Your Excellency, the bodies have been taken care of, shall we go to Aleppo as usual?" the centurion came to inform.

"go."

After arriving in Aleppo, Assad and Yusuf met with the Governor of Aleppo.

"Your Excellency the Governor of Aleppo, this is our country's consul in Aleppo, Yusuf." As soon as they met, the three of them had a routine greeting, and Assad first introduced Yusuf.

"Your Majesty the Governor of Aleppo, my businessmen and I still need your care." Yusuf echoed.

The governor of Aleppo nodded, because he had received gifts before and he had a good impression of Safavid diplomats. He asked politely: "What brings you distinguished guests here?"

"That's right." At Assad's signal, Yusuf stood up and negotiated: "Did you take in the exile Murad of the Aries Dynasty before?"

"There was an exile named Murad who entered my jurisdiction and sent a request for help to me. I was only responsible for delivering the request for help to Saladin Castle, but I did not receive Malik's instructions, nor did I Provide any substantial assistance.”

"This group of bandits headed by Murad tried to attack our team on the way back. Fortunately, our guards were brave and annihilated these horse bandits, but the bandit leader escaped." Yusuf continued.

"What?" The governor of Aleppo was shocked. Since the letter asking for help was handed over to him, there has indeed been a group of rampant gangsters in the area who robbed and extorted Iranian caravans on the main roads. He had to send garrison troops to suppress the bandits, but each time he failed to annihilate all the bandits and capture the bandit leader.

But he still said without changing his expression: "The horse bandits you mentioned do exist. We have carried out many encirclement and suppression campaigns to protect road safety, looking for Shuyuan www.zhaoshuyuan.com but we have not been able to capture the bandit leader. Therefore, a reward was offered. I wonder if you have any strong evidence?"

Assad and Yusuf exchanged glances: "We have captured several prisoners and interrogated them. They can be taken to your prison for further interrogation."

"Okay." The governor nodded.

In the dungeons of Aleppo Castle, several bruised prisoners were forced to accept torture and interrogation by Mamluk interrogators. They unanimously admitted that they were Murad's former bodyguards and believed that their master had taken advantage of the chaos to escape.

Emir Mohammed, who accompanied the governor, expressed his opinion: "Your Excellency, there is no obvious doubt in their testimony, but we don't need to make an effort to arrest this Murad. Not long ago, someone took him there. Come and claim your reward, and now he is in prison.”

"Is that so?" the Governor asked.

"Yes." Muhammad immediately ordered: "Bring over the prisoner named Murad."

Murad, who was in prison, was speechless. He covered his bandaged wounds and pondered why God wanted his fate to be so miserable. A prince who was well-dressed and well-fed, and who responded to everything would now end up in such a miserable state. Not long ago, he had fantasized about being Zalandin, but now he was just a clown.

The cell door opened, and several Mamluks came in and dragged Murad away without any explanation.

"That's him, my lord." Several prisoners pointed out Murad tremblingly. Yusuf and the governor of Aleppo quickly reached a consensus. He handed over this insignificant prisoner to quell the possible diplomatic turmoil, while Assad Able to take him back to ask for reward from his master Ibrahim.

The last royal bloodline of the Aries Dynasty fell into the hands of the Safavids, waiting for his end.