The Sun and the Lion

In the hall of the palace in Kabul, Ulugh Beg looked at the human head displayed to him in a box and fell into deep thought.

Ibrahim captured a large number of Guregani soldiers through the siege of Kandahar and the Battle of Daman. He gathered a group of prisoners by drawing lots and asked them to bring Ibrahim's letters and specially prepared "gifts" back to Kabul.

Ulugh Beg first checked the gift. The attendants opened the box and found that it contained human heads. In order to facilitate Ulugh Beg's inspection, Ibrahim thoughtfully ordered someone to embalm it with lime to prevent the head from rotting to the point of being unrecognizable.

When he took out the head, the fabric underneath was soaked in blood and had dried.

The most luxuriously decorated box contained Miran Shah's head. When he saw his son like this, Ulugh Beg had lost the courage to look at other boxes.

He tremblingly took Ibrahim's letter from the guard.

“To the foolish Emir of Kabul, Ulugh Beg:

"Are you satisfied with the gift I asked your army to send back? After seeing this, you must already know the consequences of being my enemy. I can give you another chance, hand over everything you have, and let me slaughter you. The only way to survive!"

The signature at the bottom is Ibrahim's monogram.

Ibrahim's attitude was clearly revealed in the letter, and Ulugh Beg and his staff no longer had to guess. Such a tragic defeat was enough to destroy the foundation of his rule. The loss of a large city and the loss of nearly 20,000 elite soldiers had brought an end to his ruling career.

At this time, the various political regimes in Gulegheni were very loose, and the various emirs did not have strong binding force on the Burkes under their command. When the building was about to collapse, they led the troops to change the court as if they were drinking water. For Burke, the quality of loyalty to his emperor was extremely rare.

Even if Ulugh Beg is willing to resist, the military leaders below will not fight a fatal situation for him. It is more likely that they will abandon their fiefdom and go north to Hussite.

While Ulugh Beg was thinking about his future, the Burkes present were also worried about their future. They kept stealing glances at Ulugh Beg who was sitting on the main seat and was losing his temper, thinking about how to betray their monarch. .

An eerie silence enveloped the hall and then spread throughout Kabul.

…………

Ibrahim looked at the city in front of the mountain pass in the distance, and the guide on the side pointed to the city wall and said: "Your Majesty, ahead is Ghazni. After passing here and passing through a narrow mountain road, you can reach Kabul."

Ghazni is the transportation hub connecting Kabul and Kandahar. For the army to march, if you want to attack Kabul from south to north, it is best to control Ghazni first.

After capturing Kandahar and resting for two or three days, he left the five red-headed regiments with the largest losses to stay in Kandahar. They were responsible for ensuring control of the city and surrounding villages, taking the initiative to force the mountain tribes to surrender, and taking the spoils of Kandahar. Transfer to Herat.

Ibrahim and the senior officers were very convinced that the Safavid army could easily take over the city in front of them. Didn't Burke stationed in Ghazni and his army annihilate Daman together?

When the Safavid army spread out as far as the eye could see in the city, the city gates opened wide and a group of people poured out of the city. They held the flag high but did not carry any armor, so Ibrahim allowed them to come to him.

The representative who came immediately knelt down: "Great conqueror, respected King of Kings, you have accomplished your martial arts in Kandahar, and your widely praised reputation has made the people of Ghazni willing to surrender to your glory." In exchange for surviving, now we only have this humble request, and we hope you will accept it."

After speaking, he presented the city gate and castle keys with both hands and raised them above his head.

Ibrahim motioned to the bow holder on the side to take the key from his hand, indicating that he accepted the surrender of Ghazni City: "Now, you and everyone in this city are my subjects, and I order you to get up first and lead the way. .”

Others in the delegation who came to surrender returned to the city to preach the peace notice to the residents in order to calm the panic in the city.

In addition, they even issued an order that all citizens in the city over seven years old and under seventy years old should gather in the streets to see the King of Kings, pay tribute to their new master, and thank the Safavid army for not killing.

Ibrahim rode through the streets, which were crowded with people from outside to inside the city, and countless citizens waved to him. Faced with the unknowingly true and false kindness of the citizens, he responded in a friendly manner, smiling and waving to the crowd, as if he was a very popular figure among the people.

The kind attitude of the King of Kings made many citizens feel relieved, and even the murderous bow-wielding man and the red head behind him became less vicious.

The treatment of the local Sunni clergy also improved. No one lynched them or publicly executed them. They could pack up their belongings and flee to India.

When you arrive at the castle, look for Shuyuan www.zhaoｓhuyuan. com The local powerful people and officials gathered together. They lined up according to their official positions and knelt down to him and kissed the tassels of the military flag. They were not qualified to kiss the toes of Ibrahim's boots and rings.

Then the servants presented delicacies for the nobles present to enjoy, and the treasury in the city was also freely available to the Safavid army. The quartermaster unceremoniously took away a large amount of military rations and ordered the recruitment of weapons craftsmen from all over the city to serve the Safavid army.

Ghazni's surrender successfully pleased Ibrahim, but he did not intend to stay here for a long time. After arranging the rest of the troops, he sent a letter to Kabul and sent an envoy to persuade him to surrender.

Ibrahim selected from the civilian staff accompanying him. He did not bring a professional diplomat with him on this expedition. He asked his staff: "I have a difficult task. I need someone to go with my letter." Kabul persuades them to surrender.”

The staff looked at each other, and finally it was Kanbar who took the initiative and said, "Dear Sheikh, the student is willing to go."

Ibrahim looked at the Ethiopian, a very rare African-American member of the sect. No one knew how he came to Iran from Ethiopia and converted to Islam.

In short, he was very obsessed with the teachings of the Safavid order and was considered one of Ibrahim's most enthusiastic disciples. However, he had not shown any great talents before and he did not have a noble status. Ibrahim then He has not been appointed to any important position. He has just been helping Ibrahim process documents in the big account like other clerks.

This time he took the initiative to ask for help, probably because he wanted to make Ibrahim realize his value.

"Okay, then I will leave the task to you, Kanbar." Regardless of whether the persuasion to surrender is successful or not, it will not change the future of Kabul that will surrender to Safavid.