The Sun and the Lion

After several pulls, Yusuf still very cautiously and tactfully rejected the Safavid army's proposal to build a fortress and garrison in Goa, and only allowed the Safavid fleet to dock in the port for supplies.

Apart from this, conditions including granting trading privileges to Iranian merchants were accepted by the Sultan. Seeing Yusuf's insistence, the envoy was afraid that forceful persecution would directly lead to a breakdown in relations between the two countries, so he temporarily shelved the construction of the fortress and avoided talking about it.

After all, the Sultan of Bijapur recognized Safavid as his elder brother because of his past relationship with the Safavid order and his affirmation of religious belief and strength. It was impossible for Ibrahim to send a single envoy to Bijapur directly. From admiring followers to dutiful sons or puppets.

This made Yusuf relieved. It seemed that the foreign country was not unreasonable. He quickly ignored these unpleasantness and continued to discuss the economic, trade and religious issues between the two countries with the envoy. During this period, the envoy was also responsible for understanding the situation in India thousands of miles away. The King of Kings provides reference.

Talking about the diplomatic situation in the Deccan region, the most prominent one is the struggle between Hinduism and Devabha. At this time, Vijayanagar is still full of hostility. Yusuf is worried that they will take advantage of the disintegration of the Bahmani Sultanate. The weak period of the Northern Expedition to Muslin.

For this reason, Yusuf asked the envoy: "Please tell the King of Kings when you go back that our country urgently needs enough power to carry out jihad with the infidels in the south. I hope that the King of Kings can support a group of elite troops in our country." , Ghazi who is aspiring to the cause of jihad.”

In response to this request, the envoy did not directly give a negative reply, but only guaranteed: "For loyal vassals and devout believers, our country naturally has an unshirkable responsibility, and our country will do its best to help as much as possible."

I'll help as much as I can, but I haven't decided how.

In the next few days, Yusuf visited the Safavid warship anchored in the port of Goa. Not knowing anything about the navy, he only thought that the size of the ship was very large, and the shape of the hull was different from what he knew.

The sailors then unloaded the matchlocks, breech-loaded swivel guns and naval guns and transported them to the shore under the arrangement of the envoy. The Sultan expressed curiosity about these weapons, which he had never seen before, and asked the officer who led the sailors ashore about the functions of these weapons.

The group of people came to the shooting range. First, the sailors fired at the targets with matchlock guns, then the breech-loaded swivel guns fired at a group of targets, and finally the naval guns fired at a temporary wall.

After this demonstration, Yusuf became very interested in these new things. After the shooting performance, he immediately said to the envoy: "Your Excellency the envoy, the weapons you just showed to our country at the shooting range should have a lot of surplus in our country." , if possible, I ask the King of Kings to sell some to me and send instructors to assist our army in its use."

"I wonder how much your country wants to buy?" the envoy asked.

Yusuf thought for a while. He was still unsure of the actual role of these novel weapons on the battlefield, so he planned to purchase them on a small scale to experience them. If it can meet his expectations, then increase the purchase intensity.

The envoy's trip in the next few weeks was not limited to Goa, but entered the interior, traveling with the Sultan and his entourage to the city of Bijapur, visiting the former governor and the territory and people under the Sultan's rule.

In addition to the glamorous side, the envoy also observed the Sultan's dilemma - although this palace was a fragment after the collapse of the Bahmani Sultanate, the majority of the people under its rule were still Hindus. In order to rule this part of the people, Yusuf Fu needs to cooperate with Brahman. As a Muslim, he also donates property to Hindu temples in order to win people's hearts.

Among Muslims, the Shia do not have an overwhelming advantage. The Sunni subjects under their rule are quite critical of the decision to establish Shia as the orthodox faith, and even the vizier directly opposed it in real name.

The envoy recorded the real conditions in Bijapur that he saw one by one. After these records are compiled, they will be sent to the palace in Tabriz.

However, just as the two countries were having friendly exchanges, the war situation in Cochin took a turn for the better, and news that shocked the entire Malabar Coast gradually spread.

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From spring to summer, Pereira and all the remaining Portuguese had held the fort at Cochin for several months. During this period, Zamorin continued to launch large-scale attacks, but the rivers and lagoons greatly restricted the Calicut army and were uncoordinated. and rigid actions made them completely targets for the Portuguese. Find bookstore www.zhaoshuyuan.com

A total of seven attacks failed due to the brave resistance of the Portuguese and the Cochin garrison. According to statistics, more than 5,000 people died directly, and the number of injured and infected with cholera and other diseases was conservatively estimated to be over 10,000. In addition, Deserters, all the losses combined have destroyed nearly half of the 50,000 troops brought by Zamorin.

As for Calicut's fleet, they suffered no additional losses because they avoided the battle, which also meant that they did not play their due role in the siege.

The combination of these setbacks made Zamorin unbearable. His will to fight had been exhausted by the siege that had made no progress for several months. After several nights of weighing and psychological struggle, he finally ordered the withdrawal.

The Calicut army that had swept in like a tide now receded like a tide, leaving only corpses and ordnance that were too late to collect for the victors to dispose of. Pereira overlooked the battlefield from the top of the main building, and in a comfortable mood asked the clerk to write a briefing note to be sent back home.

"With God's blessing, we succeeded in defeating these evil invaders through careful use of wisdom and strength. In the name of our Lord Manuel, the great Portugal will gain many more victories in India."

The Portuguese victory at Cochin triggered a political earthquake on the Malabar Coast, with growing perceptions that these intruding outsiders were invincible. First, the old Zamorin, who had lost all his authority, ordered the throne to be passed on to his nephew and lived in seclusion. At the same time, the vassal cities of Calicut began to secretly communicate with the Portuguese and began to choose to bet on the next war.

Also because of the failure of the war, a large number of Muslim merchants lost confidence in Zamorin and began to leave Calicut with goods and merchant ships for other ports that had not been affected by the war. This undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to the economy of Calicut.