The Sun and the Lion

The Crimean Tatar envoy followed the guide all the way south from Trabzon and first arrived in Diyarbakır to stay for a while. His itinerary was strictly arranged and he was not allowed to leave the city until he received a reply from the King of Kings.

Because it was chosen as the starting point for transportation, this city with a mainly Kurdish population has turned into a prosperous military town. Several large permanent military camps and supporting storage facilities have been built on the outskirts of the city, which can accommodate a large army to be stationed for a long time. , most of the troops returning from Ankara were stationed here.

However, the Tatar envoy who was "imprisoned" in the governor's mansion had no intention of observing everything in the place like a traveler or spy. After spending several days eating and drinking, he got permission to meet the King of Kings and went south. Baghdad, and enjoy relevant benefits at the stations along the way.

"Dear King of Kings, Foreign Minister Daiminli Glehan greets you." The Tatar envoy who was summoned into the palace in Baghdad respectfully knelt down and bowed to Ibrahim, who was sitting above him, and bowed to the ground several times. Still maintaining a kneeling position.

The defeat of Osman, the pleasant week-long trip on the road, and the pomp and circumstance in the palace made the envoy who was asking for something even more aware of the power and wealth of the king in front of him. Maintaining a submissive posture is the correct attitude in communication.

Ibrahim ignored the messenger who remained in a kneeling position - the blanket on the ground was quite thick anyway, and his knees would not directly touch the cold and hard tiles - and went directly to the topic: "Tell me, what is your master sending you here to do?" What are you talking about with me?"

Before speaking, the Tatar envoy fell to the ground again: "Dear Your Majesty, my monarch and I failed to realize your power, and I hope you will forgive us. Our country has made a terrible mistake and ignorantly got involved with you. The war with the Ottomans, King Khan hopes to resolve this misunderstanding with you."

After speaking, the envoy took out the diplomatic document and presented it to him with both hands above his head.

Now that he had learned the diplomatic purpose of the other party, Ibrahim only glanced at the content. Except for a series of flattering words at the beginning, the content was no different from what the envoy dictated.

"Go and call in the Tartar prince."

After Sadet was captured, he received treatment befitting his status. The Tatar prince wore new clothes made of Persian satin, a woolen coat, and a fur hat. He appeared in front of the envoy with a red face, which made the envoy's heart hanging. Let it go a little bit.

After the captive prince saluted, Ibrahim continued to advance the conversation: "If this noble man had not fallen into my hands due to the war, I am afraid that your Khan would never have thought of sending an envoy to our country. We all know it, so I will not hide it. Tuck it in, Khanzad of your country is my prisoner, and his body now belongs to me. There is no doubt that your country should be aware of this."

When he said "His body belongs to me", Sadet glanced at Ibrahim secretly, fearing that this unisex monarch would ask him to sleep with him one night, and he had the bad habits of the defeated in the battle. However, compared to the specially trained male-female slaves, he is older and does not look like a male or female. Senior Babur has also been poisoned.

"Yes, yes, the foreign minister is here to discuss this matter with you. I wonder how you can release His Highness Sadet? As long as it is what our country can do, the Great Khan is willing to do anything." The Tatar envoy then smiled apologetically.

Ibrahim thought for a while and came up with an offer: "Settlement of 50,000 ducats at one time, and another 5,000 ducats every year for ten years as war compensation. When will the down payment of 50,000 be paid and given to the people? Here is Before that, I will continue to arrange for him to stay in my palace, maybe this noble man won’t want to leave in the end.”

The total compensation of 100,000 ducats is not a small amount, especially for a regime like the Crimean Khanate with a single financial source. How many ducats can be exchanged for the livestock that the ministries pay tribute to Bakhchisaray every year? What can really generate income for the Khan is the slave trade. Fortunately, the Mediterranean slave market has not yet shrunk. However, the source of slaves is unstable, and the profits obtained from slave exports every year are also unstable.

"This is impossible, Your Majesty, our country is a frontier country, the land is poor and the people are poor, so we can't raise so much money." The Tatar envoy looked embarrassed.

Ibrahim knew that Kerim Khan would definitely not be able to afford so much cash, but the corpses of the Golden Horde had a location advantage, and this was what he was interested in. So he won't say "Is it difficult to do? Then don't do it", but will give you another choice.

"I know everything you said. I also understand your country's difficulties, but I know that your country has a very profitable business." After being reminded, the Tatar envoy knew what Ibrahim wanted, and he immediately said Kaffa and Azov are still in the hands of the Ottomans, so they can't use the Ottoman ports.

The attendant took out a map from the corner, and Ibrahim drew an imaginary line from the Crimean Peninsula to the northern shore of the Caspian Sea: "You can ask your Great Khan to threaten the Ottomans to hand over these two ports. Find Shuyuan www.zhaoshuyuan.com Then I will entrust Frankish merchants to help me. If I don’t have the courage, I can organize a few caravans to Astrakhan every year. I have a trading station there. The specific value is based on the Astrakhan Bazaar. Mine The agents will take care of it all. Remember, you can only have more slaves worth one hundred thousand ducats, but not less."

Judging from Ibrahim's tone, it seems that Astrakhan is already his territory. Perhaps he is threatening to punish the Crimean Khanate from here if he does not cooperate? This is what the messenger thought.

"The foreign minister must convey it." The Tatar envoy said that he would return to the country to ask the Khan for instructions. Ibrahim finally reminded: "Your country can send an envoy from Astrakhan next time. There is still a risk in crossing the Black Sea."

Ibrahim also thought about opening up the Crimean Tatars as a new channel to obtain Ottoman intelligence, but it was too uncontrollable, and it would be easy to alert the snake directly through diplomats. Currently, the Grai family still maintains a vassal relationship with the Ottomans. For the time being, he is still loyal to his lord.

Venice still lives up to Shah's expectations in terms of intelligence sharing. According to the ambassador, Selim used the winter in Rumelia to build up his army and military, and it seemed that he would have to wait a few years to make a comeback.

As for who the reorganized Ottoman army will deal with, Ibrahim thinks it will not be him. The gap in strength between the two countries is here. In addition, Roma's rebel militia has also transformed into a regular army by accepting fiefs. If it dares to invade, He will be defeated and returned.

However, his negotiations with the Holy See did not go smoothly. The Pope privately expressed his separation from the Knights Hospitaller's aggressive behavior through the Venice microphone, and that "the Pope is only a spiritual leader" and cannot restrict the Knights' actions in the Eastern Mediterranean. The behavior of the Order should not be violated. Ascended to the Holy See.

Ibrahim is naturally dissatisfied with such pushback, but currently he has no means of revenge.