The Imperial Age with the Resurgence of Han Style

Chapter 13
In the past December, Mahmoud, the leader of the Girzai tribe in Afghanistan, gradually grew impatient after besieging the city of Kerman for nearly five months, so he considered withdrawing his troops and retreating to Kandahar to spend the winter.But at this time, Governor Kerman in the city suddenly fell ill and died immediately after treatment failed, leaving the city immediately without a leader.After some heated discussions, a new successor was elected with difficulty.

Perhaps shocked by the brutality of the Afghans, the new governor immediately sent envoys to contact the Afghans after taking office, hoping to donate gold and silver in exchange for Mahmoud's withdrawal from the siege, so as to save countless hungry and cold refugees in the city. .

Since there was no heavy siege artillery to blow down the city wall, the Afghans could only use this most primitive and difficult siege method to force the defenders in the city to surrender.But Kerman's tenacity far exceeded their expectations. After five months of fighting and various epidemics, more than [-] tribal warriors had lost thousands of people. In addition, there were many discouraged warriors. The tribesmen fled directly back to Afghanistan, leaving Mahmoud's troops with only about [-] troops, and they had long lost confidence in continuing the siege.

When Kerman's envoy came to the camp and asked for gold and silver in exchange for the city, Mahmud immediately agreed.Afterwards, Mahmud received gold and silver worth about 2000 tomans (one toman is approximately equal to 1 taels of silver) paid by the city of Kerman, and led his troops to leave in a hurry.

But the Afghans did not return to Kandahar. Instead, they galloped northwest, bypassing Rafsanjan and heading towards Yazd.Because, in exchange for the safety of their own city, and out of a strong desire for revenge because they did not receive any rescue during the siege, the Kermans told the Afghans almost all of the troop garrison conditions in Persia.

Mahmoud, who had not made much profit, decided to try his luck and continued deep into the hinterland of Persia to find a few cities that were easy to attack and break them open to satisfy his men's desire to plunder.

There are more than [-] tribal warriors, most of whom are cavalry. The accompanying supplies are also carried on the backs of a large number of mules, horses and camels. They move extremely fast and are not afraid of being surrounded by the Persian army.

Facing the oncoming Afghans, the palace in Isfahan suddenly exploded.The Shah and his courtiers did not know whether the Afghans were targeting Yazd or the imperial capital.For a time, they fell into fierce quarrels and debates.

"The Grand Vizier of the Empire, Mohammad Quli Khan Shamru, advocated maintaining the same state of change and gathering all the troops near Isfahan in the city to wait for work. At the same time, he requested the Shah of the Empire to order an army from other provinces of the empire. Recruit an army to serve the king."

Zhang Guangping, the Minister of Qi in Persia, arranged a simple welcome dinner for several arriving army officers. During the dinner, he introduced some news from the Isfahan court to everyone.

"It stands to reason that the suggestion of the Grand Vizier of the Empire is a prudent move. The Afghans have traveled long distances, spanning thousands of miles, and penetrated deep into the heart of Persia. They have become a lonely force. Considering that the Afghans' siege in Kerman ended in failure. , which is enough to show that they are not good at attacking. If they can rely on the well-defended city of Isfahan to kill a large number of Afghans, their strength will be greatly reduced. At that time, the Shah's Guards and the Imperial Guards in the city launched a counterattack in time. Can defeat the Afghans."

"Even if the Afghans don't attack Isfahan in the end, it doesn't matter. After the troops from all over the country are ordered to gather in Isfahan, the Shah of the Empire can send a good general to lead the army to launch a counterattack against Afghanistan, and then attack Kandahar . Even if Mahmoud cannot be completely eliminated, it can take the opportunity to attack and weaken the Afghan rebel forces."

"However, factional fighting in the Safavid dynasty has become a common practice at the court. The governor of Arabistan (now Khuzestan Province in Iran) Wali Said Abdullah Mushasha relied on the Shah's favor. Resolutely opposed to the Grand Vizier's suggestion, he advocated using the [-] troops currently in Isfahan to directly attack the Afghans who came from afar. While they were alone and deep, besiege Mahmoud with superior forces. Kill him in the heart of Persia to avoid future troubles.”

"Then which suggestion does their Shah prefer?" Yan Shaowu asked in a timely manner.

"The Shah was still hesitant, but he himself was more inclined to the suggestion of the governor of Arabistan. He felt that summoning troops from all over the country to Isfahan would cost a lot of national funds and even disrupt the security of the capital. And the empire The Janissaries and the Shah's Guards were well-equipped and well-trained, and should be able to defeat the Afghans. In addition, the Shah also believed that a quick attack would not only stop the Afghans from continuing to cause trouble in other cities within the territory, but also solve Afghanistan's problems once and for all. As long as Mahmud and his troops are completely annihilated in Persia, it will greatly demonstrate the empire's prestige, and at the same time, it can also deter those Afghan tribes who continue to hold high the banner of rebellion."

"It is said that almost all Afghans are cavalry. They will definitely not watch the Persians coming from all directions. They can quickly evacuate Persia and escape back to Afghanistan before the Persian army attacks." Yan Shaowu couldn't help but shake his head after hearing this. , "It is not impossible for the Persians to take the initiative to attack, but the prerequisite is to clear the area where the Afghans pass to a certain extent, and then organize a powerful cavalry force to continuously attack the Afghans and delay their progress. Speed, providing the necessary assembly time for the various armies to launch a siege." "Haha..." Zhang Guangping chuckled a few times and said sarcastically: "The current Safavid dynasty, from the Shah to the ministers and even the governors of various places, , there are very few people who are truly willing to devote themselves wholeheartedly to this country. Don’t you think that the current situation in Persia is very similar to the Jin Kingdom’s southern invasion during the Jingkang period of the Song Dynasty hundreds of years ago?”

"Jingkang?...Will Persia also stage a Jingkang shame?"

Everyone suddenly burst into laughter.

Speaking of which, apart from the fact that the imperial Shah Sultan Hussein did not have the superb artistic attainments of Song Huizong, his various character traits such as being dull, incompetent, greedy for pleasure, timid and cowardly were all similar to that "frivolous" king of the Song Dynasty. Moreover, he indulged in excess, was keen on expanding his harem, and searched for beautiful women across the country.

According to some rumors from the market, the Shah of the Empire kept three thousand "girls like roses, with almond eyes and sweet lips" in the Farahabad Palace outside the city, and he also had at least two thousand "girls with figures like cypress trees..." ...the charming" young woman had a wonderful relationship.

As a devout Shia believer in the True God, the Shah of the Empire was an out-and-out drunkard.Alcoholism made him lazier and more eager to be alone - mainly because he didn't like to be with ministers, not including the beautiful women in the harem.He didn't like to hear bad news, lest it spoil his joy of drinking, so that almost all ministers blocked all information from him, intentionally or unintentionally.

Especially in 1699, when the Grand Vizier Muhammad Baqir Majlesi, who was most respected by the Shah, passed away, Sultan Hussey began to ignore state affairs for a long time, and all government affairs were taken over by his aunt Maryam. The female prince of Begum, the eunuchs of the harem and several grand viziers took over.

"Therefore, in the face of the increasingly chaotic political situation of the Safavid dynasty, we in Qi must take precautions and make various plans in advance. Take the Abbasid prince out of Isfahan and send him to a safe place. Then controlling it in the hands of our Qi State is an important matter that must be completed."

After joking about the "secrets" of the Safavid royal family, the dinner came to an end. Zhang Guangping stopped smiling, looked at the several army officers present with a serious expression, and started talking about business.

"Given that Prince Abbas is currently under house arrest, some special means may be needed to smuggle him out of Isfahan and bring him to Bushehr Port. However, this operation must not bring us all together." The country is involved and must complete this task under the premise of absolute concealment. If this matter is exposed, our country, Qi, may face unpredictable diplomatic risks. In this case, you must be mentally prepared."

"Mr. Minister, 220 officers and soldiers of our department have been ordered to rush to Isfahan. All the people and the land are living. All actions and behaviors are subject to the orders of the Minister." Yan Shaowu said solemnly.

"Well, very good." Zhang Guangping was very satisfied with Yan Shaowu's attitude. He was afraid that these army soldiers would not know how to restrain themselves when they arrived in a prosperous metropolis like Isfahan, causing some trouble and ruining the big thing.

"Next, Colonel Yin Shenghui (Major) of the Black Guard will give you a detailed introduction to this action plan."

(End of this chapter)