"I don't dare. My Majesty, please, Ambassador Zhang."
Proudness turned into pride, and demonstration turned into demonstration. Fan Chao was actually very worried and did not dare to sit in front of Lu Tianxiang and Zhang Ruifeng.
After everyone was seated, Lu Tianxiang said: "Ambassador Zhang, please speak."
Zhang Ruifeng looked at Fan Chao with a smile on his face: "That's it, General Fan. When the local cavalry who turned against us on the battlefield learned that we would leave, more than 20 people asked to follow us and were willing to bring their horses to help us fight. In addition, there are also some local cavalrymen who are still in the city.
We found more than 200 slaves there, and these slaves also asked to come with us. What does General Fan think about whether to take these people in?
Fan Chao said: "You can take some good war horses with you. The people don't want them, and the bad horses don't want them. It's a waste of food to keep them on the ship. As for the slaves, how can this small broken city afford to raise hundreds of slaves?"
"
Zhang Ruifeng explained: "These slaves are one of the financial resources of this city. The lord of this city is called Zaid. I will send cavalry from time to time to go out with pirates to rob people and goods on the nearby coast. Persia
The remote coastal areas of Caowo'er and Cao'er were also targets of their plundering. The population was plundered, divided into several classes, and sold to the Portuguese and sometimes the Dutch at different prices."
"It turns out that today's fight was against human traffickers." Fan Chao finally figured out why this huge city could afford to raise three hundred cavalry.
Cai Yuncheng interjected: "Uncle, I believe that the cavalry does not need to be taken in, but these slaves should be rescued. They are in a miserable situation. If they are not rescued, they will inevitably be sold into slavery. Even if they are released, they will not be able to return to their hometown. They can only
Take them on board the ship. In order to ensure military discipline and prevent sexual disorder between men and women, the female slaves can be arranged to be used on the Queen's ship. The lot slaves can also be kept on the Queen's ship to be used."
Cai Yuncheng was born in poverty and had great sympathy for these slaves.
At the same time, he couldn't bear to see the princess go to sea. He took this opportunity to put more women and lotteries on the princess's ship.
Fan Chao asked in surprise: "Are there any lottery winners among those slaves?"
Zhang Ruifeng explained: "The slaves here are mainly sold to the Netherlands, Britain and Portugal. For slaves used for work, the three countries prefer to buy black slaves, but hundreds of slaves cannot be sold for a good price. So as long as they are young, they have a slightly more decent appearance.
Yes, they rounded them up and sold them, and the price could be doubled immediately. These drowned slaves were sold to India by the Europeans. The Mughals and other Indian states were accustomed to buying lot slaves to serve as eunuchs.
This is completely treating people like beasts and making money wherever they can.
Moreover, the person in charge of cutting slaves was actually a horse-charging official in the city. His main job was horse-managing and part-time people-machinizing. If he died of infection and inflammation, it would be considered a normal business loss.
Fan Chao thought for a while and said, "Then let's stay. The women and the lot will be at the mercy of the empress. The remaining men will be assigned to work as handymen on other ships, which can be regarded as replenishing the fleet's manpower in advance.
The fleet had already begun to reduce its personnel because they were seriously ill and were not suitable to continue sailing. Three of them stayed in India and one in Persia. Arrangements have been made and officials from both countries will take care of them and wait for the fleet to return.
take away.
I was lucky to not encounter severe storms along the way, otherwise the sailors would have suffered too many casualties and would have had to be recruited along the way.
Lu Tianxiang was forcibly detained on board the ship. She had no objection to this, but asked: "How to deal with prisoners of war?
Fan Chao said: "This is overseas. Your Majesty allows us to make our own decisions. The principle is not to massacre indiscriminately. Those prisoners of war can cut off the thumbs of their hands so that they can no longer hold weapons. In this way, it will not increase the killing, but it will also cause
It has the effect of punishing and establishing authority. As for the thief chief, his head must be chopped off!
The next day, prisoners of war one after another, including infantrymen in the city, were lined up and led to have their thumbs cut off.
Most of those infantrymen were civilians in the city.
This time it was cut down, and the main young and strong labor force in the city could no longer do heavy manual labor that required hands. The city was almost abandoned.
Every house wailed, every house wept bitterly, and their wives and children wept together.
All the grain, gold and silver that Zaid had hoarded were carried onto the ship by the Datong Army. Although he was a poor man, it was better than nothing. After all, selling slaves was quite profitable, and he would not be so poor that he was running around in the warehouse.
From the captured Arabian horses, sixteen strong ones were selected and taken away, and the rest were given to local cavalry who had defected and performed meritorious services.
Rest for a few days and prepare to set off.
Most of the more than two hundred slaves who were rescued were Persians and Afghans, but there were also a few Arabs. They were suddenly freed and were grateful to the Chinese. After washing themselves, they put on new clothes and boarded the ship to work.
These slaves have no concept of country.
Even Persian slaves, because they came from the peasant class, had little identification with the Persian royal family. They would work hard for whoever fed them. If they were treated slightly better, their loyalty would gradually increase.
"Da da da da!"
Just as everyone was getting on the boat, four Arab cavalry caught up with them.
Lu Tianxiang had already boarded the ship. When he saw this, he said to the female officer beside him: "Go over and ask, what are they chasing after?
The female horse inspector came back soon and reported: "These four riders said that they have no family and asked to follow us out to sea. They are willing to swear allegiance in the name of Allah. General Zheng is willing to take in these foreign riders. Ambassador Zhang does not care, General Fan
Come and ask your Majesty for instructions.'
"Since General Zheng is willing to accept it, then accept it." Lu Tianxiang said.
The road ahead at sea is unpredictable, and no one knows when we will be in danger. It is not a bad thing to recruit a few people who can fight.
The capital of Oman, Muscat.
It is only five hundred miles away from Sohar, where a battle has just been fought, and can be reached in a short time by sea ship.
King Said I was very happy at this time. He was thinking about annexing Zaid. Unexpectedly, Zaid's cavalry and the pirates who were attached to Zaid actually came to seek refuge with him.
"It was the Chinese who attacked Sohar, not the damn Portuguese?" Said confirmed.
A cavalry leader replied: "Great Imam, the Chinese are very cruel. They come in big ships and have a powerful army. They rush into the city and kill everyone they see. They rob our goods and burn down our houses. Please
Imam avenges us!
The reputation of King Said I has already spread throughout the coast of Arabia.
Whenever the Portuguese attacked, tribal leaders would come to ask for help, and Said would help whenever he could. Tribes that accepted help would basically declare their allegiance, and Said's territory would grow rapidly.
Facing these cavalrymen who came to seek refuge, Said was not completely convinced.
He is not only the military leader of Oman, but also the most respected religious leader in the entire Arab region. He once read ancient notes and knew that the Chinese had come to Oman and that they traded fairly and did not invade. Arab traders who returned from the east
People also say that China, Portugal, and the Netherlands are enemies, and the enemies of enemies should be friends.
After appeasing the cavalry, Said called his confidants and ordered: "Take a group of cavalry and go to Suhar to find out the news. Don't conflict with the Chinese and see if the situation there is true. If it is Zai
If Germany takes the initiative to attack and the Chinese only counterattack passively, then they will get in touch with the Chinese and invite them to Muscat as guests.
But his confidant said: "No matter what the truth is, we can go to war with the Chinese. They come from afar and there will not be too many troops. As long as we defeat the infidels, no matter which country they are from, your prestige will be improved again. Yes.
There are more and more tribes who admire your reputation and come to pledge their allegiance."
"madness!"
Said reprimanded: "So many countries have malicious intentions towards us, but only the United Kingdom is willing to be friends with us. How can we make enemies indiscriminately in such a bad situation? As long as we are willing to be friends,
Seeing that he has good intentions towards us, no matter what religion he believes in, we can work together. A man's mind must be broad and like the sea. From the Hajar Mountains, many rivers flow out. No matter where they originate, no matter where they originate,
No matter which direction they flow, they will eventually merge into the sea!"
After looking around, they were all convinced, and even more felt that their imam was extremely wise.
Before the people who inquired about the news came back, the Chinese envoys arrived. The Arab cavalry who had taken refuge landed ashore with the translator and entered the city of Muscat to explain the situation.
When he heard that Zaid had set up the ambush first, Said already believed it, because he knew Zaid's style.
He asked carefully: "Have you defected to the Chinese?"
The leader of the four cavalry said: "The Chinese masters are kind. After they won, they only killed Zaid. The other prisoners only had their thumbs chopped off. They moved away Zaid's belongings, but did not loot the city, nor did they
Burn down the houses. They are not like the Portuguese bandits, so we are willing to follow. Merciful master,
He will never treat his subordinates harshly and is worthy of our loyal loyalty."
Said nodded and said: "They don't plunder cities or burn down houses. Such people are worth making friends with. At least they won't stab you in the back. Have they all left? No troops left to occupy Sohar? No.
Build a castle like in Portugal?
The surrendered cavalry said: "No, the Chinese masters are going to Europe. They are the envoys of the Chinese Emperor and have no intention of occupying any city.
"Follow me out of the city to greet the guests!"
Said had a very heroic character. He went to the port to greet the Chinese delegation in person without confirming this information, and was not afraid of being killed on the spot by the Datong Army.
Lu Tianxiang learned the lesson from the previous time. When encountering such a small country, he simply did not disembark and show his face. All diplomatic tasks were handed over to Zhang Ruifeng.
After the two sides exchanged pleasantries, Said asked: "Have China and Portugal ever fought a war?"
Zhang Ruifeng replied: "A seaport city in China has been occupied by Portugal for nearly a hundred years. His Majesty, the great emperor, took back that seaport and expelled the disobedient Portuguese.'
Said said happily: "Your emperor is the same as me. The Muscat Castle here was built by the Portuguese, and I personally led the troops to take it back. But there is one bad thing, the Chinese emperor is too kind.
, to deal with the ferocious Portuguese, they should all be killed, not just expelled.'
"That's true." Zhang Ruifeng didn't bother to argue and just followed the man's words.
Said added: "Distinguished guests, please come to the castle to enjoy delicious food. However, I cannot provide food for your soldiers, so you need to buy food by yourself. It has only been two years since I recovered this place, and the food is not abundant, so I only
Can you neglect Chinese guests?"
"It doesn't matter, we also got a gift for you."
The exchanges between the two sides were surprisingly smooth and diplomatic results were quickly reached.
Arab merchants from Oman will be able to trade freely in Palembang in the future, and will have priority over European merchants in supplying supplies.
Seif I was willing to send envoys to accompany the Chinese mission all the way south. The Arabs on the coast of East Africa would give Seif face and treat the Chinese mission as honored guests to receive many black countries in later generations. The coastal areas were occupied by Arabs.
It was controlled by people and colonized by Portugal.
