The Sun and the Lion

Ustaji Khan did not expect that Selim would withdraw his troops at this time. He thought it was a ploy to lure his side to attack the ambush circle, and kept his troops stationary. It was not until the siege camp was empty a few days later that he was forced to believe that the other side was really going to attack. run.

Although it was a pity that they failed to intercept the enemy troops and capture the thieves chief alive, the retreat of the Ottoman army undoubtedly declared the winner of this conflict. Selim’s special military operation failed to cut off the separation between Durkadir and Safavid. The relationship between them has actually brought the distance between them closer.

"In the name of Allah, Your Excellency the Governor, I had doubts about your army before. It seems that I was wrong. I hope you can forgive me." Bozkurt's attitude softened a lot and he tried hard to win over Ustaji Khan. good impression.

"Hehehe." The female slave waiting on the side filled the cup with wine. After taking a sip, Ustaji Khan said with a smile: "If I have to take this little misunderstanding to heart and argue with you, it will look like me and Our country is too harsh on its allies, which Huda doesn’t like, isn’t it?”

Seeing that the other party had no intention of making things difficult, Bey breathed a sigh of relief and planned to continue to please the other party, such as on matters of faith, but Ustaji Khan just waved his hand to express that this was not urgent and would be discussed later.

Bey, who was determined not to bet on the Ottomans, finally handed over his youngest daughter to the Iranians. The Safavid army had no reason to stay any longer. Ustaji Khan returned to the capital after collecting gifts from Bey.

The reply from Isfahan arrived just when he returned to his mansion. Ibrahim hoped that the governor could act with restraint and prudence and handle side affairs carefully. He also sent an envoy to Cairo with a personal letter to dissuade Kansu Gauri. Doubts arising from the presence of Safavid troops in the buffer zone.

"Your Majesty, there is no need to worry." Ustaji Khan immediately asked the secretary to write a reply on the current situation to report the victory, and then began to think about how much favor he could gain this time.

…………

Selim's defeat was a minor matter for the time being, allowing the Governor of Trebizond to return to his lair and lick his wounds without interference. and plan next actions.

Just as he was returning north, a rare major earthquake occurred on the coast of Marmara. The entire Kostantiniya was affected by the disaster. Thousands of large and small buildings in the city collapsed, including Topkapi Palace and the Aya Sofia Mosque. The magnificent buildings were damaged to varying degrees, and sections of the Theodosian Wall and aqueducts, which had been neglected, collapsed.

Fortunately, although there were many casualties among civilians, none of the Padisha and senior officials were killed, allowing the disaster relief work to be carried out immediately. In the following weeks, large areas of construction ruins turned into rubble were gradually cleared, the injured were treated to the best of their ability, corpses were urgently disposed of, and the affected people were temporarily resettled in the suburbs to help rebuild.

At the same time, Bayezid II ordered the palace to temporarily move back to Edirne until the reconstruction work was completed, and the Venetian ambassador witnessed the entire reconstruction work.

The natural disaster suffered by Kostantiniya has become the focus of Ottoman public opinion. The imperial literati took the opportunity to praise Padishah's concern for religion: "It is precisely because of Bayezid, the greatest monarch in the world - may God always protect him! ——His piety and enthusiasm for his faith, as well as his kindness and tolerance towards the world, enabled him to receive the help of Allah and remain unscathed in this terrible disaster..."

Public opinion among the people is much more complicated. Regarding the sudden earthquake and the subsequent plague that is likely to occur, the panic caused by the crisis of faith has not been extinguished over time, but has intensified.

Conservative clerics insist that the "Little Day of Judgment" - the most widely circulated and well-known name after the disaster - is a punishment and test sent by God because of the disappointment of Muslims on earth for not observing the commandments.

"In order for all Muslims to survive the test, we can no longer allow impure behavior to exist in the world!"

The scope of this great criticism is not limited to lifestyles such as drinking, but also extends to politics, such as the legal disputes over the Jenichery recruitment system. Forcing Christian children to convert to Islam is undoubtedly a violation of Dhimmi's rights.

However, such remarks were not even considered minor disturbances. These small group of ulama who could not influence the palace's major policies were simply ignored. However, the remarks spread by the dervishes were more appealing.

"Stop the persecution of fellow believers and brothers! No matter whether he is a follower of Ali or not, he should not be subject to prejudice and suppression imposed by the secular world. God does not want to see Muslims killing and oppressing each other. As long as this kind of injustice still exists, The punishment will never stop!”

The dervish who loudly expounded these "reactionary remarks" at a gathering in a remote village was a Shia. More importantly, he secretly worshiped the Sheikh in Isfahan as his master. , long-term independent development of believers for the order in Asia Minor and Rumelia. Find bookstore www.zhaoshuyuan.com

Underneath the legal and even subsidized religious activities was his long-term contact with various types of dissatisfied Ottomans. He knew that there were too many people who were dissatisfied with Osman. Last time they united around Jam Sultan to resist his brothers, and now they just need someone with charisma to raise their arms...

He was criticizing many policies at this moment, including forced migration. When Bayezid II began to tighten his attitude towards Shia out of alarm, he took the opportunity to fan the flames.

While all kinds of favorable and unfavorable remarks were spread, news of the earthquake spread like wildfire. The Venetian ambassador recorded: "The magnitude of this earthquake is unprecedented. Constantinople was severely damaged, and almost no one could be found in the city. The buildings in good condition, even in Pella (Galata) on the other side of the Golden Horn. The disaster not only cost the lives of tens of thousands of citizens, but also caused property losses that are difficult to count in ducats. Various complicated matters after the disaster and The reconstruction of the city has involved most of the energy of the Sultan and the High Gate, and will also consume a lot of financial resources. Perhaps the Turks will lack the financial resources to carry out a large-scale war in the next few years."

The Ottomans suffered such a catastrophe. Several neighbors who had been threatened in Europe for a long time were so sad that they could not close their mouths from ear to ear. For a while, it aroused the enthusiasm of everyone from the nobles to the poor for collective prayers and religious processions to thank God for the pagans. punishment.

However, as the war in Italy became more intense, Christian Europe could no longer organize a crusade capable of attacking the Ottomans.

Across the sea in Bursa, the Iranian consul stationed here is the official closest to Kostantiniya. Through correspondence with the Venetian ambassador, he learned a lot about the situation, including the estimated losses and the current focus of the government's work. wait.

The consul simply organized the information and sent it back to the country, where he began to collect more information.