I Became the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire

동방무역(3)

When the Portuguese set foot in India, the first thing they did was establish a foothold along the coastline.

They seized the land with guns and cannons, and if necessary, built fortifications themselves, as there was no other choice.

When it comes to long-distance navigation, the most important thing is not food but fresh water.

With no insect-proof water barrels, they had to ration even the bug-infested water, and they couldn’t just disembark on land and scoop up any water, as contaminated water could wipe out the entire crew.

Ultimately, it meant securing a safe source of drinking water was crucial.

‘We Ottomans aren’t any different.’

Kemal Reis recalled what Yusuf had said to him.

No matter how much closer the Ottomans were to India than the Portuguese, they still had to travel along the coastline for thousands of kilometers.

They needed a harbor to safely supply food and drinking water, which was especially important for the Venetian merchants who would utilize the canals.

“It’s all about money.”

“What are you suddenly talking about?”

In response to Murad’s question, Kemal smiled and replied.

“I was reminded of what the Padishah said. He mentioned that if Venetian merchants wanted to conduct safe trade, they would have to utilize the lands occupied by the Empire.”

“Well, the Portuguese have stirred things up, so I guess that’s the case.”

When Vasco da Gama first arrived at Calicut, known as the city of spices, the hostility was so strong that Islamic traders spat on the ground while shouting “Portuguese.”

They were already hostile, and then with cannons blasting, Christians would just pull out axes instead of goods.

“When Venetian merchants gather, it’s all about the money, he said. They would collect tolls for using the canals, harbor fees, and taxes, which would be even better.”

“… Sounds like my father.”

Just hearing Murad’s words about how Venetian merchants were ready to exploit any money-making opportunity brought a smile to Şemsi’s face.

“Prince, take a look around.”

In the naval battle, the Ottoman losses were limited to one ship sunk and three damaged, but they had managed to obtain the surrender of eight enemy ships.

To tow the damaged ships and surrendered vessels back through the Red Sea, ten ships were dispatched, while six went off to capture Muscat and Bahrain.

Despite how many ships were dispatched, there were still fifty ships heading towards India, and the sight of the fleet cutting through the water was quite exhilarating.

“Those sailors adjusting the masts and the movement of these ships, that’s all money. A nation fundamentally needs a wealth of resources to operate smoothly.”

Seeing Şemsi’s constant money talk made Murad feel a strange discomfort, and Kemal whispered.

“Please understand, Your Highness. The strain of funding the canal has changed him.”

“I see. It felt a bit off compared to the Pasha I knew when I was younger.”

The seven years spent digging the canal had adequately drilled the importance of money into them.

Hearing their whispers, Şemsi cleared his throat quietly.

“While I may look like a miser, when it comes to running a country, money is of utmost importance. This is also your weakness, Your Highness.”

“Compared to my brother Mehmet, I can’t help but fall short.”

Thinking of his older brother, who was much faster at calculations than the average merchant, Murad forced a bitter smile.

He felt he only had strength to boast of, while his brother seemed to possess so much more.

“There’s no need to think too poorly of yourself. The Padishah is also lacking in many ways compared to Prince Mehmet. However, he does possess the insight necessary for good governance.”

“Insight, you say?”

“Indeed. This kind of insight is something one acquires through experience.”

Ironically, while Yusuf had this kind of insight from a young age, Şemsi had long since given up evaluating Yusuf based on common sense.

“The Padishah ordering you to come this far is precisely to allow you to gain such experience.”

“Does that mean my father has certain expectations of me?”

“Of course.”

Şemsi refrained from voicing the truth that he was also expected to serve as a labor force before succession, as he might inadvertently reveal how annoyed he was that a capable child had yet to be born from him.

“Anyway, make sure to observe and learn this time around.”

The ways of the Ottomans.

*

The atmosphere in the port city of Goa, downstream of the Mandovi River, was chaotic.

This was due to the recent arrival of the Portuguese fleet.

It had been over ten years since it was occupied by the Portuguese, so one might wonder what was the big deal about the Portuguese ships appearing.

But if the man known as the Governor of India came raiding, that was a different story.

“What, what is happening here?”

It wasn’t even a long raid.

Within a few hours, the Portuguese fleet swiftly gathered money and goods and fled, leaving everyone dumbfounded.

The quick-witted Arab merchants realized that something was coming that would make the dreaded Portuguese soldiers tremble, and within half a day, it became a reality.

“Capture the Portuguese scoundrels! Move!”

As over forty ships approached the harbor, the garrison didn’t even dare to fire their cannons.

The soldiers who entered Goa without bloodshed poured out with guns leading the charge and quickly seized important facilities, including the city walls.

Some Portuguese who hadn’t heard the news and were left unguarded were dragged away, and soldiers shouted loudly.

“From now on, this Portuguese territory is declared the land of the great Ottoman Empire!”

“From now on, this is the land liberated from Portuguese oppression by the Ottoman Empire!”

Hearing the soldiers’ announcements through someone who spoke Arabic, the residents of Goa had dazed expressions upon hearing the word “Ottoman.”

Living in a trade port, they had heard the name before, but they never expected to suddenly encounter it.

However, when the Portuguese flag that had been raised high was taken down and the red flag began to fly, the situation hit home.

“Ottoman? Isn’t this a big problem?”

“Maybe it’s better than those Portuguese bastards.”

The merchants hurriedly hid their goods and lowered their voices.

They had no idea when the fierce Ottoman soldiers would unleash their own pillaging.

Additional cannons brought in by the Ottomans were set up along the harbor walls, and the existing soldiers were disarmed.

People spent a night with fear in their wide-open eyes, and by daybreak, there was a slight sigh of relief.

“Hmm, how much is this pepper worth?”

“With this amount, one Venetian ducat should suffice.”

“Şemsi Pasha, isn’t that cheap enough?”

At Murad’s question, Şemsi stroked his white beard and nodded.

“It’s not a bad price. Once I return home, it’ll sell for more than ten times that.”

“Then I should buy some on the way back.”

The Ottoman prince and the Beylerbey of Egypt moved about as if they were just out shopping, making everyone feel a lot more at ease.

The soldiers showed no sign of oppressive behavior.

Rather than pillaging, they were given permission to buy spices worth just one pocketful, and the marketplace was bustling with clearly-thrilled soldiers making their purchases.

As the atmosphere contrasted sharply against the Portuguese, the fear began to wash away when a messenger sprinted up to Murad.

“Your Highness, an envoy has arrived from the Sultanate of Bijapur.”

“As expected, they arrived quickly, Pasha.”

“That means they’ve become agitated, doesn’t it?”

With the red flag planted where the Portuguese once stood, it was likely jarring.

Upon returning to the citadel, the envoy gave a polite bow.

“Have you come from the Adil Shah dynasty?”

“Yes, I have been sent by Ismail Adil Shah, the ruler of Bijapur.”

“Right, what brings you to our territory?”

Upon hearing Şemsi’s words through a translator, the envoy bowed his head and replied.

“As you may know, this place was originally the territory of Bijapur. While we appreciate your defeating the wicked Portuguese, we would like it back.”

“When I arrived, the Portuguese flag was still flying.”

“It has only been over a decade since it fell into Portuguese hands. We can still claim it as our land.”

At those words, Şemsi furrowed his brow.

“If that’s the case, it has hardly been ten years since the Empire took over Egypt, so that area is not part of the Empire? Does the Quran specify how long one must occupy for the owner to change?!”

“No, that’s not it.”

As Şemsi, a Beylerbey of Egypt, raised his voice angrily, the envoy began to sweat coldly.

They had already lost to the Portuguese, and how could they possibly confront the Ottomans who had decimated them?!

The envoy swallowed his fear and hastily continued.

“We need to have a more in-depth conversation.”

“Unfortunately, we must be off to catch the remaining Portuguese remnants soon.”

With a flick of his white beard, Şemsi spoke as if a good idea had come to him.

“How about visiting the Caliph to strengthen the friendship between our two nations?”

“The Caliph…?”

“Of course, I mean the Padishah who has officially taken over the Caliphate. Do you think a Sultanate like yours would proceed without the Caliph’s permission?”

At this, the envoy’s eyes widened, and Şemsi frowned.

“Come to think of it, you mentioned being Shia?”

“Y-yes, that’s correct.”

“Tch, then how about coming for a pilgrimage? It wouldn’t make sense for a Muslim to not have made a pilgrimage at least once. I shall recommend it to the Shah too.”

“But how could the Shah possibly travel that far?”

“Don’t worry. The Empire’s fleet will faithfully look after the Shah’s safety.”

Though it was referred to as a pilgrimage, it was a perfect suggestion for kidnapping, and the envoy felt sweat rolling down his back.

While he was afraid to outright refuse such an absurd proposition, facing the enemy’s army also made him anxious about being pushed around even more.

“Thank you for the suggestion, but I think… we need to converse with the Shah more closely.”

“If that’s the case, then there’s nothing we can do. I heard your country has many Sufis. Please take along the book that the Empire’s Sufis hold very dear on your way back.”

The Sufis were mystics, and among them, the Empire’s Sufis firmly believed that Yusuf was a prophet.

The book they provided contained tales that Yusuf would step on clouds and ascend to the heavens at Allah’s command.

Without understanding what sort of wicked poison that book contained, the envoy left Goa with a large collection of books.

Having kindly seen off the envoy, Şemsi politely asked Murad.

“Your Highness, did you see that?”

“Indeed. They’re using whatever it takes, be it threats or the Caliph.”

The envoy wasn’t foolish.

As a small nation, he had to be cautious in front of a big power, and by hitting them with such heavy content, he was left with few options to voice his grievances.

Murad made a short exclamation.

“Perhaps they should have pointed cannons at us instead?”

*

“Goa has been fully occupied, and we will seize the Portuguese fortresses scattered everywhere, reaching Malacca,” said Yusuf, looking at the map presented by Piri, Kemal Reis’s nephew.

The map of Admiral Piri is famous even in modern times.

It depicted Antarctica and was said to have drawn South America more accurately than maps from a century later, leading to theories of ultra-advanced civilizations, or “Out of Place Artifacts.”

‘It’s not that special, really.’

Various maps had filtered into the Ottomans who were well aware of external news, and this map was a compilation of them.

For Yusuf, it was just an average map, nothing more.

Nevertheless, Yusuf traced his finger over the regions that had been under Portuguese control, starting from Muscat, where the naval battle had taken place.

“Quite a hefty chunk of territory we’ve taken, no? Don’t you think, Ali Pasha?”

In response to Yusuf’s question, Hadım Ali Pasha, who had returned from the Grand Vizier to an inner position, bowed his head.

“It is a good thing for the Empire, isn’t it?”

“That’s one way to put it.”

Thanks to the Portuguese, they had securely grabbed a foothold to infiltrate into India.

‘The Eastern trade is more advantageous to the Ottomans than Europe.’

Islam had spread far beyond India, all the way to the Philippines.

With the seat of the Islamic ruler, the Caliphate, obviously in hand, along with holy sites like Mecca and the relics of Muhammad, the Ottomans had no shortage of advantages.

“It will be interesting from here on out.”

The Portuguese had tried to capture Aden and had set their sights on the horn of Africa, seeking to choke the Red Sea while taking Bahrain and Muscat to tighten their grip on the Persian Gulf.

They sought to eliminate the Ottoman competitors.

In actual history, this process went smoothly, and the Ottomans were left in a chokehold.

“The collar has been broken, and from now on, the Empire will be at the center of trade.”

Yusuf declared.

*

After occupying Malacca, the Ottoman army hastily seized a ship with Westerners aboard.

Thinking they finally captured the Indian governor who had fled like a rat, Piri frowned.

“What are these beggars?”

No matter how far they had fled from India to get here, their condition was certainly not good.

One might think they had been sailing for a year or two.

And that wasn’t the only strange thing.

“Captain! There’s a massive load of cloves on the ship! If we’re not careful, it could sink!”

Here they were, fleeing yet carrying a ton of cloves, a type of spice? No matter how he thought about it, it didn’t make sense.

Piri pointed a knife to the shaking sailor’s neck and demanded.

“Who are you guys?!”

The trembling sailor prostrated himself.

“We are sailors from Spain who came with Ferdinand Magellan, who set sail for the New World! Please spare our lives!”

This was the moment when their final destination of circumnavigation turned upside down.

*

“Governor! Is this really alright?”

“This is the only way to return home!”

Crossing the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean for a dangerous journey was one option, but seeing that the Ottomans arrived before the reinforcements, it seemed southern Africa might have also fallen into Ottoman hands.

‘If I were to encounter that monster-like Ottoman army again…’

Thinking of the way their naval fleets were effortlessly sunk, Giorgio clenched his fists tightly.

The recurring nightmarish scenes caused Giorgio to assure himself that his judgment was correct.

“Didn’t Magellan depart for India? If we continue to head east, we might reach home!”

Giorgio declared a grand endeavor of circumnavigation.