1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 314 Spring Offensive
Spring is back, everything is reviving, the sky is clear and cloudless, and the sun's rays are melting the remaining snow on the ground.

The sea was calm. A merchant fleet was sailing on the vast ocean, with the warm sun above their heads and the dark sea beneath their feet.

This is the Black Sea, once a rich sea and the best transit point for the Silk Road and steppe trade. Goods from the East and the North flowed into Constantinople through this sea and then into the Mediterranean world.

The Silk Road had long since declined, the steppes of East Europe were plagued by conflicts, and the opening of new sea routes and the rise of Atlantic trade made the westward shift of economic centers a trend of the times. It was difficult for Black Sea trade to achieve its former prosperity.

Of course, due to the Black Sea's unique "seawater stratification phenomenon", the aquatic resources in this sea area are quite rich. The lower sea water is almost a barren land, but there are schools of fish and shrimp in the shallow sea water, and many freshwater fish can survive and reproduce here.

With the recovery of the Bithynia region, Romulus Castle on the European side and Remus Castle on the Asian side were completely under the control of the Eastern Roman Empire. The artillery on both sides combined could completely cover the waterway of only a few hundred meters, forming an iron gate of the strait, firmly blocking the two sea areas.

Now, the Black Sea was the back garden of the Eastern Roman Empire. As long as the emperor did not want, no sailing ship in the Mediterranean could enter the Black Sea.

The Black Sea countries were weak, and the only ones capable of challenging the hegemony of the Eastern Roman Empire, Poland and Lithuania, were truly continental countries. The short Black Sea coast had always been under the control of Orthodox vassal states.

This is the edge of the rule of Poland and Lithuania. It has always been a reservation for fugitives and savages, a lawless area. The orders from Krakow and Vilnius are meaningless here. Instead, many Russians entered the Eastern Roman Empire to the south and joined the Cossack Kingdom to the east for a better or freer life.

After the beginning of spring, the Eastern Roman Empire's layout on the northern coast of the Black Sea gradually produced some results. The Don River thawed, and merchant fleets departing from Constantinople sold goods to Moscow and Ryazan, and then recruited refugees in the local area to go south to reclaim wasteland.

Among the many commodities of the Eastern Roman Empire, the most popular among the Russian monarchs were of course the sophisticated weapons produced in the south. In the turbulent Eastern Europe, these things were of high value.

The Eastern Roman Empire was relatively open-minded in the arms trade. Except for the latest cutting-edge weapons, most equipment was open to all countries, but it only accepted settlement in Solidus, and of course gold was also acceptable.

If they had no spare money, the Eastern Roman Empire would kindly provide them with loans, but these loans could only be used to purchase Eastern Roman goods and had to be spent in Constantinople. Only the goods could be taken away.

The trade framework on the northern coast of the Black Sea has been basically established, but the southern coast of the Black Sea has not been completed yet. The Constantinople-Batumi route still lacks the last transit station, Sinop.

If this Black Sea city can be captured, commercial exchanges between the Eastern Roman Empire and Georgia will become very convenient, and political ties will be greatly deepened.

After the outbreak of the Great Turkish War, Justinian, the co-emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, was ordered to form the Northern Legion, composed of Cossacks and Circassians, and the commander was Gonzalo de Córdoba, a close aide of Justinian.

At the beginning, the Northern Army made smooth progress. With the cooperation of the navy, it successfully captured some cities on the southern coast of the Black Sea and headed straight for the State of Kandar Bey.

As the war progressed, the fragile alliance between the Eastern Roman Empire and the Aq Qoyunlu quickly collapsed. Uzum Hasan sent his third son Jacob to the north, trying to unite with the Kandar Bey Kingdom to drive the northern legion into the sea.

However, what they did not expect was that the Northern Legion, led by Commander Gonzalo, displayed superb combat effectiveness, setting ambushes, guerrilla warfare, harassment, and cutting off food supplies... Until the arrival of winter, they still failed to drive Gonzalo out of the Samsun area, and instead suffered heavy casualties and low morale.

There were already a large number of Orthodox Christians in the Pontus Mountains. Gonzalo attracted them in the name of jihad and made them provide intelligence to the army, causing the Muslim encirclement and suppression operations to end in failure again and again.

Gonzalo was born in Iberia and was a devout Christian. He hated Muslims and allowed his soldiers to loot their villages and towns. He encouraged Christians to join them and brought a large number of Muslims to the port of Samsun and loaded them onto the Black Sea ships of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Last winter, the Aq Qoyunlu finally gave up the encirclement and suppression and stopped interfering with this force. It gathered its troops and prepared to launch an attack on the main legion of the Eastern Roman Empire.

There is only a narrow strip of plain lowland on the southern coast of the Black Sea, and further south are layers of mountains and hills. The Northern Legion has no way to interfere with their military operations.

Gonzalo was not prepared to climb the plateau and continued to attack the territory of Kandal Bey, trying to capture the city of Sinop and open up the southern Black Sea trade route.

On the deck of the ship, Justinian closed the report and looked towards the approaching Samsun Port.

Beside him, the Crown Prince Constantine was pale with a wooden barrel in front of him, obviously he had just vomited.

"Father, I will never take a boat again!"

Constantine protested.

"You rushed here on your own initiative. We agreed beforehand that you are not allowed to complain or feel tired."

Justinian stroked his hairy head.

"It's okay to get seasick, just get it right a few times. I went through the same thing when I was your age."

"I...I want to go home!"

Constantine had a sad face.

"You must go to Samsun to visit your godfather and receive an audience with the Cossacks and Circassians who will be your future subjects."

Justinian's face darkened.

"When my business is done, you will return home, and I will go to Nicaea."

"Then... that's fine."

Constantine cocked his head.

"I want to eat the fudge there!"

"Haha, that's enough!"

The port of Samsun was in sight, and two maids helped Constantine dress and prepare for docking.

The big ship sailed towards the port, and the dock was already full of people.

"Father..."

Constantine was a little nervous and took Justinian's hand.

"Back then, my father also took me to meet the ministers and accept their worship."

Justinian held his son's hand, feeling somewhat emotional.

"time flies."

The ship stopped steadily, and two rows of Varangian soldiers walked down the deck and cleared the way.

"Long live my king!"

The Cossacks and Circassians shouted.

Justinian smiled and nodded at them, pulling Constantine to his side.

"This is my eldest son, your future king, Constantine Palaiologos!"

"Long live the prince!"

the crowd chanted.

Although Constantine could not understand their language, he could clearly feel their enthusiasm and respect. He was somewhat shocked and happy. He imitated his father and waved to the crowd.

Justinian led his son towards the crowd, and the crowd dispersed, revealing Gonzalo in armor.

"Long time no see, my friend, my brother, Gonzalo."

Justinian looked at Gonzalo and smiled.

"May God bless you, my king."

Gonzalo threw away his cloak, held the sword in one hand, and knelt on one knee.

"Nice to meet you too, Constantine."

Gonzalo winked at Constantine, which was very different from his cold and cruel appearance on the battlefield.

"You are a hero of the empire, a victorious general of the empire, a great holy warrior, may God bless you!"

Constantine nervously recited the lines he had just memorized and thought about it.

"My father said that the best decision he made in his life was to follow my grandmother to attend Castile's wedding. That's how he met my mother and you."

A trace of reminiscence flashed in Gonzalo's eyes, and his gaze towards Constantine became much softer.

"Let's go, it's still cold, let's go eat something."

The army dispersed, Gonzalo held Constantine on the horse, ordered the soldiers to bring a good horse for Justinian, and the three of them returned to the mayor's palace in Samsun together.

"How's it going?"

By the warm fire, Constantine ate candy while Gonzalo and Justinian drank coffee.

"It's not bad. Jacob left and the pressure has dropped dramatically."

Gonzalo took a sip of coffee, picked up the cigarette case, looked at Constantine, and threw it aside.

"I plan to take this opportunity to destroy the lingering Kandar in one fell swoop. I need the help of warships."

Gonzalo looked at Justinian.

"No problem. The fleet is no longer needed in the west. Our harassment activities will begin to shift to the south and north."

Justinian nodded.

"I brought light artillery and military supplies. If you need anything else, just let me know."

"It's almost over. The Kandar people are already on the verge of collapse."

Gonzalo smiled.

"I have looted their towns many times, and there are basically few people left."

Justinian thought for a moment and looked at Gonzalo.

"The political framework of the Cossack Kingdom has been established. I have appointed Timur Tash as the Grand Hetman."

"Well, he doesn't have any special talents, but he is quite serious and cautious. He is a good choice."

Gonzalo said, looking at Justinian and smiling.

"You don't think I'd be unhappy, do you?"

Seeing that Justinian didn't say anything, Gonzalo poured wine for both of them.

"You know, I don't like life on the grassland. I like the palace and the city, women and wine. If you really want me to be a general on the grassland, I will definitely refuse."

"You regard me as your confidant and let your heir recognize me as godfather. Do I still need to worry about the so-called future?"

Gonzalo tilted his head back and drank the wine in one gulp.

"My father said that when the older generation of generals retire, he will ask my grandfather to appoint you as the Minister of the Army and the Grand Marshal of the Empire!"

Constantine interrupted.

"It was just a childhood joke, I didn't expect you to take it seriously."

Gonzalo was a little surprised and looked at Justinian.

"Will the ministers allow it?"

"I heard that the former vice-chancellor has retired, and the new vice-chancellor is the Carthaginian garrison minister, Basilius. Right from the start, he asked Your Majesty to restrain my behavior."

"Don't worry about him. As long as you can win, it's up to you to do whatever you want."

"In this country, my father's word is the law, and from now on, my word will be the law."

Justinian said calmly.

"Conte is in poor health. When he passes away, the position of Grand Master of the Knights of Saint Simon will also be yours."

"Go ahead and make achievements. Don't worry about other people's doubts. I will remember your achievements."

"Isabella asked me to come and see you. She also remembers your deeds."

"If you say that, I feel relieved."

A smile appeared on Gonzalo's face.

"In your name, I will wipe out those filthy Saracens!"

"Let's not talk about this yet."

Justinian waved his hand.

"Are those people still here?"

"You mean those Saracen chieftains whom we captured?"

Gonzalo asked.

"Yes, you didn't do anything to them?"

Justinian asked.

"No, they provide delicious food and drink."

Gonzalo said.

"Would you like to see them?"

"Well, there are many factions in the Aries Dynasty. Father hopes to sow discord and bribe some tribal leaders who are already dissatisfied with him to make them turn against him on the battlefield."

"Changing sides at the last minute? That's unlikely."

Gonzalo shook his head.

"It is unlikely that they will turn against us at the last minute, but if the situation is unfavorable, it is still possible for them to escape early."

Justinian smiled contemptuously.

"They are weak-willed and it is common for them to escape early. We won't anger King Aries and we can get our gold, so why not do it?"

"In addition to me, there are many diplomats carrying out this operation. Even if it fails, it can sow the seeds of suspicion in Uzon Hassan's mind."

"Not a bad idea. Some of the people I captured are from Persia. They are probably the ones who least want to fight for Uzon Hassan."

Gonzalo groaned.

"I'll get ready right now!"

"Okay, as soon as possible."

Justinian said.

"Once I finish this, I will rush to Bursa. The war is coming and I can't stay long. I will leave tomorrow."

"Then I wish you great victory, my Lord."

Gonzalo crossed himself.

“May the Lord bless you.”

……

The temperature gradually warms up. On the vast and desolate Anatolian Plateau, the snow in the mountains gradually melts and the rivers rush, bringing life to the earth.

On the barren loess land, muddy rivers flowed through, nourishing the farmlands and pastures along the banks. The sparse farmers drove skinny old cows to plow the fields, and in the distant pastures, livestock nibbled on the first wave of tender grass in 1472.

A group of cavalrymen trotted across the loess, their horses' hooves trampling the ground and raising clouds of dust.

The quality of this cavalry was very poor. The horses under their crotch were weak and the riders on horseback had bleak eyes. Many of them were injured, and there was a mixture of luck of surviving a disaster and deep fear in their eyes.

The two leading cavalrymen held high a large flag. On the somewhat tattered flag, the yellow crescent moon seemed dim.

In the center of the army, a middle-aged man dressed as a Turkic noble sat on his horse anxiously.

"Emir, Ankara is coming, we——"

"We tried our best. We only had so many people, and we lost half of them on the way. I will explain this to Padishah."

The middle-aged man forced a smile at the old man beside him.

Next to the river, the city of Ankara was already in sight, with endless military tents surrounding the city, and above each tent flew the flag of a tribe or Bey state.

The noise of people and the neighing of horses did not cheer up the middle-aged man, but made him feel very uncomfortable.

He stopped outside the city with a large Aries flag flying high and sighed softly.

The middle-aged man is named Mesud. He claims to be the last descendant of the Germyan family and the current Emir of Germyan, a vassal monarch under the rule of the Aq Qoyunlu Dynasty.

Two centuries ago, a powerful force from the East began its westward expedition. The Turkic tribes living in Central Asia were unable to resist and were forced to migrate westward and enter Anatolia in large numbers.

Here, they were surprised to find that the geographical conditions of the Anatolian Plateau were very suitable for the survival of nomadic tribes, so they took root here and gradually eroded the territory of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Later, the Mongols finally reached here, and the Rum Sultanate collapsed several times. The chaotic situation in Asia Minor provided these Turkic tribes with an opportunity to fish in troubled waters. For a time, separatist forces of all sizes began to emerge.

The Germyanbey State was one of the more powerful ones among them. It was once the most powerful Turkic regime in western Anatolia. It constantly conquered the east and the west, and took away a lot of land from the remnants of the Eastern Roman Empire, and defeated the arrogant Catalan mercenaries.

Germyan's power was once extremely large, and even Ankara was once their territory. Later countries such as Aydin, Hamit, and Saruhan were all split from Germyan.

However, Germyan's prosperity did not last long. In the north, the Ottomans rose quietly. For the sake of so-called friendship, the monarch at that time married Bayezid I, who was a monk and a prince, and gave them extremely generous dowries. Even the capital Kutahya was given to the Ottomans.

However, the Ottomans have always been disdainful of these poor fellows and have been determined to join European civilization. During their conquests, they absorbed a large number of Eastern Roman characteristics and established huge advantages that surpassed all other customs in their economic, military and political systems.

Although the Ottoman Empire was also a Turkic regime, it always focused more on Europe than Asia, and more on farming than nomadism. Many monarchs had a very good attitude towards Christianity and were willing to learn the advanced technology and rich culture of Christian civilization.

After Ottoman Sultan Murad I was assassinated by Serbian assassins, the Germiyans were overjoyed. They regained their former territory and called on other Turkic regimes to unite and fight against the Ottomans.

However, the coalition forces of various countries did not trust each other, were afraid of the enemy like a tiger, and hesitated and did not dare to advance.

As a result, Bayezid I defeated the coalition forces of various countries in one fell swoop, and Germyan was destroyed.

Timur's westward expedition shattered Bayezid's dream. Germyan briefly restored his country, but it was no match for the Ottomans. After the Great Interregnum, their small regime ended immediately. Decades ago, the Germyan family had no male heirs. Mesud was a female descendant, and his legitimacy was much worse. However, he believed that the Great Turkish War was a good opportunity. As long as it was properly managed, restoring the country was not a delusion.

Mesud first found Ishak, the former Karaman monarch who had converted to Orthodoxy, through the introduction of a merchant. He wanted to meet with the Eastern Roman Emperor through him and seek support from Western powers.

The emperor did meet with him and promised to support him, but because Mesud was unwilling to convert, the emperor's support was very limited.

At that time, the Eastern Roman Empire was still fighting a hard battle with the Ottomans' Aegean barriers and had not made much breakthrough, while the White Ayeon Dynasty in the East made rapid progress and captured a large amount of land in a very short time.

Mesud was very happy and immediately went to find the Aries King Uzon Hassan, hoping to use his power to restore his homeland.

In Mesud's view, the Aq Qoyunlu dynasty will surely repeat the feat of the Timurid dynasty and restore the entire Anatolia to its former separatist situation.

In fact, Uzungol Hasan did so, but he was unwilling to leave after the battle like King Timur did. He hoped to take control of Anatolia step by step, just like Persia.

Thus, Germyan did "restore the country", but Mesud was not rewarded with the title of "Bey", but an ordinary Emir. He did not get Ankara and Kutahya. He only controlled a few small towns near Usak, which happened to be located on the front line against the Eastern Roman Empire.

When Mesud arrived at his fiefdom, he was immediately annoyed by the chaotic situation. The small territory was in a mess, people's livelihood was in decline, agriculture was depressed, industry and commerce were almost stagnant, and there were refugees and hungry victims everywhere, ready to devour everything he had worked so hard to obtain.

The warehouse had long been emptied by the Ottoman officials who had fled, and the few valuables left were looted by the Aries people who arrived later. The surrounding Turkmen cavalry came to extort money from time to time. Mesud had no money or soldiers, and did not dare to confront the Turkmen. He sat alone in the empty hall, unable to cry.

He began to use his status as the last descendant of Germyan to recruit his old subordinates and set up his own military and political system. He gained very little, but it was better than nothing.

What made him most angry and helpless was that in recent years, the Eastern Roman Empire had released a huge amount of counterfeit currency to the entire Anatolia. This fake Akçe had shattered the already riddled Ottoman financial system. Even officials did not dare to use their own currency and were forced to adopt the ancient method of barter.

It's not that they didn't think about retaliating, but the Eastern Roman Empire's coinage technology was much stronger than theirs, and it also absorbed a lot of new anti-counterfeiting technology from Italy, which was difficult for outsiders to imitate.

Moreover, the solidus, denarius and drachma of the Eastern Roman Empire were all supervised by the emperor himself. Their biggest advantage was that they were beautiful and gorgeous. The emperor would rather lose some scraps than not let the gorgeous appearance reach the extreme.

The Eastern Roman Empire had no shortage of precious metals, and more beautiful currency would be liked by more people, thus breaking the currency monopoly of the Venetian Ducat and the Florentine Ducat in the Mediterranean region.

Just when he was at his wits' end, an old man who was said to have been an official in Germyan offered him an idea to make money, which greatly alleviated Mesud's predicament.

Restrain the lower classes from massacring Greek Orthodox Christians, protect them, package them up and sell them off, returning them to the Eastern Roman Empire in the west.

Mesud knew that the Eastern Roman Empire had always longed for and protected the Greek Orthodox Christians and was willing to spend real money to redeem them.

Many Muslims have discovered the huge business opportunities hidden behind this and have started to engage in this special "human rights trade".

They had nothing left and there was nothing they could steal, so they might as well throw them to the Greek emperor to avoid being an eyesore or a nuisance.

Of course, if a massacre is insisted upon, the emperor can do nothing about it for the time being, but extremely cruel revenge will follow.

For every Orthodox Christian killed by a Muslim, the emperor would kill ten Muslims to bury with them, with priority given to scholars, nobles and the elderly who could not be sold.

On the contrary, if a Muslim provided shelter to a large number of Orthodox Christians, the emperor would reward him and his wealth would be preserved. Those who were willing to convert could become landlords, while those who were unwilling to convert could leave freely with their wealth.

In this way, Mesud earned a lot of Venetian ducats by trading with Orthodox Christians. The emperor would not use counterfeit coins in such a big event.

Those Greek Orthodox Christians who were rescued by the emperor were of course grateful. Not only did they not have to pay for their own "ransom", they were also able to immediately receive a large amount of land on the western coast. In the blink of an eye, they went from being refugees to landlords.

Just when Mesud was happily preparing to expand his army, the Turkmen cavalry of the Aq Qoyunlu came again, took away most of the money without any explanation, and kindly instructed Mesud to form an army as soon as possible to serve Padishah.

The Aq Qoyunlu could be roughly divided into two major factions, namely the Turkmen and the Persians. Although Uzum Hassan was also a great leader, his conquests were too fast. Two years was not enough to digest all the newly conquered lands. He could only use his prestige to maintain the superficial peace among the various factions, and could only turn a blind eye to their private looting.

Tribal soldiers do not need to be paid, but of course there are conditions.

Thus, Mesud spent more than half a year in a daze on his fiefdom. During this period, the remaining half of the Ottoman Empire quickly fell, and the Eastern Roman "armed reclamation groups" that crossed the sea began to enter various river valleys, competing with the local Turkic Muslims for living space. Mesud was forced to give up the river valley plain that he had briefly occupied and hide in the plateau.

Since the beginning of spring, armed reclamation groups have taken over the garrisons in various places. The Eastern Roman army has resumed the Northern Expedition. The chaotic western coastal areas were unable to organize an effective resistance. One city after another fell. The Orthodox Christians were jubilant, while the Muslims were displaced.

Just recently, a messenger from the Aq Qoyunlu found Mesud and believed that winter was over and it was time to launch an attack on the Greeks. He asked Mesud to rush to Ankara with 2,000 troops and enough food to sustain for three months to join Padishah's camp.

After discussion, Mesud chose to obey and tried his best to mobilize more than a thousand cavalrymen to leave the fiefdom and head to Ankara.

On the way, Mesud's vanguard encountered an unprotected Eastern Roman grain transport team near the Sakarya River. They were overjoyed and rushed forward impatiently.

However, the grain transport team did not panic. They calmly formed a defensive array, surrounded the wide carriages in a circle, raised the thick wooden boards on the sides of the carriages, which were wrapped with fireproof leather, and some of the carriages were equipped with linked organ cannons.

The grain transport team members calmly took out their muskets and crossbows, skillfully mounted them on the carriages, and pointed the black muzzles at the rushing cavalry.

When Mesud arrived, the grain transport team had already left. The neighing of horses and the groaning of riders resounded across the earth, and the vanguard captain was killed on the spot.

Mesud was in great pain. He only had 700 remnants left and less than two months' food. He didn't know what kind of punishment Uzum Hassan would give him.

"Emil..."

Seeing that Mesud was hesitating, the old man reminded him.

"We've already missed the date..."

"Let's go, let's go. It seems that the Aries people don't really need our troops."

Mesud gave a wry smile and pointed to the endless stream of military camps.

"Perhaps they will forgive us."

Germyan's army began to march towards the military camp. The patrolling Aries Cavalry spotted them, their eyes full of contempt and disdain.

"Mesud Emir, the Padishah is hosting a banquet and you are late."

The cavalry captain narrowed his eyes and a mocking smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Your elite troops will also be well accommodated, so set up camp over there."

The cavalry captain pointed to a wasteland full of garbage.

Mesud looked at the garbage dump, suppressed his anger, and forced a smile.

"Thank you for your advice. I will go and apologize to Padisa now."

Mesud handed the army over to the old man and followed the cavalry captain to Uzung Hasan's camp.

There were sounds of laughter in the camp; the nomadic nobles from the East were enjoying the fine wine and delicacies produced by the people of Anatolia.

Mesud straightened his clothes, mustered up his courage, and stepped into the camp.

The atmosphere in the camp was heated and did not change at all because of Mesud's arrival.

Mesud walked towards Uzon Hassan who was sitting on the throne, beads of sweat on his face.

"Greatest Padishah, your loyal servant has responded to your call and has come to serve you."

Mesud bent very low.

"Rise up, descendants of Germiyan."

Wu Zong Hasan spoke lightly, and the camp suddenly became quiet.

"How many people did you bring?"

"We originally had 1,500 men, but we were intercepted by the Greek army on the way. We fought for a long time and lost more than half of our men, but fortunately we managed to defeat them. That's why we were delayed. I hope you'll forgive us!"

Mesud swallowed and clenched his trembling hands.

"Oh?"

Uzon Hassan sat up straight.

"How many people are there? What legion do they belong to? How many of them can cause more than half of your casualties?"

"The First Guards, the Crowned Lions?"

"The 3rd Guards Dragoon Regiment, Behemoth?"

"Ironclad Paladin?"

Uzon Hassan thought about it and felt that it seemed unlikely.

"Isn't it just an ordinary army?"

"Padisa, they belong to the Riorea Legion, a chariot unit..."

Mesudnana said.

"Ha! That's a grain transport team! They move so slowly, how can they be a match for the cavalry?"

A voice was heard, and Mesud looked in the direction of the sound, only to see Prince Khalil holding a cup of fermented yogurt and laughing heartily.

"Your Highness, their chariots have been modified, their speed has been greatly improved, and they can carry more supplies, so they are difficult to deal with..."

Although Mesud hated this arrogant but incompetent prince, he still patiently explained.

"Huh, I think you are scared!"

Khalil stumbled to his feet.

"You are afraid, but we are not. The descendants of Bayandur Khan are invincible!"

Khalil said loudly, and many people started shouting wildly.

Uzon Hassan waved his hand, and the cheers gradually died down.

“How was it modified?”

Uzon Hassan looked at Mesud.

"We are also under great pressure to supply. If it works well, we should also learn from it."

"Padisha, I'm not sure how it was modified, but I'm afraid we can't learn it..."

Mesudnana said.

"Why? You look down on my craftsman?"

Uzon Hassan frowned.

"No, no! Padisha, I definitely didn't mean that!"

Mesud broke out in a cold sweat.

"The Greeks' new chariot was indeed very good, but the most important material was a kind of rubber that originated from far away and could only be produced in the colonies of the Greek emperor."

Uzon Hassan was silent for a moment, nodded, and said nothing more.

"That's it, just come, our army is enough."

Uzon Hassan glanced at the rows of tribal leaders and took out a report.

"According to the latest intelligence, the Greek southwest army has captured the city of Balıkesir and is rushing towards Bursa, trying to join up with the northwest army."

"As for other small cities, the Greeks did not care about them, but handed them over to their so-called pioneer groups, which gradually invaded the Muslim territory."

"What do you think?"

Wuzon Hassan showed a mocking smile on his face and looked at everyone.

"Kill them!"

The ministers roared.

"The Greeks can only defeat the weak Ottomans. How can they be our opponents?"

Mesud quietly retreated and stood at the end.

“I’m so proud.”

A faint voice reached his ears.

This was Armenian, which Mesud happened to understand.

Mesud looked in the direction of the voice and saw a young man also looking at him.

"Be careful with your words, Wucanbeyi."

Mesud reminded.

"Moreover, they defeated the Koyonlu family and the Timurid family in two years, and made the Ottomans surrender. If it were you, it would probably be similar."

"These people revere Padishah like a divine messenger and truly believe that he is invincible in every battle."

Wu Can curled his lips.

"They have never seen the true fighting power of the Greeks. They always rely on their bravery and will probably suffer a great loss."

Ucan was the son of Ishak, the former monarch of Karaman. He was very daring since childhood and resolutely resisted during the Ottoman rule. He fought guerrilla warfare in the mountains, drowned several Ottoman generals, and cut off his ear and sent it to Mehmed II. He was appreciated by Uzung Hassan. Like Mesud, he became a vassal ruler under the rule of the White Ayun Dynasty. However, his fate was slightly better than Mesud's, and he was named Bey of Karaman.

Of course, Wucan's Karaman is still incomplete, and the city of Konya is firmly controlled by the Aries Prince Khalil.

While Uzon Hassan was discussing the details of sending troops with his ministers, Wu Can quietly approached Mesud.

"I heard that the Greeks are bribing Padishah's tribe with gold. New vassals in Persia and Anatolia are their main targets. Have they contacted you?"

Wucan switched back to Greek.

"No no!"

Mesud denied it flatly.

"They are our enemies, how is this possible?"

"I heard that as long as they are willing to convert, all their rights will be preserved, and the Greek emperor will make them local nobles."

Wu Can continued to whisper.

“They didn’t want to convert, so they let them take their wealth and leave freely.”

"What do you think of that?"

"We are Allah's holy warriors and firmly support Padishah's jihad!"

Mesud broke out in a cold sweat.

Wu Can looked at Mesud meaningfully and smiled.

"That's fine, that's fine."

The two men stopped talking and Uzon Hassan continued speaking.

"I know that everyone has been having a hard time these days."

On the throne, Uzon Hassan stood up.

"The Persian coast is attacked by the East India Fleet, and the remnants of the Black Sheep in the Caucasus Mountains are ready to make a move."

"But as long as we can win this battle, all the Greeks' schemes and tricks will come to naught."

Wu Zong Hasan raised his head and glanced at his ministers with sharp eyes.

He knew that the rule in Anatolia was very unstable, that the negative effects of long-term conscription were gradually emerging, and that the contradictions between the local nobles in Anatolia and the old Turkmen subordinates were becoming increasingly serious and could explode at any time.

He knew that the Greeks were still as fond of intrigue and conspiracy as ever, trying to bribe their vassals through their strong financial power and make them betray their oath of allegiance.

He knew that his situation was already very bad. The war in Anatolia had allowed him to accumulate enormous prestige and considerable wealth, but it had also put him in the spotlight. If he ran away without fighting, not to mention possible doubts from others, even the proud Uzon Hassan himself was unwilling to do so.

In his view, as long as he could win this holy war, his prestige in the Islamic world would be unmatched. He could take this opportunity to reform internal affairs, consolidate his rule, and even march into the Levant and Egypt, capture the three holy sites, and reunite the long-divided Islamic world under his rule.

For an Islamic monarch, this is the highest honor.

Whenever he thought of this, Uzon Hassan would tremble with excitement, and he couldn't wait to put it into practice.

Uzon Hassan's breathing became heavier, and there was a strange scarlet in his eyes.

"Sultan Muhammad has promised that as long as Bursa can be saved, he will bear all the expenses of our military operations and pay them back in ten years, with customs duties and salt and iron taxes as collateral!"

"The Venetians have also agreed to help us. As long as we can occupy some ports on the Aegean Sea, they will be able to transport new weapons over!"

"And the Mamluks, they dare not openly rebel against the Greek emperor, but if we win a big victory, they will also be encouraged!"

"We have assembled an army of 130,000 men, twice as many as the Greeks. They can't defeat us!"

Uzon Hassan waved his hand.

"We defeated the Qara Qoyunlu and the Timurids in four years. The Greeks will repeat their mistakes and be trampled under our feet!"

"Send troops to the west!"

The Turkmen tribal nobles roared wildly, their eyes full of fanaticism for Uzon Hassan.

……

On April 1472, 4, Padishah Uzung Hasan of the White Sheep Dynasty assembled an army of 2 in Ankara and rushed straight to Bursa in the west, trying to beat the Eastern Roman army to death on the beach.

In the following week, the Eastern Roman Emperor Isaac and the co-emperor Justinian arrived at the city of Bursa one after another. The Northwestern Army and the Southwestern Army began to move, with a total of 70,000 troops. They met on the east side of Bursa, leaving a small force to monitor the exhausted Bursa defenders, and then advanced eastward, looking for an opportunity for a decisive battle.

The war drums rumbled, the iron hooves crushed the tranquility of spring, and the two huge armies approached rapidly on the vast land of Anatolia. After several decades, another unprecedented war was about to begin on this devastated land.

(End of this chapter)