Became The Sultan Of The Ottoman Empire [EN]: Chapter 180

Became the Sultan of the Ottomans – Episode 180

Rumors (2)

For Joseon [Korea], the sudden request from the Ming Dynasty’s envoy was enough to throw the palace into chaos.

“What on earth did that Huihui [Muslim] person say in front of the Emperor to make such a request?!”

“This is why those who are no different from merchants cannot be trusted.”

“It’s not too late now. We must drive them out!”

The minister who spat out those heated words quickly avoided the gazes that poured in as if he were crazy.

Judging by the way things were going, even the Ming Dynasty was yielding in the seas, so Joseon was in no position to argue.

If they were to bicker, they would become a peninsular nation unable to even show their face on the coast, and they deserved such glares.

As the agitated atmosphere calmed down a bit, Chief State Councilor Jeong Gwang-pil stepped forward.

“The most important thing isn’t the Huihui people’s affair. Shouldn’t we properly respond to the envoy who is waiting for an answer?”

“Chief State Councilor, do you think it is possible to accept the envoy’s request?”

Jeong Gwang-pil bowed his head at Jungjong’s question.

“We cannot simply trust what they say. We do not know if this ‘New World’ they speak of is truly full of gold and silver treasures. If it were truly so, they would have moved directly instead of entrusting it to Joseon.”

“That is true. Or, even if we achieve results, there is a high possibility that we will be exploited under the guise of tribute.”

“That is correct. And it is also difficult in terms of capability. Due to the long-standing maritime ban policy, there are few who have experience going overseas. Venturing into the distant ocean as the envoy requests is impossible.”

“Then what should we do?”

“Ming also knows that the request to find a route to discover the New World cannot be fulfilled immediately. We must buy time with a plausible excuse.”

The best course of action is to delay as much as possible.

As time passes, the Ming Emperor may lose interest in the New World, or, with a stroke of luck, the Emperor might pass away.

“What kind of excuse would be good?”

“Looking at the Huihui people’s ships, Joseon’s ships are not suitable for long-distance sea voyages. We can say that we need to research and build new ships. And we must send an envoy to the Ottomans.”

“An envoy?”

“Yes, if it is the Ottomans who send a large fleet all the way here, we can seek their help in pioneering sea routes. Use that as an excuse.”

Building new ships and waiting for the envoy sent to the distant Ottomans to return are both time-consuming tasks.

It is a brilliant idea for the purpose of buying time, but there is one problem.

“There is no way the Ming envoy will be satisfied with this answer and simply return. That is the problem.”

“I also have a plan for that.”

The envoy, who had enjoyed the banquet prepared to welcome him, appeared arrogant and demanded an answer, to which Jeong Gwang-pil replied.

“Since ancient times, our nation has treated Ming with sincerity and Wa [Japan] with trust. This demonstrates that Joseon has always been mindful of the friendship between our three nations.”

“So?”

“If the New World is truly full of gold and silver treasures, and Joseon and Ming gain great benefits, wouldn’t we betray the trust we have built with Wa? We must give them the opportunity to participate as well.”

It was a statement filled with a strong desire to avoid being the only ones to suffer the consequences, and soon after, Joseon’s delegation visited Wa.

After that, rumors about the New World full of gold and silver treasures spread rapidly in Wa.

***

Those who could be called Murat’s personal guard boarded the ship, and Mehmed asked as he watched the preparations for departure nearing completion.

“Is it already time to return? Staying longer would be beneficial.”

The wounds created by the Sack of Rome were not easily healed.

The number of victims who died during the looting alone reached 6,000, and the number of citizens who fled Rome far exceeded 20,000.

The population was halved, and many buildings were destroyed and burned down, leaving the city where the Renaissance had blossomed close to ruins.

Still, those who had left were slowly returning after hearing news from Rome, and the residential areas were being rebuilt quickly using cement.

There was still plenty of opportunity to exploit the situation, but Murat decided to return to his Sanjak [district or territory].

“Unlike you, brother, the people in my Sanjak are a bit unruly, so I can’t leave it unattended for long. I have no interest in places that cannot become part of the Empire’s territory.”

The mercenaries from the Italian city-states who had been lurking around Rome had also retreated, so he had no intention of wasting time there.

Mehmed nodded at Murat’s reasoning.

“I won’t stop you if that’s what you think. I don’t intend to stay here for too long either.”

“Take good care of yourself. Don’t let your guard down in a place that is practically enemy territory and end up humiliated.”

“Your impudent tone is still the same.”

After exchanging sarcastic remarks, Murat stretched and asked.

“By the way, is it noisy these days because of Father’s affairs?”

“Are you talking about what I said about Portugal? Isn’t that a common occurrence in the Empire?”

“Well, it is.”

There was no need to cite the great earthquake that occurred in the capital at the time of his accession as an example; he had displayed actions that exceeded predictions and bordered on prophecies more than once or twice.

Even during the Sack of Rome, he had preemptively moved before the outcome was clear.

“Isn’t it because that ‘common occurrence’ has become surprisingly widely known? The Westerners are fond of prophecies while simultaneously persecuting people to death in the name of the Inquisition.”

“That’s not the only reason.”

Occultism such as magic and prophecies flourished throughout Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries, but there is another reason why rumors spread so quickly now.

“It also means that Father’s reputation has grown, and it is also an attempt to tarnish his reputation.”

Those who have come across Yusuf’s biography and the rumors surrounding him are observing Yusuf’s extraordinary nature with skepticism.

Opinions were divided as to whether it was fact or fiction, so rumors that would normally only circulate within the Ottoman Empire spread rapidly across borders.

The problem was that as rumors spread widely, if they turned out to be false, past events would also be viewed with less credibility.

“Is it like raising the stakes significantly?”

“Yes, it’s a foolish gamble.”

The more people who know Yusuf well, the less likely they are to bet against him.

“Well, if you hear any interesting news later, please let me know.”

“Okay, go now.”

As the departure preparations were roughly finished, Murat waved his hand and boarded the ship, and Mehmed indifferently returned to his office without even watching the ship leave.

“Your Highness, wouldn’t it have been better to eliminate Prince Murat this time? It was a rare opportunity.”

It was rare for the two princes to be together for an extended period in a place where the Padishah [Sultan] was not present, and it would have been easy to frame him in Rome, which was close to enemy territory.

There were countless individuals in the Ottoman Empire who harbored treacherous intentions.

At his subordinate’s words, Mehmed skimmed through the documents and replied indifferently.

“There were more of Murat’s soldiers on board today than I anticipated. It would have been a dagger turned against us if we had attempted any foolish tricks.”

The subordinate who had advocated for the assassination broke into a cold sweat at the mention that there were those who were hiding among the citizens living as refugees and observing the situation.

“Don’t talk nonsense and leave now.”

As the subordinate bowed his head and retreated, Mehmed frowned alone.

“I’ll have to get rid of that guy at the right opportunity.”

He didn’t know how many eyes and ears his father had in Rome, but there was a high possibility that he knew that there was someone among his subordinates who had argued for Murat’s assassination.

Mehmed, who had no intention of protecting a subordinate who couldn’t grasp the situation and was a liability, quickly flipped through the documents.

He had to work diligently because he had no intention of being stuck in Rome forever.

***

“Mustafa has finally set sail, and I’m worried,” the letter from Tazlu read.

He already knew the information that Mustafa had boarded the ship himself, but it felt different to receive that fact in Tazlu’s letter, which was full of concern for her son.

“Even a stable route can be dangerous, so wouldn’t that be the case?”

“That must be a parent’s heart.”

Even Yusuf, who knew that Mustafa’s luck was high and that the possibility of him dying was small, was not completely without worry, so how much more would Tazlu be.

If he were in the harem, he would have directly eased her worries, but all he could do for Tazlu, who was in distant Basra, was write a letter.

“It must be even more so since this goal is beyond India.”

He would be thinking of going to Malacca, if not Taiwan Island, and further strengthening the connection between the Southeast Asian sultanates and the Ottoman Empire.

Yusuf briefly stopped writing the letter for Tazlu.

‘I wonder if Suleiman told the Ming Dynasty about the New World.’

Drawing the Ming Dynasty, which had tremendous economic power, into the New World seemed like it would be a great disaster, but it wasn’t necessarily bad in the current Ottoman situation.

There was a high possibility that they would be annihilated if they followed the same path as the Portuguese Governor of India, who he didn’t know how he had crossed over, and they would only lose money and weaken their national power.

If it wasn’t the northern route, there were two routes suitable for crossing from East Asia to America.

The route that can go back and forth between Malacca and Central and South America, and the route that passes through Japan, where Hasekura Tsunenaga of Japan crossed the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans to meet the Pope in the early 17th century.

‘It doesn’t matter much even if they discover this route and actually arrive in America.’

Settling in America is not easy, just as European countries like England repeatedly failed in their attempts to settle there.

This was the same for the Ottoman Empire, and it would be even more difficult, especially since Spain, which destroyed the Aztec Empire, carried out missionary work and converted 2.5 million natives to Christianity in the 1540s.

It was a situation where it was difficult for the Ottoman Empire to intervene alone, and it was better to shake up the board by attracting as many people as possible.

‘It’s not something that will end in a year or two, and the most threatening Ming Dynasty is a nation threatened by nomads, so I don’t have to worry too much in the long run.’

It wasn’t for nothing that he said it was okay to tell Suleiman about the New World.

Yusuf looked out the window, and it was raining endlessly outside.

“Shemsi Pasha, it seems winter has come.”

“Yes, it has.”

It rained frequently in the winter in the capital, Kostantiniyye [Istanbul], and you could roughly guess the season just by looking at how much it rained in a month.

Listening to the humid weather and the sound of falling rain, Yusuf finished the letter he was writing and carefully put it in an envelope.

“The time is gradually approaching.”

“What time are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about the time when something that cannot be changed by human power is approaching.”

No matter how much he intervened and twisted history, there were things that happened regardless, and that event was already approaching.

***

The Portuguese nobles and the king scoffed at the news that Yusuf had predicted a disaster.

“The infidel emperor must be desperate enough to spread such absurd rumors.”

“Even the Ottoman Empire must be in trouble. Isn’t it because many fleets have already left for the East?”

“I don’t know why they’re doing such reckless things. Isn’t it because they’re blinded by money?”

The Portuguese, whose sea routes that they had barely secured for a long time were being threatened by the Ottoman Empire, gnashed their teeth at the Ottomans.

The nobles gathered in one place regarded the rumors they heard from afar as good news.

That’s how few people believed that Yusuf’s words would become reality.

“The infidel emperor has a tongue like a viper. Look at him trying to stop the attack by wagging his tongue.”

“Can’t you tell just by looking at his biography? How many times has he used his words to gain profit?”

“You can tell just by looking at the fact that his close aide’s nickname is the Devil’s Tongue. Isn’t that right, Diogo?”

At the sudden call of his name, Diogo, the former Governor of India, nodded his head.

“That’s right. You can’t trust their words.”

“That’s right. Let’s all believe in the one who will bring us new sea routes.”

At these words, Diogo had a sullen look on his face.

No matter how he thought about it, going back on a road he didn’t even know how he had come was impossible.

However, Diogo, who already had a record of ruining the fleet, had no choice but to nod his head with a forced smile.

In a friendly atmosphere, the party ended in the early dawn of that day.