Became The Sultan Of The Ottoman Empire [EN]: Chapter 44

#44. Taking a Breath (1)

It was mid-1503.

At 15 years old, I had reached puberty by Islamic standards. This meant I was no longer treated like a child.

Four years had already passed since I began living as Yusuf, and thinking and acting as an Ottoman prince had become second nature.

I didn’t even know why I was in Yusuf’s body, and it might be a foolish hope, but I sometimes wondered if I could even readjust if I were to return to the modern world.

‘If I had a falling out with someone, I might start plotting ways to kill them without a trace.’

The political skills I learned while risking my life could help me rise to the top in society.

‘No, before that, I might not even want to go back to the modern world.’

Of course, if I could return right now, I would welcome it.

The succession war is a gamble where you risk your life. Winning battles and using future knowledge only increase the odds.

No matter how hard you prepare, you never know what might happen.

‘For all I know, Bayezid, who should be healthy, could die of a heart attack tomorrow.’

I doubt it would go that far, but even if everything goes according to plan, it’s like walking on thin ice.

But once I become Sultan, would I really give up everything and return to the modern world?

I’m not just saying this because of the immense power and the ability to have hundreds of concubines.

I’m talking about whether I could so easily throw away the results of over a decade of effort.

‘The longer I live here, the more regrets I’ll accumulate.’

The reason I’m saying this is that I recently gained another reason for regret.

Yusuf tapped the desk.

“Pregnancy.”

It seemed Ayesha was pregnant.

In an era where early marriages in the early teens were common, Ayesha’s pregnancy at 19 was hardly early.

‘Age aside, it’s actually late considering the timing.’

We’ve spent so many nights together, and she’s only pregnant now.

If there had been no news for a little longer, one of us would have been suspected of being infertile.

Ayesha, who had started experiencing morning sickness, took a pregnancy test and was now awaiting the results.

Early confirmation of pregnancy was important for the sake of the expectant mother and child. Just as in the East, they checked the pulse to confirm pregnancy, various methods were used in the West.

In this era, people called “Piss Prophets” would look at urine to determine pregnancy.

‘But how can you trust that?’

Honestly, how reliable is it when they say, ‘Hmm, the urine is clear, a pale lemon color, and there are bubbles on the surface, so you are definitely pregnant!’?

Or they would mix urine with wine to check for protein coagulation, but this was also regarded as mere superstition.

In the end, they had to bring in the ancient Egyptian method of using wheat and barley, and I received sympathetic looks when I said I would confirm it this way.

They looked at me as if I still had a childish side for believing in such superstitions.

“Who’s really believing in superstitions here?”

The method used in ancient Egypt involved putting a pregnant woman’s urine into two sacks filled with wheat and barley and checking for germination.

If it germinated, it meant pregnancy, and if barley germinated first, it was a boy, and if wheat germinated first, it was a girl.

Determining gender was superstition, but determining pregnancy was a highly reliable method.

According to an experiment in the mid-20th century, men and non-pregnant women did not germinate at all, but pregnant women germinated with a 70% probability.

It was the most reliable method available now.

It had been over a week since this method was used, so the results were about to come out. Fatima and Ayesha came to Yusuf, who was working in his office.

“Are the results out?”

“It has sprouted. Is it true that you are pregnant?”

If it sprouted, pregnancy was certain, and Yusuf nodded.

Ayesha, who would believe Yusuf even if he said people could fly, had a bright expression.

She had been worried a lot because she couldn’t conceive.

“Ayesha, come here.”

Ayesha, carefully covering her stomach with both hands, approached cautiously, and Yusuf rose from his seat and stroked her hair.

“Thank you. It’s an important time, so you must take good care of yourself.”

“I understand.”

It might be an unnecessary thing to say.

Unlike a commoner’s family where one more pair of hands is needed to make a living, there was no reason for Ayesha to do hard work.

Still, as he said it with concern, Fatima opened her mouth.

“Nene and I will take care of it, so you don’t have to worry about anything. Leave the women’s work to the women.”

“Then I’ll leave it to you.”

If it was Fatima and Nene, he could trust and leave it to them.

The two chatted lightly for a while and left, and Yusuf, left alone in his office again, closed his eyes tightly.

Hearing that Ayesha’s pregnancy was confirmed, Yusuf realized one thing.

“I’ve completely become an Ottoman prince.”

He was happy to hear that he was going to have a child, but it was more because of the benefits it would bring than fatherly love.

He didn’t know if it was a son or a daughter yet, but the fact that he had a child was a good thing. At least it proved that there were no problems with producing an heir.

‘It would be better if it were a son, though.’

Unlike his other brothers, he was young, so there was no rush for an heir, but it was better to have a son.

Moreover, it was important that Ayesha served as a connection to the Circassians.

When Ivan, who came from Circassia, returned after the last war, he even met Ayesha.

‘It’s not like Circassia can send someone to replace Ayesha.’

Unless they were planning to send women from each tribe of Circassia, it was difficult to have a formal political marriage.

For the Circassians, who had to rely solely on Ayesha, the news of Ayesha’s pregnancy would be welcome news.

All that floated in his head were calculations of profit and loss, and Yusuf opened his eyes coldly.

“I have no choice. I have to become Sultan by any means.”

Yusuf steeled his momentarily wavering heart.

At least the current him was an Ottoman prince who could heartlessly kill even his own flesh and blood.

***

Following the joyful news of Ayesha’s pregnancy, the army that departed for Georgia also achieved victory after victory.

The commander leading the army was Shemsi, and he advanced relentlessly as if he hadn’t received the title of Pasha [a high-ranking title in the Ottoman Empire] for nothing.

The Georgian states, which had been betrayed by Ismail and had fallen into Safavid’s vassalage after supporting the army, felt a strong fear of the army from Trabzon.

Having directly witnessed 7,000 Qizilbash [a term for Shia Muslims, particularly those who followed the Safavid order] defeating an army of 30,000 twice, they were well aware of the power of the Qizilbash.

The army of Trabzon, which had killed 5,000 of those Qizilbash without much damage, was, according to rumors, an army of demons from hell.

Just seeing the army allied with Samtskhe, the cities raised the white flag, and to such an extent that there were complaints among the soldiers who couldn’t loot because there was no proper siege.

In the end, before winter came, the Georgian kingdoms declared that they would pay taxes, effectively surrendering.

“Shemsi will take care of the negotiations and come back.”

If they hadn’t inflicted significant damage on the Qizilbash, they wouldn’t have been able to occupy Georgia so easily.

If Safavid had supported the troops, they couldn’t have conquered it with just a sanjak-sized army [a military administrative division].

Of course, Selim also conquered Georgia and collected taxes, but there was a reason why Selim could move so uninhibitedly in 1507, which was the original history.

“Safavid attacked Dulkadir, so they didn’t have the余裕 [yoyu – Japanese word meaning ‘leeway’ or ‘capacity’] to care about Georgia.”

Dulkadir is a principality located south of Trabzon.

Thanks to bordering three powerful countries—Ottoman, Mamluk, and the White Sheep Dynasty—it was still surviving.

The Ottomans also coveted it and had formed blood ties several times. Selim’s mother was the daughter of the current Dulkadir Sultan.

Anyway, it was a land that no one could easily touch because it served as a kind of buffer zone, but Safavid, which had grown in size, attacked Dulkadir in 1507.

“It wasn’t so much about occupying Dulkadir as it was a kind of probing.”

They were testing to see how Mamluk and Ottoman, who claimed Dulkadir belonged to them, would react to this action.

Mamluk was completely silent, and Ottoman was also silent until domestic public opinion worsened, and Bayezid summoned the army.

When over 110,000 troops gathered, Ismail was startled, apologized, and retreated.

“The important thing is whether the Dulkadir invasion will occur.”

The current princes were like beasts crouching in the meadow before a hunt.

They were just waiting for a chance to bite the neck, so it was important to predict when they would move.

The Dulkadir invasion would be a reason for the princes to move.

Yusuf, thinking about Ismail’s past and future actions, came to a conclusion.

“The possibility of Ismail invading Dulkadir is high.”

Although he lost 5,000 Qizilbash, Ismail quickly made up for the troop losses by waging conquest wars even faster.

The most important public opinion was also that it was not Ismail’s fault due to the great defeat, but rather Nevazar’s incompetence.

In terms of conquest speed alone, it was faster than in the original history, and Ismail, whose pride was hurt, was likely to invade Dulkadir.

‘It’s like taking out his anger on an innocent place, but if he attacks me seeking revenge, it will lead to a full-scale war with the Ottomans.’

It’s okay for princes to kill each other, but it’s a different story if they are killed by a foreign country.

It’s a matter of national pride.

Anyway, there is no place like Dulkadir to do both venting and probing at the same time.

Yusuf unfolded the map.

“Selim will definitely move. He has a clear justification for helping his grandfather.”

Of course, a man who could kill his own father would not have such affection for a grandfather he had never properly met, but that’s how justifications work.

“What will Ahmed and Korkut, who have achieved a miraculous fraternal alliance in the Ottoman Empire, do?”

Çorum, where Korkut was newly appointed as Sanjakbey [governor of a district], was close to Amasya.

If it was just close, their alliance wouldn’t have been formed, but Korkut, who went to the inland Çorum, had no choice but to yield to Ahmed in order to survive.

‘Korkut’s power is in the sea.’

Like supporting Barbarossa (Red Beard) with ships, Korkut has tremendous influence among sailors.

He even paid a lot of money to rescue sailors who were taken prisoner.

Moving such Korkut inland was practically cutting off his limbs.

“I’m not them, so I’m not sure, but there’s a high possibility they’ll move.”

Ahmed, whose solid position was shaken by Yusuf’s existence, was feeling a sense of crisis to the point of forming an alliance with his brother.

Ahmed will try to prove that he is no less than Yusuf, and Korkut will try to gain merit to return to his original territory, Saruhan.

“Honestly, I don’t know about the fourth, Şehinşah.”

What should I call him, a variable? There is the fourth prince, Şehzade Şehinşah [Ottoman title for a prince], in Konya, near Teke.

Even though he was a prince who survived until 1511, when the formal succession war began, there was not much information known about him in the future.

The reason for his death is also unknown, but there is only speculation that he died of opium addiction.

Thinking about Şehinşah, whose tendencies and thoughts were unknown, Yusuf said coldly.

“If possible, I hope he continues to stay quiet like in the original history. I’ll kill him neatly when I become Sultan.”

The princes were taking a breather, waiting for the day to reveal their teeth.