Volume 1: Birth! Seven time travelers Chapter 136: The Battle Between the Travelers (Part 2)
New Year's Day 1609, in Luçon, a small town in northwestern France.
At this time, the sun had already sunk into the horizon and the moon had just climbed above the treetops.
After finishing the evening prayer, Bishop Richelieu of Luçon sent away the last believer who came to pray, and was about to close the door of the church when a hand reached out from the darkness and stopped him from closing the door.
"Who are you? What are you doing here so late?"
"Your Excellency the Bishop, although I am not a Christian, can't you let me in to talk?" Stiff French was heard, and a burly figure appeared completely in front of Richelieu.
"The merciful Lord is willing to save all lost lambs. Please come in and talk." With the dim light from the lantern in his hand, Richelieu saw the appearance of the person who came clearly. Although he also had a high nose and deep eyes, he had black pupils and black hair. This made Richelieu's heart alert: this was definitely not the appearance of people in Western Europe!
Despite this, he remained calm on the surface, and when he led the visitors into the church, his movements remained steady, without a trace of panic.
"Hmm~~ You are indeed worthy of being praised by Master Yiplashin. I, Aziz, admire your generosity."
"Aziz?" Richelieu skillfully brought two glasses of red wine for tonight's communion and sat down very casually: "You are not French, nor Spanish, nor British. My friend, are you from the Ottoman Empire?"
"Yes, your Excellency. Are you afraid?"
"Afraid?" The 23-year-old Richelieu smiled and raised his finger upwards. "I am in the arms of God now. What should I be afraid of? I am just very curious. Luçon is the smallest bishopric in France. It will not be involved in the diplomacy between France and the Ottoman Empire. So, my friend, what are you doing here?"
"Before I came here, I was very confused and even dissatisfied with the person who gave me this order. But after meeting you, I feel that the person who gave me the order is really wise." After saying this, Aziz stood up and saluted: "I, Aziz Mohammed, am ordered by Master Ibrahim, the son of the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, to come to your side to help you, serve you, and protect you!"
Speaking of which, among the seven travelers in this dimension, the one from the Ottoman Empire has the lowest status.
His father was not the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, but the Grand Vizier (Prime Minister) of that empire.
The reason for this situation lies in the provisions of the Ottoman Empire's Kanun customary law on the Sultan's succession system.
In the history of the Ottoman Empire, the first ten sultans were all brave and brilliant. They not only achieved great results in politics and military, but also were all in good health. The average reign of the ten sultans was 27 years. These outstanding sultans led the Ottomans to achieve great achievements that the world envied.
The reason for this situation is that the Ottoman Empire's early regulations on the Sultan's successor were full of blood.
Once the Sultan's sons reached a certain age, they would be sent to local or military positions for training. At the same time, due to the geographical location of the Ottoman Empire, the royal family would invite scholars from Greece, Arabia, Persia, Egypt and even Western Europe to teach them knowledge. As a result, the Sultan's sons were all well-educated, good at riding and shooting, and both civil and military.
However, according to the customary law of Kanun, once the old Sultan dies and the new Sultan takes office, he will kill all his brothers!
This system caused the Sultan's sons to study hard and strengthen themselves for their own lives from the day they became sensible. And the one who became the final winner and ascended the throne of the Sultan among such a group of outstanding talents would never be a mediocre ruler.
This practice was of course extremely inhumane, but in the eyes of the Ottomans, handing over the country to the most wise and powerful ruler was much more important than a few wronged souls. Therefore, this customary law was upheld and continued for more than two hundred years. During these two hundred years, the Ottoman Empire expanded rapidly.
In 1595, the new Sultan Mehmed III ascended the throne. According to the customary law of Kanun, he killed all his 19 brothers. Unfortunately, the Sultan suddenly fell ill and died in 1603 at the age .
When he died, he left behind only two sons. The eldest son, Ahmed, was only thirteen years old and looked very unwell. The second son, Mustafa, was only eleven years old. At this time, the ministers were in a dilemma: if Mustafa was killed according to customary law, what if Ahmed died before giving birth to an heir? Wouldn't the Sultan's family be extinct?
Therefore, the Sultan's concubines and ministers persuaded Ahmed, who succeeded him, to spare his brother's life and put him under house arrest. Thus, the succession system of the Ottoman Empire changed from the winner killing all the losers to the winner imprisoning the loser.
This change brings up a problem: many sultans of the Ottoman Empire later experienced long-term imprisonment. Just think about it, these guys were imprisoned in fear all day long. If their sultan brother had a son, especially if the sultan brother's son was an adult, these guys would still be unable to escape death!
Living in such an environment where people can be beheaded at any time for a long time, it is strange that people's psychology is not distorted! And if such people, due to various coincidences, are transformed from prisoners to sultans (Mustafa mentioned above really went from a prisoner to a sultan), how will these people behave in the position of sultan?
The Ottoman Empire was called the Sick Man of West Asia in the 19th century. There were many reasons for this, but the sharp decline in the overall quality of the subsequent dozens of sultans was a very important reason.
In the dimension where Zhu Youdong is, the seven time travelers were born in the year 1600!
What to do? Born into the royal family of the Sultan, losing my father before I was three, and then being a prisoner for decades to see if there is a chance to turn the tables?
After all, since 1603, as long as the Grand Vizier and the concubines in the court reached an agreement, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire was just a symbol.
As for whether the time traveler can inherit the position of Grand Vizier from his father in this life? Ha, if he can't even do that, then what else can he say?
"Your Excellency, you must have heard about the miracle that occurred more than eight years ago when Michael appeared in the sky over Madrid?"
"Of course. It is said that on that day, the Spanish royal family got twins. Now, one of them is the Prince of Asturias and the other is the Grand Duke of the Basque Country."
"Yes, yes. What if I say that the Grand Duke of the Basques has trained assassins and is going to send them to Luçon to kill you?"
"Why? I heard that the Duke of Lerma in Spain was assassinated. It is said that the assassin was a Basque. Well, let's say it was the work of the Basque Grand Duke. But why would he send someone to assassinate me? I am just a bishop of the smallest and poorest diocese of Luçon in France."
"It's simple, because according to the prophecy of our Grand Vizier's son, the wise and intelligent Ibrahim, you will grow up to be the most reliable pillar of the King of France, and will become the most terrible enemy of Spain and even the entire Habsburg royal family!"
"...Hahahaha, well, my friend, your joke is not funny at all. Of course, you just said that I will become the pillar of the King of France, which I think is still possible. After all, although I serve the Lord, I prefer to serve the King of France. I am a Christian, but I am more of a Frenchman!"
"Yes, so-called faith should come after the country and the nation. Lord Richelieu, I don't believe in Ipraxin's prediction. Besides, he has another prediction that is even more shocking."
"Oh? Excuse me?"
"He predicted that next year, in May of 1610, your king, Henry IV, would be assassinated by a fanatical Catholic!"
"Lord!" He unconsciously made the sign of the cross on his chest, and his face became unhappy: "My friend, you are getting more and more outrageous."
"I'm sorry, Your Excellency the Bishop. I don't want to believe this either. But this young master has been amazing and admirable since he was born, so I have no choice but to carry out his every order. He asked me to protect you and support you, and he will also provide you with the latest scientific and technological knowledge through me. I wonder if you are willing to accept it?"
"My friend, I certainly wouldn't refuse such a thing. But if you were with me, this..." Richelieu raised the cross on his chest.
"Hahahaha, you and I both put the country first. I won't be the least bit uncomfortable with this kind of ritual."
"That's all right, my friend. I'll go and arrange for your accommodation right away. From now on, I will work hard to make sure that Ibrahim's prophecy will not fail. As for the assassination of the king you just mentioned, I will try to warn him through my friends in Paris."
