Volume 3: Confrontation! The Run of Civilization Chapter 454 Tianji Star has been activated
As Osman II had received a good and professional imperial education since childhood, how could he not know that he had fallen into a terrible situation when he heard Ibrahim's words?
Although he was sidelined by the leaders of the personal guards in the past, at least these guys were not Ottomans. He had to put a few ministers of Ottoman origin on the stage, so that he, as the Sultan, could still please both sides and have room for maneuver. But now? To be honest, although he was dissatisfied with the personal guards in the past and felt that they had made a mess of the country, it seems better to keep the personal guards in power now. Although I heard that Ibrahim had governed Transcaucasia very well in two years, no matter how good it was, what was the point if he had no power at all?
However, in the eyes of Ibrahim, the time traveler, if it were not for him, then according to the development of history itself, the Sultan would have been killed by the Slavs two years later by smashing his balls with a sledgehammer and then strangled with a bowstring. Therefore, if His Majesty the Sultan is obedient and sensible, it will be fine. If he dares to complain, he doesn't mind another regicide: anyway, once the powerful minister takes this step, there is no way back.
But we have to take this step. The twins in Spain have already gained a decisive advantage in Europe. With a little integration, they can mobilize the whole of Europe to rush towards the Ottoman Empire. Even if they die a miserable death as powerful officials in the future, it is better than doing nothing and being caught and hanged by the twins in the near future, right?
Therefore, Ibrahim was very clear at this time, and he was very direct to Osman II: Are you honest? If not, I will strike you out!
On July 28, 1620, after intensive negotiations with local powerful factions, all parties basically reached a compromise. Then Osman II issued an order to appoint Ibrahim Sokoly as the Grand Vizier of the Empire.
"Ding Dong, the host has been detected to have reached the top in this era, and the system is activated."
"What? There's still a system?"
"Yes, because you, the host, cannot be born in the Sultan's family due to time constraints, so according to the agreement of the gods, as long as you can sit in the position of the Grand Vizier of the Empire, you can activate the system ."
"Okay, system, what can you offer me?"
"The main functions of this system are... Your natal star is the third star of the Big Dipper, Tianji Star. It is also called Lucun Star, which represents wealth. Therefore, after you reach the top, the commercial prosperity of your country will increase by 20%, and the merchants' support for you will increase by 20%. The moderate increase in commercial and agricultural taxes will not cause large-scale dissatisfaction and resistance in the country."
"Very good! For a country like Osman, which owns three continents and five seas, we should have a prosperous trade and a developed economy. With the addition of this Tianji Star, the effect will only be more obvious!"
…
On August 1, the new Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire issued several orders in succession, marking the beginning of the empire's new policy.
First, all land, wealth, and serfs held by leaders of the Sudanese personal guard at all levels were confiscated and nationalized.
Secondly, a comprehensive cleanup should be carried out on the Sipasis who have sacrificed their lives fighting for the country over the years. For those who have died in the national war, their families should be given subsidies and land should be redistributed.
Third, the National Defense Force was reorganized. The new National Defense Force adopted a compulsory military service system for the Ottomans and a voluntary principle for other nationalities in the country. However, no matter what nationality, once they joined the army, they were treated equally in terms of salary.
Fourth, the Yelisheni (the transliteration of the Sultan's personal guard corps) was cleaned up again, and ordinary middle and lower-level officers and soldiers who were not determined, loyal, talented, and skilled in martial arts to continue to serve in the Yelisheni Corps were dismissed. However, these dismissed people were not directly disbanded, but given two options. Either they rejoined the newly formed National Defense Forces and were given different positions according to their talents (demotion). Or they were sent to the north of the Caucasus Mountains to attack the Mongols on the steppes north of the Caucasus.
Fifth, revitalize industry and develop commerce. The state opened up steam engine technology and some light industrial production technologies, and encouraged private capital to enter emerging industries. At the same time, the checkpoints between provinces and governorates were abolished. It was ensured that merchants within the empire, whether domestic or foreign, only paid tolls once when doing business in the empire.
Sixth, develop education. The state will open Istanbul University in January 1621 and start recruiting students. At the same time, the state will allocate a large amount of funds to ensure that at least one middle school is established in every province. The textbooks of universities and middle schools will be personally approved by the Grand Vizier. Most of the professors in the school are wise men who have followed the Grand Vizier for many years and have been taught by him.
…
The above six points are basically complementary to each other: Yelisheni developed from the slave soldiers of the Sultan to a huge interest group that can influence the Sultan's dethronement and enthronement in the past two hundred years. Once most of the huge wealth of the entire group was swallowed up by Ibrahim. In this way, he had enough land and wealth to redistribute in order to please his supporters.
No monarch is a true dictator. They must have their own supporters, otherwise their position will be unstable. When Zhu Yuanzhang founded the country, he killed so many officials that he had the absolute obedience and support of the military. Zhu Youdong's power in the Ming Dynasty is now as strong as Zhu Yuanzhang's, because he has the absolute obedience of the Imperial Tutor Party and Fangshan Clan in the civil service and the absolute obedience of the New Army in the military service.
As for Ibrahim, his supporters mainly came from two aspects. One was some Arab, Armenian and other ethnic elites he absorbed when he was the governor of the Mesopotamian and Transcaucasian regions. The other was the Sipasis, which had already begun to decline.
As a class of Ottomans, most of the Sipasis were Ottomans. During the rise of the empire, they obtained land (not hereditary) because of their military merits, and then when the country was in trouble, they had to bring their own dry food to fight for the country. In the early days of the empire, the Sipasis were an important source of soldiers and the most powerful force of the empire.
However, as the empire expanded, more and more peoples were conquered. For the sake of balance, successive sultans were less and less willing to put the sharpest knife of the empire in the hands of Sipasis of the same ethnic group. Thus, the Yelisheni Group came into being.
In short, after more than 200 years, the Sipasi group has begun to decline. Since land cannot be inherited, and the empire has been unable to expand due to repeated defeats in recent years, the children of the Sipasi often face the situation of not having military merits and not being able to get new land, so they cannot make a living and eventually fall into a lower class.
At this time, the Yelisheni Group had become a cancer that hindered the progress of the empire. So, as a time traveler, it was natural to win over the Sipahi class and transfer the empire's military power back to the hands of the Ottomans themselves.
What Ibrahim used to bribe the Sipasis was naturally the land and wealth of the Yelisheni Group.
With the support of the Sipahi Group, the Mesopotamian region, and the Transcaucasian region, and the fact that his new army was small in number but far superior in equipment to other domestic military forces, Ibrahim was able to quickly stabilize the domestic situation and barely secure his position as Grand Vizier.
"Congratulations, Pasha, you have truly taken control of this country."
"Haha, all these careful plans cannot be made without your help, Mr. Richelieu. Now, I sincerely invite you to serve as my chief secretary and give you full power to manage the civil affairs of this country. Are you willing to accept it?"
"Uh... Pasha, I am a man of a fallen country, and my lifelong ideal is to restore the unity of France. So, as long as I can achieve this goal, I am willing to do anything."
"Hahaha, Lord Richelieu, I don't know if I can stop the Spanish twins who have basically unified Europe at this moment. But I promise you that as long as we can defeat the Spanish twins, France will be able to restore its unity and become stronger on the basis of unity. After all, no matter how big the Ottomans' territorial ambitions are, it is impossible for them to swallow up the whole of Europe in our lifetime. If we defeat Spain, the Ottomans need a strong ally in Western Europe!"
"...In that case, I accept your invitation and am willing to serve you."
"Praise be to Allah, this is the best news I have heard recently."
"Pasha, although we don't want to admit it, we have to face the reality that once the Spanish twins complete the integration of Europe and come at us with all their might, it will be very difficult for the Ottomans to cope with it."
“Hahaha, you’re too polite. In my opinion, if we were to face the Spanish twins now, it wouldn’t be a problem for us to struggle, but we would easily fail!”
"How are you going to deal with this situation?"
"Well, my idea is to send an envoy to Tabriz immediately. I am willing to pay a considerable price to form . At the same time, we must also send a reliable team of envoys to China! In addition to stabilizing His Majesty Abbas, I also need the help of the Ming emperor in the Far East!"
