Rule over Ming Dynasty

In the strait connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Black Sea, there is a bay surrounded by the sea on three sides, called the Golden Horn, and Constantinople, the capital of the Ottoman Empire, is located here.

Late last year, an earthquake suddenly destroyed part of Constantinople's walls.

A breach appeared in this impregnable castle, which became a major concern for the Ottoman Empire.

The entire castle increased its vigilance against the gap that could not be repaired in time, but considering the strength of the Ottoman Empire, they did not take this small gap in the castle seriously.

But no one expected that the fifth prince Selim would suddenly appear here today with an army, immediately causing panic in the entire castle.

There was actually turmoil within the Ottoman Empire. Since the sixty-year-old King Bayezid was half buried in the ground, his two sons Selim and Ahmed began to fight for the throne.

The fight for the throne began two years ago. Ahmed, Selim's elder brother, led an eastern expedition to defeat the Karaman Turks and their allied Safavid dynasty in Anatolia.

Ahmed returned triumphantly as a victor and naturally became the person closest to the throne. Even the then King Bayezid felt threatened by his son Ahmed.

The fifth prince Selim was afraid that his own safety would be threatened, so he immediately wanted to start a rebellion in Thrace, but was suppressed by Bayezid and exiled to Crimea.

Two years later, with the support of the Janissaries, Selim returned from Crimea and defeated his brother Ahmed who was stationed outside.

Now, without receiving the order from the King of the Ottoman Empire, he suddenly led his army to Constantinople. His ambition is naturally self-evident.

"Pass on my order. The whole city is on alert. Selim is not allowed to enter Constantinople even a single step!" Bayezid gave the order immediately after learning that the five princes had arrived outside the castle.

He knew that the fifth prince Selim had greater ambitions and was more cruel than Bayezid, and that he might kill him and seize the throne this time, so he declared a state of alert and banned Selim from entering Constantinople.

The sky was gloomy and the walls of Constantinople looked particularly old and heavy.

Due to his old age, Bayezid had the habit of taking a nap at noon. He was lying in his bedroom snoring loudly, his fat body rising and falling, and he was completely unaware of the coming storm.

"Your Highness, please come in!" The commander of the Royal Guards personally opened a side door of the palace and welcomed in the fifth prince Selim.

Selim was a middle-aged man with an eagle nose, his face full of perseverance and determination, his eyes flashing with desire for power, and he led his loyal subordinates into the palace.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the palace was tense and depressing. The servants had been bribed by Selim's money and promises, and were kneeling silently to welcome Selim's arrival.

Selim walked into the chamber, his footsteps echoing in the empty room.

His heartbeat was beating against his chest like a war drum, but his face remained calm and composed, knowing that the next moment would determine the fate of his life.

Power forced him to take risks, even if it meant killing his father and brother himself.

Selim finally came to Bayezid's bed. Looking at his sleeping father with a satisfied smile on his face, a trace of disdain flashed in his eyes.

what……

Bayezid suddenly woke up from his sleep and screamed when he saw Selim standing in front of the bed. Then he pointed at him in disbelief and asked, "How...how did you get in?"

"Father, I have something important to report!" Selim's mouth corners slightly raised, and he said in a low and firm voice.

Bayese was sure that the person in front of him was Selim, and he was extremely scared at this moment: "Selim, come out immediately! Someone, come quickly!"

At this moment, except for the two most loyal guards brought in by Selim, there was no one else, or perhaps all the others were blind and deaf.

"Father, the Ottoman Empire is already in a precarious situation. I think it's time for a change." Selim saw Bayezid's panic and spoke with a mysterious tone.

Bayezid saw that no one outside obeyed his orders, and finally realized that everyone in the palace had betrayed him: "Change? Selim, how do you want to change?"

"Father, you are old and in poor health. It is time to pass the throne to someone more capable." Selim's eyes were full of ambition and he said recklessly.

Bayezid's face froze, and he immediately glared at Selim and ordered: "Get out, get out!"

He was originally worried that the Atlantic Governor's fleet would come for revenge, but the first person to come was actually his own son, who also wanted to seize his throne.

Faced with the other party's unreasonable demands, he naturally would not agree and would never give his throne to this beast.

"Father, if you don't think about yourself, shouldn't you think about my two sisters and your most beloved woman?" Selim did not leave, but spoke word by word.

Bayezid's face suddenly changed, his hair stood on end, and he was about to curse at the beast, but he swallowed the words back when they came to his lips.

He knew that he was old and his health was indeed deteriorating, and his people had already supported the younger beast in front of him. He could not imagine what kind of bloody storm would be caused if he refused to abdicate.

If there is anything he cannot let go of, it is definitely his two young daughters and his sweet wife who understands him and knows him well.

"Father, for the future of our Ottoman Empire, please seriously consider this suggestion of yours!" Selim saw Bayezid's hesitation and helplessness, so he struck while the iron was hot.

Bayezid was silent for a long time, and finally nodded slightly.

"My father is wise. I will live up to your trust and plant the flag of the Ottoman Empire all over the world!" An indescribable excitement and joy surged in Selim's heart, and he immediately knelt in front of Bayezid to express his opinion.

Bayezid was extremely exhausted and hoped that this was just a dream. "I was born on the island of Demotica, but I don't have much time left. After the abdication ceremony, please arrange for my family to return to Demotica!"

"I obey your command!" Selim suppressed the ecstasy in his heart and expressed his opinion quickly.

Bayezid seemed to have aged several years and sent Selim away.

The moment Selim walked out of the bedroom, his heart was filled with longing and expectation for the future.

He knew that he was about to embark on a road full of challenges and opportunities, but he firmly believed that with his wisdom and courage, he would be able to lead the Ottoman Empire to a more glorious future, and even replace the Ming Empire, the most powerful empire in the world today.

In the next half month, Bayezid completed the abdication ceremony, and Selim became the ninth Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, known as Selim I. After abdicating, Bayezid II took his family to Demotika Island, where he was born, and planned to spend the rest of his life there.

However, things don't go as planned, and when he was about to reach the island of Demotica, he suddenly died.

When Selim learned of his father's death, he finally felt relieved.

If there was anything that still worried him, it was his runaway brother Ahmed. He didn't expect that he would not go anywhere but actually run to the Atlantic Governor's Mansion to seek help.

Selim knew that his succession to the throne was legal. Now that the old man had been killed with a bowl of medicine, Ahmed was no longer a concern, so he had already begun to work on the eastern expedition.

Ever since he learned that the East was rich in gold and spices, and especially after seeing porcelain, tea, silk, sugar, fishing line, and clocks from the Ming Dynasty, he became even more determined to expand eastward.

After all, the West was the territory of Catholicism. Even if the Ottoman Empire annexed the territory of Western Europe, it would be difficult to spread the faith. Moreover, smallpox was rampant in Europe, and his interest in this place cursed by the devil was decreasing.

In contrast, Europe's resources are relatively scarce and far less attractive than the East, where gold is everywhere.

As the Ottoman Empire planned how to conquer the East, he had no idea of ​​the coming storm.

The sea breeze was howling, and the flags of the Ming fleet were fluttering on the masts.

This huge fleet consisting of dozens of warships is like a giant dragon, shuttling through the waves of the Mediterranean Sea, slowly showing its fangs.

Atlantic Governor Wang Zhi stood on the deck of the flagship. Time had not left too many traces on his fair face. His eyes were sharp as he gazed at the distant sea.

More than a month later, he finally received the telegram from the Ming court. At this moment, his face was full of determination and resolution.

The Ming Dynasty may not care about territorial disputes and may even sit idly by and watch as the Italian peninsula, the most prosperous island in Europe, but all the four seas belong to the Ming Dynasty and anyone who violates the Ming Dynasty's maritime rights will be put to death.

Today, the flag of the Ming Empire will be hoisted in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, and the Ottoman Empire, which offended the Ming Dynasty, will pay the price in blood for its foolish actions.

"Haha... they are really a bunch of cowards. They actually ran away at the sight of the enemy!" Wang Wuqing laughed loudly when he saw the Ottoman Navy fleeing far away.

The Ottoman Empire Navy was actually an inland navy, and their activities were limited to the Black Sea and the Mediterranean, so their warships were not actually very strong. The reason why they were able to dominate the Black Sea and the eastern Mediterranean was precisely because of their huge numbers.

It is worth mentioning that as the overlord of Eastern Europe, if the smallpox vaccine had not had such a huge impact, the population of the Ottoman Empire would probably have exceeded 10 million today.

Now facing the suddenly appearing Ming fleet, they seemed to know that their warships were no match for it, so they decisively chose to flee towards the Black Sea.

Every warship of the Ming fleet was equipped with advanced artillery, with their guns pointed at the fleeing Ottoman Navy, ready to fire as long as they got close enough.

However, the Ottoman warships were more maneuverable. At this moment, they were like a whale swimming underwater, but the school of fish in front of them were also swimming forward desperately.

"Haha... these Eastern idiots don't even understand that we are luring the enemy deep into our territory!" When the Ottoman Navy commander the Janissaries saw that the Ming Navy had been fooled, he immediately laughed wildly.

As the Ming fleet entered the narrow strait, Ottoman warships surrounded it from all directions.

Although they could not master the most advanced artillery technology, each warship was equipped with traditional cannons. As long as they attacked together, they would be able to sink the Ming warships.

Yes, they had already discovered the fatal weakness of the Ming Dynasty ships.

They only need to make a hole below the tension line of the Ming ship's hull and use the principle of seawater backflow to sink the entire ship. This trick is a powerful weapon against large merchant ships.

boom! boom! boom!
The surrounding warships fired stone bullets one after another, aiming at the waterline of the huge Ming warships. A large number of stone bullets smashed madly at the leading warship.

In fact, judging from the hull, this leading warship of the Ming fleet is more accurately called a battleship.

Faced with the densely packed stones, the warship had no way to avoid them. Suddenly, sparks flew all over the warship, and the stones created sparks on the body of the warship.

"This...what's going on?" The smile on the Janissary's face suddenly froze, and he suddenly overturned his cognition.

Although a large number of stone bullets hit the Ming warship, causing sparks to fly, the entire hull of the warship remained standing after the sparks, as if they were just tickling the other party.

At this moment, the tactics he had arranged became a huge joke.

Wang Wuqing raised the corner of his mouth slightly, and immediately issued an order: "Go, let these country bumpkins see the power of our Mingyuan ironclad warship!"

In the world of maritime military, the Ming Dynasty has actually gone very far.

Especially after the Ming Dynasty set the goal of dominating the four oceans for 200 years, it naturally had to think further and do more to ensure the Ming Dynasty's long-term maritime hegemony.

Since wooden warships were unable to withstand the bombardment of increasingly powerful shells and were particularly vulnerable to fire attacks, ironclad ships came into being.

The Mingyuan ironclad ship was no longer a traditional sailing warship, but a new type of steam-powered energy-driven warship with a hard steel armor covering the hull.

Not to mention the Ottoman Navy's stone bombs, even the most advanced gunpowder shells were ineffective against the Mingyuan ironclad ships.

Boom!

As the Mingyuan ironclad warship took action, cannons were aimed at the enemy ships. As a large number of gunpowder shells poured down, the sea area soon became a sea of ​​fire.

boom!
The Mingyuan ironclad ship not only fired gunpowder shells, but also used its huge hull and hard steel armor to directly sink the surrounding wooden warships.

The warships in the greenhouse were unable to withstand the wind and waves, and one after another they cut off their retreat in the strait and were sunk, leaving countless wreckage and corpses floating on the sea.

The Ottoman Navy, which once dominated the Black Sea and the eastern Mediterranean, was completely unable to resist the invincible fleet of the Ming Dynasty.

After an hour of annihilation, the Ming fleet completely defeated the Ottoman navy and arrived at the Golden Horn where Constantinople was located. (End of this chapter)