"What?" Faqir was shocked when he heard this. He immediately stood up and confirmed again, "Istanbul is under bombardment?"
In fact, he had heard clearly, but he couldn't believe that the capital of the Ottoman Empire was actually bombarded!
The messenger sent by the Queen Mother really thought that he did not understand, so he reported the situation in detail again, including the fact that the messenger sent to communicate with the Portuguese prince had his ear cut off.
Listening to the messenger's narration, Faqir's face became very ugly.
Although he knew very well that Istanbul could not be captured by the Portuguese fleet. However, the political impact brought about by this is definitely very significant.
There will definitely be many overt and covert opponents in the court who will take this opportunity to attack him and the Koprulu family. Who let him be in power!
It is even possible that even the Queen Mother who trusts the Koprulu family will be under great pressure. The situation between North Korea and China is likely to become unstable because of this!
"Damn...damn the Portuguese!" Faqir cursed in his heart, and suddenly he was stabbed in the back by the Portuguese, which he had never expected in advance.
He made arrangements on the borders of the Ottoman Empire in Europe, including the Holy Roman Empire, Poland, etc. before coming. There are even deployments in the Mediterranean.
I just didn't expect that the Portuguese were all using steam paddle-wheel warships and frantically attacked the Ottoman Empire's navy, which led to such an incident.
The situation in the attack on Baghdad was already very bad, and it was a headache. But now he had to worry about Istanbul. Faqir felt that he had two heads. It was really troublesome!
He could not retreat without attacking Baghdad.
However, if he did not withdraw his troops, the situation in the government would be unstable, which would also have a huge impact on him and the Koprulu family.
The best-case scenario is that he rushes back to Istanbul and takes charge of the government himself. However, if the battle in Baghdad was not going well even if he personally directed it, who could he leave it to?
Once the war in Baghdad fails, it will be useless for him to sit in the palace, not to mention sitting in the court. Because so many troops from the Ottoman Empire have been assembled for such a violent battle, if he fails, he will basically have to use his head to apologize! Who asked him to start this war and go to war in such a big way!
Well, one head is three big!
This was the case on Faqir's side, and on the other side, the Khan of the Crimean Khanate, Mohammed Grai IV, also encountered a similar situation.
A messenger was sent from the Crimean Khanate to urgently report to Muhammad Glei IV, saying that the army of the Bukhara Khanate had entered the territory of Crimea with sharp weapons and was unable to resist, so Muhammad could not resist. .Gray IV quickly led the main force back to rescue.
Otherwise, our home will be gone!
Hearing the news, Mohammad Grai IV, who was shocked, naturally knew that the Bukhara Khanate suddenly had powerful firearms, and it must have been a deal with the Ming Dynasty. Taking advantage of the fire at this time is definitely not a matter of robbing some money.
Therefore, he immediately thought of leading the troops and leaving.
But at the same time, Mohammed Grai IV was also a little hesitant.
In the war in Baghdad, the Crimean cavalry, except for being the vanguard and fighting the Ming army, spent most of the rest of the time watching from the sidelines. At most, they were on guard and collecting food and grass.
Of course, this is because the Crimeans are all cavalry and are not suitable for siege; the other one is, after all, under the care of the Ottoman Prime Minister.
Although Muhammad Grai IV understood that this care was more about having strong cavalry in Crimea. However, it is still a favor to some extent.
The most critical thing is that now that they have been unable to attack Baghdad for a long time, their morale has been very low. Once the Crimean cavalry suddenly withdraws, it will definitely affect the entire battle in Baghdad, and it may lead to defeat!
This means that if the Crimean cavalry escapes first, the responsibility for the defeat in the Battle of Baghdad will most likely fall on the Crimean Khanate.
The scene of Abbas II being beheaded by the Ottomans was deeply imprinted in the mind of Muhammad Glei IV. If he left, it would be unbearable for him if the Ottoman Empire still had the power to hold the Crimean Khanate accountable. Unless the Ottomans are really defeated in the Battle of Baghdad, it would be best if the entire army is annihilated. In that case, the Ottomans will have no time to take care of themselves.
However, if this is really the case, how can the Crimean Khanate be any better? Maybe the Ming Dynasty would turn around and attack the Crimean Khanate!
However, if he did not lead his troops back, Muhammad Grai IV knew very well that the troops he left in the country would definitely be too few to stop the Bukhara Khanate's attack.
After weighing things up, he decided to find an opportunity to talk to the Ottoman Prime Minister, and it would be best to obtain his understanding before leaving. For example, in the battle against Baghdad, it is okay to win one round, even a small victory, and it would be much better to propose returning home for rescue.
However, the situation was urgent. Mohammed Grai IV was not sure when this opportunity would appear.
His head is only a little better than Faqir's, at most it's one head and two big!
Against this background, neither Mohammed Grai IV nor Faqir had made their decision, but the sudden change in the situation meant that they no longer had to hesitate!
"It's raining, it's raining..."
Along with the shouts of some soldiers, it finally started to rain after it had been cloudy for several days.
When Faqir heard the news, his head suddenly became four big!
In the two river basins, summers are hot and winters are cool. Therefore, the Ottoman army chose this season to attack Baghdad. However, this season is also the rainy season.
Although the rainfall was not heavy, it still rained and the roads became muddy, which made those stationed in the wild suffer even more.
As a result, the logistics of the Ottoman army will become more difficult.
However, it was not this that made Mohammed Glei IV and Faqir no longer hesitate.
Soon, there were Ottoman patrol soldiers, to be precise, Crimean Tatar cavalry, who were responsible for patrolling the perimeter and collecting food and grass. They discovered that a Ming fleet had arrived from the Persian Gulf. By the time they discovered it, they had already crossed the Shatt al-Arab River and turned into the Tigris River.
The fleet going upstream, emitting thick smoke, seemed to move at about the same speed as the downstream. It is estimated that it will take less than a few days to reach Baghdad.
When the Crimean cavalry discovered this situation, they were of course the first to report it to their Khan.
When Muhammad Grai IV heard this, he realized that reinforcements from the Ming Dynasty were coming, but they were still unable to stop them. Now it was raining, and the situation was even more unfavorable to the Ottoman army.
He immediately understood that as the Ming fleet arrived in Baghdad, it would be the biggest blow to the morale of the Ottoman army. He was almost certain that the Ottoman army would be defeated soon!
In this case, Muhammad Grai IV immediately made a decision: No matter what, the Ottomans could do whatever they wanted. He secretly passed the military order that day and gathered the scattered men. However, the next morning, After eating and drinking, I patted my butt and left!
Faqir was shocked when he heard the news and immediately went out to check the situation.
But at this time, the Crimean Tatar camp was just an empty camp. Faqir was furious and wanted to send troops to chase them, but which cavalry team could catch up with the Crimean Tatars?
The Ottoman troops, such as the Guards, all scolded the Crimean Tatars and even fled in the face of the battle. They were all shouting that they must teach them a lesson and destroy the Crimean Khanate.
As for the other Ottoman vassals or mercenaries, after seeing this scene, all of them were dejected and even slightly envious. At least the Crimean Tatars have been freed from the battlefield in Baghdad. And they still have to spend time here. They don't know when they will be driven to Baghdad by the Ottomans to die!
Of course, they also want to imitate the Crimean Tatars, but the key is that they are not strong enough and there is really no way to imitate them. Otherwise, believe it or not, the Ottoman Guards Cavalry will be able to hunt them down immediately.
Regardless of whether they are envious or scolded, the morale of the Crimean Tatars will naturally be even lower and the morale of the military will be even more unstable.
Although the Ottoman Empire's army still totaled 170,000 to 80,000, it still exceeded the Ming army in Baghdad. However, few people, including the soldiers of the Ottoman Guards, were still confident of victory.
However, no one has said anything about this matter. It is just a layer of window paper, just stuck there. Everyone pretends that the Ottoman Empire can achieve final victory!
Just as Muhammad Glei IV expected, when the Ming Dynasty fleet from the Persian Gulf appeared in the Baghdad area, that layer of window paper was pierced.
All the Ottomans stared blankly at the Ming fleet on the Tigris River. But above the city of Baghdad, a thunderous cry rang out: "The Ming Dynasty will be victorious!"
At this point, everyone knows that the Ming army will win this battle!
At this point, no one wanted to wait for death with the Ottomans.
That night, some Arab tribal troops began to escape secretly, but some were caught by the Ottoman Guards Cavalry.
Faqir immediately summoned the entire army to conduct military law in public. And announced that the Ottomans also had reinforcements, and the final victory must belong to the Ottoman Empire.
However, that night, some Ottoman affiliated troops also began to flee. Moreover, more people escaped than on the first day.
Even those in the Ottoman army who were sent to catch the fleeing troops ran away themselves. Because they are not from the Koprulu family. Any fool can see that staying in Baghdad will lead to death.
In this way, the war in Baghdad only lasted for half a month, and the 250,000 Ottoman army collapsed.
