Compared to the seething Ottoman nobles and ministers, Mustafa Pasha did not explode directly. Instead, he frowned and asked, "Besides this, is there no other way?"
The Grand Vizier Suleiman shook his head slightly and sighed, "If, I mean if, if all the countries in Europe deliberately helped us, and simultaneously declared war on the Ming, there might still be a glimmer of hope, but..."
The atmosphere in the palace became somewhat somber.
Because everyone present knew in their hearts that the "if" Suleiman spoke of was just that – an "if." The Ottomans and European countries had completely different beliefs, and when neither side could convince the other, they could only resort to physical solutions. Thus, the Ottomans and European countries would frequently clash.
Having fought each other to the death for centuries, it was already extremely difficult for the Ottomans to align with the Russians, the English, and the Habsburgs. Now, for the Ottomans to directly declare war on the Ming?
Don't be ridiculous. If these countries truly had the guts to declare war on the Ming, they wouldn't be sneakily wooing small countries to form alliances, nor would they have dragged on until now without daring to directly declare war on the Ming.
Shaking his head and sighing again, Suleiman continued, "Even with such outrageous conditions, we are still not certain if those Ming people will accept them, so we must prepare for the worst."
Hearing Suleiman's words, even the usually steady Mustafa Pasha could no longer remain calm.
Mustafa Pasha, with bloodshot eyes, stared intensely at Suleiman and asked fiercely, "Even if the Ming army is so powerful, they can't possibly kill all the people in the Ottoman Empire in a short period!"
Looking at Mustafa Pasha, who seemed eager to devour him, Suleiman was not the least bit nervous. Instead, he shook his head slightly again, "No matter how many people there are in the Ottoman Empire, can they be more numerous than the Indians? Are there any Indians left now?"
Suleiman's answer was like a bucket of ice water poured from head to toe on a freezing winter day, plunging Mustafa Pasha, the Ottoman ministers, and nobles into complete despair.
When it came to understanding the global situation and the Ming Dynasty, the European countries might not have been able to compare with the Ottoman Empire. After all, the Ottoman Empire straddled the Eurasian continent, and all commercial activities, whether by land or sea, could not bypass the Ottoman Empire. They not only feasted on one after another but also received the most and fastest news while their mouths were still greasy.
Especially the news of India's destruction. The Ottoman Empire knew about it immediately, even earlier than George III, William II, and Louis XVI, who sent troops to destroy India.
Don't forget, India had another name: the Mughal Empire.
Although the Ottoman Empire and the Mughal Empire had no direct geographical connection, separated by the Safavid Dynasty, they shared the same faith, making them natural allies.
However, the problem lay in the saying that heretics are more hateful than infidels – the Mughal Empire only recognized the Ottoman Sultan's title as Caliph, but did not recognize the Caliph's superior position. In other words, in the eyes of the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire was merely a heretic to be suppressed, and they could not truly rest until the Mughal Empire was completely absorbed.
Unfortunately, the Mughal Empire was not weak. In its early days, it had even captured an Ottoman Sultan. Even though it later acknowledged the Caliph's title, it was only a superficial acknowledgment. The Mughal Emperor did not consider himself inferior to the Ottoman Sultan.
Therefore, the Ottoman Empire had never given up its infiltration into the Mughal Empire. The news of the Mughal Empire's sudden disintegration and demise was known to the Ottoman side early on, and they knew many untold secrets.
For example, all the European countries thought that the Ming army stationed in India was the main force. However, the Ottoman side knew very well that the Ming army stationed in India had never participated in any battles against the Indian army.
Or, it could be said: throughout the entire war of destroying India, the only ones who actually fought were those short and puny Japanese!
Now, the ones attacking the Ottoman Empire were the Ming army, and more specifically, the fleet guarding the Ming Emperor...
The Ming army could not kill all the Ottomans in a short period, but the Ming was fully capable of turning the Ottoman Empire into the next India!
Seeing that Mustafa Pasha and the other Ottoman nobles and ministers had fallen silent, Grand Vizier Suleiman couldn't help but shake his head again and sigh, "Mustafa Pasha, do you have any good ideas?"
Mustafa Pasha was already in a state of utter confusion. Hearing this, he could only shake his head and sigh, "I have no other way. If the Ming people are unwilling to accept us... surrender, then we..."
The mere word "surrender" was like a thousand-pound burden. After Mustafa painstakingly uttered these two words, the faces of all the ministers and nobles in the Ottoman court were filled with bitterness, as if they had eaten three pounds of bitter gourds.
Grand Vizier Suleiman also sighed and said, "What else can we do? Even if we choose to perish together, only the Ottomans will be burned, but the Ming will certainly not be burned."
Seeing the entire Ottoman court fall into silence again, Mustafa Pasha couldn't help but grit his teeth and say, "If the Ming people are unwilling to accept our surrender, then we can only do a mutual destruction with them! Even if we can't drag them down to hell with us, we will absolutely not let them have an easy time!"
However, before Mustafa Pasha's words could even finish, a messenger rushed in from outside the council hall, wailing like he was attending a funeral, "Grand Vizier! Mustafa Pasha! The Ming army at the Sophia military base has begun to assemble, claiming they will attack us!"
Immediately after, another messenger burst into the hall, also wailing, "Grand Vizier! Mustafa Pasha! The Ming army in Aydin has also begun to assemble, also claiming they will attack us!"
Before Suleiman and Mustafa Pasha could react, messengers one after another scrambled into the hall and began to wail, and all their wails were about the Ming army at some military base assembling and claiming to attack the Ottoman Empire.
Mustafa Pasha couldn't help but turn his gaze to Grand Vizier Suleiman, "It seems the Ming people are not going to accept our surrender."
Suleiman nodded, his brow furrowed, "Then let it be as you said. Mobilize all the nobles, commoners, and even slaves of our Ottoman Empire. Tell them that the time has come to dedicate themselves to the True God. We would rather die than be slaves to those Ming demons!"
Just as Mustafa Pasha was about to nod in agreement, he suddenly remembered something.
After pondering for a moment, Mustafa Pasha finally asked hesitantly, "What about the concessions in Istanbul?"
When Mustafa Pasha mentioned the word "concessions," a strange silence fell upon the hall again.
Or rather, what Mustafa Pasha was asking was not about the concessions, but about the Ming merchants in Istanbul.
What about letting those Ming merchants go?
This was clearly impossible. Ever since the incident in Benghazi City, the Ming merchants had made a name for themselves in the courts of various countries. If they weren't notorious, they could at least be called infamous.
No one was willing to provoke those mad Ming merchants, nor did anyone want them around.
In the eyes of many monarchs and courts, Ming merchants were synonymous with ticking time bombs.
Arrest them all and use them as bargaining chips?
This was also impossible, because Istanbul was not only home to the Ming concessions but also concessions from England, the United States, Russia, and France. Even if the concessions of England, the United States, and Russia would not accept those Ming people, would the French concessions refuse those Ming people?
If they forcibly entered the French concession to arrest people, it would mean that the Ottoman Empire would once again offend France – France's influence in Europe was far greater than the Ottoman Empire's influence in Europe!
Provoking the Ming had already put them in danger of destruction. If they were to provoke France, which was known as a loyal dog of the Ming, at the same time, wouldn't that be accelerating their own demise?
Just as Mustafa Pasha was getting more and more troubled, Grand Vizier Suleiman's eyes lit up, and he said, "No need to worry about the concessions, not even the Ming concessions. You can send troops to protect the concessions."
Mustafa Pasha was stunned and asked, "Protect them?"
Suleiman nodded and said, "That's right, protect them. Moreover, not just protect them – I will send people to contact those Ming merchants and tell them that they can leave Istanbul safely. We can even send troops to escort them to Mukalla Port so they can rendezvous with the Ming army."
Hearing Suleiman's words, the nobles and ministers in the Ottoman court exploded again. Even Mustafa Pasha couldn't help but ask suspiciously, "Grand Vizier, I need a reason, a reason why you must do this?"
Suleiman smiled and shook his head, "I ask you, why did the Ming army launch an attack on the Ottoman Empire?"
Mustafa Pasha replied rather impatiently, "Why else? Of course, it's because those bastards from the Imperial Guard fired upon the fleet where the Ming Emperor was located!"
Suleiman did not pay attention to Mustafa Pasha's attitude, but instead smiled and said, "That's right, it was because those bastards from the Imperial Guard fired upon the fleet where the Ming Emperor was located, that the Ming Emperor ordered an attack on the Ottoman Empire."
Mustafa Pasha became even more impatient, his tone becoming heavier, "Grand Vizier, I have already stated this reason earlier, and I have also said that I need the reason why you must do this, otherwise, I will be unable to resist suspecting your intentions!"
Suleiman shook his head slightly and sighed, "Haven't you noticed the crux of the problem? It was the Ming Emperor who ordered the attack on the Ottoman Empire – meaning, the Ming Emperor is in Mukalla Port!"
Mustafa Pasha was stunned again and asked, "What does this have to do with us escorting the Ming merchants out of Istanbul? You should know that we can completely capture the Ming merchants and the French merchants as bargaining chips."
Suleiman shook his head again, "Yes, we can indeed capture them, but can this change the Ming Emperor's determination to destroy the Ottoman Empire? If not, what is the meaning of us doing this?"
"On the contrary, by escorting those Ming merchants out of Istanbul, we can gain a glimmer of hope for the Ottoman Empire."
"Furthermore, we might even gain favor with the Ming Emperor in this incident and secure significant benefits for the Ottoman Empire!"
Amidst the bewildered gazes of the Ottoman nobles and ministers, Suleiman continued, "You should know a saying in the Ming Dynasty, that the Ming Emperor protects all his subjects."
"We can tell those Ming merchants that this war was entirely caused by the Imperial Guard, and it was not the intention of the Ottoman Sultan and the Ottoman court. We Ottomans have always respected the Ming and the Ming Emperor, so even when facing an attack from the Ming, we will still bid them farewell with dignity."
"What do you think, after these Ming merchants arrive at Mukalla Port, will they be received by the Ming Emperor or Ming officials? And what will they say to the Ming Emperor or Ming officials?"
Looking at Mustafa Pasha and the nobles and ministers thoughtfully, Suleiman added, "Our biggest problem now is not having an opportunity to explain ourselves to the Ming Emperor. These Ming merchants are our only reliance!"
"At the same time, we will send envoys to express our respect and... and submission to the Ming Emperor. Will the Ming Emperor order a halt to the attack? If he does not order a halt, it will affect his image in the hearts of the Ming merchants, and it will affect his image in the world!"
"If he orders a halt to the attack, and we Ottomans give him enough face, will the Ming Emperor consider us sensible and treat us as his own? In this way..."
Hearing Suleiman's words, Mustafa Pasha couldn't help but be somewhat moved.
As Suleiman said, the biggest problem for the Ottoman Empire now was not how to seek peace with the Ming, but how to explain the incident where the warships controlled by the Ottoman Imperial Guard fired upon the Ming Emperor's fleet.
Or rather, all the current problems stemmed from this one issue.
Because in everyone's eyes, it was the Ottoman warships, belonging to the Ottoman Sultan, that fired upon the Ming Emperor's fleet, which was equivalent to the Ottoman Empire declaring war on the Ming. As for the role played by the Imperial Guard, who would care?
The Heavenly Emperor's Noble Lineage reminds you: Remember to collect after reading.