Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean, was still under the rule of the Kingdom of Spain at this time and was Spain's most important island in the Mediterranean.
There are many warships moored in the bustling Sicilian port, among which more than thirty warships have the dragon flag of the Ming Dynasty hanging on it. It flutters in the wind and makes a roaring sound, making everyone who sees this flag unable to help themselves.
Be excited about it.
People from the Ming Dynasty came to Sicily, and everyone in Sicily was extremely excited.
Because the people of the Ming Dynasty represent wealth, white silver coins, various fascinating oriental goods, and various business opportunities.
“The scenery is really nice!”
Tian Erniu rode a horse and walked very leisurely on the streets of Sicily Port, admiring the exotic customs here with great interest, which were completely different from the cities and ports of the Ming Dynasty.
Although Sicily was still under Spanish rule at this time, it was deeply influenced by the Italian Renaissance movement. Both people's clothing and architectural styles were full of Renaissance humanistic atmosphere.
Although Tian Erniu has never had much experience in this area, he can still feel that the city here is more energetic than London, and people's faces are full of smiles.
Of course, at this time, England was still synonymous with poor pirates, and in Sicily, which is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, the people here were generally relatively wealthy, and the commercial trade based solely on the geographical location allowed the people here to live a prosperous life.
"You still want to go shopping. The Duke of Australia is already at war with the Ottoman Empire army. Should we speed up and attack the Ottoman Empire capital as soon as possible?"
Beside Tian Erniu, Zhao Houhou looked at Tian Erniu and said helplessly.
He had originally led thirty warships to help Spain sweep away the hostile forces in the Mediterranean. Later, news of the development of the Ming Dynasty and the Ottoman Empire came, and orders from the Ming Dynasty were also conveyed, asking them to attack the capital of the Ottoman Empire.
He has been waiting here in Sicily, waiting for Tian Erniu to arrive, and then they can attack Istanbul together.
"I came here all night long, you have to let me rest for a day or two, right?"
Tian Erniu curled his lips slightly. After he received the order from the Ming Dynasty, he immediately rushed from Hong Kong, the Ming Dynasty's colony in Great Britain, to the Mediterranean. He just arrived in Sicily yesterday.
"My hair has turned gray from waiting~"
"Every day in Sicily, I feel so restless."
Zhao Houhou said helplessly.
Who doesn’t want to make great achievements?
This is the only way to achieve success by fighting. If we don't seize the time to attack the Ottoman Empire's navy, coastal cities, and capitals now, they will have no share in it when the Australian army kills them.
"I think you're not idle, but you've been squeezed dry by the girls here, right?"
Jiang Liang next to him said jokingly.
"Haha~"
Suddenly the three of them couldn't help laughing.
"I heard that there is the largest slave market in the Mediterranean in Sicily. Do you want to go shopping together?"
After laughing, Jiang Liang thought about it and suggested.
"Go, go~"
When Tian Erniu heard this, he immediately became interested and rode his horse to the slave market in the port of Sicily.
Because of Sicily's special geographical location, almost all commercial trade in the Mediterranean passes through it. Among them, there are currently two largest trades, one is spices, silk fabrics, etc. from the East, and the other is the slave trade.
In fact, the slave trade has been very popular in Europe since the Middle Ages. The most prominent people in the slave trade at the beginning were Viking pirates.
Viking pirates from Northern Europe specifically went to Eastern Europe to capture Russians and sell them to various parts of Europe. Because so many Russians were captured, the Russians gradually became known as Slavs and slaves.
slave) is pronounced almost the same.
The huge profits from the slave trade supported the Viking society for several centuries.
On the Mediterranean side, because the demand for slaves in the Arab world is very strong, an Arab nobleman often owns hundreds or thousands of slaves, which stimulates the slave trade in the Mediterranean.
Now, with the Ming Dynasty's continued strong demand for slaves and the opening of maritime routes, the slave trade in the Mediterranean has become even more prosperous.
The slave market in Sicily is the largest slave market in the entire Mediterranean.
In a huge open space, slave traders from Venice, Eastern Europe, and Western Europe are using their own eyes to find wealthy donors so that they can sell the slaves in their hands.
Whenever they see an Arab merchant wearing a turban and a white robe, a large number of people will immediately surround them and sell their slaves to these Arab merchants.
Behind these slave merchants stood a large number of slaves. Although these slaves were very tired, no one dared to sit down and rest, because there were always people watching with whips next to them. Once someone sat down, they would immediately
He will be severely beaten with a whip.
The sources of slaves are also very wide, including Slavs, Tatars, Germans, Serbs, etc. from Eastern Europe.
Most of them are soldiers or civilians who were captured because of the war. Of course, there are also slaves captured by specialized slave-catching teams. For example, the Tatars like to capture Slavs and sell them as slaves.
In addition, there are many people who were sold to slave traders by their relatives or voluntarily. They all came from poor areas, lived in poverty, and had no choice but to be sold into slavery.
In addition, there are a large number of slaves from Africa and the Arab world. African black slaves were already very famous in the Middle Ages and were deeply loved by Europeans and Arabs.
As for the number of slaves in the Arab world, there are also a lot of them, and their sources are also very complicated. In short, behind every slave here, there is a history of bloodshed.
Ye Yun licked his dry lips and looked at the noisy slave market around him with helpless eyes. The sun was too hot and the temperature was too high. He was really thirsty and uncomfortable.
"Brother~I'm thirsty~"
Beside him, his sister Ye Qing shouted weakly.
The two brothers and sisters were originally residents of Gaoyun Town in the Hezhong area. Later, the Ottoman Empire army broke through Gaoyun Town and carried out a massacre in Gaoyun Town. They were the only children left and were trafficked to various places. The two brothers and sisters were moved around.
They were trafficked to the Mediterranean island of Sicily.
"Hmm~"
Ye Yun touched his sister, looked at the fierce guards around him, and mustered up the courage to shout: "I want water, I want to drink water~"
However, as soon as he finished speaking, he was hit on the head with a whip.
"Quiet~Quiet~"
The guard didn't understand what Ye Yun was saying at all, but he was not polite to the slave at all, and slapped Ye Yun several times.
"I am from Ming Dynasty~"
"I am from Ming Dynasty~"
"You will definitely be punished for selling Ming people."
Ye Yun protected his sister and roared angrily at the whip-wielding guard with his small eyes.
"Still calling~"
The guard couldn't hear what Ye Yun said. When he saw Ye Yun roaring at him, he immediately became even more angry. The whip in his hand kept beating, and Ye Yun's skin and flesh were torn immediately, and he curled up into a ball.
As for Ye Qing, he started to cry weakly again, shouting not to hit him while blocking his brother's body.
"Hmph~"
"If you scream again, I will beat you to death."
The guard gave Ye Yun a severe lesson before stopping.
"Brother~brother~"
Ye Qing looked at Ye Yun who was covered with injuries and couldn't help crying and shouted: "I don't want to drink water, I don't want to drink water~"
"It's okay, it's okay~"
"As long as my brother is here, I will definitely protect you~"
Ye Yun gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, only regretting that he had not grown up and was just a child.
The two people asking for water was just a small incident, and the people around them didn't even bother to take a look. Such things are so common here that the slave merchant in front didn't even turn his head.
Tian Erniu, Jiang Liang, and Zhao Houhou rode their tall horses and arrived at the slave market very leisurely.
"He's from Daming~"
"People from the Ming Dynasty~"
As soon as the slave traders in the slave market saw the three people, their eyes immediately lit up and they quickly gathered around them.
"Sir, come and see my slaves. They are all top-quality female slaves. They will be kept to your satisfaction and the prices are very fair."
"Sir, look at my slaves. They are all strong Slavs. They will definitely be great to buy back and work on."
"Sir, look at my slaves. They are strong Germans. They have undergone strict training and are very loyal to their masters."
Slave traders gathered in front of Tian Erniu, Jiang Liang, and Zhao Houhou one by one, and kept selling the slaves in their hands.
Ming merchants are relatively rare in the Mediterranean. In the past, some Ming merchants came to the Mediterranean through Egypt. They were very generous and did big business. Once upon a time, a big merchant came and directly
One man sold all the slaves in Sicily.
So everyone is very enthusiastic, selling their slaves, and by the way, seeing if they can maintain friendship with Ming merchants, and see if they can buy some Ming goods, so that if they go back and forth once, their profits can be maximized.
"Sorry~Sorry~"
"We are not businessmen, we are members of the Ming Dynasty fleet. We are here just to have a look. If there are slaves that like them, they will buy some, but not many, so please don't surround us."
Jiang Liang looked at these slave merchants and said in Spanish. The enthusiasm of the slave merchants around him suddenly decreased a lot. Although the people in the Ming Dynasty fleet were also rich, they were not in business after all.
