It was already noon. The little pirates had been kicked out of the house by the pirates very early and were waiting to greet Bayezid and others. After calming down, they felt hungry and they all clamored to go to eat. Of course Bayezid also
He did not stop them from eating, and said a few words to let everyone disperse. The little pirates hurriedly called their friends and went to find places to eat and drink.
But Bayezid and the pirates did not go to eat. They were all very impatient and could no longer take care of eating. After letting the young pirates disperse, they gathered at the Lord's Palace in Basra to discuss the military situation.
"The purpose of this battle is to prevent the Ming army from approaching Egypt and landing in Egypt. As long as this goal can be achieved, you can use any method. But I want to remind you that the navy sent by the Ming Dynasty to escort is very powerful. It not only has ships with huge artillery
There are many, and the sailors are well-trained, so it is not easy to deal with." Bayezid said straight to the point without talking nonsense.
"The navy of the Ming Dynasty is of course very powerful. I have pirates who came from the Bay of Bengal. I have personally dealt with the navy of the Ming Dynasty and I know this very well. However, we also have our own advantages."
A big pirate leader named Abdul Bari who was active on the Great Sea was not frightened by Bayezid's words. Instead, he said confidently: "The people of the Ming Dynasty are not familiar with the seas west of India and east of Africa.
We Tianfang believers have been active in this sea area hundreds of years ago and have become the masters here. We are more familiar with this sea area than anyone else. Except for the coast of India, all the ports along the Great Sea of Sea are owned by Tianfang believers.
.This is our advantage!”
Bayezid nodded. Abdul Bari is right. In terms of familiarity with the Great Sea of Food, no one can surpass these pirates. But, how to make reasonable use of these advantages?
"As for how to use it, first of all, of course, it is to use the familiarity with this sea area and the control of the port to obtain detailed information. For example," Abdul Bari pointed to a port city on the west coast of India, "
There are now more than 20,000 Ming army soldiers stationed in this city, as well as an equal number of Indian untouchables as citizens, waiting for the Ming prince to arrive and take a boat to Egypt. From this news, we can know that the Ming prince is still there.
We have not yet reached India on the way, so we can intercept the Ming prince halfway and kill him, and this battle will naturally end."
"Killing the prince of the Ming Dynasty? What a good idea! The activities of the Ming Dynasty navy seriously affected my business (probably referring to robbery). After they occupied most of India, it made it difficult for me to sell the stolen goods in India. Kill the Ming Dynasty
It’s really a good idea for the prince to take revenge!” someone shouted.
"I don't think this is a good idea." Bayezid said immediately: "Even if a prince is killed, it will not affect the strength of the Ming Dynasty. On the contrary, it will arouse the Ming Dynasty emperor's revenge. He will send
Many ships are spending their money to fight pirates on the Great Sea. You will all become very dangerous and have to hide for at least a long time. The Ming Dynasty can still send troops to attack Egypt again. So I don't think it is a good idea.
"
In fact, intercepting and killing the Ming prince may not have much impact on these pirates. After all, no matter how angry the Ming emperor was, he would not be able to send all the warships to the Da Shi Sea. Even if they were sent, they would not be able to maintain it for a long time. The pirates
It only takes a while to avoid it, and the property obtained from intercepting the Ming prince can make up for the loss of shelter. Except for a very few unlucky ones, it is not a loss-making business for most pirates.
But this will have unpredictable consequences for the Ottoman Empire. Once the Ming Dynasty finds out that the operation was organized by the Ottoman Empire, the Ming Dynasty emperor may go crazy and promote the war against the Ottoman Empire. Maybe there will be no too drastic actions. This is
An unpredictable thing. Bayezid did not dare to bet, and Muhammad I also did not dare to bet that the Ming Emperor would not take too drastic actions. For the sake of safety, they were unwilling to promote such a thing.
Abdul Bari didn't know whether he saw Bayezid's thoughts, but when he saw that his opinion was rejected, he did not insist on it, and instead put forward a second suggestion. "Since the prince of the Ming Dynasty cannot be intercepted and killed, the Ming Dynasty prince can't be killed."
The army has also been transported to the west coast of India, so we can only fight with the Ming Dynasty's navy. We do not want to annihilate the Ming Dynasty's fleet, but we must defeat them in this battle and sink many transport ships.
, let those soldiers of the Ming Army drown in the sea and not be able to go to Egypt to fight."
"Well, before we set off, I discussed this matter with His Majesty. We both had the same opinion. I thought this would be the best way to do it. Well, I had the same idea when it came to haircut. However, I have never fought in a naval battle and am not familiar with it. How to defeat it?
In order to reduce the losses of the Ming Dynasty fleet as much as possible, we can only rely on you to provide suggestions and suggestions." Bayezid said.
"Although we have to fight the Ming Dynasty fleet, it does not mean that we just gather all the ships and rush forward. Fighting at sea is the same as fighting on land. There are many strategies."
Abdul Bari added: "The first is reconnaissance, to know the strength of the enemy's troops, their weapons and equipment, and which route they will take to Egypt. The first two points have been reconnoitred by relying on the Tianfang believers near the port where the Ming army was stationed.
It’s clear. The latter point can also be investigated clearly after they set off.” Although the Ming Dynasty implemented a policy of openly discriminating against Tianfang believers and took precautions against them, belief or disbelief was not etched on their faces. As long as they hid their beliefs, they would still be there.
You can be active there. And it is not just Westerners and Indians who believe in Tianfang Religion. Many Southeast Asian natives and even Han descendants believe in it, and you can use them to conduct reconnaissance.
"The second is harassment. After knowing the route of the Ming army, you can send fast ships to harass the Ming fleet. It would be best if you can attract some warships to leave the fleet and pursue them. You can set up an ambush to sink the lone warships.
Or capture. Even if the Ming generals were cautious and no ships were left alone, they could make their officers and sailors more tired, consume their military supplies such as cannonballs, and at the same time gain a preliminary understanding of the Ming fleet's combat methods."
"The third step is to choose a suitable location for the final decisive battle. When the Ming fleet approaches the preset battlefield, assemble all available ships and defeat them with several times the force of the Ming fleet!"
"What you said is very good." Bayezid immediately praised: "Although I don't understand naval warfare, after listening to your explanation, I found that the principles of land warfare are similar to those of hunting wild animals. Wild wolves
When the herd is hunting sheep or deer, it will also conduct reconnaissance first, then continue to chase the deer and sheep, and finally select the target to kill in one fell swoop.”
"Bayazid Pasha, what you said is so right." Abdul Bari said with a smile: "We are the wolves, and the Ming Navy is the deer." Other pirates present also laughed.
.
Bayezid also laughed a few times and asked: "Where is the preset battlefield?"
"Well," Abdul Bari lowered his head to look at the map again and said slowly: "Actually, the most suitable battlefield is the Maldives. It is densely covered with islands and is the only way from the sea east of India to the sea west of India.
It is best to set up an ambush here. But since the Ming army has arrived on the west coast of India, they will not pass through the Maldives again, so they cannot choose this place."
"As for other suitable places to set up ambush, it is here, near Socotra Island. First, Socotra Island is located at the junction of the Great Sea of Era and the Gulf of Aden. It is an important transportation route from the Indian Ocean to the Red Sea and East Africa.
It is an important strategic location for transportation between the east and west. No matter which route the Ming Dynasty fleet takes, it will pass through here before entering the Gulf of Aden."
"Second, the sea to the west of this island is getting narrower and narrower, but it is not an extremely narrow place like the Bab el-Mandeb Strait where it is easy to be attacked. Psychologically, it will give people a sense of peace of mind and they will involuntarily relax.
.Launching a surprise attack on the Ming army here will give them longer time to react."
"Third, it is easy to hide the fleet's whereabouts near the island, allowing the Ming army to discover our army even later."
"Fourth, when encountering an attack near an island, most people will tend to let the ships transporting army soldiers close to the shore or even anchor to protect them. However, the sea conditions near Socotra Island are not simple. People who have never been here are very likely to
It is easy to hit the rocks; even if we escape the rocks and successfully land, we can set up an ambush on the island to attack these soldiers."
"For the above four reasons, I think we should set up an ambush near Socotra Island to eliminate the Ming army." Abdul Bari finally said.
After hearing his tirade, Bayezid's first reaction was not to praise his idea, but to ask: "You actually know psychology?"
"Dear Bayezid Pasha, although I am a pirate now, I once studied at a university in Syria. Later, due to various changes, I became a pirate." Abdul Bari replied.
"No wonder." Bayezid sighed.
"Do you have any objections to Abdul Bari's idea?" Bayezid looked at all the pirates present and asked.
But no one raised any objections. There was nothing wrong with Abdul Bari's idea, and these pirates who had been active in the Sea of Food for half their lives would certainly not object.
Seeing that no one raised his opinion, Bayezid was about to decide on the tactics. But then Abdul Bari suddenly said: "Dear Bayezid Pasha, I have a question."
"you say."
"Excuse me, how are the spoils of war distributed and what kind of rewards can we get?" Abdul Bari said. Although it is obligatory to dedicate one's life to the Lord, the benefits still have to be distributed.
"All the spoils of war will be shared among the warriors who went on the expedition. In addition, His Majesty Muhammad I will also use 300,000 dinars to reward meritorious ministers!"
"Okay, then we will fight this battle with the Ming army for the glory of the Lord!"