"The city is big and beautiful. The gates of the palace all face the main square. The main door is high, and above the main door is a splendid room decorated with floral patterns. ’

This is a description of Isfahan, the capital of Persia, by a Russian merchant who traveled in Persia twenty years ago.

The Persian emperor Abbas II personally took the prime minister out of the palace and greeted the Chinese envoys in the square, with much more attention than the Mughals.

Abbas II was only 20 years old, but had been on the throne for more than a decade.

The young emperor was prone to producing powerful ministers, but his luck was very good, and he met two virtuous ministers in a row.

Due to the perennial wars of Abbas I, the treasury was empty. Assisting the little emperor's prime minister, Sanutaqi, comprehensively rectified internal affairs, and cracked down on corruption, and was assassinated by the nobles after five years of auxiliary government.

The little emperor, who was only fourteen years old at the time, hated the domestic magnates to the core.

The second prime minister was called the Caliph Sultan, and as soon as he heard his name, he knew that he was a religious leader, and this person was a good friend of the previous prime minister. By virtue of his religious status and influence, he continued to assist the emperor in rectifying his internal affairs, relied on cracking down on corruption, continued to gather local power, and constantly strengthened the emperor's centralized power.

Nurtured by the two prime ministers, Abbas II became wise and benevolent, as well as a knowledgeable monarch.

In addition, his generous personality is also related to family encounters.

His grandfather, Abbas I, was very suspicious of his eloquent talents. In order to prevent the prince from usurping the throne, he actually killed the eldest son and the second son, and made the younger son blind. After his father succeeded to the throne, he did the same as his grandfather, killing almost all members of the Safavid royal family, as well as the civil and military ministers who had distinguished themselves, and then began to drink heavily and use opium for a long time.

Born into such a family, Abbas II was trembling, delicate and very sensitive from an early age.

"Teacher,

What do Chinese look like? Abbas II asked.

The caliph said: "I have not seen it either, perhaps like the Mongols." But according to the news brought by the merchants, the current emperor of China is a young and promising founding monarch. In recent years, more and more of our goods have been sold to China. And more and more Chinese goods came to Persia. In particular, their cotton cloth is still so cheap and high-quality even if it crosses the ocean.

Abbas II then asked: "Which is the greater country between Persia and China?" ”

The caliph said, "This ...... I don't know. We, the merchants, sent back news from Banten that the Chinese navy had defeated the Dutch. This is a very good thing, in the future, it will be safer for businessmen to go to sea, and even have direct contact with China. In my opinion, it is necessary to organize a fleet and send envoys to visit China.

"Your Majesty, the Chinese envoy is here!" A eunuch trotted over to give a report.

Persia has always had a tradition of using eunuchs, and its system is even older than China. The Greeks used man, and they learned from Persia.

Abbas II looked up and immediately saw the envoys approaching in the distance.

Most of the 3,000 soldiers were left outside the city, and only 200 soldiers were allowed inside the city.

Lu Tianxiang rode a war horse bought from India and led the envoy group to move forward slowly. She was dressed in fine armor, and the two hundred soldiers behind her, all dressed in plate armor, stepped on the ground and rattled.

Abbas II laughed and said, "Very strong army. ”

As he approached, Abbas was surprised that the leader of the Chinese mission was a woman.

But it was only a little surprising that Persia was the most open era during this period. The queen of Persia, who was with Abbas, stood there with a large square and no veil on her head.

Lu Tianxiang turned over and dismounted, stepped forward with Zhang Ruifeng and other civil officials, and arched his hand and said: "Lu Tianxiang, the Chinese imperial concubine of Datong, with the Chinese envoys, has seen His Majesty the Persian Emperor!" ”

Hearing the translation, Abbas II was shocked: "It turned out to be the imperial concubine of China, it is an honor to meet you." This is my wife, Marlene, and I want you to be good friends. This is my son Mirza, who wants to see a distinguished guest from afar. ”

The Persian emperor was only 20 years old, and his eldest son was already 6 years old...

This prince, Safavid Mirza, was the next Persian emperor, Suleiman I, and it was at this point that the Safavid Persian Empire fell.

The Mughal royal family was extremely fond of Persian culture, and although the two countries were often at war, the royal families intermarried with each other for a long time.

The Mughal emperor Shah Jahan had four sons, two of whom were married to Persian princesses. He even wanted to give his granddaughter to his grandson in marriage, so as to ease the conflict between the two princes - if it weren't for the fact that the grandchildren were too young, it is estimated that this marriage would have been completed.

And the granddaughter named Zebnissa was proficient in Persian poetry, and she was so beautiful that her fame even spread to Persia. The Persian emperor Abbas II sent an envoy to propose to his son, and Zebnissa asked to meet with the man first, refusing to marry a man he did not know. This Mughal princess, due to her over-vision, never married until her death.

Queen Marlene stepped forward with her son and greeted the Chinese envoy generously.

The two sides introduced each other's main members, and Zhang Ruifeng stepped forward and arched his hand: "Respect."

Your Majesty the Emperor of Persia, Your Majesty has specially prepared a gift for you. ”

The gifts were simple, a clairvoyant, a table clock, a few silks, a few pieces of porcelain.

In addition, there is a handwritten letter from Zhao Han, which has also been translated into Persian.

Abbas II was very fond of grandfather clocks, which were far smaller than those found in Europe and had a more precise minute hand.

After reading Zhao Han's handwritten letters, he learned that in the previous Persian Dynasty, there were members of the royal family who went into exile in China after the destruction of the country.

Abbas II was overjoyed and immediately invited the delegation into the Palace of the Forty Pillars.

The Persian royal palace has forty pillars, in fact, there are only twenty stone pillars, but when they are reflected in the water, they become forty. This royal palace is very beautiful and was inaugurated just a few years ago.

The Persian Emperor's guards were tall and mighty, and their soldiers were mainly from the Caucasus. In addition to cold weapons, they were also heavily armed with arquebuses, which they had learned from a long war with the Ottomans.

After entering the palace, the envoys were arranged to stay, rest for a while, and then go to the banquet in the evening.

Of course, no armor can be worn at the banquet, including Lu Tianxiang, who has changed into silk clothes that can represent China.

Abbas II and his wife, Lu Tianxiang and Zhang Ruifeng, the four of them sat down at the table. There were no stools, they sat directly on the carpet, and the rest of the personnel sat behind them.

The song and dance came on the stage quickly, but the angle was a little awkward, and everyone had to turn around and enjoy the song and dance.

The secularization of the Safavid Persian dynasty can be seen in singing, dancing and eating.

Far from being veiled, the dancing girl was dressed in extreme revealing. And the one that was served

Drinks, all fine wine, were not allowed by the doctrine, but the Persian nobility seemed to be accustomed to it.

While enjoying a good drink, you can enjoy singing and dancing, and start chatting.

Abbas II spoke little about military affairs, focusing on poetry and art. Pan Wei, who was born in a wealthy family, came in handy again, and after communicating with the Indian crown prince, he now knows how to talk nonsense with foreign nobles.

Gradually, the two sides talked about the calendar, and the calendars of the two countries were strikingly similar, and even everyone had 12 zodiac signs.

Zhang Ruifeng said: "The 12 zodiac signs in my country include rats, oxes, tigers, rabbits, dragons, snakes, horses, sheep, monkeys, chickens, dogs, and pigs.

Abbas II said: "The 12 zodiac signs in our country are the Rat, the Ox, the Leopard, the Rabbit, the Whale, the Snake, the Horse, the Sheep, the Monkey, the Rooster, the Dog, and the Pig.

"Hahaha!"

Both members laughed because it was so coincidental. Among the zodiac signs, except for the differences of individual animals, even the order of the zodiac is the same, and the two countries must have had close exchanges in history.

This made Abbas II even more interested in China, and even suggested that the royal family intermarry, saying: "My eldest son is six years old this year, and my eldest daughter is four years old this year. I heard that the Chinese emperor is also very young, so it is better for my son to marry his daughter, and his son to marry my daughter. After the royal families of the two countries intermarried, the relationship between the two countries will definitely be brought closer.

Lu Tianxiang replied: "The royal families of the two countries are intermarried, and we can't make the decision, so we must return to China and ask His Majesty the Emperor."

Abbas II said: "My children are still very young, and I await the reply of the Emperor of China.

Lu Tianxiang said: "We still have to go to Europe, maybe it will be late to return to China.

Abbas II said: "It is not in the way." Our businessmen often go to India to trade

Easy, the farthest can reach Banten in the east. I will send an envoy to China with me to visit the emperor. I will also send scholars to China to study poetry and painting, and Chinese poetry and painting must be very exciting.

The Persian emperor was extremely hospitable, liked to intermarry with foreign royal families, and liked to send envoys to exchange emissaries.

Moreover, some speak without going through the brain.

As he spoke, Abbas II asked, "Does the Chinese emperor have a sister?" ”

Lu Tianxiang and Zhang Ruifeng were a little stunned when they asked this, and they couldn't keep up with each other's ideas at all.

Abbas II said: "If the Emperor of China had a sister, I would like to marry a concubine, and I would love her very much."

Zhang Ruifeng replied: "I'm very sorry, Your Majesty of my country has only one sister, and she was married a few years ago.

"Alas, what a pity," added Abbas II, "my sisters are also married, otherwise they could have been married to the Emperor of China as concubines." In this case, I can only let my son marry a Chinese princess, and the Safavid royal family will have Chinese royal blood. It's exciting to think about, China is mysterious and ancient. With Chinese royal blood, the Safavid royal family will definitely be even greater. ”

Does this thing have a pedigree collecting fetish?

It is said that the royal marriage on the Persian side is similar to that in Europe. In the past few decades, Persia has been at war with the Mughals and intermarried with the Mughal royal family, which has not affected them in the slightest from playing dog brains on the battlefield.

For the next half month, Lu Tianxiang has been communicating with the Persian queen, and the Persian king is discussing art with the civil servants of the mission.

It was the most nourishing day for the legacy, and although the Persian countryside was poor, the city was civilized and rich. Except for the unappetizing food, all other conditions are not even lost to Nanjing.

Even Cai Yuncheng, who was born in a poor peasant, had great affection for the country of Persia because of the warm hospitality of Abbas II and the prosperity and civilization in the city.

As they were leaving, Abbas II learned that they were going to Osman and immediately said: "The Ottoman Sultan was assassinated last year, and this time is the most chaotic time for Osman. If you go over, you have to be careful all the way, because the Ottoman royal family can no longer control the local army. ”

"Sultan?" Zhang Ruifeng was surprised.

Abbas II nodded and said, "In the last hundred years, there have been a large number of female sultans in the Ottomans.

After repeated questioning, Zhang Ruifeng finally figured out that the so-called Ottoman female sultan was actually the queen mother. Just like in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, there were a bunch of little emperors, and the empress dowager held power alone for a long time, even if the emperor did not hand over power when he became an adult.

Moreover, the origins of these female sultans can also be described in a variety of ways.

Like the very famous Sultan of Xurem, he was an Orthodox Pole. Rose as a slave girl, stood out from the fierce palace fight, and finally became the queen mother who monopolized power.

There is also the Queen Mother Safie, a slave girl from a Venetian aristocratic background. During her reign, the relationship between the Ottomans and Venice, UU read as good as if she were wearing the same pair of pants.

The queen mother, who was assassinated last year, is called the Sultan of Kseim.

One of her sons reigned for seventeen years, and the other for eight years, all controlled by the empress dowager. After her grandson succeeded to the throne, the Empress Dowager ruled for several years, and the noble ministers finally couldn't bear it and killed the Empress Dowager.

As soon as the empress dowager died, the little emperor was young, and the Ottoman nobles began to fight for power, and now the country is in chaos.

The Ottomans at this time, known as the "Sultan Feminist Era", lasted for more than a hundred years.

Don't look at the aristocracy who killed a queen mother at this time, and then there will be a new queen mother in power, and another slave girl from Poland.

。