After a few days in Kuwait City, a team of more than 100 Ottoman cavalry from Basra arrived here and met Colonel Lei Xiao on the manor under the guidance of a local colonial ministry official.

After receiving a telegram from Baghdad, they came to greet the special military delegation.

Before the railway was built, there were two ways to get to Baghdad, one by water and one by land.

Riding a horse by land is the way most people choose, because the roads on the Gobi Desert are bumpy, horse-drawn carriages are only used for freight, and passengers can be bumpy to make people doubt life, it is better to ride a horse.

There are many towns along the Shatt al-Arab, where accommodation and rest are very convenient, and are a common way for most caravanserais.

Sir Mak Guangmin, however, suggested taking a steamer, which he had at home and was more than 300 tons, with a shallow draft and high horsepower, which could go up the Shatt al-Arab River all the way up to Baghdad.

The latter mode of passage is more comfortable, provided that a special permit is granted by the province of Baghdad.

Colonel Lei Xiao naturally adopted Sir Mak Guangmin's suggestion, there was no need for so many cavalry escorts to take the steamer, a group of fourteen plus Caroline and Mai's two maids, the Ottoman cavalry was led by Captain Carman more than 10 people to board the ship, and the rest could return on their own.

Sir McKwong-man's steamer was quickly prepared, and his second son, Mak Dang-hung, also led 16 elite Chinese gunners to board the ship to defend Colonel Lei Xiao and his party along the way.

Mr. Enzo filled the bottom compartment of the steamer with 120 barrels of kerosene, which was worth a lot of money when it arrived in Baghdad, and it cost money for nobles to communicate and mingle, and this shipment was considered a tribute to Colonel Lei Xiao.

Hop on a steamer and go pretty fast.

After two days of travel along the bay, the steamer entered the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab and after half a day of going up the estuary, it arrived at Basra, known as the "Venice of the East".

Rather, Basra is located 120 kilometers from the southern Persian Gulf and is the only hub connecting the Persian Gulf with the Euphrates inland river system.

Further up from here, the rivers and lakes are numerous, the water conditions are complex, and the siltation of the Shatt al-Arab is so severe that only smaller inland vessels can pass.

Basra, the second largest city in Baghdad province and one of the world's first port cities, is a city with an Arabian flair and local tribes wearing robes and holding camels and horses.

Colonel Lei Xiao was in a moment's interest, abandoned ship and landed here, and took Caroline and Major Pan Zhixin and other entourages to the city for a tour.

In a bustling street market

Colonel Lei Xiao, dressed in the imperial uniform, was very eye-catching, and under the escort of Captain Kaman, the local Arabs took refuge with a look of fear.

The Ottoman soldiers under Captain Kaman were very fierce with the local Arabs, and whenever there were merchants or vendors who could not evade with their burdens, they rushed up and kicked them over, causing potatoes and onions to roll all over the ground.

The Ottomans were a Europa race that had historically mixed heavily with the Greeks and the Turkic-speaking Oghuz from the Ilkhanate, thus forming a people with their own characteristics.

At its peak, the empire spanned Europe, Asia and Africa, and had been in charge of the Spanish Peninsula for nearly 200 years.

The Arabs were only one of the hundreds of ethnic groups under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, and Baghdad was the frontier province of the empire, governed by the Pasha people, as in Egypt, Sudan, Syria, Jordan, etc.

Colonel Lei Xiao turned a blind eye to the ferocity of the Ottoman soldiers, he himself was born in the army, and the methods of the Tang Imperial army in suppressing the colonies were equally ruthless, even excessive.

This kind of thing is not strange.

He was admiring the large-scale mosque architecture, the exotic buildings and pedestrians of the local area, which were the focus of his attention, and suddenly his arms tightened.

It turned out to be the bold Caroline who came up, and she lifted her pitiful delicate little face, and there was a pleading look in her eyes.

Colonel Lei Xiao shook it lightly, but he didn't shake it off, and he could only let Caroline hold his arm, which was a rather intimate action.

Caroline wore a new Parisian outfit of intricate pleated dresses, which were quite expensive, and smiled happily after her careful thinking was satisfied.

The women in Basra wore headscarves, and Caroline's actions were undoubtedly very bold, but everyone pretended not to see them.

The group stopped and stopped, and also bought some local specialties of camel yogurt and dates to taste, everyone drank sour teeth, and couldn't help grinning bitterly.

Dates are a bit better, an extremely sweet dried fruit that satisfies the Arabs' need for sweetness.

"Caroline, have you been to Basra before?"

"Of course, my honorable lord, I have been to Basra, Baghdad and further Munich for reasons of my father's business, and more than once. Our family also has a beautiful manor house in Munich, where we will be able to live then. ”

"There don't seem to be many Chinese here, do you know why?"

"You know, the taxes of the Ottoman Empire are very heavy, and the local officials exploit and oppress the merchants, and it is generally difficult for merchants who have no heels to stand up, let alone make money."

"According to the bilateral agreement between the Tang Dynasty and the Ottoman Empire, well...... The Ottomans were supposed to provide an equal business environment, did they deliberately target Chinese businessmen? ”

"You can't say that, can you?" Caroline raised her head and thought about it, shook her head with a serious expression, and explained;

"The Ottomans were not very good at business, but they ruled very brutally and suppressed foreign forces, whether they were Arabs, Persians, Greeks, Bohemians, Armenians or Syrians.

These local rulers were deeply wary of the European and American powers, and did not allow the local people to cooperate with the British, French, and Tang merchants.

Violators will be punished with the punishment of raiding their homes and destroying their homes.

Without the cooperation of the locals, it is difficult to make the business bigger, harder to be stronger, and there is no way to take root in the local area.

We, Chinese smugglers in Kuwait City. They are all secretly in contact with local big families, cooperate in private, and must not be made public.

Once the news is leaked

For these local big families and tribal forces, they may face extinction.

The Pasha of Baghdad would never allow the coercion of foreign countries to take place, which in their eyes was a very serious crime that must be punished severely. ”

After explaining like this, Colonel Lei Xiao nodded thoughtfully, and only then did he understand the reason.

The Tang Empire had perfect trade treaties with all major countries in the world, including the Ottoman Empire, and gave each other easy places to do business.

If the other party does not abide by the treaty, the Tang Empire will have a reason to go crazy and forcibly use force to open the market.

Colonel Lei Xiao came all the way and knew that there were many Chinese merchants in the capital of the Ottoman Empire, much more than Basra, which is the most obvious example.

(End of chapter)