The Revolt of the Three Feudatories: All-in at the start in Beijing

This Dutch merchant was not a Dutch government official; he was just an ordinary businessman with a medium-sized galleon. His visit to report the matter was merely retaliation for the Han dynasty's blockade of Dutch merchant ships.

Those previous words were nothing but hearsay. In his panic and confusion in front of a big shot like Shaysta Khan, he immediately revealed his true colors.

Shaysta Khan, as the Mughal emperor's maternal uncle, held power for over twenty years. How could he tolerate being deceived? He stabbed a Dutch merchant in the neck.

After wiping his hands with a towel, Shaysta Khan picked up a glass of imported Persian wine and closed his eyes to enjoy it.

Just then, a guard rushed in.

"Your Excellency, these are military reports from the garrison troops in various regions. They all say that a group of savages is attacking manors and fortresses everywhere, and many high-ranking Hindus and our Muslim nobles have been slaughtered!"

Upon hearing this, Shaishta Khan immediately took the military report, which was densely packed with seventy or eighty pages, all dated within the last half month. Most importantly, it stated that not a single penny had been touched by the Indian people.

The fact that he was able to be transferred to govern Bengal, a region encompassing various territories of the empire, is not only due to his status as the emperor's maternal uncle, but also to Shahistah Khan's exceptional personal abilities.

They quickly realized something was wrong; the enemy must have deployed at least ten or twenty thousand cavalry to launch such a multi-pronged attack in such a short time.

This must be some powerful force, or Hindus, colluding with external enemies to take action against Bengal. Could it really be some great Han Kingdom?

Thinking of this, Shaystahan quickly turned his head to look at the fallen Dutch merchant; he wanted to know more.

pity.

The Dutch merchant had already breathed his last.

After acting a little too hastily in the secret passage, he waved his hand.

"Take him down and bury him!"

"Summon all senior officers to a meeting!"

Upon hearing this, the guards immediately dragged the Dutch merchant's body away. Not long after, a dozen or so armored generals entered the hall one after another.

Shaysta Khan didn't mince words and immediately distributed the military report. After everyone understood it, he gently patted the table.

"According to the military report, these attackers were unarmored, appeared to be either very old or very young, and fought without any organization or discipline, unlike a regular army!"

"Therefore, I believe these people are merely an appetizer; a powerful enemy is lurking around Dhaka, poised to deliver a fatal blow!"

"By the way, have you ever heard of the Han Dynasty?"

"It's that land of the Great Qing Dynasty in the East!"

These generals were all high-ranking officers, equivalent to the rank of a lieutenant general in the Han Dynasty, but their armies were their private armies because they each represented a family.

The Mughal emperors ruled the Indian subcontinent through religious means and aristocratic marriages, a system that remained unchanged for centuries.

Therefore, these generals had a great deal of autonomy.

Even Shaysta Khan had to give in.

One of them, a general in his thirties with a high nose and deep-set eyes, but with a dark complexion, stood up with a frown.

"Your Excellency!"

"Many of the merchants who have recently come to Dhaka to trade have been talking about the Han Dynasty, saying that it has just defeated the Qing Dynasty in the East, but has not yet unified the territory!"

"If they had said they brought their troops, that would have been impossible, since they haven't finished fighting their own battles yet!"

The other generals nodded in agreement. Besides their military duties, they also had to take care of their family businesses. The Han blockade of Malacca had drawn complaints from Western politicians and businessmen, which they naturally heard.

Shaysta Khan stroked his beard upon hearing this.

"Is this Great Han Kingdom powerful?"

"Can our army defeat them?"

Yes, Shaishta Khan chickened out. Now, due to the emperor's oppressive policies toward Hinduism, the demolition of their temples, and the prohibition of their faith, there were already signs of uprisings among the indigenous people of India, so he did not want to cause any trouble.

These generals were not fools; they all knew what Shaysta Khan was thinking. However, it was their noble manors and fortresses that were under attack.

So even if you can't win, you have to fight.

Besides, they haven't even fought yet!

The dark-faced Muslim was the first to draw his sword, revealing a hint of mockery.

"That Great Qing Empire in the East, didn't it have a rebellion not long ago? It lost half of its country in just six months, so these Easterners are nothing!"

"We have the strongest cavalry, so many war elephants, and tens of thousands of musketeers. If they dare to come, I'll slaughter them and throw them into the Ganges to feed the fish!"

Upon hearing this, the remaining noble generals all joined in the clamor.

"General Babur Khan is right. Our Mughal army is the strongest. What are those so-called 'big men' compared to us? We'll only know how powerful they are after we've fought them!"

Shaysta Khan nodded upon seeing this. These generals should fight if they want to; what he fears most is dragging things out and causing the army to suffer a defeat in the decisive battle.

As for whether they can win or not?

Shaysta Khan hadn't thought of that.

After all, the Mughals were so powerful!

……

In 1676 AD, the year 1877 in the Han Dynasty, in Manastangar, the clouds of war were already gathering.

Manastanggarh, which later became the city of Bogra in Bangladesh, was located right next to the Jamuna River.

The Han army of 50,000 was seen north of Bogra Castle, with 30,000 regular troops in the center and 20,000 Tibetan soldiers scattered on both sides.

On the Mughal side, at the very front were one hundred war elephants, each nearly three meters tall at the shoulder, with a bamboo basket on their back and three soldiers standing on it, holding spears, bows and arrows, or muskets.

On both sides, there were 30,000 cavalrymen, all wearing chainmail and mirrored armor to protect their chests. Each of them rode three horses, and one of their horses even had a vest.

In the very center was a legion of 10,000 men armed with arquebuses, clearly the heavy muskets of Tsarist Russia and the Ottomans, accompanied by 10,000 armored swordsmen, shieldmen, and spearmen.

Following them were 50,000 natives, the able-bodied men of Bengal. They had no armor, only cold weapons such as spears and long knives, and had to stay far away from the Mughal noble army.

If you look closely, you'll find that the faces of the cavalry and musketeers are all Turkic, Mongol, Persian, or purely Central Asian; there isn't a single native Indian face.

This is because the ruling class of the Mughals was Muslim, much like the Manchu rule over the Central Plains, where hundreds of thousands of people ruled over hundreds of millions of people.

The Manchus chose to shave their heads and change their clothing.

The Mughals chose to demolish temples and convert to a different faith.

They all used knives to stab the deepest part of the body.

Shaysta Khan, following the custom of the nobility, led ten strong cavalrymen to the center of the two armies.

Then a cavalryman rode forward and spoke in Persian, Indian, Tibetan, and Burmese.

"What country are you soldiers from? We, the Governor-General of Bengal, Shaistha Khan, have something to discuss!"

Liu Weiqing was stunned for a moment upon seeing this, and then led ten personal guards to the center of the army, where he first answered in Tibetan.

"We are the army of Tengri Khan of the Great Mongol Empire. We have come to the Mughal Empire to reclaim the property of the Great Mongol Empire!"

If you could only read one historical novel in your life, it would probably be "The Revolt of the Three Feudatories: A Bet on Beijing".