Chapter 306 Frustration

The days in Aden were already a bit boring, and Mason had been planning to go back to Constantinople for a while. But on this day, a ship arrived at the port of Aden.

The ship was a bit shabby, not only was the bow damaged, but also a pole was broken. The originally intact blue double-headed eagle flag was now a piece of rag, and the broken part was still hanging on the flagpole that had not fallen. If it weren't for someone with sharp eyes, no one would dare to believe that this was their company's ship.

After the ship docked, several injured crew members helped each other get off the ship. Several people were carried out on stretchers.

"What happened, how could this happen?"

"Isn't this Zeno who works in Colombo? Did he encounter pirates?"

The tragic situation of the ship was quickly reported to Mason. Although he was prepared, he was still shocked when he saw the other party and the ship.

"What are you doing..."

"Governor, we were attacked by pirates."

In Zeno's narration, the fleet that originally went to the East was smooth at the beginning. They passed by an archipelago, but the natives there were too martial, so they just checked in and continued to sail eastward.

Soon after, they came to the first trading city. The Arabs called it Aceh. They replenished fresh water and food here and headed southeast. But soon they encountered a huge fleet.

The Eastern fleet was really different from theirs. Their hulls were all triangular, while the Eastern ships were mostly square. And the hulls were large and the number was several times theirs. In order to pass through here smoothly, Zeno and his team gave way to the fleet, but the other side obviously didn't want to do that.

Soon, dense arrows fell from the sky, and Zeno and his team were forced to fight back with artillery. But the opponent's dozen ships immediately surrounded them, and then they fought hand to hand.

Due to the huge difference in strength, Zeno could only break through. This was also a difficult battle. In the end, only this one of the nine ships explored escaped the encirclement. The other ships and crew were captured.

"Oh, God"

Mason gestured the famous cross on his chest, which was a major setback in their exploration of the East. And according to Zeno, this group of pirates may go to Colombo and India, so the most important thing now is to do a good job of defense and continue to expand the army. The exploration of the East cannot end so quickly.

Mason asked his men to take good care of the survivors and asked everyone to hold a meeting to discuss how to deal with the pirates.

"My lord, we should continue to consolidate our power in Colombo. To prevent them from occupying, we must also form a fleet. If we cannot eliminate this group of pirates, I am afraid that the company's future strategy will be affected."

Aden Chief Executive Mitsotakis suggested to Mason that it is best to stabilize the power in Colombo at present. Taking advantage of the chaos on this small island called Ceylon, supporting puppets or forming an alliance is the best choice. The spices and gems produced locally can be sold at a very high price in Europe.

"I will write to the company headquarters to express our situation, but now we must prepare for a war that may break out at any time. Unknown dangers are waiting for us."

Mason ordered to continue to expand the colonies in India and Ceylon. In addition to the very important places directly under the jurisdiction, other places will cooperate with local snakes to control. In addition, try to find a way to immigrate some people from the country, or attract people from other countries to help govern.

It is quite difficult to immigrate from Rome itself, because the country encourages reclamation and economic prosperity, and not many people are willing to take risks. And it is the East where they are unfamiliar with the place.

However, the coffee they brought back from East Africa became popular in Constantinople. Refreshing drinks were sought after by some intellectuals, and the first shop selling coffee berries opened in Constantinople.

Some conservatives thought it was a bitter invention of Satan and refused to drink it, but the coffee berries were still presented to Emperor Mircea as usual, and the emperor also gave some to the royal family and nobles.

Peter on the front line got the most. As a social animal who had just entered society in later generations, a few cups of coffee a day was already the norm. He also knew a little about how to make coffee. After being exposed to the sun for about ten days, it was roasted to make a simple version of coffee beans. When you want to drink it, grind it into powder and add hot water to brew it. Drink a sip to refresh your mind. If you think it is bitter, you can add some sugar from Cyprus.

Peter's brewing method influenced many people around him, especially the nobles who came to Peter and the generals and officials around him, who all thought that this was a drink that only people in the upper class could drink. Peter would also give some coffee and sugar as rewards to those who made contributions around him. Over time, some people began to get used to this drink and imported it from Constantinople.

Coffee from Abyssinia and sugar from Cyprus began to change the living habits of Rome. Oriental spices also made Rome a new place for those who yearned for life, especially those who had seen the Roman army. The demise of Venice not only destroyed this mortal enemy of Rome, but also declared that Rome was no longer the poor and weak country. The international status of Macedonia and the Komnenos dynasty has returned.

France and the princes of the Holy Roman Empire hated and feared Rome. They always felt that Rome would re-conquer them to restore the territory of the ancient Roman Empire. But they didn't know that as early as when Mircea first entered Constantinople, Peter had advised his father not to follow in Justinian's footsteps and not to blindly capture cities and territories. Rome needed to restore its strength and more importantly, it needed to face the facts that the territory of the ancient Roman Empire could not be recovered.

Currently, Rome's focus has returned to Anatolia, where the local economy and culture have been profoundly changed by nomads. Rome had to change them back, using the slaves plundered from the West and the local Armenians, and the local agriculture began to recover, and the sparsely populated inland gradually became prosperous.

Mircea divided Western Anatolia into two provinces, Nicaea and Smyrna, and the Governorate of Inner Anatolia with Ancyra as its capital. Nomadic markets were opened in Ancyra and other places to do business with the Ottomans and other nomadic tribes, using their food, luxury goods and other commodities to exchange their cattle, sheep, horses and other products. Such business behavior affected many tribesmen, and the local churches and church schools also affected their beliefs and culture. Sultan Muhammad also wanted to get rid of trade with Rome several times, but it was useless in the face of huge interests.

Any nomadic tribe will be assimilated by a higher civilization, whether it is the Mongols in the East or the former Abbasid Dynasty, they were assimilated by the higher Chinese civilization and Persian civilization. All kinds of systems were learned from them, and now the nomadic tribes in Anatolia are gradually being influenced by Rome. The Ottoman glory and crescent are gradually fading away, being replaced by the Roman double-headed eagle and cross.