Chapter 542: New Grand Vizier
"Death to the Sultana Dowager!"
"Death to the traitor of the state!"
"Death to the..."
"Close the windows."
"Yes, your highness."
The regent of the Ottoman Sultanate, the Sultana Dowager and mother of all Ottomans, seats still on her seat drinking her Çal Karası red wine, facing the window, with a pile of papers and documentations scattered all over the floor beside her, elegant as always. But things are not the same outside those gorgeously stained windowpanes, for there are thousands gathered outside the palace, demanding her immediate death, with a group of soldiers trying to knock open the palace gate with a battering ram.
"..."
The Sultana Dowager, or Gulbahar Hatun, is not afraid of death, not at all; her heart has already died long ago with the demise of her husband, for now she is nothing but merely a skeleton burning herself to support the only thing that her husband has left her with; their son Beyezid.
Has she done anything wrong over the few years of her regentship? She had, of course, everything she has done over the years is not for the wellbeing of the Ottoman people, not making the Sultanate grow any bit stronger, in fact everything she has done over the years is simply making sure that the bloodline of her husband Mehmed continues on, even if the price to be paid is the destruction and dismantling of the Sultanate, she has no feeling on this state anyways, for she is an Albanian who is only taken to the harem when she grew up.
Maybe to her, death is nothing but the gateway to a total rebirth and salvation. Through the loss of her life, she can successfully ascend to a higher being, reunifying with her long-lost husband, leaving all troubles, dreams, despair behind in the world of the livings.
"Mourn not the passing of a life well lived, for death is nothing but a path to see whom I want to see." She whispered to herself.
There are only two eunuchs by her side now, with their legs shivering in fear. It is no surprise that she gained her power through the help offered by the eunuchs, and now it is the eunuchs who shall be here to witness her death.
"What time is it?" She asked.
"It is a bit after noon, your highness."
"Noon..." The Sultana Dowager closed her eyes, put down the mug on the table and leaned back. "I have heard that we faithful Muslims are the closest to the Jannah when the mighty sun is high above our head, am I right?"
"...Yes, your highness."
"I know, I know that a sinful woman like me does not deserve to ascend to the Jannah, there is no need to lie to me."
"..."
Time slowly sipped by, and the Sultana Dowager is slowly feeling that she is losing the ability to continue breathing as she tried to gasp for air. "Go... Go... you two." She spoke restlessly. "There is a box... beneath my seat... there are some money in it... run for your lives... Remember to burn my body into ashes... No peasant is... is supposed to touch my sacred body..."
But upon hearing the first part of the sentence, the eunuchs jumped towards the Sultana Dowager’s seat, grabbed that chest, and made a sprint for the door without even saying a thing or at least looking back, leaving the Sultana Dowager alone in the royal chamber trying to reach her hand out towards the window, but it did not take long for the hand to drop lifelessly.
She wants to die a lonely death, none of her closed ones, family members, close acquittance, or at least courtiers are present at the spot when she passes on to the next stage of her life, maybe till the very last moment of her life does she recall the life she had back then in the hills and mountains of Albania, the warmth of Mehmed’s hug, and the growth of her son.
Her son...
Just seconds before her death, the Sultana Dowager started getting worried again, what shall these rebels make of her son? Shall her son stay safe?
Even at her death she cannot enjoy a moment of peace.
Just minutes later, the rebels stormed the palace, and found the Sultana Dowager there in her room, trembling with a pale face on the seat. They cheered and cried in celebrating their supposed victory, pulled the frail Sultana Dowager around on the ground, smashed her against the wall, wedging all the rage they have no idea where it came from on the woman, until their commander yelled and stopped their aggression before it turns any point worse. They proceeded on to drag the Sultana Dowager out and sent her to the court physicians.
It is indeed funny that the ones who almost fulfilled the Sultana Dowager’s last wish is not those eunuchs whom she has trusted, but the rebels who tried to kill her. In the end the Sultana Dowager is locked away deep in custody, like a canary in a cage.
But then did these rebels start to think of one question, what shall they do next?
But then did these rebels start to think of one question, what shall they do next?
Yes, they have captured the capital city, yes, they have captured the Sultana Dowager who supposedly has plans to push them to die, but what do they do now? Close the city gates, and proclaim that they are the next regent? Obviously no, with such little manpower they have, the only outcome of this is they getting butchered by the other rebels who are fast approaching the city.
So that only leaves them with one choice...
They kept the gate open, cleaned the blood off the streets, proclaimed that they revolted in support of general Celalettin’s righteous action, and sent out messengers in an attempt to contact the other rebels, welcoming them into the city.
In the end, Celalettin achieved the miracle that he has never dreamt of in the past; leading a five thousand men strong troop marching into the capital city of Edirne. He is welcomed to the city with cheers, songs, flowers, and honey, every citizen seemed to love him here to restore peace and order, all the commanders and politicians seemed to admire and respect him, bowing towards him singing songs of his greatness, even the Sultan seemed to be afraid of him, sending a royal messenger here offering him a bunch of titles, pleading for his protection, even offering to marry a royal woman to Celalettin as a form of increasing ties between him and the house of Osman.
Just within a few weeks’ time, Celalettin has gained everything, from money, to prestige, to power, to woman. It is no doubt that he is now the one, the only one person in the entire Sultanate that controls the legitimate Sultan, and a powerful army.
Celalettin is thoroughly absorbed in his pride and victory, making him complacent enough to miss the eyes of hatred within the crowds, and the people waiting for him to make a fool of himself. The Sultan offered him the position of the Grand Vizier and the next regent of the Sultanate, in the letter Beyezid humbly addressed himself as ’a lost sheep that is still in need of guidance and help from an experienced mentor’, and the mentor has to be him, Celalettin, which the later gladly accepted.
The position of the Grand Vizier is re-established after a decade following the death of Candarli Halil Pasha. But amidst the joys and cheers, Celalettin failed to realise that in the middle of all these events, discontent, displease, and unsatisfaction has already started brewing among the crowd, especially among the very own troops that he brought into Edirne.
Although all the rebels have united under the banner of Celalettin, but one ought to remember that Celalettin only has a mere six hundred plus people that are firmly on his side, ready to support him in any kind of situation. But that is not the same for the rest of the troops who chose to join this uprising with him, as they only joined his side previously because of political interest and the same enemy. Now, that enemy has been removed, and it is now time to think of a very realistic question: I have helped you so much in this war, what can you give me out of it?
And there are some people, who used to have similar or even higher ranks than Celalettin before the war, now looks at Celalettin with eyes of envy and despise as he accepts the role of the Grand Vizier from the Sultan on the stage, that is am honour that they too want.
Has Celalettin completely forgot about them? At least for now, yes.
It is indeed important for a leader to make sure that his followers share the spoils of success together with him, in order to keep the entire allegiance running. For now, Celalettin still got a lot of learn, and it is apparent that there is already someone trying to take advantage of this situation.
