I was the Queen of Persia

Page 76

Shahzani promptly dispatched the Shahri Guard to pursue and annihilate the fleeing army. The crimson Valkyrie army moved at the order, their heavily armored cavalry sweeping across the battlefield, their steel torrents reaping the lives of the fleeing enemy soldiers.

Shahzani easily captured Lasht without a fierce battle.

Chapter 173 Trivial Matters During Rest in Jilan

After capturing Lasht.

Gilan, Tabaristan, and Gorgan, three provinces bordering the Caspian Sea, were all seized by Shahzani and subsequently incorporated into the Samanid Empire.

Shahzani then rallied his troops and deployed them at various passes in the Alborz Mountains, thwarting the reinforcements sent by Bai Yi and consolidating his control over the three Caspian provinces.

Shahzani plans to rest for a while longer before continuing her journey.

To be fair, while the climate in Gilan varies considerably, it is generally quite pleasant.

As spring turns to autumn, the southern coast of the Caspian Sea sheds the sweltering heat of summer and welcomes the gentle breezes of golden autumn. This is the most pleasant season in the three Caspian provinces, with the fragrance of citrus fruits, the sweet nectar of melons, and the warm breezes nourishing the battle-hardened faces of the Samanian warriors.

The temperature was pleasant, and the Samanian warriors stripped naked, spread out blankets, and lined up to sunbathe on the Caspian coast. In a short while, the Caspian coastline was covered with towering, jade-like peaks and ridges, their dense black forests draped in red cloth.

This was certainly not the original custom of the Transoxiana-Khorasan province, but rather a custom brought by Shahzani from another dimension. Shahzani brought many of her own interests into ancient Iranian society, and through her illustrious military achievements and supreme power, gradually integrated them into folk customs and Khoramiist ​​doctrines.

The Khorami school of Islam does not view female nudity as "immoral," "morally corrupt," or "heinous." On the contrary, this sect of Islam, reformed by Shahzani, encourages women to display the beauty of their bodies in moderation to praise the greatness of God Hudda, the Creator of all things.

Of course, this is also related to Shahzani's personal beliefs. In her previous life, she was an anti-British and anti-American Iranian young woman who deeply resented the aggression of British and American powers against Iran in modern times. However, at the same time, she did not approve of some of the policies of the Islamic Theocratic Republic of Iran and criticized these policies for "suppressing the creativity of social development."

Influenced by Shahzani, the female warriors of the Saman army gradually broke free from the shackles of old feudal doctrines. In addition, their glorious military achievements over the years and their great contributions to the revival of the country further strengthened their self-confidence and self-reliance.

Therefore, on the topic of displaying their bodies, Iranian female soldiers are no longer so shy, hesitant, secretive, reluctant to speak, or even resistant. Instead, they take the initiative to be open, let go of themselves, and fully enjoy the envious gazes of their male comrades.

Despite occasional criticisms from old-fashioned religious clergy who call the practice "degenerate," "contrary to chastity," and "spreading corruption in the world."

However, after weighing the pros and cons, they also realized that compared to the great feat of the female warriors defending the country and promoting the cause of Allah, this little matter of "being naked" was trivial and insignificant. Therefore, they immediately changed their previous stance and acquiesced to it.

Some of them have even "kept up with the times," changing their perspective to appreciate this beauty, temporarily putting aside all rules and regulations, just as the saying goes, "Springtime passes before our eyes, but God remains in our hearts."

If the imams and mullahs are like this, then there's no need to say more about the other male comrades.

At this moment, the Qin soldiers in the distant camp, seeing this erotic scene, were all chattering and laughing.

"Damn, these Persian and Hui women are amazing! Look at them, look at their figures, they're all top-notch, haha." A burly man from Guanzhong who had just joined the Qin army licked his stubble and said in a thick local accent.

"Hehe, you have no idea how 'powerful' they are," another young man said with amusement.

This young man had delicate features, slicked-back hair and a fair complexion, with skin even more delicate than that of a young lady in her boudoir. His words and actions revealed that his daily routine consisted of "pleasing" the female officers.

"What? You know that?" The burly man from Kansai rolled his eyes at him.

"Of course. To be honest, quite a few female soldiers have taken a liking to me." The fair-faced young man proudly patted his chest.

"Ha! Who are you trying to fool? What skills could someone like you possibly have? Perhaps they just saw how handsome you are and wanted to use you as a 'rabbit boy' for their amusement, haha!" the big man laughed loudly.

Hearing him say that, the young man pouted in dissatisfaction:

“Oh, brother, you’re exaggerating. Although I’m physically weak, I do know a little about the strategies of governing a city. Take recently, for example. During the campaigns against Astrabad and Sari, I was in charge of troop deployment and made some minor contributions, which earned me quite a bit of recognition…”

As they were talking, a sly smile suddenly flashed across the young man's face:

"...As for being good in bed, I'm second to none. To be honest, I'm quite skilled in the arts of the bedroom, and I can keep those women comfortable, hehe..."

Upon hearing this, the burly man's face turned suspicious. He patted the boy's thin, frail chest and said, "You're just bragging. With your small frame, they could drain you dry with just one sit down."

"Cough cough, it's true, I'm not lying to you..." The boy began to recount his "glorious achievements" on the bed.

He said, "...After the Battle of Half-City (Panjkent), a female centurion from the Iron Cavalry of the Persian River took a liking to me. This centurion was beautiful, plump, and strong, and most importantly, she was fierce. She dragged me into her tent, stripped me naked, and couldn't wait to make love to me. And what happened? With my superb skills, I 'turned the tables' and tormented that shrew to the point of ecstasy. From then on, she valued me highly and even recommended me to the commander of the thousand-woman regiment, haha."

The burly man listened intently, his "respect" for the boy growing even stronger.

The boy continued, "It's a pity she died for her country during the Battle of Nishapur... Afterwards, I was assigned to another female officer in the heavy cavalry, an extremely flirtatious and lewd woman who loved to play with boys and male dancers... I 'fought with all my might' and 'thrust with my spear'... Well! This woman was quite something, her buttocks were as big as buckets, sucking and squeezing, almost breaking my thing... I was so exhausted that I fell asleep, and when I woke up the next day, guess what? That woman was still half asleep, not fully recovered, and red, yellow, and white fluids were all over the floor, hahaha!"

After endlessly boasting about his "achievements," the boy revealed a rather smug smile.

Chapter 174 Marching into Azerbaijan

Springtime remains on the shores of the Khazars (Caspian Sea).

Two young men from the eastern Maqin region, a burly man and a boy, leaned against the grass not far from the shore, talking with great interest about "interesting stories".

"Heh! You've got guts, kid! Aren't you afraid of getting into some romantic trouble and having the military authorities hold you accountable?" The burly man punched the boy.

"Brother, you may not know this," the boy grinned slyly, "but they possess unknown 'sorcery' that allows them to drain men's life force at will and remain unharmed."

"Such a strange thing? Could it be... that they are female demons who drain people's life force?"

"Who knows? Who cares if they're demons or not? Anyway, they won't eat us. On the contrary, they value our skills. We just need to obey their orders."

"Ha, that's good. That way your little brother has had his fill of novelty!"

"Well, how should I put it? They are indeed alluring, but the strange smell (a mixture of rosewater and body odor) is too pungent, and their robust physiques and passionate personalities are unbearable..."

"Haha! I never imagined that the women in this Persian Hui land would be so unrestrained, unlike Chinese women who adhere to moral principles and are reserved and virtuous."

"There is a reason for this. The Persian Empress Shahjani led her army to conquer the south and the north, and seized power. There were also many female soldiers in the army who made great contributions, which led to a trend of 'female chickens turning into males' in Persia. Moreover, they also have a 'dignified' side."

"Oh, how so? How 'dignified'? Can you compare to the ladies of high society in Bianjing?"

"That's not quite the same, but they are very devout to their gods, ancestors, and heroes. When they worship, they are solemn and serious, as well as well-trained as if they were on the battlefield."

"Oh, that's quite novel."

"Persian Hui people worship 'the sky god' (Islam and Zoroastrianism prohibit idol worship, which to the people of the Central Plains does indeed seem like worshipping the sky), you know that, right? They worship the sky five times a day, all dressed properly, with headscarves covering their hair, kneeling down to worship the sky, quite devoutly."

"Oh, I see! Hey! I didn't know you knew so much!"

“Brother, you’ve just joined the army, so you naturally know very little. But once you’ve been in the barracks for a while, you’ll know that they are a group of women who are both skilled in battle and cultured, both bloodthirsty and law-abiding, both sexually promiscuous and devout.”

The two were still chatting and laughing when a beautiful female officer from Saman approached the boy with fair skin. She said there was a "special military mission" that required his "special skills," and with a wicked smile, she led the boy back to the camp.

It seems we're about to face another fierce hand-to-hand combat.

……

After resting and recuperating in Gilan, Shahzani led his army on a campaign to attack the Azerbaijani region.

At this time, Azerbaijan was home to numerous feudal states, including the Salari Dynasty, the Rawadi Dynasty, the Emirate of Khoy, the Sadadi Dynasty, the Shirfan Shah Dynasty, and many others.

These regimes were generally weak, and most of them were originally hostile to Shahzani only because of pressure from the Baiyi Dynasty. Now that Shahzani's army had arrived, they immediately lost the courage to resist.

More importantly, the Khorami sect had long been practicing and preaching in Azerbaijan, gathering a large following and gradually replacing various Shia and Sunni Islamic sects in the region. When the Queen's army arrived, the Khorami followers naturally welcomed them with food and drink.

Under these favorable circumstances.

Shahzani broke through various passes and stormed into the Azerbaijani plateau. With little resistance along the way, he advanced rapidly and decisively captured the holy city of Ardabil. This city has since become an important missionary base for the Khorami sect.

Using Ardabil as a strategic stronghold, Shahzani seized Maragai, Halhal, Urmiyeh, and Tabriz. The local Azhar, Kurds, Talish, and Tat nobles and elders all knelt down and submitted.

As long as the Shirvan Shahs strongly resisted the Samanid surrender offer, they cobbled together an armed force to try to resist Shahzani's army.

Upon hearing this news, Shahzani immediately set off from Tabriz and led his troops north.

An army cobbled together from slave soldiers, militia, tribal people, and mercenaries was naturally no match for the well-trained army of the Samanid dynasty, and the chieftains of Kurd and Azhar led the Samanid army.

Shahzani easily defeated the Shirvan army, conquered the Shirvan dynasty, and advanced as far as Darband (the border crossing of the Caucasus Mountains). She abolished the title of the Shirvan monarch, blinded him, and then incorporated the region into the Samanid Empire.

Shahzani announced the establishment of Azerbaijan Province, with Tabriz as its capital, Maragay as its academic city, Ardabil as its religious holy city, and Urmiye as its historical city—because thousands of years ago, on a spring equinox, the late Emperor Jamshid walked out of the palace in Urmiye and found everything reviving and flowers blooming, so he designated this day as Nowruz's Spring Festival.

In 1004 AD, Shahzani chose to spend the Mehergan Autumn Festival in Urmiye.

Azerbaijan has a cool climate, and Shahzani felt it was somewhat similar to Khwarazm province, which explains why Persian emperors throughout history liked to build their summer palaces here. Similarly, the soldiers of Khwarazm province in the Samanid army generally liked the climate and eagerly applied to garrison the region.

Around the time of Mehergan, Shahzani visited Malagai again, where there were sizable schools and libraries. After all, many local dynasties, though not powerful, valued academic development, and Malagai gradually prospered as an academic city. Shahzani ordered the protection of academic research in Malagai to promote the growth of national power.

A messenger reported that a merchant delegation from both the Kievan Rus' and the Volga Bulgarian Khanate had arrived in the Azerbaijani region.

Shahzani met with the envoys from both countries in a large tent outside the city of Maragai. The outcome of the talks was that the three countries would continue to strengthen trade on the existing basis: Kievan Rus' trade included sable furs, thick cowhides, tree bark, and male and female slaves; the Volga Bulgar Khanate traded silver fox furs, beaver furs, honey, and beeswax; and the Samanid dynasty exported steel weapons, brocade, carpets, spices, and jewelry to the two countries.

Shahzani decided to repair the postal and trade routes along the Azerbaijan-Gilan-Tabarista-Gorgan line to ensure more efficient exchange of goods and people. She also planned to utilize the large number of skilled Chinese weavers in the army to develop sericulture and silk weaving in Gilan-Tabarista on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea, exporting more foreign exchange-earning goods.

Just after the Mehergan festival, a messenger from the rear brought good news from the southern front, which greatly pleased Shahzani.

Chapter 175 Bahram's Victory in Yazd

Military tents outside Maragai city, Azerbaijan province.

Shahzani opened the secret letter presented by the messenger. The letter contained news of Bahramu's unstoppable advance and repeated defeats of the Baikal dynasty:

……

Late March in Mordad.

The Byzantine army stationed in Yazd began to plot against the Samanid border territories. They amassed an army of 8, including regular troops and militia, and launched an attack on Kerman province.

Bahraim, stationed in Bam, Kerman province, immediately organized 5 troops to counterattack. The two armies clashed fiercely in Sirjan. Although the Baik army fought tenaciously, it was ultimately no match for Bahraim's fierce counterattack and retreated north after a day of fighting.

Bahraim amassed and gathered troops along the way, and the total number of troops involved in the battle quickly reached 10. Taking advantage of the victory, he pursued the enemy into the territory of Yazd Province. The Fars-affiliated Bai Yi army could not resist and fought a bitter battle to hold on.

At this very moment, a bad trend of falsely reporting military achievements emerged among the various garrison armies of the Baiyi Dynasty.

A White Army camp in Rafsanjan, at the border of Yazd and Kerman provinces.

"General, our army has destroyed 18 camps of the Saman army. It has been proven that the Saman army is mostly composed of female soldiers, with weak combat power and is really vulnerable. As long as we intensify our offensive, we can take Kerman in a day and a night..." A white-haired military commander was solemnly "reporting" the "results".

"Hmm, very good, thank God! Immediately order the soldiers to regroup and prepare for a counterattack!" Clearly, General Bai Yi was also intoxicated by this false "glorious achievement".

But before he could finish dreaming...

The deafening sounds of war drums, iron hooves, and battle cries echoed outside the camp, making the earth tremble. A guard rushed in to report: "The Samanid army is coming!!"

Indeed, the actual battle situation was far different from what the Bai Yi army claimed, even drastically different. In reality, the Saman army advanced relentlessly, while the Bai Yi army suffered repeated defeats. Bahramu divided his forces into five routes, sweeping across the battlefield and crushing one Bai Yi army camp after another.

By the time of Shahrival, Bahraim had amassed 15 to 20 troops and pushed the entire front line into Yazd province.

At this time, Bai Yi had only 8 to 9 available troops deployed in Yazd. Not only was the number only half that of the Saman army, but the composition was also quite complex, and the quality and training were inferior to those of the Saman army.

Seeing the situation becoming increasingly unfavorable, the Bai Yi army's commanders and princes decided to hold Yazd City, using its strong walls to offset the Saman army's advantage and then launch a counterattack when the opportunity arose. Influenced by this idea, the various Bai Yi tribes abandoned their outer cities and strongholds, adopted a scorched-earth policy, and withdrew entirely to Yazd City and the surrounding area to concentrate their defenses.

Bahraim advanced rapidly and soon arrived at the gates of Yazd. From afar, the city walls were towering and magnificent, and the city was filled with spears and lances. Nearby fortresses and moats echoed each other, clearly indicating that they were well prepared for battle.

The advisor in the tent sent out scouts to scout the area, and they returned to report: "Yazd is a tall and fortified city. If we were to force a siege, we would inevitably face a fierce battle. It would be better to bypass the city and attack other places first."

After a moment's consideration, Bahraim firmly rejected the idea: "No."

Her reasons were also quite valid.

"Yazd guards a crucial trade route, its strategic location is extremely important. We must capture this city to open up the gates and passages. Moreover, the Bai Yi army is implementing a scorched-earth policy, stockpiling a considerable amount of food, supplies, and weapons within the city. We must seize them to bolster our military strength..."

It must be said that although Bahram was somewhat reckless and rough in her daily life, she inherited Shahzani's wisdom and foresight on the important issue of war, and had a profound strategic and tactical vision.

Therefore, she realized that Yazd, located in the center of the Iranian Plateau, was a key intersection of Persian east-west and north-south transportation routes, guarding an important road through the Kavir and Lut deserts. It was a strategically important location that was contested by military strategists, and therefore it had to be taken.

Of course, her determination to recapture Yazd was also influenced by religious sentiment.

After the fall of the Sasanian dynasty, Zoroastrianism gradually declined, while Yazd, located in the heart of Persia, gradually became one of the holy sites for Zoroastrians to live in and for the Zoroastrian doctrine to continue to spread, due to its advantage of being far from the center of Islamic religion.

Bahramu was a devout Zoroastrian and the highest-ranking Zoroastrian official in the Samanid regime. Many members of her family had made pilgrimages to Yazd, and some had even migrated there to live. Driven by this deep religious passion, she was determined to restore this sacred city of fire.

The Samanid army set up a siege camp outside Yazd, where huge climbing ladders and catapults were being assembled.

But Bahram was not just a brute. Before attacking the city by force, she sent spies into the city to spread rumors. This was a tactic she and Shahzani had learned, and she had become increasingly adept at it.

Bai Yijun fell for the trap as expected. The commander defending the city replaced several front-line officers, causing the morale of the front-line defense troops to waver.

The Zoroastrians in the city, upon learning of the arrival of Queen Shahzani's army and that her kingdom practiced religious tolerance and freedom of belief, were overjoyed and spread the news far and wide.

The city's morale was low, and its defenses were greatly weakened.

Taking advantage of the situation, Bahraim launched an attack. The Saman army, which had been preparing for battle for a long time, broke through the outer strongholds like a tide and surged toward the city gate. The crimson army formation ignited a raging fire on the vast yellow sand.

Bahraim led the way, followed closely by the elite Khorasan heavy cavalry legion. The armored iron horses galloped through the Bai Yi army's ranks, and wherever they went, screams of agony rose, heads rolled, blood splattered, limbs and severed bodies were scattered all over the ground, and corpses piled up like mountains.

The Saman army was as fierce as steel and fire, quickly routing the Bai Yi army, squeezing their defensive lines, and forcing them to retreat and defend the city. Although the Bai Yi army's Dalaiman heavy infantry were tough and warlike, they were unable to regroup and exert their full fighting power under the rapid assault of the Saman heavy cavalry. They were quickly divided, disintegrated, and defeated piecemeal by the Saman cavalry.

The remaining Bai Yi army was forced to retreat to Yazd, attempting to hold out against the high walls.

However, the Zoroastrian members in the city took advantage of the chaos to open the city gates and let the Samanid army rush into the city.

The Bai Yi garrison suffered a complete defeat. Except for a few troops that managed to break through, most of the rest were annihilated or captured by the Saman army.

Thus, on the eve of Mehrgan, Bahraim's Saman army successfully recaptured Yazd.

……

After reading the battle report, Shahzani was overjoyed.