1453: Revival of Byzantium

Chapter 328: Et Tu Brute?

"Et tu Brute?"

-        Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare

The Palace of Edirne, or Edirne Saray, is located in the most northern part of the city. It is fully fortified with walls and watch towers with the entire compound is designed in an irregular rectangle shape being divided in to a series of court yards, minor rooms, and also the two most important building of all One is the haram obviously which probably every single man knows about it, and the other one is the imperial kitchen. These two buildings occupied up to a thirty percent of the total land area of the palace, with the other rooms mostly being libraries, trophy and collection rooms. 

The Ottoman kitchen is indeed a top notch organisation in terms of cuisine techniques, skills, creativities producing a wide variety of delicacies. It is an organisation with the most experienced and innovative chefs from both Europa, Asia and Africa combining them for the sole purpose of serving food for one single man the Sultan of the Ottomans. 

The current Sultan Beyezid II of the Ottomans have been confined inside this grand palace for approximately five years now. And considering the fact that the previous Sultan, his father kept him protected in the palace when he was alive, this young Sultan never really stepped out of this palace for his entire life. Confined to this tiny place staring up at the same piece of sky every single day, with only his mother around to accompany him. 

No wonder the Sultan became so damn quiet through the years almost becoming like an adult, no one is able to endure through this kind of life long confinement with out getting some sort of psychological sickness. 

Doubts filled the head of the Grand Vizier as he moves towards the Sultan's palace. Why would the Sultan suddenly contact him? What does the Sultan want to know? Is there any political faction behind this who bypassed him to manipulate the Sultan? Or perhaps there are some tricks or traps being prepared nicely for him the moment he goes through the gates? Maybe the Sultan is now having some thoughts in his head that he is not supposed to have? 

With these thoughts the Grand Vizier halted in his path almost giving the eunuch a fright. "Summon my Janissary guards." The Grand Vizier ordered. "I shall have them by my side at all times." 

The eunuch complied with this order and the group of people began moving off again. However, when the Grand Vizier reached the Sultan's palace gate, another problem emerged, that is the Grand Vizier wants his Janissary guards to go in to the palace along with him.

"My honourable Grand Vizier." The eunuch had to kneel down again burying his face deep in to the ground. "I mean no respect, but according to the laws no one is supposed to bring arms in to the palace, and the Sultan only requested to see you honourable Grand Vizier, no one else!" 

"The law?" The Grand Vizier sniggered in despise. "I am the law! Clear the way! My warriors shall go in to the palace with me!" 

"Grand Vizier!" The eunuch had no choice but to leap forward hugging the legs of Candarli Halil Pasha preventing him from going any further. "Please! Think about yourself! Bringing in soldiers in to the palace will only be seen as a rebellious act that might potentially push even more people to the other side and oppose you! Please, do reconsider my Grand Vizier!" 

"Get up! I said get up!" A little shocked by this eunuch's sudden movement Candarli Halil Pasha's face is flushed with blood as he repeatedly stomped his left foot on the back of the eunuch, but due to the muscle weakness through his old age he failed to break free and even made the eunuch ug his legs harder.

The Janissary guards came in to action with their commander, a junior Ottoman officer from the home town of the Grand Vizier who climbed the rank fast with the ladder provided by Candarli Halil Pasha himself smacked the eunuch on the head pulling him away from his master. 

The Grand Vizier heaved a sigh of relief patting his legs trying to clean the dust away. 

"Grand Vizier! Honourable Grand Vizier!" Just then the Kizlar Aghasi, head of all eunuchs rushed to the palace gates hearing all the commotions to assess the situation. "Grand Vizier! Please! You cannot bring an entire army in to the palace! It shall have a devastating effect on your reputations! Please!... Think twice my honourable Grand Vizier!" 

"Your highness." Candarli Halil Pasha knows that he has to treat this person before him with respect if he wants a channel of intel in the palace. "Then please inform the Sultan, that I have other sudden state affairs, please do excuse me for this meeting, and I would come by in another occasion." 

"How about this, please do not go Grand Vizier." The Kizlar Aghasi bite his lips and persuaded in a convincing tone. "The Sultan has granted you the special permission to bring in two guards with you in to the palace, and that shall be your privilege from today onwards, no one else in the entire Sultanate shall have the same treatment like you Please, honourable Grand Vizier, the Sultan is still expecting you inside." 

"Alright." The Grand Vizier took a deep breathe and pin pointed at the Janissary junior commander and another Janissary. "You two, come with me." 

The four people entered the palace going for another distance until they reached the calligraphy collection chamber, where they did see the young Sultan, still with a relatively child like face donned in a full set of the Sultan's ceremonial dressing placing in much effort to mimic his father displaying the full prestige of the Ottoman Sultan. Though of course all of these seemed nothing more than a child's place in the eyes of Candarli Halil Pasha as he stepped up the stair case seating on the seat beside the Sultan. 

This action immediately made the Sultan's face to be beaming with fury, as this seat is not reserved for the Grand Vizier, instead it is reserved for his mother the Sultan dowager Gulbahar Hatun. Although she is not here but that definitely does not mean the Grand Vizier is allowed to seat on this seat. But of course, the Sultan is way too weak to even make a protest, so instead he kept his mouth shut with his face looking normal showing no trace of his anger. 

"Grand Vizier." The young Sultan made a pleasant smile towards the man beside him. "I must appreciate you for coming by today despite having so much state affairs troubling you every single day, thank you." 

"There is no need to thank me, my Sultan." Candarli Halil Pasha bowed down by a little bit. "As the Grand Vizier of the state I must adhere to every single order from you, my Sultan."

"Alright, thank you for your trust honourable Grand Vizier." The Sultan hesistated for a moment and went straight forward to the question. "May I know what has happened in Bulgaria? And where is Abbas Pasha? I have not seen him for quite a while." 

"I am just here to report to you about Abbas Pasha my Sultan." Suddenly the Grand Vizier stood up on his feet, walked to the front of the Sultan and bowed down once more. "Please forgive me, but I have dispatched Abbas Pasha and his army to the north to reinforce the western frontier against that infidel treatrous devil and enemy of all Ottomans Skandebag, sorry for not reporting it to you as I thought that such trivial stuff should not be reported to bother you, my Sultan." 

"It is fine, it is fine get up my loyal Grand Vizier." The young Sultan too got up from his seat supporting the arms of Candarli Halil Pasha getting him up on his feet. "But I have heard that there was a violent clash between my faithful army and a bunch of rebels in a place called Silven"

"Which prick dared to impose such wicked fake news to you, my Sultan?" The Grand Vizier suddenly looked up staring right in to the Sultan with his eyes narrowed hissing. "This person ought to be executed immediately! How dare he tell you a fake piece of news! Why? Did he try to say that Abbas Pasha has betrayed on us? Hell no!" 

"Ummm then how about Silven." 

"My Sultan." The Grand Vizier sneered leaning back up. "We don't have any place under our rule called 'Silven'. But I do know that there is a place called 'Shirvan', and it is all the way in Azerbajian! Why would you receive a report of a rebellion against us all the way in the east? That does not make any sense!" 

"I guess you are right, honourable Grand Vizier." The young Sultan dared not look straight in to the Grand Vizier's eyes. "I guess that you are right."