In the strategic stronghold of northeastern Persia, Damghan.
Aga Muhammad watched as the executioner thodically executed the kneeling rebels one by one, the scent of blood wafting in the breeze made him squint with pleasure.
Outside the city, the wasteland was already lined with over two thousand corpses, with nearly a thousand more soon to et the sa fate.
These people were the remnants of Sharukh’s faction.
Once they were dead, there would no longer be any trace of the Afshar Dynasty in the entire Persian Empire, and no one would dare question that Aga Muhammad was the true "King of Kings"!
At the sa ti, this suppression of the rebellion intimidated all the tribes in the Khurasan region, allowing him to recruit three to four thousand Turkn Cavalry from these tribes.
With the montum of this great victory, he planned to return to Tabriz with an even stronger army for a decisive battle against the Russians.
This ti he would not be careless, giving the Russian Army no chance to ambush him, and the Caucasus region would inevitably return to Persia.
As the execution neared its end, an officer, drenched in cold sweat, edged closer to Aga Muhammad, saluting and bowing his head, "Great Shah, General Khalil requests aid. The Russians have attacked Tabriz, and the situation there is precarious..."
A week later.
Over ten thousand Persian troops hurried through Tehran, rushing westward to the fortress of Tabriz.
Aga Muhammad turned back to look at the spires in the city, his eyes full of coldness.
He had originally planned to return to Tehran first to host the capital relocation ceremony, then head to the western front to fight, but did not expect the Russians to have already launched their offensive.
This made his royal capital lack legitimacy.
As the sun set, the sound of the Turkn’s horn ca from the front, signaling the beginning of camp-making.
Soon, the "King of Kings" was soaking in a dicinal bath inside his tent, feeling agitated by the recent string of setbacks when he heard the whispers of guards outside the tent, occasionally interspersed with low laughter.
Aga Muhammad imdiately beca angry, but the corner of his mouth curled into a smile, shouting loudly, "Who’s making noise there?"
Those familiar with him would be terrified to see his expression—signaling that the Shah intended to kill.
The voices outside the tent instantly disappeared, an officer entered to salute, "Your Majesty, it’s your attendants Bayezid and Weili. They were discussing the battle of Damghan..."
Aga Muhammad waved his hand slightly, "Dismber them."
"Yes, great Shah."
The officer was about to turn to leave when the newly appointed commander of the Holy War Knight Order, Sadiq Khan, bowed his head and entered the tent, softly reminding, "Your Majesty, today is the congregational day."
Every Friday is a holy day in Islam, during which executions are usually not carried out.
Aga Muhammad, a bit uninterested, said, "Then tomorrow."
Sadiq Khan left the tent, seeing several guards about to take Bayezid and Weili away, instantly said in a deep voice, "Today is their duty, they must stay here until dawn."
Several guards exchanged glances and let go, stepping back.
Aga Muhammad’s military discipline was extrely strict, anyone affecting the guards on duty was severely punished.
Deep into the night.
Bayezid and Weili stood outside the Shah’s tent, filled with despair. They knew that as soon as the sun rose, they would be dismbered into over a dozen pieces.
At this mont, Sadiq Khan signaled the other guards to step back, leaving only the two of them.
Ten minutes later, a scream ca from the Shah’s tent, and Persia’s formidable figure, the King of Kings, had been stabbed through the heart by two guards.
Sadiq Khan imdiately ordered his trusted aides to light torches and mount his horse, shouting, "The tyrant has been punished by God! Everyone, order to return to Shiraz at dawn to restore the glory of the Empire!"
Aga Muhammad was known for his brutality, with soldiers under him living in constant fear due to cruel punishnts, or even death, for the slightest mistake.
Upon hearing of his death, cheers instantly resounded throughout the Persian army camp, not a single person seeking to capture the assassins.
However, not many heeded Sadiq Khan’s call.
Most Persian soldiers followed their tribal leaders back ho after dawn—Persia’s mountainous terrain made large tribes highly independent, only a strongman like Aga Muhammad could keep them in check. With his death, the coalition fell apart imdiately. [Note: The above is based on historical facts]
Two days later, news of the Shah’s assassination was relayed back to Tehran by the fleeing Persian soldiers.
Aga Muhammad’s nephew, Fatah Ali Shah, with the support of the Qajar tribe, quickly succeeded as the Persian Shah, and imdiately issued a decree pardoning the rebellious army, ordering them to continue gathering in Tabriz.
anwhile, in Tabriz, Gudewich led twenty thousand Russian troops, finally blasting through the three layers of stone walls of the fortress after nearly a month of continuous bombardnt.
Cossack Soldiers were the first to pour into the breach. Disheartened by the news of the "King of Kings" death, the morale among the Persians was very low, and the vast majority of soldiers abandoned the city, fleeing southeast.
Valerian Zubov was surprised at how smoothly the battle had gone, quickly sending ssengers back to Saint Petersburg to report the victory, while recalling Gudewich, personally leading the army to march towards Tehran.
Although the new Shah Fatah Ali couldn’t fight as well as his uncle, he was calm and had considerable political acun.
He swiftly consolidated the political forces in Tehran and then sent emissaries to Shiraz to placate the dominant Bakhtiari Tribe, granting rewards to a host of tribal leaders.
When Sadiq Khan arrived at the forr capital Shiraz with just over two thousand remaining soldiers, there was no welco ceremony as he imagined, but instead the army of the Bakhtiari Tribe.
Soon after, the leader of the Bakhtiari Tribe publicly read the Shah’s decree.
Sadiq Khan’s n had little loyalty to begin with, and imdiately began dispersing.
About ten days later, Sadiq Khan’s body was transported to Tehran.
By this ti, the Russian army had reached the gates of Zanjan, a major town in western Persia.
...
Central Asia.
Capital of the Bukhara Khanate, Bukhara City.
Royal Palace Yaq Castle.
Grand Emir Masan Shah Murad eyed the Russian envoy in front of him with so caution before speaking, "Esteed Count Koslovsky, thank you for your kind offer, but we do not currently need your country’s assistance."
This unexpected Russian had just inford him that they were willing to dispatch troops to join forces with Bukhara to dismber the Khiva Khanate, requiring only so logistical support from Bukhara.
Bukhara corresponds to present-day Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, while Khiva lies further west in Turknistan.
They have been embroiled in a bloody feud for decades over the crucial trade route through Muraf City.
Bukhara had wished for no day more than to annihilate Khiva, yet Murad was equally wary of Russia. The latter had already established a stronghold on the east coast of the Caspian Sea, heavily infiltrating the Kazakhstan Region.
Murad found it hard to believe that the Russians had no ulterior motives in coming.
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