In contrast to Theodoro, which was fraught with undercurrents, Kaffa, its neighbor, was in a state of peaceful tranquility.
One morning at the end of March, Kaffa Consul Paolo Grimaldi awoke from his sleep. Nearly 40 years old, he lazily pressed the light-colored wool nightcap on his head and saw the monastery clock outside pointing to 7 o'clock. Only after the seventh chime did he sluggishly rise from his soft bed, get dressed, and prepare for his morning prayers.
After finishing his prayers, Paolo returned to his room for breakfast: a clean piece of white bread, a bowl of rice porridge, and delicious butter. Together, these made for a delicious breakfast befitting his noble status and not violating the "Sumptuary Law." He was grateful to be transferred to Kaffa. As one of the long-standing termini of the Silk Road, it offered cheap goods from the East, allowing him to enjoy items that would be quite expensive in Genoa at an affordable price.
After breakfast, Paolo had his personal valet prepare the carriage, intending to go to the Kaffa Consulate to handle the day's affairs. Along the way, he faced the somewhat chilly sea breeze, enjoying the sight of everything in Kaffa's territory.
"How peaceful it is. Speaking of which, I specifically used my family's connections to be transferred here," Paolo thought, feeling relaxed. "There are no personnel intrigues like back home, no direct threat from heathens like on the islands of the Eastern Aegean Sea, and no unruly mountain people to deal with like in Corsica. The Greeks and Goths here are all honest and law-abiding farmers and fishermen. No matter what we do to them, they will be very compliant. Besides being heretics who believe in the Greek Church, it's practically perfect."
Many Genoese shared Kaffa Consul Paolo's thoughts. By the sea, a group of diligent slave traders were peddling their wares to their customers. One of them looked pleasantly surprised, knowing he might have a big client in front of him.
"Look, these are prime Circassians. Look at their teeth, their pitch-black hair, and most of them are under 18, with great potential for growth. And these were mountain people before, quite docile. If you buy them, they'll be excellent for anything."
Standing before the merchant was a richly dressed muslim, whose thick and ornate turban indicated his special status. He appeared elderly, slender, with bright, piercing eyes, and his facial features closely resembled those of the Circassians being sold as goods in front of him.
The muslim did not respond to the merchant, as he was there to select top-quality Circassian slave soldiers. The requirements for slave soldiers were very high; not just any slave would do.
He walked over to the slaves, had his servants pry open the mouths of a few Circassians he had selected to check their teeth, and then had the servants weigh their vital upper body parts. After a long while, he said to the Genoese, "I want these ones. Make sure they are securely tied with strong hemp ropes."
"You have excellent judgment, sir. The ones you've chosen are strong, durable, and very young. They will certainly be useful for a long time," the Genoese merchant said with a fawning smile to this "distinguished guest," "But the price..."
"Hmm, how about 1000 ducats."
"Hiss, thank you for your generous gift, sir."
There were many such individual traders, but also a few merchant associations organized by several merchants, whose business model was somewhat like the "chain stores" that later developed in official history. In this way, this muslim purchased about 200 Circassians from various individual slave traders and "chain stores," preparing to package them and take them back to his country.
On the ship, a civilian-dressed man beside him couldn't help but ask curiously:
"Jaqmaq, these matters can be handled by us subordinates. Why do you bother to do it yourself?"
"What do you think I'm doing this for?"
"Jaqmaq, didn't we come here to purchase slaves and, incidentally, gather intelligence on these Kafir states?"
"Abdul, as an Egyptian, just do your clerical work. You don't need to know so much about the fate of these slaves."
"Sir, I must remind you that secretly keeping Mamluk cavalry is a serious crime!"
"Abdul, you don't want to feed the fish in the Black Sea, do you? And I believe that what I can give you will be no less than what the Sultan can give."
"..."
"..."
"Jaqmaq, I, Abdul ibn Birij, swear by Allah and the Prophet that I will be loyal to you."
"I accept your loyalty."
"Yes, sir."
Looking at the civilian official who comically knelt before him, Jaqmaq couldn't help but feel pleased. Barsbay was truly getting senile; this was not the first Egyptian official he had managed to turn.
"Thank you for your generous gift, Sultan," Jaqmaq couldn't help but laugh inwardly.
Kaffa, this famous slave port, saw such intrigues unfold daily. Only those accustomed to a quiet life, like Paolo Grimaldi, would believe the city was peaceful.
Speaking of the Kaffa Consul, he seemed to be admiring Kaffa's city walls again.
"What sturdy fortifications!" Paolo exclaimed, scrutinizing the solid concrete walls.
The patrolling guards on the wall were almost getting goosebumps. Their Kaffa Consul seemed to be a defense enthusiast. Since he took office, he had come to admire the walls every day and had repeatedly invested in strengthening Kaffa's defenses, though none of the money was his own.
"Couldn't the Kaffa Consul allocate these funds for us to purchase new armor?" a guard officer couldn't help but grumble in a low voice.
Unlike these Italians, the Greeks and Goths seen everywhere on the streets were either simply dressed or in rags, because they were always considered a step below the personnel sent by Genoa in this city. Even those who joined the military were required to do the hardest and most arduous cannon fodder work. In Kaffa, they had been second-class citizens for a long time.
But no one cared about them, except in a corner unnoticed by everyone, where an ordinary-looking Greek was surveying everything, taking shorthand notes of what he saw and heard.
And there were many more such Greeks in the corners of this city.