π Previous Chapter Summary:
In Chapter 12, Zayd arrived in the port city of Basra, where he was mentored by the merchant Raqib ibn Husayn. There, Zayd studied languages, trade routes, and international commerce. His sharp eyes spotted an illegal ship docking at night, revealing the first signs of political corruption in trade. He now speaks Greek and Arabic fluently, with growing mastery over merchant law.
π Scene: Basra Docks β Morning of Departure
A thin mist rolled over the sea as ZAYD IBN SULEIMAN stood beside Raqib, watching sailors load crates onto a sleek merchant vessel called The Al-Najm. It was bound for Oman, carrying glass, spices, and documents β and also something more delicate: negotiation letters between powerful trade factions.
RAQIB:
"You will accompany them, Zayd. Observe. Learn. But say nothing unless asked."
ZAYD (bows head):
"I understand."
RAQIB (softly):
"Do not trust every man who smiles. The sea is not the only thing that changes with the wind."
π Scene Change: Aboard The Al-Najm β Day 3 at Sea
The sea was calm. Zayd read through inventory scrolls and helped navigate the storm-season maps. He noticed subtle things β one crate labeled "dried figs" was too heavy. One guard watched him more than the goods.
π Scene Change: Stormy Night β Below Deck
As waves thrashed the ship, Zayd stayed below, studying the manifests. Suddenly, a hand grabbed his shoulder β it was JALAL, one of the deckhands.
JALAL (coldly):
"You've been snooping too much, boy."
ZAYD (quietly):
"I read what I'm told to read."
Jalal drew a blade β not to kill, but to threaten.
JALAL:
"You say one word about the hidden gold to the Omanis, and you'll disappear into the ocean."
π Flashback β Lessons Remembered
Zayd recalled the words of Haji Rashid:
"Every man has three faces β one for Allah, one for the world, and one even he cannot see."
He didn't panic. Instead, he whispered calmly:
ZAYD:
"If I disappear, Raqib will know. If he knows, others will know. And gold is easier to hide than a missing person."
Jalal paused. The threat was mutual now.
π Scene Change: Oman β Docking
The Omani guards searched the ship. Zayd stood silent, but when asked, he spoke with careful diplomacy.
OMANI OFFICER:
"Have you seen anything suspicious?"
ZAYD (bows):
"I saw crates and men loyal to trade. If there is anything else⦠perhaps Allah has hidden it from me."
He didn't lie. But he didn't expose Jalal either. Diplomacy, he'd learned, was sharper than steel.
π Scene Change: Oman Merchant Hall β Later That Evening
The Omani merchants offered hospitality. One older trader leaned to Zayd and said:
OMANI MERCHANT:
"You speak like someone born of courts."
ZAYD:
"I was born of dust⦠but I'm learning the ways of gold."
π Narration
For the first time, Zayd was tested not with exams, but with risk. He did not fight. He did not expose. He adapted. And that was the first lesson of power β to know when to speak, and when silence is louder.
π Next Chapter Preview:
In Chapter 14, Zayd will travel deeper into the southern coastal routes, visiting a legendary pearl-diving village where he learns how wealth can be both a blessing and a curse β and faces a moral dilemma that tests his growing reputation.