The Kadin - Bertrice Small [88]
Several days later, Alaeddin Cerdet, the sultan’s personal physician, arrived, Selim protested but was firmly and completely examined by the doctor.
“Ulcers,” Alaeddin said without any preamble.
“Nonsense,” snapped Selim. “That’s a disease of weak men. I’ve never been sick a day in my life.”
“Nevertheless, Highness, you have ulcers, and as I have known you since birth, I am not surprised. Ulcers are not a disease of weak men but are caused by tension. Look at the atmosphere in which you were brought up. A weak man would have begun these attacks fifteen years earlier. Now we must keep them under control. I shall prescribe a liquid diet and bed rest”
“Liquid diet? Bed rest?” roared Selim. “Am I an old man to be tucked into my bed with warm bricks at my feet and a shawl about my shoulders, and fed broth? I am the Ottoman.”
Alaeddin Cerdet put his face close to the prince’s and spoke softly. “You are the son of the Ottoman, Highness, but unless you do as I say, you will never five to reign,”
Selim looked startled
“Come, my lord” continued the doctor, “do you think Hadji Bey would send you any ordinary doctor? Trust me—and follow my advice. The liquid diet and bed rest are just temporary measures to get your ulcers under control. It will not be for long.”
So Selim rested and, grudgingly, drank his broth. The pain subsided. Eventually his diet was expanded but kept simple, and as long as he followed Alaeddin Cerdet’s advice, he was free from pain. Unfortunately he could not always do so because of the frequent visitors to the Moonlight Serai. Hospitality demanded spicy pilafs, lamb kebabs, honey-nut cakes, and hot sweet Turkish coffee. Selim could hardly eat a separate diet in front of guests. If it were known he was ill, confidence in him might dwindle. So he ate the rich diet he served his guests, and suffered terrible attacks of pain afterward Only the opium pills prescribed by Alaeddin Cerdet for these occasions helped. Unfortunately, as more visitors came to the Moonlight Serai, Selim suffered more attacks, and a change began to come about in the prince’s personality. He began to be more stern and less patient
Summer ran into autumn, and despite the earthquake of May, the harvest was good and the storehouses were filled to overflowing. The rains came, continued for a few weeks, then stopped. The days that followed were gloriously sunny and warm Then, suddenly, winter was upon them.
It swept down from the mountains in a vicious temper of snow, wind, and bitter cold. It was the worst winter the peasants could remember. The cattle had to be brought in from the fields lest they freeze, and both day and night the peasants huddled in their homes feeding their ravenous hearths from a fast-dwindling supply of wood.
Then, just when it seemed it would be winter forever, spring arrived. Overnight the tulips, hyacinths, and jonquils were in bloom, and the almond blossoms, like pale pink clouds, perfumed the air.
Selim’s family had been penned in the palace for many months and welcomed the opportunity to get outdoors. The women sat in the gardens enjoying the beautiful flowers, while the boys took to their horses, and the girls to games upon the fresh spring grass.
Selim decided to take the opportunity of riding into Constantinople before the spring rains set in, and one bright morning he left with his Tartars. The young princes stood disappointedly watching their father depart They had wanted to accompany him and felt insulted at being left behind.
Evading their tutors, two of Cyra’s sons, thirteen-year-old Kasim and eleven-year-old Murad, along with Zuleika’s twelve-year-old, Abdullah, rode off into the hills to hunt The day was balmy, and a salt-scented breeze blew in from the sea. They saw much game but contented themselves with the taking of a few rabbits. They rode, swam in a small, icy mountain pond, and lay back in the new grass, describing the shapes of the clouds to one another.
When they finally noticed the sun beginning to sink lower and a chill entering the