paranoianovel Chapter 848 Is He Really a Saint?
Chapter 848 Is He Really a Saint?
Chapter 848 Is He Really a Saint?
There was a noisy discussion among the nobles in the audience.
The two ways out given by Lothar are undoubtedly a guiding light for the Crusader nobles who are now in a dilemma and confused about the future.
However, even with Lothar's guarantee, most of them would rather trust the Crusader King as "one of their own" than "working for the Greek emperor". After all, the former's reputation among the Crusaders had been very bad since the time of Emperor Alexios of Komnenos.
Although there were actually two Crusader Kings, Lothar's brilliance was too dazzling. In addition, Baldwin IV suffered from leprosy, which was "cursed by God", and he was happy to see Lothar's prestige surpass his own. Therefore, whenever people mentioned the "Crusader King", they would only think of the newly crowned King of Egypt who recovered the Patriarchate of Alexandria.
However, the East Africa described by Lothar was too far away, which made them feel daunted. Most of them had never even heard that the Saracens occupied this area.
As for resisting to the end and fighting with Lothar?
Those were just some crazy words uttered by some Crusader nobles who were unwilling to accept the fact that they had gained nothing and were driven back to Europe in disgrace and had nowhere to go.
When given a choice, who would choose to take a dead end that is doomed to see no hope and no possibility of success?
Moreover, they had already been punished with an "excommunication order" because they had ignored the Pope's ban and insisted on attacking Constantinople. Now that they were doomed to fail in capturing Constantinople and seeking the Pope's forgiveness by "bridging the church schism", even if they rushed forward to kill Losa, they would become enemies of the entire Christian world.
Lothar allowed them to talk and even generously gave up the platform to allow the Crusader nobles to come up and see the map that was more accurate than any map of that era and covered the whole of Europe, Africa and most of Asia.
“The world is so big!”
"Oh my god, is this the so-called Kara-Khitan Kingdom? It looks like it's comparable to several Gauls. The Sassanids' territory is not as big as theirs."
"Why have I never heard of this Gur Turkic country?"
The nobles exclaimed in amazement as they opened their eyes and saw this world for the first time.
Losa said calmly:
"Don't worry, everyone. You have plenty of time to think about this. Next, I will ask Basilisa of the Eastern Empire to temporarily rent Galata to you as a temporary base, and will also provide you with some supplies."
Of course, it was only "partial supply", and he still needed to discuss the specific amount with Lagaia.
For the Crusaders going to East Africa, Lothar was naturally willing to bear the cost of ship fare and supplies and transport them to Egypt. By then, if they occupied those city-states and commercial ports in East Africa, Lothar would also ask them to become his protectorate and provide him with benefits.
These Crusader nobles have limited business talents. After occupying these territories, they still have to rely on Lothar's fleets and merchant ships to transport goods to Europe. By mastering this link, he can make a fortune even if these Crusader nobles do not swear allegiance to him.
But if you must say it, this matter is actually not urgent. Accepting the legacy of the Saracen colonists in East Africa is bound to be a long-term process. In the short term, it will be a negative asset that requires Lothar to continue to invest in order to grow into a hen that lays golden eggs.
Bella III watched this scene silently for a long time before he sighed.
He originally thought that Lothar would use a tough attitude to oppress these Crusader nobles, and then he could use this oppression to unite the Crusaders and increase his own voice.
Of course, increasing his voice does not mean that he wants to go to war with Lothar, but he just wants to increase the bargaining chips in his hands and gain more benefits for himself.
However, he never expected that Lothar would divide the Crusaders and win them over to his side in just a short time.
Lothar seemed to have noticed his gaze and walked slowly to him. "Your Majesty Bella, your passion for the holy war and your devotion to God are well known. Are you interested in participating in this expedition to Africa?"
Béla III's face twitched. He gave up the Hungarian crown and went to the barren black Africa to be a slave owner?
He smiled wryly and said, "Forget it. As His Majesty Lothar has said, the Saracens there have suffered heavy losses, and there are treasures everywhere. As a devout believer, how can I compete with my Christian brothers for the spoils that are within my reach?"
Bella didn't believe in the big promises made by Losa at all. If it were him, he would have secretly taken it away long ago, and even used the Saracens' price increase as an excuse to raise the prices of his own goods.
Lothar pretended to be surprised and said, "I thought Your Majesty would be moved by those gold, silver, jewels, ivory and spices."
"Haha, in the palace of Esztergom, my wealth is piled up like a mountain. Even the foxes of Gaul, the lions of Albion, and the tigers of Aachen are inferior to me. Do you think I joined the holy war just to seize wealth?"
This was true. At that time, Hungary was one of the four major countries in the Catholic world. There were a large number of gold and silver mines in the country. In addition, Bela III had studied in Constantinople and implemented reforms similar to those in the Eastern Empire, which greatly enhanced the king's authority. Among all the monarchs, the king's purse was indeed the most abundant.
Losa sneered: "Maybe."
Bella III was definitely not after money alone, but fame and territory were often much more important than money.
Seeing that Lothar wanted to leave, Bella III could not help but ask: "Your Majesty Lothar, you have already obtained a lot. You started as a frontier earl, and now you have swallowed up the whole of Egypt, crowned the King of the Crusaders, and accepted the title of Imperial Basilius, becoming the lord of half of the Eastern Empire. What kind of things can satisfy your greed?"
What was most difficult for Bella III to accept was that it only took Lothar one year.
As for this plan with the Doge of Venice, it took them both the same amount of time just to prepare.
He took a deep breath and asked unwillingly, "Are you a little too greedy?"
"Your Majesty Bella already has the Crown of Saint Stephen, and you want to occupy Croatia, Dalmatia, and the border provinces of the Eastern Empire, trying to get your hands on the glory and merits that don't belong to you. Isn't Your Majesty greedy?"
Losa asked back.
When he defeated Saladin and marched into Egypt, kings from all over Europe wanted to get a piece of the pie. Apart from Philip and Richard, who were both very active, Bella III was the most active.
"I just think you shouldn't extend your hand so far."
Bella frowned and said that he had been trying to expand his territory into the Balkans. He had captured the waterway hub of Belgrade a few years ago. The conflicts with the Eastern Empire would only increase in the future. If Lothar had to intervene every time a war broke out, he could forget about expanding further.
Lothar shook his head and said, "You may have misunderstood. I have no intention of staying in Constantinople and ruling the country with the Queen."
This time, it was Bella III's turn to be shocked.
As an "international student" of the empire, he knew better than anyone else the respect and supremacy of the imperial throne.
The reason he couldn't be emperor was purely because he couldn't, not because he didn't want to.
"Then what do you want?"
If it weren't for the supreme position of the empire, he really couldn't understand why Losa would pay such a huge price and rush from the Cairo front to Constantinople.
Just for an empty title?
Losa chuckled and said, "If I really have to say it, it's for the sake of morality."
At this moment, his body seemed to be emitting a golden glow, like a saint enshrined in a shrine.
Is he really a saint who has received divine revelation from God?
Even Bella III believed it for a moment.
He had always thought that Germanic country nobles like Lothar were representatives of stupidity, ignorance, greed, and violence.
Losa had such talent that his conversation and the logic of his speech after his arrival were beyond the reach of many scholars who graduated from seminaries.
If it wasn't a miracle, he could hardly imagine that such a person could be born in that poor mountain valley of Allgäu.
"Oh, I underestimated you."
Bella didn't know if she really believed it, and a bitter smile appeared on her face.
(End of this chapter)