paranoianovel Chapter 817 Conditions
Chapter 817 Conditions
Chapter 817 Conditions
Anna seemed to have prepared something in advance, and she spoke directly: "You should know that in the ancient empire, there was a period when four emperors ruled together, right?"
"Well, Emperor Diocletian divided the empire's provinces and military and political affairs into four parts, each of which was ruled by a deputy Augustus or Caesar. What you mean is that Her Majesty intends to give me the title of Augustus or Caesar in exchange for my military assistance?"
Lothar couldn't help laughing. Titles like Caesar and Augustus, which once represented the supreme imperial power, had no value at all nowadays. Many great nobles and even leaders of foreign barbarians could obtain them.
"Of course not."
Anna cleared her throat. "During the Tetrarchy, Diocletian ruled the eastern part of the empire with Nicomedia as the center. He appointed Maximian to rule the western part with Milan as the center. Galerius ruled Thrace and Macedonia, and Constantius ruled Gaul, Britain, and Iberia."
"Now, only half of the empire remains, so your Majesty is willing to follow Diocletian's example and make you the vice-emperor, ruling over Aeguptus and the Eastern Region."
Lothar frowned slightly. "As far as I know, none of these territories are currently under the rule of the Empire. At this critical moment, a title alone will not be enough to persuade me to send troops to rescue them."
Needless to say, the Egupstadt region is the Egyptian region.
The Eastern region included Cilicia, the Fertile Crescent except Mesopotamia, and Cyprus. Cilicia was divided between the Roman Turkic State and the Reuben Dynasty of Armenia, while the Fertile Crescent was divided between the Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Ayyubid Dynasty.
Anna said confidently, "That's not the case. At least the Empire intends to hand over Cyprus to you as a reward for this expedition."
And then there's Cyprus.
Losa's expression moved slightly. He already had the Limassol Military District in Cyprus, so he knew something about this place. Its total population was over 100,000, and the resources were quite abundant. The brewing industry, chalcopyrite mine, woodworking industry, and shipbuilding industry all had good development. More importantly, this place was crucial for controlling the maritime power in the eastern Mediterranean.
In addition, the title promised by Anna was not just a blank check. After all, these areas were the homeland of the Eastern Empire and had their own legal basis. If he could gain recognition from the Eastern Empire, he would have the legal basis to rule these areas.
It is not the era of 1453 when the empire's reputation was trampled upon and was worthless. With the title of vice-emperor, he is second only to His Holiness the Pope in legal terms.
These conditions are quite generous.
Lothar made a decision in his heart, but he still said: "If I become the emperor, I will not have to move to Constantinople, right?"
Anna said unhappily, "The vice emperor is not a co-emperor. Her Majesty has her own children. Unless you are willing to marry her, she will naturally appoint Her Royal Highness as a co-ruler. Not only do you not need to enter Constantinople, the Empire will not interfere with the territory under your jurisdiction."
"anything else?"
Anna said angrily: “Are you still not satisfied?”
Lothar began to complain: "You know, before this, the territory I governed was only a small corner of Transjordan. Now I have just taken over half of Egypt. My family is not rich yet, and I am still in the siege of Cairo. If I want to support Constantinople, I have to hurry up and take this city. I don't know how much loss I will suffer. After that, I will lobby the vassals, prepare the army, and purchase ships."
Hearing this, Anna's tone softened a lot. In her opinion, no matter how high Losa's prestige was, the price to pay to accomplish this series of things would definitely be high.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but consider Her Majesty the Queen's original proposal, such as spending a large amount of money to hire the Pechenegs or even the Roma Turks to join the war, but both of them are jackals and difficult to trust.
In addition, the enemy is so powerful that recruiting these people to join the battle may not be effective.
After thinking it over again and again, she said, "Forget it. I will send a fleet to Alexandria immediately to deliver as much money as you need."
In her opinion, Lothar was powerful enough to defeat the invading enemy. In addition, Lothar was a man of integrity, which was the most important thing. He would not let a wolf into the house. No one was more suitable than him.
Losa smiled and shook his head, saying, "There are indeed problems, but we are friends, and the two countries have agreed to be allies in the future. We must cooperate in all aspects to resist the wolves that are surrounding us, so there is no need for money."
The taxes for this quarter are about to be collected, and he has conquered enemy cities one after another, confiscated property and exterminated families in one go. Add to that the customs duties and the treasures sent back by Captain Hogg, and he is now quite wealthy.
As for lobbying the vassals, needless to say, Losa's country was completely his own, with a lot of Louis XIV's aura of "I am the country".
If he sent troops to support Constantinople, the whole country would carry out his will.
The voice on the other end was silent for a long time before it sounded again: "Thank you."
"Well, thank you is not necessary."
Lothar smiled and said, "If I really want to thank you, I am actually envious of many technologies of the Empire, such as the upper-shot water wheel, silk weaving equipment, Greek fire, glass manufacturing... and books on mathematics, astronomy, and agronomy. The more the better."
Since we want to reorganize the theological university, books are naturally indispensable.
Anna's voice also returned to normal: "It's a smart choice. The Imperial Library is a treasure house. I will naturally hand them over to you when you arrive in Constantinople."
She paused, then added, "Except for Greek fire."
Greek fire is the trump card of the Imperial Navy. Although limited by financial problems, the size of the Imperial Navy has never been comparable to that of the two commercial republics of Genoa and Venice, but for an empire with vast sea territory and long coastline, the importance of retaining this technology can be imagined.
"make a deal."
Lothar smiled and said, "Let's stop talking here. I will seize the opportunity to capture Cairo and then lead an elite force to contact the Genoese fleet and rush to Constantinople."
After hearing Losa's promise, Anna also breathed a sigh of relief.
She said in a relaxed tone: "From today on, you can also call yourself 'Barcellus'. The Patriarch of the Pope City no longer has the authority to govern you. You can actually consider converting to our Eastern Orthodox Church."
Lothar shrugged: "If I really did that, I probably wouldn't have the energy to send troops to save the great Basilisa."
After cutting off the communication.
That night, a massive night attack was launched, with the Holy Light Seeds of the three major knightly orders as the vanguard, followed by the foot knights who were given night vision spells by Fulin, the Varangian Guards, and armored sergeants.
The shouting and screaming continued all night long, and the sky turned pale under the light of the fire.
Wait until the next morning.
Most of the hundreds of towers in Cairo have been hung with golden crosses. The Coptic settlements in the south have even hung up the Crusader flags without waiting for the Crusaders to attack.
The so-called 50,000-strong army defending the city was reduced to a few remnants after a night of fighting and could no longer organize an effective resistance.
The Crusaders did not rush to attack. Instead, they stopped and began to put out the fire, dig out the surviving residents from under the ruins, restore order in the occupied city, and punish the thugs who took advantage of the chaos to loot and commit evil.
Good news came one after another. Under the protection of the enemy's spellcaster, Cherinina captured Governor Brie.
Losa paraded the man through the streets and sent people to spread the word that the lives of the prisoners would be spared as long as they laid down their arms. With these two measures, the remaining soldiers in Cairo completely stopped resisting.
As for Governor Buri himself, Lothar confiscated all his property and packed up his family and servants. He wrote a letter to Saladin in Damascus, intending to demand a ransom in exchange for his release.
From then on, the city of Cairo was completely under Lothar's control, and the last barrier preventing the Crusaders from occupying all of Egypt was also removed.