Barondi looked shyly reclining in Alexander's arms, her face still had a lingering blush, leaning softly on Alexander's body, and she didn't even have the heart to move at this time.

She didn't expect Alexander to be so ......, she couldn't think of a suitable word to describe the madness just now, for Barondi, who had always considered herself a rationalist, it was really crazy and terrifying.

But Barendi couldn't help but admit that in the burst of movement that she had to suppress as much as she could, she felt an experience that she had never experienced before, something that she had not experienced in the course of her life for more than ten years, an impulse that broke through something that made her feel terrifying and unforgettable.

The carriage kept shaking on the road, and Barendi finally moved slightly, and she pulled the robe she draped slightly to the side, revealing a small piece of smooth shoulder, and her forehead was wet, I don't know if it was because the car was a little stuffy or if the previous feelings had not yet dissipated.

Alexander was also taking a nap with his eyes squinted slightly, he was actually very tired, from Venice to Ferrara, and then all the way to Montina, and then after meeting Barentia, there was a fierce "battle" that was more fierce than before.

However, feeling the tenderness of the person in his arms, Alexander, who closed his eyes, felt a little more steady.

"It's okay, I've been hiding for the time being." He was a little relieved.

Alexander was somewhat unsure of how Barendi would react to his events in the Balkans, although he thought that with Barondi's consistent rational character, he should be able to understand the purpose of his decisions, but after all, women sometimes can't be understood by reason at all, so he was very worried that Barendi would do something unexpected because of jealousy and anger.

So let's go to bedtime first, and we'll talk about the rest. With this idea in mind, Alexander decided to give Barendi a blow first, and now it seems that the idea should work well, but Alexander also knows that things will not be so simple, and maybe the trouble will start after he returns.

Ofrai didn't follow Barondy to the border to meet Alexander, but he could guess from what he saw along the way that Oflaiyi must be very busy now.

The whole territory was making preparations, and the villages, large and small, were loading the in-kind taxes they should pay to the castle according to the prescribed tax amounts, and when they saw the count's convoy, the people were surprised at first, and then they all stood respectfully on the side of the road and bowed, and some of them were frightened when they saw the guards brought by Barenti when they secretly raised their heads, and they immediately lowered their heads in fright.

"They're afraid of you," Alexander put his arm around Barendi's waist and leaned her on her shoulders to look at the village passing by outside, seeing the terrified villagers, Alexander shook his head slightly and smiled and said, "I remember that these people weren't like this before I left." ”

"So do you think I'm doing something wrong?" Barondi raised her head slightly and asked in a slightly questioning tone.

"Of course not, I make them feel merciful, and you bring awe to them, this is a qualified ruler, you are really the best little butler by my side." Alexander kissed Barondi's forehead, whether it was like this or not, he knew that Barendi's mood was not very stable at this time, so don't annoy her until the next pajama.

"The best?" There was a faint hint of resentment on Barondi's ordinary face, but she didn't say anything, because she noticed that Alexander's hand was hot again, and she immediately moved with some worry, and then without waiting for a slight pleading voice to tell her husband not to be so ridiculous, "God, this is in front of the people." ”

Alexander smiled and didn't move, he looked out of the cart, paying close attention to the things that were being loaded into the wagon.

Taxes in kind have long been an important part of the taxes levied by lords on their subjects, and this method of taxation has continued throughout the world for a long time, and even after a few centuries, some countries still retain taxes in kind for five centuries.

Compared with the tax converted entirely by money, the tax in kind is actually a helpless move of backward agricultural means, and before the formation of a huge scale of production, instead of collecting coins and then laboriously buying what is needed, it is better to collect in kind directly from one's own territory, at least so that there are no middlemen to make the difference.

However, even the lords who were least concerned about these things knew that the actual extent of tax in kind varied greatly due to the various climatic conditions in different places.

Even in this corner northeast of Montina, there is naturally a difference between different villages in the amount and quality of the tax in kind paid by different villages.

Alexander frowned slightly, of course he knew that changing the tax system was not something that could be accomplished in the short term, especially since it even involved the Holy See.

Although the Holy See is no longer as high in the eyes of the people and the aristocracy as it used to be, the prestige of the millennium is by no means something that can be shaken casually.

And for Alexander, he did not want to replace Martin Luther as the Protestant Reformer now, in fact, as far as Alexander knew, even centuries later, there were still different opinions about Martin Luther's merits, and there was no real unified conclusion.

Therefore, to make a fuss about not shaking the interests of the Holy See, but at the same time changing the tax system, Alexander knew that this could not be described as "difficult".

In fact, the current situation does not allow him to act on such a fundamental matter of rule, the French should have already begun to act, and soon Louis XII will march on Milan, this time he should not be like Charles VIII because he coveted the luxury of Italian cities all the way, and Louis XII's goal is obvious from history, to annex Milan, master the rich Lombardy region, and then rule Naples.

For now, at least, perhaps because of their proximity to France, the French ambitions have remained only in the snooping of northern Italy.

As for Naples, Alexander felt that the French were not so interested in one of the kingdoms of the Two Sicilies, at least not as obsessed with ruling Naples as his predecessor.

On the contrary, Alexander's real concern was Ferdinand of Aragon.

This uncle is not an easy character to deal with in theory, especially when the couple wants to deal with someone together, they often explode into a very terrible destructive force.

It's a bit of a headache for Alexander to think of these things, there are so many things, but everything needs someone to do it.

"How's Ofrey ready?" Alexander lowered his head and pecked Barondi's shoulder, which not only left a small red mark on her milky skin, but also made Barondi's body tremble slightly.

"We've been preparing since you left, we've collected as much food and supplies as we can, and Oflaiyi has expanded some of the civilian army in addition to training the remaining army," Barenti paused for a moment before continuing, "and the news from Pisa that the Pisians had formed a new city defense army, and they even bought a batch of artillery from the Milanese. ”

Alexander nodded slowly, before leaving, he had ordered Ofleiil to expand the strength of his current territory in Montina as much as possible, but he had no intention of relying on the civilian army to deal with the enemies that might appear soon.

As for who the enemy is, it's not as simple as friend or foe.

The situation in Italy is so complicated that no one would have imagined that one day the French would form an alliance with the Ottomans, a move that was once notorious to France, but in fact it was almost true that the two companies had joined forces to completely overthrow the whole of Europe.

An improvised road had been built from the north-eastern border to the new castle of Montina, nominally to facilitate the transportation of all kinds of taxes in kind, but in fact this road had been prepared before Alexander's departure to allow the army to quickly assemble to the north-east border, and the defense against the Venetians was always one of the most important things, even if it now seemed to be more intimate with Venice than with Genoa, Barentia's maiden home.

Perhaps to make people feel more mature, Alexander was a little surprised to find that he had grown a short beard when he met him.

Dressed in neat military uniforms, Oflaiyi and a group of nobles dressed in various gorgeous robes stood in the open space outside the castle and waited for the procession to gradually approach, each with a completely different look on their faces, and the anxiety of the lord who had been away for a few months and the thought of his brilliant achievements in the Balkans, many people began to wonder in their hearts whether they should face the returning Earl with a more appropriate attitude.

Bishop Toni della Rovere had the most mixed feelings of all, he had pinned his hopes on his niece, but he soon found out that he did not know what kind of soup that Gombray had poured into Barentia, and that his niece, who had always put the interests of the family first, had transferred all her enthusiasm to her fiancé, who had stubbornly guarded the interests of Montina's territory, so much so that during this time the Roverlet family had not been able to take advantage of the opportunity.

And the rumors about Alexander's presence in the Balkans frightened Bishop Tony somewhat, and he didn't know how Alexander would have retaliated if he had come back and learned that he had been sparing no effort to try to gain his territory, maybe not for him personally, but with what the Bishop knew about Alexander, it was likely that he would take all this revenge on the Rovere family.

The bishop looked at the approaching carriage with mixed feelings, and when he saw Alexander getting out of the carriage, his eyes couldn't help but pause slightly.

Looking at Alexander, who was calmly speaking, at that moment, the bishop had the illusion of a trance, as if he saw the shadow of his cousin old Rovere from this person.

Alexander walked over to the crowd that greeted him, and he smiled lightly at the funny-looking group of people in front of him.

He knew that these people might find him a little strange, and even he himself felt that the trip to the Balkans had made him different from before, and if he had only hoped to win a chance for himself to spend his life in peace in this era through unremitting efforts, what he wanted now was how to ascend to the throne that was unattainable to him in his lifetime, but which may not be untouchable now.

Alfrey bowed, his youthful face and short beard looking a little funny, but Alexander did not laugh at him, but showed his trust and reward to the marching captain with a powerful slap on the shoulder.

Ofleiuil was indeed worthy of a reward, for nearly half a year he kept Montina safe with a small army, while at the same time establishing close ties with Pisa.

In comparison, Alexander felt that the latter might be more difficult.

"Earl, it is a great honor to see you return victorious," Bishop Tony glanced at Barentia next to him, his face was calm though he couldn't say it, after all, what Alexander had done in the Balkans, although surprising, had already caught the attention of old Rovere, "I must admit that your expedition has given us too many surprises. ”

"Trust me, Bishop, soon you will find out that the real surprise is yet to come."

Alexander's gaze swept over Tony della Rovere and landed on the Montina crowd behind.

He slowly moved forward, slightly spreading his arms and looking at the crowd: "I am back, your lord has brought back honor for you," said Alexander, grabbing the spear in the hand of a soldier beside him, turned and walked to the horse of a chasher, he poked the spear vigorously on the bulging sack of the saddle of the chasher's saddle, and as the horse was frightened, he rushed forward, the sharp spear cut through a long hole in the bag, and the shining gold coins flowed out of the breach and fell to the ground, "And wealth!" ”

The gold coins rolled on the ground, glittering seductively in the sunlight, and everyone's eyes were drawn to the golden metal on the ground, and people looked at the gold coins all over the ground with rapid breath, and then cast even more burning eyes on the bags of the other hunters.

"It's all ours," Alexander said, looking at the Montina people, "and I will reward you for your service to the realm during my absence, and you deserve it." But I will also punish those who have bad intentions, and it is my right. ”

Alexander's words made Bishop Tony's hand holding the rosary tighten, and his eyes under heavy brows were fixed on the side of Alexander's face until Alexander turned his head to look at him.

"Bishop, please pass the news of my return to the cardinal, I have a lot to ask for the cardinal's guidance."

Bishop Tony let out a muffled grunt, noticing that Barondi's expression next to him changed slightly when she heard this, but then her expression became calm.

It was only when the Montina people who had finally been dismissed to greet them entered the vault that had been absent for a long time, and as the door poured in, Barondi suddenly took two steps forward and blocked Alexander's face.

"Tell me you're not angry," Barondy put her hands on Alexander's shoulders first, then grabbed his cheek and looked him in the eye, "I know Uncle Tony has done a lot of upsets, but I've made it all up, you know what, I even had a fight with Constantine." ”

"How can I be angry with you, my little butler," Alexander put Barondi's slightly chilled hands together in his palms and caressed them gently, and then he brought them to his lips and kissed them softly, "You are my wife, whether it is honor or wealth, I can share everything with you, I will not be angry with you, because I know that you love me as much as I love you." ”

The worried clouds on Barendi's face finally cleared, but then she frowned again: "So what are you going to do with my father?" ”

"Of course, I am looking for my father-in-law, of course," Alexander said, pulling Barendi to the large table, where he took a pen and paper and placed it in front of Barendi and motioned for her to begin writing: "Honorable Cardinal, before reporting to you about my trip to the Balkans, allow me to take the liberty of asking you to allow me to share the honour I have received with your lovely daughter, Barendi de la Rovere, who you must know how much I love her, whom I have nicknamed my little butler, and all this comes from the trust and love I have for her... …”

Barendi, who was writing this, stopped, she looked up at Alexander with a flushed face, and seeing his doting appearance, Barendi couldn't help but gently lean her head on his shoulder: "Are you saying this to please my father?" ”

"To please him, of course," Alexander nodded without hesitation, and then his expression slowly became solemn after kissing the forehead of Barondi, who was smiling with satisfaction, "Dear lord, I will write to you as soon as I return to Montina, because I think the current situation has reached a worrying point, although it is not clear when, where, and in what way the French will invade, but we all know that this war is inevitable, And as far as I know, King Louis XII of France and Charles VIII were two very different people, and I believe that this will certainly affect the attitude of too many people towards the French, in this case allow me to suggest here to you to reconsider relations with France. ”

Barondi's hand that was writing suddenly stopped, and she looked at Alexander in some amazement, as if she didn't expect that he had just returned and launched a "challenge" to her father.

"Are you going to advise my father to side with the enemies of France?"

Barendi asked with some surprise, although she also knew that her father's attitude towards the French was obviously not as close as when Charles VIII was alive, but she obviously did not think that one day her father would be openly enemies of France, after all, the Rovere family could return to Rome and regain power by being a leader for the French, but now Alexander openly persuaded the old Rovere to reconsider the relationship with France, which made Barendi worry that this might completely anger her father.

Seeing Barondi's worried face, Alexander lovingly picked her up and sat her down on the desk.

It didn't take long for Barondi to almost kick over the inkwell next to her because of the tremor on her body, and Alexander gently comforted her in her ear: "Don't worry, your father won't be angry, on the contrary, he will be happy to have such an interesting son-in-law as me." ”

And what answered him was Barendi's high-pitched voice.

"It's good to be home."

Listening to Barendi's "chant", Alexander said contentedly.