In the last two months of the end of 1499, on the northern shore of the Mediterranean, on the European continent, there was a lot of bustling events, some of which were quickly forgotten, while others were recorded in the invisible book of time.

At the end of October, the Aragonese general Gonzalo de Córdoba led an Aragonese army of nearly 10,000 men in the direction of Greece, and a few days later they landed on an Venetian outpost in the Ionian Sea, and after two days of rest, they set out for the southeast of the Greek coast, where the Ottoman navy had already appeared.

The Venetians rejoiced at the arrival of the Aragonese and sent a large number of warships to escort the Aragonese army, and after some deliberation, the combined forces decided to march to the archipelago south of the island of Kithera in the Aegean Sea, which had been occupied by the Ottoman navy.

While it was important for the Venetians to recapture the colonies that had been invaded by the Ottoman navy, the stabilization of Crete was a much more urgent priority.

Thus began the Second Venetian and Ottoman War.

On land, the battle between France and Naples in early November opened the eyes of Europeans.

Even long after the battle had ended, many of those who had learned the outcome felt that what they had heard was not true, because they could not imagine how the Neapolitans had defeated the French.

From the initial battle between the two sides to the siege of the French army in the palace of Naples, the whole process took four days, and in these four days, the French army is said to have lost nearly 3,000 men, while the Neapolitans seem to be only a few hundred, just hearing this number gives one a sense of unreality that cannot be believed.

The French army was strong and invincible, and even if Charles VIII had suffered a defeat in Italy just three years earlier, no one would have thought that the French were cowardly.

Just think about how many countries had to form a holy alliance to dare to resist France after hearing that the French were coming, and France can almost be said to be single-handedly resisting half of Europe's coalition forces, but it was still fighting vigorously for a time, you can know how strong the French army is.

And Louis XII's almost invincible record along the way made him seem to have the momentum to surpass Charles VIII, so when it was heard that the Neapolitans had defeated nearly 8,000 French troops, not many people believed it at first.

Over time, however, people had to come to believe that this was true, as the French attacked the Montina Genoese regiment near Genoa.

It was a belated attack, for Louis XII seemed to hesitate when the Genoese regiment had advanced towards Alexandria a week earlier, despite the report.

Louis XII's delicate relationship with Genoa, or rather, with the House of Roveret made Louis XII a little hesitant in his response to Montina's army, and he hoped that the elder would become his ally as his predecessor had supported him, and although this hope had been somewhat slim due to his alliance with Alexander VI, the King of France still did not wish to break with the House of Roveret completely.

Because whether it is Genoa in Lombardy or Rovere's family in the Vatican, their weight can be said to be significant.

Therefore, despite the Montina invasion of northern Italy, Louis XII still did not want to clash with the Montinas, after all, judging from the frequent exchanges between Alexandre and Charlon, the Count of Montina seemed to be more concerned about his territory being threatened than choosing sides between France and Austria.

However, the attack of the Neapolitan army on the French army in Naples completely shattered Louis XII's expectation of neutrality towards Montina, so that when what happened in Naples was determined, the French king finally ordered an attack on Montina's army on November 8.

Within days, the news spread throughout northern Italy and to the Vatican.

And then the surprising news came from Pisa.

A Montina army entered Pisa directly with the permission of the Duchess of Pisa, Estles, and then the 4,000-strong Montina army, said to be the main force of the most elite Agri musketeers, with the cooperation of the city defense of Pisa, drove out the French troops who remained in Pisa in one fell swoop.

The two sides fought a brief battle of modest scale outside the city of Pisa, before Montina's army entered Pisa while the French army retreated along the river towards the vicinity of the port of Pisa.

No one can say for sure whether the battle was won or lost, but since the French eventually withdrew from Pisa, many speculated that the French had suffered a loss.

This speculation is surprising and even more implausible, because the French have not suffered defeat until now.

So when the results were first heard, the Vatican first caused an uproar, then a lot of discussion, and then the city of Rome fell into a strange atmosphere.

Montina and Pisa, Barentia and Lucrezia, Rovere and Borgia, these people and things that seem to be born enemies collide again, and people can't help but turn their eyes to the two old men who can be said to be the most prominent in continental Europe.

This time, the pope and the cardinal had to meet again, the second dedicated one-on-one meeting between the two Vatican dignitaries in months.

It was still a very empty room without any decorations, and it was still a separate meeting between two giants who would decide the fate of the European Church, but this time their attitude was much more subtle.

"Pizza is important." The Pope looked at the opponent opposite, not knowing if he was too careful, he felt that old Rovere seemed to be smiling.

"It's really important." Old Rovere was silent, the timing of this meeting was a little too delicate, he didn't want to accept the invitation, but Barondi's successive actions of sending troops made him worry that things might get out of hand, which made him have to appear in this room very unwillingly.

"Then it doesn't seem very appropriate for the French to be stationed in Pisa."

Alexander VI's words surprised old Rovere, now everyone knows about the hookup between the Borgia family and Louis XII, but now suddenly hearing the Pope say this, old Rovere for a while a little bit can't understand what tricks this opponent is playing.

"It is not pleasing that the French have been in Rome for too long," Alexander VI looked at old Rovere, "or we can see again what will happen in Lombardy before making a decision." ”

Old Rovere looked at the Pope with some surprise, he didn't expect Alexander VI to reveal to him so directly another thought about the French, although he knew that even if he leaked the conversation here, Alexander VI would definitely not admit it, but the first time he heard him say his attitude towards the French so unabashedly, Old Rovere still felt a little incredulous.

So the Pope's suggestion, which was apparently intended to be a wait-and-see attitude towards what was happening in northern Italy, was only cautiously agreed, and then he left with a heartfelt farewell.

And looking at the cardinal's back that seemed to be suspicious, the Pope couldn't help but smile pleasantly.

It was one of the few happy smiles he had since arriving at the Vatican, the last time he was crowned pope.

Old Rovere returned to his villa so distraught that he did not even respond to the greetings of his sons and daughters who had just arrived from Genoa.

Konstantin noticed his father's strangeness, but he did not rush to ask, because he knew that with the character of old Lauvere, if he did not want to say it, no one could ask anything.

Since returning from Montina last time, Constantine has become much more stable, and he has seen the changes in Barente with his own eyes, as well as the terrible scene of his uncle Tony's Episcopal church being burned to ashes, which has made him feel something new in the change of Barente from anger to fear.

He began to reflect on himself, and also began to examine the knightly honors that he had pursued for the past 30 years, and then he was surprised to find that the championships, glory, and Golden Spurs seemed to be becoming more and more meaningless, especially when compared to the brother-in-law who made him look down on him from the bottom of his heart and did not take honor seriously, he found that all the honors he had won before seemed to be worthless in front of that person.

"Konstantin."

His father's voice came from the room, and Konstantin, who was waiting outside the door, immediately pushed the door and walked in, and he saw his father sitting in a chair, his fingers tapping on the armrest, as if thinking about something very important.

"You may have to go back to Montina," said old Rovere, who made Constantine's face turn pale as soon as he spoke, and he opened his mouth to say something, but was stopped by his father, who had already guessed his reaction, raised his hand, and before he could express his disapproval, old Rovere had already continued, "Listen to me, I think the Pope is hiding something from us, believe me that this feeling is accurate, I am sure that he is brewing some conspiracy." ”

"Does this have anything to do with Montina?" Konstantin asked carefully, he knew that his father was a very sharp man, and from a very early on, he had used this acumen to avoid the open and hidden arrows against the Roverley family again and again, and it was also with this keen sense of smell that their family was able to escape a catastrophe from Alexander VI, who had just ascended the throne, a few years ago.

Then my father said that there would be a conspiracy in the Pope, so there must be something bad going on.

"I'm afraid that Cambrai has agreed to something with the Pope, and if that is the case, it will be not only bad but embarrassing for us."

Constantine was well aware of his father's words, and after returning to Rome from Montina, he could feel the people's implicit ridicule towards him, after all, it was unbearable to think that he was deported by his own sister.

"Go back to Montina, don't worry that Barendi won't do anything to you, and don't forget that she's a Roviere."

Konstantin, who originally wanted to refuse, finally did not object anymore when he heard this, and he looked at his father very seriously.

Old Rovere looked at his son with a little approval, he knew that Konstantin had understood what he meant.

Unlike Alexander, who reminded his son of the importance of family affection in their family when he said to Caesar "She is a Borgia" in such a situation, the elder Rovere said "She is a Rovere" with more pride and a little helplessness.

Because they were all Borgias, Lucrezia could plead with Alexander to protect Caesar from gunpoint, and because they were all Roveres, Barentia could shake hands with the Roveres again for the benefit of Montina while being completely disappointed in the family.

"I don't know what they came to negotiate, but don't you think the Pope's attitude is a little strange, and I suspect what Gombray promised the Pope. Remember, if he really promised something, I think Barendi must know, so you have to go to Montina again, this time to show Barendi the family's sincerity towards her, and trust me that she won't embarrass you as long as she does that. ”

Seeing his son nodding silently, old Rovere sighed softly, he didn't regret what he had done before, if he had another chance, he would still choose to do it without hesitation, but this time he found that it was really necessary to have a good talk with the daughter who made him proud.

Alexander VI was delighted, or rather proud.

Nomelo has returned, bringing him news that has made him extremely excited.

Alexander's ambitions surprised the pope, and when he heard that he was trying to unify the two Sicilies, even Alexander VI could not help but be stunned by the accident for a long time.

But it was also after this contemplation that Alexander VI suddenly discovered that this idea was not only completely traceable, but even if he thought about it carefully, it was not necessarily impossible to realize it.

As a descendant of the oldest family in Sicily, the Count of Mordillo can be traced back to the Norman era, and the marriage of Jossa directly made her the successor of Naples in the Two Sicilian branches.

And Nomerlo's own report to the Pope was a simple sentence: "The Count of Montina knows what he is doing." ”

It was from that time that Alexander VI's attitude towards the French became subtle.

He continued to encourage Caesar to actively rebuild the Papal Army, which was undoubtedly the most important thing for both father and son, but at the same time he sent for the Moorish man, who was said to have been jumping up and down the city of Rome.

Ulliu then immediately left Rome overnight for Pisa, while Rovere the Elder once again sent Constantine to Montina.

In mid-November, as Montina's army drove out the French army in Pisa, the French army, which had been monitoring the movements of the opposing side, finally began to attack the Montina army, which had remained neutral since entering Lombardy, while almost at the same time, the Austrian army, which had been entering Milan for almost a week from Varese all the way south, also began to advance westward, and in the direction of Turin, The 5,000 Swiss and Austrian troops, who had just received a loan from a new owner to reinforce them, began to approach south along the road between Turin and Alexandria.

For a moment, the situation suddenly became unfavorable for Louis XII.

And Alexander, it was at this time at the home of the Count of Mordillo that he saw a messenger from afar.