Alphonso, Duke of Billy Shelly, couldn't figure out how things could have come the way they were.

When the agreement was signed, the words of the Jews were still fresh in his ears, especially the way Buccini seemed to be relieved, which made Alfonso have some expectations for the agreement.

After all, it is a good thing to be able to pay off debts without having to transfer the management rights of the property, and Alfonso is more willing to pay off his debts by himself than to watch other people's faces eat without having to worry about debts.

However, things gradually changed to his surprise, and after the agreement was signed, the merchants began to eagerly ask the chambers of commerce in the free trade zone to allow them to provide batches of low-priced goods immediately, after all, although the southern market is not as large and rich as Lombardy, Romagna or Tuscany, it is still enough for the merchants of Naples to have a good meal.

But the Chamber of Commerce seemed to be of little interest in these demands, or rather worried, and they spoke of the unpeaceful world of the present, of the fierce and brutal nature of the southerners, and finally they began to worry about whether the Neapolitans would be able to guarantee the smooth delivery of their goods to their destinations.

When he began to hear these questions, even Alfonso felt that those people's doubts were justified, after all, in today's world, going a little farther away seems to be an adventure.

Therefore, Alfonso was not very disgusted by the suspicions of the Chamber of Commerce, but felt superficial and funny that the merchants in his territory only focused on that little profit.

But somehow this kind of business discussion began to turn sour, and the merchants began to complain because they could not get security guarantees, first they complained about the incompetence of the territorial guards, and then the topic gradually led to other places, the greed of the tax collectors, the extortion of the checkpoint guards, and finally someone began to shout at Alfonso, who had just come to attend the signing ceremony, asking His Royal Highness the Duke to send more troops patrolling the territory to ensure their interests, and then asking the Duke to send armed soldiers to provide security guarantees for the Chamber of Commerce.

This was obviously a difficult task for Alfonso, whose army was already small, and the balance of payments, which he had managed to maintain on a budget-conscious basis, had been destroyed more than once, which had led him to go into debt, but now the merchants had asked him to send troops to protect their traveling caravans.

"I can't accept such a request unless you are willing to pay the corresponding payment." Naturally, Alfonso refused, or rather he simply proposed another solution, and if the merchants could pay for his army, Alfonso would not object.

The merchants, however, stubbornly refused the duke's reasonable demand, for their reasoning was, "Why should we pay extra for the rights to which we are entitled, when we have already paid your taxes?" ”

Such a reason was so powerful that Alfonso was speechless for a moment.

What happened in the next few hours began to give Alfonso a hint of something wrong, and some of the merchants suggested that if the Duke wanted them to pay for the army's protection of them, why couldn't they pay for an army to protect them?

Alfonso didn't think there was anything wrong with this at first, as it was not uncommon for merchants to hire mercenaries in these turbulent times, and some powerful chambers of commerce would even raise their own small but fierce forces to protect their interests.

So although he was a little concerned about the size of the mercenary force that the merchants would hire, Alfonso decided to leave the signing hall that seemed to be hotly discussed first.

However, not long after he left, and before he could return to the castle, Alfonso heard the news that surprised him - the merchants of Billy Shelly decided to accept the establishment of their escort team by the Chamber of Commerce in accordance with the so-called 'Chamber of Commerce Self-Protection' clause proposed by the Chamber of Commerce of the Free Trade Zone, and all expenses were to be shared between the Billy Shelly Merchants and the Chamber of Commerce.

Alfonso didn't know what the FTZ escort looked like, but he didn't want to see an alien force enter his territory, unlike the merchants who hired mercenaries themselves.

It was only then that Alfonso realized that things were going in a direction he had never thought possible.

What Alfonsu didn't expect was that the so-called free trade zone escort team was not the kind of ragged mercenaries who were crippled soldiers with missing arms and legs, but a formally trained army that he knew at a glance.

To be precise, two companies of the 2nd Balkan Regiment of the Montina Army.

The Balkan Corps, which was formed on the basis of the Balkan Corps, which was later commanded by Bussako, was nearly half the number of men compared to the 1st Balkan Regiment, and this time Alexander did not hesitate to withdraw two companies from it to leave Naples and enter Billisheli.

However, these are not the most important things, and what makes many Billy Shellesh, including Alfonso, start to feel that the matter is serious, that the so-called escort of the Free Trade Alliance has just made a request from the local businessman, and the so-called escort team of the Free Trade Union has already marched towards Billy Shelly, which makes Alfonso finally realize that all this seems to be premeditated.

And by the time Alexander received a report from the Balkans in the afternoon of the next day that he had "met a little resistance," two companies in the Balkans were already on their way to the city of Billyshelly.

"Your Majesty, allow me to report to you that our army is advancing towards the city of Billyselli."

Alexander told Alfred, who was anxiously waiting, the news of the news, and looked at the young king, who was panting nervously at first, and then sitting down like a deflated ball with all his might, and looked at the others who were waiting for the news.

He could see the strange expressions on the faces of several people, and it was clear that the ministers must be in a strange mood at this time, on the one hand, they hoped that the possible civil war could be resolved as soon as possible, and on the other hand, they were afraid that Montina's army had gained the upper hand so quickly, and that Alexander did not know what means were used to make Billy Shelly not even put up a decent resistance.

"Maybe they're thinking what to do if that Gombray does the same to us." When there were only two of them, Alexander and Josha stood side by side in front of the window looking at the ministers who were talking in low voices, and he could feel the strange look in the eyes of the men as they looked at him, which contained both jealousy and unconcealed hostility.

"So are you going to do this to us?" Jisha deliberately made 'we' a little heavier.

"I will never be like this to you," Alexander said as he watched as her blonde hair was as rosy as she shone in the setting sun, and her rare blue eyes like seawater, "Do you know how much I hate our relationship now?" ”

"Is it the relationship between brother and sister, or the relationship between the earl and the queen?" "If it's brother and sister, I remember everything you did with those women, when you fell in love with them, and how you triumphantly wrote to me that they fell in love with you, and I even remember you babbling to me in some of your originally important letters telling me how much you were infatuated with Lucrezia's beauty and innocence, and how you proudly boasted that you finally conquered your fiancée." ”

"You're such a good sister," Alexander had a little headache, he couldn't help but admit that sometimes he did think that the beauty in front of him was really a sister, and then he would really show her his relationship with his lover in a ostentatious tone, "It's really my fault, so maybe I can compensate you in other ways, such as making you the queen of Naples." ”

Josha's expression was slightly stunned, she looked at Alexander carefully, and when she was sure that he was indeed not joking, Josa shook her head unexpectedly: "No, at least not now, I don't want you to break the previous opportunity just for me, you should know that Alfred is important to us now, and I am worried that if it doesn't have him, it may give Alfonso or even Ferdinand an excuse to meddle in Napoli." ”

Looking at the slightly nervous Josha, Alexander felt the concern and anxiety in her eyes, which touched Alexander, but he had already made a decision in his heart.

"Don't worry, everything will be going well," Alexander stretched out his hand to pull him closer to him, whispering in her ear as he kissed her earlobe, "I can't give you my crown, but for you'll give you any crown in the world you want." ”

In the garden below, Count Modillo noticed the strange looks of the people beside him, and he followed their gaze to look up, and saw two figures by the open window, and the count frowned slightly, and then quietly regained his composure.

"The relationship between their brother and sister is really good." The Count smiled peacefully at the man next to him.

Looking at his familiar smile, people couldn't help but nod their heads.

The royal family of Naples left quietly without the locals noticing, and compared with when Ferdinand fled, Alfred's "outing" was much more low-key, so that it was not until the next day that Naples learned that their king and queen had left Naples with almost all of the court's courtiers, and that in addition to almost the entire court, the Neapolitan mercenary forces left with the king, and now the entire city had been completely taken over by the remaining Cosenza and Montina troops.

As for the responsibility of staying in Naples, the Count of Mordilo was entrusted to O'Fred, the Seal Officer.

Although they had heard of the king's departure for a long time, when they really heard that the royal family had abandoned Naples again, the people still felt like they had been betrayed and abandoned.

Some people began to take to the streets to wreak havoc, while others gathered together not knowing what they were discussing.

However, few of these riots had a major impact, for the prepared Cosenza grenadiers had set up makeshift barricades at some of the city's key passes, and when they saw the thugs wielding daggers and Ottoman dueling knives shouting and causing trouble all the way, the grenadiers fired rows of projectiles at the men almost every time they gave the first warning.

The originally bustling streets were filled with blood and flesh in an instant, and these thugs obviously did not have the bravery and tenacious will to face the rain of bullets like the Ottoman army, so instead of the second row of musketeers firing, with a terrifying scream, the crowds of thugs immediately fled along the street towards the distance.

The Kosenza soldiers were surprised at first, looking at each other as if they didn't know what to do next, but fortunately their commander had been told that this might happen, so they didn't give the grenadiers the order to take advantage of the victory and pursue them, except for the order to hold their positions.

The mob soon realized that the terrible "butchers" had not caught up, so they slowed down and began to discuss whether to continue the robbery in another place while checking which of the hapless ones had not escaped alive.

At that moment, they heard a tremor from the ground.

Some of the thugs who had participated in the war immediately realized that this was a sign that a large group of people was approaching rapidly, and they could not help but immediately become vigilant and nervously look at the surrounding streets.

To their disappointment, however, they soon discovered that it seemed to be heard from every street corner, even in some alleys, where there were swift and dense footsteps.

A group of Balkans, armed with small shields and typical Balkan axes, appeared at the nearest corner, and when they formed a dense queue that was not neat but most suitable for the narrow street, they were again in a panic of flight.

But their luck was apparently not as good as before, for all the intersections had been blocked, and as a Balkan officer on horseback announced in a strange accent that he would "do as the count commands," the Balkans raised their terrible axes at the already frightened mob.

The mob was suppressed in a bloody manner almost as soon as the riots began, and those who seemed to be planning to carry out some kind of conspiracy were barricaded in the villa of the Palm Seal Officer before they could even get out.

When several people who had been to the 'lookout post' were taken out of the house, the tavern keeper, who was hiding behind the window of a private house opposite, easily recognized his guests.

A conspiracy was so silent that it was quelled without even a wave, but when the Palm Seal Officer who had been ordered to stay behind saw the fully armed man who had entered his room, his face showed an annoyed but helpless look.

"The queen is right, it's not my failure, it's the defeat of the Neapolitan royal family," said O'Fred helplessly to the city guards who came to arrest him, "I hope our king will understand his present situation, or perhaps he will indeed die with the crown as the queen said, as his father did." ”

…………

"My father did not die peacefully, but he died in his own bed, and I may not be so blessed," said Alfred, lying in a rickety carriage covered with a layer of reeds cut from the reeds by the river, which were drenched in water to make Alfred's overheated body a little more comfortable, but the sweat on his head kept flowing.

Sitting next to the king, she looked at her titular husband with complicated eyes.

Tsusha knew how she would never fall in love with Alfred, but looking at him like this, she felt a little guilty.

Perhaps for Alfred, his only fault was that he was the king of Naples.

Neither would he have known that the historical Alfred had not even had the opportunity to wear the crown, and was imprisoned by the Aragonese in Sardinia with his father.

After Frederick's death, Alfred was never able to escape Sardinia for the rest of his life.

Jisha reached out and stroked Alfred's cheek, a little hot, she didn't know at this time whether Alfred's appearance was because she drank the wine she gave him mixed with digitalis or if he had some kind of illness in the first place, but Alfred's condition at this time was obviously not very good.

Several horsemen hurried by, looking at the hunters in strange uniforms, and a strange look appeared on Alfred's face, but soon he felt sleepy again, and closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

Alexander rode his horse and followed the procession slowly, in fact, he could have left the nobles behind and led the chasseurs to the front, and Count Mordillo did indeed advise him.

For Count Mordillo, things had come to a point where they had become more or less beyond what he had previously envisioned, and he was even beginning to worry that Alexander would make things uncontrollable for them.

However, the Count was a very realistic man, and when he found out that the situation had changed abruptly, the Count did not stick to his stubbornness and original plan, but immediately decided to improvise, which is why O'Fored was ordered to stay in Naples.

"It's a pity that the Palm Seal Officer is not the same person as us in the end," the Count was a little disappointed, but he only sighed a little and threw this matter aside, since the Palm Seal Officer had been arrested, then in the Earl's opinion, this person was no longer worth paying attention to, "But don't you really rush over in advance, you must know that now is the critical moment, if Alfonso really insists on refusing to let Montina's army enter Bilischelly, then war may break out, is it really okay if you are not with your army at this time?" ”

"Rest assured, my marching captain is there." Alexander smiled, "You know, he has been by my side for so long, he has learned so many things, and I even found a very beautiful wife for him, not so that he can only be a high-level herald for me, I need a general who can take charge of himself, although my subordinates are currently lacking such talents, but fortunately, Oflaiyi has not let me down." ”

The Count nodded, he had also heard of the reputation of the captain of the marching army, and during the time of Alexander's expedition to the Balkans, Ofleiil had become the commander of the armies of Montina and Pisa, which made him inevitably gradually known.

And once he entered the sight of some people, his previous past experience by Alexander's side was gradually familiarized, and then many people were surprised to find that they didn't know when, Alexander actually had such a good officer by his side.

However, it was not easy for Ofleiyi now, for he was standing a few dozen feet away from the gates of Billyselli, and the closed gates and the faint flashes of swords and spears on the walls made the captain's face darkened terribly.

But what annoyed Ofleiyi even more was that there was a Balkan company captain next to him who was chattering endlessly.

"Sir, if we don't go in and wait for the Count to come, we'll all be whipped," urged the Balkan impatiently, "we should probably shoot at the gates first, isn't that how we took the monastery before?" ”

Offrey squinted at the Balkans next to him, who he suspected had been poisoned by Gompati, who had become fanatical believers in Gompati's cannon triumph since the attack on St. John's Monastery.

It's just that Billy Shelly in front of him can't be opened with a cannon, and looking at the city gate in front of him, Oflaiyi's mind is spinning quickly.

Alfonso had prepared for Alfonso's refusal to allow his troops to enter the city, so it wasn't that annoyed him.

Although the Balkans were ridiculous about whipping, Ofleiyi also did not want to wait for the Count to arrive before opening the door to Billy Shelly.

Only now the person he had been waiting for did not appear, which made Ofleiyi a little anxious.

On two occasions he did want to teach the Billyshelians a hard lesson, as the Balkans had said, with the guns in his hand, but the Count's orders before leaving made him have to calm down.

"What kind of means to take down Billy Shelly is the key, at this time, even the most lame excuse as long as it can open the gates of Billy Shelly peacefully is a victory."

"Joseph Buccini, what are you doing as a Jew?" Whispering to himself, Ofleiyi looked up at the sky, and secretly decided that if there was no more response, he would have to do the worst.

"Prepare the artillery," seeing that the sun moved slightly overhead, Offleiyi reluctantly gave the order, listening to the excited shouts of the Balkans around him, he smiled slightly wryly, "If you have to blast the city gate with cannons in the end, maybe you will really be whipped by the earl." ”

Listening to the sound of the gun cart running over the ground, Ofleiyi looked at the city gate for the last time, and looked at the city gate that was still not moving, and he raised his hand slightly helplessly.

At this moment, a dull sound suddenly came from the opposite side.

Oflaiyi looked over at once, and as the sound grew louder, Billy Shelly's gates slowly opened.