Alexander always had a strange feeling about George Anne.

For him, who once had a happy family, he did not have the desire to obtain the recognition of his relatives and family because of the lack of maternal love since he was a child, nor did he have some strange Oedipus complex, and at his age, he could not have the same feelings for a strange woman as he did for his mother.

On top of that, it was difficult for him to feel sympathy for this woman since he had seen George Anne's bohemian life with his own eyes.

So when he saw George Anne looking at him with that overly eager gaze, Alexander's awkwardness was indescribable.

Fortunately, the Count didn't seem to want to let a scene of inferior tragicomedy between mother and son wasting too much of their time, so when George Anne walked over and lifted Alexander's chin to examine him carefully, Mordilo chatted with the James with interest.

For Mordillo, James was obviously much more restrained, although he still kept bragging about his horses, but when Modilo asked about Columbus's diary, James immediately obediently changed the subject and began to carefully answer the earl's question.

"Christopher Columbus, I've heard of this man," Modillo nodded slightly, "I know he went to Venice to find that Barbarig, as well as Genoa and many other places, hoping to get the sponsorship of those people to help him pay for the huge expenses, I even heard that he once wanted to come to Naples to lobby, but for some unknown reason he didn't make the trip, but ended up going to Castile." ”

"Actually, my lord, he went to Portugal first," James carefully corrected, "but he didn't get any benefit from King Manuel of Portugal, so he went to Castile." ”

"Oh," Modillo replied noncommittally, then he looked back at the 'mother and son' who were still crying endlessly, and raised his hand to signal Alexander to come over, "Okay, let's talk about the price, my nephew seems to be interested in something you have in your hand." ”

Alexander secretly breathed a sigh of relief, he felt that it was even more difficult to deal with George Anne than it was to deal with the cunning nobles, at least those nobles did not need to be slightly agitated to hug and hug him and cry non-stop, and he really couldn't tell how many of George Anne's tears were genuine, after all, whenever she reached out and touched his face, Alexander couldn't help but think of the fact that when she had a tryst with her lover, she didn't care at all that her daughters were about the same age as her little lover.

"My lord, if you can help me pay off all my current debts, this precious diary will be yours." James said carefully, he could see that the earl was completely different from Alexander, or that Alexander was still willing to talk to him about business, and the earl was obviously not very interested.

"Well, I'll do business with you too." Mordillo lowered his voice, then reached out and put his hand on James's shoulder and walked to the corner without disgust, as he turned back to Alexander and winked slightly mischievously.

No one knew what they were saying in the distance, but James was visibly taken aback by Modiglo's suggestion, and he looked stunned, shaking his head at first, and then hesitating as the Count whispered.

"Trust me, it's going to make you a fortune."

The Earl's voice suddenly raised, and James seemed to be completely hit by the words, and he thought for a moment and finally nodded.

Looking at the Count walking by, Alexander was about to speak, but Mordillo had already raised his hand and patted him on the shoulder, and as he passed by, he heard the Count muttering in a low voice: "Everyone has a price, just see how you can impress him." ”

Alexander turned curiously to look at James, who seemed to be still immersed in the conversation with the Count.

Eventually, James came up with a contract that surprised Alexander, according to which Alexander was to provide him with 50,000 shefirs, equivalent to 750,000 liters of wheat, and the Columbus sold all the remaining horses to Alexander.

As for the Columbus diary that really meant something to him, it was only an addition to this somewhat loss-making deal for Alexander no matter how he looked at it.

Alexander was unhappy with Modillo's generosity, as 50,000 shephir of wheat was not easy for him.

With the constant delivery of wheat to Naples, the grain reserves on the plains of the Agri River are declining at a visible rate, and even granaries in some places have appeared and have to fill the city of Naples with newly planted grain.

Even with the Bohemian cavalry, Alexander knew that he was weak now, and Agri's unique position brought abundant water and nutrient soil to the land, but it was also a land with little danger.

Previously, the Cosenza family had been able to become the custodians of the land only because no one could actually possess Agri, but now Alexander's appearance has upset the delicate balance that has been delicate for many years.

Perhaps as a hero who drove away the famine, he had an untouchable status in Naples, but for the other lords, the more honor he won in Naples, the more they coveted the land of Agri.

So Alexander had already planned that the first thing Alexander would do after receiving the money from the Count for the sale of wheat was to provide the Bohemians with the muskets they needed so badly.

Although not detailed enough, or rather not yet a shadow, Alexander had already begun in his mind to conceive a training plan for the Bohemians, and he believed that although such training might be a bit hasty at the moment, it should be enough to deal with the small crises that might arise at any time.

But Mordillo disrupted his plans at once, and the thought of paying for that James enough food to equip a team of bohemians made Alexander eager to ask the cheap uncle if he was prepared to take him seriously.

But when he heard that James was busy hiring a large number of men to send the grain to the north of Italy, Alexander was stunned and then angry, and then a sudden thought flashed through his mind that seemed unlikely, but only in this way could he explain why Modillo had made such a loss-making deal.

So when he came to the wooden hut of Mordillo in the Tuiran Palace, surrounded by water and with the same gurgling water under his feet, and saw the count who had been waiting for him for a long time, Alexander thought for a moment before deciding to ask the doubts in his heart.

"My lord, why do you insist that Columbus send grain to the north to sell, you know the richness of the Lombardy region, and the harvest of grain in that kind of land that depends entirely on four rotations of crops every year is enough to feed everyone, so he will not bring you any benefit."

Mordillo's inquiry surprised him slightly, and he looked at Alexander curiously: "You really surprised me, you even know that kind of thing, haven't you always grown up in a monastery in the middle of nowhere, I don't even know where it is?" ”

Alexander did not avoid Modiglo's inquiring gaze, he could see a deep suspicion in it, but he knew that Modillo was actually more hesitant now.

For Mordillo, as long as the multi-year plot will not be easily abandoned, then the suspicion of the truth of his identity will not have a final result for a while.

Unless, he found the real Giore Mordillo.

But Alexander didn't think he could find the man so easily, or even if he did, he would have loved to see what Modillo's face would have been when he saw the man foaming at the mouth in the crypt of the monastery.

"My lord, I found out that the 50,000 shephirs you asked me to pay that James for were not paid right now, whether it was his horse or anything else, he had to sell all the grain before he could pay the bill, which made me a little suspicious, and then when I found out that he was gathering a large number of grain workers and guards along the way, I suddenly had an idea," Although he knew that no one around would hear him, Alexander took a step forward and lowered his voice, "My lord, Can you please tell me who you are going to sell the 50,000 shephir of wheat to? ”

Mordillo was silent, and there was a sharpness in his eyes as he looked at Alexander, as if it was about to pierce his heart at this moment.

But all he saw was the same sharp gaze.

Finally, Modillo slowly got up from his chair, walked up to Alexander and patted him on the shoulder: "Sometimes we have to do things that are against our will, even if they are not comfortable after doing them, but they are necessary. ”

"So you sent wheat to the French?" Alexander turned his head to look at Mordillo.

When he heard that James was going to send grain to the north, from the initial confusion and even anger, to the later sudden realization, although Alexander did not take too long, he did have a lot of brains.

This is because, although he is not very clear about the specific situation, he still remembers that Upper Italy was a rich enough land to be called the granary of the Apennine Peninsula.

Even in Roman times, the Upper Italians were far better off than in Lower Italy, surrounded by mountains and barren land, and except for the threat of the so-called barbarians, the rich land of Upper Italy fed almost everyone it could.

Even in the terrible Black Death two centuries ago, Upper Italy was only killed by the plague, and famine was not due to the climate or the land, but simply because there were too many people to die, and there was not enough labor in the fields to make the fields barren.

This is also what makes the people of Lower Italy jealous all the time, even Agri, compared to the Lombardy region, is not worth mentioning at all, and James actually wants to send the 50,000 shepher wheat laborers to the north, which makes Alexander feel that if it is not for the stupidity of this Columbus loser, then there must be something he does not know.

Sure enough, after thinking about it like this, soon the only answer appeared in his heart.

Lombardy is indeed rich, but for the French, who are now battling the Coalition forces, this fertile land is not only not paradise, but hell for them!

Unlike when the French first entered Italy, now all of Italy is against them.

After many of the Italian nobles, who had previously had to rely on Charles, either voluntarily or forced, broke away from the camp of the French scourge, the situation of the French in Italy became more and more difficult.

Although there are still people like Savonarola who have always regarded the French as saviors and spiritual relatives, more and more people have begun to distance themselves from the French, and even some nobles who had previously sworn allegiance to Charles have openly sided with the coalition and opposed their former masters.

At this time, every day of the French in Italy became a torment, especially after Charles, in order to solve his increasingly embarrassing logistics, had to announce that he had to abandon Rome and retreat to Upper Italy, the situation of the French army not only did not improve, but worsened.

In the earlier campaigns in the south, although the French faced the dilemma of frequent cut-off of supply lines, the Allied forces did not have much better.

The Coalition forces, who often had to endure without a meal, and sometimes even had to starve for two days because of a heavy rain, also suffered from the terrible logistical woes of southern Italy.

And with the French retreat to Upper Italy, the Allied army's entry into the rich Lombardy region was a real step into paradise.

The French could only be supplied in Upper Italy through apportionment or even forced conscription, and they had to endure constant harassment from the local aristocracy and some mercenaries sent by the local chamber of commerce who did not have a good opinion of the French.

Charlie had tried to send troops to fight against this kind of great disturbance, but it was clear that it had little success, and even if the number of people sent was small, it might have been eliminated.

And what annoyed Charlie the most was that the people who made the most trouble were the northern Italian nobles who took the initiative to attach themselves to him at the beginning.

When they saw the strength of the French, they rushed to Charles, but when they found that his ship had run aground and might sink at any moment, they fled like rats with a premonition of disaster.

And in order to show their hearts to the imminent victors, these people turned their mouths more fiercely than the others and bit more holes in Charlie's already torn hull.

And the coalition forces became much easier after entering the Lombardy region.

Not only were they quickly fed up, but they also gained the support of the locals, and after several battles, large and small, the coalition forces not only did not decrease, but became more and more soldiers as they advanced into Upper Italy.

Now they had no scruples about letting their army march leisurely through the fields, and it is said that the handsome Gonzalo even ordered his army to slow down.

At this time, Mordillo suddenly defied the world's condemnation and decided to provide food to Charlie in a difficult situation, which could not but make Alexander feel inexplicably surprised.

"Do you think it's wise to do this, my lord?" Alexander asked, confused.

He really couldn't figure out why Modillo did this.

You must know that just over two months ago, when Savonarola sent that Beruni to lobby him, Charlie's situation was not so bad, and at that time he even taught Gonzalo, who was a little proud of his victory, in two consecutive battles.

But even at that time, Modillo did not show any intention of continuing to deal with the French, but two months later, when Charlie was already in an embarrassment, he suddenly decided to send food to the French.

This made Alexander feel a little elusive about what Modillo wanted to do.

Mordillo looked at Alexander and asked in a funny tone, "Do you think I'm crazy?" ”

"You could get into a lot of trouble if you do that," Alexander said, raising an eyebrow, "Frederick won't let go so easily, especially when he's about to become king." ”

"You're starting to worry about me now?" Mordillo smiled meaningfully, "Of course, it would be too bad if something happened to me, but don't worry, I'm not going to be so stupid as to give Frederick a chance." ”

He paused slightly, seeming to hesitate, before beckoning to Alexander to come to the table.

He took out an open letter from a secret compartment and handed it to Alexander.

"That's the way it is, there are people who don't want this war to end as soon as possible, so they need to be able to help Charlie at this time."

Seeing Alexander's surprised expression, Modillo felt a faint sense of pride in his heart. He believed that the letter would be enough to make the young man understand what kind of cunning people he was dealing with, and that it would at least make the disobedient-looking boy more honest.

It's a pity that the earl didn't know, but Alexander was scolding in his heart at this time: "Lao Tzu doesn't know what is written on it at all!" ”