Looking at the carriage in the distance, Maria de Luna was stunned, and did not seem to come back to her senses until the carriage gradually disappeared, and she turned her head to look at Tiego who was standing aside.

This man looks a little fat, not very tall, and really not very likable in appearance.

But it was this person who finally convinced Gonzalo.

And his last reason did sound like that.

A crown, the crown of Sicily.

When Tiego said this, Maria de Luna saw Gonzalo's face with a look of "so it was".

But somehow she didn't believe Thiegot, or the Duke of Rome Thesia.

Maria de Luna had a vague sense of absurdity, as if the Sicilian crown was not satisfying the man.

Regardless, Gonzalo seems to believe this reason.

"For the crown of Sicily."

Maria de Luna remembers the look of mockery on Gonzalo's face when she heard this, as if at this moment he had expressed a so-called "Gonzalo-esque" mockery to all those associated with the crown, including Ferdinand.

"I'll admit it's a tempting fruit, but are your masters really sure they can taste it?"

Gonzalo asked Tiego with a smile before leaving, but he didn't seem to have an answer, so before Tygo could answer, he was already smiling and getting into the carriage.

"But I think your advice is good, and I do need to go somewhere warmer for a while, because the Aegean side is almost freezing my bones."

With these insincere words, Gonzalo set out on his way to Andalusia.

It was also the first time in many years that he had a vague hint of something different about Isabella.

Looking at the empty road, where there was no sign of the carriage, Maria de Luna suddenly smiled at Tiego.

It was a smile that was completely different from the previous coldness, and it made Tiego stunned.

Thinking about the indifference and hatred that this woman had shown to him because of his coercion and persecution, Tiego couldn't help but murmur in his heart: "What tricks does this woman want to do?" ”

Constantina is an obscure city in Andalusia, located on a hilly slope on the north bank of the Gwadar River, almost halfway between Seville and Córdoba.

Earlier, Constantina had prospered for a while due to the supply of goods between the two cities, but as the number of ports on the Gwadar River increased, Constantina inevitably declined.

However, the city soon became the ideal barracks for Don Bavi, as it still retained the granary that had been abandoned but still used as a hub in its early days.

After the announcement of the takeover of the power of the Andalusian consuls, it was inevitable that different voices would emerge among the coalition of nobles.

There were suggestions that the queen should be negotiated immediately, and it was clear that these people did not consider war as a priority, and they thought that the show of strength was only to get the queen to compromise with them, and once Isabella showed no concessions, they could not help but panic.

This naturally angered Don Bavi, but he was not pleased with the suggestions made by others.

Those people believed that they must not bow to the ambitious woman of Isabella, and that they must use force to make her understand that the kingdom was the property of the nobility and the royal family.

If she thinks that the royal family can monopolize everything, then she should use force to help her correct this false idea.

So these people shouted the slogan "March to Valladod" all day long, which, while attracting a large number of nobles, naturally caused unease among the compromisers.

In the end, after a small conflict between the two sides, Don Bavi took the opportunity to suppress it.

However, as the biggest beneficiary of this turmoil, Don Bavi is also aware of the contradictions and hidden dangers hidden in the aristocratic alliance.

He knew he couldn't sit still and wait for Isabella to clean them up, and he had to give it to those who were so energetic that they were worried about causing trouble all day

The clan lords are looking for something to do to drain their over-exuberant energy.

So after careful consideration, Don Bavi decided to march into Constantina.

This place was chosen because, according to intelligence, the advance of Isabella's royal army had approached Córdoba.

The defenders of Córdoba were in a position of holding out in the face of the noble coalition, which made Don Bavi realize that it was unlikely that he could capture Córdoba before the arrival of the royal army.

This decision obviously took into account the opinions of both factions, which made both sides of the quarrel somewhat satisfied.

It's just that Don Bavi's move has another meaning in Alexander's eyes.

Alexander noticed that Don Bavi seemed to have some inexplicable ambiguity about Wang Jun's attitude, and then recalled that he had the Sister Alfort in his hands, and he suddenly understood Don Bavi's purpose.

Apparently, the Andalusian nobility had become Don Bavi's pawns, and he had the Alfort nun in his hands but did not let her show up, which gave him a huge advantage in negotiations with Isabella.

At the critical moment, Sister Alfurt would naturally be an important means for Don Bavi, but his aim was not to force Isabella to abdicate, but to plot against all of Andalusia.

"He wants to be the vice-king of Andalisia?" Alexander pondered in his heart, but he vaguely felt that he had spied on Don Bavi's calculations.

"Vice-King, what is that, sir?" Schell asked, puzzled.

They were heading for the merchant exchange, when a sudden rebellion in Andalusia had caused many shipowners from the Mediterranean and Africa to suffer, and their merchant ships that were supposed to enter the interior from the Gwadar had to be forced to dock in Seville or further afield.

This made them anxious, and these merchants had now gathered in the merchant exchange to wait for the news of the opening of the river.

However, they were doomed to disappointment, as Don Bavi had blocked the entire river on the pretext of preventing the royal army from attacking Seville by using the Gwadar River downstream.

It is not only the merchants who often run the old routes that are now gathered in the exchange, but also some merchants from the new colonies who have rushed from other places because they heard the bad news.

However, to their dish, the bloody events that took place on the exchange had led to the loss of many important IOUs, contracts, transaction vouchers, and various business contracts.

This made those people panic, they feared that the loss of these precious materials would make many of the businesses that had relied on these credentials disappear, and for a moment the entire exchange was full of people and shouts one after another, and there was not the slightest sign of a terrible murder that had taken place here before.

This is what Alexander saw when he arrived at the exchange, and the bustle of the place made him seem to return to the futures exchange in Rome, and these were untold riches in his eyes.

A group of people gathered in the distance caught Alexander's attention, and he saw that they had surrounded two of them in the middle, and that all of them were giving one of them a special compliment.

When he spoke, the men listened attentively, and sometimes they might be careful to ask a little doubt when he stopped, but as soon as the man spoke, the people immediately fell silent.

"Christopher Columbus."

Even if he hadn't seen this man, looking at his vague resemblance to James and listening to his distinctly Genoese accent, Alexander already knew who this man was.

Columbus is 50 years old this year, which is considered to be an old age in this era, after all, there are still very few people who can live as long as Leonardo da Vinci today, so it seems that although he still has a lot of energy, he can already see some old age from his demeanor and eyebrows.

Columbus had apparently noticed Alexander, who was looking at him from a distance, so he stopped to look.

Looking at this legendary figure who discovered the New World and gave mankind a real understanding of what the complete world was like for the first time, Alexander was calm and did not feel the slightest sense of excitement.

Just like the feeling when he saw Magellan, the future world's first man, at a hurried glance, looking at this tall but nothing special Columbus, Alexander thought to himself how to make this supposedly greedy man work for himself.

Columbus was apparently famous for his greed, and it was precisely because of the harsh conditions he had made to the Portuguese that he was unable to get help from them.

And even if he finally got Isabella's funding, at the beginning, because he was too greedy for compensation, he was also unceremoniously rejected by Ferdinand.

However, Isabella's extraordinary courage and extraordinary long-term vision can be seen here, and she clearly saw the great potential of opening up new routes, and resolutely funded Columbus's adventures shortly after the Reconquista, when the treasury was not yet rich.

The wise decision paid off huge rewards, and Isabella's gamble gave her a chance to build the first true world empire in the future.

It's just that Columbus's greed also caused the dissatisfaction of the couple, especially when they saw such a huge wealth flowing into his pockets, so they found an excuse not long ago, not only depriving him of his status as a colonial governor, but also throwing him into prison.

Although he was soon released, everyone could see that Columbus had fallen out of favor.

Alexander, of course, knew that the Columbus saga did not end there, and that soon Isabella would once again entrust him with the task of leading a fleet of faithful ships to the New World on his last expedition of his life, but Alexander did not intend to let this happen.

Now that this Columbus was standing in front of him, Alexander was thinking about how to get him to die for himself without having to pay a big price.

In one of the rooms of the Exchange, Columbus sat in front of Alexander, looking out the window at the noisy merchants in the hall, and Columbus smiled with confidence and pride.

It's all thanks to him, and the exchange is slowly thriving, and these have only come into existence since his expeditions discovered new colonies.

"Duke, I know James is serving you now," Columbus said unceremoniously at once when the two were alone, "I don't know what you promised him, but I want to state to you that I discovered the new colony, and that everything James knew was only stolen from me." ”

Looking at Columbus's arrogant face, Alexander secretly shook his head in his heart.

If Columbus later lived as a wealthy man for the rest of his life, it was a good result, but in the end he did not realize that his family became a respectable noble family, it definitely had a lot to do with him.

This is a man who dares to risk his life, but is arrogant, greedy, and lacks experience in the dangerous place of the court.

Alexander quickly made up his mind about the man.

It can be said that it was Columbus's luck to meet Isabella, and if it were replaced by some other monarch, the fate that awaited him would probably not be so wonderful.

"James is now an important assistant to my side," Alexander said, looking at Columbus's somewhat uncertain face, "if you think you can replace him, then make a performance that is satisfactory enough for me." ”

"Duke, I think you are mistaken, I just want to explain all this, I am still serving the Queen, and I am also the governor of the new colony under the Queen's order."

Alexander shook his head, he suddenly didn't want to talk to this man, it was clear that Columbus was still thinking about raising his own value, which made him feel no need to continue.

Because he is Columbus, must he accommodate and reuse this man, Alexander smiled sarcastically, he had Columbus's nautical diary, a group of experienced sailors, and more importantly, he himself had a more detailed knowledge of the New World that Columbus did not have, so why should he use such an ignorant man.

In fact, Alexander's greater reason for recruiting Columbus was not because he wanted him to command expeditions for him, but because he liked the image he had created for his feat of opening up the New World.

This was evident from the deferential manner with which the merchants treated him, but he was not essential, and perhaps not a little troublesome without him, but Alexander believed that with the beginning of the battle between Portugal and the two kings at sea, it would soon not be a problem.

Compared to the two kings, Manuel's ambition was not inferior to theirs, which was enough for him to attract too much attention for Alexander.

And this time happens to be a wonderful opportunity to open up a new continent.

Like the Magellan, a person is only meaningful if he appears at the right time, otherwise he will have no value even if he knows that he will have extraordinary feats in the future.

Like James, although he only had a seemingly useless nautical diary in his possession, he appeared just when Alexander needed it.

And now, this Columbus is not so important.

Looking at Alexander's cold expression, Columbus showed a look of astonishment, although Isabella deprived him of the power of his identity, he still had great prestige, which was enough to make him pay enough attention.

But now the duke didn't seem to take him to heart at all, and he didn't even give him a chance to continue to prove his importance.

Seeing that Alexander had already made it clear that he was going to leave, Columbus finally couldn't bear it anymore: "Don't you think that I am more suitable to cooperate with you than James, you must know that I know and am familiar with the new colonies more than anyone else, and I also have a great influence in the navy of Castile, I believe this is very important to you." ”

Alexander paused to look at Columbus, and he admitted that Columbus was right, and that his influence in the Castilian navy was indeed important for the future, but Alexander did not want to accommodate him because of this.

Alexander knew too well that he was an insatiable man, and that forgiveness would not be rewarded with any gratitude.

He shook his head and looked at Columbus with a cold look in his eyes: "No matter what kind of glory you once had, it is already in the past, and now you are nothing." I need subordinates who can obey and do what I want, not an unruly adventurer, and I can find a lot of people in Lisbon, and there are already too many people in Lisbon waiting for Manuel to give the order to start an expedition to the new colony. ”

Columbus looked at Alexander in disbelief, and a wave of anger welled up in his heart, he could never have imagined that this nobleman from Rome would not take him seriously like this.

It's just that although the anger burned him to the urge to propose a duel to the other party on the spot, he also knew that what Alexander said was actually right.

The great gains of the new colonies had already deeply stimulated the Portuguese, who had already begun to compete for the new colonies if it were not for the scruples of the Twin Kingdoms, and even then he had already heard that the Portuguese had just attacked the Castilian fleet in the Azores.

This meant that a battle for colonies had officially begun.

And he was deprived of the status of governor of the new colonies at this critical time.

Columbus suddenly felt that the situation was really embarrassing, and he might have been able to deceive himself before, but when Alexander unceremoniously exposed his fig leaf, he really realized that maybe he had really been abandoned.

In this feast of the upcoming battle for colonies, which is in full swing, there is no place for him.

"I'll give you a place in the fleet I organized, it's the only promise I can give you," Alexander stood up, he looked at the blank Columbus and held out his hand to him, "You should already know those conjectures about my new colonies, and you should know that if those conjectures are true, then it will be one of the greatest discoveries in the history of mankind, but I want to warn you that I will not wait long for you, because this is an opportunity given by God to everyone to become the discoverer of a new world, Or be a spectator of history, it's up to you. ”

With that, Alexander walked out the door.

"Sir, do you think that Columbus will come?"

Walking out of the exchange, Shel couldn't help but ask, although he still didn't quite understand why the new colony was so valued by the duke, but this matter was obviously very important, and this James's brother must also be a very important person.

"It doesn't matter, does it," Alexander said with a smile as he paused and looked at Scheer, "Remember Scheer, there is a saying that is true truth." ”

"What's the matter, sir?"

"When the earth leaves, everyone will turn as before."

"Earth?"

Schell looked at Alexander's back who walked forward alone after saying this inexplicable sentence.

He was about to catch up and ask what was going on with the earth when the sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from the distant street.

Instinctively, Schell grabbed the hilt of the knife and rushed to the front of Alexander to block him, while a man was already pulling the reins not far from them, and at the same time, the person on the horse hurriedly shouted: "Lord Duke, I just got the news that Gonzalo has arrived at the front line of Córdoba!" ”