The quaint office was filled with the smell of incense, the triple gold crown was placed on a velvet cushion beside it, and Pope Gregory V, wearing a small red hat, read the secret letter from Lüddes repeatedly, and looked up at the map spread out on the desk, his old face crumpled.

Successive popes were brilliant theologians, polemicists, and religious scholars, but what is less well known is that they were also veteran diplomats and politicians.

Whenever the "holy war" with the United Principality of Rus' ended, there were signs of vacillation in the authority of the Church. The popes would then choose to use several sets of intertwined alliances to strengthen Ymir's position. The usual process is to first appease Lapland, providing it with economic assistance and guarantees of national security, in exchange for Lapland's continued role as a "meat shield" against the southward movement of the United Rus' principality. Second, he used faith and Charlemagne's expansionist ambitions as a threat to force Serres and Emir to maintain a special relationship, and in exchange, Emile did everything in his power to ensure Serres' independence and self-determination, and planted a nail in the back of the expansionist Charlemagne that might one day. On the part of Albion, he partially renounced interfering in Albian's domestic religious and political affairs, mediated intermittent doctrinal differences and conflicts between Castile and Albion, and ensured that this alliance would contain Charlemagne from both land and sea, but also guaranteed that a full-scale war would not break out between the three countries.

In any of the above relationships, any country needs Emir's Cheng dù more than Imir needs their Cheng dù, so that Emir can always play the role of the leader and arbiter of the human camp. When the nations have healed the wounds of war, the Pope will announce a new round of "holy war." It would be best if you could win against the United Principality of Rus', and in case it ended in an undefeated run, the above process would be restarted, and the cycle would start again from the beginning.

It was a system of strategies that proved to be effective, and for millennia ensured Imiel's lofty and transcendent status. Coincidentally, Li Lin's diplomatic strategy for Yalfheim is also a similar one, and it is all the product of power politics. The only difference is that Li Lin's methods and ideas are more modern and progressive, and at the same time more restrained. When confronted with new problems, Alfheim is always quick to adjust his strategy. And the church, the old machine of power, is a little difficult to adapt.

How to mediate due to the naval arms race. The gunpowder-smelling relationship between the nations, bringing these precious metal poisoned creatures back to their original circulation? At the thought of this, Gregory V's stomach ache flared up, and he endured the pain of his stomach pouch being scraped back and forth with a knife. Take the stomach medicine out of the drawer and take it.

Damn Charlemagne. Damn Richelieu. Damn the arms race, damn colonies, and...... Damn the V.E company. It's all Li Lin's fault!

Before the effect of the medicine could be fully exerted, the Pope cursed in his heart, and looked angrily at the bust of the president of V.E Company placed in the corner of the office.

Since the rise of V.E., the church has had fewer and fewer days of peace.

In the beginning, the relationship between V.E., which was still a small trading company, and the church was very good. In addition to the normal payment of taxes and filial piety, the V.E company always took advantage of various opportunities to donate to the Church, and the regional cardinals and the clergy of the Inquisition always received various luxury gifts on birthdays and holidays. Naturally, the bishops and priests liked this kind of knowledgeable trading company very much, and they reciprocated it with all kinds of conveniences.

As the V.E company grew, the clergy deposited their money in the V.E bank to buy shares in V.E Construction and V.E Railway, and enjoyed dividends at the end of the year. The various appendages of the church, such as religious symbols, ritual utensils and costumes, the construction of churches, and the printing of sacred texts, were all outsourced to V.E. From then on, things started to get worse.

The economic lifelines of Lapland and Charlemagne were now in the hands of V.E., and through the mediation of the Guò consortium, the two countries quickly established a customs union and began to establish a regional free trade and achieve economic integration. While this was still going on, news came that V.E had discovered a new overseas continent.

The church's initial reaction to this was shock, and it was a resounding slap in the face to theologians who preached that "the ground beneath our feet is the only world." Before the church could come to its senses, a group of soldiers and missionary priests set out for Xintiandi. The development of uncivilized barbarians as believers was quite an appetite for the Church, and although it was still a little uncomfortable, the Church did not continue to pursue the impact of geographical discoveries.

However, no one was able to discover that the timing of the discovery of the New World was too treacherous. Charlemagne, who was engaged in the development of the domestic economy and had completed economic integration with Lapland, was temporarily unable and interested in competing for overseas colonies, and Albion and Castile, with their maritime superiority, took the lead and carved up most of the colonies. Through the maritime trade and plundering of colonial resources, ships laden with gold, precious stones, spices, and ores filled the ports, and the coffers of the two countries quickly filled up. This soon aroused Charlemagne's jealousy, suffering from the lack of naval strength, and the geopolitical situation of the two countries to contain Charlemagne has not changed, and it is inconvenient for a while. After the Seven-Day War, news of a heavy victory came from the front line, and the sight of several trains full of precious metals, works of art and other trophies, the haze of "foreign phobia" that had been all along was swept away, and the national self-confidence of the whole country was unprecedentedly high. This, in turn, has deepened the sense of crisis in Albion and its neighbors.

It was under this fervent ultra-nationalism and realistic interest appeal that Charlemagne and Albion launched a vigorous shipbuilding race. The frenzy of the pre-Hundred Years' War has once again gripped the human camp. Seeing that the two countries that had been able to hold the mountain for more than a hundred years in order to distinguish "who is the king and who is the minister" were going to drag the entire human camp into a split, Gregory V could no longer sit still, and sent emissaries to the countries to issue an initiative to the monarchs of the secular countries, so that everyone could show wisdom and courage and put an end to the crazy and irrational behavior.

The Pope's words can still be listened to to a certain extent, and the rational people in each country also believe that an unrestricted arms race will eventually drag down the country and eventually lead to unnecessary wars, so it would be good if the pressure could be alleviated by disarmament negotiations.

In this way, naval figures and diplomats from various countries gathered in Lüders to discuss the reduction of naval armaments and the guarantee of world peace.

This is a great good thing, but what His Majesty can't accept is that why do you talk and talk on the dance floor and in bed......?!

PS: There will be a change later, so stay tuned.