After the arrival of the ships of Constantinople at the port of Javel, the gold mining began immediately. Because the old mine tunnel has been abandoned for hundreds of years, most of the wooden structures in the mine have decayed and collapsed.

Initial work will begin with the re-dredging of the mine tunnel, which has been severely blocked. Of course, John didn't have the patience to watch the progress of the project little by little. The subsequent excavation of the gold mines, the specific coordination, His Majesty the Crown Prince threw a head to the geologists from Constantinople. John could have trusted the loyalty of these scholars, who had been heavily influenced by the Palaiologos, just as Geoffrey remained loyal to the empire despite being tortured.

Taking advantage of the opportunity of the flagship Ebius Radiance to the port of Piraeus in Athens for maintenance, John simply planned to stop by to visit the heroes of the original defense of Greece.

"Duke Latius, long time no see." The intricately carved white jade marble door inlaid with pearls and gemstones was slowly opened by two attendants.

Athens, the palace of the Grand Doge of Soratea.

The gentle sea breeze fills the city with life.

Grape plantations and silk weaving workshops took root, and marble and jewellery were the backbone of the empire's luxury industries. The impact of the Silk Road blockage on the Ottoman economy through the new Adriatic route was somewhat mitigated by the resprung trade routes.

Latius looked up blankly from the mountain of vassal reports.

"John's Temple...... Your Majesty? How did you come to Athens? ”

"The shipboard guns of the Ebius Radiance need frequent maintenance, so take the opportunity to stop by the port of Piraeus and bring you a good thing by the way." John smiled.

Latius put down his pen and paper and led John to the main hall of the Doge's Palace. It has to be said that the extravagance of the empire in building materials has almost become a cultural imprint, which can no longer be erased. Blue and white are the timeless hues of Athens.

"The empire plans to build an academy to restart education, which has been stagnant for a long time. For various reasons, this academy will not be established in Constantinople, and the best alternative should be Athens. ”

"Athens?" Latius looked down and thought for a moment, "At the moment, the focus of Athens' development is still on economic and local business output. If you want to build an academy of a certain size, I am afraid that you need to recruit more manpower and take a lot of time...... This is not something that can be done in the short term. ”

"Even if it were placed in Constantinople, no one would expect the academy to be completed quickly." John pulled out a chair, "This will be the most ambitious siege of the empire since the rebuilding of the walls of Theodosius, and it will also make Athens the starting point of new learning." The Europeans performed the Renaissance on the Apennine Peninsula, and we were reborn in the cradle of civilization. ”

"But ......"

"Don't worry about the money, in Epirus we have unexpectedly obtained a stable and rich source of income, and the treasury will find a way to cover part of it, and Greece will soon be ready to start construction as long as it is responsible for providing a suitable site." John laid out the sketches of the architects on a round table, "The academy may continue to expand in the future, and it will not be confined to Athens forever. ”

Latius does not seem to have paid much attention to John's suggestion, but instead asks a question that would be of concern to all feudal rulers: "Your Majesty, the new ideas in the Apennines have only just been set off, and they have already shaken the feudal rule of the local and surrounding countries. Although the administrative system of the empire was different from the typical feudal system in Western Europe, no one could guarantee that there would be no coup, rebellion, forced reform, and so on. After the opening of the Academy, certain ideas, once popularized among the common people, would shake the foundations of imperial rule. ”

"Latius, the empire needs progress. We've been building walls in Constantinople for too long! This was the inherent thinking of the feudal lords, no matter how loyal to the empire, the first thing to ensure was the basic interests of the nobility and the royal family, so that this era that spanned more than a thousand years would be called the dark Middle Ages, where both royal power and religion took turns to oppress the thoughts and actions of the common people.

"Your Majesty!"

"Well, Latius, this is the Senate, the Council of the Emperors, and my father. Sooner or later, the construction of this academy will begin. In principle, our empire will not interfere with the vassals' construction of fiefdoms. But, General Latius, I can officially tell you that the value of this academy even exceeds that of the firearms factory in Urban, and the fate of the empire for at least fifty years will be closely related to this academy. John slapped the table and interrupted Latius's argument, "Westerners call us the empire of the Greeks, and the Rome of the East, and use various titles to belittle the glory of the empire. But you are a vassal of the Roman Empire, a duke of Athens, and don't forget that the empire has gone through a thousand years of ups and downs, and even the form of government has changed countless times. ”

Latius raised his head and stared into John's immature and resolute eyes: "Your Majesty, if, I mean, if the reign of the Palaiologos dynasty is in turmoil or even collapses because of this resolution, will you not hesitate to do it?" ”

John was silent for a moment, then tossed the sketch of the academy on the table.

"Latius, I have asked myself more than once, my father, and the countless basilius of the Palaiologous dynasty, and even the senators, the first citizens, the senate, the senators, Augustus, Octavian, Trajan, Justinian, at the dawn of the empire...... The great rulers of each dynasty did their best, and the succession between them and their successors was not for the sake of perpetuating their rule. ”

“……”

"And, I already have the answer."

……

Whether Latius agreed or not, Constantine XI's edict would have been implemented. Although Latius was rather ambiguous about this edict, he did not explicitly deny it in the end. In this awkward situation, the bamboos made from all the marble mills along the Greek coast and the stout trees harvested by Epirus were transported into Athens by truckload.

The progress of the project was slow as everyone expected, and Athens was not able to recruit a large number of local laborers. In addition, the Venetians also expressed strong resistance to the Academy of Athens, and the empire was temporarily mediated by many forces.

"Brother, it seems that if this Athens Academy wants to be really established in Athens, it will take a lot of effort."

"All changes are accompanied by bloodshed and sacrifice, but this is not the one that surprised me. I didn't expect that my father, as the Basilius of the Empire, would be willing to take a huge risk to pass the proposal to establish an academy, but Latius, a general who had spent half his life for the Empire, was ......"