Thin snowflakes were floating in the sky, and a hint of cold blew in through the cracks in the car window, making Caterina Sforza, who was sitting on the thick blanket, tremble slightly, she wrapped her clothes tightly, and looked out of the curtains that floated from time to time, and finally she couldn't help but lift the curtains, poke her head out of the car door, and look back at the city farther and farther away.

Caterina Sforza, the illegitimate daughter of Galleriazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan, and Duchess of Forlì, known as the tigress of Forlì, left Rome.

When the carriage left the city that had left her with so many humiliations, she did not know if she would ever have a chance to return, or if she would ever return to Milan, where she had spent her short but beautiful childhood and girlhood, and Forlì, who had spent so much effort to keep her husband's domain, which had long since died.

So Caterina Sforza wanted to try to see what the city was like before leaving it, and at the same time she wanted to remember the young duke who puzzled her.

When she met Alexander, Caterina Sforza thought a lot, she already knew the reason for Konstantin's sudden change of attitude, although it was common in this day and age not to pursue her aunt and niece, but what made Caterina Sforza care was not Konstantin's "strange thoughts", but what kind of adverse effects might be caused to her children as his attitude changed.

So when she heard that she was being offered to the Duke of Romatesia (Romagna-Tuscany for short) as a quid pro quo, Caterina also seriously considered whether to accept some of the duke's terms.

It's just that she didn't expect that in addition to Alexander, there would be the famous Roman princess who greeted her.

When she saw Lucrezia, Caterina knew that things should be a little different from what she had thought, at least the duke didn't seem to be trying to achieve his goal through bedroom politics, at least she hadn't seen this kind of bedroom politics with her current mistress.

Her suspicions proved to be correct, and under Lucrezia's slightly hostile attention, Alexander invited Caterina Sforza into his Marino Palace, where he showed great respect for the fallen duchess and promised her that he would try to reunite her with his children.

As for Caterina's doubts about the purpose of his concern, Alexander's reply touched the Duchess: "I have great respect for you, for you are a rare and admirable brave woman of our time, and your courage and decisiveness have made many men ashamed, and it is gratifying for me to be able to do something for you at such a time." ”

Caterina Sforza was at least touched by such sincerity, especially when she heard that she would soon be sent to Florence, and Caterina was even a little ashamed of her previous suspicions of the duke.

Caterina Sforza stayed in Marino Palace for a few days, during which time she gave Alexander a small reward for what he had done for her, that is, she wrote a letter to Ludvico, in which she expressed her gratitude to the Duke for his kindness in helping her, and at the same time expressed her support for the Duke of Konstantin.

Of course, the letter was not very important, but Alexander expressed his gratitude to the Duchess, and this gratitude was most directly expressed by the fact that he bought a small but quiet and comfortable palace in Florence and gave it to Caterina Sforza.

Caterina was very satisfied with the description of the servant who had come to see the house for the rest of her life, and had come back to see it.

It was a small house that suited her current situation, so that she would not have to spend too much money, although she knew that the Duke would have some gifts, but thinking about the long days ahead, Caterina felt the need to think about the long way ahead.

Caterina didn't know that the house had actually been bought by Lucrezia, and after sending her servants to choose for a while, Lucrezia chose the one she thought was suitable.

According to Lucrezia at the time of the decision: "The house was enough for the woman to live comfortably in it for a long time without having to think about coming out again." ”

Alexander smiled lightly at Lucrezia's apparently suggestive remark.

He is indeed very willing to see Caterina Sforza have such a satisfactory ending, as he himself said, he still admires this famous strong woman.

Whether it is the East or the West, the status of women in history has always been low, even in some countries have emerged many outstanding women, but whether it is from the historians' marvel at their extraordinary performance or the folklore's almost deified praise of these women, in fact, it is precisely the fact that women have always been in a secondary position in a long civilization.

Caterina Sforza was one of the best women of this era, and her resoluteness surprised many, far better than her husbands, and among her many children, she was even more daring and courageous.

Historically, Caterina Sforza chose Florence for the rest of her life after being defeated and captured, and in this regard, Alexander felt that it was not a bad arrangement for her.

Most importantly, he needs to make Constantine think that he is willing to help him seek the title of Duke of Milan because it is profitable, so that even if old Rovere is suspicious of him, because the temptation of the Duke of Milan is too great, even if he has doubts, he thinks that the father and son will eventually agree.

Alexander's guess turned out to be accurate, and after some weighing, the elder Rovere chose to get Constantine to abandon the legitimate annexation of Forlì, and instead released Caterina Sforza in exchange for Alexander's support after deciding to take it directly by arms.

"Go to Florence and live a quiet life, you deserve it." Looking at the back of the departing carriage, Alexander whispered to himself.

But then he remembered that there was another woman who was also going to Florence, and he wondered what would happen when two women such as Gina Brigitte and Caterina Sforza met and were so different and so brilliant in these times.

Ulius quietly wrote a letter to Alexander, in which the Moors reported to the lord that Barentia wanted to give the Gina Brigitte a dismount, but at the end of the letter the Moors were very careful to say: "It seems that Madame's plan has not succeeded, and the young woman from Bologna is obviously not easy to deal with, but Madame seems to have suffered from her, This can be seen from the fact that after seeing the woman, the lady suddenly and sternly ordered that every village in the territory must pay a proportional amount of extra tax, and that the amount should not wait for two quarters......"

Looking at the Moor's informant letters, Alexander suddenly realized that perhaps he should reassure the women around him before leaving for Iberia, and as Lucrezia became pregnant again, Alexander could feel the strong desire to have a child in Barenti's letter, which made him feel that Barentia had been feeling uneasy in his heart.

Wives who have been abandoned because they have no heirs have existed since ancient times, and in this era of extreme emphasis on offspring, having an heir is the best way to ensure that a wife can secure her position.

Although she had been prepared for old Rovere's provocative tricks, Alexander also knew that if she could have a child of her own, it would be the way for Barendi to really reassure her.

And according to the time, Sophia is almost about to give birth, which is a big deal for Alexander.

Sophia's child will be the future Grand Duke of Wallachia.

Historically, this does not seem to be a good place to be, because in a few years with the accession of Selim to the throne, Wallachia would usher in an even more turbulent external situation, and then for a long time to come, Wallachia would eventually fall as Suleiman the Magnificent demonstrated his prowess in the Balkans.

But now, with Bayezid II badly wounded on his expedition to Bucharest, everything has become confusing, and it is unknown whether Selim, known as the conqueror, will be able to ascend to the throne, but what about Suleiman Magnificent?

At the end of March 1500, the belated spring seemed to have finally driven away the last rule of the long winter, leaving a little warmth sporadically drifting on Italian soil.

The spring planting, which had been delayed by coming too late than usual, was finally ready to begin, and the land outside Rome began to appear busy with peasants, who had to make up as much time as possible at the last time, otherwise if they missed the planting season, it might not only affect the autumn harvest, but even affect the various taxes paid throughout the year.

Tithes, which have lasted for nearly 11 centuries, will always be an inextricable debt, and no matter how many new owners the land will have, the taxes paid to the church will never change.

This led many people to think that tithing was an established law in the world since the dawn of the world, so when a priest asked the peasants he met along the way, "Why do you want to be so submissive and not against tithes, the most robber-like plunder, in anger, sarcasm, or outright cursing", many of the peasants were stunned by surprise, and some of the bold and rude peasants even dragged the guy out and chased the glambpy, shouting loudly, "Catch him, he's a liar, Just lied to my daughter, don't let him run away! ”

Assemo, the Metropolitan of Romagna and Tuscany, the cardinal and cardinal-to-be who had been nominated but had not yet been approved by the Council of Cardinals, was chased through the streets and cried all the way through the Italian lands, and then slowly returned to Rome after a long absence.

When he appeared in the streets of Rome, many of those who recognized the Metropolitan were astonished, and in their eyes the Metropolitan must have experienced something very bad, and from the smell of his tattered robes, his fur-turned boots, and his hay-like hair, which had not been washed for weeks, it was surprising that the Metropolitan had not been doing very well before.

Assemo's return caused a slight stir in the Vatican, because everyone knew who his patron was, and although he was active in Rome before, many people didn't think that this man would be of much use, but now it's different.

Romagna and Tuscany, two previously separate places united by one person, and now the return of Massimo has brought the two dioceses closer together, and it is only then that people have gradually realized that a duchy is being formed between central Italy.

Returning to Rome, Massimo did not rush to the Vatican, but went directly to the Marino Palace, and when he hugged Alexander, he noticed Alexander's wrinkled nose and disgusted look, but this not only did not make him feel embarrassed, but on the contrary, he was full of excitement about what he had seen and heard during his tour of many dioceses.

"The people spurn the Church, and even more so the Pope, who has discredited everyone, that is, your father-in-law," Massimo explained before continuing, "Many people who have seen the amazing depravity of the Vatican call the Church the largest brothel in the world, because it is filled with shameless ...... of"

"Watch your words and deeds," Alexander had to interrupt Massimo to remind him a little, "I was about to tell you that Lucrezia is pregnant again, and I don't want her to be angry at hearing your words." ”

"Oh, well, I'll change it a little, some of them aren't......" Seeing Alexander's wordless eyes, Massimo reluctantly swallowed back the following words, but then he added, "But you know what I'm saying is true, don't you, compared to Savonarola, these people deserve to go to hell." ”

Alexander looked at Massimo silently, and he knew that the last word was what the monk was going to say.

Alexander had already noticed that his time in Florence had changed something for Massimo, and he had gone from being cynical to a little cynical, perhaps it was the articles left by Savonarola that moved and influenced him, and Massimo became fond of thinking, and this tour undoubtedly allowed him to see more phenomena that he would not have noticed before.

"Your Excellency, you know that the people hate the Church, don't they," Massimo's face gradually became serious, "I have seen a lot of things along the way, these things I also knew before, but I have never looked at them in the same way and now, the people still pin their hopes on God, but people hate that, or rather, all the people who claim to represent God, and this is not only Alexander VI, anyone who sits on the papal throne will only be cursed because of the corruption and bad reputation of the church." ”

"And what if you're sitting on it?" Alexander glanced at Massimo and asked something that left him dumbfounded.

"Don't look at me like that, and don't forget that you yourself say that whoever sits on that throne, including yourself, of course." Alexander narrowed his eyes slightly and stared at the priest, which made Massimo suddenly feel uncomfortable as if he was being targeted by a wild beast "You will be elected as a cardinal at the next meeting of cardinals, this is no surprise, because I am the one who proposed you to be a cardinal," After saying this assertion that made Massimo feel a little unfamiliar, Alexander continued, "Any cardinal is qualified to become a pope, even if you are not suitable for your age and experience, but this is only a matter of later, the point is that I will support you in your candidacy for the papal throne, But if you want to stand out from the crowd, you need to do better than any of them. ”

Assemo's gaze straightened, and after a while it seemed that he finally changed his tone, he moved his eyes to look at Alexander, and saw that Alexander nodded as if he was sure that he had heard correctly, and he finally spat out the breath that was blocked in his chest: "Your Excellency, you are not joking, or that it is too early to allow us, I mean your husband still looks tough." ”

Massimo's words caused Alexander to glare at him fiercely.

What are you thinking, do you think you will use Cantrella too, and still on your own father-in-law?

Alexander looked at Massimo with some anger, and then suddenly had an urge to ask the monk if he had heard some rumors such as "Poison Duke Gombray" outside.

"I mean, with your current capital, even if the current pope is called, you don't have the opportunity to sit on that throne for a while, so what you have to do now is to make yourself a person of high morality, a person who is completely different from the current decay and depravity, and can let everyone see the shadow of new hope and new atmosphere, believe me that the Vatican has indeed fallen for too long, and people are already tired of this phenomenon without any morality and bottom, So the Holy See will consider electing someone who is at least less depraved as a hope to reshape the image of the Church, but this kind of thing is not achieved overnight, so all you have to do now is to establish your charismatic side as a new upstart of the Holy See. ”

"What should I do?" Mahimo asked with some excitement, "I know that a priest should be willing to be poor, because God tells us that wealth causes the devil in people's hearts, and ......"

"That's enough, you don't need that," Alexander interrupted Massimo, who was about to talk, "I've got something for you here, you can look at it, and believe me maybe you will become the most special pope in the history of the Vatican Church in the future." ”

Somewhat ignorant, Massimo took the thick stack of manuscripts that Alexander handed him, and looked at the title of the "General Theses" on the cover, and his face could not help but be confused.