Don Luvigo walked in a hurry in the labyrinthine corridors of the Castle of São Jorge, if there was no servant as a guide he would have been lost, in fact, in the Castle of Saint-Jorge there was indeed an embarrassing situation where foreign envoys were trapped in this labyrinth because they accidentally got lost, but more often than not, many people disappeared inexplicably after entering, and never disappeared again.

Count Don Luvigo was a Castilian diplomat in Portugal, a nobleman who Queen Isabella called "a faithful minister and reliable friend" and an emissary of Aragon, and his diplomatic mission between the two kingdoms made him the most prominent foreign nobleman in Lisbon.

Queen Maria had been under house arrest for several days, and from trying to avoid it at first to having to take the initiative to inquire about the queen, Count Don Luvigo was not having a good time.

He was worried about Maria's well-being, but at the same time he was even more worried about the changes that were taking place in Portugal.

Count Don Luvigo was keenly aware of the sudden rise in Portuguese interest in the new colonies, and as the most suitable diplomat Isabella, he noticed the importance of this change early on, and then Maria realized that maybe things were going badly.

The contradictions and rifts between the two countries caused by the Portuguese intervention in the war for the throne of Castile were not repaired much by Manuel marrying two Aragonese princesses in a row, on the contrary, Castile had been keeping a close eye on this neighbor, of course, because if the Portuguese royal family died out one day because they had no descendants, then they would have enough reason to annex this relative of theirs.

Count Don Louvigo's offer to see Maria was a decision he had to make in the face of mounting unfavorable rumors about her, and although he knew that it might trap himself and even more conspiracy theories, he could not care so much at this time.

The only thing that made the count feel somewhat comforting was that Prince Miguel was the son of Maria's sister, so it was more or less a "family matter", and it is conceivable that if the prince's mother was not from the same background in Aragon, but a princess from some other country, the situation might have been out of control.

Maria, who had lived in the new palace, had arrived at the Château de San Jorge, and although she did not like the place, it was clear that she could no longer let her decide.

Although Manuel did not give the order directly, she was placed in a more remote main building in the castle, and this almost semi-public house arrest finally made Maria realize how bad her situation was, so when she saw Count Don Luvigo, Maria was especially excited about the arrival of the faithful minister.

"They are framing me, and I don't know who is trying to pull me down from the throne, but I must not allow their plot to succeed." Maria looked very tough in front of Count Don Luvigo, her back straightened in imitation of her mother's, and her hands rested on her lower abdomen in a reserved manner, which looked very imposing.

But Count Don Luvigo still heard a hint of uneasiness in her slightly exaggerated tone.

"Your Majesty, you are not in a very good situation," Count Don Louvigo tried to comfort Maria, but after thinking about it, he decided to tell her the truth, "the Portuguese think that you have murdered...... Prince Miguel. ”

The Count paused slightly, and a hint of doubt flashed in his eyes as he looked at Mary.

After all, the temptation of the throne is too great, even if it is the child of his own sister, after all, it is better to let his child wear the crown, and Count Don Luvigo can't help but think of Queen Isabella when he looks at Maria, he knows that Maria has been deliberately imitating her mother, so in the matter of competing for the throne, is she also like Queen Isabella to her brother Enrique?

The Count, who couldn't help but feel a little confused at the thought of this, looked at Maria with some embarrassment, he knew that if Maria really did this, she would not confess to him, so this made things worse.

Sure enough, the count's expression immediately made Maria realize something, and she looked at him with some anger: "What are you hinting at, the count, you also think that I killed my sister's child?" ”

"Your Majesty, now is not the time to argue," Count Don Louvigo reluctantly reminded Maria, "you must get the king's forgiveness, I mean, whatever means you must make the king change his mind, or else the matter may turn into a catastrophe between nations." ”

Maria stared at Count Don Louvigo with blazing eyes, and after a while she asked, in a somewhat puzzled tone, "Count, this is your advice to me, to beg for my husband's forgiveness in a way that only a lowly woman can do?" Shouldn't you go to the king at once and tell him that he should know what price he will pay for treating his wife, a princess of Aragon? ”

Listening to Maria's almost questioning words, Count Don Luvigo couldn't help but feel a wave of helplessness in his heart, he knew that among all the children of the Queen, although Maria may not be the most like her, she must be the most willing to be like her, and now looking at Maria who is trying to assert his position in a tough way, Count Don Luvigo can't help but worry about what might happen next.

Count Don Luvigo had not been in the queen's presence for long, and although he was allowed to do so, he decided to leave the place as soon as possible.

The time for Prince Miguel's funeral had already been decided, but no one dared to make casual suggestions on whether the queen would attend or not.

When Count Don Luvigo saw Manuel, he saw a haggard father, and the prince's death had apparently hit Manuel so hard that he had been confined to the prince's room for hours except for office.

Seeing such a king, Count Don Luvigo felt as if something was clogging his throat, and he could not say anything to defend the queen's intercession.

It's just that he also knows that no matter how difficult it is, he must open this mouth, otherwise the situation may really seem like it can't be managed.

"Your Majesty," said Count Don Luvigo, abandoning all dignity to Manuel in an almost pleading tone, "please make sure that the Queen is allowed to attend Prince Miguel's funeral, or you know what it means, and that would be unfair to the Queen, and it would ruin her completely." ”

"Then it's fair to Miguel, is it fair to him to have a murderer show up at my son's funeral?" Manuel asked angrily.

"Your Majesty, your accusation is too severe!" Count Don Luvigo's face changed dramatically: "Please don't forget that Prince Miguel is not only Queen Maria's stepson, but also her own nephew, her sister's only child, and she is an Aragonese princess. ”

"Count, I think you have forgotten that she is my wife, and I think I have the right to say so."

Manuel's unprecedentedly tough force made Count Don Luvigo stunned, and he looked at Manuel in disbelief, not knowing for a moment what to answer.

"Please go back, Count, you should know that such a request is not right at this time," Manuel looked at Count Don Luvigo with a cold expression, and then continued without waiting for him to speak, "I hope you don't do anything that will cause misunderstanding before this matter is over, after all, Lisbon is a bit chaotic right now." ”

Manuel's undisguised threat made Count Don Luvigo a little dumbfounded, he never expected things to turn out like this, looking at Manuel with a completely unmoved look, Count Don Luvigo couldn't help but feel a pang of pain in his heart.

Manuel was right that Maria was his wife, and what was even more embarrassing was that even if he brought out Maria's status as Princess of Aragon, it seemed to be completely useless here, and Queen Isabella must have been in a dilemma in this matter, after all, it was her grandson who was killed.

Count Don Luvigo left Manuel disappointed, and he was eager to visit the Lisbon nobles, but as he walked out of the king's chambers, he soon found that everyone seemed to be avoiding him as much as possible.

Some of them made wordless demonstrations against him with hostile eyes, which made Don Luvigo feel that he was completely isolated at the Lisbon court.

Several people approached him in the distance, and Count Don Luvigo saw Don Antonio, and just as he was about to walk over, he noticed a young man who looked a little strange, but was not unrecognizable.

Looking at the oncoming Count Don Luvigo, Alexander stopped and looked at him until the Count came to him.

"Duke." Count Don Luvigo bowed slightly, and when he saw Alexander nodding in acknowledgment, he asked a little tentatively, "My lord, can I talk to you alone." ”

"Of course, Count."

Alexander smiled slightly, he greeted Don Antonio and walked towards the courtyard with Count Don Luvigo.

Count Don Luvigo was a little nervous at this time, he knew that the Duke from Rome was the son-in-law of Pope Alexander VI, which made him wonder like everyone else whether Manuel would want help from the Vatican, and the thought made him very uneasy, and for a moment his mind was only thinking about how to convince Alexander to side with him.

"I don't think I'll be of any help to you, Count," Alexander said to the Castilian nobleman, "I think you already know that I have just returned from Évora, and that the king has decided to bury Prince Miguel in the royal cemetery of Évora, which is a very painful thing for the king. ”

Count Don Luvigo could only nod silently, he knew that Alexander was right, and now Manuel was like a lion who had been completely enraged, and it was actually rare to think that he hadn't done anything too aggressive to Maria because of his anger.

Count Don Luvigo was forced to leave disappointed, but he was not in vain, and to his surprise, he learned from Alexandria that he would soon leave for Castile.

This made the Count secretly wonder in his heart whether he should send the news back to Valladód immediately, after all, the special relationship between the Duke and the Pope cannot be underestimated, and as a confidant, Don Luvigo is clear about Isabella's ambition to recreate a new holy land.

As for Maria, Count Don Luvigo felt that the only thing that could help her at this time was Queen Isabella, and probably only God.

Alexander's return made Manuel feel a little better, and he summoned him in his room without even asking Alexander to wait, which made many people feel strange, but the thought that the duke had prepared for Prince Miguel's burial as the king had instructed him to do was nothing to do.

It's just that no one thought that after seeing Alexander, Manuel immediately asked a little impatiently: "Duke, have you seen the person you want to meet?" ”

Looking at Manuel with an expectant face, Alexander secretly shook his head in his heart, he knew that Manuel's desire to get rid of the shadow of the double couple must be very strong, which can be seen from his fierce attitude towards Maria, and the historical Spain has indeed always coveted Portugal, and even launched several successful or failed annexation wars.

It's just that Manuel wouldn't have thought of who he saw, let alone that he was standing in front of him, and now he was also an "accomplice" in the murder of his son.

"Your Majesty, I have sent a message to King Louis, you know that this is very important, after all, for King Louis to agree to your request for help, it means that he may have to go to war with Castile, or maybe even earlier, with Aragon, after all, Gonzalo is now in Venice."

Manuel's expression tightened slightly, although he had made up his mind, but when he heard that he was really going to be the enemy of the double king couple, a burst of inexplicable nervousness still made him feel a little suffocated.

He walked to the corner and took a sip of the full wine glass from the table, then looked at Don Antonio who was standing aside: "We all know the outstanding contribution of Prince Enrique to the Kingdom of Portugal, he has given us a way to get rid of the shackles that have always been held, and now I have gambled everything, my crown, the throne and the fate of this country, and the next thing I want to see is that you can win in this conquest that is related to the fate of the kingdom." ”

"Long live the King." Don Antonio's excited and suppressed whisper.

Looking at the emotionally charged monarchs, Alexander couldn't help but feel a burst of inexplicable admiration for Count Mordillo in his heart.

The situation in the Iberian Peninsula changed because the fate of several people changed.

Fourteen years ahead of schedule, Portugal joined the race for the New World.