Rondoba Barbarig looked at Venice in front of him and declared God.

He knew every letter and word on it, and his excellent education over the years had taught him rhetoric in addition to fighting.

But the content of this proclamation now became a difficult problem for him to understand.

Rondoba Barbareg looked up at the member of the House of Lords who looked dusty and obviously suffered a lot along the way, his purple gold-trimmed robe that was originally a symbol of his status was stained, and a pair of boots on his feet were also tattered, which showed that he had a hard time catching up all the way.

But that's not really what impressed him.

Jean Rondoba Barbarig did not suspect that the declaration was not a forgery, but the identity of the person.

This man was a friend of his uncle Barbareg the Elder, and Rondoba Barbareg had reason to believe that if even this man betrayed, then the Barbareg family would have come to an end.

But because of this, he couldn't understand what the people in the Doge's palace were thinking.

"Why?" "Are the Venetians willing to watch the French take over Milan and then let them put their tentacles in front of our eyes?" ”

The councillor looked at the indignant little Babareg and shook his head with some emotion: "You look a lot like your uncle now when he was younger, but by that time he had learned to see things with his brain instead of his eyes. ”

Rondoba Barbareg glanced at the councillor disapprovingly, he knew that the other party was accusing him of impulsiveness, but he also had a reason to do so.

Although they are all members of the Barbareg family and have high expectations, Rondoba knows that he is not an uncle, and he cannot be an uncle.

Although it has only been a few short years, the situation already feels as if everything has changed.

The rise of Rome-Thesia, the unification of Sicily, and the deterioration of Venice's position in the Mediterranean due to the threat of the Ottomans.

Rondoba felt that his uncle's style was obviously no longer suitable for the current situation, and more importantly, he obviously did not have the prestige and influence that the old Barbareg had accumulated over the years, so he had to make enough achievements if he wanted the Venetians to recognize his role and status as soon as possible.

Leading the Venetian army against the French invasion of Lombardy was definitely an opportunity that would allow him to quickly gain great prestige in Venice.

And whether out of the eyes of a soldier or a strategist, Londoba Barbareg believed that uniting Austria against the French would at least be more beneficial than disadvantageous to the Venetians.

Rondoca didn't look too far, but at least he didn't want the day when he became Doge of Venice and see the French flag fluttering on his doorstep as soon as he stepped out of the water city.

Securing control of the traditional Veneto region, and thus exerting influence on Lombardy, was a long-term strategy that successive Venetian governors had adhered to.

For this reason, his uncle Barbarig the Elder even temporarily abandoned the contradictions with Milan and the Vatican, and temporarily united with these two long-time rivals against the French.

But now, the old men in Venice told him to give up intervening in Lombardy, much to the unacceptable of Rondoba Barbarige.

"My dear Londoba, you know that your uncle has always had great hopes for you," the councillor reluctantly admonished, "in fact he hopes much more from you than you think, and he thinks that you will become a greater Doge of Venice than he is, but until then he is worried that you may be hurt by your character." ”

The councillor's words made Rondoba sober up a little, his uncle was the person he admired the most, and the person who knew him best, and although he felt that he could not become old Barbaregg, he did not prevent him from listening to the advice and criticism of his uncle or his good friends.

Seeing that little Barbareg gradually calmed down, the councillor smiled with relief, he knew that the person who could be valued by the old Barbareg could not be so impulsive and superficial, even if he had been with those soldiers for many years, but he was still a cunning Barbareg family in his bones.

"Doge, I mean our new Doge Rowlet," explained the councillor a little to accommodate Londoba's mood, "Leonardo Rowlet is a pure politician, and he wants to secure his position by currying favor with the Venetians, but you must admit that he has been very successful in this way, and now Venice is like a terminally ill patient, and many people do not want to hear the truth because of fear. ”

"So he painted an absurd picture of those people full of beautiful dreams?" Little Babarig asked coldly.

"But it's not bad," the councillor glared at little Barbaregg, "what Venice needs now is not a hero, but an actor who can maintain their present decent appearance, and Leonardo Rowlet is such a person, you must admit that he has done a good job at least so far." ”

"But what about Milan, and the whole of Lombardy?" "The French will stay here for a long time, until one day they are not satisfied with the occupation, and then they will announce the direct annexation of Lombardy to France." ”

"No," the councillor smiled, thinking that this time could teach the arrogant little Babarig a little lesson, "the emperor will not allow this to happen, you will find that this war will go on for a long time, and it may even consume the already extremely powerful national strength of the two countries." ”

Londoca opened his mouth to say something, but was stopped by the councillor raising his hand to continue: "And do you think that Rome Thesia would like to see both France and Austria occupy Lombardy and Milan for a long time, why don't you want to think about what the Duke of Rome Thecia has done so far, knowing that he has not always maintained the delicate balance of Lombardy, whether in alliance with France or against Austria?" ”

"You mean that the Duke of Rome Thesia has been coveting Lombardy?"

The councillor noticed that Rondoba's tone was more like an answer than a question, and he smiled with relief and looked at Rondoba's eyes with appreciation.

"The Duke is very young, and if nothing else, he will have a firm grip on the vast land from Parma to Naples, including Rome," the councillor looked at Barbareg the Younger, "and if you look back closely, you will find that he has accomplished this incredible miracle by a dizzying array of means, and now his eyes are set on the throne of Castile. ”

Rondoba Barbareg took a deep breath, and it was only then that he really felt the tremendous pressure from the Duke of Thesia.

"Now it seems that both your uncle and Leonardo Rollette are actually old," the councillor sighed softly, "everything is so fast, it seems that everything has changed, but you are still young Londoba, you will become the Doge of Venice in the future, whether you become an opponent or a friend, you will have a long deal with him, so don't worry, it will be a long time before it belongs to you." ”

Listening to the words of the councillor, little Babareg looked down at the proclamation in his hand again, and then he carefully put the proclamation away, and then said to the councillor seriously: "I will obey the orders of Venice, and now order the cessation of the truce, and tomorrow I will send an envoy to the Roman Tescian army to discuss with the Gompati the detailed steps for a formal truce between the two sides." ”

The councillor stood up and exhaled softly, and it was only then that his nervous mood relaxed.

In mid-August, the state of war between Rome-Thescia was lifted with the signing of their respective names on the Po Armistice by Gompati, commander of the Roman Thescia front, and Rondoba Barbaregge, commander of the Venetian expeditionary force.

Subsequently, the two sides sent the armistice back to their respective countries for approval by their respective courts and governments, so that an armistice agreement could be formally signed by both countries.

It's a simple process, but it does involve the hearts of too many people.

So much so that Leonardo Lorette, the governor of Venice, paused several times to make various promises and impromptu speeches when signing, until he received the warm applause of all the nobles and representatives of the Chamber of Commerce present, and then he signed his name on the armistice very steadily.

It is said that for this solemn ceremony, several famous painters were hired, intending to record this precious moment on the canvas forever.

But among these famous painters, there was a little boy who was an apprentice running around, and because he always liked to wander among the ladies and ladies, he almost ruined the sacred and solemn atmosphere.

This little boy is said to be called Titian.

In Montina, the signing ceremony was outrageously simple.

In the vault, the desertion of only a few people involved was in stark contrast to the bustle of the Doge's Palace in Venice, and if it weren't for the fact that the commander of the Eastern Army, Offrey, happened to come back to report on his work, this signing ceremony could really only be described as shabby.

And compared with the excitement when Rowlett signed, Barondi's expression was too perfunctory.

She picked up an ordinary quill, dipped it in ink, and quickly signed her name on the agreement, and then asked the seal keeper waiting next to her to bake the seal oil for her, and then picked up the heavy seal and pressed it on it with a "snap".

Then she threw aside the pen of peace, which Rowlett described as "the one that ended a war and saved countless lives."

"Remember, my lords, this is an armistice," Barendi said to a few of the people standing at the table, and she repeated in a slightly accentuated tone, "and it's just an armistice." ”

The Duchess's words moved the hearts of everyone present, and they also noticed the maps spread out on the slightly messy table, including Lombardy and the Trentino region further north on the border with Austria.

The Po Treaty, which Barentia called "just an armistice", became the end to the state of war between Rome-Thescia and Venice, and one of the changes brought about by this contract was that as the Eastern Legion ceased fighting and moved to semi-permanent camping, Ofleiil handed over his command to Gompati and then returned to Montina.

For the surrender of command, Ofleiyi did not feel sorry.

In Alexandria's officer system, Gompati and Ofleiyi are two very special examples.

One of these two men can be Alexander's right-hand man, while the other is good at handling the planning and coordination of the entire army, acting as Alexander's army commander.

This kind of internal and external expertise made the two of them indispensable helpers by Alexander's side.

This made them the most important figure in the Roman army after Alexander, both in terms of prestige.

And because they are different in their respective strengths, this avoids the contradictions caused by direct competition to a large extent.

Even so, there was still a greater or lesser gap between the two, because although they were awarded the command staff on the same day, they still had a status that had been gradually asserted by a sequence.

In fact, when he first entered Alexander's army, Ofleiyi never thought that one day he could have his current status, so when he received the golden-handled command staff representing majesty and status from Alexander, Oflei, who seemed to be calm at the time, asked his wife all night after returning home, "Is this true?"

As for the rivalry and contradictions between him and Gompati, Ofleiyi was well aware that this might be what Alexander was happy to see.

So when the command was handed over with the debriefing, Oflaiyi was somewhat relieved.

He didn't want to see too much tension in the relationship due to the rivalry between the two, and Ofleiyi knew very well that he was not good at front-line command, and that he had been carefully expending more energy on the Eastern Front than he had been preparing for the entire war before.

But what he didn't expect was that after listening to his debriefing, Barendi told him another unexpected news.

"Your Highness wants me to go to Castile?" Offrey asked in surprise.

"Yes, Alexander has written." Barendi did not notice the smile on Alexander's otherwise flat face when she spoke of Alexander's letter: "He wants you to go to Castile as soon as the war with Venice is over, and he needs your help." ”

Oflaiyi was surprised, but more excited.

When Alexander officially claimed the throne in Castile, even though he already knew about it, the people around him were still excited.

As one of the oldest kingdoms in Europe, Castile became the guardian and holy kingdom of the continent in the eyes of many because of its perennial war with the Moors.

This is also the reason why Isabella can be ambitious and try to compete with the Vatican, and to be able to be canonized in Castile, which is an extremely honorable thing for many European nobles.

And for an upstart like Oflaiyi, he didn't even dare to think that such a good thing could fall on his head.

So when Alexander declared Castile, the roman-tertesians were extremely excited, but Ofleier never imagined that he would be able to go to Castile so soon.

"The Duke wants you to help him build a new army in Castile as soon as possible," Barondi frowned slightly, and although she tried to keep her tone as calm as possible, she inadvertently showed a little indifference, "I think you should know that the Queen of Sicily is in Castile right now, but she can't be counted on in this matter." ”

Oflaiyi nodded wisely.

As the chief of staff of the Roman Tescian army, he must be loyal to the duchess as well as the duchess, and his wife Ashley is the female officer next to the duchess, and his father-in-law Pomperny is now the director of works in Montina, so he belongs to the duchess's faction both in public and private, which makes him and the Queen of Sicily have to keep their due distance.

"Alexander needs a helper," Barondi said with a little trepidation, Alexander had been gone for a long time, and he only left with so few people, which made Barendi very worried about how he spent all this time in Castile, "You are the duke's most trusted subordinate, I hope you can shoulder this heavy responsibility." ”

"Madame." Offrey bowed and nodded, the gold-handled command staff in his hand clenched tightly.

"Okay, go see Ashley, you're probably going to be separated for a long time."

Barendi smiled at Offrey, and looking at the back of the young officer leaving, Barendi walked to the table and took out a surprisingly thick letter from a drawer.

Alexander had sent it not long ago, and each time his letters were written more like a book, and in addition to detailing his inferences and strategies for the present in Italy, France, and Austria, a great deal of it was more about his wife's longing.

Barendi actually knew that he must have written such a letter to Lucrezia, and even because of the geographical advantage, the woman would have received the letter before her.

But Barendi decided to selectively ignore the unpleasant details.

Now she was the hostess of Montina's castle, not the Pope's daughter or some pesky wild girl, and even Josa, the Queen of Sicily, would never have the opportunity to sit openly behind this table in the vault.

That's enough.

For Barendi, as long as she wins in the end, she can be generous and don't care about the rest.

And Alexander's letter also made her extremely excited.

For in this letter, Alexander revealed for the first time his intention to ask her to go to Castile.

"I'm about to set off for Barriaridud, this meeting is a very difficult trip, I have considered the worst possible outcome, but please rest assured that I will not risk myself, if the situation is not good, I will choose to retreat wisely rather than blindly rush to the giants, so please don't worry about me......"

When she saw this, Barendi was still very nervous, although she knew that Alexander never did anything that she was not sure about, but she could not relax at ease because of the distance between the far corners of Europe and almost the entire Mediterranean.

As if he had a premonition at the time of writing the letter that this would cause his wife uneasy, Alexander wrote in the following letter:

"I think if the time comes, I may consider having you come to Barriaridod, knowing that I want my wife to be on my right side when I put on the crown, and I must confess that I have not received solace from you for a long time, so rest assured that I will make things better for all of us, even for the sake of enjoying your tenderness with peace of mind."

Such a letter of gathering edict, family letter, and love letter finally eased Barondi's originally worried mood a little, and she also knew that Alexander would consider letting her go to Castile, which showed that he was still very sure of the situation.

A trace of unconcealable excitement surged from her heart, a queen, this is something that Barendi never expected at the beginning.

If becoming the Duchess of Rome Thesia had made her proud of choosing Alexandria, now Barente even felt that she could proudly stand in front of old Rovere and tell him, "Father, I want to have more vision than you."

However, what really focused Barondi's attention in this letter was not the fact that she might soon become Queen of Castile, but a passage that Alexander deliberately marked with obvious traces.

"Peace talks with the Venetians are necessary, because we must maintain a sufficient reserve of forces to devote to more important directions, so here I suggest that you consider organizing new legions, because although we will not intervene in the Lombard dispute in the near future, we may soon be able to use these forces."