Cairo. Ducal Palace.

In the city of Cairo, there is a group of tall and magnificent buildings, which are the original Egyptian royal palaces. Today, Egypt has become a vassal state of the Byzantine Empire, and the title of king has been revoked and demoted to duke, so the royal palace has become a ducal palace.

In a richly decorated room, on a rattan chair from the Tang Dynasty in the East, sat a young woman in her early twenties, with a delicate face of mixed Eurasian descent, large black eyes, and long eyelashes slightly curled. She is tall, at least 1.72 meters above her by current standards, with slender limbs and a slightly wild charm. Her name is Kent Tanka, and she is the original Egyptian princess.

At this moment, she was half-leaning and half-leaning on the chair, with her eyes closed, with a lazy demeanor, kneeling at her feet a maid and two palace maids, she stretched out a delicate jade foot and stepped on the back of the chamberlain, and a palace maid was holding a makeup case and carefully drawing a golden flower on her white instep.

At this time, a court maid came in and reported: "Your Royal Highness Princess, Marquis Huni (a Byzantine title of nobility, in addition to the emperor, there are archdukes, dukes, marquises, viscounts and barons)

Ask to see. ”

Kent Tanka raised his head and said, "Let him in, you guys go down first." ”

Soon after, a tall, aristocratic young man walked in.

He was Huni, the eldest son of the former Prime Minister of Egypt. Huney and Kent Tanka are lovers and have been in love with each other for more than three years. When Huni saw Kent Tanka, he hurriedly said, "Kent Tanka, you can't marry that person."

Kent Tanka said lightly: "What else can I do? He's the emperor, can I resist? ”

It turned out that the Byzantine Emperor Constans II saw Kent Tanka at a recent gathering and was immediately fascinated by her beauty, so he decided to marry her as empress.

At first, Kent Tanka also felt a little embarrassed because of her love affair with Huney, but when she thought that she would become queen in the future, she thought that her relationship with Huni was no longer important.

The political system of Byzantium, unlike other countries in the European region at that time, was a feudal monarchy, more like the system of the Tang Dynasty in the East. The power of the emperor is extremely great, he is not only the emperor but also the highest consul, the commander of the army and the first official, and the supreme power of the country is concentrated in him. Byzantium practiced monogamy, and if Kent Tanka could become the empress, that is, the only woman of His Majesty the Emperor, the status was extremely respectable.

If she can become the queen, she will not only gain a respected status, but also save the fate of her entire family. What is even more attractive is that the current emperor is very young, only two years older than himself, and he is handsome, tall, and mighty, which is very attractive. Compared to this, Huney pales in comparison, and the former love affair between her and Huni is insignificant. Kent Tanka looked at the man in front of her, feeling a little uneasy in her heart, and even disgusted with him, she didn't want to affect her great future because of his relationship.

Huni said: "He is the emperor, and he can't break us up, I will definitely come up with a solution." ”

Kent Tanka said: "I advise you to give up, he is the emperor after all, and angering him will bring death to you and your family." At this moment, Kent Tanka was already a little impatient, his tone became more and more cold, and there was a hint of threat in his words.

Looking at the lover who had spent countless times with him and swore to the sea, Huni felt dazed and heartbroken. He said, "Kent Tanka, how can you do this? Do you remember our old alliance? I want to ......"

Kent Tanka became a little irritated when he saw him like this, and Huney's face, which she once looked handsome, was now a little out of shape in her eyes. She didn't want to entangle with him anymore, if this matter reached the ears of His Majesty the Emperor, it would not only ruin her future, but also probably ruin the lives of her family.

Kent Tanka decisively interrupted him and said, "All right! The matter between us is in the past, and we will not mention it again in the future. From now on, there will be no more contact between us, and you should not do anything foolish, otherwise it will not only harm you, but also your family. Okay, so be it. Someone, send off. ”

Huney was stunned. At the urging of his chamberlain, he left in despair.

Soon after, Constans II married Kent Tanka and made her empress of the Byzantine Empire.

The first thing Kent Tanka did when he became queen was to send the Huni family to an island in Crimea and keep them under strict watch to prevent them from appearing in Constantinople.

Kent Tanka was not only beautiful but also intelligent, but also had a kind of bewitching charm that other women did not have, and it didn't take long to conquer Constans II, who was extremely fond of her.

Kent Tanka is very scheming and has a strong desire for power, which is very similar to Wu Zetian in history. In many government affairs, he was also able to help Constans II with advice, Constans II actually obeyed her, and Kent Tanka gradually began to participate in court politics.

Kent Tanka loves luxurious things, especially Tang Dynasty items, silky silks, exquisite Tang Dynasty handicrafts, crystal clear glassware, etc., and can't put them down.

Now that Kent Tanka's status has gradually become apparent in the Byzantine court, many ministers have begun to turn their attention to Kent Tanka, trying their best to slap her up, hoping to achieve their goals through her.

The administration of Byzantium was divided into four regions, and within the Constantinople region was the municipality of Constantinople, and the mayor, Marquis Marcel, was a very shrewd figure, who was good at figuring out what he wanted. He soon discovered the influence of the current Empress on His Majesty the Emperor, and he tried to find a way to get along with Kent Tanka. Through observation and inquiry, he learned that Kent Tanka liked the goods of the Tang Dynasty, so he did everything possible to search for her.

On this day, the tax collector reported to him the good news that a new shipment had arrived from the trading company of the Tang Dynasty, which contained many fine silks and valuable handicrafts, as well as perfumes with a distinctive smell.

At this time, the sea route had not yet been opened, and the number of Tang Dynasty goods that could be transported by land was very limited, and after being transported to Constantinople, it would not take long to be snapped up.

So the mayor, Marquis Marcel, got the idea for this shipment.

He said, "Don't give them tax returns yet, you know what to do next, right?" ”8)