Shortly after the withdrawal of the North Sea Army and the 20,000 men of Wrenzberg, the princes of the Princes' Alliance began to discuss the withdrawal. Why? Because they don't have enough money. Also, it's December, Christmas and New Year are just around the corner, and these princes don't want to spend Christmas and New Year in Basel......

At the meeting of the princes, Frederick III said with regret:

"Since the French are unwilling to send troops, there is no point in our army staying here any longer, but it is a waste of money and food. After all, when the Habsburgs annexed Switzerland, it should be France, not us, that should be most anxious. If they are not in a hurry, why should we be in such a hurry? Let's all go back! ”

Anthony, Duke of Lorraine, said worriedly:

"But, you're gone, what should His Majesty the Emperor do if he gets angry with me?"

The Duchy of Lorraine is the initiator of the alliance of princes, and it has always been very close to France. If all the princes were gone, he was afraid that the Habsburg army would come and deal with him......

Frederick III thought for a moment and said:

"Well, most of the mercenaries will be discharged when we go back anyway. Before we return, we will select the most elite 10,000 of the more than 20,000 elite mercenaries to stay behind to help you protect the Duchy of Lorraine. These 10,000 elite mercenaries, combined with the original more than 4,000 veterans of the Duchy of Lorraine, should be enough for you to hold Nancy. If the Habsburgs really take revenge on the Duchy of Lorraine, it would be ...... for us to regather our troops and horses to come to the rescue."

"Yes...... But I can't afford to raise so many standing troops......" Anthony, Duke of Lorraine, had a bitter face.

Although the Duchy of Lorraine plays the role of Lorraine, the largest iron ore mine in Western Europe, the fiscal revenue is not bad. However, because there was no industry in Europe at this time, there was little demand for steel, even if there was an iron mine at home, Antony, Duke of Lorraine, did not have the money to support 10,000 people all the time......

Frederick III thought about it, as if the Duchy of Lorraine was indeed not too rich. So, he thought for a moment and said:

"In this way, we will secretly support you a little, and you can go to France to ask for a little, so that you can hold on for a few months before you ......"

Subsequently, the alliance of princes sent an envoy to Paris to inform the decision of the allied forces of King Louis XII of France to withdraw their troops.

Louis XII was immediately anxious - without the cooperation of the 37,000 princes, the more than 20,000 "Swiss Resistance Army" supported by him would not be able to defeat the 35,000 troops of the Habsburgs......

At this time, Charles, the former Count of Geldon, who had been in Paris for a long time, gave Louis XII an idea......

……

Charles, former Count of Geldon, escaped by boat from Gerdon and sailed downstream down the Rhine, entering the North Sea, then sailing close to the shore to the mouth of the Seine, where he successfully reached Paris.

King Louis XII of France did not treat Charlie as a loser very much, felt that he was incompetent, and did not want to deal with him. But Charlie is cunning, and because he ran early, he brought out a lot of possessions.

When he left Gelden, Charles basically emptied the treasury of Gerdon and brought out all the gold and silver of Gelden. Moreover, among the gold and silver were the dividends of the Gerdon kingdom, which had stolen the money from the North Sea Kingdom. Its total number is as high as about 300,000 gold coins. In particular, more than half of them were snatched from the North Sea Kingdom. Less than half of them actually belonged to the country of Gelldon.

Seeing that Louis XII didn't treat him very well, Charles simply sent Louis XII 150,000 gold coins, bluntly saying that he wanted to buy a fief in France and become a lord himself.

The lords of France were different from the lords of Germany, and the great lords of Germany could make their own decisions, which was equivalent to the princes. And the great lord of France is just the equivalent of the king's high-ranking horseman. Therefore, the price of the French lord was not expensive, and the bribe of 150,000 gold coins gave Charles the title of Count of Nantes.

Of course, Louis XII could not have given Charles a large city like Nantes, but only part of the countryside near Nantes as a fief. The size of its territory is a little larger than that of an ordinary barony.

However, Charlie was also satisfied. Because, he is also a count now. Although the counts of France did not have as much power as the counts of Germany, they were recognized by the whole of Europe. Although there is no benefit, there is still some face when you go out.

And after buying the title of count, Louis XII finally looked at Charlie squarely. After all, Charlie's money also made Louis XII's preparations for the Italian war a lot easier. As a result, as the new French count, Charles became a frequent visitor to the royal palace in Paris......

……

This time, after hearing the news that the princes' coalition was planning to withdraw their troops, Charles, the newly promoted Count of Nantes, who had always had more ideas, asked to see Louis XII and offered a plan-

"Your Majesty, the minister thinks that since the allied forces of the German princes are about to withdraw their troops, the mercenaries, who account for more than half of them, will definitely be disbanded afterwards. Instead, we should send someone to contact the German princes and ask them to keep those mercenaries and join the 'Swiss Resistance'. In this way, the number of the 'Swiss Resistance' will reach 30,000 or 40,000, and there is no need to worry about the 35,000 troops of the Habsburgs! ”

Listening to the advice of Count Charles, Louis XII's eyes lit up - yes, the German princes didn't need those mercenaries anyway. If the 20,000 mercenaries freed up by the princes were hired to join the Swiss Resistance, they could compete with the 35,000 Habsburg army. Even, you can have a little upper hand......

However, the Count of Durt, Louis XII's favorite, objected -

"Your Majesty, if we hire the 20,000 German mercenaries who were laid off by the German princes, we will certainly be able to withstand the offensive pressure of the Habsburgs. But, Your Majesty, have you thought about the cost? A German mercenary costs several deniers (French silver coins) per day, and 20,000 German mercenaries spend more than 100,000 deniers per day...... If His Majesty does not plan to use troops elsewhere, this cost is naturally nothing. However, His Majesty intends to use troops against the Italian region, and it will be difficult to come up with this expenditure......"

Louis XII counted carefully, and then he was a little reckless......

Each German mercenary, the daily commission, according to the price on the German side, is at least 3 pfennig per day. The commission cost of 20,000 people per day is 60,000 fennig, which is equivalent to about 1,000 gold coins. If it is a year, it will cost 365,000 gold coins......

What's more, among the 20,000 mercenaries, many cavalry and officers have more commission expenses. In this way, the annual expenditure of these 20,000 mercenaries is as high as more than 400,000 gold coins......

At present, the annual royal income of the Kingdom of France is only about 1.2 million gold coins, and if you want to hire these 20,000 German mercenaries, the annual expenditure will cost one-third of the French treasury......

So, Louis XII resolutely coaxed......

……

Seeing that the plan failed, Count Charles did not give up. After thinking about it, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he said:

"Your Majesty, the minister has a good way! This time, His Majesty can get 10,000 of the most elite warriors to help fight against the Habsburgs without spending commissions! ”

"And such a good thing?" Louis XII was somewhat unconvinced.

However, after Count Charles explained, it dawned on Louis XII......

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