As Marlin expected, the two barons and five knights of the land on the east bank of the Rhine in the Duchy of Cleaver finally agreed to Marin's acquisition.

However, in exchange for their consent, Marin also made a ruthless blood. For example, the acquisition of castles and other real estate that these seven nobles could not take away, Marin spent a huge price.

Originally, those castles and houses were all old buildings, and they should be disposed of according to the price of old houses. But now it was Marin begging them. So, they offered to let Marin buy it at the price of a new building......

But at this point, Marin will have to pay an extra 10,000 or 20,000 gold coins. But they had a good reason for doing so – they were able to build similar structures on the new fiefdoms only if they had the money to build these castles and houses. After all, being a baron and a knight also has to be pompous. Buildings such as castles and knights' estates (estates with simple defensive functions) are also a must.

If Marin had bought their real estate at market value and depreciated amount, they might not have enough money to build a home in their new fiefdom. After all, in this era, the finances of the aristocracy were generally poor. Moreover, now it is Marin begging them to buy this land, and it is reasonable to ask for more price.

In addition, in order to quickly gain a foothold in the new territory, these 7 nobles also took away some of the people of the original manor. These people were all thugs trained by these seven nobles in the past, and they were militia private troops who maintained the rule of the aristocracy. When they arrived in a new place, if there were no thugs to follow, these nobles would not be at ease. Marin agreed.

……

After settling the side of the Duchy of Cleaver, the next step is to contact Conrad, Bishop of Münster. In addition, a letter was sent to the Pope's father-in-law, Julius II, asking him to cooperate in the transfer of several abbots from the western region of South Münster. In addition, in order to do this, it is necessary to bribe Bishop Conrad......

But there is no rush in this matter, because no matter when the agreement is reached, it will not be delivered until after the autumn harvest is over. After all, it is impossible for people to cheapen the grain they grow in the spring.

Therefore, Marin is not in a hurry to rush the land delivery now. At present, his most important thing is to go to Worms to attend the Imperial Conference with John II, Duke of Cliffor.

……

Of course, Marin was not in a hurry to go to the Imperial Diet and swear to the princes' forgiveness. His main purpose was to get the princes to support him in annexing the Recklinghausen region.

Despite the agreement between Marin and the Archbishopric of Cologne, Lord Otto III, who controlled Gomen and Schaumburg in the Recklinghausen region, was not willing to lose Recklinghausen, a place larger than his own.

Therefore, while Marin is seeking to exchange territories with the Duchy of Berg and the Duchy of Cleaver, this buddy is also colluding with the princes, wanting to refuse Marin's forcible acquisition of the Recklinghausen region. His reason was to accept the redemption of Recklinghausen by the Archdiocese of Cologne itself, but not to agree with the acquisition of the Recklinghausen area by Marin, a third party. His views were supported by many princes. Therefore, Marin needs to make a fight at this meeting.

But Marin had been prepared for it, and he decided that if the princes did not agree with him to buy Recklinghausen, then he would not swear not to send troops to help the Habsburgs. Only if the Imperial Diet agreed to his annexation of Recklinghausen would he swear in public and put it on paper.

……

After arriving in Worms, Marin went to visit Maximilian I, who was in attendance. His Majesty the Emperor sighed with emotion, and he also knew that this time Marin was forced. However, he really hoped that Marin would send troops to help him.

However, this is the state of the HRE - the emperor is only a great prince, and he cannot influence the will of the other princes......

Although the Habsburgs also recruited a group of princes such as the Swabian League to support him, unfortunately, his allies were too weak in combat. Earlier, the state of Zurich, a small Swiss confederation, had beaten the princes of the Swabian Confederation to the ground. Counting on these weak chicken allies, there is really no certainty.

Marin's combat effectiveness is very strong, but unfortunately, Marin is far away from the North Sea, too far away from Austria in the south. Moreover, because its combat effectiveness is too strong, it has already caused strong uneasiness among the princes. For this reason, Marin has been threatened several times by the princes.

The main theme of this conference, for example, was that most of the German princes united and threatened Marin with an oath not to support his unification of Germany...... Paralyzed, the emperor himself has come to the meeting, are you doing this, aren't you slapping me in the face?

However, Maximilian I was also helpless. Although the Holy Roman Empire wore the ornate cloak of "Roman Empire" and the prefix "sacred", in fact, the Holy Roman Empire still retained the system of chieftainships of the ancient Germanic people. The emperor can only be regarded as a great chief elected by a group of chiefs, and has no real power at all. Therefore, even if he knew that everyone was forcing Marin not to send troops to help him unify Germany, he could only stare dryly.

……

On July 30th, the annual meeting of the Imperial Council officially began. It was the Archbishop of Mainz, Jacob, who gave the opening remarks and opened the regular session.

After chatting a few more painless idle topics, the princes present all turned their eyes to Marin. Obviously, they were all waiting for Marin to swear it......

But Marin did not get their wish, only to see Marin stand up unhurriedly, take out the prepared manuscript, clear his throat, and say:

"Before you do the step you are looking forward to, allow me to announce one thing......"

"Please!" Archbishop Jacob of Mainz waved his hand.

"I have reached an agreement with the Archbishopric of Cologne, which has promised to sell the secular jurisdiction of the Recklinghausen area, which was mortgaged to Schaumburg, ...... with me"

"I'm against it! You are a forced buy, and you don't take our opinion into account at all! At this time, Otto III, Count of Schaumburg, couldn't help but stand up and interrupt Marin's words.

Marin smiled and said:

"Count Otto, I remember that the sovereignty of Recklinghausen belongs to the Archbishopric of Cologne, right? Strictly speaking, you're just a tenant in the Recklinghausen area. Who is the landlord going to sell the house to, and does the renter have the right to object? ”

Otto III was a little speechless, but he was also prepared. After composing himself, Otto III continued:

"The Recklinghausen region has been part of the Schaumburg Palton for more than 60 years, and the Archbishopric of Cologne has not been redeemed for 60 years, so Recklinghausen should belong to our Schaumburg Archbishop. You must know that according to the rules of the pawn industry, more than 60 days is a dead pawn, and the pawnshop has the right to take possession of the collateral in perpetuity. The Archbishop-State of Cologne has not redeemed Recklinghausen for 60 years, and the Recklinghausen region should have belonged to the Count of Schaumburg as a dead object......"

Otto III's statement is quite well-founded. In the general pawnbroking industry, if the pawnbroker fails to redeem the collateral within a certain period of time. Then, the pawnshop has the right to take possession of the collateral in perpetuity......

Many princes supported Otto III's view. But it was mainly the secular princes who supported Otto III. As for the religious princes, they looked to Archbishop Hermann IV of Cologne and waited for his statement.

Marin was also stunned by Otto III's words, but he didn't expect the other party to find out this reason. But Marin, after thinking about it for a while, gave a rebuttal:

"Count Otto, what you said is the pawn rule of property. And the Recklinghausen area is a territory, a sovereign territory, which cannot be easily changed. So, the rule you said doesn't apply. ”

"How do you know it doesn't apply?" Otto III, Count of Schaumburg, said with a stiff neck.

"And how do you know it applies?" Marin countered with the same routine.

"In any case, I would never agree to hand over Recklinghausen."

"It's not up to you, do you want to be a bad tenant who refuses to leave someone else's house?"

"I'm not a bad tenant, according to the rules of the pawnbroking industry, Recklinghausen is already mine."

After Otto III finished speaking, many secular princes actually expressed their support. It seems that the other party is also a little confident.

After thinking about it, Marin suddenly laughed:

"Count Otto, you said the rules of the pawnbroking industry, excuse me, what is that? Is it legal? I don't remember such a clause in the laws of the Empire......"

It is true that the legal system was not perfect in this era. The rules mentioned by Otto III are only the unspoken rules of the industry, but they have never been recognized at the legal level. There is no clear legal provision for Marin to be sure that it is illegal......

Otto III, Count of Schaumburg, was dumbfounded:

"Does this need legislation? That's how the Pawnbroking Industry Association rules......"

Marin was suddenly unhappy:

"The change of sovereignty over the territory is a major matter of the state, and it is decided by us, the great nobles. When will the people of the humble pawnbroking industry association be able to help us call the shots? Only the laws promulgated by the Empire are the only standard for us people to act. Lord Otto, please don't bring the rules between merchants to the Imperial Diet. Because, we and they are people of two worlds! ”

Marin's words, righteous words, are flawless. Many of the princes of the Habsburg faction, as well as some neutral princes, applauded Marin's statement.

Most of the princes present were proud of their status. Although the economic situation may not be good, most people think very highly of themselves. For those wealthy merchants, they envy them for being rich and look down on them at the same time. It seems that only in this way can you regain your self-confidence as a nobleman...... And Marin's speech just made them sound extremely comfortable......

At this time, Hermann IV, the Archbishop of Cologne, who had been a visitor for some time, suddenly took out a piece of parchment and said:

"This is the treaty of that year, and it is clearly written that Recklinghausen is temporarily mortgaged to the Schaumburg Count. There doesn't seem to be any evidence that the Archbishopric of Cologne sold Recklinghausen to the Count of Schaumburg......"

In the end, the dispute, because the Schaumburg side could not come up with any legal basis, had to lose this dispute......