The meeting place of the sons of the Colonna family and the Gatis is in the Champ de Mars, behind them is the magnificent Temple of the God of War, this ancient Roman building originally belonged to the Orsini family, but now the Orsini family has been expelled from Rome, at least a century will not be possible again, so this place that does not know how much blood has been shed by the Orsini family and the children of the Colonna family is naturally occupied by the Colonna family.

"I'd love to," said Cosimo Jr., "but I have a mission for today," he gestured to the new faces around him, "I'm going to take them to see the new Catholic college." ”

At the mention of the Catholic Academy, compared to Suleiman's enthusiasm, the children of the Colonna family suddenly showed a little pain, who let their parents have already taken over Julio. The Medici had invited them to go to college, and they had heard that the new Catholic college was not the same school that their elders and brothers had attended—to be exact, a university, a prison.

The university was rebuilt from the original Orsini Castle of Descalchi, located in the small town of Bracciano, about 60 miles from Rome, it was originally only a fortress to resist the Saxons, and was later chosen by the Orsini family as an official residence, and when the power of Alexander VI covered the whole of Rome, the Orsini family, who had been enemies of this terrible beast, had to sacrifice this fortress as a gift, and after the Borgia family got it, they further renovated and decorated it. Make it safe and comfortable.

But it's worth the irony that in Caesar. When Borgia was unsuccessful, it had not yet been repaired, and by the time the work was finished, the Borgias had been driven out of Rome, and the Orsini family had recaptured Bracciano, but they did not find much comfort here - Julius II's strange temperament made it difficult for them to sleep even in Rome, let alone leave Rome and go to Bracciano.

When Leo X ascended the throne, the Orsini family made it the king's residence in a deal with King Louis XII of France, and Louis XII was captured in Rome, and it was turned into a ready-made prison where some important generals and hostages were held.

With the negotiations over and the ransom in place, the ornate fortress was given directly to his brother Giulio by Pope Leo X. Cardinal Medici, Giulio would hardly leave Rome and did not want to see this important hub fall into ruin - after all, the presence of the Orsini and Borgia families still made Bracciano quite prosperous, so after personally surveying the place, he decided to expand the surrounding territory and transform it into a Catholic college, a new university.

The town of Bracciano originally had walls, and the Orsini Castle originally had it. The Medici ordered them to build neat rows of small gray-and-white squares outside the castle for the students to stay in, and to erect new walls outside the castle, so high that even escalators could not climb over, and the gates were opened and closed like those of a monastery - with the same strict supervision by the monks, and without the signature of the professors, the students were not allowed to leave the university at all, that is, as before, the good old days of the university students wandering around in their spare time, and having fun were gone!

This is the most painful thing for young people, is there any woman in the university today, from professors to students, all of them are men, what is the difference between this and a monastery? What made them even more sad was that after their parents were invited to come to "try out" for a while, they actually felt that this place could not be better for their children.

But the lamentation of most of the students is only superficial, unless they are really the kind of waste that cannot live without prostitution, gambling and alcoholism – but how can this waste be chosen to be sent to this sacred temple of knowledge? Don't say anything else, Giulio. The Medici was one of the professors here, and the prestigious scholars who had been invited by Leo X also taught here, and the courses here included not only all the content of the previous universities, but also many new courses that people had never heard of, and their classmates, who were either nobles or family members, or students who had risen all the way from the junior courses offered by the Monks of Mercy, who may not have a prominent background, but who had a very bright future, as it has long been proven.

The facilities here are far more than any other town. Although the small building of the student dormitory is barren to the point of no decoration, it has large windows with black iron bars inlaid with small pieces of transparent glass, so that each room is bright and clean, and the room has a separate bathroom, and a chair-like toilet, and a ceramic bucket underneath, and a pipe to drain the filth, so that the servants do not need to ask to flush it, just press the water valve and let the accumulated water flow wash them away.

Curious, Suleiman pressed the valve repeatedly until the tank was empty, "Your craftsman is so weird, how could he have thought of it...... Do something like this come out? ”

Hmmm...... Indeed, although people have to face this embarrassment every day, it is precisely because it is so embarrassing that no one cares too much about it, even the king, the emperor and the pope, they have to bear the inconvenience, just like the equipment that they had to use before the pope took office—an armchair with a hole in the chair top, with a commode underneath, and let the servants take it away when they were done.

Of course, for those who don't pay attention to etiquette or don't have the conditions, a dark corner, a pile of hay, and a dirt pit are the best toilets.

Even if he didn't have a habit of cleanliness, in order to avoid the perpetual stench of the streets, the infestation of rats, and the plague, whenever possible, this most frustrating and uncomfortable problem was always the first to be solved by Giulio.

During the renovation of the city of Rome, Giulio had already dredged and repurposed the original sewer pipes, while the university town of Bracciano, as a new town, had a sewer system from the beginning, like Cadiz before it.

"Just some old examples from the ancient Romans." This is how Giulio explained to him, Cosimo Jr., that the ancient Romans had similar toilets long ago, and that the water they used to flush was drawn from rivers or lakes.

Giulio also invoked the wisdom of the ancient Romans to use drinking canals to bring the water of the lake to the school, but for the time being, such water could only be used for washing, not directly drinking.

However, there is a clever fireplace in every room, which can be used to heat the house in the winter and boil water, but it is conceivable that future students will make good use of this precious heat.

Each room can accommodate two to four people, and the corridor outside the room is long and wide, which is designed to suit the current situation, after all, students in a few hundred years will not be traveling with daggers and daggers - too narrow passageways will make them nervous and uneasy for each other.

There are also several flat and open courtyards, as well as streams, lakes, hills, and woods for teachers and students to practice martial arts, horseback riding, and swimming, so that the energetic young people will not be bored and will not disturb the peaceful life of the townspeople of Bracciano.

Suleiman and Ibrahim would initially ask questions or try something new, but later they became more and more silent.

At Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, where the best of the blood tribute were selected to study and train with the Sultan's sons, and thousands of servants and eunuchs served them, can what they see now replicate in Topkapi Palace?

Of course, even if it is not in Istanbul, but in Kaffa or Massala, Edirne, where Suleiman was ordained, it is possible.

But what about the whole of Ottoman Turkey? It is impossible, not because of the lack of materials or manpower, but because neither the Sultan nor his big and small viziers will have such consciousness and courage.

Suleiman would not have been naïve enough to think that the sage, who had been so much eyed by his wise father, would be content with such a school—every minute detail shows how meticulous and careful the people who designed it, and the reason why a man who holds most of Christchurch would spend so much energy and time on such an academy is because it was the first specimen.

It is conceivable that when the academy has established an unshakable position between the secular and the sacred, its brotherhood will emerge like a new leaf in early spring, like the seeds that the Monks of Mercy will sow.

"Maybe you'll feel remorse, father." Suleiman whispered: "I never did anything to keep him in Istanbul." ”

Ibrahim heard him and couldn't help but glance warily at Cosimo Jr., who was just a few paces ahead of them. The Medici was slightly relieved when he saw that he was staring at a cluster of holly with small red fruits in the distance—a few mischievous fat were vying to peck at the fruits.

Suleiman and Ibrahim did not know that the Sultan of Selim had already tried, if it were not for Julio. The Medici had outstanding skills, thoughtful thinking and irreversible bottom lines, and the current Ottoman Turkey has become a hell on earth.

The academy was not yet fully completed, but it took the three of them nearly half a day, and at dusk, they tasted fresh sea bass and baked potatoes in the small town of Bracciano - the Romans are now very accustomed to eating potatoes, and since the bishops and popes of the church are very fond of this food, the so-called "devil beans" are no longer mentioned, and people gradually discover that this kind of thing can be boiled, roasted, stewed or fried, can be used as a staple food or as a dish, is still very good.

As people seldom travel in the dark, they stayed in the town for one night, then walked from Bracciano to Rome, where they met a group of people on the same avenue that Louis XII had walked.

At first, Cosimo Jr. did not notice the group, although they were neatly armored and ornately cloaked, such people were really common in Rome, but Ibrahim, who had always been cautious, caught a pinprick-like glimpse.

He whispered a reminder to his master, but when Suleiman looked back, he saw that the other man was not paying attention to him, and by the time Cosimo Jr. turned his head, the man had already withdrawn his gaze.

The people surrounded by several knights inexplicably made little Cosimo feel a little familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen it, like someone who had slashed through a steel shield with a spike, so subtle that he couldn't see it without paying attention, but from a certain angle, it was profound and amazing.

They walked silently for a long time, and when they came to the St. Paul's Gate, the knight at the head of the knight went forward, and followed the eyes of Julio. It was only when the Medici law was registered that little Cosimo finally remembered.

The man was Charles of Austria, the eldest son of Philip and now Queen Juana of the Holy Roman Empire, who had plotted a rebellion to overthrow his mother's rule, and had absconded to the Holy Roman Empire, where he was exiled to the Low Countries by Maximilian I, where he was regent by his aunt, Margaret of Austria.

Cosimo Jr. had heard Duarte mention that Giulio and the Medici had asked Juana I to make Prince Ferdinand, Charles' younger brother, his student, Cosimo Jr.'s close friend and classmate, the new crown prince, and Juana I had agreed, which was probably a big blow to such an arrogant teenager, after all, every child once thought that their parents would always forgive themselves forever and unconditionally.

Charlie had already recognized Cosimo Jr. when they met. The Medici, they had fought when they were five or six years old, and even though little Cosimo's face had been blurred for more than a decade, the green eyes burning with anger always had a place in Charlie's memory with heavy fists, and he had met many beautiful women at court, some of whom had green eyes, but none of them had the pure and intense color of an emerald like little Cosimo.

The guards around Cosimo Jr. also remembered the name, and they subconsciously moved towards their master, Charlie just smiled bitterly, he was no longer a child, and the blows from his mother, grandfather and aunt came one after another, and even Cardinal Sisneros, the teacher he thought he could trust and rely on, quickly threw himself into contact with the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, and later with the King of France, Louis XII, but he did not get any good, a remote and poor convent was already the best home he could get.

"It's time for us to go into town." Cardinal Bouense down and whispered to remind his students that Charlie was not the kind of child who was too smart to like, but after all his ordeal, he no longer had those annoying edges and corners in him – and neither could he have them, because no one would care about him, but it was because of this that Boons was able to become his confidant.

————————

When Julio learned that Charles of Austria had also come to Rome, he couldn't help but laugh a little, and couldn't help but think of a popular joke hundreds of years later - now there are kings of England, kings and princes of France, the first heir of the Holy Roman Empire, the crown prince of Spain, and the son of the Ottoman Turkish Sultan gathered in Rome, and if a meteorite falls here at this time, then the whole world will be in turmoil.

But he only thought so, and after dinner, Leo X gave him the task of summoning all the cardinals (except those who were bound to be dismissed and dead) to Rome by the next Feast of Dedication, February 2, and he would have an incomparably important announcement to them.

vertex