Pinturico was fifty-one years old, the same age as General Gonzalo of Spain, but their professions were very different, Pinturicio was a painter, he was born in Perugia, he had great artistic talent, and he did not become arrogant and rude like many young people—he had always maintained an extraordinarily humble and docile attitude relative to his talent, so many nobles were willing to entrust him with work.

At first, he worked for a noble family in Perugia, and later a cardinal asked him to paint an altarpiece, which was appreciated and recommended by the bishop, and he began to work for Pope Sixtus IV at the time, painting frescoes on the walls and vaults of a church; Then he painted for Alexander VI a whole six rooms of religious paintings, which we mentioned earlier, in which each of the Borgias took their place; Now, he is working for Pius III again.

With the usual prudence, he brought with him some of his works, sketches, small paintings and figurines, which were held by his new disciples and assistants, a young man of no more than twenty-two years of age, with a quiet face and a rare good temper—and it was for this reason that Pinturicio chose the newcomer among his many disciples and brought him before the Pope.

Pinturicio and his assistants saluted the Pope with great respect, who had no right to meet Pius III, and certainly not to kiss his feet. But Pius III insisted that there were certain things that he had to say to these craftsmen in person, and that he could not help but be a little proud, if not for the first time, to receive this honor—he brought with him what he considered the best tempera painting of the Virgin teaching the Son to read, with a rare background of green forests and light cyan mountains, but this instead highlighted the Virgin's shawl and white face on a black background and gold, and the Son in her arms, dressed in a golden robe, and St. John, who is larger than the young Son in the lower left, who carries the cross in his arms, foreshadowing the suffering and death that Jesus will suffer in the future.

The painting of misfortune in the midst of tranquility and peace immediately moved the Pope, who took the painting and motioned for the two young men standing behind him to come and look at it—although they did not look even older than Pinturicio's new disciples, one in crimson cardinal robes, the other in fuchsia archbishoprobes, with huge golden crosses hanging from his chest, and Pinturicio looked at them and bowed his head, for he had already guessed who the two young men were. After all, rumors about Pius III, who was always following Luzifer and Michael, had long since spread throughout Rome, and they were not so new.

"I am going to have him come and help me paint the frescoes of the library of the Cathedral of Siena," said Pius III, "and there are ten scenes of my uncle Pius II—from the time he was still alive—to the Parliament of Basel, to be an ambassador to the Scottish court, to be made a poet laureate by Frederick III, to be crowned Poet Laureate by Frederick III, to be promoted to Archbishop of Siena, to be a witness to Frederick III's marriage, to call for holy war, and so on—I have seen his work for Sixtus IV and Alexander VI, In terms of precise expression, bright sets and emotional communication, he really excels. ”

Then they looked at the wooden statue of the Son brought by Pinturicho, as well as some sketches, one of which caught Giulio's attention with the theme of the Three Graces, and he picked it up and looked at it, "Do you like it?" Pius III said connivingly, "If you like it, let him draw it." Then, as if inadvertently, he said to Joshua, "Do you have a favorite?" If not, I can also have Pinturicio draw you next to St. Catherine, who was posthumously recognized by my uncle Pius II. ”

Joshua was rejoiced: "I just want to be painted by your side so that I can still serve you." ”

"Okay." Pius III said in a flat tone, "I am also willing to serve you. ”

Pinturicio looked up at them quickly, and then quickly lowered his head, and with the acuity of a painter he perceived the shadow that hung between them, but he did not know whether the young cardinal, with light hair, did not notice it, or whether he deliberately turned a blind eye.

"Do you express femininity, elegance and beauty, or radiance, courage and joy?" Giulio asked, breaking the strange atmosphere at the right time, and Pinturicio hurriedly walked up and bowed to him: "It's brilliance, courage and joy." These two theories originate from ancient Greek and Roman scholars, respectively, but since Pius III had already asked him to turn the sketch into the original draft, perhaps even on the walls of the Cathedral of Siena, it is impossible to choose the first interpretation.

"It's very moving, and hopefully it will be a piece of work that will be unforgettable."

"Thank you very much for your compliment," said Pinturicchio, bending down deeply, "My lord, I will do whatever it takes for you to do what you want." ”

"Are you going to involve this disciple of yours in this work?" Joshua asked, "Does he have any works?" ”

"He's Raphael. Sanzio," said Pinturicio, "was a very gifted young man, having previously worked with Pietro. Studying and mastering the essence of Perugino, Perugino had already completed no less than three jobs on his own before coming here, including a beautiful woodblock painting of the Assumption for the church of San Francisco in Siena, which you can start with, and there are more than twenty figures. ”

Joshua also had a great appreciation for art, and in fact, he did not have the same strong interest in these portraits, statues, etc., as the Medici, but he did not want to be weaker than Giulio in some places—but even he could not help but be fascinated by the uncolored and unpainted sketches—and even wanted to go to the Cathedral of Siena immediately to see the woodblock painting.

"You have always been credible, Pinturicchio," said Pius III, not knowing whether it was sarcasm or heartfelt "I will leave this job to you, and you can first go and get the cost of five hundred gold ducats for paints and brushes, and if you need hired workers other than disciples, you can always tell me, but I hope that this work can be done perfectly, and if anyone disturbs you, you can always tell me, and if you are short on money, it will be the same." ”

Pinturicchio thanked him again and again, after all, the painter at this time was still regarded as a lowly craftsman, and it was not uncommon to be in arrears or beat up the painter, and it was best to be able to work for such a noble person without worrying about money or being forced to do other work.

None of the helpless eyes stayed on Giulio until they went out, and perhaps this was why Michelangelo, even though he was so talented, failed to win the favor of this more noble man - they did waver, but in the end they steadied themselves and did not reveal their thoughts in front of Pius III.

After a while, Brother John came in again, and said that Cardinal Grande Lovere was waiting outside the door, and Pius III could not help but sigh and look left and right: "I thought we could stay all morning." Apparently not now, he asked Joshua and Giulio to leave first and do some of the work he had previously given him.

Giulio and Joshua had a long way to go from the Pope's signing room to their respective places of work, and all the way Giulio waited for Joshua to speak first, but until the end, he could not hear a word.

Giulio's heart suddenly became heavy, he was not sluggish, and of course he could detect Joshua's anomaly - since his return to Rome, Joshua had avoided him, hardly seeing him, except when he was with Cardinal Picromini or later Pius III.

Later, when he was almost taken to hell by Borgia's "Canterella" in order to protect the safety of the third, Joshua never appeared again, which is only two possibilities: first: Joshua did not want to see him; Two: Joshua was not allowed to see him. Either way, it's a bad sign.

Giulio didn't want to lose such a friend from childhood again, but unfortunately, it seems that this is not something he can solve.

——————

"How," Pius III asked with a smirk, "have you already made your decision?" ”

"Yes," said Cardinal Grande Lovere, "I would like to be the cardinal for salaries management. ”

"Not Joshua?"

"He's too young." Cardinal Grande Lovere said with disgust that almost all of his sons had been taken away by Pius III, but he had nothing to do about it - the position of the cardinal in the management of salaries was very important, and the cardinal who held this position was the first to be summoned by the Pope every day - because the Salaries Administration was originally the department that drafted and issued the edicts for the Pope, and if Joshua was to do it, it would indeed help him to go further, but the Great Lovere may not be able to get any information about Pius III from his mouth at all, in this case, he would rather do it himself- He always wanted Joshua to be pope anyway.

Especially at a time when Pius III almost single-mindedly presented his disciples, not Joshua but Giulio, to the altar, in the last conclave, the cardinals agreed without the slightest hesitation to put Giulio on the altar. Why did the Medici request for the promotion of cardinals? Isn't it that they are afraid that Pius III will insist on going his own way and canonizing a living person as a saint? What is a cardinal in comparison?

"And what about Joshua?" Cardinal Grande Lovere asked: "What position are you going to give him?" It doesn't matter, I believe you, I have only one request. ”

"Say it."

"He must have the same position as Giulio, His Holiness the Pontifies, Giulio, what the Medici do, he does."

"Yes," Pius III smiled, "Cardinal Lovere, I promise you that their appointment will be very fair. ”

./13_

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