Joshua's face was silent, as if he had not grasped what Cardinal Picromini was saying.

"Laugh," said Cardinal Picromini, "he is your father and very important to you. Then he bowed his head and went on with his work.

Joshua smiled, his smile very touching, but when he noticed that Cardinal Picromini did not look up again, this smile condensed into ice.

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Cardinal Lovere had come to Picromini's house the day before the feast of Santa Matthias, and he was very uncomfortable to have to bend down to visit Cardinal Picromini, but in order to win Joshua's heart back, he had to be a good father.

But from the bottom of his heart, he really didn't know what to do with Joshua, this child was too stubborn, if he was only five or six years old, this wayward behavior could be forgiven, but at the age of eighteen or nineteen, in the world, he may have several children, but he is still angry about what happened so long ago - for Cardinal Lovere, after Joshua was born, he did not burn this terrible child in the fire because he gave birth to the devil's face, it is forgiving enough, Moreover, he had hoped that the mercy of St. Francis would come upon Joshua, and had paid a great price for it—why couldn't he have forgiven his father at that time, when it was so urgent and life-threatening? Consider Isaac, the son of Abraham, whose father sacrificed his son to him when he heard the cry of God, and did Isaac hate his father for it? Instead, he loved his father even more, because it was a test given by God, and Abraham passed it, and God blessed him.

Cardinal Lovere sighed at the thought of such a child, Joshua must have been sent by the devil to torture him, and most unfortunately, he only had such a son, before and after, because of his physical disability, he could not be the pope, and he could not watch the hope of his family and himself cut off.

Picoromini met Lovere in his little signing room, a very clean and bright place, and the monks brought them milk and cookies, and Lovere tasted only one bite, and his face could not help but contort: "What has broken you?" He said harshly, "I remember a few years ago when you didn't have this baby-like taste?" ”

"Probably because there is too much suffering in the world." Picomini: "Learn to have fun in time, Lovere. ”

"Imitate our Holy Father? I heard that he had been in a hand-to-hand encounter with three prostitutes all night last night. "But we all know that the more powerful the dog, the less likely it is to bark, and the same is true for men, and only old people and children who want to prove themselves capable will do such ridiculous things—he may be relatively strong, but the disease is draining his energy, and it is getting worse and worse...... He couldn't hold out for long. ”

"That's exactly what I'm going to tell you." Picomini said: "I am going to send Joshua to him, and Joshua has learned a lot from me, and he can heal Alexander VI." ”

Lovere jumped up literally, even knocking over the milk: "What crazy are you talking about! He glared at Picromini, and even if Picomini suddenly tore open the skin and a purgatory devil jumped out of it, it would not surprise him even more: "Isn't this our chance?!" Borgia is dying, and the Pope's Triple Tiara is just a stone's throw away! ”

Picomini frowned: "Calm down, Lovere, can you calm down?" ”

"How do you want me to calm down!?" Lovere shouted.

"Well, according to what you said, we can just watch Alexander VI die, and then I become pope, and then what?"

Later...... "Of course, you gave the triple crown to my son Joshua. Lovere, Lovere didn't speak, but his eyes said it all.

"Wrong," said Picomini, "next, we're going to wipe our ass for the mess left by Alexander VI." He leaned back: "Think about it, he is dead, but the French have an agreement with him, and even if we do not recognize it, the French are already in Italy; And then there is Naples, where the Duke of Bisherbi is dead, and although it is said that he is responsible for the attack on the Pope, we all know that the simple-minded fool could not do that; As for Milan and Pesaro, Ludovicco. Sforza and Giovanni. Sforza ...... Cardinal Sforza is still out in exile, not to mention Imola and Forlì...... It was already in ruins, and the Venetians were said to have expressed strong resentment at the Pope's illegitimate son of an attempt to invade Faenza......

And the ecclesiastical army, the mercenaries, the Knights Templar, we all know where they are...... Of course, none of this compares to the empty vault, and Alexander VI could have died happily and rejoicefully, but what about those holes, are you going to let Picromini and the Lovere family fill them? ”

Cardinal Lovere walked around the room in annoyance, after all, he had been the most trusted minister of the French king for more than ten years, and he had only been dazzled by the triple crown at his fingertips, and Cardinal Picromini reminded him that it was indeed a matter of not worth the loss to let Alexander VI die now.

"So," he asked alarmingly, "why Joshua?" ”

"I'd like to let Giulio and Medici go." Picromini crossed his fingers: "You have not forgotten that I took care of my uncle Pius II and his successor, Paul II, for I served them, and was able to be close to them and trusted by them, but Joshua followed the same path as me." He said.

"But Borgia knows he's my son."

"Just because he's your son, haven't you been trying to get Borgia's forgiveness?" Picomini said, ignoring the look of shame that swept over Lovere's face, "Alexander VI doesn't trust me, but he trusts my medical skills, Caesar. Borgia has been coveting this for a long time, and if you take Joshua from me and let him serve Alexander VI, if he is cured, then Joshua will surely be accepted by him—after all, they don't know that we are not as incompatible as we seem. ”

Will they believe Joshua? He is also your disciple after all. ”

"Don't be stupid, can a mentor be better than a father? No one believed in the power of blood relatives more than Borgia. ”

"I don't know...... "Lovere muttered, "it's dangerous...... And it ...... for Joshua's reputation after that."

"Do you think I'll let Alexander VI live to be nine hundred and sixty-nine years like Methuselah?" Picomini said impatiently: "When the time is right, of course Joshua will return to me, be my favorite disciple, and after a few years, when he wears the red robe, no one will remember this event, and in the future, he will inherit everything from me—I have never been a man of his word, you should know quite well." ”

"I'm not sure ......"

"Lovere," Piccolomenian lowered his voice dangerously, "to let the living live, let the damned die, is what we must do, and we can only truly master them if our trusted people are by Alexander VI's side." ”

"And," he said, "why don't we let Joshua choose for himself?!" He strode to the door and slammed it open.

Joshua stood in the doorway, his face flushed drunkenly, "I do! He exclaimed, "I do!" ”

————————

Everyone knows that Cardinal Picromini and Cardinal Lovere, two guys who did not have a very good relationship, finally quarreled, and it is said that it is related to one of Picomini's favorite disciples in recent years, it is said that it is a branch of Lovere, Cardinal Lovere insisted on taking him back to the Lovere family, and Cardinal Picromini of course did not want to let his years of teaching go down the drain and insisted on refusing.

"So what happened in the end?"

"What else?" An idler said: "They got to the Pope, and the Holy Father had to let the boy choose for himself, and he chose to go back to the House of Love." ”

"That kid's identity ......," the other blinked, "Probably not so ordinary." ”

"Of course, we all know that poor Cardinal Lovere is missing two 'balls'."

They burst out laughing, for these powerful people were always talked about when disaster befell them, "This may be his only child." The idler said, "He could have had more, but ...... He's definitely going to take back the kid. ”

"I am that child, and I choose to go back," said the fellow who spoke of Cardinal Lovere's hidden illness, "how can a teacher give his students a comparison with that of a father giving him his sole heir?" ”

They then spoke of jealousy and envy, even to Alexander VI, who was known to have several sons.

The men didn't notice that not far from their wine table was sitting one of their topics. Duke of Valentino, Caesar. Having heard what they said, Borgia nodded to his soldiers, "Arrest them all," he said, "cut off their tongues, one hand, and stick the tongue to the little finger of the severed hand." ”

After giving this cruel order, Caesar. Borgia walked out of the tavern casually, and walked slowly towards Campo de' Fiori, pondering the problems that Joshua's changing status posed to him—compared to Julio, Joshua had not been very favored by Cardinal Picromini, but was much better than him, and at least Cardinal Picomini was willing to teach him something more profound and masterful—about medicine and theology, rather than following the same path as Caesar.

Caesar was not at all surprised that Joshua chose his father in the end, in any case, blood ties could not be separated, nothing could be more trustworthy than blood relatives, and Cardinal Picomini was not only a student of Joshua, but Cardinal Lovere was such an heir - he felt that Cardinal Lovere was too indecisive.

Maybe he should suggest to the Pope that Joshua be given a position in the Vatican Palace? In any case, the power and money of the Lovere family were extremely considerable, even in Rome.