Duke Valentino's health and mental state were rapidly deteriorating, and although he could still maintain a reserved and majestic posture in front of others, Leonardo, who had always served him. Leonardo da Vinci, and Michelangelo, who kept an eye on him because he had to sculpt a full-length portrait of him, knew nothing more about the piercing eyes of painters and sculptors, the sunken cheeks hidden under the masks, the shriveled lips, the increasingly thin Adam's apple, the rough wrinkled skin, and the trembling fingers, all of which showed the Duke of his deterioration.

And his evil allies and subordinates were also able to steal the Duke's current situation from the bribed attendants, and it is said that since the defeat of Florence and the withdrawal, the Duke of Valentino has invariably received letters from Pope Alexander VI and King Louis XII of France, without exception, all of them are harshly rebuking him, Alexander VI for not obeying his edicts, and Louis XII mourning for his soldiers, Caesar. In a fit of rage, Borgia tore up the letters and overturned the plates (he was eating in the tent at the time), but had to follow their orders and rush with the remaining soldiers to Rome day and night, where he met King Louis XII of France.

Although the Duke seems to have no fear of Pope Alexander VI and King Louis XII of France, two of whom can control their fate, this is not the case, not to mention that the Florentine's sudden appearance of fangs and teeth reminds him of a man, a ...... The man who was once nicknamed the big cat by his sister Luracia. And the big cat with his name, when not disturbed, will coil itself into a fat, hairy mass and squint and doze in the sun, looking softer and more harmless than a dandelion, but as soon as it is threatened, it will jump up violently, pop out and hide in the soft flesh pad, like the claws of a dagger, and grab at your throat and eyes!

"Ah......h

The attendants were accustomed to hearing Caesar in the middle of the night. Borgia cried and screamed, his cry loud but indistinct, and he sometimes said "Father, forgive me!" Sometimes they shout "Julio, Julio!" You can't do that to me! At other times he had violent arguments with Louis XII, and at other times he wept and begged for the comfort of his sister Lucrecia (usually the chamberlains exchanged glances) – but to their surprise, the duke's name was actually Giulio. Medici.

Since they were curious, they couldn't help but inquire, and the result was undoubtedly contemptible, although they didn't know anything about Luigi, but Julio. The Medici once saved Caesar at Fort Paulina in Perugia, and saved his life a second time in the military camp of King Charles VIII of France; In the subsequent battles of Seminara and Fornovo, he led his troops as the papal envoy and Caesar's agent; When he returned to Rome, he was disgusted with Caesar of the Holy See. Borgia took on a lot of the work that should have been done by him, and several conspiracies against the Borgia family were also resolved or minimized by his mediation, just like Luclays. Borgia's first official marriage engagement...... When Caesar went to France to seek a prominent wife, he went with him, and did his best to make a rift for Caesar in the seemingly loose but strict court circles of the French, so that he was hostile to Cardinal Lovere, the common favorite of Charles VIII and Louis XII, and almost died in Brest, and so on, even without being able to get Caesar. Borgia was moved, and to put it more harshly, Giulio. The Medici had not even been able to secure a cardinal position, and his position as Archbishop of Lucca had been fought for by his mentor Picomini so far - tsk, even the usual ungrateful mercenaries could not help but sigh at Borgia's cheekiness and ruthlessness.

And their behavior was also vaguely Caesar. Borgia noticed it, and he drove them away, and changed the time of his sleep, often falling asleep between three and five o'clock in the morning, and barely getting up at noon. Orsini could not help but feel contempt for him - for the people at this time, defeat in one or two battles was nothing, even if they were captured, they could raise ransom to get back their freedom, artillery could be bought again, soldiers could be recruited again; As for Julio. Medici, to put it too far, even if it is two families that have been hated for generations, if they are forced by interests and pressure, it is not a few who will be reconciled overnight, if they turn their backs on Giulio. The Medici really made him panic like this, so he begged him for forgiveness in a low voice, as long as he could regain Giulio's trust and help, a little cheekiness was nothing, didn't Borgia always want this kind of thing?

But no matter what others think, Caesar. Borgia stubbornly followed his own ideas - the defeat of Florence made him look like a wounded, bloody but increasingly vicious wolf, and on his way back to Rome, he gathered a group of wandering mercenaries that even Pope Alexander VI had not accepted, and ordered them to conquer Piombino, a port city located on the lower left of Florence, on the road to Rome, far away from the island of Elba, in a very important location, which once belonged to the Visconti family, After the Sforza family took over, it was rightfully ruled by Catalina and her husband Quirio, and now, Caesar also thought that it belonged to him as rightfully owned, of course, the loss in Florence left him empty, or, even if there were, he was not willing to throw the golden florin on these humble soldiers, so the scene that had happened in Imola and Forlì befell Piombino again - the mercenaries burned and plundered indiscriminately, the French took advantage of the fire to loot, Caesar. Borgia was satisfied to put on the hat of Prince Piombino.

When Pope Alexander VI saw Caesar, he could hardly recognize that the person in front of him was his son, he was skinny and skinny, but his eyes were shining, his head was held high, and he could not be beaten, but what kind of person was the Pope, he could see at a glance his external strength and internal stubble, he didn't even have the idea of teaching Caesar a lesson—now that the Borgias were riding tigers, they couldn't retreat, and the only way was to go forward, forward, until they reached the top—in fact, Giulio. The Medici's strategy was not without its loopholes, for example, once the Borgia family was so powerful that no one dared to waver, rebel and question it, all the conspiracies against Borgia were just a joke.

But for this to happen, Caesar alone was not enough, and the Pope turned his mind to his daughter Lucretia, and most of the feedback from Spolette and Lepuy's people was focused on Lucrea, whose daughter behaved well compared to the almost invisible younger son, except for the weakness of some women, which almost made Alexander VI regret that she was not a son.

He summoned Luclay and asked his secretary Duarte to prepare, and after much deliberation, he intended to marry the Este family in Ferrara, which had been in business for hundreds of years, and Ferrara bordered Romagna and was a rich and vast territory.

It's a pity that the Duke of Ferrara, the head of the Este family, will not be surprised at all, or rather, only surprised but not happy, look at Lucrecia. Borgia's first two husbands bar, a Giovanni. Sforza, whose current realm now belongs to Caesar. Borgia, Duke Alfonso of Bisapili, Naples was about to become the possession of King Louis XII of France, and he did not want his Ferrara to become part of the Papal States - he rejected the Pope's proposal with an unusually stern attitude, and claimed that although his son was already a widower, he had already developed a love affair with Louis XII, the niece of the King of France, and their marriage contract was being negotiated, and it was extremely rude and irrational to play with a king. So allow him to regret pushing back the Pope's good intentions......

Pope Alexander VI was not the kind of person who would easily let go of his prey, and while he kept sending envoys to Ferrara, he sent a letter to King Louis XII of France, who threatened the Duke of Ferrara without concealment, saying that if the marriage contract between Borgia and the Este family could be reached, then the Este family would not have to worry about "the threat of the Duke of Caesar to Ferrara", and of course, they also enticed, This time Pope Alexander VI was willing to give his daughter a dowry of three hundred thousand gold ducats and a cardinal's hat. However, it was a letter from King Louis XII of France that finally brought the Duke of Ferrara to his knees, in which he demanded that the Duke of Ferrara accept Lucrecia. Borgia became his daughter-in-law, and it was clear that the King of France had to submit to the papal authority in order to legally claim the crowns of Milan and Naples.

It's just that what the Duke of Ferrara didn't expect was that there were many people who were as worried about this marriage as he was.

Luclay's younger brother, Avery Avery As soon as Borgia heard the news from the messenger, he hurried to his sister, who was eighteen years old this year, but was like an underage child both in character and body, and Alexander VI had nothing but neglect of him, Caesar was indifferent, and Juan, his second brother, was unscrupulous in committing adultery with his wife, and in this family he trusted most not even his mother, but his sister, Lucresia, and especially after Luclecia was appointed to manage Spolette and Le Pi with him.

Avery. Borgia, who had always been quiet and introverted, let alone let him manage the territory, let him have trouble breathing when he came into contact with people, although he was not envious of Lucrecia's ease of dealing with courtiers, officials, and clergy, he still preferred to copy scriptures, paint and enjoy music in his room - Luclessia also jokingly said that he was more of a Medici than Borgia.

He trembled and tossed and turned at the hearing that his sister was about to leave him, Spolette, and Le Pi, but he also knew that the Holy Father, their father's will could not be refused, so he had to hold his sister tightly around her waist, hide his face in her arms, and completely ignore the representatives of Spolette and Le Pi, who were waiting in the room uneasily.

The Pope could hand over Spolette and Lepi to Luclaysia, but would not let her take Spolette and Lepi away as a dowry, and if they were to be given to Avery in the future. The Borgia administration was fine, and they didn't mind enshrined a statue – they were afraid that the Pope would hand them over to Caesar. Borgia management.