During these few days on the outskirts of Adrianople, Emperor Constantine XI and his men were all very comfortable

Since the arrival of the soldiers in Adrianople, while indulging the tens of thousands of "mujahideen" who were warriors but were actually bandits, they went out to plunder the Turks and made a lot of trouble, and Emperor Constantine XI also found a palace built by the Turkish sultan in the suburbs and lived leisurely

Patriarch Gregory of the Orthodox Church led a group of clergy to set up a construction team in the largest mosque in the area, causing smoke and dust to fly and clam to turn it into a church...... The mosque seems to have been originally converted by the Turks into an Eastern Roman church......

At this time, the emperor's palace, or the former sultan's palace, was a bustling and jubilant scene

The beautiful courtyard was once full of flowers and clear springs, but now it has been ravaged by the mercenaries of the Eastern Roman Empire, and after returning with large bags and small bags, they lazily unfasten their boots, wash their swarthy feet in the fountain pool, and let the clear spring water turn into a black turbid stream, and some people even unashamedly strip naked and jump directly into the pool in public to wash

Compared to those Western Europeans who were currently immersed in the fear of the Black Death plague and mistakenly regarded bathing instead of rats as the cause, so they insisted on not bathing for the rest of their lives, and could only barely cover up the strong body odor with perfume, the subjects of the Eastern Roman Empire, who still maintained the ancient Roman custom of liking luxury baths and regarded bathing as a kind of enjoyment, were almost the most favorite Christians in Shijie at that time

And not far from the fountain, in a flower garden that has just sprouted grass buds, several huge iron pots are churning with white hot gas, which are now piled up under the iron pot and crackling and burning, not ordinary firewood, but well-made mahogany, teak and oak furniture, as well as colorful door panels and screens, but at this moment they are all chopped to pieces by the vulgar mercenaries, and they do not care to burn even the sacred Qur'an as firewood, In the resentful and desperate eyes of the Muslim captives, the mercenaries rudely tore them into small pieces of paper and used them to start fires

Chunks of beef and mutton, bread as a staple food, rice from Egypt, salted fish, onions, garlic, pickled olives, and seasoned cheese, sesame seeds and pepper were all thrown into the pot by these mercenaries, who were not particular about food

After plucking and digging out the internal organs, the fat chickens and ducks are also inserted one by one on the iron brazing frame and slowly rotated around the fire, roasting until the oil is golden and crispy...... Brush with a layer of pepper-mixed sauce, which is a rare treat for the poor

Many disheveled soldiers were huddled around the fire, staring at the roast chicken on the shelves and the broth in the pot...... As the flames swayed up and down, the alluring fragrance came from the steaming heat, making everyone who smelled it uncontrollable drooling, and a little farther away by the wall, there were still many hangover soldiers lying crookedly, and at this moment smelling the fragrance of chicken, duck and fish, they all groaned and opened their eyes, fanned their noses and looked towards the stove, lest they would lose their own share when they were eating

As for the farther outside the palace, it is even more noisy - since ancient times, following the army to buy booty is a lucrative business, although following the army is not risky, but out of the greedy nature of the capitalists, there are still many Genoa, Venice, Florence and Pisan merchants who are not afraid of death, followed the ranks of the Eastern Roman Empire to Adrianople, plus various groups of "special services" who followed the army, soon made this war-torn land, Rejuvenated with a deformed exuberance

-- On the outskirts of Adrianople, where the "Mujahideen" gathered, many stalls set up by Italians sprang up at an alarming speed, forming a temporary trading market of considerable size, where the soldiers and officers plundered valuable goods were quickly exchanged for coins by Italian merchants at low prices, and then squandered on alcoholism and women's bellies, while countless prostitutes with heavy makeup and bright makeup also flocked to the men's pockets to empty the men's pockets. And work hard one after another...... Let the place be noisy day and night, always filled with women screaming and laughing, drunks yelling and laughing, and the sound of fists and kicks beating and fighting......

Despite the enthusiasm of these dissolute prostitutes, they were not numerous and the charges were too high, so even if the Muslim pagan women had smeared their faces, messed up their hair, and dressed in ill-fitting men's clothes, they were dragged out of their warehouses and cellars by these hormonal thugs, stripped naked, and sent to the barracks to comfort the physically and mentally exhausted soldiers...... In order to cater to the tastes of some special people, many delicate and handsome Turkish teenagers were also murdered......

For example, this small mosque attached to the Sultan's palace, after it was looted, was used to imprison Turkish women and beautiful boys captured nearby, and as a place for the emperor's direct troops to gather people to prostitute almost every moment, you can hear through the thick gate, "...... Oh-oh-oh-" shrill moans and low sobs came from inside the temple

As for the noble Emperor Constantine XI, he naturally did not engage in prostitution with the soldiers, but had a higher level of enjoyment

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Accompanied by the warm spring sunshine and a gentle breeze wrapped in a light incense, the pale golden gauze tent that drooped down the ground slowly pushed open, setting off bursts of ripple-like ripples, pouring into the soft and spacious bed, the wonderful feeling of being blown by the soft wind on the bare skin, it was really indescribably comfortable, as if it were the touch of the finest smooth silk, and with the coolness of rose dew

In the warm breeze, Emperor Constantine XI, who had woken up from a nap, sat at the head of the bed, slowly put on his clothes, put on his purple royal robes, and then looked around the extravagant Sultan's bedchamber and sighed with great satisfaction

By the standards of this era, the luxurious bedroom that the Turkish Sultan had prepared for himself was absolutely splendid

-- On the four walls of the room hung many splendid curtains, all of which were embroidered on silk with gold and silver thread; The floor was covered with a royal blue Persian carpet, embroidered with gold threads with the motifs of stars and moons, and densely covered with fluffy fluffy hairs like a lawn, giving off a pleasant fresh fragrance; Behind a translucent pale gold gauze tent sits a smoky gilt incense burner, burning fine incense of unknown material; In the corner, a huge wine cabinet inlaid with shells, pearls, gemstones, and gold and silver ornaments is filled with rows of corked bowls and bottles, containing juices and drinks of various colors, reflecting countless colorful and brilliant beams of light under the oblique afternoon sun, which looks like a dream, mottled and blurred......

What made Emperor Constantine XI feel the most envious and jealous was that the dormitory of the Sultan of Turkey was completely built with a speckled purple-red volcanic rock - this rock was first produced in Egypt and was scientifically called porphyry, which was used as a health care product in China, and had another name called Maifan Stone - because the standard color of the Eastern Roman Empire was purple, so this stone seemed to fit very well. Therefore, during the strong period of the Eastern Roman Empire, this kind of porphyry has always been used to build the imperial palace, especially the "purple dormitory" used by the emperor and empress, and the whole room is composed of this porphyry, showing a mysterious and noble purple red style, which is considered to be the standard royal style

However, in Constantinople in 1453, the magnificent old palace has long been a pile of rubble, and the small palace built by several emperors on the shore of the Golden Horn at the end of the period has also been repeatedly destroyed in civil wars and turmoil...... However, Sultan Mehmed II of the Ottoman Turkish Empire did not know whether it was because of his admiration for Greco-Roman culture, and he actually used this building material as a symbol of imperial power in his newly built palace

Alas, this place is much stronger than the shabby "kennel" of Constantine XI next to the Golden Horn

And it's just a resort palace on the outskirts of the capital city of Adrianople, and the city's real royal palace is really extravagant...... Sultan Mehmed II, whose head is now stuck outside the city gates, really enjoyed his life

In this regard, the emperor could not help but feel the urge to move his family here...... It's a pity that this place can't stay for long after all!

Emperor Constantine XI, who smelled the expensive incense, stretched comfortably, and thought so with jealousy and regret

Of course, the most enjoyable thing for the emperor to feel both physically and mentally is the two delicate and plump white bodies on this splendid bed

Since he traveled to this sad era and became the last emperor of the most unlucky Eastern Roman Empire, he has not touched a woman again, and it is only in the last few days that he has broken his vows - not that this time-traveling emperor is so clean, but that his harem is too cold: except for a few stout cooking aunts, don't say any enchanting mistresses and concubines, not even a beautiful maid who can flirt!

Moreover, the poor emperor had little wealth to spend on pleasure - the Eastern Roman Empire at the end of the period was extremely narrow, with an annual tax of only about 10,000 florins, equivalent to one-thousandth of the annual revenue of the government of the Republic of Venice during the same period

As for saving some money from between your teeth and secretly going out to prostitution...... There were no antibiotics in those days, and Constantine XI did not want to die of the willow disease in shame - so it was not until this time he captured the Sultan's palace outside Adrianople and captured two Anatolian slave girls who had just been sold into the Turkish court, that Emperor Bixia was able to vent his long-held desires while he was in his prime

- To the great relief of Constantine XI, according to the practical test in bed just now, although this body is older, thanks to the strict and healthy military life, it should be regarded as a very good exercise and soldier, so some key functions are still very complete, and under the flattery of the two slave girls, it is not a problem to play a one-on-two battle......

After kissing the naked half-breed sisters on the bed and giving them a few small pieces of modern zircon jewelry in brilliant and sparkling shapes, which made them giggle in surprise, the satisfied emperor finally left the bed and prepared to start his military work

Then, just as he yawned and stretched his waist slowly, paced slowly to the window, and pulled out a chair in front of his desk and sat down, he suddenly heard a noisy noise and a miserable shrill cry, which reached his ears through the curtains and curtains, and the emperor could not help frowning slightly

In fact, Emperor Bixia knew very well in his heart the origin of these noises - the tens of thousands of "jihadists" he brought here were burning and looting everywhere, completely unleashing the tyrannical factor in their bones, ravaging this rich land to the point that the atrocities of rape and killing were endless day by day, and almost every tree was covered with corpses...... However, Emperor Bixia of Constantine XI did not intend to restrain the actions of these "mujahideen" - if Constantinople was breached, the same fate would fall to the subjects of the empire

This is the law of war in this day and age, and there is no compassionate humanitarianism and no one in international public opinion

In addition, Constantine XI could not actually control these voluntary fellows - in this extremely declining last days, the standing army of the Eastern Roman Empire was only a few hundred people, and he, the emperor, was not much different from the commander of the light pole in peacetime, and now gathered in Adrianople, tens of thousands of rabble, most of them were "volunteers" who temporarily joined in the middle of the road and wanted to make a fortune together, so that the whole army was in a state of command failure for a long time, and people were joining and disbanding at any time - On the outskirts of Adrianople, there are often people who leave the army without permission to go to a distant village and town to plunder, and then never return, but there are also people who join the gang with soldiers and horses halfway, and they are eager to make a contribution

Emperor Constantine XI, who was nominally the commander of the whole army, never knew how many soldiers he had under his command now, nor where they were...... Fortunately, although the disorganized and undisciplined army, it was outnumbered and well armoured – thanks to the "generous gift" of Mehmed II – which seemed enough to bluff, or at least frighten the Turks

However, this is also the limit of what this "holy army" can do - although Emperor Constantine XI cannot say how many "crusaders" gathered under Adrianople at this time, he knows that even if they are equipped with captured Turkish ordnance, they are still only a useless rabble: they do not have the minimum military literacy, let alone enough resilience and perseverance...... Driven by the temptation of wealth and faith, the well-armed "holy warriors" may be able to pinch the soft persimmon and fight a dozen good fights, but it is difficult to survive the brutal and long war of attrition......

And a long-term siege will not work - the attack and defense of cities in classical times is fundamentally a long contest between wills, and whoever has more adequate material reserves, who can maintain vigilance for a longer time, and who can survive until Zuihou for a moment, will win

Obviously, the Eastern Roman Empire's army, which was so well organized and had no logistics or foreign support, had no advantage in any of the above than the Turks, who had no choice but to retreat and had plenty of baggage

Therefore, despite the enthusiastic and repeated requests for war by his generals, the calm and cautious Constantine XI was not fooled by the apparent good situation, but only indulged his soldiers to plunder the surrounding countryside and destroy the scattered small groups of enemies, but never launched a strong attack on Adrianople

Therefore, even if he knew that it was a tweezer, the emperor would still drive some people out of the camp every day, swing out of the city with great fanfare, and attack the city wall several times, but each time he turned back halfway without crossing the moat, and never stopped the bombardment of Adrianople...... Even if you can't knock down the city wall, it's a haode to be able to give yourself a bang to strengthen your own people

Of course, such a stalemate could not last forever, as both the Albanian and Moria legions of the Turks were moving closer to Adrian, and either of them could easily crush the rabble of the Eastern Roman Empire...... Fortunately, the two Turkish legions had become bitter enemies due to the struggle for imperial power, and their desire to destroy each other was far stronger than the motley army of Constantine XI

But the trouble is that the emperor has to stay here for a while longer before a certain task can be completed...... So Constantine XI yawned, unfolded the letterhead that several Turkish eunuchs had brought from Adrianople yesterday, and pondered with his chin downed......

――“…… Sultan as a Turk; the sons of Muhammad; Brother of the Sun and Moon; God's own grandson and spokesman; ruler of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, Thrace and Armenia; King of kings; Caesar in Caesar; The faithful chosen by Allah of Allah; the dissolution and consolation of Muslims; The great guardian of Christians...... I command you, Roman Emperor of Constantinople! As long as you leave here at once, stop harassing my capital, return to your city, and confess that I am the only legitimate Ottoman Turkish Sultan, I can magnanimously abstain you from the sin of cruelty to my father's body, and reward you with something that will satisfy you......"

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