The long-lasting and costly athletic conference has come to an end.

The soldiers of the Eagle Banner Brigade, with the fine silk from the Peloponnese hanging from their necks, triumphantly marched through the crowds and cheers of the Constantinoples.

At the end of this battle, every soldier of the Eagle Banner Brigade became a small rich man, and if he used the money to buy more land and hire a group of tenant farmers, they would be much richer than ordinary knights, except that they did not have the title of knight.

This is the charm of Constantinople, otherwise, there would not be so many Varangians who would rather leave their homeland and come to Constantinople to participate in the Varangian Guard.

As for the protagonist who is talked about, it is from Lothar, the kingdom of Jerusalem.

As if he had become a rising star in Constantinople, everyone knew that this new military general, who was deeply respected by Her Majesty the Empress and the purple-clothed princess Anna, was about to rise to prominence.

In Constantinople, the authority of the emperors, no matter how declining, was far superior to that of their counterparts in the Western Empire.

They could even appoint eunuchs as archbishops or even archpatriarchs.

In other words, it is equivalent to Henry Caesar letting the eunuch raised in his court become the pope, which is even more outrageous than the French king who made Avignon prisoner in the parallel world.

When Lothar walked out of the Colosseum, Anna was sitting on the back of a snow-white, uncolored steed, smiling at him.

"Constantinople, cheer for you today."

She gestured to the crowd around the arena, still watching Lothar and waving to him, "You should stay in there a little longer and enjoy your applause and cheers." ”

"I'm afraid I'll get lost in the sugar jar."

Anna said helplessly: "You are also a powerful spellcaster, is it necessary to be so cautious?" Who can force you to do something? ”

"Shouldn't I say that to you?"

Lothar rolled her eyes, "If you want to be cautious, you are much more cautious than me. ”

"But you are different from me, if you are a reclusive character, I will not help Your Majesty recruit you, since you value worldly power, where is more suitable for you than Constantinople?"

Lothar was silent, feeling that what Anna said was not unreasonable.

At the very least, if he can get the title of co-ruling emperor, and directly promote the title of the system from the marquis, across the two stages of duke and king, to the emperor, it can be regarded as a step to the sky.

Moreover, looking at Her Majesty's appearance, this soft rice seems to be quite delicious.

Oops, you woman, you actually broke my Dao heart!

Lothar raised her eyebrows, and was about to speak, when the corners of Anna's mouth wearing a beaded curtain veil curled slightly: "Okay, I understand, and according to our original agreement - equivalent exchange, it just so happens that Your Majesty is not in the habit of calling people in vain." ”

"Let's go, let's go to the palace banquet, in His Majesty's court, there is a hall that can accommodate three hundred guests to dine at the same time, and His Majesty's Luan Jia has already set off first."

"It's good if you send someone to inform me of this kind of trivial matter?"

"Originally, His Majesty wanted Andronikos to summon you, but I refused, after all, you are a member of our Levantine Wizards Association, and when you come to the headquarters of the Association, how can I not fulfill the friendship of the landlord?"

"Who is Andronikos?"

"Your Majesty's Tasting Officer, a eunuch, has mastered such an insignificant amount of extraordinary power, and he can be regarded as half a spellcaster."

As soon as Anna's voice fell, she added: "Don't worry, Your Majesty sent a eunuch to invite you, not only is it not a snubbing, but it values you." ”

Lothar bowed slightly: "I know that in the Eastern Empire, since there is a precedent for eunuchs to serve as the patriarch, there is nothing to look down on these people." Moreover, many small sects consider self-castration to be a model of chastity and purity, and some second sons of large Greek families will even choose to be castrated voluntarily to enter the court. ”

"I thought you couldn't understand this."

Lothar shrugged: "What's so incomprehensible about this, eunuchs will not have children, there is naturally no threat to the throne, and it will not lead to some royal scandals, it is normal to be able to get the emperor's honor." ”

There is nothing new under the sun, and in that country in the east, eunuchs also controlled the government for a time.

"That's right."

Anna frowned, although the empire has a long tradition of using eunuchs, and the empress regents need the help of eunuchs to stabilize the government, she still doesn't think that reusing eunuchs is a good thing for the empire.

Perhaps, the few remaining martial virtues in the empire were defeated by this group of eunuchs who were neither male nor female.

Thinking like this in her heart, Anna didn't show it, but reminded with a smile: "You are not married yet, during this time, the nobles of the empire will definitely have thoughts about you, if you encounter some bohemian noblewomen who recommend pillows, you have to remind your girls to keep their hands." ”

Lothar chuckled, "Am I just a Frankish brute? Can you still attract people everywhere? ”

"After today, anyone will think that you will rise to prominence in the Empire."

"They don't know that you are a fanatical believer, bent on running back into the desert of Jerusalem to serve your little king," said Anna. ”

Lothar smiled and said nothing.

Although the prospects for development in Constantinople were attractive, he still did not forget his original intention.

"Have you come up with any results with the Marquis Leopold?"

"Not yet, but for your affection, we now have the upper hand - in a little while, when the counterinsurgency is successful, our cooperation should be settled, and this time, maybe the empire can really take back Sicily."

Sicily, Rhodes, Cyprus, these are the keys to mastering the Mediterranean shipping routes.

Their importance cannot be measured by the size of the territory.

Anna pointed to the carriage behind her: "Get in the car, there are so many people who want to take a closer look at you now, and your presence on the street like this will only make it difficult for us to move an inch." ”

"I'm going to pick up Flynn and Cellynina."

"Don't worry, Flynn and I are old friends, and I have arranged for your two little girls. Do you need me to help you get your soldiers as well? ”

Lothar shook her head and said, "No need, I gave them a short vacation, and they are expected to take the bounty and take a good walk around the city." ”

The group got into the carriage and drove towards the court.

The banquet was held in the "Golden Palace", with sixteen windows in its circular dome, and the light here was frighteningly better than the dark and cramped architecture of Western Europe.

The niches on the walls are painted with images of the Virgin and Jesus.

After everyone was seated, the eunuchs pushed open the silver door of the alcove, and the empress, dressed in purple and wearing a triple crown, walked out of here.

Under the sunlight, the empress looked solemn, and her beautiful countenance became more and more sacred under the embellishment of the crown and various jewels, as if the Holy Spirit from heaven had descended on the mortal world.

After entering the main hall, the empress went straight to the shrine on the east side of the golden hall and prayed respectfully to the idol inside, which was probably to show her "divine authority of the king".

Because in the Eastern Empire, the emperor was the embodiment of the gods, and the ordinary people, even the capital of the great pastor, could be served by the emperor's trusted eunuchs, let alone "crowned by the pope".

Lothar was placed behind the Sassanid envoys.

Frigila muttered with some confusion, "Aren't the Persians the sworn enemies of the Eastern Empire?" Why are you still putting us behind them? ”

Lothar explained: "It is precisely because they are mortal enemies who have fought for thousands of years that they should be honored. What's more, as the Eastern Empire lost a large amount of territory and did not border with Sasanian, it was naturally not an undying opponent. ”

As for the Turkic tribes entrenched in Asia Minor, although nominally subject to the Sassanid King of kings, they were far from being loyal vassals.

Many Turkic tribes clashed with the Persians on their westward migration, and a lot of contradictions accumulated between the two.

The Sassanid Empire had supported these Turks in order to add to the chaos of the Eastern Empire, an old enemy, but now their energy was no longer in the West.

The same is true in Germania.

The Austrian frontier was the closest territory to the Eastern Empire in Germania, and the two countries were still separated by the vast territory of the Kingdom of Hungary, and their dispute over the Apennine Peninsula could only be described as a minor dispute.

According to Lothar's information from passing caravans, the Tatars, although they had risen in the eastern steppes, were far from being taken seriously by the self-proclaimed noble Persians.

On the contrary, the Western Liao Kingdom, founded by Yelu Dashi, was so famous that it once occupied the rich Hezhong region, threatened the Silk Road, and was regarded as a great problem by the Sassanid Dynasty.

Soon, the banquet began.

The main course of the banquet was three grilled peacocks, which were very popular in Constantinople.

Many knights liked to use peacock feathers as decorations, and even gave birth to specialized peacock breeders.

The servants use small carts to push golden plates full of various dishes, pass by the guests' tables, and place the dishes in front of the guests.

Lobster, tuna, shellfish and seafood are all available, and even sparkling orange and black caviar.

Cretan feta cheese is served in a vegetable salad with olive oil that is sweet and not too sticky.

"It's still the Greeks who eat exquisitely, I originally thought that in this era, being able to eat barbecue with enough spices is already a top aristocratic enjoyment."

Lothar couldn't help but sigh.

It is said that many medieval nobles are not as good as any ordinary person in later generations, and the nobles here definitely do not include the emperors of the Eastern Empire.

Jeanne took a large sip of wine, her face flushed, and she coughed.

"Oh my God, what did these Greeks add to the wine?"

Lothar picked up the bottle, sniffed it to her nose, and immediately showed a look of disgust: "Who knows, rosemary, cardamom, pepper, celery juice, fennel, star anise...... It's all possible. ”

"Even if it's to show off your wealth, you shouldn't waste things like this, right?"

Jeanne said with a look of pity.

Wine is good wine, and spices are also precious things like gold, but the two are mixed together.

Frigila speculated maliciously, "Maybe that's how unique the taste of the Greeks is." ”

Lothar disagreed: "It's all a mouth, a tongue, and it doesn't make sense that something that tastes strange is considered a delicacy, just like we used to eat beef wrapped in gold leaf in our day." ”

After all, spices are expensive supplements in the eyes of many people in this era, just like ginseng in the eyes of Orientals.

Desserts are just as hearty, with sweet biscuits mixed with nuts, puddings drizzled with jam, and all kinds of preserves.

In addition, Lothar also drank the long-lost millet porridge, on which a layer of boiled rice oil floated on it, which could finally relieve the greasy taste of the big fish and meat in the past two days.

It is worth mentioning that Lothar also saw the rest of the princesses of the Eastern Empire at the banquet.

It's just that the princesses of the Komnenos family are obviously not as popular as the princesses of the Ducasse family.

Moreover, neither Komnenos nor the princess of the Ducasse family are qualified to wear purple clothes like Anna.

This is probably a unique honor.

Lothar also served as an envoy sent by the Kingdom of Jerusalem and received a toast from all sides in the main hall.

The kingdom of Jerusalem may be small, but no one despises the king of Jerusalem.

Leaving aside the sanctity of the title of Lord of the Holy Land, the Kingdom of Jerusalem holds the best of the eastern Mediterranean coast.

Add to that a steady stream of fanatical pilgrims and crusader support from the West.

The kingdom of Jerusalem was not weak, at least not as small as a seemingly narrow territory.