The Eagle of Eastern Europe

Zheng He sold a lot of goods here, but he still exchanged the money for items such as gems. After all, they planned to go to the West next and needed to give a big gift to the Roman Emperor.

"How do you feel, Sir Envoy?"

Mason asked Zheng He how he felt in Ceylon, and the other party's answer did not disappoint him.

"This place has really pleasant scenery and rich products. It is a treasure place."

Zheng He thought that Ceylon was Roman land, so he admired it very much. This makes Mason very useful, but no matter how good the city is, they always have to leave. After all, there is something better waiting for them ahead.

In Italy, before the consequences of the war caused by the Roman invasion were far behind, new clouds of war appeared again.

The cause of the matter was Pisa, which became a dominion of the Visconti family in 1399 and sold to Florence in 1402. However, the local people did not agree with Florence's rule, so they restored the Republic and resisted desperately. However, the longer it took, the harder it became for them to hold on. Seeing that the city was about to be destroyed, they decided to blow themselves up and drag down the surrounding countries.

They formed a committee to proclaim the city of Pisa and annex it to the Duchy of Romagna. He also sent people to Ancona to tell the Duke that he hoped to lead troops into the defense of Pisa.

"Here, are you really willing to give me pizza?"

"Yes, sir, we have always believed that only you are worthy of ruling this city. Florence is just a regime formed by a group of greedy businessmen. They are not worthy."

The envoy's words moved Francisco, and he really couldn't let go of this good thing. Moreover, Pisa is also an important port in the north. Taking it will not only allow access to the Western Mediterranean, but also cut off the ground connection between Florence and Milan. For this, he will never let it go.

But before that, he still had to ask. I heard that Pisa has elected a pope, what about them?

The messenger sighed, and then denounced the ruthlessness of the cardinals. Pisa provided them with a place, but when they were in trouble, the cardinals fled directly to Milan.

This is really God helping him.

"Order our troops to assemble immediately and let Fitzgerald lead some people to Pisa first."

Romagna began to gather its own troops, and Francisco also hired 2,000 mercenaries to prepare for a long war with Florence.

Fighting a war in this Italy is very fast because your army is unimpeded. Unless the other side has an army to intercept you, it will be a matter of switching sides in an instant.

News of Romagna's dispatch of troops quickly reached Florence, and not surprisingly, the situation aroused discussion in Parliament.

"We should send troops immediately. If Pisa is captured by Romagna, it will cut off our connection with Milan."

"Our current finances are not enough to support a war. The fiscal deficit caused previously has not been resolved. We need time to resolve all this."

The Justice Standard Bearer and his ruling group were in a state of distress. Not to mention the money spent on recruiting troops, even the Florentine treasury did not have much money. Previously, financial relief was obtained by selling monopoly rights, but this move directly halved the income for the coming year. Coupled with the squeeze on Florence from the textile industry of the Roman Empire, the number of local bankruptcies has been increasing year by year.

After Pazzi came to power, he began to take back those exclusive agency rights. Bankrupt ones were taken back directly, and others were redeemed at high prices. As for the money, I will negotiate with the bankers in Genoa and get it back even if the interest is more.

In addition to bickering in Parliament, the guilds were also arguing over the matter. The total number of trade associations in Florence is 21, including 7 large guilds and 14 small guilds. Among the seven major guilds, the lawyers' guild has the highest status. Followed by the Wool Industry Guild, Silk Industry Guild and Woolen Industry Guild.

The remaining members of the small trade associations are ordinary businessmen, including butchers, tanners, cobblers, blacksmiths, cooks, stonemasons, carpenters, wine merchants, innkeepers, tailors, armorers, bakers, etc. They basically have no access to high political positions, but they can discuss it.

Seeing that the council did not come up with a solution, Pazzi decided to hold a citizens' assembly. This is their proud tradition.

Whenever a crisis strikes, the consuls will ring the bell in the city hall bell tower. Because the sound of the bell is low, like the moo of a cow, the big bell is named the cow bell. When the bell rings throughout Florence, all male citizens aged 14 and above must gather in their respective communities, and then march in front of the city hall behind the flags representing the communities to form a citizens' assembly. Generally, in this case, the ruling group must first confirm that the number of people present exceeds two-thirds of the total number of citizens before asking them to approve the proposal to form a Supreme Judicial Council. After the establishment of the Supreme Judicial Council, it will have full authority to deal with the crisis facing the city on behalf of the people. .

The Florentines were immensely proud of their political system and flaunted it as a guarantee of the liberties they vaunted. The Florentines believed that no other Italian state had a government as good as theirs. But it is also a common problem of all parliaments to keep waffling when faced with major issues.

As expected, the council, composed of young people to old people, argued non-stop from morning to night. At one moment it was said that troops would be sent for support, and at another it was said that peace talks would be sent. The committee was also divided into two groups, and no decision was made for a long time.

With such debates in Parliament, Romagna would show no mercy. Within a week, he crossed Italy to reach Pisa and achieved a bloodless opening of the city. The neighboring Lucca was also forced to surrender to the principality.

The news of Romagna's action shocked the Apennine Peninsula. Milan also wanted to take action, but the domestic situation had not yet been resolved. It temporarily stationed its troops on the border to prevent the other party from attacking.

Seeing the Romagna army approaching, the Florentine troops did not dare to fight, so they had to station themselves not far away. Francisco sent letters to Florence and Milan, saying that the people of Pisa had made this choice and hoped that they would abide by their decision.

At the same time, he also sent a message to Constantinople, telling the emperor that Pisa was what the people wanted and that he had no ambitions. He himself is also a loyal minister of the Roman emperor and will never drag your country into a war.

Look, can you find another loyal minister like him in the world? His loyalty can be seen day by day.

In order to prevent other countries from ending up, Francisco personally wrote to Naples, Genoa, Savoy and other countries, saying that occupying Pisa was the general trend and hoped that they would not come in.

Laszlo has to govern Sicily recently, and also needs to expand the army and other construction, and there is not enough money. In order to obtain money, the title of Count of Provence had to be sold to the Duke of Orleans. France gained a stretch of Mediterranean coastline.