Aztec Eternals

The candles flickered, and the aroma of whale oil ignited, lingering in the hall. In this era, the Portuguese colony of the Azores had been established for more than thirty years. The activities of hunting whales have also begun to rely on the archipelago and become active in the surrounding waters. A steady stream of whale oil came from the sea and flowed into the court of Sintra.

"Oriental spices have the same fragrance, only stronger!"

King Joao II closed his eyes and lightly sniffed the rich amber fragrance. Even with the wealth of the King of Portugal, he couldn't use the expensive and unusually expensive spices of the God world as magic smoke like the Mexica Alliance in the New World. That scene, even just thinking about it, is heart-wrenching.

"East. East!."

Dias looked towards the east, his eyes full of strong longing.

The palace was quiet for a while, and the two of them remained silent for a long time, their moods fluttering. After a while, Joao II opened his eyes and said with a smile.

"Dias, India and Seris are still far away. What is right now is the dispute between the Holy See and the Granada war between the two kings!"

"Disputes in the Holy See?"

Hearing this, Dias was slightly taken aback. He had been away from the Kingdom of Portugal for two years, and he really knew nothing about the current situation of the Holy See.

"Well. The current pope, Innocent VIII, is showing his weakness clearly. King Ferdinand I of Naples has come to Rome twice to coerce the pope."

Speaking of this, King Joao II's eyes flickered, as if thinking about it.

"Ah! King Ferdinando, coerced the Pope twice?"

Hearing this, Dias gasped in surprise. King Ferdinando I of Naples and King Ferdinand II of Aragon were both kings of the dynasty of Aragon-Trastamara. The two of them have the same name and are very close in blood, they are cousins.

Ferdinand I, King of Aragon-Naples, legalized illegitimate son of Alfonso V. After the death of Alfonso V, the Kingdom of Aragon was inherited by his younger brother Juan II, and the Kingdom of Naples was inherited by his illegitimate son Ferdinand I. Then, ten years ago, Juan II died, and the throne of Aragon was passed on to his son Ferdinand II, the husband of Queen Isabella and one of the Spanish twin kings.

Simply put, King Ferdinando II of Aragon and King Ferdinando I of Naples have weak claims on each other. And if the Kingdom of Naples falls into the hands of the opponent Ferdinand II, it would be a disaster for the Kingdom of Portugal!

"Well. Pope Innocent VIII, in order to maintain his influence on the Apennine Peninsula and obtain more wealth, he wanted to impose taxes on the Kingdom of Naples. After the King of Naples refused, the Pope contacted King Charles VIII of France. Let us send troops to Naples together."

Speaking of this, the corners of Joao II's mouth curled up and he smiled narrowly.

"However, just as the Pope's war with Naples had just begun, King Charles VIII of France fell into a 'crazy war'. King Charles of France attacked the rebellious Duke of Brittany. Then Emperor Maximilian I joined the war , Supporting the rebels. King Henry VII of England also joined the war and supported the rebels. Of course, Maximilian I made great efforts, and Henry VII just dispatched the navy and waved the flag."

"This 'crazy war' has been fought for four years and ended two months ago. François II, Duke of Brittany, surrendered, signed an agreement, and became a vassal of King Charles of France. This old guy is afraid of Charlie The annexation of the country, wanted to marry his daughter to Maximilian I, and wrote to find me"

Joao II paused and shook his head. Then, with a complicated expression, he sighed.

"The Duchy of Brittany is a Grand Duchy with a population of more than one million! The Catholic countries in the north are united, and no one responds to the Pope. Pope Innocent VIII was immediately dumbfounded. Naples Thousands of troops approached Rome, and the Pope didn't even have a single support army, so he had to bow his head to beg for peace and withdraw the decree. After this incident, the prestige of the Holy See has been greatly reduced! "

"After all, the world of God has changed a long time ago. It is no longer four hundred years ago, when Pope Urban II issued an order, the kings of all countries bowed their heads to obey the order, and tens of thousands of knights swore to die to march east!"

Hearing this, Dias pursed his lips, with mixed feelings in his heart. He is a devout child of God, and he always has an instinctive inclination towards the Holy See, which affects all countries. After a while, he said in a low voice.

"The current Pope lives in luxury and corruption, and has a lot of children. There are even rumors that he secretly traded with the Ottoman Sultan. His reputation for integrity is indeed inferior to that of the previous Pope! Perhaps, the next Pope will Much better."

"Ha ha!"

Hearing this, Joao II couldn't help but laugh. He looked at the trusted royal steward and said with a smile.

"Dias, the next Pope will be either Bishop Julius II or Bishop Alexander VI. These two people, with their illegitimate children controlling the Holy See, how could they be any better?"

"Why!"

Dias gritted his teeth and stopped talking. As the royal steward, he knew a lot of inside information and felt the corruption of the Holy See. The senior priests are greedy, and the bishops marry wives and have children, almost ignoring the commandments of the Lord!

"Maybe, the Catholic Church, it's time for a change!"

A bold idea flashed in Dias' mind. After a while, he was startled by his disrespect, and bowed his head again and again to repent.

João II did not repent. He thought for a while, looked in the southeast direction, and his expression became solemn.

"Dias, do you know? At this moment, the Spanish kings are leading an army of 60,000 to carry out the southern jihad! They are determined to completely conquer the Moorish kingdom of Granada!"

"What! Sixty thousand troops?!"

Hearing this amount, Dias was really shocked. In the hands of the Spanish kings, if they can easily mobilize an army of 60,000, they will turn west and flatten the Kingdom of Portugal.

"Well, 60,000 troops. 20,000 of them are knights and followers from England, France, Shenluo, and even Scandinavian countries who participated in the southern jihad. The remaining 40,000 soldiers are from Castile Asia and Aragon. About 10,000 of them are cavalry and 30,000 are infantry, all of which are regular troops or elite militia."

"Oh, the kingdoms of Castile and Aragon have also organized thousands of musketeers and artillery troops. In Seville and Cordoba, there are kingdom ordnance factories that manufacture gunpowder. Last summer, Fernando When King II attacked the city of Malaga, he mobilized dozens of large-caliber artillery to reach the castles bombarding the Moors. However, the city of Malaga, which has 5,000 soldiers and a population of 15,000, only defended three After more than a month, they were forced to surrender!"

"What! Under the bombardment of artillery, the forbidding city of Malaga only defended for three months?!"

Hearing this, Dias was shocked. He knew the fortification of the city of Malaga. In the past hundreds of years, it was an important Moorish city that was difficult to conquer in the reconquest movement. But now, under the bombardment of heavy artillery, the Royal Chief is keenly aware that the form of the European war has undergone a huge change. And the King of Spain is walking ahead of all the kingdoms of God!

"Your Majesty, with the fall of the city of Malaga, the connection between the Moors and the southern continent was completely cut off. Without the support of the Moorish princes in the southern continent, the Moors who are trapped in Granada will not last long!"

Hearing this, Joao II lowered his eyes and clenched his hands silently. He naturally knew that the Moors were gone, and Granada would fall into the hands of the two kings. However, as a Catholic king, he did not have a proper name to participate in this pious jihad.

"Ah! The failure of the battle for the throne of Castile is the biggest mistake the Kingdom of Portugal has made in two centuries!"

Joao II gritted his teeth, feeling a dull pain in his heart. Unwillingness and longing burned in his heart, indelible.

In this era, the population of the Kingdom of Portugal was about two million. The population of the Kingdom of Castile is about twice that of the Kingdom of Portugal, between four and five million. As for the Kingdom of Aragon, it also has a population of around two million.

For a long time, although the Kingdom of Castile has a large population, there are also many grand duchies with real power in the country, and the degree of centralization of the Kingdom is weaker than that of the Kingdom of Portugal. The royal army that the Kingdom of Castile can mobilize does not have an absolute advantage. Therefore, the three kingdoms of God on the Iberian Peninsula have always maintained a certain balance of power.

But at this moment, the two kings of Spain are unified, and they have a population of six to seven million! The two kings supported each other, and the royal power was greatly strengthened, which suppressed the great nobles of the two countries and could obtain more taxation and military service. And the jihad of the Kingdom of Granada is proceeding very smoothly, and the prestige of the two kings is constantly improving! If they wait until they eat more than one million Moors in Granada, they will impose taxes and levies.

"Your Majesty! The Spanish Kings who are close at hand are the biggest threat to the kingdom!"

Dias thought for a moment, and was decisive. He stepped forward and knelt down on one knee to salute, with anxiety in his eyes.

"The Moors are about to fall, and the eyes of the two kings will fall on the kingdom again, planning to unify the Iberian Peninsula! The prestige of the Holy See is declining, and I am afraid that it will no longer support the kingdom. And the English are simply unreliable! We must divert the attention of the Twin Kings and find new allies"

Speaking of this, Dias struggled and bit his lip. Loyalty and piety are fighting in his heart, and it is difficult to decide the winner. After a while, he spoke quietly.

"Whether this new ally is a heretic or not"

King Joao II's eyes flashed instantly. He lowered his eyes, didn't speak, just bowed his head in prayer. The rich aroma of amber diffused in the main hall of the palace, like elusive smoke, drifting into the distance.