e-booksonline Chapter 937 The Envoy
Chapter 937 The Envoy
Chapter 937 The Envoy
From the very beginning, overseas empires faced a crucial question: where should they build their capital?
The elders of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the old Crusader nobles, believed that it was only right to establish Jerusalem as the capital.
The Coptic people of Egypt hoped that Losa would consider moving the capital to Cairo, the ancient capital, to ensure that the Coptic people, who comprised the largest population in the empire, would not be marginalized and would always occupy a core position in the empire.
In their view, Egypt, which contributed the most taxes and soldiers to the empire, was entitled to such treatment.
The emerging Crusader nobles under Lothar preferred that Lothar establish his capital in Alexandria or one of the coastal cities in the Nile Delta.
The Saracen nobles who converted and submitted had the least say. They hoped that Lothar would continue Saladin's choice to establish the capital in Damascus. Their idea, in fact, best aligned with Lothar's original intention.
Cairo and Alexandria are too remote; although economically developed, they are unsuitable as the heart of the empire.
Just like the Eastern dynasties, the economic center could be in the south, but the political center had to be in the north.
Jerusalem has a suitable geographical location, but it is surrounded by mountains, making transportation inconvenient and lacking water resources. This naturally limits the development potential of the entire city. If we disregard its religious significance, this holy city of three religions should be a small city that can only accommodate a maximum of 10,000 to 20,000 settlers.
Even during the reign of Baldwin IV, the Kingdom of Jerusalem showed a tendency to shift its center of power to Acre.
As for Damascus, although it is not as grand as Cairo and as prosperous in trade as Alexandria, its geographical location is uniquely advantageous.
To the west, through the passes of the Lebanese mountains, one can reach Tripoli and enter the Mediterranean Sea; to the south, along the Jordan Valley, one can reach the trading hub of Eyra on the Red Sea; to the east, one can see Persia in the distance and intimidate all invaders.
It has an excellent geographical location, and unlike Jerusalem, the land there is not barren.
The Barada River flows through Damascus, nourishing fertile land for thousands of miles. Located on a vital part of the Silk Road, Damascus boasts a thriving handicraft industry and a prosperous economy, making it ideal as a capital city.
Three years ago, at the Estates-General convened by Lothar, representatives of nobles and lower-class citizens from various regions argued endlessly for a whole week over where to establish the capital, and nearly came to blows.
Ultimately, Losar chose to establish his capital in Jerusalem.
The reason is simple: Jerusalem, which holds a holy status among the three religions, is of paramount importance as an empire that encompassed Christians, Saracens, and Jews.
In comparison, Jerusalem's poor geographical conditions were not something that Lothar could not change, given his power far exceeding that of legendary spellcasters.
Furthermore, given Lothar's mobility, even in the most remote and inaccessible areas, he could ride Ladon to every corner of the Empire in at most an hour.
It's worth mentioning that Lothar's dragon roster no longer includes only Radon.
Two female fire dragons, assigned by the obsidian dragon, migrated from the north to serve as the dragon king's consorts. One of them was Lothar's "old dragon," the female unicorn lizard dragon who had just laid her eggs.
From a dragon's perspective, these two female dragons were definitely "beautiful dragons," but Lothar couldn't handle them, so he packed them all up and handed them over to Radon, and went with them to live in a dragon's nest near Alexandria.
When Losa received news of the "Tartar delegation's visit" from the port of Ela, he was receiving Anna, the special envoy of the Eastern Empire.
Since Anna led the Eastern Empire's army to recapture the Sicilian Military District two years ago, Anna has been visiting Jerusalem more and more frequently.
"Lothar! Can't you, a grown man, just be straightforward? With our Queen's looks and figure, apart from being a bit old, what about her doesn't suit your taste? Now, we don't even require you to hold a royal wedding; Her Majesty only asks that you give her a child!"
Lothar could only smile wryly. If there was anyone in the world whose appearance could rival that of his retinue, it would be this Ducas Queen.
Although Her Majesty the Queen's situation has never been particularly good.
The Eastern Empire is too old, like an old man on his deathbed, full of ailments. The Empress's attempt to implement new policies is like scraping the bone to remove poison; if she exerts even the slightest force, the entire empire may perish. She can only proceed slowly and cautiously.
This means that they had the support of the emerging Crusader nobles in Asia Minor, as well as the newly conquered military nobles and landed soldiers on the island of Sicily.
With Anna, a near-legendary mage, and the Royal Guard she personally trained as pillars, the Eastern Empire is currently able to maintain a relatively stable situation.
“You should understand Her Majesty’s current situation. I have always believed that if there is truly a ‘philosopher-king’ in this world, only you and Her Majesty are worthy of it. You two should naturally be the most steadfast allies and confidants. The problem now is that she needs a child as her successor.”
"In the future, your children will not only inherit the throne of the Eastern Empire, but may even inherit your position. At that time, the two countries will be united as one, and the revival of the empire will be just around the corner."
The problem of having no successor existed even before Princess Iraq staged her coup, because the princess's and the empress's governing philosophies were completely different. Otherwise, Lagaya would not have been so unwilling to let her truly participate in politics and build her own team.
"It is precisely because I know she needs a child that I cannot agree."
Losa was somewhat helpless, but in the end, he told the truth.
Anna asked in surprise, "Why?"
"When a spellcaster reaches the legendary rank, their life level will leap forward. You are now very close to that level, so you should be able to guess why, right?"
Anna's expression changed slightly. It wasn't just legendary witches; even those who weren't legendary mostly suffered from infertility.
"But isn't your power system different from that of wizards?"
"Different paths lead to the same destination."
Lothar didn't explain further. In fact, he wasn't sure if he was still able to have children. After all, his followers included ghosts, werewolves, holy spirits, and vampires, and Viviana was one of the few normal people.
But his relationship with Viviana hasn't reached that point yet.
Building a harem is a skill in itself, and Lothar had plenty of time, so he always took a "let nature take its course" approach.
Anna was clearly still not giving up: "Why don't you give it a try? Maybe it will work. Her Majesty is no ordinary person; she has drunk many of the potions I concocted."
"Believe me, Anna, even with the friendship between us, the Eastern Empire and the overseas empires are still the most steadfast allies. Her Majesty the Empress doesn't really need to have such a strong sense of crisis."
"Let her do whatever she wants. Even if you can't handle it, I will provide support as an ally."
Lothar said with a smile.
Over the past three years, the overseas empire has recuperated and developed in peace, and its strength has expanded too much to be a strong threat to its surrounding neighbors.
"Let's not bring this up again. The Tatar delegation is arriving soon, and it's time to seriously consider how to deal with this new neighbor in the future."
Anna frowned and said, "What's the point of dealing with them? Do you really want to live in harmony with these nomadic peoples? In my opinion, you should immediately send a large army to invade, and even if you don't march into Persia, you should at least swallow up this fertile land of Mesopotamia."
Lothar smiled and said, "Let's see what the Tatar delegation has to say first."
Over the years, he has sent many spies to Central Asia, and the Shadow of Darkness has expanded considerably. After eliminating the "Eagle's Nest" of the Old Man of the Mountain, it seems poised to take its place.
The Tatars were quite powerful, far stronger than in the original history, and had several great shamans of legendary level.
Three years ago, he wouldn't have had much confidence in defeating the Tatars.
But now, the Tatars, who could easily destroy the Sassanids, are no longer taken seriously by Lothar.
"Why don't you leave?"
Looking at Anna, whose buttocks seemed nailed to the chair, Lothar couldn't help but ask, "Are you going to sit in on the royal council meeting too?"
Anna retorted confidently: "As the closest ally of the overseas empire, do you think I can't listen to this? This isn't just your business. The empire has now subjugated a lot of territory in Asia Minor, and is now separated from the Persians by the remnants of the Ayyubid and Seljuk forces. Once the Tatars annex Persia, they will inevitably come to our aid sooner or later."
P.S.: This book will end after stopping the Tatar westward expedition. The day has finally come.
The new book is tentatively titled "Holy, Roman, and Imperial," and tells the story of an exiled prince of Paleopolies who ascends the Holy Roman Empire and reclaims Constantinople.