The bandit suppression plan went very smoothly, at least for Isaac.
Isaac first wiped out several small bandit groups that had taken advantage of the chaos to loot, and sold them into slavery.
Isaac had always regarded himself as the protector of the Roman people.
Without my permission, no one dares to bully the people of Rome!
Then Isaac just stayed put.
Caravan raids continued to occur.
The merchants' association finally lost patience and reluctantly delivered the supplies Isaac demanded.
The church also contacted foreign firearms merchants to purchase guns and cannons.
With his belly full, Isaac finally did something worthwhile.
They swept through the countryside with drums and gongs, stopping every few steps, afraid that Ibrahim and his men wouldn't know.
After randomly grabbing a few petty thieves and parading them around, Isaac ran back to the city and announced that the bandit problem had been eliminated.
After confirming that the prince's words were true, the merchants celebrated, and the church breathed a sigh of relief. They finally managed to reopen the trade route before Christmas.
The weapons and funds promised by the church arrived one after another.
It didn't matter if they didn't arrive on time, Ibrahim wasn't far away.
Bang—bang—
Isaac and Mikhail inspected the newly arrived muskets at the training ground.
The Italian engineer Martinez stood nearby, enthusiastically explaining the advantages of these muskets.
"Your Highness, Captain, this is our latest muzzle-loading gun. It can fire small bullets, and a skilled shooter can fire two shots in a minute!"
He was clearly very proud.
The Mongol conquests and trade with the Arabs had gradually brought Eastern technologies such as gunpowder to Europe. At this time, Europeans had already figured out the best ratio for gunpowder and discovered the benefits of granulating it.
Heavy cannons were widely used in siege warfare, and small matchlock guns were also adopted by various major powers.
The Ottoman Janissaries were the first professional army in Europe to adopt matchlock guns.
The Byzantine Empire also had matchlock gun units, but they were few and not organized into formal units, serving only as auxiliary forces for the infantry.
To be honest, old-style matchlock guns were no match for powerful bows and crossbows in terms of accuracy, range, and firing speed. Their only advantage was that they were easy to use.
It took at least a year to train a skilled English longbowman and three months to train a Genoese crossbowman.
Moreover, not everyone could use them skillfully. Those who lacked strength could not pull the bowstring.
However, it only takes a month for a musketeer to go from apprentice to expert. Once they master the technique, even women and children can use them proficiently.
Additionally, the terrifying effect of firearms on enemy horses and the demoralizing impact on morale made this weapon, suitable for all ages, increasingly effective in more and more places.
The knights of Latin Europe initially looked down on this weapon of the common people, but soon the Hussite war wagons of the Czechs taught them a lesson.
By mounting flintlock muskets and small cannons on wagons and surrounding them with shields, these hedgehogs left the knights of Germany and France helpless.
The age of bows and crossbows was coming to an end, and firearms were gradually becoming the mainstay of warfare.
"Mikhail, what do you think?"
"Your Highness, while these muskets are indeed powerful, they are cumbersome and prone to moisture, making them unsuitable for long-range offensives. However, they may prove effective in defensive scenarios."
Isaac remained noncommittal.
"Mr. Martinez, did you manufacture these muskets?"
Martinez stood up proudly.
"I designed them all. In my hometown, there are specialized factories with skilled workers who can produce these weapons of war continuously."
"How many did you bring?"
"The bishop ordered 300, and I brought 400."
"I'll take the remaining 100. Can you provide instructors and maintenance technicians?"
"It's my pleasure, Your Highness!"
Martinez was overjoyed.
That evening, Isaac gathered his men again.
This time, Isaac decided to expand the guard to a flag squad of 300 men, with Mikhail as the flag captain.
Under him would be a 50-man cavalry squad, two 100-man infantry squads, a 20-man Serbian archer squad, and a 30-man musket squad.
All the troops were recruited from among Greek Orthodox Christians.
In addition, three hundred muskets were handed over to Thomas, who oversaw building the Great Wall, to be installed on the Great Wall of Corinth.
All the cannons collected by the church would also be reinforced for the Great Wall of Corinth.
At that time, cannons were difficult to transport and were widely used only in siege and defensive battles, so it was appropriate to allocate them to the Great Wall of Corinth.
There were also 70 muskets, and Isaac had some new ideas.
"Captain Fidel, I plan to mount 60 muskets on three oar-powered warships. During boarding battles, we can fire a volley to catch the enemy off guard. What do you think?"
Fidel thought for a moment and nodded slowly.
"It's worth a try, Your Highness."
"Let's do it then. The remaining 10 fire muskets will be used as backups and for training. We will purchase more in the future."
"As for the two Kirk ships in Athens..."
"Incorporate them into your fleet and get them combat-ready as soon as possible."
Over the next half month, Mikhail was busy assembling troops, Fidel was busy training the fleet and testing the fire cannons, and everyone was busy having a great time. Isaac, on the other hand, found himself with nothing to do.
Apart from participating in daily training with the old guard and chatting with them afterward, Isaac had almost nothing to do.
Most of the soldiers were quite satisfied with Isaac as their master. They trained together every day, told dirty jokes, and their military pay was never deducted.
From time to time, he would conduct surprise inspections of the army kitchens and eat with the soldiers.
This way, the cooks didn't dare to use 10 groschen silver coins to buy 5 groschen worth of food.
He was also a member of the royal family and fifth in line to the throne of the empire.
In such turbulent times, with a leader like this, they should be satisfied.
This was the consensus among most of the soldiers.
In addition, Isaac met with some merchants and priests to understand their interests and demands.
The local merchants mainly complained that the Latins had taken away all their markets and that the empire imposed heavy taxes on them.
Venetians and Genoese did not have to pay Byzantine commercial taxes, but only Byzantines did.
Isn't that infuriating?
Isaac could only express sympathy and offer all possible assistance except direct help.
If the emperor dared to abolish the tax exemption privileges of the Latin merchants, the Latins would dare to bombard the Grand Palace, and even the pope would be powerless.
The clergy repeatedly tested Isaac's attitude toward church unity. The cunning Isaac would never fall for that.
What kind of person do you think the pope is?
What? I've already eaten it. Thank you.
Do you believe in the Holy Trinity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?
The wine of Provence is truly exceptional, no worse than that of Burgundy and Bordeaux.
...
As time went on, the priests lost patience.
After a few days of leisure, the most magnificent festival in the Christian world arrived.
At midnight on January 6, amid flying snowflakes, the bells of Christmas rang out.
Athens and Thebes held grand ceremonies to commemorate the 1,445th anniversary of the birth of Jesus.
People took to the streets and exchanged blessings.
The churches began to distribute communion and lead prayers.
Constantine and Thomas returned to Athens and attended the church ceremony with their family.
In the evening, Constantine held a banquet at the duke's castle.
The Baleolo family was still very prosperous, with old and young sitting in a large crowd.
Isaac was too lazy to talk to them, so he drank some wine and returned to his quarters.
At that time, there was no commercialization, no Christmas gifts, and no Santa Claus driving a sleigh pulled by reindeer.
Isaac shook the bell in his room.
The steward, Andre, appeared before him.
The steward was a servant of his late mother and was loyal to him, making him one of Isaac's most trusted people.
Isaac took out four money bags, two large and two small.
"Take one to the camp and distribute it among the soldiers; send one to the Saint Nicholas so that the sailors can have some fun."
"Tell them that His Highness invites them to drink and wishes them good health."
Isaac paused.
"Give the small one to Ibrahim's wife and daughters and tell them to write a few letters to send back."
Andrew nodded.
"And the other one?"
"That's for you, Andrew."
"Merry Christmas."
For a moment, Isaac saw a hint of emotion flash across the old steward's weathered face.
His Highness had grown up. If the princess were still alive, she would be very pleased.
Andrew left the room and stepped out into the blizzard.
Early the next morning, Isaac was awakened by a messenger sent by his father.
Outside, everything was covered in snow, and the castle was beautiful.
Athens had a Mediterranean climate and rarely saw snow.
But the winter of 1444 was particularly cold.
Isaac blew warm air into his hands and walked into his father's reception room.
His uncle Thomas was already waiting there.
There was also a familiar face—Assistant Bishop Fojar.
Isaac greeted them one by one.
Constantine motioned for Isaac to sit down.
After listening for a few sentences, he realized that they were discussing the new round of negotiations on church union.
This was a big deal.
In fact, the late Byzantine emperors only did three important things: defend the city, seek help, and hold meetings.
Every time the Ottomans advanced on Constantinople, the emperor would go to Western Europe to seek help.
Church unity was one of the conditions for Western aid.
The emperor and most of the ministers were very much in favor of this.
The more enlightened clergy also did not oppose it.
The greatest resistance came from the common people.
Every time negotiations took place, the city was filled with discontent.
Because they had nothing, they could only cling to religion as a cloak to wrap themselves in.
Therefore, the Byzantine side mainly adopted a strategy of delay.
To be honest, the conditions offered by the Pope were quite lenient.
Not only did he allow the Eastern Orthodox Church to retain its unique customs, but he also promised not to interfere with the Eastern Orthodox Church.
However, the Greek Orthodox Christians transferred their hatred of the Latins to the Roman Catholics and refused to accept the terms.
The church unification achieved at the Council of Florence in 1439 became a dead letter under the deliberate indulgence of the Byzantine emperor.
The Greek Orthodox were dissatisfied because they had failed to prevent the emperor's apostasy.
The Roman Catholic Church was also dissatisfied because they had negotiated for so long only to end up with nothing.
This was typical Byzantine "wisdom," which pleased neither side.
After the defeat of the Crusade of Varna, the ailing Emperor John VIII announced the resumption of negotiations, with his brother Constantine in charge.
At this time, both sides were discussing the specific details of the meeting.
"Father, let me go to Rome."
Isaac stood up.
"My fleet can also participate in escorting the clergy, which will save the cost of hiring a fleet."
Constantine and Fujar exchanged glances and nodded.
"Let it be so."
Isaac couldn't interfere with matters in Corinth. He had done what he should and shouldn't have done. Now he would just let things take their course.
Under Constantine's rule, the Morea Peninsula had almost reached its limit.
With only the Moria Peninsula and a half-dead Constantinople, it was clearly impossible to fight against the Ottoman army.
They had to break out of their limitations and go to broader horizons to seek a glimmer of hope.
Isaac could also use his knowledge of historical trends and figures to make a big splash.
Let's go, Rome!