The Rise of the European Emperor

Marin was very angry about Anne's unauthorized disclosure of the core secrets of East Friesland. After all, I have nothing to say to my sister. Since I made a fortune, I have been rich. Unexpectedly, before she got married, she turned her elbow out.

But then, a piece of news made Marin almost vomit blood from depression - Annie revealed a secret, and it was the idea of ​​the old Hoffman couple...

It turned out that the old Hoffmans felt that their daughter was not worthy of the Polish crown prince. So old Hoffman came up with such a bad idea to increase Anne's weight in Prince Sigismund's eyes. Fortunately, Old Hoffman knew that the ox and the curved plough were not given too much attention. As for the fertilizer's secret, I asked Annie to ask Marin if he could reveal it.

However, after hearing the news, Marin almost fainted from anger...

What's special, cattle farming and curved ploughs are really not a secret. When the time is right, Marin may take it out and exchange it with the Holy See or the Emperor for a reward.

However, the secret of fertilizer is the core secret of East Frisian's survival. This secret is too important. If it is accidentally leaked out, it may lead to besieging and beating all over Europe!

In order to increase the grain production several times, Marin absolutely believes that there will be many powerful countries willing to form groups to fight themselves and snatch the secret of fertilizer. Because the stakes involved are too great.

If it weren't for the fact that Old Hoffman was his father and Annie was his own sister, Marin would have killed them all.

As for Prince Sigismund, Marin decided to find out. If the other party is interested and the appetite is not so big, then you can fulfill this marriage yourself. If the other party is too greedy, wants the secret of fertilizer, or threatens himself, Marin will not hesitate to send someone to assassinate him after he leaves East Frisian.

...

After making up his mind, Marin made an appointment with Prince Sigismund. While drinking milk tea, Marin pretended to be casual and asked:

"You should know those three secrets, right?"

"Yes, I am very surprised, and I understand why you can develop so fast!" Prince Sigismund nodded, his eyes flashed with fire, but he controlled it well.

"You are wrong, money is one aspect, and it can only account for half of the credit. No matter how rich you are, even if you have a weak military, you will be regarded as a fat sheep. You know the 'Marin phalanx' that I invented, right? Then But the European First Soldier's phalanx is no less powerful than the Swiss phalanx... The combination of these two factors has brought me to where I am today!" Marin said lightly, he meant to tell Qi Prince Germont - I'm not easy to mess with.

Prince Sigismund thought for a while and nodded. He was astonished to find that Marin had not lost a single battle over the years. In addition to having money to support the army, Marin's personal military ability is indeed very strong...

So Prince Sigismund looked at Marin with even more respect. Even as a possible heir to Poland and Lithuania, I dare not say that Poland and Lithuania will definitely be able to defeat Marin's army. Because the total number of Marin's troops has reached an astonishing 30,000 people, which basically catches up with the standing armies of Poland and Lithuania.

Moreover, Marin's army is really a standing army, basically full-time and training regularly. This is only the number of the army, including the navy, it is estimated to be no less than 40,000 people... Anne said that the Frisians in the German coastal area, except for the Archbishopric of Bremen, the Frisians in the rest of the area. , All swore allegiance to Marin, and the young and strong among the Frisian people are willing to serve Marin...

Prince Sigismund broke down in cold sweat, and he suddenly realized that his future second brother-in-law was a powerful warlord...

Seeing the sweat on Prince Sigismund's forehead, Marin also knew that the other party wanted to understand the key point. And this time, he was originally here to scare Prince Sigismund, and he didn't mind exposing more of his strength.

So Marin asked, seemingly unintentionally:

"Do you know about the Great Famine in the North of England?"

Prince Sigismund nodded, this was no secret in Europe.

Marin continued:

"Taking advantage of this great famine, I sent people to England and recruited 10,000 recruits..."

The glass teacup in Prince Sigismund's hand suddenly fell to the ground with a "snap", and he himself was a little lost...

There were more than 30,000 troops in Marin, and another 10,000 were recruited in England. Doesn't that mean that Marin's army has more than 40,000 people?

He knew very well that in this era, in all of Europe, no country had a standing army of 40,000. The standing army of France is more than 20,000 people. Of course, there are many noble troops in France. If it is truly mobilized, 100,000 people can be drawn. Moreover, of the more than 20,000 standing troops, many of them were plate knights. But when it comes to the number of standing armies, it's really not as good as Malindo. After all, it is too expensive to feed a standing army... As for Maximilian I, his Habsburg family army, the Austrian part has about 18,000 standing army. As for the Netherlands, there is also a standing army of 10,000. But the two armies' systems of command were not unified, and the Dutch seemed to resist accepting Maximilian I's leadership. But even so, the strength of Maximilian I cannot be underestimated. Therefore, France regarded Maximilian I as a rival.

However, neither Louis XII nor Maximilian I regarded Marin as a threat. why? Because Marin offended Denmark, the Electoral State of Saxony and the Electoral State of Brandenburg.

With these three opponents, Marin's army of at least 20,000 did not dare to move, and he had to be on guard in the east, and he had to guard the borders of various places. Therefore, it is generally believed that out of the 30,000 troops in Marin's hands, only 10,000 are mobile.

But now that Marin has recruited another 10,000 people in England, that's extraordinary. Usually, Marin has a 10,000-strong army of maneuverability, and people will only think that Marin is a formidable enemy. But if you add 10,000 people, that's the level of a big country...

In fact, the total standing armies of Poland and Lithuania can add up to more than 60,000. However, more than half of these 60,000 people are stationed on the long border, which is relatively scattered. After all, Poland and Lithuania are too big, and there are many areas that need to be stationed. Therefore, when Poland and Lithuania fought, the maximum number of troops that could be gathered was 20,000 or 30,000. The troops and horses in the border areas must not move at all.

The same is true of France. Although the total number of troops and horses exceeds 100,000, only 20,000 to 30,000 can be used in wartime. Counting mercenaries, there are 40,000 or 50,000 available troops. For example, in the war with Spain in the Kingdom of Naples, an army of 40,000 was defeated by 20,000 in Spain...

However, the Spanish phalanx seems to be learned from Marin. So, wouldn't Marin's mobile force of 20,000 people have the strength to defeat 40,000 French troops?

The more Prince Sigismund thought, the more shocked, the more he thought, the more he felt that Anne's marriage to him was not high. In terms of strength, Marin now has as much strength as his brother Alexander...

At present, he is only a possible crown prince, and the case has not yet been finalized. Because, even though Archduke Alexander died, he still had an older brother, King Vladislas II of Bohemia. At that time, it will depend on who the nobles of Poland and Lithuania choose...

Although, Prince Sigismund felt that with the urination of the great nobles in Poland and Lithuania, he would not choose a strong monarch who was himself the king of Bohemia and Hungary (Although Vladislas II was not a strong monarch, But the Bohemia Kingdom and the Hungarian Kingdom under their control are really strong. The famous Polish winged cavalry was established under the influence of the Hungarian hussars), so as not to suppress the power of the nobility, but it is difficult to say that it must be the case.

However, if the fertilizer of 10,000 Eugrams promised by Marin can be put in place, he will get hundreds of thousands of gold coins every year, which seems to be able to bribe those nobles from Poland and Lithuania... In addition, Alexander brother also supports himself in inheriting Poland. The position of the king and the Grand Duke of Lithuania...

Prince Sigismund is starting to fantasize...

After he woke up, Marin threw another bombshell:

"His Royal Highness Sigismund, quietly tell you a secret, don't tell anyone else!"

"What secret?" asked Prince Sigismund curiously.

"His Majesty Pope Julius II is my staunch ally!"

"What?" Prince Sigismund was startled. Pope, that is the first person in the spiritual realm of Europe. Having the Pope's support is equivalent to standing on the highest point of European morality and representing the side of justice... Marin dares to say that the Pope is his ally... Alas... It seems that the relationship between the two sides is indeed not shallow, the Holy See still The Bishopric of Münster and the Bishopric of Osnabruck were given to Marin...

"Isn't it strange? The Holy See's main force of 7,000 people is still sent by me. If those 7,000 people are recruited, I will have an army of nearly 50,000..." Marin said domineeringly.

Prince Sigismund was silent, because he really couldn't find anything to refute. Also, what Marin said is fine...

Now, Prince Sigismund looked at Marin, and definitely didn't feel like he was a little higher than before. In his opinion, Marin, who has huge wealth, a strong army and the support of the Holy See, is stronger than his two brothers.

Then, the little coveted heart for fertilizer technology disappeared...

In addition, he began to feel that when he married Annie, he seemed to have made a very powerful ally...

Seeing Prince Sigismund's awe-inspiring gaze, Marin felt that his purpose had been achieved. What he was most afraid of was that Prince Sigismund underestimated his own strength, and then planned fertilizer technology, which eventually caused his in-laws to become enemies. Therefore, he needs to calm down the other party first and make the other party fear him. Then, if you give yourself some benefits, then the problem will not be big.

And, if one day, fertilizer technology is really known. I'm not afraid of myself, it's a big deal to throw out the manure technology. Then, as long as the technology of phosphate fertilizer and potash fertilizer is not mentioned, who knows? Who can figure it out? That was the technology of the 19th century, and today's people wouldn't understand what phosphate fertilizers and potash fertilizers are if they want to break their heads. Even if the principle of manure, they will not want to understand the principle...

Besides, even if you can't make huge profits from grain in the future, you can turn to industry. Now that the steam engine has come out, as long as the Ruhr area gets its hands on it, you will be engaged in industry, and you still lack the benefits of agriculture? ) !!