The Rise of the European Emperor

In fact, Prince Sigismund did not know that he walked around the gate of hell. Had it not been for his well-timed look of fear and shock, Marin felt he had been baffled, and perhaps he would have been assassinated after leaving East Friesland.

Prince Sigismund is a smart man. After seeing the great strength of Marin, he actually gave birth to the idea of ​​"holding his thighs". He has not yet been confirmed as the crown prince of Poland and Lithuania, but has an advantage over his brother Vladislas II.

After all, the position change of the Polish king and the Lithuanian grand duke is very strange - it needs the election and confirmation of the big nobles...

In this respect, Poland and Lithuania are very similar to the German side. The German king was also elected. However, after Charles IV issued the "Golden Seal", only seven emperors were left with the right to vote. But in Poland and Lithuania, the powerful dukes and earls can vote.

Out of the need to protect their own rights and interests, those great nobles in Poland and Lithuania definitely do not want the monarch to be too powerful, lest they be deprived of autonomy like the great French nobles. Therefore, Prince Sigismund has an electoral advantage over his brother Vladislas II.

But what the final result will be, Prince Sigismund has no idea. After all, people are unpredictable, who knows who those big nobles will vote for in the end?

Therefore, Prince Sigismund actually needs the support of allies. What he needs most is to win over the great nobles of Poland and Lithuania.

Prince Sigismund is a very capable and intelligent monarch. Otherwise, he would not have used the bribes of the Crimean Khanate Mongogiri Khan in 1512 to make the Crimean Khanate attack the Grand Duchy of Moscow and successfully dismantle the Crimean Khanate and the Grand Duchy of Moscow. alliance.

Since then, the Crimean Khanate has become half an ally of Poland (after this war in history, the Crimean Khanate has not stopped plundering the southern regions of Poland and Lithuania), but turned its face with the Grand Duchy of Moscow Later, Crimea often invaded the southern part of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, which made the Grand Duchy of Moscow need to divide a large number of troops to garrison the southern border, thus losing the ability to concentrate on attacking Lithuania.

Therefore, Prince Sigismund is a person who is very good at judging the situation. After seeing Marin's strength, Prince Sigismund took a moment to adjust his mood, and then, with a smile all over his face, as if he owed money, he came together...

"Second uncle..."

"Pfft—" Marin spit out a mouthful of milk tea...

In the West, there are very few sayings called Second Uncle Brother. However, when Lithuania is dealing with the Golden Horde, they know the customs of the East.

This meaning can be expressed in the form of phrases. Marin understood, but he also sprayed a sip of milk tea, which happened to be sprayed on Prince Sigismund's clothes...

However, Prince Sigismund didn't change his face, as if he didn't feel it, and continued to smile, almost like Marlin:

"Second uncle, look, I'm just a prince with a poor future. When I marry Annie in the future, I can't treat her badly..." Prince Sigismund said hypocritically.

"Stop - just say what you want to say!" Marin couldn't stand Prince Sigismund's sudden low-key look. At the same time, he also admires this guy. For the benefit, he knows how to be flexible and is a talent.

"I know what my uncle and aunt are thinking. However, whether I can become the king of Poland and the grand duke of Lithuania is still unknown. I really want to work hard to become the king of Poland and the grand duke of Lithuania, so that Anne can be a queen. However, I lack support right now... Look, do we want to form an alliance?"

"Alliance? For now, I simply support you..." Marin said speechlessly.

"Yes, you support me now, but after I become the king of Poland and the Grand Duke of Lithuania, I can give back to you! Poland and Lithuania are big countries, so there are many places that can support you."

Marin nodded, agreeing with Prince Sigismund. If he becomes the King of Poland and the Grand Duke of Lithuania, he can indeed become Marin's reinforcement. If nothing else, diplomatic support alone can fully alleviate Marin's current dilemma of diplomatic isolation. Even the marriage with the Jagiellonian royal family can greatly enhance the influence of the Hoffman family.

The Hoffman family originally relied on Marin's ability to play, and then they played a large turf. But in the eyes of those old-fashioned aristocrats, the Hoffman family is still a small nouveau riche. What? You say you are the bloodline of the original Earl Bullock family? Don't be ridiculous, the Bullock family was also a frontier chief in the eyes of the orthodox German nobles...

Therefore, even though Marin's strength is very strong, the influence of the Hoffman family in the aristocratic circle is really weak. This is also an important reason why Old Hoffman, including Mrs. Mary, is keen to let his son marry a princess and his daughter marry a prince.

Only in this way can it be shown that the Hoffman family has stepped into the top aristocratic circle by marrying the traditional old-fashioned aristocratic family.

Going out later, the old Hoffmans can proudly declare that my daughter is the Queen of Poland! With that said, who dares to look down on it?

These things on the face of knowledge, --\u003e\u003e

In terms of actual interests, Marin can actually extend his commercial tentacles into Poland, which is vast and populous, through marriage with the Polish royal family. Such as the salt trade, and the future cane sugar trade.

In addition, Marin also knew that because there were many feudal nobles in Poland and Lithuania, the number of wandering knights was no less than that in Germany. With the future Polish king and his wife as introducers, Marin wanted to recruit a group of Polish knights to serve as Lancers (winged cavalry), and that was absolutely fine. Unlike in the German region, there were not many German wandering knights willing to come to Marin because of the low reputation of the family.

Thinking of this, Marin nodded and said:

"Okay, I agree to the alliance. Just, how can I support you now?"

"Now? Then support me with some fertilizer. When I earn enough money, I will have the money to bribe the great nobles in Poland and Lithuania, so that they can support me!"

"No, even if you are rich now, it is not appropriate to openly spend money to buy those great nobles. You must know that although Grand Duke Alexander is currently in poor health, he is only in his forties. You openly bought the great nobles, not expecting him. Early death? What if he supports His Majesty Vladislas II and leads Poland and Lithuania in a fit of rage?" Marin immediately rejected Prince Sigismund's statement. Moreover, he thought that the other party was a little too impatient.

Prince Sigismund thought for a while, and felt that it was indeed inappropriate to do so, and it would easily anger his brother. So he sincerely asked:

"Then, second uncle, what do you think I should do?"

"Who is your second uncle?" Marin rolled his eyes at him, but still gave advice:

"Right now, it's really not suitable for you to pay for it. However, it's okay to have a relationship with those big nobles at ordinary times."

"Then how can I bond with them?" asked Prince Sigismund.

"It's very simple, please eat! Have you forgotten the cooking skills of my cook? There are so many delicious things that can definitely attract them!" Marin said proudly.

Prince Sigismund nodded immediately. Indeed, the food in the Marin Palace attracted him who had always been restrained, let alone those ordinary nobles.

Moreover, eating and drinking together, although they are friends of wine and meat, they are also friends, right? At least, when you have a smooth sailing, these wine and meat friends will not deliberately go against you. They often eat and drink with Prince Sigismund, at least they owe them favors.

Although it is said that these days, the life of the nobles is much better, but in the early Middle Ages, the kings and nobles of Europe liked to bring large groups of people to "patrol" and eat and drink in various places during the harvest season. Even, there are kings and great nobles who died because of eating and drinking...

Now it is not as exaggerated as in the early Middle Ages, but it is also a big favor in Europe to often invite people to dinner.

As for expenses, Marin promised to give 10,000 Ugram fertilizers a year, which would allow Prince Sigismund to earn hundreds of thousands of gold coins per year. This money is definitely more than enough to entertain those big nobles, and there is still a lot of surplus.

Marin's opinion is that after Prince Sigismund returns to his country, he should entertain the great nobles with voting rights to eat and drink more, so as to enhance their feelings. Inviting people to dinner would not touch the sensitive nerves of Archduke Alexander, but he would be able to bond with each other very well.

When the Grand Duke of Alexander really died, he took out a sum of money to bribe the leaders of the important great nobles. In this way, the throne will be stable by then.

At the end, Marin also instructed Prince Sigismund in detail how to covertly use fertilizer. The specific method is to find a remote manor territory, where fertilizers are used in the cultivated land to increase production. Then, set up an inconspicuous chamber of commerce to quietly transport a large amount of grain to other places for scattered sales, so as to avoid attracting the attention of others...

You must know that in Poland and Lithuania, the royal family cannot cover the sky with one hand, it is just one of the big nobles. If the secrets of these fertilizers were known to the great nobles, they would definitely join forces to force Prince Sigismund to hand them over. Prince Sigismund still makes some fucking money once fertilizers become commonplace? Food prices must have plummeted...

Therefore, after a thorough analysis, Prince Sigismund also understood that keeping the fertilizer technology secret was the most beneficial choice for him. If fertilizer technology spreads, allowing those great nobles who are already very powerful to get the technology, then their strength will be even stronger. And as the monarch of Poland and Lithuania, it will become more and more miserable, and may even become a puppet completely...

After understanding these truths, Prince Sigismund said that he not only has to choose a remote manor that does not border others. Even when fertilizers are used, serfs are asked to fertilize at night to avoid being seen by outsiders. In addition, the manor manager will also use the most trusted person to avoid the leakage of secrets...

Seeing that Prince Sigismund was in this way, Marin gave up the idea of ​​killing him, and happily talked to him about Anne's marriage. In this regard, Prince Sigismund said that he would return to the country immediately and seek the support of his elder brother, Archduke Alexander, in order to marry Anne as soon as possible. And Marin also said that he will give enough dowry to let Annie marry beautifully...