"Ah, Uncle Frederick, what do you need me for?"
"Your Majesty, my men intercepted a secret letter. The messenger has been apprehended. According to him, it was a letter to Portugal. Perhaps you should take a look at it."
Frederick pulled an envelope from his pocket. The wax seal on the envelope was still intact, indicating that the letter had not yet been opened or read.
But why did this seal look so familiar?
"What the… Isn't this my seal? Uncle, whose letter did you intercept?"
Laszlo nearly blurted out a crude phrase from his hometown. The double-headed eagle on the seal was clearly his personal one.
"Uh… I'm not sure about that. I only know it was sent from the Imperial Palace, by those Portuguese people in the palace."
Frederick replied somewhat guiltily. In fact, he knew very well that the letter was sent by the Empress, because besides her and Laszlo himself, no one else could use the Emperor's exclusive wax seal.
Laszlo narrowed his eyes slightly. What kind of scheme was his old uncle up to? He saw the seal and still dared to arrest the messenger and intercept the letter?
He had already figured it out. This letter must have been written by Leonor. If it was sent to Portugal, it was probably just a family letter, informing her relatives that she was safe, or perhaps pouring out her heart's troubles and sharing her joys…
Why was Frederick always so enthusiastic about the affairs of these Portuguese people? Now he was even moonlighting for the Ministry of Internal Affairs, strictly monitoring even correspondence?
Did he really want to drive the Portuguese out of the palace?
Laszlo thought Frederick might be making a mountain out of a molehill. He himself absolutely trusted Leonor. After all, Leonor had not lived in Portugal for several years. What kind of dealings could she have with Portugal?
But looking at the letter in his hand, he was also a little curious—prying into other people's privacy was, of course, a despicable act, but what if? What if there was really some news detrimental to the Empire inside… Well, Laszlo couldn't even convince himself with this lame excuse.
"Your Majesty, there's no harm in taking a look, is there? After all, isn't this your seal? You can just reseal it later. But what if there are words inside that undermine your prestige…"
Frederick maliciously speculated about what the Empress might have written in the letter. He was certain there would be something that would infuriate his nephew.
Because, as far as he knew, the Empress's attitude towards Laszlo was not very good.
"You…" Laszlo was speechless. His uncle was completely egging him on to do something bad, showing no sign of how an uncle or elder should behave.
His heart also began to waver. Curiosity was inevitable. Leonor's first family letter after marrying him…
After reading it, he would reseal it, put his seal on it, and then give it back to the messenger. Everything would be as if nothing had happened. Except for Frederick and himself, no one would know that the letter had been opened.
Although he felt very sorry for Leonor, Laszlo ultimately chose to be a despicable person.
The envelope was torn open, and the letter inside was taken out.
He turned his head to glance at Frederick, who had already consciously turned his back. He had incited the Emperor to peek at the Empress's letter, but if he looked at it himself, it would be a major taboo and would invite the Emperor's suspicion and wrath.
Laszlo looked at the letter in his hand. The content of the letter was written in beautifully penned Latin. He could now understand Latin, so there was no hindrance to reading.
Hmm… It starts with greetings to her brother and family? So far, everything is normal.
What about the rest of the content?
Oh, it talks about the Emperor's favor towards her, and the Empress Dowager's friendly attitude, telling her family not to worry.
And… she complained a bit about the environment in Vienna. She had thought that as the capital of the Empire, it should be richer and more prosperous, but Vienna's development seemed to lag behind the bustling Lisbon or Barcelona.
Alright, alright, Laszlo wasn't too bothered by this complaint, but a thought quietly took root in his heart.
In the future, Vienna would be the center of Europe, and he would definitely build it into a "Capital of Benevolence" that would attract worldwide attention.
And not like it was now, being said to be inferior even to Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, a European backwater.
Reading further? Leonor mentioned the Emperor's recent troubles. The new Crusade was underpowered due to a lack of enthusiasm from various European countries. She hoped that her brother, Alfonso V (King of Portugal), could send troops to aid Laszlo.
Not only because of the marital ties between the two royal families, Leonor also mentioned the matter of opening up the Eastern trade route.
Speaking of the Eastern trade route, one cannot help but recall the fall of the Eastern Roman Empire.
After the Ottomans captured Constantinople, the most important hub of the Eastern trade route, they completely destroyed the long-standing Mediterranean Sea commercial order through exorbitant taxation, completely cutting off the Eastern trade route. This led to a surge in prices of Eastern goods across Europe, especially spices, which were in huge demand among European nobles, completely outstripping supply.
Under these circumstances, various countries began to look for new methods.
Some small countries in the Mediterranean Sea chose to rely on the Ottoman, paying high taxes in exchange for the right to conduct Eastern trade.
More powerful ones, like Venice and Genoa, frequently clashed with the Ottoman. Especially the Genoese, who had greatly aided the Eastern Roman Empire during the Siege of Constantinople, leading to a continuous deterioration of relations with the Ottoman. Both sides also had significant conflicts over interests in Crimea.
Further afield, Aragon, though willing to help, had Alfonso V (King of Kingdom of Aragon) fantastically demand the East Roman crown, which was sternly refused by the East Roman Emperor. Later, Alfonso V (King of Kingdom of Aragon) fell ill and no longer cared about Constantinople, as the Kingdom of Aragon did not lack money from Eastern trade.
On the eve of the fall of Constantinople, the most active in responding to the Pope's call for mobilization, besides Laszlo's father Albrecht II, was King of Portugal Alfonso V. After receiving the news, he tried to organize an army to help defend Constantinople, but at that time, Portugal was fighting the Moroccans in North Africa for control of the southern end of the Strait of Gibraltar.
When he finally freed up his hands, he received the news that Constantinople had fallen and the Eastern Roman Empire had perished.
What? You ask why Albrecht II, being so close in Hungary, didn't go to save Constantinople?
He went, but not completely.
Albrecht was hampered by Europe's backward feudal mobilization system and could only send Janos with over 20,000 main border troops to set off from Belgrade first to rescue Constantinople, but over 100,000 Ottoman troops were besieging Constantinople.
Mehmed II sent a detachment to hold Janos's advance while intensifying the attack on Constantinople.
Meanwhile, Albrecht II was still gathering armies from Austria, Hungary, and Bohemia.
Soon, Constantinople fell, and Janos was heavily defeated by Mehmed II's army, who had arrived by forced march, and retreated in disarray to Belgrade.
Mehmed II mistakenly believed that the Hungarian elite were completely lost and prepared to seize the opportunity to capture Belgrade, the "Key to the Balkans," to remove the Kingdom of Hungary's threat to the Balkans territory and open the door to Hungary.
Then came the Siege of Belgrade. Janos held the city, wearing down the Ottomans's strength. Soon, Albrecht arrived with his army, plus 10,000 allied troops sponsored by Holy Roman Empire lords and the Pope, totaling 50,000 reinforcements, reaching Belgrade. This well-prepared elite force, rested and ready, launched a sudden attack, severely damaging the Ottoman army. Even Mehmed II himself was hit by an arrow.
The terrified Ottomans immediately retreated to Sofia (now the capital of Bulgaria), preparing to resist the European coalition's counterattack there.
Unexpectedly, Albrecht II soon negotiated peace with the Ottomans, disbanded the coalition, and after replenishing and strengthening the border army, quickly returned to Vienna. Only then could Mehmed II breathe a sigh of relief.
Subsequently, the news of Albrecht II's death spread throughout Europe. There was widespread wailing and national grief in Hungary. The Ottomans held a celebration, rejoicing in the great conquest of Constantinople and the demise of a formidable enemy.
In short, although the Eastern trade route was cut off, there was a complete possibility of reopening it. The opportunity was this Crusade.
Leonor could be said to have reasoned with him and moved him with emotion, hoping that her brother could lend Laszlo a hand.
Laszlo suddenly wanted to slap himself. Compared to Leonor, who, right after marrying him, started thinking about how to help him solve his problems, he was peeking at her letter… He was simply not human!
Laszlo sighed lightly and put the letter back in. This envelope couldn't be used anymore; he had to get a new one and seal it with wax. He didn't want Leonor to know about this. He dared not face Leonor's accusations and anger.
"Uncle, you really did a good job," Laszlo said through gritted teeth.
Frederick was stunned. What was wrong? He finished reading the letter and immediately got so angry. Could it be that the Empress was cursing Laszlo throughout the entire letter?
"My dear Uncle Frederick, listen, if you ever do something like this again, I'll send you back to the mountain castle in Alsace to guard the ancestral shrine, got it?"
"Uh… Yes, Your Majesty."
So he was angry at him?
Frederick couldn't understand why his "sincere" and "loyal" efforts would result in this.
"The Empress is a good woman, but I seem to have not yet learned to cherish her properly. Let's go. If this matter gets out, you know the consequences." Laszlo finished speaking, not bothering to look at Frederick, and quickly walked towards the Emperor's study. He was extremely guilty now and had to perfectly cover up this matter.