An uncontrollable commotion erupted in the assembly hall.
Rosenberg's cane clattered to the floor; he had truly not expected the Emperor to be so bold.
The Bohemia nobles around him also began to whisper, calculating whether this reform would be good or bad for them.
The Moravia lords were ecstatic. Moravia itself was the region closest to Austria and Hungary, situated at the intersection of Bohemia, Hungary, and Austria. Now, they would be directly under the jurisdiction of Vienna, no longer subject to the oppression of the Bohemia nobles.
The two Piast dukes exchanged meaningful glances, both discerning that the Emperor had grand ambitions. He seemed to want to carve up Bohemia and then swallow it whole into Austria.
It was just unclear if Austria, a mere duchy, had the appetite to consume the Empire's sole kingdom.
Currently, the Emperor's attitude towards Silesia remained unclear, but Silesia had a large German immigrant population, who would likely not reject the Emperor's direct rule, which put the two dukes in a somewhat delicate position.
The commotion gradually subsided. After a suffocating silence, someone could no longer sit still.
"Your Majesty…" Rosenberg finally chose to interject, "You must also consider the integrity of the crown of saint wenceslaus…"
"Integrity?" Laszlo revealed a playful smile. "The royal power of Bohemia was already shattered; I personally reshaped it. Its integrity is embodied in my rule over all the subjects of Bohemia. Fifty years of chaos have ended.
I will establish a new order. From now on, the Bohemian electoral system is officially abolished. The Habsburg Family will hold this crown by hereditary right, just as our rule in Austria, Hungary, and Bulgaria!"
As the Emperor's aide-de-camp began to read the specific provisions of "The Prague Land Decree," Laszlo's gaze swept across the crowd.
He saw the relieved expressions of the Moravia nobles—these fence-sitters, who had paid a heavy price in the First Hussite Wars and maintained an ambiguous attitude in the Second Hussite Wars, were now overjoyed at gaining greater influence.
The Silesia dukes, meanwhile, eyed the phrase "retaining ducal privileges" in the provisions, calculating in secret.
Only the native Bohemia nobles had ashen faces; their kingdom's control system, which they had managed for generations, would be completely fragmented by the three regional governorates.
"Your Majesty, this is tantamount to downgrading Bohemia to an ordinary province!" The Archbishop of Prague's finger trembled as he pointed to the clause in the decree that stated "abolishing the Kingdom's Supreme Court and merging it into the Court of the Empire."
Laszlo slowly walked to the bishop, calmly reassuring him, "When the Hussite ravaged Bohemia, your lives must have been very difficult, right? Don't forget who rescued you. From now on, all bishops of the Prague Archdiocese will report directly to me in Vienna. Of course, in return, I will fully support you in continuing the religious inquisition. A German who wants to establish a foothold in Bohemia must learn to adapt to circumstances. Don't you agree, Carrol?"
Thinking that his biggest backer was Laszlo, Carrol immediately calmed down and made no further objections.
Laszlo turned and raised his voice, making every word penetrate like a nail into a stone wall: "The three jurisdictions must pay specific taxes to Vienna annually, to be used for rebuilding monasteries, churches, and towns destroyed by heretics."
"As for Prague…" The Emperor suddenly revealed a gentle smile, reaching out to help Rosenberg, who was slumped in his seat, "It is permitted to establish another station of the Bohemia Kingdom Palace Chancellery outside of Vienna, and to rebuild Charles University—of course, the curriculum must be reviewed by Vienna. In addition, I have decided to establish a standing army in Bohemia, to be named Bohemia. The army's expenses will be proportionally shared by the three jurisdictions and the Vienna government, and officers will also be selected from a specific number of nobles from each region. Rosenberg, I think you are the most suitable person to be the commander of this army."
This carefully designed concession slightly eased the Bohemia nobles.
What they did not know was that Laszlo had already written "Charles University Reconstruction Fund" and "Bohemia Noble Children's Vienna Study Program" into a memorandum—taming noble offspring with gold and career prospects has always been more effective than intimidation by force.
As for the common people, Catholic was the simplest way to tame them. In the densely populated South Bohemia region,
it was as difficult as ascending to heaven to infiltrate German immigrants, so the best way was to cooperate with the nobles there.
As for North Bohemia, after the Hussite Wars, it was in ruins, which was a great opportunity to introduce immigrants to assimilate the local Czech.
As for Silesia and Moravia, these two regions were already deeply influenced by German immigrants. With just quiet promotion behind the scenes, one day, Bohemia would also become the German "land under the sun."
As the Moravia representatives cheered "The Emperor and the Holy Mother are with us," Laszlo's peripheral vision caught several Bohemia nobles clenching their fists in their sleeves.
The nobles present ultimately all signed their names on this decree.
As night fell, the Emperor stood alone before the rose window of St. Vitus Cathedral.
Moonlight filtered through the stained glass, casting blood-red splotches on the crown of saint wenceslaus, like that fateful summer night in 1419.
"Father Emperor, Father Emperor, in the end, we still won." Laszlo whispered softly, his finger tracing the newly carved Latin inscription on the inner wall of the crown: "Per Astra Ad Habsburgum" (Through the Stars to Habsburg).
The original inscription on the crown, ordered by Charles IV, had long been blurred, and now it had been secretly altered by the new King, which greatly surprised future historians studying this crown.
When the first ray of sunlight illuminated the Vltava River, the Imperial Army's black eagle banners had already been raised on all the towers of Prague Castle.
Laszlo stood among the statues on Charles Bridge, gazing at Prague's reflection, broken and then reunited, on the river surface.
Affairs throughout the Kingdom of Bohemia had been largely settled.
The kingdom's peerage system was vastly different from other regions within the Empire, with nobles divided into only two ranks: great nobles and minor nobles. Minor nobles could be further subdivided into three categories, with no subordinate relationships among them.
All great, medium, and minor nobles who held Bohemia land pledged direct allegiance to the King of Bohemia, with the exception of Silesia.
This saved Laszlo a lot of trouble.
The establishment of local chancellery offices selected elites from a large number of local middle and lower-class nobles. Since Austria itself was in a state of lacking sufficient bureaucrats, not too many Austrian officials were placed to interfere with the establishment of the Bohemia government, which also somewhat eased the resentment of the Bohemia nobles.
The formation of the Bohemia had begun, but recruiting enough soldiers to replenish the army after the war was not so simple.
Now it was time for triumph. Laszlo set off with his victorious army to return to Vienna. The Kuttenberg Silver Mine continued to be guarded by the Saxon Army, and the convicted heretics were first transported to Kuttenberg.
They were categorized here: some were sent into the mines, some were sent to Moravia to build the road from Vienna to Brno, and others were sent to rebuild war-damaged towns.
As the warhorses crossed the Moravia-Austria border, light snow began to fall.
Laszlo pulled his velvet cloak tighter, looking up at the pale sky. Bohemia had been pacified.
Next, he would focus on dealing with the Empire's greatest enemy—France.