"What? You said Władysław died?"
Laszlo's face was filled with disbelief, and his voice involuntarily rose a few octaves. Even an experienced man like Eyczing had only just accepted this astonishing fact. The two exchanged glances and fell into a long silence.
In the great battle that took place outside Kraków, the Polish nobles, in order to defeat the King, agreed to enthrone Duke of Masovia Bolesław as the new King of Poland and join his army.
In this chaotic battle, the army under Władysław III fought bravely, but the numerical disadvantage was too great to be reversed.
When the Duke of Masovia's troops joined the battlefield, the Kingdom of Poland's army was completely routed, and the King himself was unfortunately killed in the chaos, pierced through the neck by an arrow from an unknown source.
Seeing that the battle was meaningless, the King's troops fled in all directions, while some became prisoners.
Bolesław ordered the release of all prisoners and had Władysław's body properly buried.
Subsequently, this triumphant Duke of Masovia led his army to peacefully occupy Kraków. Under his coercion and inducements, Archbishop of Kraków Spalkowski agreed to crown him.
Thus, on the third day after Władysław III's death in battle, Bolesław was crowned the new King of Poland in Kraków, known to history as Bolesław IV.
More than four hundred years ago, his ancestor, the Grand Duke of Poland Bolesław I Piast, was crowned the first King of Poland in history, pushing the Piast Dynasty to a new peak.
However, later, the Piast Family was torn apart due to the system of divided inheritance.
The main branch of the family eventually produced a formidable ruler, Kazimierz III Piast, who unified the Kingdom of Poland during his lifetime.
However, this formidable ruler never had a son until his death from falling off a horse. After his death, Poland experienced a transitional period under Emperor Lajos, and then welcomed a new dynasty established by the Jagiellonian Family.
Meanwhile, the Piast Family, which established the first dynasty in Polish history, gradually declined. Today, only the Duke of Masovia family and the Duke of Silesia family are known to the public.
In fact, he had no intention of contending for the Polish throne, nor did he believe he could restore the glory of the Piast Family.
However, such an opportunity was truly rare in a hundred years. The tyrant Władysław III exhausted his military resources, lost the support of the people, and even wanted to drain his Duchy of Masovia dry.
The nobles, embracing the idea of "either erupt in silence or perish in silence," launched a rebellion, intending to fight the King.
At this time, Bolesław's power became the decisive factor in shaping the situation in Poland.
If Heaven offers something and one does not take it, one will suffer for it.
Thus, a dramatic scene unfolded—the Kingdom of Poland returned to the Piast Dynasty.
Returning to the court in Vienna, Laszlo, upon learning of this astonishing news, urgently convened a Privy Council meeting.
Since Władysław III, the excommunicated King of Poland, was dead, the Empire needed to reconsider its intervention.
"Your Majesty, all preparations have been made. We can't just decide not to fight this war," Adolf said with some anxiety.
The Independent Army and the Austro-Hungarian Army had already assembled, and five thousand cavalry from the Hungarian Border Guard had also arrived in Vienna.
In the coastal regions, Hungary, Serbia, and Bulgaria were all ready to raid the coastal territories occupied by the Venetians.
As long as the Venetians dared to declare war on the Emperor, troops would immediately reclaim all the land along the Adriatic Sea coast.
As for Morea, the Emperor had no spare energy to protect those East Roman remnants. At worst, he could help them drive out the Venetians once he was free.
The combined armies of Wallachia and Moldavia had already reached Poland's eastern border, waiting only for the Emperor's command to charge into Polish territory.
What? Moldavia's five-year truce with Poland? That was signed between Moldavia and Poland. Now it is the Emperor who wants to fight Poland; the two do not conflict.
The two armies stationed in the Bohemia region were also ready. As soon as the Emperor's main army departed from Vienna, the Bohemia and Saxon Army would first arrive in Silesia, awaiting the Emperor's arrival.
The logistical preparations for this operation were far less thorough than the last, but it didn't matter; this time, the fighting would be in Poland.
Laszlo had no interest in Polish land; he only wanted a weak neighbor and a stable rear, only then could he confidently contend for supremacy with France in the west.
"That's true, but Władysław is dead. Interfering in Polish affairs now might draw criticism," Aeneas said with some concern.
Reopening hostilities would consume a large amount of money, food, and soldiers, which might not be good for an empire in its developmental stage.
Laszlo smiled slightly, shaking his head and saying, "If you are afraid of criticism and are timid in everything you do, how can you be a good Emperor? How can you become a hegemon? Władysław is dead, but Poland and the Teutonic Order haven't stopped fighting, have they? Eyczing, help me come up with a few peace conditions that the King of Poland would absolutely never accept. We'll coordinate with the Teutonic Order and make sure they don't budge, and then…"
Upon hearing this, Eyczing immediately revealed a knowing smile. After a moment of thought, he spoke, "I think these conditions can meet your requirements. For example, we can force this new King of Poland to withdraw from the Prussia region, and as compensation for attacking the Teutonic Order, cede all lands north of the Vistula River to the Teutonic Order, which would be Dobrzyń Land, Płock, and Wizna."
"Wait, Płock and Wizna, that's half of the Duchy of Masovia's territory!" Adolf immediately and keenly realized Eyczing's malicious intent.
Such conditions, while unlikely to be accepted by other Polish kings, were not impossible, but Bolesław alone could not agree, as the Duchy of Masovia was his base!
Eyczing did not stop, but continued, "In addition to that, we can also demand that he return the territory of Volhynia (Red Ruthenia) to Hungary, which is Hungary's rightful territory since ancient times.
Of course, the most important thing is to sever all agreements signed by Poland with France, Venice, and other countries.
Under the pretext of facilitating reconciliation, we can also negotiate terms with the Teutonic Order, such as incorporating the Teutonic Order into the Empire, but prohibiting them from expanding within the Empire. This way, Poland will never dare to act rashly."
"Good, good!" Laszlo was very satisfied. With such conditions, if Bolesław was a man of spirit, he would absolutely never agree, because such terms would directly reduce his already shaky rule to nothing.
If he dared to agree, the Polish nobles would immediately overthrow him.
"Your Majesty, why don't you contact your brother-in-law, Grand Duke Kazimierz? His brother was killed, and he must be heartbroken. If he agrees to send troops, then Poland will be…."
"We can't really let the Teutonic Order eat so much meat, can we? They can just have some soup…." Thinking of Poland being pressured from three sides and unstable domestically, Laszlo was genuinely a little worried that Bolesław might directly yield.
Speaking of which, this guy was also quite bold. Who gave him the courage to dare to seize the hot potato of the Polish crown at this time?
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. The King of Poland will absolutely not agree to such conditions. At that time, whether to fight or not, and how to divide the spoils after the fight, it will all be up to you, won't it?"
"That makes sense. Eyczing, you need to quickly handle the contacts with both sides. Oh, and also notify the Pope…."
"Your Majesty!"
Matthias walked quickly into the council chamber, which left everyone a little puzzled.
Laszlo frowned slightly and asked, "Is there something to report?"
"The envoy from the King of Poland has arrived."
Matthias's words stunned all the dignitaries. An envoy from Bolesław? That was quick.
"Let's go, everyone. We'll go to the court and hear what the King of Poland's envoy has to say."
Everyone attending the meeting moved to the court. Laszlo sat on the imperial throne and received the envoy from the King of Poland.