The peace talks commenced in the Toruń City Hall.
Initially, the negotiations proceeded smoothly. The Prussian League severed its ties with Poland and returned to the Teutonic Order.
The Teutonic Order would grant the League greater autonomy, and the League would rejoin the Teutonic Order as an autonomous province.
Thereafter, officials dispatched by the Emperor would attend future consultations between the parties to ensure strict adherence to the peace treaty's terms.
Thus, the conflicts between the Teutonic Order and the Prussian League, and between the Prussian League and Poland, were resolved.
The final highlight, of course, focused on the disputes between the Kingdom of Poland and the Teutonic Order.
The disputes mainly centered on two points: first, the ownership of the Warmia Archbishopric, and second, the Teutonic Order's demand for compensation from Poland for its losses.
Due to the Teutonic Order's system, the Archbishopric's territory was managed by the Archbishop, with the Teutonic Order providing only sponsorship and protection, at least nominally.
The Poles likewise claimed that the Archbishopric should be subordinate to Poland.
At the start of the war, the Archbishop of Warmia chose to remain neutral. Now that the war was nearing its end, both sides held differing opinions regarding Warmia's ownership.
However, after Wilfried explicitly stated that the Archbishopric would remain a protectorate of the Teutonic Order, this dispute was completely settled.
This was not a gratuitous benefit given to the Teutonic Order. Only after the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order agreed to split the land ceded by Poland and Poland's reparations fifty-fifty did Laszlo instruct Wilfried to express his stance and uphold the territorial integrity of the Teutonic Order.
In fact, the Warmia Archbishopric, strictly speaking, was also one of the Imperial Princes, but due to its long-standing close relationship with the Teutonic Order, it was often regarded as part of the Teutonic Order.
After all, the security of the Archbishopric still required the protection of the Teutonic Order; it was impossible to truly create a state within a state.
The greatest controversy arose from the second point, where the disagreement over compensation almost led to an immediate brawl.
Grand Master Heinrich stated righteously at the peace conference: "What we ask for is not much. In the previous Treaty of Toruń, the Teutonic Order was required to cede Dobrzyń Land to Poland, the entire Samogitia region to Lithuania, and was demanded to pay 6 million groschen in compensation, with an additional 1.2 million if overdue. This time, we only want Dobrzyń Land back, along with 6 million groschen in war reparations, which is 250,000 florins, to be paid within ten years, otherwise an additional 1.2 million groschen in compensation will be added. Is that too much?"
"Is that not too much?"
If Spalkowski hadn't been so composed and couldn't defeat the Grand Master, he would have wanted to throw punches at this shameless fellow.
"When the Teutonic Order invaded our country and suffered defeat, we demanded reasonable compensation. Now, we are not the defeated nation.
Ceding land is absolutely impossible, and compensation is out of the question! Perhaps you should pray to God for a wish, instead of being so unreasonable here!"
Even the gentle Archbishop of Kraków was flushed with anger at this point. He represented the King of Poland in these negotiations, and he was being mocked and humiliated in such a way.
"Hmph, I see that Poland has no sincerity for peace talks, just like the previous times!" The Grand Master's face was also grim as he angrily retorted, "In the previous peace talks, you Poles wanted to drive us out of Prussia and even make us move to Podolia to help you deal with the infidels there. The land here was seized inch by inch by our ancestors from barbarians and infidels; how can we easily abandon it? Anyway, your new King of Poland has already moved into Kraków, why not let him cede Warsaw to us as our new headquarters? Ask him if he agrees."
"You!" Spalkowski's finger trembled as he pointed at the Grand Master's nose, too enraged to speak.
At Nicholas's urging, both sides temporarily withdrew, and the peace talks entered a recess. Each party had three days for internal discussions before the second round of negotiations.
The main force of the Teutonic Order remained stationed in the Chełmno Land, inactive, while Lubiczowski's troops were stationed in Brześć Kujawski. Both armies were close by, eyeing Toruń covetously.
The Prussian League, having only temporarily assembled an army, was powerless to protect Toruń. If the negotiations broke down, the city would immediately become a brutal battlefield again.
Spalkowski's secret letter was sent to Poznań at an extremely fast pace, warning Bolesław to be constantly vigilant against a surprise attack by the Imperial Army and asserting that the enemy had no genuine desire for peace talks.
He wrote in the letter: "Only Johannes and I truly wish for peace in the entire assembly; the rest are like hungry wolves, drooling over Poland's land and wealth."
Poznań, Bolesław had just received the secret letter from the Archbishop of Kraków from a messenger. He was currently inspecting the city's defenses from the city walls of Poznań.
He stood by the battlements, quickly read the letter, then, to the bewildered gazes of his attendants, tore the letter into shreds and casually tossed them away, the paper scraps scattering in the air.
"They really dare to treat Poland as a fat piece of meat; they should be careful not to chip their teeth."
Bolesław scoffed, no longer in the mood to inspect the city's defenses. He turned and went to the military camp, summoning his generals for a military council to discuss how to deal with the pincer attack from the Empire and the Teutonic Order.
In the military camp, the noble generals were stunned when they heard the King of Poland order them to prepare for battle.
Piotr, the Lord of Poznań, asked with a face full of surprise, "Your Majesty, is there some misunderstanding?"
As the Polish lord closest to the Empire, his fear of the Empire was also the deepest.
Therefore, when he heard that the Emperor was preparing to launch an excommunication war against Władysław III, he immediately harbored ulterior motives.
He also played an important role in the subsequent Kraków conspiracy, for no other reason than that Poznań would be the first to suffer if the Emperor attacked Poland.
He had thought that after the successful rebellion and Władysław's opportune death, the Emperor's invasion would no longer have an excuse, and war would naturally not break out between Poland and the Empire. He had even celebrated this.
Now it seemed he had thought the problem too simply. Whether or not this war would be fought still depended on what the Emperor was truly thinking.
But even those in the Habsburg court could not fully fathom the Emperor, let alone them, these Poles?
"There is no misunderstanding," Bolesław said with a grim face. "The mess Władysław left behind has now fallen upon us—the Emperor is not here for the Teutonic Order; he is here for Poland's previous alliance with France. Although this alliance was buried with Władysław, the Emperor has seen the potential threat that Poland poses. Think, would you allow someone to stand behind you with a sharp blade?"
The generals suddenly understood. In the past, Polish nobles had twice invaded Bohemia for the Bohemian crown, creating an irreconcilable enmity with the Habsburg, and also making the ruler of Austria realize the ambition of this powerful neighbor. This was the cause sown yesterday.
Today, the Emperor led a large army to the border, ready to invade Poland at any time to avenge the past. This was the fruit reaped today.
Many of them had supported and participated in the invasion of Bohemia, some even reaching Brno,
which was the capital of Moravia, very close to Vienna.
Now the Emperor's intention was clear: to take advantage of Poland's deep involvement in the Prussian War to bleed Poland dry, so that Poland would completely lose its ability to threaten the Habsburg Dynasty.
"Prepare for battle, gentlemen."
Bolesław slammed his palm heavily on the map, pressing down on Austria and Bohemia.
This battle was different from the previous one against the Teutonic Order; this time, it was to protect their own vital interests.
The Polish nobles no longer chose to passively avoid war.
Whoever dared to touch their property, they would fight to the death.
The Emperor? Not even the Emperor!
With their fighting spirit ignited, the Polish nobles united under Bolesław's banner, ready to deliver a heavy blow to the Emperor who invaded the Kingdom of Poland.