In the early morning of April 16th, Trebizond still maintained a prosperous scene. There were still an endless stream of ships coming and going from the port, the streets were still full of lively atmosphere, commerce was still highly developed, and Trebizond was filled with goods from foreign countries.

The loose streets and alleys formed two scenes of the encounter with Constantinople.

If it weren't for the imperial eagle flag flying high everywhere, uninformed people would think this is a foreign country!

Although the current disaster in the capital was depressing, the lives of Romans in most suburbs were prosperous. As the centralized power of the emperor before the Fourth Crusade was weakened, the towns and villages of the empire gradually developed and prospered.

Merchants from the West, East and the Inslan world gathered here to compete on a level playing field and sell exotic goods from Western Europe, India, China and Africa. The city's population expanded rapidly because the corrupt and insensitive imperial government could no longer collect taxes.

, the people were able to keep wealth in their own hands. The emperor could no longer build luxurious buildings because the country's wealth had been almost exhausted. However, the economic strength of ordinary citizens had increased, and the city gradually became an arena for individuals to show off their wealth.

.

"Sir, we are here." The boat carrying the refugees gradually docked at the shore. The refugees rushed to jump off the boat and knelt on the land of the Romans, thanking God for having forgiven their sins.

Trebizond, here we come.

This port city located in the northeastern part of Asia Minor is densely populated and relies on trade to generate huge income. It is also protected by the Pontus Mountains and the Komnenos system is well preserved. As the place where Alexius started, it couldn't be better.

.

Moreover, this kind of city completely avoided the frontal attack of the Latins, and also avoided the situation of being attacked on both sides like Impyrus, which bought Alexius valuable time to restore his country and strengthen his army.

Trebizond is also strategically located at the intersection of several major transportation routes.

As an ancient city, Trebizond has existed since the Greco-Roman era. Although it was briefly occupied by the Seljuk Turks, it was eventually recaptured and was not seriously damaged. Its walls are still strong, and the gates and towers are preserved.

Intact. Trebizond has a strong Greek culture, which has special significance for the Romans who claim to be the heirs of classical civilization.

This ship sailing from the Black Sea attracted the attention of the local city defense force. Soon, a city defense force of about fifty people came to the port. They quickly detained this group of refugees with unknown origins, and then climbed aboard the ship.

When he saw a large amount of blood on the deck that had not yet dried, he couldn't help but look shocked, and soon realized that this ship had experienced a tragic battle not long ago.

They quickly detained everyone on board, took away the soldiers' weapons, escorted them to the nearest public square for centralized processing, and quickly requested instructions from the Governor of Trebizond.

Even though the nobles on the ship resisted desperately and tried hard to prove their identities, they were all treated coldly by the city defense troops. The same was true for Alexius. He was covered in blood and was escorted to the nearest city by the nervous-looking city defense troops.

In the public square, he was followed by nobles, soldiers and sailors.

About 20 minutes later, the Governor of Trebizond finally arrived in a hurry. Seeing the situation in front of him, he couldn't help but take a breath of cold air. He quickly realized the seriousness of the matter and asked the nearest army to cooperate in handling it.

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If they were just ordinary refugees, the governor would definitely not have to be so troublesome. But the problem is that these refugees are also mixed with soldiers, nobles, and even a Varangian covered in blood. You know, Varangian is

The elite of the empire are generally used to protect the safety of the capital. Although the Trebizond defense army and the governor could not believe the news of the fall of Constantinople, they realized this when even the elite Varangian warriors fled here.

The terrible news is nine times out of ten true.

In this way, after waiting for about half an hour, a regular army unit composed of peasants and soldiers rushed to the scene. After the commander of this unit saw Alexius, he quickly untied the latter and yelled at those

The city defense army was nothing short of stupid.

"Sir, why are you back so soon?" A centurion named Alexander looked nervous while wiping the blood on Alexius' face.

"Negotiations with the Genoese failed... Also, New Rome has fallen, and the Latins have captured the city and are looting it."

This news came like lightning to everyone who was unaware of the situation. Everyone was stunned on the spot. The news of the fall of Constantinople was a bit hasty. They were not prepared at all, or they did not dare to believe it.

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This most prosperous city in Europe, a solid fortress that had never fallen in nearly a thousand years of independence, was unexpectedly captured by the Latins.

A few days ago, if someone dared to say such a thing, everyone would burst into laughter; but now, this matter has become a reality, a terrible reality that no one could have predicted.

Some citizens immediately collapsed to the ground after hearing this. They looked in the direction of Constantinople, made a less than standard cross on their chests, and said with trembling words: "The end is coming... The end is coming.

Already..."

After a pious priest heard the news, his face gradually became painful, and with tears in his eyes, he said, "Sovereign Lord! What did the Romans do wrong? Why should they punish us like this?" After saying this, the old priest unexpectedly said

Regardless of everyone's obstruction, he jumped into the sea.

Some soldiers' legs were weak. They knelt on the ground almost at the same time, begging the Lord to forgive their sins, hoping that the Almighty Lord could drive the heretics out of their cities and save this suffering country.

At this moment, even the strongest Roman warriors shed their most sincere tears, and even those foreign businessmen who had nothing to do with this incident were shocked. A Turkic Muslim businessman who was present and heard the news said in his diary

It is recorded: “Since the creation of the world by their God, this holy city of Christ has never fallen into the hands of pagans. Even though the prophet regarded the capture of Constantinople as the highest glory, the fanatical believers tried their best to conquer it.

Unable to capture this Roman capital with extremely strong defenses; and now, this holy city has been captured for the first time. It was not captured by the great Muslims, but was defeated by the heretics of the Christian world. I don’t know what the prophet saw in heaven.
Chapter completed!