Since being the capital of the Roman Empire in the fourth century, Constantinople has quickly become the economic, political, religious, and cultural center of the European continent, and is one of the most prosperous cities in the world.

However, today's Constantinople has lost its former glory. The Fourth Crusade greatly destroyed this "Queen of Cities", countless treasures, religious relics, and Emperor Constantine.

Countless precious items such as bronze statues from the period and the cross of Jesus' crucifixion flowed into the palace of the Doge of Venice, so much so that they have not recovered yet, and the entire city no longer has the prosperity of the past.

The galley with the flag of the Papal States entered the Golden Horn, where Emperor Constantine was already waiting, accompanied by Elis, the Patriarch of Constantinople.

"Your Majesty," Bishop Gregory got off the boat and recognized the emperor at a glance. After all, only the emperor could wear purple robes in the Roman Empire, and the emperor was tall and looked very imposing standing at the front.

The emperor did not look very happy when he saw the papal envoy walking off the boat. This made the bishop feel a little nervous. He was about to say something when the emperor suddenly said.

"The Holy Envoy must be very tired after coming from afar, so please go to the city to rest first."

After speaking, he signaled to the guards on the side. The bishop could only bow and follow the guards to leave the port.

Seeing that the bishop had left, the emperor said to the sailors on the ship: "Everyone who has come a long way has worked hard, please disembark and go to the city to rest. We have prepared a welcome ceremony for you."

Everyone was very happy when they heard what the emperor said. After all, life on the ship was not as comfortable as life in the city, so they got off the ship without any precautions.

Seeing everyone entering the city shoulder to shoulder, the emperor waved his hand, and someone unloaded all the items on the ship and drove the ship to the empire's fleet.

"Your Majesty, is this okay?" Calvo was worried. He was frightened by the emperor's bold approach, even if he had objections to the pope.

To privately detain an envoy, no monarch of any country has dared to do such a thing so far. Although it is not the Middle Ages, the influence of the Pope is still very strong. In history, this influence did not exist until the Reformation led by Martin Luther.

It will gradually weaken after exercise.

"Are you afraid?" The emperor glanced at him sideways and his tone was calm.

"He is unkind, don't blame me for being unjust."

"Since he is so anxious, don't blame me for making such a move."

In fact, the emperor himself was not ready to break with the Pope. The strength of the Catholic Church was too terrifying. Even if they could not be twisted into a rope, if it were not for the recent defeat of the French army in the Battle of Agincourt between England and France, it would be unable to interfere in international affairs.

There is not yet a unified country on the Asian Peninsula, but is divided into several kingdoms such as Castile and Aragon. The power is very scattered, and there is no leader who can convince everyone. The emperor may not dare to quarrel with the pope.

Lose face.

But the price of breaking up with the Pope is that there is no way to get support from other Catholic countries. Countries such as France and Aragon have no interest entanglements with them in the first place. They just send some troops to deal with the Pope in a symbolic way. Now even these

No more, but it doesn't matter, the emperor doesn't rely on them to win anyway.

a few days later,

The bishop felt something was wrong. Although he had been entertained with delicious food and drinks these past few days, he had not seen the emperor since the first day, as if he had been forgotten by the emperor.

"Excuse me, I would like to see Your Majesty." Although he was very anxious inside, the bishop was still polite due to his long-term cultivation.

"Your Majesty has something to do, and I can't see you at the moment." The guard was also very polite.

"Oh...then when can I see His Majesty?"

"I don't know. It depends on when Your Majesty is free."

The bishop suppressed his inner uneasiness. He did not think that he would be in personal danger, but he guessed that the emperor must want to delay time. Thinking of this, the bishop felt disdainful in his heart. The general trend was unstoppable, and the differences between the Eastern and Western churches were destined to end in his

Make up for it with your hands, no matter how much the emperor delays, this fact cannot be changed, the bishop thought in his heart.

A few days later, when the bishop couldn't help but force himself to see the emperor, he finally got the emperor's summons.

In accordance with the emperor's will, he came to Hagia Sophia and saw the emperor and the patriarch praying in the church.

He sneered, "Is Your Majesty so reluctant? In that case, why do you need me to come? Go and resist the Ottomans yourself!"

After finishing speaking, he was about to leave. At this time, the emperor said calmly.

"No, Bishop." The emperor spoke slowly.

"It's just that the state has been busy recently. You also know that you must go all out to deal with the Ottomans."

Upon hearing this, the bishop's face softened a little.

"In that case, let's talk about the sacraments..."

"Don't be busy yet, bishop," the emperor interrupted.

"We can talk about this later."

The bishop's face turned unkind, "What does this mean?"

"The meaning is very simple. We will discuss all issues after the war. As you know, we don't have the energy to discuss these things during the war."

It was not clear to the bishop that this was the emperor's prevarication, that he simply did not want to fulfill his promise, and that he had deceived the pope and everyone.

He forced himself to calm down and said to the emperor: "Since your Majesty has made a decision, I should go back and report to the Pope."

"No, please condescend to the bishop and stay with us for a few more days. Let the patriarch accompany you, so that you will not be lonely."

The bishop was so shocked that he couldn't speak. He thought about many endings, such as a referendum, delay, etc. He even thought about how to refute the emperor to make him and his subjects give up his ridiculous behavior.

belief, but he obviously didn't think carefully about it.

Seeing the emperor leaving, the bishop fell to the ground. He knew that his mission was over. He could not become Saint Gregory. Not only that, he might even be slandered as the culprit of the great schism between the Eastern and Western churches. The emperor

He will not let him go, and neither will the Pope. His life is over.

It was late at night, and Constantine was still immersed in work. After working for a long time, he straightened up, stretched out a lot, and then walked to the balcony, looked at the moon in the sky, and thought for a long time.

"Lord, if I have sinned, please forgive me." He murmured, making the sign of the cross on his chest.

"For the sake of the empire, even if I am shattered to pieces, I will not hesitate. The foundation of the empire must not be destroyed in my hands."

He turned around and leaned over to start reviewing the documents.
Chapter completed!