After his coronation, William was in high spirits. After his coronation ceremony, as the new Holy Roman Emperor, William hosted a banquet in a palace in Rome to entertain all the princes and nobles who attended his coronation ceremony.
Among these princes were the envoys from the northern Italian city-states and the Kingdom of Sicily.
Seeing these formerly arrogant princes and nobles bowing at his feet, William felt extremely proud.
The banquet that day was also attended by clergy from the Holy See, among whom Giovanni was among them. But in the middle of the banquet, an uninvited guest changed the atmosphere of the entire banquet. This uninvited guest was Felix.
S.
"Your Majesty, William, please don't be offended by me for coming here uninvited!"
After arriving at the palace, Felix bowed to William leisurely.
"Haha, Your Excellency the Bishop is too humble. You are a distinguished guest. Come, please take a seat!"
William greeted and arranged for Felix to sit next to his subordinate. He didn't know whether it was intentional or a coincidence. In short, the position where Felix was sitting was exactly opposite Giovanni, and the distance between the two
Less than six steps.
Seeing Felix coming uninvited, Giovanni narrowed his eyes slightly. You must know that the banquet held by William tonight only invited Giovanni, a cardinal from the Holy See, because he was worried about the influence.
Under such circumstances, the meaning of Felix's uninvited visit is naturally very intriguing.
Seeing Giovanni so close, the smile on Felix's face became even brighter. Those who didn't know it thought that the relationship between Felix and Giovanni was so deep.
However, only Giovanni knew that the smile on the corner of Felix's mouth was clearly a provocation to him.
The Prussians supported Giovanni. This was no secret in the Holy See, and it was precisely because of the massive support from the Prussians that Giovanni was able to win over a large group of cronies in the Holy See. Without Prussia
If people's money is sufficient, I am afraid that the number of supporters behind Giovanni will be reduced by half.
Originally, Felix had never regarded Giovanni as his competitor. After all, Felix had been promoted to cardinal far longer than Giovanni, not to mention that Felix also controlled the actual power of the Vatican Council of Cardinals.
But who could have known that in just a few years, after receiving the support of the Prussians, Giovanni's power would increase significantly. Not only would he have influence among the lower echelons of the Holy See, but also among the high-level cardinals.
They were all able to compete with him, which made Felix feel very annoyed and angry.
But Felix has never been a happy person. After all, in his position, he can be regarded as an old fox who has become a master.
Felix is compared with Giovanni. Both of them have their own advantages and disadvantages. What makes Felix better is that he has more supporters in the Cardinals than Giovanni, and the Felix family is native.
Roman nobleman, which had an advantage over Giovanni.
But it was precisely because Felix stood out among the highest-level cardinals in the Holy See that Pope Pius VI was afraid, so he supported Giovanni and Felix to fight in the ring.
The advantage Giovanni had was the Pope's love for Giovanni.
Although Pius VI is old, his brain has not stopped functioning, and Pius VI is not a fool. Felix's power in the cardinal group even made Pius VI feel threatened. Under this situation, Pius VI
The world naturally wants to raise someone to compete with Felix.
With the arrival of Felix, the atmosphere of the banquet became awkward. The banquet was full of dignitaries from the Holy Roman Empire, and they were all well aware of the scandals at the top of the Holy See.
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Fortunately, these old guys didn't make the atmosphere awkward for long, and the banquet hall was noisy again.
At this moment, two people wearing ordinary vestments of the Holy See ran to Giovanni and Felix and started whispering in their ears.
And just after the two attendants finished speaking, the expressions of Felix and Giovanni immediately changed drastically.
Regarding the changes in the expressions of the two people, William, who was closest to the two, naturally saw it clearly.
"Your Majesty, there are still some matters in the Holy See. I will take my leave now!"
After Felix finished speaking, he hurried out without waiting for William to stop him.
A flash of light flashed in William's eyes, and at this moment, he saw Giovanni leaving the table and walking to William's side and saying:
"Your Majesty, the news just came that His Holiness the Pope suddenly vomited blood and fell into a coma. I have to rush to St. Peter's Church immediately! Please forgive me!"
William's pupils dilated slightly, and something unexpected happened to Pius VI at this time.
"Well, go ahead. If you need my help, just ask and I will do my best!"
After receiving William's promise, Giovanni felt a little relieved, then bowed to William and left.
Seeing the two cardinals at the top of the Holy See leaving one after another, the nobles in the hall also focused their attention on William, but William smiled slightly and said:
"Everyone, please do whatever you have to do. Both bishops have a lot of things to deal with. Let's continue!"
After finishing speaking, William lowered his head, and the knife and fork in his hand began to uselessly work on the steak in front of him, but his mind drifted to the Vatican Palace.
The Vatican Palace has been the residence of popes throughout the ages. Of course, some popes have located their palaces in other palaces in history. However, most popes still choose to live in the Vatican Palace, and the current Pope Pius VI is no exception.
The Vatican Palace is located on one side of St. Peter's Square, not far from St. Peter's Basilica.
The Vatican Palace is world-famous not only because it is the Pope's palace, but also because it stores various books collected by the Holy See and two famous murals "Genesis" and "Doomsday".
Just when Felix and Giovanni were rushing to the Vatican Palace, all the cardinals living in Rome also rushed to the Vatican Palace. After all, the physical accident of His Majesty the Pope is the top priority of the Vatican.
Especially now that Giovanni Holfelix is developing tit-for-tat factions in the Holy See.
"Why did His Majesty the Pope suddenly vomit blood? Is there someone who played a role in it?"
When Giovanni arrived at the Vatican Palace, the palace was full of whispers, and among them, there were many speculations and conspiracy theories.
Giovanni walked outside the Pope's palace with an ugly face. The two soldiers of the Papal Guard guarding the door immediately opened the door for him after seeing Giovanni.
At this moment, many people have gathered behind the Pope's palace. Of course, these people are members of the Vatican's College of Cardinals, and even cardinal deacons are not qualified to enter the palace.
Just after Giovanni walked into the Pope's dormitory, several cardinals saw Giovanni's figure, and then gathered around them and reported everything they knew to Giovanni in a low voice. Needless to say,
, these cardinals are all members of Giovanni's party.
Pius VI's vomiting of blood was not without reason. According to a report by a Pope's aide, the Pope got up to relieve himself shortly after falling asleep. But who would have expected that after relieving himself, the Pope fell to the ground in a daze.
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This could be fatal. You must know that the Pope is a seventy-seven-year-old man after all. In addition, the Pope's health has not been very good. This incident directly caused His Majesty the Pope to vomit blood.
Later, although doctors were called immediately, according to the diagnosis of those doctors, the Pope's chest hit the ground violently, directly breaking two ribs. In addition, the Pope was helped by his attendants.
I walked back to the palace. As I moved around, my broken ribs caused damage to my internal organs.
The diagnosis of these doctors was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for the senior leaders of the Holy See. The ribs were broken and the internal organs were severely damaged. In this era, it is almost impossible to get effective treatment. After all, due to the limitations of the times, current medical skills are still limited.
It did not develop to the level of later generations.
In order to block the news, except for the two Pope's aides, the rest of the people in the palace were all cardinals in red clothes and some cardinal priests.
"Mobilize more power to ensure that His Majesty the Pope is safe!"
A cardinal said to several doctors with a ferocious expression, but it was obvious that the cardinal's words made these doctors very embarrassed.
"Okay, don't embarrass these doctors. As the spokesman of Jesus Christ in time, His Majesty the Pope, every drink and peck is arranged by God! May God bless His Majesty the Pope!"
Felix stood up and said, and after hearing Felix's words, the cardinals in the palace began to pray for Pius VI.
"Mianxia is awake, Mianxia is awake!"
The two attendants guarding the Pope's bedside immediately shouted after seeing the lips of Pius VI trembling slightly as he was lying on the boat.
Upon hearing the news, all the cardinals gathered around the Pope.
Pius VI opened his eyes slightly, and then he looked around and finally pointed at Felix, Giovanni and the two cardinals and said:
"The four of you stay, everyone else gets out!"
Although the voice of Pius VI was weak, he could still hear it clearly, so the cardinals in the palace, including the two papal aides, began to leave the palace.
After there was no one else in the room except the Pope and the four cardinals, the Papal Guard soldiers guarding the door immediately closed the door to the palace.
When the old pope dies, he will definitely arrange his own funeral arrangements for the cardinals. This is also the practice of the Holy See. Of course, it is more likely to involve the selection of the next pope, so naturally it cannot be taken lightly.
"Giovanni, Felix, hold out your hands and shake them!"
Giovanni and Felix were stunned by the words of Pius VI. Then, although they looked at each other quite unkindly, they still had to extend their hands and shake them according to Pius VI's opinion.
Together.
Seeing this scene, Pius VI had a smile on his face
"God's cause still depends on you to complete it in the future. Remember, you must stick to your faith and maintain the fear of God! Remember, unite together. The Holy See cannot be divided because of disputes! Have you remembered!"
Even though both Giovanni and Felix disagreed with the Pope's words, they still nodded solemnly on their faces, and even tears oozed from Giovanni's eyes.
"Giovanni, don't cry. You are a child of God. Your tears can only be shed for God! Also, I know you all want the Pope's throne, but there is only one throne. Promise me, no matter what.
Whoever among you has ascended to this position must remember tolerance and forgiveness!"
After Pius VI seemed to have exhausted all his strength to say the last word, his hand fell on the bed slumped.
"Your Majesty. Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Pope!"
Giovanni's eyes widened and he shouted loudly, but no matter how much he shouted at this moment, Pius VI could no longer hear him.
When Felix saw this scene, he immediately knelt down beside Pius VI's bed and began to pray non-stop.
As Felix knelt on the ground, a cardinal in the room immediately ran towards the door. Then he saw the cardinal slowly opening the door of the palace and facing the crowd of cardinals surrounding the palace.
They whispered:
“His Majesty Pius VI, Bishop of the Diocese of Rome, Metropolitan of the Roman Province, Patriarch of the West; Monarch of the Vatican, Pope, Successor of the Apostle Saint Peter, Vicar of Christ on earth, has been called by the Lord to go to heaven to serve our Lord.
!”
After the cardinal finished speaking, there was a sudden silence among the cardinals. Suddenly a cry sounded among the crowd. Then, as if the emotion was contagious, the sounds of crying and choking could be heard constantly from the crowd.
In early June 1794, Pius VI died of serious injuries.
Subsequently, the Holy See's obituary was sent to the entire Central and Western Europe, and the Holy See's announcement summoned all cardinals to Rome to participate in the papal election. At the same time, the Holy See also announced that it would hold a funeral for Pius VI on June 13. All cardinals were required to do so.
Arrive in Rome on time.
With the death of Pius VI, the papal battle that had shrouded Rome for several years finally officially kicked off.
Although before Pius VI's death, he once called Giovanni and Felix together and asked them to devote their lives to the cause of God, there is only one pope's throne, and neither of them is willing to accept it.
Man, under this situation, it is foreseeable that the Holy See will set off a new round of turmoil, and may even bring the entire Catholic world into it.
After the news of the death of Pius VI came out, William rushed to St. Peter's Church as soon as possible, where the body of Pius VI was currently lying in St. Peter's Church.
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Lying on the ship in the cabin, Alexander's expression fell into a trance. Compared with the gorgeous, brilliant, and warm Tsar's bedroom in the Winter Palace, the best rooms on the Peter the Great were like dregs compared to them.
But now Alexander has no other choice.
"Your Majesty, have you slept?"
There was a knock on the cabin door. Hearing the knock, Alexander started to fight and then opened the door, only to see Ushakov standing outside the door.
Previously, Ushakov and Alexander were busy escaping from St. Petersburg and did not discuss where this large fleet was going. Therefore, after arranging some things, Ushakov immediately found Alexander and hoped to ask.
Where will Alexander's next stop be?
"Your Majesty, we have escaped from St. Petersburg now, but our destination is not clear yet. Please make a decision immediately!"
Ushakov's words made Alexander frown.
The reason why he did not tell Ushakov the destination before was precisely because Alexander himself had not yet made up his mind.
It is obviously impossible for Sweden, after all, Sweden is still at war with the Russian Empire. As for countries such as Britain, France, and Spain, although Alexander and others can stay, they probably cannot stay for long.
Furthermore, Alexander's fleet carried a large amount of treasure, and there was no guarantee that other countries would not take advantage of the wealth.
According to you, the safest option would be to escape overseas, but this would pose a huge problem, and that is the issue of voyage.
The Baltic Fleet carries limited supplies. If it wants to enter the Atlantic Ocean, it has to stop in Copenhagen to replenish supplies. If it wants to sail further overseas, supplies will need to be carried along the way, but the key is that the areas along the way will not
Will allow the Baltic Fleet to dock for supplies.
Moreover, there are too many risks on the voyage, and it is still unknown whether the Russians will be willing to follow Alexander overseas.
Even if supplies cannot be obtained in Copenhagen, the Baltic Fleet will not even think of leaving the Baltic Sea.
"Let's go to Copenhagen first and see if we can persuade the Prussians. If the Prussians are willing to help us, then we will stay in Prussia and try to restore the country. If not, see if we can buy some transport ships and ships from Copenhagen.
Supplies, let’s go overseas!”
Finally, Alexander made a decision after thinking about it.
Although his decision could not be called smart, at the moment he really had no better way.
After Alexander finished speaking, Ushakov fell into deep thought. After a long time, he only heard Ushakov sigh and then bowed to Alexander and left the cabin.
Then Ushakov immediately sent a fast ship from the fleet to Copenhagen. After all, the Baltic Fleet plus those transport ships were huge. In this case, it was better to say hello to the Prussians in advance and not to make Prussia suspicious.