At sunset, Tucha came to Caravanserai District outside Central Administration.
This is the temporary residence of foreign officials. In the past, Tucha came to Central Administration to take assessments and lived in Caravanserai District. In the future, when he works at Constantinople, Tucha intends to buy a courtyard so that he can live more comfortably in his own property.
There is another note. The rules of Central Administration are complicated and I can no longer bring so many guards.
Tucha returned to the compound where he was temporarily staying and informed the guards of the news.
As the hereditary leader of the Gray Antelope Tribe, most of Tucha's guards come from his own tribe. He plans to repatriate the abolished guards to Gray Antelope Town and arrange them properly.
If the guard does not want to return to Northern Black Sea Coast and wants to continue working elsewhere, Tucha is willing to pay more severance pay so that everyone can get together and part ways.
Over the years, Tucha served as Governor in Galatia and Epirus, employing a team of staff with diverse identities, including businessmen, priests and scholars.
In the past, the staff team had a dedicated office area in Governor government. After Tucha was transferred to Agricultural Minister, these people did not have official positions and could not follow him to work in Central Administration.
"The total severance pay for the guards and staff is estimated to be one thousand five hundred Florin."
Tucha wrote a long letter to Epirus, promising to pay severance pay. If a staff member has a favorite place, he can help recommend it.
In the next two days, Tucha stayed at the Agricultural Department during the day, familiar with the work processes, and wrote a report about Epirus after get off work.
September 19, the handover was successfully completed, Ilya moved to Admiralty with his personal belongings, leaving Tucha with an empty office.
The staff around me reminded, "Sir, do you need to change the furniture, curtains, wall candlesticks and other decorations?"
Tucha has seen the offices of other ministers, and they generally maintain frugality to cater to the stingy character of the emperor. He would never be stupid enough to violate taboos in this regard.
"Clean it carefully. If there is any damage, replace it as it is. I will officially resume my duties tomorrow and I will clean it up this afternoon."
After saying that, Tucha left the office area. Taking advantage of his free time in the afternoon, he visited Western District's vacant mansion under the guidance of a real estate dealer.
Tucha's income includes salary, rewards, and Gray Antelope Town taxes, but he maintains a team of staff and many guards, which costs a lot of money.
Therefore, Tucha's savings were limited. After paying the severance package, he could not afford the most decent real estate, so he could only choose some mid-to-high-end courtyards.
"Sir, look at this building. It turned out to be the property of the predecessor Army Minister."
The real estate dealer led Tucha into the courtyard. The front yard was of medium size, with colonnades on both sides. The main house and other houses were of regular shape, not as luxurious as the previous properties, and the price was only seven hundred Florin.
"The real estate price, taxes, and furniture purchases are expected to be less than 900 Florin, so it's here."
Tucha ranked it at the top of his purchasing priority and followed the businessman to visit subsequent properties.
The population of Constantinople is concentrated in the east, while the population of Western District is sparse, and there are a large number of plots of land for the construction of mid- to high-end residences.
Tucha followed the merchant until dusk and only visited part of it.
The businessman suggested visiting Eastern District tomorrow. "There are several best mansions in the east of the city, which are said to be quiet in the bustle. They are located on low hills near Hagia Sophia. They are on higher ground. They overlook the sea on the east side and have a wide view. They are most suitable for your noble status."
Hearing this, Tucha laughed out loud.
I hold the position of Governor in the local area and am considered a big shot, but I am still not a big shot in Constantinople. There are a lot of people above me, so the lower profile the better.
"I will officially take up my duties tomorrow. I have a lot of things to do behind me. If I have any free time to continue looking at houses, I will choose the mansion of my predecessor Army Minister."
Tucha handed over the remaining matters to the attendant and asked him to go to the City Hall with the real estate dealer to complete the procedures tomorrow.
September 20, Tucha officially assumed their duties. He listened to Ilya's advice and tried to avoid banquets and socializing during this period to avoid getting into some trouble.
Early October, Prime Minister Savard submitted his resignation, and the emperor chose to retain him.
This news triggered a heated discussion among Constantinople. It is generally believed that even if Prime Minister stays, he is expected to resign within a year, and a new minister will join the cabinet to fill the vacancy.
Tucha knows that he is not good at political fighting and has never had the extravagant hope of joining the cabinet.
"I estimate that my end goal will be to be a minister in a certain department, or to serve as a local governor until I retire."
From a precarious leader of a small tribe to the ministers of Governor and Central Administration, Tucha is generally satisfied with his experience in the past twenty years. Even if he cannot become Chancellor and Border Defense General, he does not feel any sense of loss in his heart.
"I wonder what's going on with Northern Black Sea Coast."
After Tucha was transferred from Don Frontier, his successor was Sanggebu. The latter was not good at internal affairs. Governor worked for a short period of time and took the initiative to apply for transfer to the army.
The third Governor is Kazhuo. Estimating the time, Kazhuo will also be transferred away from Borderland Region. Tucha doesn't know whether this guy will directly enter Central Administration, or whether he will be tortured in a miserable place like Galatia like himself.
Regarding Prime Minister's resignation, Vitus sincerely wanted to keep him.
Savard is an old man from the Achaea period. He has served as Prime Minister for more than three years, and the government affairs are running smoothly. Changing to the new Prime Minister rashly will affect the normal operation of the administrative system.
"In a few years, Balram will also retire. Who will be appointed to fill the vacancy then?"
At this time, Eunuch sent a letter from Florence. Vitus opened it and saw that Di Maggio family's plan was successful.
Di Maggio took advantage of the people's anger and insecurity, executed the ringleader of the assassination, and began to suppress other competing factions.
Seeing that the situation was not good, Cosimo·Medici fled to France with their two children, and the illegitimate child was placed in Rome.
The remaining big families are also running away. The first choice is Holy See States, followed by Genoa and Naples.
Vitus exclaimed, "Pauli let Medici go? How could such a mistake be made? What if Cosimo leads French Army to fight back?"
He took out a second piece of letter paper, which mentioned another good news: King Charles VII intervened in England's civil war and was about to send troops to escort Duke of York back home.
Pauli believes that French Army is trapped in England and cannot interfere with Florence for the time being. Di Maggio family has enough time to stabilize the Florence situation and cleanse the remaining hostile members.
Vitus agrees with this statement.
After the French Army lands on England, no matter what the battle situation is, it is impossible to cross the sea and return to France in winter.
The sea conditions of English Channel in winter are bad and not suitable for large-scale transportation of people. French Army will return to the mainland in the spring and summer of next year at the earliest.
Vitus took out the third piece of letter paper, which listed the Di Maggio family's military purchase request, including purchasing artillery, grain, and iron materials.
Pauli did not request Roman Legion to garrison troops. The official rhetoric was to avoid stimulating the local forces of Holy See and Italy.
Vitus guessed Pauli's real reason: he didn't want Florence to become a vassal.
"Vassal? You are thinking too much. I just hope you can hold on to your territory and not fall under the control of France."
France controls Genoa of Northern Italy and Naples of South Italy. If they are allowed to control Florence in the middle of Italy, the situation will be completely out of control.
Genoa is adjacent to Florence, and between Florence and Naples, there is only one small country, Siena, and Holy See States, which is almost undefended.
As long as Florence is captured, French Army can be freely transferred between Genoa and Naples, giving it an overwhelming advantage over the remaining regimes and ultimately controlling the entire Italy peninsula.
This is something Vitus will never tolerate.
No matter which family Florence is under the control of, as long as French Army launches an attack, Eastern Roman Empire must intervene.
The situation of Serbia is similar to that of Florence.
According to rumors, Djuradj, the absolute monarch of Serbia, may pass away at any time.
In case his eldest son Grgur makes some noise, even if Vitus is reluctant, he will send troops to intervene in the north to prevent Serbia from falling into the control of Jagiellon.
At the same time, the Calais and French Army fleets in the north of France are about to leave the port and escort Richard, Duke of York back to England to ascend the throne.
The King of France regards House of Lancaster as his old enemy. In order to end the rule of this evil branch, most of the French Army he dispatched are standing armies. The generals who lead the troops are Jeanne·Dake and Arthur·De·Rimon.
In this battle, the number of Duke of York's mercenaries was three thousand. The King of France sent 27,000 French Army to participate in the battle, totaling 30,000, divided into three groups to land.
The first batch of troops set off a week ago and completed the landing at Ramsgate.
When the second group of troops was about to go to sea, they encountered continuous rain for many days, and a cold and violent north wind blew on the sea, making it unsuitable for the fleet to sail.
Today is the second day of October. The rain has stopped and the sea surface has returned to calm.
Opportunities are hard to come by. Duke of York urged the soldiers to move supplies, but heard the alarm sound from the tower:
"The England fleet appeared on the sea, fifty ships."
Duke of York was furious and cursed the damn weather for delaying progress, giving House of Lancaster time to react.
Rimon advised this former enemy to calm down, "The distance between Calais port and England's Dover is only twenty-two miles. As long as our warships defeat the enemy, the transport fleet will depart at noon and can reach Ramsgate before sunset."
Rimon picked up the telescope and looked at the enemy fleet. Most of them were requisitioned merchant ships. The ships were old and had a towering poop tower on the stern.
England has limited financial resources and does not have a large-scale standing navy like Venice and Eastern Roman Empire. In peacetime, England does not have a directly affiliated navy. There are some small ships in local ports dedicated to anti-smuggling.
France's fleet is not much better. There are only two new warships built with the help of Venice craftsmen, and the rest are Armed Merchant Ship.
In this battle, the France navy relied most heavily on the twenty ships sent by Portugal.
Judging from the appearance alone, the Portugal Cruiser is more slender, has eliminated the bulky stern, and is flexible and fast. The three Battleship are large in size and have a double-layer gun deck, which is almost exactly the same shape as the battleship Venice.
At first, Alfonso V of Portugal declined the request to join the war, claiming that he would send sailing ships to the east to expand Trade.
England is the old enemy of France, but not the old enemy of Portugal. This country is cold and rainy, lacks rare minerals, and the crop yield per acre is not as good as France. The only advantage is that there are many pastures, suitable for sheep herding.
But Portugal has a large amount of Merino sheep, so there is no shortage of wool. Alfonso V can't figure out what benefit it will have to defeat England.
However, the France messenger threatened to sever the alliance, forcing Alfonso V to send this fleet to fulfill its obligations as an ally.
At eight o'clock in the morning, the England fleet was deployed and slowly approached the Calais port.
During this period, the main tactic of Atlantic Ocean naval battles was boarding combat, in which soldiers jumped onto enemy ships to engage in hand-to-hand combat. Therefore, the fleet's primary task was to send as many soldiers onto enemy ships as possible.
Based on this concept, the England ships are arranged in two rows, with the flagship in the center to maximize the frontal enemy width. The ship's artillery is arranged on the bow, not the sides.
At this time, the France fleet was adjusting its formation outside the port. The Portugal ship set off first and sailed to the north in an orderly manner in a column.
Portugal The target of the fleet is the enemy's left wing (east side). With the help of the southwesterly wind blowing from the land, the ship sails at a speed of seven knots. The sea water cuts two white waves at the bow of the ship, and the splashing water mist sparkles in the sun.
Commander England realized that there was danger on the flanks, but now that the wind was against him, it was difficult for the horizontal formation to change formation quickly. All he could do was to let the ships on the left wing slightly deflect their bows and bombard the enemy with their bow guns.
At 8:45, the Portugal flagship was less than 200 steps away from the enemy's flank.
Commander Clement raised his telescope and saw a group of soldiers gathered on the deck of the enemy ship, equipped with armor, Matchlock, and spears, seemingly about to launch a boarding battle.
"Fire and send them to the sea to feed the fish."
The flagship's twenty-four broadside guns fired one after another, and thick smoke enveloped most of the ship.
Then came the second and third ships... the column did not stop.
Twenty warships passed by the outside of the first row on the left wing of England in sequence, and opened fire on the outermost ships.
After this round of attacks, the two England battleships on the edge took on water and tilted. The surviving crew members jumped into the sea one after another and called for friendly forces to come and rescue them.
The Portugal column's offensive did not stop. They maneuvered northwest, went around to the rear of the England column, and launched firepower output.
England fleet's formation was completely disrupted, some sailboats took in water and tilted, and the rest of the sailboats were forced to turn under the bombardment and fired back with poor artillery.
At 9:30, the French Army column pressed forward from the front. The British army declared a collapse, and the ships that could still move fled in all directions.
The sky was gloomy, and the sea was filled with thick smoke. Bodies and broken shipboards were floating with the waves, and some of the bodies were flowing along the waves to the beach, scaring nearby fishermen to whisper their prayers.
Port Watchtower, Duke of York stroked the two strands of beard on his chin with his hands. Feeling relaxed, he began to evaluate the naval strength of each country.
"I heard that Battle of Antikythera has more than a hundred ships participating in the war, and the strength of both sides must exceed that of the Portugal navy. However, England and Eastern Roman Empire The distance is far, and there is no conflict of interest between the two parties. The enemies of the Eastern Roman Empire fleet are France, Aragon, and Portugal. It cannot be me."