Taking Milan with Ease

As the Imperial Army took over the siege camp left by the French outside Milan, the Milanese understood the final outcome: the Emperor's army had swept away their greatest obstacle in Northern Italy, and now no one in this land could resist them.

In the evening, in the camp outside Milan, Laszlo threw the secret letter in his hand into the brazier and exchanged glances with Adolf beside him.

"Piccinino says he will open the city's west gate tomorrow at dawn. We'd best prepare an elite force to take Milan as soon as the time is right."

Hearing Laszlo's words, Adolf had some doubts: "Could this be a trap?"

Laszlo shook his head and said, "No, we have other supporters in the city, and their intelligence indicates that nothing unexpected has happened to Piccinino. Moreover, the entanglement between Piccinino and Sforza dictates that he can only turn to the Imperial side."

"In that case, I will go select the elites now, and we will launch a surprise attack at dawn tomorrow."

"I'm counting on you."

Adolf quickly walked out of the tent, while Laszlo slowly paced inside, considering the current plan.

The Republic of Milan had long been riddled with holes; as early as the secret agreement's announcement, many Milanese nobles had secretly pledged loyalty to the Emperor.

Even in the Council of Twenty-Four, he had his people.

Not to mention Piccinino, who had already gone all the way down a dark path.

The most troublesome in the city was, of course, Sforza, Milan's largest warlord, a shrewd opportunist.

Who he was didn't matter, but his absence was very important to Laszlo.

To rule Milan, all factors that could threaten Imperial rule had to be thoroughly eradicated.

By tomorrow, Milan's fate would be clear.

Upon receiving news of the main force's defeat, the French in Genoa immediately abandoned the idea of suppressing the Genoese rebellion and retreated almost in flight towards Savoy, intending to return to France via the Alps.

The remaining French and Swiss forces after the Ticino River battle finally crossed the river further north, retreating to the Turin region via Novara.

Laszlo stopped by the table, his gaze falling on the map; almost all of Northern Italy was now dotted with Imperial flags.

France and Switzerland were retreating, Milan was in its death throes, and Venice was fighting like a cornered beast.

The only remaining enemy was Savoy, who could have imagined that this small country, currently wavering between the Empire and France, would one day become the cornerstone of Italian unification.

But now, they had chosen the wrong side, and they would have to bear the Emperor's wrath.

Laszlo sent for William, as there was no one more suitable to be an envoy than him.

"Your Majesty, you sent for me?"

William Paleologus came before Laszlo, trying his best to suppress the excitement in his heart.

The French had retreated, and now it was time to take revenge on the Duke of Savoy.

Laszlo saw through William's thoughts and smiled, saying, "I have two tasks for you. First, persuade your brother to surrender to me and pledge allegiance. Second, negotiate with the Duke of Savoy and make this rebellious Duke accept the terms I propose."

William's expression became serious, and he asked earnestly, "The first matter is easy, but the second... I wonder what terms Your Majesty intends to propose?"

"Savoy must cede Cuneo to Montferrat and relinquish its suzerainty over Montferrat. In addition, the Duke of Savoy must pay thirty thousand florins in war reparations, sever all agreements with France, and expel the French Crown Prince. How do you find these terms?"

"Very reasonable demands, Your Majesty."

William was more than satisfied with this; currently, the Duke of Savoy was under attack from the Duke of Burgundy, and the Emperor stabbing him in the back at this moment would be enough to plunge Savoy into an abyss of no return.

Laszlo waved his hand, signaling that he could go about his business. William immediately understood and, after leaving the Emperor's tent, rode quickly to Casale, the capital of Montferrat.

The night passed quietly. At dawn, Piccinino led a small number of trusted men to the vicinity of Milan's west city gate. The soldiers stationed there were all mercenaries under his command.

The night watch soldiers were drowsy, when one of them suddenly discovered with surprise that their boss had come to check on them.

He immediately patted his companion next to him, who jolted awake and asked impatiently, "What?"

The one who reminded him could only signal with his eyes. Only then did the drowsy mercenary realize that Piccinino was almost upon them, and the next second he stood at attention.

"General!" The two guards respectfully saluted Piccinino.

Unexpectedly, Piccinino merely waved his hand, and two strong personal guards behind him immediately stepped forward and knocked out the unsuspecting pair.

By the time Piccinino reached the city wall, all the mercenaries patrolling that section of the wall had been subdued.

A subordinate held a torch and waved it back and forth on the city wall. Soon, a flickering light also appeared outside the city wall.

Everyone looked at Piccinino. He nodded slightly, and the drawbridge of the city gate was slowly lowered, resting on the moat, while the iron portcullis inside also slowly rose.

Before long, the first Imperial Army soldier rushed into the city with a greatsword. At this time, most of the city's defenders and residents were still asleep.

Adolf had carefully selected three thousand well-trained, well-equipped elite warriors to participate in this raid, with Gunter serving as the commander of the assault.

After a squadron of Imperial Army safely entered Milan and completely controlled the city gate, Piccinino finally met the cautious Gunter at the city entrance.

"General Piccinino, I've heard much about you. We don't know the situation in Milan as well as you do. Do you have any suggestions?"

Facing Gunter's humble inquiry, Piccinino nodded and said, "You leave some troops to guard the city gate, divide two forces to attack the guards at the other city gates, and take five hundred men to follow me directly to the Visconti Castle at the north gate of the city—now called Sforza Castle—that's the center of Milan, where the Council of Twenty-Four and Sforza's personal guards are mostly located. I will help you open the castle gates, and the rest is up to you."

"No problem!"

After discussing the plan, Gunter and Piccinino immediately led their troops along the avenue of the aristocratic district, rushing towards the castle in the northern part of the city.

Piccinino led a few personal guards to the base of the city wall, Gunter hid with dozens of men in the shadows, and the rest of the troops were hidden further away to avoid detection.

"Who's there?"

The patrolling guard on the city wall asked down at the city.

"It's me, Piccinino, I have an urgent matter to report to General Sforza, quickly open the gate! If you delay military affairs, you cannot bear the responsibility."

Hearing his threat, the soldiers on the wall pouted and immediately reported the matter to the officer on duty.

The officer looked down at the city wall, seeing only Piccinino and a few mercenaries, and so he put down his suspicions and ordered the gate to be opened.

As Piccinino stepped through the city gate, he immediately pulled out a dagger from his waist and slit the throat of the guard, while the other guard was stabbed to death by his personal guard.

Neither of them made a sound until they died.

On the other side, Gunter, observing the movement at the city gate, immediately led his elites in a hundred-meter sprint towards the castle gate.

By the time the guards on the city wall noticed something was wrong, they were not far from the castle gate.

The guards rushing from the city wall to close the gate were no match for Piccinino and his personal guards.

In a flash, the Imperial Army had stormed into the castle, with a continuous stream of Imperial Army soldiers pouring towards the castle gate.

They ascended the city walls, killed all the soldiers guarding the castle, and then fought their way into the castle's interior, killing large numbers of Sforza's personal guards who hadn't yet realized what was happening.

Subsequently, Piccinino led a squad of Imperial Army into the ducal residence, leaving no one alive.

Even the Imperial Army soldiers could feel the overwhelming resentment in Piccinino's heart.

He was very jealous of Sforza. Why could this traitor become Milan's most important mercenary general? Why could he receive praise from those foolish councilors and even live in the Duke's castle and residence?

That woman named Visconti was dead, yet Sforza still subtly showed signs of being elected Duke.

This solidified Piccinino's resolve to defect to the Emperor; in addition to his father's hatred, now his own hatred was added.

A group of soldiers surrounded a room. Piccinino exchanged glances with his left and right, and a personal guard immediately kicked open the door.

A sword thrust out from inside the room, piercing him through, and the Imperial Army soldiers also saw a strong man inside the room.

"He is Sforza! Whoever kills him will receive a great reward from the Emperor!"

Piccinino immediately unfurled the Emperor's banner, and the warriors rushed into the room, surrounding Sforza.

Sforza only had time to curse, "Damn scoundrel!" before he was cut down.

With Sforza dead, the members of the Council of Twenty-Four were also arrested and imprisoned.

Piccinino, holding Sforza's head, used the Imperial Army's prestige to force all the resisting Milanese mercenaries to lay down their weapons and surrender, including his own soldiers and, more importantly, Sforza's mercenaries.

The civic guard also laid down their weapons. Most of the city's important locations had already been controlled by the Imperial Army; they were powerless to resist further.

In less than three hours, the fighting within Milan came to an end.

Before noon, the Emperor entered Milan, accompanied by the Imperial Guard Legion. Imperial Army units had already been dispatched to Novara,

Pavia, Parma, Cremona, Bergamo, Brescia, and Como to take over the cities and territories.

Soon after, Laszlo achieved full control over all of Milan.