The Deal

The late spring sunlight bathed the lands along the Rhine River, and the blooming flowers everywhere could not mask the decay and desolation of the scene before them.

A contingent of nearly a hundred people quickly entered the village ahead.

Although there were over twenty armored warriors and some lightly armed cavalry providing protection within the group, the leading Count of Munich, Sigismund, still felt worried, having heard that this stretch of road was rife with bandits.

As they entered the village, the sight that met their eyes was heavyhearted.

Amidst the ruined walls, charred wooden beams slanted amidst the rubble, and the wind swept dust through the silent streets.

Flocks of crows circled overhead, searching for things to peck at.

What was once a village was now only smoking adobe and wailing wind.

Sigismund found a clean stone and sat down, his expression grim. The scene before him made him very uncomfortable.

Beside him, a young priest in a black robe held a small crucifix, beginning to pray for the scattered bones on the ground.

That was his younger brother, Albrecht. He had gone to Italy to study a long time ago and had joined the local church there.

He was rumored to have possibly attained a bishop's position in Pavia in the Duchy of Milan and might even return to Passau in the future to become an Archbishop, with a promising future ahead of him.

However, after the death of their elder brother, John, Albrecht chose to give up his ecclesiastical position in Milan and returned to Munich to assist his elder brother.

It was precisely for this reason that Sigismund brought him along to Worms to be summoned by the Emperor.

Currently, they had just left Heidelberg with their contingent and would soon reach Mannheim.

This meant that the land they stood on was the absolute core territory of the Palatinate.

But surprisingly, not only was Heidelberg plundered and ruined, but even the surrounding villages and towns were not spared. The Archbishop of Mainz and the Emperor's army besieged Heidelberg for a year, almost creating a no-man's-land in this densely populated and fertile region.

"This is simply hell," the Count of Munich observed uneasily, looking around. "I do not wish for such a terrible sight to appear in Bavaria."

Munich had not experienced war for decades, and even the widespread Hussite Wars had not affected Munich. Unlike Austria, which was constantly at war but whose homeland remained untouched, Munich had barely participated in any disputes or wars in recent decades.

Moreover, every ruler of Munich firmly believed that this peace would continue indefinitely.

Albrecht heard his elder brother's words and nodded in deep agreement, saying, "War is the most irrational act, bringing only disaster to people, regardless of victory or defeat.

But many times, we have no choice but to accept the challenge, unless a stronger power offers us protection."

Sigismund could not fail to understand what his younger brother was subtly implying. He frowned and asked, "Are you worried about that old fox, Ludwig?"

Albrecht shook his head and said, "Though Ludwig is strong, if Landshut were to attempt to unify Bavaria by force, the Emperor would certainly not stand idly by.

On the contrary, if the Emperor wished to covet Bavaria, who could stop him?"

This novel perspective caused Sigismund to pause slightly, and he said with some uncertainty, "The Imperial Princes? The Princes certainly would not—"

"Look around you, Elder Brother, look at what happened to our cousins," Albrecht said, pointing to the scorched earth beneath their feet. "This was all done by the Princes."

"This…." Sigismund was silent for a moment, his expression becoming somewhat agitated. "What exactly are you trying to say?"

"We need the Emperor's protection and friendship!"

"So you want to persuade me to buy that position?"

"This is the best opportunity; there will never be another one if we miss it," Albrecht's emotions grew agitated. "The Emperor wants to give us the Elector's position, and no one will object, no one dares to object!

I suspect the young Emperor wants to use this opportunity to test how submissive the Princes are to him.

The Elector has so many privileges; as long as we can secure that seat, we will undoubtedly benefit immensely in the future.

Moreover, once we become the Elector, the Wittelsbach family will be ours to command."

Sigismund was somewhat tempted, but the thought of the price made his heart ache: "But 150,000 florins, isn't that too expensive?"

"Elder Brother, believe me, the returns we will gain in the future will be far greater than this," Albrecht pressed on, continuing to persuade him. "And you can afford it.

I heard you are planning to expand Blutenburg and build two churches there?"

"Developing the territory is also very important!"

"But buying the Elector's seat is clearly more important."

Sigismund pondered for a moment upon hearing this, then stood up, brushed the dust from his clothes, and said solemnly, "You are right, we must accept this deal.

Let's go, I can't stand this damned place for another moment."

"Mm!" Albrecht happily followed his elder brother's footsteps.

The two brothers mounted their horses, calling for their attendants and guards to continue on their journey.

Two days later, the contingent arrived at Worms, whose city gates were closed.

The Count of Munich's contingent was among the last to arrive; almost all the invited Princes had already personally reached Worms before them.

There was one exception: the Elector of Brandenburg, Frederick II, refused to attend the assembly, citing ill health.

He only sent an envoy to Worms.

Such perfunctory attendance at an assembly called by the Emperor was rarely seen throughout history.

However, Frederick II's envoy delivered a letter to Laszlo, in which the Elector sincerely expressed his apologies, and Laszlo did not pursue the matter further.

That Elector of Brandenburg had suffered from depression ever since the death of his 'white moonlight', the Polish Princess Jadwiga, and his condition seemed to be worsening day by day; he might even have a mental breakdown any day now.

Before the arrival of the Count of Munich, the conference had already held one round, and the guardianship of Philip, the Elector Palatine, was formally granted to his youngest uncle, Stephen.

The nobles of the Palatinate warmly welcomed their lord's return to their homeland, but the very next agenda item plunged the people of the Palatinate into an icy despair—the Emperor intended to strip the Palatinate of its Electorate seat and bestow it upon someone truly qualified.

It was said that during the first round of the conference, there was a fierce debate over this issue, but overall, the Emperor held the advantage.

Upon hearing this news, the two brothers, who had just settled in, both breathed a sigh of relief.

Next, they only needed to await the Emperor's summons.

In another corner of Worms, the Elector of Saxony, Frederick II, and the Duke of Landshut, Ludwig IX, were sitting together, conversing.

The white-haired Elector of Saxony coughed heavily several times, which greatly startled Ludwig beside him.

He quickly asked with concern, "Father-in-law, your health…."

"Just a small ailment, nothing serious."

The Elector waved his hand, finally getting his breath back. In recent years, his health had been deteriorating, and time waited for no one; he was truly old.

At the previously held conference, he noticed that five people at the table were all new faces.

All three ecclesiastical Electors had been replaced within these few short years, not to mention the young Emperor, and the young Elector Palatine, Philip, who was not allowed at the table.

Among the seven Electors, only the neighboring Elector of Brandenburg was an old fellow from his own era, and he was even absent.

Such a scene made Frederick sigh at the vicissitudes of life.

However, now was not the time for melancholy; the Emperor came with great momentum this time, attempting to further expand his power within the Empire.

The old Elector intended to limit the Emperor's power, but this time he seemed to have no chance.

"How is the Elector's assembly going?"

"It's terrible," the Elector of Saxony let out a heavy sigh. "The Archbishop of Mainz and the Archbishop of Trier are both on the Emperor's side.

That child from Palatinate is not allowed at the table, nor does he have any say; his seat has now become the Emperor's commodity.

To be honest, the Emperor's love for money definitely surpasses his love for his Empress—he has been using every means to amass wealth to support his terrifyingly large army.

I heard that the Hungarian had recently experienced the power of that great army; I think even the Ottoman and the French would not want to confront him."

Hearing the old Elector's words, Ludwig held his wine glass, gently swirling the wine within, and gazed out the window, lost in thought.

"The Archbishop of Cologne still wants to keep his nephew's Elector seat, but it's futile. The Emperor has made up his mind and has gained majority support.

The Elector of Brandenburg... that ambitious fellow supports no one; he doesn't care about this matter at all."

The old Elector seemed to have a strong opinion about his neighbor, the Elector of Brandenburg.

After all, the Elector of Brandenburg's expansionist policies over the past decade or so had already aroused widespread anger in North Germany, and border frictions between Saxony and Brandenburg had never ceased.

When the previous Archbishop of Mainz was alive, they could temporarily set aside their disputes and jointly oppose the Emperor.

Now that no one was leading, the two old rivals started to dislike each other again. It was good enough that they hadn't started fighting, let alone talk about unity.

"You said the Emperor wants money, right?"

"Yes, although he has so many silver mines and such vast territories, supporting a huge army is not easy.

Money is very important to him if he doesn't want the mercenaries from all over the Empire to rebel and set his backyard on fire.

I tried to recall those Saxons who served him, but no one responded; they only remained loyal to the Emperor when they received their pay."

"Since he wants money, why would he go to the poor Count of Munich?" Ludwig said disdainfully. "I thought he would sell this position to the Burgundian. Aren't the Duke of Burgundy and the Imperial family like one family now?

They are so rich; does the Emperor still have to worry about not getting a good price?"

The old Elector was also amused by his words.

"It would be great if things really turned out that way, but unfortunately, the Emperor is not a fool. He now holds all the advantages and won't be so foolish as to completely break with the three ecclesiastical Electors.

His choice of Munich is probably mainly aimed at you. As long as this seat is transferred within the Wittelsbach family, it becomes your family affair, and others can't say anything."

"Then I should also be qualified to buy this seat," a deep longing flashed in Ludwig's eyes. "How much money can those prodigal sons of Munich offer? I can offer much more florins than them!"

The old Elector shook his head helplessly and said, "Your previous ambition for Donauwörth and Nördlingen angered the Emperor; you are already enemies.

Now, you also have Albrecht watching you, which makes things very difficult for me."

Margrave of Ansbach Albrecht was also the son-in-law of the Elector of Saxony.

Albrecht and Ludwig, these brothers-in-law, were hostile to each other due to their differing stances.

The old Elector had mediated the disputes between the two many times, which had prevented the Franconia region from being devastated.

The current situation was that the Emperor was determined to limit the Palatinate-Landshut alliance and completely eliminate the threat of the Wittelsbach family to the Imperial family.

And the Count of Munich was the pawn chosen by the Emperor.

Firstly, although the rulers of Munich and Landshut were of the same clan, they had vast territorial disputes.

Both sides wanted to eliminate the other and become the ultimate winner of the Bavarian chicken dinner contest, reunifying the Duchy of Bavaria.

And Palatinate and Landshut had been long-time allies, and Philip was also Ludwig's prospective son-in-law, which meant that Palatinate would definitely stand with Landshut.

So, the only way for the Count of Munich to resist the Duke of Landshut was to rely on the Emperor standing behind him.

At the same time, the Emperor also had a very loyal supporter, the Margrave of Ansbach, who firmly held the Duke of Landshut in check to his north.

If the Munich branch truly sided with the Emperor and gained an Elector seat, then Ludwig's ambitions could now be declared over.

"I'm not reconciled," Ludwig said through gritted teeth, his hand holding the wine glass trembling slightly from too much force. "Isn't it just money? I have plenty of it!

Father-in-law, at the next meeting, please say a few more words for me. I am willing to repent my sins to the Emperor.

As long as he can give me this opportunity, even two hundred thousand florins would be no problem."

"You... Alright." The Elector of Saxony could only nod slightly. His son-in-law's request also aligned with his interests; now he could only try.

Inside the Emperor's temporary residence, the Count of Munich and his younger brother were summoned by the Emperor.

Laszlo looked at the Count of Munich, who, despite his young age, already had the physique of a middle-aged man, and silently complained in his heart.

However, the young man standing behind him, dressed in ecclesiastical attire, caught his eye.

This Albrecht, with good attributes and a 'Friendly' attitude, was worth recruiting.

"Count Sigismund, what have you considered regarding my proposal?"

"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your grace and very interested, but this price..."

Laszlo glanced at him. Being so fat, he must be a pleasure-seeking fellow, yet he wasn't willing to spend more money on serious matters. There was no other way; why should the Count of Munich getting this seat be more in his interest?

"I'll give you a discount of ten thousand florins. That's the bottom line."

"This..." Sigismund was secretly delighted but still pretended to hesitate until the Emperor showed an impatient expression. Then he quickly said, "No problem, Your Majesty.

One hundred and forty thousand florins, I will raise this money."

"Then sign this agreement."

Laszlo beckoned, and Matthias took the two newly revised agreements from the scribe and placed them before Sigismund.

One hundred and forty thousand gold coins in exchange for the Count of Munich obtaining the Elector seat.

Sigismund immediately signed his name on it. Both parties kept one copy of the agreement, and the transaction was officially concluded.

After the two Munich brothers left, Laszlo let out a long breath, a satisfied smile on his face, and began to calculate in his mind.

"One hundred and forty thousand gold coins. Now the money borrowed for suppressing the rebellion can be repaid, and there are also expenses for replenishing troops and repairing armor."

The Empire is truly a good thing; occasionally, one can even make a huge sum from it to support the Habsburg's own Empire.