Greed

After meeting the Pope, Laszlo did not immediately set off north to return to Austria.

King Ferdinand I of Naples, just like the last time Laszlo visited Rome, specially came from Naples to meet him.

During their last meeting, Ferdinando pitched his Sicily strategy to Laszlo.

Since then, although he failed to get help from the Emperor, the greedy Ferdinando had not given up his ambition.

Since his ascension to the throne, he had twice repelled invasions by the Anjou family and the French.

That was the powerful French Army!

He forced the Duke of Lorraine, the heir of the Anjou family, Jean II, who commanded this army, to sign a humiliating peace treaty.

This war made his ambition and self-confidence begin to swell.

As for the Imperial Army that had fought for several years in Naples, and the famous general Skanderbeg who had commanded the allied forces to defeat the French many times, he automatically ignored them.

Moreover, the enemy he had to deal with this time was not the powerful King of France, but his weak uncle, King Juan II of Aragon.

A rebellion in Catalonia could not be quelled for two whole years, until the French entered Aragon to quell this widespread rebellion.

This rebellion was also caused by Juan II poisoning his eldest son, Prince Carlos.

The most ridiculous thing was that earlier this year, Juan II again caused the death of his eldest daughter, Princess Blanca, triggering a rebellion in the Kingdom of Navarre.

Although this rebellion was quickly quelled by the Count of Foix, Gaston IV of France, Juan II's reputation was completely ruined.

Ferdinando was not content to be just the King of Naples; he also wanted to seize the Kingdom of Sicily from his old, muddle-headed, and indiscriminating uncle.

When this war began, the Neapolitan army advanced very smoothly, quickly engulfing the entire island of Sicily.

Only Palermo, the largest city on the island, was still holding out, awaiting reinforcements from Aragon proper.

But Ferdinando never expected that his spineless uncle would directly cede two provinces to Louis XI in exchange for the large French Army entering Aragon to quell the Catalan rebellion.

After temporarily resolving the domestic unrest, Juan II immediately gathered his army and counter-attacked the island of Sicily.

The fragile Neapolitan navy was quickly annihilated by the powerful Aragonese navy, and the army Juan II had assembled was continuously sent to Sicily.

The armies of the Kingdom of Aragon and the Kingdom of Naples fought several pitched battles in Sicily, with the result that the Neapolitan army was defeated and retreated back to its homeland.

Now, the Aragonese navy was blockading the western ports of Naples, and there were rumors that Juan II was attempting to reclaim the Neapolitan crown that rightfully belonged to him.

"So you still want Sicily?"

Laszlo felt only amusement when he heard Ferdinando's complaints.

This Ferdinando really didn't know his place.

The Kingdom of Aragon was a veritable hegemon in the Western Mediterranean Sea.

Even if Juan II was a good-for-nothing and unable to quell domestic rebellions, it was only because of disunity within the Kingdom of Aragon.

But in the face of external aggression, Juan II only needed to slightly stir up the emotions of the nobles, and they would be very happy to contribute money and men in exchange for rewards.

Especially when Juan II painted them a grand picture of the Kingdom of Naples.

As for Naples?

Now, the remaining forces of the Anjou faction have not been completely eradicated, nor can they be, because there are always people who are dissatisfied with Ferdinando and join this faction.

Therefore, for the Kingdom of Naples, not having a rebellion break out was already a blessing.

In terms of the current strength of the Kingdom of Naples, at most it was a second-rate country, close to third-rate, with strength comparable to the Duchy of Milan under Laszlo's rule.

With such strength, yet still wanting to take advantage of the civil strife in the Kingdom of Aragon, whatever outcome Ferdinando encountered was his own fault. Upon hearing the Emperor's question, Ferdinando I's already clouded face became even uglier.

"This… this question is very difficult for me to answer."

If asked if he wanted it, of course he did.

The island of Sicily was very far from the Kingdom of Aragon, but only a short distance from the Kingdom of Naples.

Whenever he thought of this, Ferdinando couldn't help but complain a few words about his father, Alfonso V the Magnanimous.

Complaining why Alfonso V did not assign both the Kingdom of Sicily and the Kingdom of Naples to him.

Laszlo also saw through his thoughts, and chuckled as he picked up his wine glass and took a sip.

"So you want to keep fighting, right?"

Ferdinando did not hesitate this time and immediately shook his head in denial.

The war situation was very unfavorable for him; if he continued to fight, his own country might explode first.

At that time, Juan II might really seize the Kingdom of Naples from him.

"Oh? I thought you came to see me this time to ask for my help."

Laszlo looked at Ferdinando with some surprise.

If it wasn't to seek help, why would Ferdinando rush to Rome to meet him?

As the saying goes, "no good deed goes unpunished," and a person like Ferdinando, who wouldn't get up early without a profit, wouldn't come to Rome for no reason.

"I initially did have such a plan," Ferdinando confessed, "but in these past few years, all my allies have refused to provide me with aid, even the Albanians.

Perhaps I made the wrong choice from the beginning, instigating this wrong war.

I truly regret not listening to you at the time, which led to the current situation."

"Confessing to me is meaningless," Laszlo waved his hand casually, "The war has progressed to this point, and Juan II will not let it go easily. How do you plan to end it?"

"That is precisely why I came to you," Ferdinando I said with a sigh, "Now it is no longer about me wanting to reclaim the island of Sicily, but rather my uncle coveting the crown of Naples.

He has repeatedly publicly threatened to seize the Kingdom of Naples.

This is an attempt to violate my father's last wishes and completely take over his inheritance.

I hope you can, for the sake of the alliance between the Empire and Naples, stop his insane ideas."

Laszlo secretly curled his lip; this Ferdinando was also a gem.

He only talked about Juan II wanting to forcefully seize Naples, but he didn't mention a single word about his own destruction of Alfonso V's will to occupy the island of Sicily.

However, shamelessness is a monarch's most basic quality, and in this regard, Ferdinando surpassed most people.

Laszlo gave his answer almost without much thought.

"I don't think you need to worry about this. It's almost impossible for Juan II's army to conquer the Kingdom of Naples.

You just need to wear him down, and when he loses patience, this war will naturally come to an end."

If he wanted him to mediate, Ferdinando probably couldn't afford a high enough price.

If Sicily was still in Ferdinando's hands, Laszlo would have been interested in helping him once, to gain some interests in the Mediterranean Sea for himself.

But now Ferdinando had been driven back to Naples proper, and the best outcome of this war would be an unconditional peace.

If Juan II was more resolute, Ferdinando would likely have to pay to avoid disaster.

In other words, the reunification of Aragon and Naples was unlikely to happen, and naturally, it would not pose any threat to him.

If Juan II truly had a chance to seize Naples, Laszlo would definitely send troops to reinforce him.

All his actions in Naples were to prevent the Kingdom of France from controlling Southern Italy.

Once the pro-French King Juan II of Aragon seized Naples, Laszlo would have a headache when confronting the French in the future.

It didn't matter who ruled Naples; what was important was that the King of Naples had to be against France.

However, this concern was basically superfluous now, so Laszlo did not intend to interfere.

Hearing Laszlo's words, Ferdinando was very anxious.

"Emperor, now the fleet of the Kingdom of Aragon has blockaded the coast of Naples, and we are suffering huge economic losses every day.

Moreover, the Anjou faction within the country seems to be showing signs of resurgence.

I really dare not let this war drag on any longer; no one knows what will happen in the future.

You don't want to see the Anjou family make a comeback, do you?"

"Hmph, they probably won't have that chance."

Laszlo dismissed Ferdinando's veiled threat with disdain and kindly explained to him.

"A major storm is brewing within France, and the Duke of Anjou, René, stands firmly with the King of France.

Louis XI is now focusing his attention on the opposition forces within his country, and has no mind to come and bother you from thousands of miles away."

"That's good news."

Ferdinando's reaction to this news was rather subdued.

He and the Emperor were united to oppose France; if France fell into trouble, their alliance would not be as effective.

"But I still ask that you help mediate this war, to bring this disaster to an early end."

"Mediating this war is certainly not a big problem; the key is what kind of terms you can accept?"

Ferdinando had already said so much, so Laszlo no longer simply refused.

In any case, Naples was an important ally of Austria in Italy.

Maintaining this alliance had multiple purposes.

Firstly, it was to deal with the French, and secondly, the Ottomans, both of whom had some conflicts with Naples.

In addition to the above functions, another important point was that Naples was located in Southern Italy and could be used to restrain the Papal States, and if necessary, could also help stabilize the situation in Northern Italy.

Therefore, maintaining the alliance with the Kingdom of Naples was still necessary.

Seeing the Emperor relent, Ferdinando rejoiced in his heart and informed the Emperor of his thoughts.

"Emperor, I know that in the current situation, achieving unconditional peace is almost impossible.

So I am willing to pay a war indemnity, and this amount cannot exceed ten thousand florins.

Naples and Aragon will each maintain their original borders and restore peace."

"I don't think such peace terms are likely to be accepted," Laszlo stood up and paced the room, thinking, "You actively started this war, and now you want to get rid of Juan II with just these terms?"

Ferdinando shook his head, however, and said confidently: "Others may not agree to such peace terms, but my dear uncle is very likely to accept them.

I know Juan II very well; he is a timid and weak fellow, which is why his rule in Navarre and Aragon has encountered so many setbacks.

If he finds that this war has no chance of victory, he will definitely accept these peace terms without hesitation."

"You just said he ambitiously wants to seize Naples, which means he is still full of confidence.

So, to make him abandon this bold idea…"

Laszlo came to his senses, understanding Ferdinando's scheme.

"You want me to use the threat of war to force Juan II to comply?"

"No, no, Emperor, you only need to publicly declare that you will guarantee the independence of the Kingdom of Naples, and Juan II will naturally retreat in the face of difficulty."

Laszlo glanced at the fawning Ferdinando and began to weigh the pros and cons in his mind.

If he didn't interfere in this matter, Naples wouldn't fall into Juan II's hands, but the situation in Naples might change, and the alliance might crack as a result.

If he did interfere in this matter, the already pro-French Juan II would probably completely side with the King of France.

It seemed that no matter whether he interfered or not, Juan II's allegiance to Louis XI was an unchangeable fact.

He had many enemies; he didn't lack this one.

"So, it's just like dealing with the French before, forcing the Aragonese to retreat.

But what do I get out of it? Besides Juan II's hatred."

This was Laszlo's real concern.

There was no free lunch in the world; almost all help required a price.

Ferdinando tentatively held up two fingers.

Laszlo was about to blurt out "twenty thousand," but after a moment's thought, he realized that Ferdinando, that pauper, wasn't even willing to pay ten thousand florins to Juan II, so how could he offer him twenty thousand florins?

"Two florins?"

Actually, this amount of money was not small, but these two florins felt like an insult to Laszlo.

If people later heard that the Emperor had antagonized a powerful kingdom for two florins, who knew what slander would be spread.

Seeing the Emperor's face gradually darken, Ferdinando quickly said: "And trade privileges. I can issue special trade charters to your designated Imperial merchants, granting them tax exemptions in ports like Taranto and Naples."

"This condition is good," Laszlo finally nodded, "To be safe, we should still sign a secret agreement later, reaffirming the military alliance and mutual defense treaty, and then add the clauses we just discussed.

Also, it's best to think more about things like this before starting a war in the future."

"I understand!"

Ferdinando, who was a few years older than Laszlo, uncharacteristically blushed when facing the Emperor's lecture.

The two quickly reached a new agreement in that room.

After discussing this matter, all of Laszlo's affairs in Rome were handled.

He impatiently led his entourage north towards Venetia, hoping to reach Austria as soon as possible.

If possible, Laszlo hoped to make it for the birth of his fourth child.

Soon after, Laszlo's appointed diplomat, William of Montferrat, arrived in Naples.

After a thorough discussion with Ferdinando on the details of the peace talks, William set off for Barcelona.

He would represent the Emperor in meeting King Juan II of Aragon, attempting to end this farcical war.