The Eagle of Eastern Europe

Within a few days, many businessmen came to Chizikus. They are all determined to get the alum mine.

In order to obtain higher profits, Peter took the form of an auction and packaged and auctioned the output of the alum mine in the next few years. The one with the highest price gets it.

Business groups from Venice, Genoa, the Hanseatic League and other places tried their best to get this big deal.

When it came time for the auction, the merchants raised their placards higher than the last. The original 50,000 florins had increased to 160,000 florins. Genoa gritted his teeth and quoted a price of 220,000 florins. Then no one signed up.

Genoa maintained its monopoly advantage, but at a very high cost. Excessive spending has damaged their finances, and coupled with the turbulent political situation at home, their Black Sea colonial governance is already beyond their capabilities. (There have been 10 riots in 5 years, 10 governors have been changed, and the governor's palace was burned down. I have never seen such a riot.)

The first funds have been received, and it seems that Genoa still attaches great importance to credibility. Peter's financial crisis was thus resolved. With this money, local industry, commerce and agriculture also recovered. The wool and cotton textile industry entered a new period of growth, and the metallurgical industry also increased significantly.

Peter ordered Constantine to lead the army to continue to advance south, targeting the two small Turkic countries of Aydin and Mentaishe. They only recovered after Timur's western expedition. Now it is Wallachia's best chance to capture them. Chance.

Unlike the Spanish Reconquista, Wallachia's expansion was fast and violent. Moreover, there are no thorny nobles in the country because they have all been physically wiped out.

Strong centralization is a guarantee for expansion, which can quickly allocate the country's resources for conquest without having to argue with those nobles, let alone be as lawless as the Polish nobles. We will never be at a disadvantage when facing any country.

Constantine led 7,000 troops and 6,000 servants to attack south. The first to bear the brunt was the Aydin Turkic Kingdom. Emil ran away without even resisting. Peter divided his lands among the tribes who submitted to Wallachia.

The ruler of the Mentaixe Turkic Kingdom did organize an army, but in order to obtain supplies, he ordered the robbery of Christian property. The people who had not yet come out of Timur's fear were plundered by the pagans again, which made them intolerable and directly launched riots everywhere.

The revolting Christians occupied Smyrna and detained supplies that had not yet been delivered. And sent people to Constantine to persuade the other party to send troops, otherwise they would not be able to hold on for long.

Constantine was in Chandarle at this time, still a day or two away from Smyrna. In order to shorten the time, the envoy almost ran his horse to death and arrived at Constantine's camp in just two hours.

"General, please send people to rescue Smyrna quickly, otherwise the infidels will reoccupy the city."

When Constantine heard the news, he exclaimed: God help me. He thought that conquering Smyrna would take some effort, but God gave him such a great gift. He must credit the people of Smyrna.

"Listen to the order, everyone will set off immediately and move towards Smyrna."

Under the general's order, the cavalry troops set off first. The infantry troops followed closely, and the nomadic tribesmen were the most excited, because they could get some trophies. Even though they belonged to the same tribe, the Sudan could catch them for you if you paid more.

The emir of Menteshe ordered a fierce attack on Smyrna. The residents of the city went into battle and used various things to block the enemy. However, since the place had been severely damaged by Timur, the defense capabilities were greatly reduced. If there were no reinforcements, it would only be a matter of time before it fell. .

Just when the city gate was about to be breached, Wallachia's vanguard finally arrived and quickly jumped into the battle. The siege troops were attacked from both sides. The Emir had to choose to retreat, but how could those Turkic cavalry let them go? The troops were tightly entwined. The emir's troops were outmatched and had no choice but to retreat.

Smyrna was saved, and the vanguard continued to eliminate rogue bandits around it. A day later, the main force also arrived, and the people of Smyrna welcomed Constantine into the city with flowers and cheers. Nearly a hundred years after the loss of the Eastern Roman Empire, Smyrna returned to the hands of the Orthodox Church.

After capturing Smyrna, Constantine continued to advance eastward and drove the emir's army to other Turkic countries in one go. The security of Smyrna was completely consolidated, and the entire west coast was completely controlled by Wallachia.

The expansion of Wallachia came to an end, followed by local governance and recuperation. This is quite a test for the Governor.

The six-month expansion allowed Wallachia to increase a large amount of land and population, and also gained control of the Bosporus, a major transportation channel. Wallachian merchant ships could also enter the castle unimpeded.

However, as Wallachia entered more and more into the Aegean Sea, conflicts with the heretical regimes on the Aegean islands were inevitable. Especially the Principality of the Aegean Islands and the Knights Hospitaller, they hindered the entry and exit of the Wallachian navy on the only way for merchant ships to pass. Especially Rhodes Island, which was occupied by the Knights, was blocking Smyrna, hindering further development.

Moreover, if the troops need to be united, they will not be able to escape the surveillance and threats of the Rhode Islanders. Whether heading west to attack Hungary or heading east into various parts of Western Asia, Rhodes Island is a destabilizing factor. For this reason, it is necessary to completely occupy this place so that there will be no worries.

In order to monitor Rhodes, Peter gave a coastal fortress near Smyrna and some nearby land to the Dragon Knights with a wave of his hand. Let them report each other's movements at any time. He has already prepared for the worst. If the swordsmen meet, it will definitely be a long siege. During this period, assistance from other countries must be cut off. This requires Wallachia to have A powerful navy.

The situation in Genoa gave Wallachia an opportunity. Another uprising broke out there and the governor was replaced. In 5 years, a total of 10 revolutions occurred in Genoa, and 10 governors came to power. In the end, everyone seemed to find that order was more valuable than freedom, and the republican government, troubled by the revolution, was afraid of being annexed by Milan, so in 1396 it belonged to France along with the Riviera. The French were then driven out of the city in an angry riot. To this end, there were five bloody street wars, 20 palace buildings were burned down, government buildings were looted and demolished, and property worth 1 million gold coins was destroyed.

The Bank of Wallachia took the opportunity to persuade many craftsmen to come and upgrade their technology. The price they offered was half that of Genoa, and the society was stable, so there was no need to worry about unemployment. Many people traveled to the Eastern Mediterranean with their families. Their arrival contributed to the industrial development of Wallachia and drained the foundation for Genoa's future development.