Chapter 224: Fourth Wife Candidate
Caesar certainly could not personally go to the port as these priests demanded to welcome the Pope of Rome’s niece,
This had little to do with status, dignity, or even love—in this era, “public behavior” was a procedure that had to be followed in many important events, and it gave rise to many unspoken rules that were only followed and observed at the top of the pyramid.
These rules were neither written on paper nor casually spoken aloud; there was only one way to understand and master them: follow one’s father, uncles and elder cousins, and brothers, who were also nobles, and observe and learn.
For example, when he first arrived at Ayyarasa Road, Caesar once draped the white wool cloth that the priest had put on him over Baldwin; this was just a well-intentioned act—Caesar only wanted to comfort a sick child, but it provoked Amalric I’s killing intent.
Because for the king, the prince could give anything to a servant, but the servant could not condescendingly disdain his master; this was outright overstepping.
Also, that unfortunate Count Etienne—at that banquet that embarrassed everyone, he had to refuse the cloak sent by the princess’s attendant at the very last moment, because if he accepted the princess’s gift in public, that is, under the witness of most people, it would mean accepting this marriage.
And the recent incident with Princess Sibylla and her husband Abigail, trying to confuse Baldwin through family ties to make him yield the main tower of Holy Cross Castle to that unborn child, also had a special meaning—this was not just a room; if little Princess Isabella had a child in the future, this could be used as strong evidence in a dispute over inheritance rights.
They would say: “King Baldwin IV allowed this child to be born under the True Cross（ the master’s bedroom is right below the small chapel enshrining the True Cross）, which means he acknowledged that this child would be his heir.”
So, if Caesar really went to welcome this noble lady in person, the commoners by the roadside would cheer for this newlywed couple before they returned to Nicosia.
It was just unknown whether it was at the Pope’s instigation, but as soon as his niece and envoy arrived here, they assumed an extremely dignified posture; they might not see this as coercion but as something rightful—they probably never considered that Caesar would refuse.
One must know that the Pope of Rome’s daughter—oh, no, niece—would be a suitable match even for the son of a king or a Grand Duke.
Not to mention a small landless count.
Although by the law of the Byzantine Empire, Caesar could already be called the monarch of Cyprus, the Pope of Rome had not acknowledged it—he would not easily give recognition; this was quite an expensive bargaining chip.
For this reason, the noble lady who came to conclude this marriage was not very willing; it was only after those priests from Ayyarasa Road repeatedly said that her future husband was an extremely young, tall, and handsome knight that she reluctantly agreed; she even wondered, if her future husband rushed to the port and begged her to disembark and marry him, what gift she should demand from him—a golden cup or a necklace? A silk robe or a crown?
On the first day, she could still stay calmly in the cabin, listening to musicians play and handmaids read poetry.
On the second day, she became somewhat anxious. The cabin at this time was not as spacious, bright, and fresh-aired as in later generations.
Even for nobles like them, the rooms on the ship were narrow, small, dim, and stuffy; she also wanted to go on deck to stretch her body and mind, but then she would face many ambiguous gazes—she did not know who those people were. But their looks at her were far from friendly.
Those were all heretics.
She suddenly thought of this and felt fear, hurrying back to the cabin.
By the third day, she could not endure it and wanted to disembark. But the words spoken before were still ringing in her ears; she began to curse that ignorant man and took out her anger on the priests around her; at the same time, she felt strange—as a Crusader knight, should he not fear and revere her father?
Without God’s protection and the saint’s blessing, how could he rise from an unknown nobody to his current position? Did he not fear invoking thunderous wrath by treating so lightly the bloodline of the Lord’s representative on earth?
Fortunately, at dusk on the third day, the person coming to welcome her arrived.
But this person was not the lord they expected, but the lord’s sister; she reservedly expressed apologies to this noble lady and the priests around her, saying her brother was busy with official duties and could not come, so he sent her to welcome them, but everyone knew this was just an excuse.
The other party’s attitude was obvious; he really seemed not to care whether this marriage succeeded; the priests cursed in their hearts that knight who had been bewitched by the detestable heretic, while chattering to persuade the Pope’s niece; they too had had enough of the moldy little room, the poor food on the ship, and the inability to bathe.
They had long been prepared to indulge in this unfamiliar city—yet ended up staying on the ship every day, watching the lights flicker in the darkness…
The Pope’s niece tried to maintain an attitude of arrogance and veiled anger, hoping to make this woman, who was said to have suffered misfortune in her childhood, feel fear, but as the other approached, she smelled the strong agarwood scent on her, saw the gorgeous purple silk robe, and the layered pearls and gemstones, and immediately lost heart.
She had been on the ship for so many days without bathing, only able to wipe herself simply, and was starting to smell; no amount of spices helped, and her luggage had no purple silk.
The group had no choice but to follow Nathia off the ship in a disheveled state; after entering the city, Nathia mercifully did not urge them to set off immediately, but hosted them in the mayor’s mansion, letting them bathe, eat a good meal, and then sleep comfortably.
However, that night, unpleasing shouts and banging sounds came from the Pope’s niece’s room again.
“Is there something she is dissatisfied with?”
“Maybe because there are no jewels on the dressing table.” A man working in the mayor’s mansion said, “Oh dear, that’s not our lord’s fault; everyone knows he’s quite poor now.” Another person said this, and those around him laughed.
However, neither this jest nor the laughter carried much malice.
The Cypriots all knew that after their lord quelled several rebellions, he still had empty hands and was dirt poor. It was precisely because he paid the ransom money for the Cypriots—he distributed his spoils of war to those Crusader knights to make them act according to his laws, that is, no killing, plundering, or raping.
Their dissatisfaction was more directed at the Pope of Rome.
After all, the Eastern and Western Churches had been fighting for a long time; the Pope of Rome and the Patriarch of Constantinople had excommunicated each other and declared each other heretics; this sharp conflict only eased slightly during the Crusades. But to say that Cypriots, as subjects of the Byzantine Empire, could have any fondness for the Pope of Rome’s niece—this was pure delusion.
“Speaking of which, this is the fourth candidate, right—but I heard that one is also a ‘niece.'” A man said meaningfully, and several around him immediately gave knowing looks; everyone knew these nieces were just euphemisms for illegitimate daughters.
“Does it matter if you like her? This matter still depends on how our lord decides; sigh, compared to the Pope of Rome’s niece, I’d rather endure those Venetians.”
Everyone nodded upon hearing this. Indeed, during these days, the Venetians had been too smug; after all, the Gerard family had done something stupid, and the chance of securing this marriage was now negligible—who would want to marry a sinner’s sister?
As for the Princess of the Byzantine Empire, although the Cypriots were very willing to have her as Caesar’s wife, …the problem was that now everyone knew Manuel I of Constantinople was not sincerely yielding Cyprus; if this young man was really persuaded and willing to make his another niece his second wife, he only needed to wait for their child to be born, and once Caesar died, he could take back Cyprus in the child’s name.
In this light, the only plausible candidate was not this noble lady put forward by Venice?
So during these days, they were truly smug and arrogant, even openly procuring jewels, silk, and spices needed for the wedding from merchants, which made the Cypriots very uncomfortable.
They could not help but worry that if their lord really married that Venetian woman, the Venetians might turn guests into hosts and become the new masters of this island—they had already heard that Manuel I of the Byzantine Empire had distributed all the previous privileges of the Venetians to the Genoese and Pisans—which was why the Venetians were desperate to secure this marriage at any cost.
“They must be very panicked. Compared to a Doge of Venice’s niece, the Pope of Rome’s niece carries much more weight. And the Pope of Rome’s niece is obviously safer than the Byzantine princess; after all, the Pope of Rome might plunder Cyprus’s wealth, connections, and merchant ships, or demand that their new lord order them to convert, but he would not come to be king of Cyprus.”
“However,” another asked: “Do you know how much dowry the Pope of Rome is willing to give his niece?”
——————
“These are their terms?” Nathia placed three documents in front of Caesar; the Gerard family had long been excluded; they could now retain their original share only because Caesar considered Damara and her father.
The current candidates were still three: the Princess of the Byzantine Empire, the Doge of Venice’s niece, and the Pope of Rome’s niece.
The dowry brought by the Princess of the Byzantine Empire was one hundred thousand gold coins, one hundred silk robes, and an emperor’s promise. Manuel I promised—as long as Caesar accepted this marriage, besides the dowry, he would also detach part of the empire’s existing navy to give to his son-in-law, so he could use it to defend Cyprus from Saracen incursions.
But everyone could see that the naval part of this verbal promise might not be honored at any time, though a dowry of one hundred thousand gold coins was not insignificant. And there was also a condition secretly conveyed by the envoy—Manuel I was willing to include Caesar in his list of heirs; at least, Caesar could gain the title of Regent.
In other words, if Manuel I died before his youngest son came of age, Caesar would have the right to become the uncrowned king of Constantinople based on this decree; for a potential ambitious man, this condition could indeed make one hesitate repeatedly, and even knowing it was poisoned bait, there would be plenty willing to bite.
“The Venetians might not be entirely sincere; what a group of cunning and shortsighted fellows.” Nathia said unpleasantly; the Venetians had originally been very generous, also offering a dowry of one hundred thousand gold coins. But beyond that, they promised to build thirty warships for Cyprus and agreed that Caesar could pay with Cyprus’s tax revenue.
“Behind these Venetians, there must be a group of Isaacites.” Nathia said, “They have served as tax collectors for Romans, Egyptians, and Saracens; now they want to take this job for you too.” Before Nathia finished, Caesar waved his hand.
In this era, many kings and lords were willing to hand tax collection rights to Isaacites, as long as the Isaacites could provide the needed money; how the Isaacites exploited those poor merchants, craftsmen, and commoners was not their concern. Anyway, when the lowly populace could no longer endure and protested or rioted, they could just execute a few Isaacites.
This method was highly praised, but Caesar had already seen the dire consequences of this approach that seemed all benefits and no harm to rulers; he would absolutely not let Isaacites have too many privileges.
But after that banquet, seeing that the Gerard family had no more competitiveness and Caesar might choose their Doge’s niece as wife, the Venetians changed their previous offer, agreeing only to a dowry of one hundred thousand gold coins and fifteen warships, and requiring Caesar to purchase at existing prices.
“It seems they are very confident.” Caesar laughed; Nathia glared at him, very annoyed.
Because these Venetians’ meaning was almost that once Caesar married their Doge’s niece, the Venetians could get any power they wanted, so that the tax farming system could no longer serve as a bargaining chip in the transaction, and halving the number of warships was also meant to further pressure the lord at this opportunity.
Fifteen warships could not withstand Saracen attacks at all; at that time, the lord would inevitably seek help from the Venetians. “They are all a bunch of greedy, insatiable fellows.” Nathia said huffily.
Then there was the Pope’s niece; the dowry she could bring was the smallest, only seventy-five thousand gold coins.
But similarly, the Pope’s envoy had his own secret condition—the Pope promised he was striving to bring about the Third Crusade.
The goal of this crusade was still Edessa.
The Second Crusade was to recapture Edessa from the Saracens, but this crusade had undoubtedly failed.
And for the Third Crusade, if Edessa was still the target, who would be the biggest beneficiary? Needless to say, it would be Caesar.
Crisis-ridden Edessa certainly could not compare to prosperous Cyprus, but for a child who had lost his grandfather and father, it held great significance.
Alexander III could also be said to show some sincerity; he was essentially letting Caesar trade Cyprus for Edessa.
Caesar looked troubled at the documents before him. To be honest, if possible, he did not want to choose any, but he also knew he must settle the marriage this year, because possibly by next June, he would leave Cyprus to join Baldwin’s second expedition.
This expedition was more meaningful than the one to rescue Manuel I. It meant that for the first time in nearly fifty years, the Crusaders finally had hope of further expanding their territory.
And how long this war would last, he did not know. During this time, although he could still leave Cyprus to his sister Nathia, entrusting it to his wife would be more convincing, proper, and thorough.
Nathia watched her brother ponder for a while and finally place his finger on one of the documents.
