Chapter 210: Far Distance and Close Attack
So, after Peter received his father's financial emergency letter, he also received his appointment letter as director of the treasury.
This made Peter dumbfounded. He was really not a cash cow and could not provide a large amount of funds for the reconstruction of Constantinople. But fortunately, my father sent over the current treasury information.
"Your Highness, we have dealt with the property of a group of people before, but there are too many places to spend money, so there are currently 400,000 lei in the treasury."
"What, too little."
400,000 is only enough to maintain the castle for a minimum of two months. Not to mention building a city. At present, other places also need money. The entire Wallachia's finances are running at a high speed. Even if there is a surplus, it will take a certain amount of time to allocate it.
Now he can only do his best, first replenishing the surplus from Adrian and other nearby cities and customs. In addition, those who owe taxes are forced to pay taxes as soon as possible. According to estimates, the tax arrears of these people are as high as 6 million lei. With this money, there is no need to be stretched.
Galata's taxes were also paid to the treasury, totaling 50,000 ducats. This little money is enough to renovate a few churches. I don't know when we can take over this place.
In addition to the government's expansion, the company's expansion was also very smooth. After the success of the Ross Company, the Chamber of Commerce established the Eastern Company responsible for Anatolia, the Levant and other places, with a starting capital of 150,000 ducats.
They have established commercial houses in Antioch, Alexandria and other places to engage in local trade and settlements. The nautical spirit in Greek culture has been reawakened. In the Eastern Mediterranean, there are already many Greek and Wallachian ships crisscrossing the sea.
At the same time, the Wallachian Navy began its first battle, with 16 warships from the Principality of the Aegean Islands versus 8 Wallachian warships and 10 armed merchant ships. Wallachia's warships were equipped with artillery and firearms, and the enemy also used traditional boarding operations. During the two-hour battle, Wallachia's hull was sunk without even touching it. However, Their bows and arrows also caused some casualties.
The Aegean Islands no longer have the ability to fight back. They can only watch in horror as the Wallachian navy imposes a blockade on them. No supplies are transported in, and the letter written by the Duke cannot be sent. If this continues, it will be a matter of time before the Aegean Islands are annexed.
A key country in the anti-Variety alliance was defeated, and a hole was torn in the encirclement network. But Venice doesn't care about this. They are concerned about whether they can open a market in Wallachia and follow it to Eastern Europe. If you can change it, it is not impossible to give up the Aegean Islands, as long as you master Crete.
At the same time, Wallachia reached an agreement with the administrator of Kaffa to acquire the city of Kaffa for 5,500 gold coins. Of course, this is just a private agreement between the chief executive and them, and Genoa will not recognize it, but with Wallachia controlling the Bosporus and Dardanelles, they cannot clamor for revenge, if it happens again Failure would be disastrous.
The government's crusade is temporarily over, but the civilian crusade has just begun. The Order of Andrei and the Order of the Dragon jointly formed the first Orthodox Crusaders, mainly composed of farmers, urban civilians and adventurers. After receiving approval from above, they launched an attack on the Taikai Turkic Kingdom in the southeast, with the target being the opponent's capital Antalya.
This group of civilian crusaders totaled 6,000 people. They set out from Smyrna and marched eastward. They encountered a small group of Turks. They did not show mercy and killed them directly.
There were many Christians in the coastal areas. When they saw that the Crusaders were coming, they welcomed their arrival as they had done hundreds of years ago. Seeing this, the emir of the Turkic country wavered on the people on the one hand, and on the other hand gathered troops to fight. Cyprus organized one before without success, and it should be the same this time.
----Dividing line----
Just as Peter was mobilizing finances and planning an army, his old friend arrived.
"Ah, dear Mason, what brings you here?"
Peter hadn't seen Mason for a few years, and the last time he heard from him was when he became a councilor on the city council in his hometown of Florence. It's really a promising future.
"Dear Governor, can't I see my old friend?"
Mason said half-jokingly, and then told Peter his true purpose of being here.
As a country in central Italy, the Republic of Florence is relatively developed economically, but it has always been inferior to trading countries like Venice in terms of trade. It relies heavily on overseas markets and Venice in order to expand the market and not be stuck. The Parliament decided to send envoys to the emerging country of Wallachia to expand trade and increase relations.
But who should be sent? Mason, who had just been elected as a member of Parliament, volunteered. He said that he had connections. The other members of the Assembly were dubious, but they still let him go. However, in order to ensure that he was telling the truth, they also sent another person to accompany him. .
"Mason, is this the path you're talking about?"
The other person was a little surprised when he saw Peter. He never expected that Mason could have a relationship with the governor of Wallachia. But where does Wallachia still have such a young governor?
No, the Grand Duke of Wallachia would never give the governorship to a young man no matter what he thought, unless the other party was someone he trusted or was a relative of his. From this point of view, this person's status becomes even higher.
"My friend, I am here with a request from the Republic of Florence. I hope to discuss trade and commerce with your country."
Mason told Peter Florence's request, including trade concessions, mutual business, etc. After hearing these requests, Peter felt that Florence was really good and a reliable partner.
"I will give these requests to the Grand Duke, but why are you here first? Shouldn't it be to Constantinople?"
"Hehe, isn't this more peace of mind? What's more, now that Wallachia is the master of Constantinople, Florence thinks this is an opportunity to surpass Venice."
If Wallachia wants to dominate the Eastern Mediterranean in the future, Venice is the biggest obstacle. It would be a great help to Wallachia if a few land countries could be brought in to distract Venice.
Mason stayed here for a few days and then left for Constantinople. Before leaving, he told Peter a message that Portugal and Castile had recently planned to move westward and had built many ships. Peter understood that he was planning to find new routes and new continents.
Wallachia will not interfere with them for the time being, after all, they are too far apart, but he is also marching to the east, but he will go slower on land than on the sea. As for colonial expansion, he was also doing it in Sicily, North Africa, and Ukraine, and he was doing pretty well.