Chapter 1270 The Turning Point of History, the End of the Kingdom of Portugal!

"Your Majesty, the scholars have left. They have always been lax... What happened in the Sintra Palace today will probably not be long before it reaches Castile and the court of Valladolid. , known by the twin kings in the east!…”

"Um…"

"Your Majesty, as the saying goes, before a conflict begins, you should think about how it will end. A rational person will not use red cloth to provoke a mad buffalo. But in the current situation, Castile is in debt and extremely vicious. The kingdom is just an angry buffalo..."

"Um…"

"Your Majesty, not everything that glitters is gold. The court's previous judgment about Columbus was not wrong. And the calculations of navigation scholars were also correct. Columbus should not have arrived in India or Sipangu! Just based on this Writing a book with oriental characters doesn't necessarily prove anything. There are many possibilities for the origin of this book. You are a true monarch, with the virtues of a fox and a lion. Therefore, you don't need to worry about it. Angry about it, or regretful about it..."

"Um…"

The sky has darkened and the scholars have left. In the empty Sintra Palace, only the king's guard was left standing guard, and there was a Portuguese king sitting on a stone seat, staring at the palace murals.

John II looked at the ancestors on the wall, and the ancestors also looked at him. Gradually, the anger on his face disappeared, and the gloom on his face also dissipated. His reason overcame his emotions again, and he once again became a "perfect monarch" in the words of the Florentine scholar Machiavelli.

"Nuno, I am not angry, nor have I regretted it. I am just thinking about how to deal with the changes brought about by Columbus, and thinking about the next choice of the Kingdom of Portugal..."

"Your Majesty... The news from the East brought by Columbus still contains many contradictions and cannot be believed... The prison officer is intensifying his torture and asking him to explain all the details of his exploration..."

Nuno, a close confidant of the palace, stood aside and gave his opinion with a respectful and serious expression.

"Maybe Columbus misremembered the distance he sailed. Maybe the East is far more vast than we imagined. Or maybe it is a brand new island in the East that has never been recorded in history, and no one has ever arrived..."

"Nuno, everything you said is possible. But these are not the focus of the matter.

João II smiled, looked at his cronies, and spoke quietly.

"In the eyes of a monarch, Columbus's offense or deception is not a big deal. Everything he said has the possibility of pretense and falsehood, and is not worthy of my belief. After he took out the book Before "The Book of the East", he was just a nobody, an insignificant ant that could be crushed to death or let go. But after he took out the book, he proved a really important conclusion, which I must detain. His reason!…”

"Books from the East appeared on islands deep in the Atlantic Ocean. This only proves one thing! The new route from the west to the East, no matter what it looks like specifically, no matter how difficult it may be, does exist! …”

"Books from the East can reach islands deep in the Atlantic Ocean. Ships from Europe can also reach islands deep in the Atlantic Ocean. Then, after that, ships starting from Europe can reach the East directly from the Atlantic Ocean! This theory exists The new route was suddenly confirmed! As the Portuguese Kingdom has mastered the new route to the east, how should we make a decision and face the exploration to the west?..."

"Ah! The new route to the west, the possibility of confirmation..."

Nuno, a close confidant in the palace, remained silent, thinking about the king's wishes and the interests of the Kingdom of Portugal. After a moment, he replied in a deep voice.

"Your Majesty, I understand what you mean... If Columbus couldn't provide any evidence and only discovered a native island in the Atlantic Ocean. Then, when the kingdom is about to reach India in the east, it would be natural to explore the vast distance to the west. Not worth the effort…”

"But now, this evidence confirms the existence of the new western route. And we Portuguese founded the country by sailing to find the wealth of the new route, as the sail of the kingdom... We naturally cannot let go of this westward route, let go of this confirmed Opportunity!…"

"And you detained Columbus and listed his crimes not to execute him and intensify the conflict with the Kingdom of Castile... You just interrogated the details of the voyage for the sake of the Kingdom's maritime interests and bought time to delay Castile. This will allow us, the Portuguese, to try our best to equalize and take the lead in opening up new routes to the west!…”

"Well, that's right! Nuno, you really understand. We Portuguese have hundreds of years of sailing experience. As long as it is fair competition and we are willing to participate, why should we be afraid of those Castilians on land? …”

João II smiled and showed confidence on his face. However, as a monarch, you still have to be as cunning as a fox and be able to borrow all available power.

"Nuno, send an envoy to share the information about Castile's exploration of the Atlantic and discovery of new routes to King Charles VIII of France! To the young king, convey my greetings and my sincere friendship for sharing the new routes to the West. …”

"Ah? Your Majesty, inform the King of France to share the new western sea route? This..."

"That's right! The news Columbus brought back cannot be concealed. And if the new route to the west is really established, it will be difficult for us Portuguese to monopolize it. With our strength, how can we monopolize all the goods from the East like the powerful Ottomans? ... That will make us the common enemy of the entire Catholic world. We must win over other forces to participate in it!..."

"The French King Charles VIII, who has just taken power, is different from the previous regent Princess Anne. He is an ambitious and impatient young man. We must stimulate his desire for expansion, let him move first, and let the Kingdom of France move. And once the Gallic rooster (Galus) moves, no matter what he does, in which direction he expands, it will eventually involve the surrounding neighboring countries and will definitely involve the Castilians! In the whole of Western Europe, there are only a few who can involve the Castilians. The only country that is involved in the Iberian twin kings is the Kingdom of France, which has many knights. After all, the focus of the French is on land, and they will not threaten our maritime hegemony..."

"I see! Then, Your Majesty, do you want to send envoys to our ally, the Kingdom of England on the northern islands? ..."

"The Kingdom's ally, the English? Envoys to Henry VII? ... Well... don't rush. Henry, this shrewd guy, is very good at doing maritime business. He colluded with the Venetians, imported a large amount of alum from the Ottoman Empire, and then resold it to the Low Countries. This obviously angered the Roman Church, which monopolized the alum trade, and caused strong dissatisfaction from the Pope... And the Pope is the power we must fight for! There is an irreconcilable contradiction between the Venetians and the Kingdom over coinage..."

John II pondered for a long time, but still shook his head. In fact, these reasons can convince the nobles of the kingdom, but they are not his true thoughts.

As a Portuguese king who was watching the disputes on the European continent, he had already vaguely realized that the English had excellent geographical advantages, stronger national power and population, and the potential to threaten Portugal's maritime hegemony. Therefore, he was gradually easing relations with the French and was cold to the traditional English allies. On the contrary, through the relationship with the Venetians, the Iberian kings seemed to be getting closer to King Henry of England...

"God is a witness! The kingdom contacted these external forces only to find the possibility of restraining the Castilians... and the truly reliable thing is to strengthen the power of us Portuguese and rely on ourselves!..."

John II always remained sober. He never placed his hopes on others who could not control things. As he said, he looked at his confidant Nuno and asked solemnly.

"Nuno, since we have received the news of the new western route, we must send out the kingdom's exploration fleet as soon as possible... We don't need too many ships and people, but we must do it as soon as possible! This autumn, when the east wind blows, the first exploration fleet will set off! At least, they must reach the archipelago that Columbus has been to, verify the news from those crew members, and make careful and friendly contact with the source of the "Oriental Book", the "civilized and barbaric" native kingdom!..."

"As for the selection of the captain of this exploration fleet, do you have any suggestions?..."

"Ah! Go deep into the dangerous Atlantic to explore and contact the more dangerous native kingdom? The selection of the captain of the fleet?..."

Hearing the king's question, Nuno, the confidant, felt nervous, but his face showed no sign. This suggestion really made him a little embarrassed.

There are many experienced sailing nobles in the Kingdom of Portugal, and there are also many suitable captains. But going deep into the Atlantic to find a distant island is by no means a safe and pleasant experience! This kind of exploration deep into the vast ocean is much more dangerous than sailing along the southern continent! This is real, you have to sacrifice your life for the Kingdom of Portugal!

For a voyage like this, no matter which noble he recommends, he will probably not get any favor, but will offend people. And once the nobles who go to sea are in trouble and can't come back, they will offend a large group of nobles behind them! ...

Therefore, for such recommendations, it is better to find those who have shallow roots, no background, and are eager to stand out. Recommending such people is not an offense, but giving them a chance, which is the appreciation and promotion of the superiors. And such a person without roots, even if he dies in the voyage, will not cause trouble to the non-existent family behind him...

The confidant Nuno just pondered for a few breaths, and his eyes flickered slightly, obviously thinking of something. He bowed his head respectfully and said to King Joao with a sincere face.

"Your Majesty! According to Columbus and the crew members... Sailing westward into the Atlantic Ocean will encounter many difficult tests, such as storm currents, ship damage, disease and food shortages, and attacks by natives... Therefore, for such a mission, it is best to choose a young captain who has both ocean-going experience and is smart, capable, and strong!..."

"I thought about it and happened to think of a suitable candidate... He once went south with the Royal Knight Captain Diogo Con, endured the test of the devil's curse, and explored the southern continent... He also followed the Royal Supervisor Sir Dias, crossed the Cape of Good Hope in the storm, and bypassed the southernmost tip of the southern continent..."

"And in this search for the Castilian spy ship, he was the first to discover the traces of Columbus's sailing ship, and finally jumped on board to capture it himself. He is both experienced and strong!..."

"Hmm? Who is he?..."

"He is the nephew of Knight Diogo, the royal knight you once canonized, Bruno Con!..."

On the throne, the calm John II thought for a moment, and then recalled the young man who had no family background and was not conspicuous, a nobleman promoted from a commoner. Such a captain would not be a pity even if he was killed, and he was most suitable for exploration...

After a moment of hesitation, John II finally nodded.

"Very good! It is indeed suitable. Then choose him!..."

Ah, the turning point of history, the gathering of foreshadowing. Please vote for the monthly ticket at the end of the month! .