Winter is cruel because it takes many lives, but in a sense, winter is also kind, for war temporarily ceases during its reign.
Whether for a feudal dynasty or nomadic tribes, it is undoubtedly unwise to sustain a war against the high attrition of winter.
Therefore, people always prefer to accumulate strength during the winter and release it in the next season suitable for warfare.
In the west, Louis XI has regained his footing thanks to France's precious strategic depth from north to south, and armies from Anjou, Aquitaine, and Toulouse have begun to slowly gather in the Loire Valley.
According to estimates from spies planted in southern France, Louis XI will assemble an army of nearly twenty thousand men.
They lack equipment, especially heavy siege weapons like artillery, but the remnants of the Ordonnance Companies and the Scottish Guard, who form the backbone of the army, can still be called elite.
In his earlier years, Louis XI personally led large armies in two campaigns to conquer Roussillon and crush Armagnac, taking the opportunity to establish royal rule and authority in southern France. This allowed him to slowly take control of the situation after retreating to the south.
By selling privileges to the French nobility who followed him, he sacrificed his ideals of centralization in exchange for immediate support in funds, provisions, and manpower.
Those who attempted to use religion or other excuses to strike at his prestige or threaten his rule have mostly been purged over the past few months.
Now, he is sharpening his blades, preparing to fight his way back to Paris to have a chat with his dear younger brother and settle past accounts thoroughly.
Meanwhile, Charles VIII, currently entrenched in Paris, is somewhat flustered.
With the backing of the two great powers of Burgundy and Austria, and control over France's wealthiest regions like Champagne and Paris, logically he should have been able to suppress and beat his brother Louis.
However, after making a fortune in northern France, the Burgundian and Imperial armies simply patted their backsides and left, leaving him with a land full of devastation.
Although the Duke of Bourbon decided to support the northern court under his maneuvering, most of the family's military strength was still used to defend the central highlands, and the eventual aid provided was merely a drop in the bucket.
As for the Duke of Nemours and the Count of Nevers, who was appointed by the King of Burgundy, their strength was still relatively too weak.
And Charles VIII's most significant supporter, the Duke of Brittany, is now pinned down by the Count of Maine and cannot provide much help to the main front at all.
Charles VIII exhausted all his efforts to organize over ten thousand men, intending to rely on this first and last bit of family capital to intercept the enemy's northward advance at Blois while protecting the safety of the Berry territory.
However, while the quality of the two armies was similar, there was a noticeable gap in troop numbers. This was the reason he did not hesitate to pay a massive sum he currently couldn't afford to hire the Emperor's army.
As for those hundred thousand florins, he didn't have that much money on hand, so he could only look for someone to borrow from.
Almost all of northern France had been plowed through; cities either paid ransoms or were completely destroyed. The merchant class, which had flourished under Louis XI's rule, had regressed directly back to several centuries ago.
Those stingy and impoverished nobles couldn't possibly produce that much money. The wealthiest, the Duke of Bourbon, had already been severely fleeced, and coincidentally, the person extorting the Duke was the same person who had plundered France's wealth.
Thus, Charles VIII's target became much clearer. Since France could no longer be squeezed for money, he would borrow from the people who had plundered France.
Since the ultimate goal was to hire troops from the Emperor, he felt embarrassed to ask the Emperor for another loan. Instead, he turned to his close ally, the King of Burgundy, using some territories in northern France as collateral to first secure a loan from the wealthy Burgundy.
Things weren't actually easy for Burgundy either. First, the marriage alliance with Austria cost a fortune, and later they purchased the legal inheritance rights to the title of Duke of Guelders. If not for taking a massive gulp of blood from France, even Charles [the Bold], known for his wealth, wouldn't have been able to withstand such consumption.
A simple three-way deal was reached through the exchange of interests among the allies.
Austria made money, Burgundy earned interest—which would very likely be repaid in the form of territory—and the Paris court secured a guarantee for its survival.
Now, the Imperial Independent Army hired by Charles VIII is undergoing final replenishment in Lyon. Veterans from various regions of the Empire and the Swiss cantons are worried about finding work, and the influx of these professional soldiers quickly filled the vacancies.
Thanks to the Emperor recruiting directly from the Imperial Allied Forces before returning to the Empire to provide a batch of high-quality soldiers for the Independent Army, this round of replenishment work was much easier.
By mid-February, the Independent Army set out from Lyon and, amidst Charles VIII's eager anticipation, embarked on the road to Paris.
They will serve Charles VIII during the spring and summer, and the decisive battle between the two brothers, Louis XI and Charles VIII, is very likely to occur during this period.
Laszlo kept an eye on the war situation in France, though more with the mindset of a spectator.
Louis XI intends to replicate his father's feat of reconquering France from south to north. The person who should be most anxious about this is Laszlo's good in-law, Charles.
Burgundy's current level of support is clearly far from enough, and Laszlo is quite curious about just how long Charles can endure.
If he lets his most important ally be worn away to nothing, he'll have plenty of reason to cry later.
Although the Habsburg Family's power seems immense, one cannot ignore that its span across time and space is equally vast. It is very difficult to cover every aspect.
Laszlo doesn't want his allies to be nothing but cowards and fools who can only rely on the Empire. Although that would make it easier for him to seize benefits, sometimes providing support means the losses outweigh the gains; he would rather his allies play a more active role.
In fact, Laszlo placed most of his hopes for the western front on Burgundy, because he also has situations from all directions that require constant attention.
In the far East, the war Laszlo had long worried about has finally officially begun.
Since the Ottomans, Mamluks, and White Sheep trio partitioned the buffer state of Dulkadir, the sides have been at a stalemate for a long time.
The Ottomans have been busy rectifying domestic affairs while restoring relations with Karaman and Candaroğlu, finally securing the safety of their rear for the time being.
Out of vigilance and fear, Sultan Mustafa stationed over a thousand troops at several mountain passes and fortresses leading from Bursa to the Anatolian plateau to guard against a surprise attack by the Eastern Empire.
Having settled these matters, the Ottomans finally had the energy to turn their gaze eastward.
A year ago, the Mamluk army was repelled by a large force led personally by Uzun Hasan. A few months later, the two sides fought another battle at Urfa, where the Mamluks suffered another major defeat and were forced to retreat entirely into Syria, no longer daring to covet the lands to the north.
The pressure soon shifted entirely to the Ottoman side.
Although Uzun Hasan is still splitting his forces to attack the Georgian states and Trebizond, most of his troops are now concentrated in Dulkadir.
If nothing unexpected happens, the war to conquer the Ottomans will soon begin.
Facing the tens of thousands of Turkmen iron cavalry, what kind of end will the young Sultan meet? Laszlo is quite looking forward to it.
Few people can watch the drama of both the Western and Eastern fronts simultaneously like he can. Sometimes there is even more international news worth his attention, such as the latest news that arrived from the north not long ago.
"The Grand Duke of Lithuania intends to run for King of Poland? Your Majesty, I did receive news that Bolesław IV is seriously ill, but I have never heard of this matter."
At the routine Privy Council meeting, Foreign Minister Clement and the other ministers were startled by the bombshell news dropped by the Emperor.
They subconsiously questioned the authenticity of this news.
No matter how one thought about it, this was a bit too shocking.
Laszlo slapped the letter in his hand onto the table, though he did not show it to everyone.
He slowly began to explain, "This is a letter sent back by my dear sister, Elizabeth, the Grand Duchess of Lithuania.
She mentioned that not long ago, Grand Duke Kazimierz officially abolished the Grand Duchy of Kiev and instead established the Kiev Voivodeship, thoroughly incorporating the entire Grand Duchy into Lithuania. The local noble factions suffered a heavy blow.
The nobility of Kiev were the most stubborn and tough within Lithuania's borders. Their submission means that my brother-in-law's hard days have finally come to an end.
Unfortunately, the rapidly rising Grand Duchy of Moscow to the north has brought a new threat. In Novgorod, which was crushed by Ivan III, the pro-Lithuanian and pro-Moscow factions are in constant conflict, and relations between the two great powers are becoming increasingly tense.
Likely to gain more support against his powerful northern neighbor, Kazimierz is now prepared to reclaim the Polish crown, though I am not sure if he intends to avenge his elder brother.
Kazimierz having my sister write to me at this time is clearly an attempt to win my support, or at least to obtain my verbal recognition.
Clement, give us an introduction to the situation in Poland, and then everyone can discuss what should be done about this."
As Laszlo spoke, he carefully put the letter away; after all, that sister of his didn't write to him often, so he decided to keep it as a collection.
The ministers were all somewhat speechless. They weren't trying to pry into the family letter received by the Emperor, but the actual content of the letter was still very intriguing.
Clement coughed twice to draw his colleagues' attention and then said, "Bolesław IV has currently completely lost control over the Polish nobility. He has almost never refused the resolutions the Sejm demands to pass.
However, his son Konrad has a terrible relationship with many Polish nobles, so the Polish nobility is now roughly divided into two factions: those who support the Piast Family and those who support the Jagiellon Family's return to Poland.
The Polish populace generally believes the Piast Family is unable to protect Poland, so many people are inclined toward Grand Duke Kazimierz, hoping to return Poland to the ranks of great powers by restoring the Union of Krewo."
"To think that Grand Duke Kazimierz once even refused the invitation of the Polish Parliament, yet this time he has proactively come forward," Baron Grafenegg remarked with emotion.
Laszlo smiled slightly and said calmly, "Back then in Poland, even if they had chosen a dog to lead, they wouldn't have escaped a beating. From that point of view, I quite admire Bolesław."
"And then he became your prisoner?"
"He himself had an unstable foundation in Poland. The Polish Parliament fought a civil war with Władysław III near Kraków, and then Bolesław hastily organized things to face the Imperial Army. It's understandable that they met with failure."
Laszlo exuded the composure of a victor, as if the expedition to Poland years ago were a trivial matter.
"After that, you seized nearly half the territory of Greater Poland. If the Poles regroup, how should we respond? Are we to fight another war with the Polish-Lithuanian union?" Fugger couldn't help but frown and remind him.
Fighting a war in Eastern Europe is clearly unprofitable and would instead distract the Emperor's energy. It would be better to let Poland maintain a weak independence.
"I don't think the Poles have the nerve," Baron Grafenegg said, full of confidence in the Imperial Army. "Moreover, there is a marriage bond between the Emperor and the Grand Duke of Lithuania. If we can take this opportunity to reach an agreement with Lithuania to ensure mutual non-interference, it might be better."
"I think it's best for Your Majesty not to voice your opinion for now. At a time like this, we should observe the situation carefully. If the Piast Family wins, the Emperor supports the Grand Duke of Lithuania, which might provoke a war of succession; the same logic applies vice versa.
If the two sides start fighting, our northern border will be secure, and we might even take the opportunity to make another fortune from the war," Clement gave a very sophisticated suggestion.
Marriage alliances and allies are all empty; only consistent interests bring monarchs together. By using the dispute between the two candidates for the Polish crown, the Emperor actually has a chance to eliminate the territorial disputes between Austria and Poland.
Laszlo quickly understood this point and immediately nodded in agreement.
"Then I'll just write a letter back to brush Kazimierz off. However, if war breaks out in Poland, the Teutonic Order will certainly not be able to sit still, and the situation will likely become even more complicated then."
"The Order is the most suitable hired thug. We won't even need to take action to throw Poland into a mess."
"They will certainly be happy to do such a thing. Grand Master Heinrich has expressed his hope to expand the Order's territory in several letters to me."
Laszlo was not surprised by the Order's return to its old posture of following Orders only when it suits them.
Only at critical moments of life and death would the knights be willing to give up their little tricks and bow at his feet.
And as for him, he unceremoniously harvested the Order's branches within the Empire, turning them into the Habsburg Family's personal Order. Later, he dispatched Imperial coordination officials to cities like Danzig to handle the relationship between the Prussian Confederation and the Order. Relying on this, he was sufficient to influence the Order.
After all, the Confederation is the Order's purse, and the cities' rights of freedom are recognized and protected by him as Emperor. The two sides can only conduct friendly negotiations under the witness of the Imperial envoy.
However, the most heavy work for the coordinators now is not coordinating between the Prussian cities and the Order, but handling disputes among the Hanseatic League cities.
Lübeck has recently had many trade disputes with Cologne, Wismar, Rostock, Danzig, and Reval, which is under the jurisdiction of the Livonian Order. These disputes have been submitted to the Imperial Privy Council and ultimately ended up in Laszlo's hands.
Even Reval, far on the northeastern coast of the Baltic Sea, sent an envoy to explain the details of the trade disputes to him. Although Laszlo cared about these matters, he didn't care much, so he quickly handed them over to the Imperial officials sent to the two Orders to handle.
Now that it looks like war is about to break out in the north, he naturally has even less energy to focus on these squabbles between merchants.
Laszlo finally decided to adopt a strategy of waiting for the right price, to see what kind of major drama the Polish nobles can pull off.