1444, Byzantium Resurrects

Chapter 313: School City Planning
As time entered the end of February, the overwhelming snowstorm gradually subsided, the temperature rose, and the snow in the mountains gradually melted, flowing into streams and lakes, nourishing the earth and bringing vitality.

For the entire Eastern Roman Empire, this winter was peaceful and healthy. The bloody battle in Anatolia was forced to pause due to the weather. The soldiers on the other side of the strait took turns to rest. The army of the Aq Qoyunlu was distributed on various winter pastures on the plateau and had no intention of risking their lives in the snow.

Moreover, even if the war continued, the emperor tried his best to support the army in his own way and tried his best to avoid interfering with the daily lives of ordinary people. Whether in the Balkans or Africa, except for a few words in the "Daily Chronicle", the war seemed very far away.

The emperor did not like to interfere too much in people's lives. He would not collect taxes and plunder everywhere like many monarchs did. The grain on the land belonged to the people, the prey and fruits in the mountains and forests were theirs, and the fish, crabs, shrimps and shellfish in the rivers and lakes were also theirs. He never levied excessive taxes and never competed with the people for profit.

The emperor's tax collectors only came twice a year. Apart from the postmen who delivered information, the officials that ordinary farmers had the most contact with were those sent by the Imperial Ministry of Agriculture. These people would bring them cold-resistant crops, more convenient tools, better composting methods and more productive cattle and sheep, and were often very welcome. The simple farmers would treat them with the best food, ask them about opportunities in big cities, and ask them about unknown after-meal stories.

Return the information to the farmers, teach them the methods, believe in their wisdom, and they will also reassure the empire.

In Africa on the southern coast of the Mediterranean, coastal cities are becoming increasingly prosperous under the influence of ocean trade. The population of Carthage, the "Southern Capital", continues to grow and its size continues to expand. The construction of a new cultural and sports district has brought a touch of literary and artistic atmosphere to citizens who are obsessed with bravery and fighting. The slave trade in Birinchi has been rising steadily under the joint nourishment of colonization and war. Birinchi University has provided a wealth of talents for the slave market, providing training from capture to selection to taming.

In addition to these two big cities, other cities have also made some new progress. The pottery workshop in Tripoli is on the right track, the saltpeter industry in Sfax is booming and has obtained long-term orders from the army. Although Surt has been lukewarm, it has also opened a fertilizer base, purchasing animal bones from the grassland to make bone meal fertilizer.

The situation in the Balkans was even better. It was more stable and there was no need to rely on landowners to maintain order. The spring breeze of liberal reforms soon swept across the land. The powerful force of private capital was clearly visible here. More and more mines were opened, and more and more agricultural capitalists contracted land and established rented farms.

Of course, institutional progress only provided fertile soil, and the rapid advancement of technology was the continuous spring rain that promoted the improvement of productivity. The explosively rising mining technology in the German region was soon applied to the Balkan Peninsula. The opening of the Thessalonica-St. Helena First-Class National Highway connected the Balkan mountains with the core of the empire. The originally poor North Macedonia Military District and the Albania Military District also reaped some benefits.

In several regions in the southern part of the Greek peninsula, the silk industry finally got on track after more than ten years of care. The Bank of Constantinople provided large amounts of funds at low interest rates to citizens willing to open factories, and silk production increased year by year.

Compared with the silk industry, the prosperity of the tobacco industry was basically spontaneous. The Greek region was suitable for growing tobacco. The increase in large livestock and the popularization of iron tools allowed farmers to open up more land. In addition to growing food, many farmers would also set aside a few plots of land to grow cash crops. Of course, the highest-value tobacco was the best choice.

The developed maritime trade routes brought a large amount of raw materials to the empire, and the vast colonies provided a lot of gold and silver. From the lower-class people to the upper-class wealthy businessmen, everyone was immersed in the beauty and expectations brought by the prosperous era.

Until 1472, the whole of Europe was still in a state of shortage of precious metals, which greatly hindered the development of capitalism. In some remote corners, more than half of the commercial activities still used the primitive method of barter.

The Eastern Roman Empire, which had abundant precious metals, took advantage of this opportunity to catch up and was gradually overtaking the birthplace of capitalism, the rich Apennine Peninsula.

Historically, Europe’s “money shortage” did not officially end until several decades after a large influx of silver from the Americas.

In any case, after more than 20 years of efforts, the Eastern Roman Empire has regained its vitality and completely got rid of the title of "Balkan Beggar". The shadow of the past is no longer surrounding it, and it is on its way to a new peak.

This is the best year in the past ten years and the worst year in the next ten years. This is the truest inner portrayal of countless Eastern Roman people.

It is true that the iron hoofs of the Eastern nomads have not yet gone away, the overall national strength of the Kingdom of France is still far ahead of others, and the Jagiellonian Dynasty of Poland and Lithuania is also on the road to prosperity. However, this does not hinder the pride and pride of the Eastern Roman people. Everyone can live a better life in the revival of the empire.

In addition to their own citizens, more and more European Christians began to scramble to enter the Eastern Empire and become subjects of the emperor. The promulgation of the Homestead Law and the implementation of liberal reforms undoubtedly stimulated this phenomenon. They believed that in the Eastern Empire, people could change their own destiny through hard work, courage, creativity and determination.

This is the core connotation of the "Roman Dream".

The dark clouds finally dispersed, the winter sun hung high in the sky, the weather gradually became warmer, municipal employees were clearing the remaining snow on the ground, and the citizens of Constantinople walked out of their houses and started working.

In the gardens of the Grand Palace, the flower fields are in bud and are already emitting a faint fragrance.

Sunny days are hard to come by, so Isaac and his family walked out of the palace where they had been huddled for a whole winter, and stretched their legs and fists freely in the garden, exercising their bodies and cheering their souls.

A wide variety of drinks and fruit snacks were placed on the elegant mahogany table. Isaac lay in the reclining chair, quietly enjoying the warm sunshine of early spring.

Isaac's wife of more than 20 years, Leonor from Portugal, sat next to him, looking at his children and grandchildren not far away.

On the grass not far away, the six-year-old youngest son Anastasius was chasing and playing with the five-year-old crown prince Constantine, while the younger Carlos was sitting on the grass, silently watching his uncle and brother.

The little prince, who was born in the cold winter, has always been relatively quiet. Since Isaac and Justinian were busy everywhere, they seldom had the chance to take care of him. Carlos was not very close to them. Apart from his mother and grandmother, only his eldest brother Constantine could make him smile faintly.

Constantine and Anastasius ran and laughed, and disappeared into the flowers. Carlos became a little anxious, climbed up, and staggered towards the flowers.

Constantine rushed out and hugged his younger brother.

"You can walk now, why don't you join us?"

Constantine ruffled Carlos's limp blond hair.

Carlos shook his head and was about to sit down, but was pulled back by Constantine.

"Let me show you something good!"

Constantine turned his head and shouted, and Anastasius came out and handed a wreath to Constantine.

"gave it to you!"

Constantine pretended to be mature and frowned, and put the wreath on Carlos' head.

"I will crown you king!"

Carlos touched the wreath on his head, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, he hugged his brother, and rubbed his snot and saliva on his clothes.

"what about me?"

Anastasius cried out in dissatisfaction.

"Father said that no king can be crowned within the empire."

Constantine was stunned for a moment, raised his chin and thought for a moment.

"Appoint you as the Governor-General of India!"

Constantine plucked a leaf from the flower and handed it to Anastasius.

"India? What is that?"

Anastasius took the leaf and thought about it. He had never heard of this word.

"I don't know either, but my grandfather always said it should be a good place."

Constantine chuckled, pulled Carlos, and ran towards his mother who was not far away.

Of course Isaac couldn't hear their conversation, but seeing his children and grandchildren having so much fun, a warm smile appeared on his weather-beaten face.

"Father, it's finally sorted out. Do you want to take a look?"

Behind Isaac, Justinian stood up from his chair and picked up a thick stack of documents.

"Well, read it to me, and tell me what you think."

Isaac nodded.

"We finally get together, why make your son so tired?"

Leonor looked at Isaac with dissatisfaction.

"He's just like you, running around outside all day, and the kids don't even know him!"

"I'm already 40 years old. If we wait another 10 years, he will have to do most of the work."

"I will teach him everything I know little by little over the next decade. He will also be able to take this opportunity to better understand his responsibilities. Our every move involves half the world and is directly related to the lives of millions of people. We cannot act recklessly."

Isaac said calmly.

"Besides, the decisive battle is imminent, and both of us will go to the battlefield. Before that, we will finish the backlog of government affairs."

"When we go to Anatolia, you will remain the same as before. The Crown Prince will be the regent, and the two queens will be responsible for assisting. You will be in charge of diplomacy and maintaining stability, and Isabella can try to manage political affairs."

"Well, remember to come back early."

Leonor sighed, peeled a banana and handed it to her eldest son.

Justinian took the banana, swallowed it in two or three bites, and began to explain government affairs.

"The first thing is about the new Senate's three-level meeting."

Justinian looked at the first document.

“This meeting, held in Thessalonica, was different from the previous ones in several ways.”

"First, the number of people attending the meeting increased. The city of Thessalonica renovated a new venue for the meeting and invited some common people and gentry to sit in on the meeting. They also hosted some festivals during the meeting, invited circuses and bards, and opened commodity exhibitions to boost the consumer economy."

“I suspect that they may have been inspired by the last Bilinchi Conference and wanted to seize the opportunity of the conference to improve the city’s reputation and attract businessmen from all over the world to invest.”

"But obviously, their methods are more sophisticated. Last time, the Bilinchi people even asked a group of West African female slaves to perform a war dance. I don't know what they were thinking."

Justinian shook his head in amusement.

"This meeting was quite successful. The number of participants hit a new high. The monarchs who were granted the title of elders from the Free City of La Spezia, the Free City of Ragusa, the Kingdom of Congo, the City-State of Malindi, the City-State of Sofala, and the Grand Duchy of Serbia all sent their envoys. The Circassian Kingdom and the Cossack Kingdom also sent observers under my instructions."

"There are also the Knights of St. Simon and the Knights of St. Andrew. They also have their own quota for auditing."

"Very good, this is more like the Imperial Parliament."

Isaac nodded.

"What are the results?"

"There are quite a lot. I have summarized the more important ones."

Justinian watched carefully.

“The member of the Billingi Council proposed that the University of Billingi be listed as a regular university in the empire to train more talents.”

“Until now, this matter had not been successful due to strong opposition from the Minister of Education, Balsamon.”

"Okay, let them change the name of slave training to psychological management and behavior control, otherwise it sounds too ugly."

Isaac nodded.

Justinian took out a pen and wrote a few words on the document.

“Also, the parliamentarians in Constantinople proposed opening the Bank of Constantinople and the Constantinople Stock Exchange to the public to promote the development of the financial industry.”

"This one……"

Isaac frowned and thought for a moment.

"I will ask Ulrich to come up with a plan. We must not open everything up. We must set thresholds to avoid problems."

Justinian nodded and made a few notes.

"Finally, there is the proposal from Vidin City. According to them, recently, many people who fled Bulgaria during the previous war wanted to return to their hometowns. They sneaked into the border of the Eastern Empire from various places, causing great difficulties for local public security."

"After most of the inland navy was transferred to Anatolia, their illegal immigration became more and more rampant. Even many Wallachians began to cross the river and head south." "The councillors of Vidin City would like to ask you to restrain their behavior."

Justinian looked at Isaac.

"What do you think should be done?"

Isaac asked.

"They are all Orthodox Christians, and you are the Orthodox emperor, so you should accept them."

Justinian said.

"We grant them citizenship and allow them to go south, but they must obey orders. We can separate them and place them in Greek-populated areas, and then move some of the local Greeks to Anatolia."

"They are all Orthodox Christians, their lifestyles are relatively small and they have more common topics. After a few years, they will integrate into the local community."

“In my opinion, this is the best way to assimilate culturally.”

"Very good, I'll do as you say."

Isaac said.

"The mission of the inland navy is basically over. I will transfer them back to openly assist the Slavic Orthodox Christians who are willing to become Romans to cross the river to the south. As for Vlad III——"

Isaac smiled contemptuously.

"Don't pay any attention to him! We are invincible on the water."

Justinian wrote a few lines, put down the first document, and took out another.

"This is a report from Duke Abel of the Western Border Region. He is currently conducting the third anti-bandit war and has signed agreements with several slave trading groups. He will provide them with Muslim white slaves on a regular basis."

"He said in his report that when the Great Turkish War is over, he wants to apply for funds from you to continue the westward expedition."

"Okay, is there any more?"

Isaac looked at the long text on the document.

"Also, according to reports from the Western Border, the Duke of Milan's tyranny is getting worse. Many Italian farmers have begun to move south to the Western Border, but some problems have also arisen."

Justinian looked at the report and curled his lips.

"Abel said that some people did not cultivate the fields after obtaining citizenship, but ran directly to Constantinople and Carthage."

“He suggested you tattoo Italian immigrants on their cheeks to keep them from running away.”

"That's nonsense. He's not a prisoner, so how could he have a tattoo?"

Isaac shook his head.

"Let them be. The cost of living in Constantinople and Carthage is so high. If they can survive in a big city, then it's their ability. They can move freely without interference."

"Yeah, I think so too. Latin people are not Muslims, so they can be accepted."

Justinian wrote a few words and put the report aside. The next one he received was a little strange, not the kind of paper commonly found in the Mediterranean world.

"This letter came from the west coast of the Atlantic Ocean. It was written by Christopher Columbus."

Justinian read the letter with a big smile on his face.

"Columbus said he had achieved considerable success by tricking some ignorant natives into thinking that horses and artillery could fight independently, which frightened them greatly."

"He occupied a stretch of coast and successfully contacted Tenochtitlan's biggest rebel, the Tlaxcala Republic. This federation is mainly divided into four towns, which are linked together through a contract to jointly deal with foreign invasions."

"Bishop Valens cured the only son of a chieftain and reported it as a miracle, thus successfully converting him to Jesus."

"Columbus released smallpox on an isolated island and took the envoys from Tlaxcala to watch. The horrible disease, which was exactly the same as Columbus's description, made the envoys panic. After returning, Columbus began to release smallpox on a remote Aztec island that he had occupied and forbade anyone to leave."

"Those who converted to Jesus were safe and sound, but those who refused to change their ways died miserably. Tlaxcala began to waver, and eventually three leaders announced their conversion and were vaccinated with cowpox. The last leader was deliberately infected by Columbus, and his death made Tlaxcala believe in it forever."

"At this point, all the troops of the four towns were under the command of Columbus, and the expeditionary force of Tenochtitlan was on the way. Columbus said that he would pave the road to the city in the lake with the corpses of the enemies, and would use the divine light to purify all the ugliness in the world."

Justinian raised his head, looking quite excited.

"A new batch of treasure ships will arrive in Constantinople soon, and your treasury will be filled again."

"Columbus concluded by saying that Bishop Valens wanted more ships to transport cows, pigs and sheep to vaccinate the converted natives."

"Well, I already know that the treasure ship is docked in the port of Prousfilian."

Isaac groaned.

"Tell Columbus that I will prepare what he wants, but there is one thing: do not massacre the Orthodox Christians who have converted. They are already my subjects and are under my protection!"

"Also, make those who surrender hand over all the papers with words on them, all the cultural relics, all the statues of the old gods, all the priests of the old gods, all the sacrifices, except Roman culture, no other culture is allowed there!"

"Ok."

Justinian wrote a few lines quickly and picked up the last two documents.

"The two letters were from Education Minister Balsamon and Deputy Business Minister Ulrich. I thought their demands could be addressed at the same time, so I put them together."

"Tell me about it."

Isaac nodded.

"Balsamon may have learned some inside information and thought that since you have obtained another sum of funds, you hope to open more universities and provide more students with the opportunity to enjoy higher education."

Justinian concluded.

"Ulrich mainly complained that there were too few skilled workers and that the pace of opening workshops could not keep up. He hoped that you would change this situation, but I think the several solutions he proposed are not good."

"Oh? What do you think?"

Isaac was interested.

"I think the old apprenticeship system has seriously hindered the development of handicrafts. It is too inefficient, and even skilled craftsmen will only select a few of their most satisfied apprentices to teach them real skills."

Justinian looked at Isaac.

"We can establish professional technical universities, spend huge sums of money to hire outstanding craftsmen as professors, and train skilled workers in batches."

“This approach meets the needs of both parties and is consistent with your consistent policy of supporting the handicraft industry.”

"Not bad! You came up with this idea yourself?"

Isaac was somewhat happy, but then he looked at his eldest son with some doubt.

"Isabella came up with this..."

Justinian was a little embarrassed.

"That's fine, she's your wife anyway."

Isaac groaned.

"Actually, I was planning to expand the university, and you just happened to provide an opportunity."

Isaac thought about it.

"Constantinople is too crowded. I plan to allocate funds to build a new academic city in the suburbs of Constantinople, specifically for the establishment of higher education institutions."

"In the future, the University of Constantinople will also have to move to the Città degli Academia. The city is too noisy and it is difficult for students to concentrate."

Isaac's eyes flickered.

In fact, it is very dangerous to place a university in the administrative center. Those hot-blooded college students are often the best recipients of radical ideas and are prone to riots and marches. They cannot be placed within the city walls.

"I plan to build four universities at once: one for arts, one for law, one for business, and one for professional technology, all in the city of learning."

Isaac looked at Justinian.

"how do you feel?"

"Very good. As far as I know, there are already quite a few people who want to establish an art university. I think they will donate enthusiastically."

Justinian laughed.

"The other ones are easy to choose. What name do you plan to give to the technical university?"

"The scale of the professional and technical university will be very large. I don't plan to open only the technical department. There will also be a chemistry department and a natural philosophy department."

Isaac smiled.

“Let’s call it Imperial College.”

Justinian thought about it and nodded.

“Great name, but where’s the funding?”

The setting sun dyes the sky red.

Isaac stood up and prepared to return to the palace.

"Ten thousand solidus."

"so much?"

Justinian was shocked.

"What are you afraid of?"

Isaac laughed.

"Aztecs out!"

(End of this chapter)