Chapter 647: Giovanni Junior Giustinianni
In just one tumultuous week, Constantinople witnessed unprecedented upheaval. Over two thousand people were arrested, their fates uncertain. Among them, more than three hundred confessed involvement with Menelaos’s plot after interrogation, with a staggering eighty percent being former senators or influential figures from previous administrations within them, all subjected to various punishments by the court after a short court hearing. The city’s streets became scenes of conflict and chaos, resulting in over forty deaths and hundreds injured during the series of clashes between Apostolos’ hounds and the protestors.
Some calls it the purge of the spring, while Apostolos simply refers it as a minor inconvenience for the greater good in the future.
The political landscape of Constantinople was irrevocably altered. Most bureaucrats from the prior regime were ousted, except for those few who convincingly pledged allegiance to Antonius. At last, the emperor could claim complete control over the city, a metropolis now integrally linked to his rule, as if it is part of him, by his will.
After the religious ceremony, Antonius walked down the fleet of stairs, with his new son Giovanni Junior, with Anna at the back hugging Leo, talking to Therma asking about her current situation in the monastery on the islands.
Just then, a court messenger from the court came running towards the emperor, and passed a letter.
In the shadowed valleys near Dolni Parsarel, Julian’s tactical acumen was put to the test against the remnant Ottoman forces. His strategy was not just to engage but to outmanoeuvre the enemy. He positioned his most formidable troops strategically, creating a blockade that the Ottomans couldn’t penetrate. High on the hills, his artillery, angled for maximum impact pointing right downwards towards the path for the impending Ottoman army, poured devastating fire into the Ottoman ranks. Each cannonade, in unison with the flurry of arrows from his archers, sowed chaos in the enemy lines.
Julian’s cavalry, though small in number with only around one hundred and fifty people, played a crucial role. Their relentless sorties behind the Ottoman lines disrupted any semblance of order, instilling fear and confusion. The Ottomans, famed for their military prowess, found themselves in disarray, unable to capitalize on their numerical advantage.
As the Ottoman morale crumbled, Julian seized the decisive moment. He spurred his troops into an aggressive advance, offering bounties for enemy heads. The battlefield transformed into a grisly marketplace of war, where survival and profit mingled under the cloud of death.
The aftermath was stark. The Ottoman force, once a formidable threat, was reduced to a scattering of fleeing soldiers, leaving over two thousand dead in their wake. The catastrophic loss signalled the end of the Ottoman’s ability to muster a significant military challenge in the region, in other words, there shall be no more Ottoman army in Bulgaria after this defeat.
In the wake of the battle, the city of Sofia, left vulnerable by the power vacuum, witnessed an unexpected turn. Its citizens, eager to avoid the destruction of war, assumed control. In a pragmatic bid for peace and stability, they extended the keys of the city to Julian, welcoming Roman rule and closing a turbulent Chapter on Ottoman dominance in the region.
In his letter, Julian succinctly outlined his recent victory and the evolving political landscape in Bulgaria. Despite efforts, the Hungarian king failed to capture Wallachia after performing a few sieges even armed with some rather prehistoric artilleries, ruled by Radu of Drăculești, an ex-Ottoman calvary officer. However, King Corvinus of Hungary recalled a notable exile at his court – Vlad III, who was once the Voivode of Wallachia as well. The Hungarians reinstated Vlad as a pretender king, Corvinus garnered support for him by spreading words across the land and into the defending army, overturning the current ruler and reasserting Vlad’s reign, albeit as a Hungarian suzerain, agreeing to follow Pest’s orders and summons.
Now here comes the problem, complications arose when Radu, amidst the chaos, managed to escape the searches of the offenders and fled south to Bulgaria, seeking refuge in a Roman outpost. The pursuing Hungarians withdrew once they came into contact with the Roman border control, leaving Radu, the former Voivode of Wallachia, to negotiate with Roman authorities.
And another thing, is that the Serbian army marched into the borders of Vidin aiming to recover some of their past lands, only to come into conflict with the frontier troops of Julian, which the later warned them not to trespass, but the Serb forces still advanced, leading to a small confrontation causing the loss of a few Roman lives, although the Serbian monarch did send an ambassador to the camp of Julian with apologies, but the Serbian army still did not stop rallying up near the borders. Julian, in his letter, asked once again on what to do on this kind of circumstances.
Riding back to the palace in his chariot, Antonius casually set Julian’s letter aside, exhaling a weary sigh. He turned to young Giovanni Junior and asked, "Do you know of Julian, my son?"
"Yes! Lord Julian!" Giovanni’s eyes lit up, his excitement evident as he brandished a wooden toy sword for kids. "He’s the greatest general in our empire! Outmatching Belisarius!"
Antonius smiled warmly, gently patting the boy’s head. "Would you like to be a great general like him someday?"
Giovanni’s enthusiasm shone. "Yes! But..." His excitement waned slightly, clouded by doubt. "I’m not as talented as him..."
Antonius halted in his expression then made a series of wild laughter, then explained. "Giovanni, you are Giovanni Giustiniani’s son! Believe in yourself! If Julian and your father can become what there were, then definitely can you! And besides, Julian wasn’t born a great commander; it took him twelve years of dedication. When I first met him at the docks of Constantinople, do you know what he was?"
The eyes of Giovanni blinked in curiosity.
"Julian started as a humble peasant dockworker, toiling with his peers to load and unload ships working days and nights to support a living. He and his friends were among the first fifty locals to join my corps, setting an example for the many others later to come. In his first battle off the shores of Anatolia, he was the sole survivor of his group who are killed in that fire. Recognising his resilience, I promoted him to lieutenant, leading a group of fifty new recruits. He defended the walls against the Ottomans for over a week, again emerging as the sole survivor. His rank rose to captain, commanding a hundred men."
"After that, Julian went through a series of battles with me, from seizing the various isles in the Marmara, to fending off against the Ottoman pirates, by the time we acquired Thessaloniki, he is already a commander experienced in field combat commanding over a three hundred men unit, participating in the defence of Thessaloniki against Candarli Halil Pasha, but that is not enough, for I need him to command over more troops as my army expands, and so I forced him to read books, lots of them, and make him learn how to write, calculate, read maps, converse in different languages, after all these years jumping into one after another war, he finally became the commander we know today."
"Now my dear Giovanni. Do you understand the price of such a transformation?" Antonius asked, his expression serious.
Giovanni shook his head, innocence in his eyes.
"It’s measured in thousands of lives, in bloodshed, in countless coins, and in years of dedication from both Julian and me," Antonius explained.
Giovanni nodded, a hint of reluctance in his gesture, the complexities of leadership and sacrifice still beyond his young comprehension.
"Now young Giovanni, do you still want to become a warrior like him?"
Giovanni gazed at his wooden sword, a symbol of his youthful aspirations. Under Antonius’s watchful eyes, he hesitated momentarily before nodding with determination. "Yes, father, I want to be a commander, riding on horseback, galloping on the fields, leading my army across the battlefield."
Antonius’s laughter echoed warmly in the carriage, his eyes alight with a blend of pride and anticipation. Gently, he handed the sleeping Leo into Anna’s loving arms, then turned his full attention to Giovanni. His hand rested reassuringly on the young boy’s shoulder, a symbol of guidance and support.
"Let’s embark on your journey, Giovanni. Remember, the greatest commanders in history, they all started young, just like you. Imagine learning from Julian himself, your idol. You’ll absorb his strategies and wisdom, understanding every nuance of being a field commander. You’ll witness firsthand the art of leadership, the intricacies of battle tactics, and the responsibility that comes with command. You’ll learn from scratch, from the very basics to the complexities of military strategy. It’s not just about wielding a sword or riding a horse; it’s about leading men, making tough decisions, and understanding the battlefield."
Giovanni paused; the weight of the decision evident in his eyes.
Anna looked outside the curtains of the carriage, acting like she does not really care about the ongoing conversation, but Leo attempted to turn, as it could feel that his mother’s hug tightened by a bit.
"It will be a difficult, but yet fruitful journey." Antonius added on, looking at the eyes of the young boy."
"I will, father," Giovanni finally said, a mix of resolve and apprehension in his voice.
