Facing Manuel's posture and words, many important officials were truly shocked. And among them, those who secretly plotted against him clenched their teeth, "Why did Prince Manuel return so quickly? Could it be that from the very beginning, those few military and political officials in Mangup were on his side?"
Manuel did not intend to delve into the potentially disloyal officials of the Principality this time, because compared to internal strife, he wanted to focus his energy on this war. Given this, after seeing his brother Isaac's complete lack of rebellious intent, and with the officials no longer silent, Manuel felt much more at ease, certain that he had stabilized the current situation. After reiterating a few basic principles, he informed them of the Crimean army's imminent large-scale advance into Northern Crimea.
As soon as he revealed this intelligence, most of the Principality's officials immediately panicked, "What should we do? Is it still too late to run?" "Why don't we give the land back and withdraw from the war?" "What nonsense are you talking about? I just bought several properties there a few days ago!" "It's over, it's all your fault..."
Looking at the chaotic officials in front of him, Manuel felt his blood pressure needed to be lowered. He cleared his throat, and after the entire room had calmed down, he said gravely, "Even so, we still have a way to deal with it."
After he said this, the whole room quieted down a bit, but some opponents who thought they had spotted an opportunity recalled the previous Keziyar debacle and used it to attack him, saying, "Your Highness, weren't you utterly defeated at Keziyar before? Looking at it this way, in my humble opinion, the counter-strategy you've proposed might just be self-deception."
Manuel coldly noted down the names of this dissenter and several others whose expressions clearly supported him, deciding to find a way to purge them after the war. However, he didn't have the energy for that at the moment, so he merely smiled warmly and said, "Then why don't you take over?"
"Huh?"
"There's nothing to 'huh' about, Your Excellency. Don't you think I'm incapable? Then you can certainly offer your valuable insights and contribute to this war."
"This..."
"If you commanded the war, would you be confident in defeating the Tatars?"
"No."
"In all of the Principality's foreign wars, have you achieved anything so far?"
"No."
"Have I achieved more in governance and military matters, or have you?"
"Your Highness."
"Under whose command was the defense of Kerch won?"
"Your Highness."
"Under whose leadership was the breakout battle of Kaffa victorious?"
"Your Highness."
"Who personally killed the commander of the Genoa army on Christmas that year?"
"Your Highness."
"Under whose leadership was the Tatar Isthmus captured in less than five days this time?"
"Your Highness."
"Have I ever been absent from any important military plans of the Principality since 1427?"
"Absolutely not."
"Then do I understand war, or do you understand war?"
"Your Highness does."
"Am I the legitimate heir of the Principality?"
"Naturally!"
Refuted by Manuel's series of questions, this official, who had tried to seize the opportunity to attack him, was now flushed red, unsure how to continue achieving his original goal, and could only shamefully withdraw.
After this person withdrew, Manuel spread his arms to all the officials present and smiled warmly, "Don't worry, while I wouldn't call myself magnanimous, I also won't ignore truly reliable opinions. If any of you still have objections to me now, please raise them."
"But before that, please seriously consider what is the best solution for the situation we currently face."
Upon hearing this, coupled with Manuel's previous rebuttal, the remaining hidden opponents decided to accept the status quo. Just as Manuel had said, legally, he was the legitimate heir of the Principality, and currently the person most capable of uniting and consolidating the Principality's strength; militarily, even with the Keziyar debacle, his military skill, whether judged by proportion or number of victories, already surpassed that of others in this small Principality; strategically, only his strength could command respect. Considering this, those few who had harbored rebellious intentions could only temporarily hide them and lie low.
Manuel nodded with satisfaction in his heart, seeing the officials who had decided to obey him. After arranging matters such as civilian life and commerce for this period, he dismissed the non-military officials, leaving only the generals and commanders to discuss the next steps for facing the enemy.
"It's early June now, and according to intelligence from behind enemy lines, due to the strategic significance of Northern Crimea, the Crimean Khanate will likely temporarily slow its resistance against the Golden Horde around mid-autumn this year, and instead gather a large army to attack us." Manuel stood up, placing his hands on the table, reiterating this intelligence. "In other words, we still have three to four months to prepare."
"That scoundrel Haji Giray, he'd rather lose land to the Golden Horde than not target us! What, are we Christians so easy to bully?" Patniko angrily slammed the table.
"General, calm down."
"Since that's the case, the first priority is to strengthen the Isthmus's defenses." Patniko suppressed his anger, stroking his beard as he pondered.
"And the navy can't stop the blockade, right?" Falero tapped the table, speculating.
"Exactly," Manuel nodded approvingly, "and because I captured the Tatar Isthmus by first annihilating the main force of the Khanate's defenders before occupying it, the local defensive fortifications are quite well preserved. In this situation, what we need to do is use our technology to reinforce the defensive works as much as possible. Otherwise, relying solely on the trenches and fortresses the Tatars dug and built on the outer side, it will be very difficult to hold them off until next year."
"For example, reinforcing the fortresses into castles or strongholds, diverting more seawater into the moats, and also building earthworks, clearing the fields on the outer side... We probably have a lot to do," Tukharovsky said with emotion.
"Hmm," Manuel picked up where he left off, "we can't relax in other areas either. I've already sent people to contact both sides of the Lithuanian civil war; they should soon receive news that the Ottoman forces are trying to intervene. This way, it shouldn't be easy for Giray to regain Lithuania's aid." At this, he became somewhat gleeful.
"But Your Highness, what if the Ottoman really send a large army to intervene, and they already have an unknown number of Janissaries..." Patniko said worriedly, and before he finished speaking, Manuel interrupted him, "General Patniko, I need to tell you something." With that, he revealed the top secret to the others: that it was only the former Ottoman Grand Vizier acting alone, and the Sultan had not actually intervened.
"This, all these Janissaries?" Patniko felt the corners of his mouth turning up.
"Yes, only 250 men," Manuel smiled.
"Good!" Those who had just learned of this stood up, their faces beaming with joy.
"But even so, we still lost many elites." Thinking of this, Patniko felt a little wistful.
"Yes, so after the war, I will find a way to strengthen the legions under my command. But for now, to temporarily fill the gaps, I will implement a conscription act throughout the Principality, and at the same time seek support from the church and local lords." Manuel changed the subject seriously.
While Manuel and his men were discussing strategies to counter the enemy, on the Peloponnese Peninsula, a small nation was about to meet its fate.