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Botticelli brought her fresh blueberries and grapes, and placed a pot of newly bloomed hyacinths at her bedside.
The patients she had once helped brought various wild chickens and fresh fish, performing a long, respectful bow before leaving.
The lord did not appear for a long time. When he finally returned to her side, he was accompanied by a chef.
The chef, looking nervous, uncovered the platter to reveal a pizza that had been hastily recreated—
On the round dough, there was bacon, mushrooms, and tenderloin, with a few sprigs of rosemary and basil sprinkled on top.
Hedy, propped up and sitting, smelled the sizzling bacon and felt a slight lift in her spirits.
She should teach this chef how to make burgers and Wellington steaks.
The black-haired beauty lowered her head, eating the pizza slowly and deliberately. The lord sat silently on a nearby chair for a long while before finally speaking.
“I originally intended to send you away that day. The situation caught us by surprise.”
“A spy informed me that he had seen hidden daggers in one of the un-deployed parade wagons, but the procession was about to begin in only fifteen minutes.”
He paused for a moment, seemingly observing her reaction.
She didn’t react, instead continuing to eat the second slice of pizza.
Lorenzo rubbed his temple and softened his voice. “The interrogation results revealed that while some of them wore typical Neapolitan attire, they were actually French.”
—French?!
Hedy’s movements paused for a moment, and she took a handkerchief to wipe the corner of her mouth, turning to look at him.
“Although they had all agreed on a unified story, there were still traitors who could be tempted by money,” Lorenzo continued slowly, his eyes still watching her closely.
In the recent invasion, Florence had played a pivotal role, not only forming a strong triangular alliance but also displaying incredible military power.
Because of this, France had secretly sent a small force, disguised as Neapolitan aggressors.
The first goal was to target the Medici family, hoping to assassinate those related to them during the festival, killing as many as possible.
The second goal was to sow discord and create confusion.
Had it not been for Cosimo noticing someone speaking with a Southern French accent, they might have really believed that the lord of Naples was planning another strike.
Hedy gave Dechio a glance, and he immediately cleared the small dining table from the bed and led the chef out of the room.
She had already reviewed the relevant information and supplemented the necessary details.
The current ruler of France is King Louis XI, known as the Spider King.
He is an ambitious and ruthless old king, whose cunning and desire for territory are enough to send chills down anyone’s spine.
When Cosimo had mentioned him before, he also spoke of Louis’ most famous saying.
"I am France."
Hedy had heard this phrase elsewhere, as it is one of the symbols of French national spirit, but she never imagined that she would be living in the same era as him.
She had never expected to be an invisible player in the same game.
Over the past few decades, Louis XI had relentlessly suppressed rebels, fought with his brother Charles over Normandy and other territories, restricted imports and exports, promoted the rising bourgeoisie merchants, and even invited Italian workers to Lyon to establish the country’s first silk factory.
