Greece to roman road

After the banquet, Constantine put down his knife and fork and said to the guests: "Gentlemen and ladies, I would like to take advantage of this banquet to show you something novel."

After that, he waved to the servants around him.

Seeing Constantine's actions, everyone understood and removed several silver candlesticks from the tablecloth.

Constantine's actions confused the guests. They couldn't figure out what Constantine was up to, and they whispered among themselves.

The light in the restaurant dimmed, and everyone could vaguely see the image clearly through the faint moonlight shining through the windows in the restaurant.

"Pah, pah", two crisp applauses were heard clearly in the ears of everyone present, and the room was suddenly filled with splendor.

I saw the crystal chandelier directly above the dining table. The golden brass frame was embedded with colorful crystals. The light emitted drove away the darkness in the restaurant and liberated everyone's eyes.

This was specially made by Constantine in France by the Tesla team. In fact, it was just a tungsten filament bulb placed in the polished crystals of various colors.

The light emitted by the light bulb changes colors after being processed by crystal, making it extremely magnificent.

Everyone raised their necks and observed this rare object.

As a businessman who has been traveling around Europe for a long time, Angelis is well-informed and experienced, so he has naturally seen electric lights.

At this time in Europe, DC electric lights were no longer a rarity.

"Your Highness, is there anything special about this crystal chandelier?" Angelis naturally would not think that Constantine would be so superficial that he would hold a grand banquet just to show off a chandelier to everyone.

Constantine, who was on the main seat, explained to everyone; "This is a light bulb that uses alternating current, which is different from the common direct current light bulbs."

After hearing Constantine's words, among the people, those who were quick to react already understood the purpose of Constantine's banquet.

"Your Excellency, I have heard about the debate between DC and AC currents in the past. It seems that AC current is changing all the time, and it seems to be difficult to apply," Angelis said.

Constantine stood up after hearing this, walked behind Tesla, and introduced to everyone: "Thanks to the outstanding work of Mr. Tesla and his team, the current problems in the use of alternating current have basically been overcome."

Seeing Constantine introducing himself to everyone, Tesla quickly nodded to everyone.

After this episode, the banquet quickly came to an end.

After the meal, the guests were divided into two groups.

The female companions among the guests, led by Sophie, went to the flower hall to admire the results of several months of work by the gardeners brought by Crown Princess Sophie from Germany - an English garden with a British style.

(Sophie’s grandmother is Queen Victoria of England)

Among upper-class women, the topics are probably what kind of perfume is better, the new fashions in Paris, etc.

They are all topics that men will not be interested in.

Under the guidance of Constantine, the men came to the reception room, smoked and chatted.

In the default rule after the banquet, men will gather together and talk about economics and politics.

No one among the people present was stupid enough to really believe that the banquet carefully prepared by the crown prince and his wife was just about eating and drinking.

"The Ottoman Empire is becoming more and more degenerate. In recent years, we have been hearing about attacks on Christians, which is really irritating."

Sitting on the sofa, Angelis complained.

As a Fanarite from Constantinople (the name for high-status Greeks living in Constantinople), Angelis could not help but worry about the situation of Christians in the Ottoman Empire.

"Do you know? Those cases of MSI attacking Christians are like falling into the sea after entering the government. The criminals are only detained for a while and then released."

“This empire, once upon a time, was so tolerant and great, with a mind as broad as the sea, accommodating Jews, Greeks, Armenians, Serbs, Bulgarians, Arabs, etc., people of all nationalities and religious beliefs. in her land"

“It’s really a pity that it looks so disgusting now.”

Angelis said worriedly.

"Disharmony in the Ottoman Empire?" Constantine asked.

"Forget it, it's a mess."

There is no doubt that the Ottoman Empire was once the only great empire in the world.

This is not a compliment.

When the Ottoman Empire was strong, European countries often had a headache in selecting ambassadors to Constantinople.

They racked their brains just to choose an ambassador who was loyal to the country and would not betray the Ottoman Empire.

Because Western European cities of the same period, such as Paris and London, looked like the countryside compared to the majestic Constantinople.

It can be said that the city of Constantinople, in the hands of the Ottoman Turkish Empire, at least in the early and mid-term, did not disgrace her name as the "New Rome".

(The original name of Constantinople was New Rome)

The Ottoman Sultan, who enjoyed the title of "Caliph", was nominally the supreme leader and religious leader of all MSLs.

The territory of the Ottoman Empire included North Africa, Egypt, the Arabian Peninsula, Asia Minor, the Balkan Peninsula, the Black Sea coast, etc. It was the last empire in human history that spanned the three continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa.

The whole of Europe was trembling and terrified in front of the Ottoman Empire's 100,000 standing troops.

Since the Ottoman Empire adopted a tolerant policy that allowed its subjects to maintain other religious beliefs, you can see Orthodox churches, mosques, and synagogues in Constantinople.

It can be said that the atmosphere is magnificent, and thousands of people come to visit.

There is a saying that flowers are not good for a hundred days, but tasks are red for a hundred days.

Even such a great empire cannot escape the fate of decline.

Under the blow of the Russian-Turkish war again and again, the empire's once tolerant and self-confident disappeared, and instead became more and more conservative and closed.

“The Ottoman Empire has fallen and will continue to fall,” Constantinople said.

When everyone heard Constantine's judgment, they all looked at him, hoping he would give an explanation.

"The Ottoman Empire has completely lost Romania since the last war (the Russo-Turkish War of 1878), and now it is about to completely lose Bulgaria and Serbia as well (the Ottoman Empire still has suzerainty over Bulgaria and Serbia)"

"Its main food producing areas have disappeared, and it can no longer maintain the huge body of an empire."

In fact, after losing Romania, Bulgaria and Serbia, the empire was destined to decline.

What these three countries have in common is that they are located on the impact plain of the lower reaches of the Danube River, with abundant rainfall and abundant food.

Romania, for example, has always been an important breadbasket in Eastern Europe.

After losing these important food producing areas, it can be said that the fate of the Ottoman Empire was already doomed.

Although the territory owned by the Ottoman Empire was still vast, these important grain-producing areas were irreplaceable for the empire.