Medieval: Kingdom Come: Deliverance

The sudden outburst of von Polgar, who was always very particular about etiquette, became the talk of the town hall among the noble gentlemen.

Prague has no secrets.

Soon, news that "bandits are rampant in the territory of Troski and the eldest son of Polgar was defeated and captured" spread throughout the noble circles of Prague, becoming a laughing stock at banquets.

King Gigi was quite the comedian; red-haired people seem to have a bit of a goofy side. Upon hearing the news, he immediately rushed to von Polgao's residence to comfort him and, incidentally, to see some laughs.

Yes, it's a joke.

Whether it was von Borgao or the other nobles, they all knew that the capture of the son of such a high-ranking nobleman was not a threat to his life; it would just cost more money.

Therefore, there was no sadness or sympathy, only schadenfreude and amusement at the spectacle.

"Otto, my loyal companion. Why would your heir go to such a remote rural place as Trossky and get captured? I really don't understand."

King Gigi sat in the study of the Borgo family, sipping wine and making sarcastic remarks. He seemed to find pleasure in watching other people's sons suffer, given his childlessness.

With a serious expression, Feng Boergao said helplessly, "My King, isn't this all for your sake?"

"For me?"

King Gigi became even more curious, "How so?"

von Polgao said, "Ever since you imprisoned Wenzel (Wancev IV's nickname), his supporters have never had a moment's peace. They have even questioned the legitimacy of your succession to the throne. They have even secretly colluded with the church to try to recognize Wenzel's illegitimate son and put him on the throne."

"You mean that four-year-old boy, Johannes Václav?"

King Gigi immediately remembered his brother's romantic escapades.

His brother Wenceslaus IV was born in 1361 and became Holy Roman Emperor in 1376. He was allied with the Wittelsbach family of Bavaria and Holland, and his wife Joanna was the daughter of Duke Albert I of Bavaria.

Wenceslaus loved hunting dogs, and being both naive and playful, in 1383, before his wife could give birth to an heir, Queen Joanna was mauled to death by her runaway hounds. This directly offended the Duchy of Bavaria and even sparked a local war with the County of Holland.

From 1383 to 1389, for a full six years, Wenceslaus IV completely indulged in his own desires. On one hand, he cultivated an image of a pure and innocent man, refusing to play with dogs, marry, and devoted to the memory of his deceased wife. On the other hand, he privately indulged in a very promiscuous lifestyle, even ruining his health in the process.

In 1389, at the age of 28, Wenceslaus IV married for the second time, aiming to ease tensions with the Bavarian family following his failed first marriage and to counter domestic noble rebellions. His second wife was Sophia, daughter of Duke Johann II of Munich. Wenceslaus IV and Sophia also signed an agreement stipulating that if they had no children within ten years of marriage, the marriage would be automatically dissolved. As it turned out, they indeed had no children.

However, Wenceslaus IV dared not mention divorce, as he still needed the power of his father-in-law, the Duke of Munich, to suppress opposition among the nobility. So he frequently indulged in orgies, eventually fathering an illegitimate son with a woman of low social standing, whom Wenceslaus named Johannes Wenceslaus.

But neither the church, the nobility, nor the queen's family recognized the existence of this illegitimate child.

Even now, with Wenceslaus IV imprisoned again, some people have harbored malicious intentions to use the four-year-old child against him. However, the shrewd Count von Polgao saw through their scheme and secretly disposed of the child.

"Protecting your throne is protecting my interests. We are an unbreakable political alliance!"

von Polgar said this.

"But that child has already disappeared, so what does this have to do with Trossky?"

King Gigi was still puzzled.

"There's one more!"

"Feng Boergao said in a deep voice."

"illegitimate child?!"

King Gigi was a little jealous of his brother. He was so powerful but had no sons, while his brother, who was a complete waste, had two illegitimate children.

"Who is it?" King Gigi asked jealously.

"It was the child of Serena, the daughter of Count Sedras, who gave birth out of wedlock when she was seventeen," von Polgao explained. "Serena died of postpartum illness not long after giving birth, but she gave her child a very nice name before she died—Peter."

"I think I... have some recollection of this..."

King Gigi, lost in thought, his expression shifting several times, asked, "What was he doing in Troski?"

Feng Boer was speechless for a moment. He really couldn't say that the boy went to Troski to do hard labor, and then he sent his son to hunt him down, but failed and ended up being killed instead.

"Cough cough, perhaps there's an unstable element hidden in his blood. Not long after this kid arrived in Trossky, he turned into a bandit, nicknamed Red-Haired Peter, robbing and murdering, committing all sorts of evil deeds. Recently, he even took over the mountains and forests, gathering a group of rioters and calling himself the Red Griffin Baron. My son was defeated by him through conspiracy."

"Red-haired Peter?"

King Gigi suddenly became interested and pressed on, "You said he has red hair? Why do you think he's Wenzel's illegitimate son? What evidence do you have? There were no such rumors before."

"Your Majesty, you were sent to the Hungarian royal family at the age of 12, so you may not know that after Queen Joanna's death in 1383, King Wenzel indulged in a dissolute lifestyle for six long years, secretly having illicit relationships with many noble ladies. Serena of the Count of Sedras became pregnant in 1384 and gave birth to an illegitimate child, bringing shame upon the entire family. No one knows who the child's father is. But until now, his red hair has betrayed his father's identity—the only red-haired nobleman in Prague, His Majesty Wenceslaus IV!"

1383 years?

King Gigi was deeply impressed by the experience. In 1369, at the age of 12, he was sent to the Hungarian court, intending to inherit the Hungarian throne after his father-in-law's death. However, he was betrayed by his mother-in-law and expelled from Hungary in 1383. He fled back to the Bohemian Royal Palace in disgrace and secretly recuperated. At that time, his relationship with his brother was still relatively good.

He didn't return secretly until 1385, when Hungary was in turmoil. He pretended to be a bandit, killed his mother-in-law, drove his wife insane, and fully inherited the Hungarian throne. A few years later, his insane wife fell from her horse and died. She was pregnant with a baby boy.

Perhaps it was because of this tragedy that both he and his unborn child died, a great loss of virtue. From then on, King Gigi was unable to produce a legitimate heir until 1409, when he was 52 years old, when the young queen, known as the "slayer of a thousand men" in Hungary, finally gave birth to a daughter, Elizabeth.

"But Wenzel is clearly brown-haired, how could he have a red-haired son?"

King Gigi rubbed his curly red hair, looking quite puzzled.

"No, to be precise, King Wenceslaus's hair was chestnut-gold in his youth, turned ochre in middle age, and in recent years, it has become a mix of gray and red. Your father, His Majesty Charles IV, had dark brown hair that was almost black, and Wenzel's mother, Anna, had a famous blonde lineage in the Polish royal family. When the two of them were together, they often had children with reddish-brown hair."

Feng Boergao is quite knowledgeable.

He continued, "Ever since His Majesty Wenceslaus's hair turned red, rumors have been circulating among the upper nobility of Prague that the Count of Sedras's illegitimate son is his father. After Johannes Wenceslaus disappeared, the opposition set their sights on that red-haired Peter. I originally intended to deal with him secretly before the rebels found him. But I didn't expect him to be even more cunning than I anticipated. If I had known this, I wouldn't have cared about the Sedras family's opinion and would have acted directly in Prague!"

Feng Boergao's face showed regret.

Turning his head, he found that King Gigi's expression was very strange.