((Private))
Emperor Jaume IV made his way to a wing of the palace he had visited often over the past few years, for this was where many of the ministers conducted their business. The new prime minister had requested his presence at a meeting, although Jaume did not know what that was about. It seemed likely he wished to discuss plans for Hispania, or perhaps even the rumours swirling around court.
When the emperor arrived, he was surprised to find that the prime minister wasn't alone. Seated around a large table were all the other ministers, with a few notable exceptions. The grandmaster, chamberlain, and viceroy superior were not present, leaving the room filled with Trastámaras. Jaume took a seat at the head of the table, sitting across from Prime Minister Bartomeu de Trastámara.
"Thank you for joining us so promptly, Your Imperial Highness," Bartomeu said with his usual level of gruffness.
After looking around at the ministers assembled, Jaume said, "What is the meaning of this meeting?"
"Why to discuss our plans for the government, of course," Bartomeu said with all confidence. "I believed it would be more efficient for us all to devise our plans for our ministries together to avoid conflicts as seen over recent years."
Jaume nodded his head, for he could see the logic in that. "So shall the grandmaster, chamberlain, and viceroy superior be joining us shortly?"
Bartomeu suppressed a smirk. "Their presence is not necessary. The grandmaster has already submitted a plan to the court, the chamberlain's role is to express the interests of the nobility to the Crown and not to make plans, while the viceroy superior's role is irrelevant to the decisions we shall make."
Cardinal Joan de Trastámara, a kindly man of 70 who was surprisingly lively for his age, cleared his throat. When all attention turned to the court chaplain, he said, "It seems highly irregular to not involve the whole council in this meeting. Perhaps we should reconvene this meeting once they are available."
"They will be informed of the decisions made at this meeting once we are done," Bartomeu said. "I will not delay the execution of our duties for those three."
Emperor Jaume was not so sure of this. "Perhaps we should wait--"
"I assure you, Your Imperial Highness, that this will be conducted most efficiently," Bartomeu said, cutting off the emperor. More than a few of the men at the table bristled at that. "Now shall we begin?"
When no one spoke up, Bartomeu continued. "Andreu, perhaps you would like to elaborate on your plans for the chancellery."
Duke Andreu de Trastámara, a man who appeared in his 30s despite being almost 60, stood up straight in his chair and seemed deep in contemplation for a moment. "Obviously our most pressing concern should be Ming. We must continue the war until we are able to secure Canton and the surrounding area. As for other foreign policies, further expansion should be delayed while we focus on improving the administration. If an opportunity does arise to secure the rest of the Mediterranean, go for it. This may be a good time to pursue war with Persia and Genoa on Byzantium's behalf. The Greeks have been our faithful friends for centuries, so we should indulge them this once."
"Do you think it wise to look as though we're giving in to the Greeks?" Bartomeu asked. "Syria is currently in rebellion, after all."
"Three more provinces will make little difference in the grand scheme of things," Andreu said. "By initiating the war ourselves, we show that we are the ones in charge."
"Fair enough." Turning to the steward, Bartomeu said, "And what of your plans as steward."
Enric de Trastámara, a man with a somewhat hawkish appearance, glanced over some documents in front of him before proceeding. "The previous steward was fairly thorough, but with an empire this large there is always more to do. Clearly trade is of vital importance to us, so providing the necessary infrastructure should take priority. We also have many obsolete buildings in need of refurbishment, from barracks to workshops to shipyards. I also believe that we should improve the ports of our African colonies to be able to allow more ships to dock, for our most important trade routes flow around that continent."
Bartomeu wrote a few notes on a sheet of parchment in front of him. "Now for the marshal."
Cardinal Joan de Trastámara cleared his throat again. "And what of your plans for the treasury?"
The prime minister placed down his quill and crossed his arms. "I shall be devising most of it as I better come to understand our financial situation."
"Now come here, brother-in-law," Duke Andreu de Trastámara said. "You must at least have a vague idea of what you plan to do."
Bartomeu glared down his fellow duke, who had a satisfied smirk on his face. "If you must know, inflation should be kept down, ideally below 2%, army maintenance halved during peace time, war taxes raised during war, and the treasury should have at least 500 ducats in it at all times. As for funding, I shall have to hear what my brothers have to say."
All eyes turned to the marshal and grand admiral, both the prime minister's brothers. The marshal, Sanç de Trastámara, who busied himself with picking at his fingernails, said, "Army's fine. We don't need any more recruits."
With a frown on his face at the lacklustre plan, Emperor Jaume said, "But what of those serving in the army? I know a few have been clamouring for promotion, with a few wishing to become generals. Should you not hear out their requests?"
"Oh, I will," Sanç said, "provided they can afford it."
Sanç and his brother Carles looked at each other with a grin on their faces and burst out laughing. Bartomeu merely rolled his eyes at the behaviour of his younger siblings, while it was quite clear that the rest of the ministers did not approve.
Jaume, unaccustomed to this cavalier attitude, continued with his train of thought. "Shouldn't these men be considered based on merit? That has become the custom in Hispania for years."
"Well if that's the truth," Carles said, elbowing the marshal, "then my brother Sanç wouldn't be here." This time he was the only one laughing, for the marshal clearly did not appreciate the joke.
"Enough of that," Bartomeu said to his brother, silencing him in an instant. "What of the admiralty?"
"Oh, that...." Carles adjusted his collar. "Haven't really thought of anything yet."
"Oh for god's sake," Chancellor Andreu de Trastámara said, letting out a sigh. "My youngest son could do a better job than these two, and he's only 14."
"What did you just say?" Carles said, rising from his seat.
Andreu slowly followed suit, making for an imposing figure as he stared down the younger man. "I said that you and your dimwit brother are incompetent buffoons incapable of producing any sort of usable idea."
Carles seemed on the verge of leaping across the table at the chancellor, but then Cardinal Joan de Trastámara slammed his hands down on the table, startling everyone, and shouted, "Enough!"
That took the bluster out of the two men and they returned to their seats. Joan seemed quite shaken by his unusual lack of reserve, but quickly took charge of his emotions. "Perhaps we should just give the grand admiral some time to think and present ideas. Surely you must have something you think worth pursuing?"
Carles tapped his finger on the table for a minute before raising his hands in triumph. "What if we recruited some heavy ships to protect the transport fleets? Perhaps five threedeckers per fleet?"
"A tad expensive, don't you think?" Bartomeu said. "And with the grandmaster already proposing an expansion of the navy, perhaps a bit too many ships for us to sustain."
"Not necessarily," Steward Enric de Trastámara said. "If we follow through with my proposal to expand our ports, we should have little problem maintaining a larger navy, especially with only ten extra ships."
Carles, who seemed quite proud of himself, turned to his older brother and said, "See, no problem at all." He made sure to give a triumphant grin directed at Andreu as he laid back in his seat.
Without needing prompting, Court Chaplain Joan de Trastámara leaned forward in his chair and said, "I have been thinking about the future of the Church of Jesus Christ and have decided it is time that it was made universal to all of Hispania. There are still a few lords who refuse to acknowledge it in their lands, but I believe with imperial backing the people there can be convinced to embrace it."
Bartomeu let out a snort. "A cardinal suggesting the weakening of the Catholic faith's hold on Hispania? What has the faith come to."
"We've already seen what happens when you force your faith on another, and that applies to lords and their subjects. Religious tension between Christians has been practically non-existent in Hispania for decades, yet we still see nations squabbling over faith in Europe, the most recent example being Hungary's repeated wars to liberate Catholics from their Protestant overlords."
The group discussed the various ministerial plans a bit longer, but then finally turned to the emperor to close the meeting. Jaume rose from his seat, mostly satisfied with what had been discussed. "This has been a most productive meeting. Shall we go inform the court of the council's plans?"
"That will not be necessary," Bartomeu said as he gathered up some documents.
"Oh, so you intend to tell them yourself?" Emperor Jaume wasn't sure if he should be worried or impressed. It seemed like the new prime minister was keen to take charge.
"Hardly," Bartomeu said. "Nothing we have discussed here should be brought before the court."
Jaume sputtered a bit before he could reply. "Not tell the court? That's unheard of. Ministerial plans have been shared with the court for nearly three centuries."
"An out-dated practice back from the days when court approval was actually needed for these plans," Bartomeu said with cold efficiency. "Only the approval of the prime minister and emperor are required, and seeing as neither of us have rejected these plans, they have received all the approval needed."
"But the court should know--"
"Most definitely not," Bartomeu said, interrupting the emperor yet again. "What if the chancellor's plans reached our enemies? Would you like our enemies to know precisely when we are going to attack them? Discretion is what's needed here."
The cardinal, noticing the emperor's discomfort, interjected. "Perhaps we should at least share these plans with our fellow ministers. Seeing as the grandmaster, chamberlain, and viceroy superior were not present, it is only right they be informed of the proceedings of this meeting."
Bartomeu shrugged. "If you insist. Either way, this meeting is adjourned for now."
The prime minister was the first to leave the room, followed immediately by his younger brothers, the marshal and grand admiral. The chancellor offered a curt bow to the emperor before taking his leave. The court chaplain, a kind smile on his face, rested his hand on the emperor's shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze. "Do not fret, Your Imperial Highness. I know these times are most trying for you, but remember that some of us are always here to serve you."
Jaume couldn't help but smile in return. He found so many of his relatives overwhelming and hard to deal with, but it seemed at least one was easy to be around. "Thank you, Your Eminence."
As the elderly cardinal left the room, that left just Jaume and the steward, Enric de Trastámara. Enric was one of the few present who Jaume had met before, although not under the best circumstances. As the steward made his way towards the doorway, he stopped before the emperor with a mild grin on his face and said, "Please tell your 'spymaster' to come see me tomorrow. Make sure you two don't stay up too late tonight."
Jaume's face went bright red at the mention of his indiscretion, something that only made Enric chuckle as he left the room. The meeting hadn't exactly gone as expected when he first arrived and he prayed he did not have to sit through many more. Sitting and speaking with these people was exhausting. Now to return to his quarters and for his usual meeting with his 'spymaster'.
* * * * *
((For the sake of clarity and to make it easier for when I do the update, here are the plans from the meeting:
Chancellor - Finish war with Ming, claiming land around Canton. Declare war on Persia and Genoa to secure Anatolia for Byzantium. Attempt to claim the remaining Mediterranean provinces from Egypt if possible.
Steward - Build and upgrade trade buildings wherever possible. Upgrade any building that can be expanded excluding forts. Build shipyards in Africa to expand our force limit.
Treasurer - Try to keep inflation below 2%. Lower army maintenance to half during peace time. Raise war taxes during war. Keep at least 500 ducats in the treasury at all times.
Marshal - Nothing other than promoting a few generals if necessary.
Grand Admiral - Recruit 10 threedeckers, with 5 attached to each transport fleet.
Court Chaplain - Convert all remaining holdout provinces.
Also, to make it clear, all these plans have been withheld from the court, so no one knows what the ministers have decided upon. The only ones who know that were not at the meeting are the remaining ministers, so
@05060403,
@Robban204, and
@ML8991. Everyone else is in the dark. Those three who know may make do with the information as they please. While I'm at it....))
Rumours circulate around court that the council has been deliberating on plans in secret. The fact that none have been openly shared with the court seems to corroborate this.