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disposed with the wickedness of the former, he attempts to stir up a more difficult war. For having slandered and misled the emperor's son with many lies, as he was young and utterly inexperienced in the knaveries and tricks and the reversals on both sides of men, they persuaded him to pay attention to them, as ones who loved and cared for him and were doing everything on his behalf, so that they might recover his paternal rule, although they were in truth most hostile to him and to all the Romans, and to consider me a plotter and an enemy, who in truth loves him and is managing everything, not only so that he might have his paternal dominion, but a greater and better one, if it were possible. And he already began a war, having made agreements with the Kralis for the purpose of taking a Triballian army from there to lead against me; which things I think will be profitable neither for him, nor for his subjects, nor for us. So the expected calamities are thus difficult; but I think that no one else will be able to resolve these things most easily, except us. If, then, this present Latin war 3.206 were not upon us against our will, I myself would have most easily dissolved the conspiracies by attacking, not just by being seen by those conspirators who are stirring up the war, but even by just being heard of, that I have set out to march against them. For they would not have waited, but would have tried to escape the danger by putting on, as they say, the cap of Hades. But since I am compelled to be present myself at the battle being prepared, it is necessary for you to sail away to Thessalonica to resolve the disputes and to stop the expected war, teaching your son, on the one hand, how difficult it is for him to destroy willingly the dominion, of which in a short time he himself will be master without wars and troubles, for I myself, if the war against the Triballians had not been stirred up, and now this Latin war that came upon us unwillingly, would long ago have handed over the affairs to him, having myself donned the habit of a monk, just as I am prepared to do again a little later, and on the other hand, rebuking those seditionists who are causing the common misfortune of the Romans and threatening the most terrible things and trying in every way to make them desist from their wickedness. Such things the emperor Kantakouzenos said to the empress Anna, persuading her to sail away to Thessalonica for the purpose of dissolving the sedition already being stirred up; but she at first gently reproached the emperor, as one who was not persuaded by her advising and begging the best things, not to leave their son alone in Thessalonica, since he was still young and could easily be deceived and 3.207 led away from moderation, and this while he was associating with those most wicked men, who, using many deceptions and flatteries, could overcome even the most formidable man who had much experience of their knaveries and tricks. "But since it has been so arranged, and the unprofitable things have seemed more preferable, I will sail eagerly to my son," she said, "and by appearing I will resolve all the difficulties." And the emperor, since he was persuaded, provided triremes from among the armed ships, and she sailed down to Thessalonica. And having arrived there, she found the war already brilliantly kindled, for all the agreements with the Kralis had been concluded, according to which he was to be an ally to the young emperor, and the Kralis himself with his wife was encamped near Thessalonica, hastening the war of the Romans against each other. For it seemed very profitable to them, since they feared the emperor Kantakouzenos, and they showed great generosity toward the young emperor, wishing to persuade him by this that they both loved him and cared for him as one who was wronged. But quite the opposite was their aim. For in order to deprive him of many great things, they provided certain paltry things of no value. All these things, then, the empress dissolved like spiderwebs by her appearance. For she both advised her son of what was necessary and persuaded him, knowing it, to honor his pa 3.208 rents and to submit in all things that they, who loved him most of all, counsel, and she was borne with anger against the seditionists and frightened them and compelled them to refrain from their outrages, threatening to inflict the ultimate punishments. And going out to the Kralis and conversing with his wife, to unjust

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φαυλότητι διακειμένους τῶν προτέρων, χαλεπώτερον πόλεμον ἀνακινεῖν ἐπιχειρεῖ. βασιλέα γὰρ τὸν υἱὸν πολλὰ καταψευσάμενοι καὶ παραγαγόντες, οἷα νέον καὶ τῶν πανουργιῶν καὶ τῶν δόλων καὶ τῶν ἐφ' ἑκάτερα μεταβολῶν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἄπειρον παντάπασιν, ἔπεισαν προσέχειν σφίσιν, ὡς φιλοῦσι καὶ κηδομένοις καὶ πάντα πράττουσιν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ, ὅπως τὴν πατρῴαν ἀνασώσωνται ἀρχὴν, δυσμενέστατοι ὡς ἀληθῶς ἐκείνῳ τε καὶ πᾶσι Ῥωμαίοις ὄντες, ἐμὲ δὲ ἐπίβουλον ἡγεῖσθαι καὶ πολέμιον τὸν ὡς ἀληθῶς φιλοῦντα καὶ πάντα πραγματευόμενον, οὐχ ὥστε μόνον τὴν πατρῴαν ἡγεμονίαν ἔχειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ μείζω καὶ βελτίω, ἂν ἐξῇ. καὶ πολέμου ἤδη ἦρξε, συμβάσεις θέμενος πρὸς Κράλην ἐπὶ τῷ στρατιὰν ἐκεῖθεν λαβὼν Τριβαλικὴν ἐμοὶ ἐπάγειν· ἃ οὔτ' ἐκείνῳ οἴομαι λυσιτελήσειν, οὔτε τοῖς ὑπηκόοις, οὔθ' ἡμῖν. τὰ μὲν οὖν προσδοκώμενα δεινὰ οὕτω χαλεπά· οἴομαι δὲ οὐδένα ἕτερον ταῦτα δυνήσεσθαι ῥᾷστα διαλύσειν, ἢ ἡμᾶς. εἰ μὲν οὖν μὴ ὁ παρὼν οὑτοσὶ Λατινικὸς πόλεμος 3.206 ἄκουσιν ἐπέκειτο ἡμῖν, ῥᾷστα ἂν αὐτὸς διέλυσα τὰς συστάσεις ἐπελθὼν, οὐχ ὅτι γε ὀφθεὶς τοῖς ἐπιβουλεύουσιν ἐκείνοις καὶ τὸν πόλεμον κινοῦσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀκουσθεὶς μόνον, ὅτι ἐπ' αὐτοὺς βαδίζειν ὥρμημαι. οὐ γὰρ ἂν ὑπέμειναν μὴ οὐχὶ κυνῆν, ὅ φασιν, ᾅδου ὑποδύντες διαδιδράσκειν τὸν κίνδυνον πειρᾶσθαι. ἐπεὶ δ' ἀνάγκην ἔχω πρὸς τὴν παρασκευαζομένην αὐτὸς παρεῖναι μάχην, δέον αὐτὴν εἰς Θεσσαλονίκην ἀποπλεύσασαν διαλύειν τὰς διαφορὰς καὶ τὸν προσδοκώμενον πόλεμον παύειν, διδάξασαν μὲν τὸν υἱὸν, ὅσῳ χαλεπὸν τὴν ἡγεμονίαν αὐτὸν ἑκόντα διαφθείρειν, ἧς μετὰ μικρὸν ἔσται κύριος αὐτὸς ἄνευ πολέμων καὶ πραγμάτων, αὐτὸς γὰρ, εἰ μὴ ὁ πρὸς Τριβαλοὺς πόλεμος κεκίνητο, καὶ νῦν ὁ Λατινικὸς οὑτοσὶ ἀκουσίως ἐπελθὼν, πάλαι ἂν ἐκείνῳ ἐνεχείρισα τὰ πράγματα, μοναχῶν σχῆμα ὑποδὺς αὐτὸς, ὥσπερ καὶ μικρὸν αὖθις ὕστερον παρεσκεύασμαι ποιεῖν, τοὺς δὲ στασιαστὰς ἐκείνους καὶ τὴν κοινὴν Ῥωμαίων δυστυχίαν πράττοντας ἐπιπλήττουσαν καὶ ἀπειλοῦσαν τὰ δεινότατα καὶ πάντα τρόπον πειρωμένην ἀφιστᾷν τῆς μοχθηρίας. τοιαῦτα μὲν Καντακουζηνὸς ὁ βασιλεὺς πρὸς Ἄνναν τὴν βασιλίδα διειλέχθη, πείθων πρὸς Θεσσαλονίκην ἀποπλέειν ἐπὶ τῷ τὴν κινουμένην ἤδη στάσιν διαλύειν· ἡ δὲ πρῶτα μὲν ἠρέμα καθήπτετο βασιλέως, ὡς οὐ πειθομένου τὰ βέλτιστα παραινούσης καὶ δεομένης, μὴ καταλείπειν ἐν Θεσσαλονίκῃ μόνον τὸν υἱὸν, ἔτι νέον ὄντα καὶ ῥᾳδίως δυνάμενον ἐξαπατᾶσθαι καὶ 3.207 ἐξάγεσθαι τοῦ μετρίου, καὶ ταῦτα τοῖς πονηροτάτοις συνδιατρίβοντα ἐκείνοις, οἳ κἂν καὶ τοῦ δεινοτάτου περιγένοιντο καὶ πολλὴν πεῖραν τῶν πανουργιῶν αὐτῶν καὶ τῶν δόλων ἐσχηκότος, πολλαῖς ἀπάταις χρώμενοι καὶ κολακείαις. ἐπεὶ δ' οὕτω συνεσκευάσθη, καὶ τὰ μὴ λυσιτελοῦντα μᾶλλον αἱρετώτερα ἐφάνη, προθύμως ἐπὶ τὸν υἱὸν πλευσοῦμαι, εἶπε, καὶ πάντα διαλύσω τὰ δυσχερῆ ὀφθεῖσα. καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς, ἐπεὶ ἐπείθετο, τριήρεις παρέσχετο ἐκ τῶν ἐφωπλισμένων, καὶ κατέπλεεν εἰς Θεσσαλονίκην. γενομένη δὲ ἐκεῖ, τόν τε πόλεμον εὕρισκε λαμπρῶς ἐξαφθέντα ἤδη, πᾶσαι γὰρ αἱ πρὸς Κράλην συμβάσεις ἀπηρτισμέναι ἦσαν, ἐφ' αἷς ἔδει συμμαχεῖν τῷ νέῳ βασιλεῖ, καὶ Κράλης αὐτὸς μετὰ τῆς γυναικὸς ἐγγὺς ἐστρατοπεδεύοντο Θεσσαλονίκης, τὸν πρὸς ἀλλήλους τῶν Ῥωμαίων πόλεμον ἐπισπεύδοντες. πάνυ γὰρ ἐδόκει σφίσι λυσιτελεῖν Καντακουζηνὸν τὸν βασιλέα δεδιόσι, καὶ μεγάλας ἐπεδείξαντο πρὸς βασιλέα τὸν νέον τὰς φιλοτιμίας, βουλόμενοι πείθειν αὐτὸν ἐκ τούτου, ὡς φιλοῦσί τε καὶ κήδονται αὐτοῦ ἀδικουμένου. τοὐναντίον δ' ἅπαν ἐσπουδάζετο. ὑπὲρ γὰρ τοῦ πολλῶν καὶ μεγάλων ἀποστερεῖν φαῦλά τινα καὶ οὐδενὸς ἄξια παρεῖχον. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἅπαντα ἀραχνίων δίκην διέλυεν ἡ βασιλὶς ἐπιφανεῖσα. τῷ τε γὰρ υἱῷ τὰ δέοντα παρῄνει καὶ ἔπειθεν εἰδότα τιμᾷν γο 3.208 νέας καὶ πάντα ὑπείκειν, ὅσα ἐκεῖνοι, πάντων μάλιστα φιλοῦντες, συμβουλεύουσι, καὶ πρὸς τοὺς στασιαστὰς ὀργῇ ἐφέρετο καὶ ἐξεφόβει καὶ κατηνάγκαζεν ἀπέχεσθαι τῶν ἀτόπων, τὰ ἔσχατα διαθήσειν ἀπειλοῦσα. πρός τε Κράλην ἐξελθοῦσα καὶ διαλεχθεῖσα μετὰ τῆς γυναικὸς, ἀδίκοις