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you will make all who belong to him feel much gratitude to you, and you will bind them with certain unbreakable bonds of goodwill, by which they will be compelled for life to neglect nothing that contributes to your glory and benefit. Therefore, as one demonstrating magnanimity in great matters, do not stop your impulse at words only, but by bringing what has been well-planned quickly to light and to action.” 47. Such things the emperor Kantakouzenos discussed with the 3.341 emperor Palaiologos, urging him to release from his chains the emperor Matthew, his wife’s brother. And he, having been previously inclined of his own accord, was still more strengthened and considered putting his plans into action. But in the meantime something of this sort happened that almost persuaded him to desist from his former plans. For a certain Zeianos, one of the servants of the emperor Kantakouzenos, approaching the empress Eugenia, advised her not to hesitate concerning the freedom of her son, nor to pay attention to the words of the emperor her son-in-law, which were contrived for deception and trickery, but both to risk it herself and to urge on her friends. And he would cooperate in the most important matters, if she herself would provide some moderate funds and persuade her friends to join in. For he would be able not only to release him from his chains, but also to restore him to his former prosperity, if he were able to bring his plans to fruition. But the empress Eugenia, condemning his great folly, as he was promising things greater than his present ability allowed, both sent him away, not even deeming him worthy of a word, and advised him to keep quiet, since his daring would result in nothing more than being the cause of many tortures for himself. But he, driven by much madness, was himself rushing into foolish actions and was trying to persuade others far better than himself, that they would be able to do great things with the emperor Matthew, if they were seen doing such things on his behalf. And he himself proposed a plan, that having watched for an opportunity, when the emperor 3.342 might be staying outside Byzantium, they, having prepared themselves, should attack the guards in the palace before they noticed; and having driven them out, and all the others likewise, they themselves should hold the fortress and defend themselves against attackers, having seized only the emperor's children and the empress his wife inside. And if the emperor should come against them and command them to surrender, they should demand oaths from him, that he would not only not punish them for their audacity, but would keep them unharmed, and in addition would provide money and release the emperor Matthew, his wife's brother, from prison and entrust to him the rule of the city of Adrianople and the towns around it. And if the emperor would not yield to all this, nor be persuaded, they should threaten that they would kill his children and wife. And he, being unable to prevail by arms, would yield everything out of necessity for the sake of his children's safety. Such things Zeianos suggested to the conspirators. But a short time later, when the plot was revealed to the emperor, he was both arrested and interrogated as to whether he had many accomplices. And he confessed to certain others and the empress Kantakouzene, and said that he had been induced to this by her, as she had made great promises; for he would not have undertaken such great things on his own, living in great obscurity and poverty, unless someone of sufficient standing were cooperating in such matters. To the emperor it immediately seemed terrible on both counts. For that the empress should be slandered in such matters, if she had no knowledge of their 3.343 plot, was not good; and for her to have knowledge of it and to cooperate was very grievous, if he himself was so well-disposed towards her that he wished even to release her son from his chains, when no one else would have expected it, while she was so hostile as to contrive such plots against him; but he rather suspected the words to be slander, and he wished to make it clear to all that what had been said were calumnies. Therefore he himself carefully interrogated Zeianos, promising him he would remit the penalty for the plot, if he would confess that what had been said about the empress were slanders, and to those in authority

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προσήκοντας ἐκείνῳ πάντας πολλάς σοι χάριτας εἰδέναι παρασκευάσεις, καὶ ὥσπερ τισὶ δεσμοῖς ἀῤῥήκτοις εὐνοίας δήσεις, ὑφ' ὧν ἀναγκασθήσονται διὰ βίου τῶν εἰς εὐδοξίαν καὶ ὠφέλειαν τὴν σὴν ἡκόντων μηδενὸς καταμελεῖν. ὡς οὖν ἐπὶ μεγάλοις ἀγαθοῖς ἐπιδειξόμενος τὴν μεγαλοψυχίαν, μὴ μέχρι λόγων μόνον στήσῃς τὴν ὁρμὴν, ἀλλὰ τὰ καλῶς βεβουλευμένα ταχέως φανῆναι καὶ εἰς ἔργον ἀγαγών.» μζʹ. Τοιαῦτα μὲν βασιλεὺς ὁ Καντακουζηνὸς πρὸς τὸν 3.341 Παλαιολόγον βασιλέα διειλέχθη ἐπὶ τῷ Ματθαῖον βασιλέα τὸν γυναικὸς ἀδελφὸν ἀπολύειν τῶν δεσμῶν παρακαλῶν. ὁ δὲ καὶ πρότερον ὡρμημένος οἴκοθεν, ἔτι μᾶλλον ἐπεῤῥώσθη καὶ ἐσκέπτετο εἰς ἔργον τὰ βεβουλευμένα ἀγαγεῖν. μεταξὺ δέ τι συμβὰν τοιοῦτον ὀλίγου δεῖν παρέπεισε τῶν προτέρων ἀποσχέσθαι βουλευμάτων. Ζειανὸς γάρ τις τῶν Καντακουζηνοῦ τοῦ βασιλέως οἰκετῶν, Εὐγενίᾳ τῇ βασιλίδι προσελθὼν, παρῄνει πρὸς τὴν ἐλευθερίαν τοῦ υἱοῦ μὴ κατοκνεῖν, μηδὲ τοῖς βασιλέως τοῦ γαμβροῦ προσέχειν λόγοις πρὸς ἀπάτην συνεσκευασμένοις καὶ φενακισμὸν, ἀλλ' αὐτήν τε διακινδυνεύειν καὶ τοὺς φίλους παρορμᾷν. αὐτὸν δὲ τὰ μέγιστα συγκατεργάσεσθαι, ἢν χρήματά τε μέτρια παράσχοιτο αὐτή τινα καὶ τοὺς φίλους πείσειε συναίρεσθαι. δυνήσεσθαι γὰρ αὐτὸν οὐ τῶν δεσμῶν ἐκεῖνον μόνον ἀπαλλάττειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς τὴν ἀρχαίαν εὐετηρίαν ἐπανάγειν, εἰ τὰ βεβουλευμένα εἰς ἔργον δυνηθείη ἀγαγεῖν. Εὐγενία δὲ ἡ βασιλὶς πολλὴν ἐκείνου καταγνοῦσα ἄνοιαν, ὡς μείζω, ἢ κατὰ τὴν προσοῦσαν ἐπαγγελλομένου δύναμιν, ἀπέπεμπέ τε, οὐδὲ λόγου ἀξιώσασα, καὶ παρῄνει ἠρεμεῖν, ὡς οὐδὲν πλέον, ἢ πολλῶν ἑαυτῷ βασάνων αἰτίου ἐσομένου τοῦ τολμήματος. ὁ δὲ ὑπὸ πολλῆς παραπληξίας αὐτός τε ὥρμητο ἐπὶ πράξεις ἀνοήτους καὶ ἄλλους ἐπεχείρει πείθειν πολλῷ βελτίους ἑαυτοῦ, ὡς μεγάλα δυνησομένους παρὰ Ματθαίῳ βασιλεῖ, εἰ τοιαῦτα ὑπὲρ ἐκείνου πράττοντες ὀφθεῖεν. γνώμην δὲ αὐτὸς εἰσῆγεν, ὡς καιρὸν ἐπιτηρήσαντας, ἡνίκα ἂν ἔξω Βυζαντίου διατρίβοι βασι 3.342 λεὺς, αὐτοὺς παρασκευασαμένους, τοῖς ἐν βασιλείοις ἐπιθέσθαι φρουροῖς πρὶν αἰσθέσθαι· ἐξελάσαντας δὲ αὐτούς τε καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἅπαντας ὁμοίως, αὐτοὺς τὸ φρούριον κατέχειν καὶ ἀμύνεσθαι τοὺς ἐπιόντας, τοὺς παῖδας βασιλέως μόνον ἔνδον καὶ γαμετὴν τὴν βασιλίδα κατασχόντας. ἂν δ' ἐπίῃ βασιλεὺς αὐτοῖς καὶ κελεύῃ προσχωρεῖν, ὅρκους ἀπαιτεῖν αὐτὸν, ἦ μὴν αὐτούς τε μὴ ἀμύνασθαι τῆς τόλμης ἕνεκα, ἀλλ' ἀπαθεῖς κακῶν διατηρεῖν, καὶ προσέτι χρήματα παρέχειν καὶ Ματθαῖον βασιλέα τὸν γυναικὸς ἀδελφὸν ἀφιέναι τοῦ δεσμωτηρίου καὶ τῆς πόλεως Ἀδριανοῦ καὶ τῶν περὶ αὐτὴν πολιχνίων ἐπιτρέπειν τὴν ἀρχήν. εἰ δὲ μὴ πρὸς πάντα βασιλεὺς ὑπείκοι, μηδὲ πείθοιτο, ἀπειλεῖν, ὡς ἀποκτενοῦσι παῖδας καὶ γυναῖκα. αὐτὸν δὲ τοῖς ὅπλοις μὴ δυνάμενον περιγενέσθαι, προήσεσθαι πάντα ὑπ' ἀνάγκης τῆς τῶν παίδων σωτηρίας ἕνεκα. τοιαῦτα μὲν τοῖς συνομόταις ὑπετίθει Ζειανός. μετὰ μικρὸν δὲ τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς μηνυθείσης βασιλεῖ, συνελαμβάνετό τε καὶ ἀνεκρίνετο, εἰ πολλοὺς ἔχοι τοὺς συνειδότας. ὁ δὲ ἄλλους τέ τινας συνωμολόγει καὶ Καντακουζηνὴν τὴν βασιλίδα, καὶ ἔφασκεν εἰς τοῦτο ὑπ' ἐκείνης ἐναχθῆναι μεγάλα ἐπαγγειλαμένης· μηδὲ γὰρ ἂν ἐφ' ἑαυτὸν τηλικούτοις ἐγχειρεῖν, ἀφανείᾳ πολλῇ συζῶντα καὶ πενίᾳ, μή τινος πρὸς τὰ τοιαῦτα ἀξιόχρεω συμπράττοντος. βασιλεῖ δὲ εὐθὺς ἐδόκει ἑκατέρωθεν δεινόν. τό,τε γὰρ ἐπὶ τοιούτοις διαβεβλῆσθαι βασιλίδα, εἰ συνειδείη μηδὲν αὐτοῖς πρὸς τὴν 3.343 ἐπιβουλὴν, οὐκ ἀγαθόν· καὶ τὸ συνειδέναι καὶ συμπράττειν σφόδρα χαλεπὸν, εἰ ἐκείνῃ μὲν αὐτὸς τοσοῦτον εὐνοοίη, ὥστε βούλεσθαι καὶ τὸν υἱὸν ἀπολύειν τῶν δεσμῶν, οὐδενὸς ἂν ἑτέρου προσδοκήσαντος, αὐτὴ δ' ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον δυσμεναίνοι, ὥστ' ἐπιβουλὰς τοιαύτας συσκευάζειν κατ' αὐτοῦ· μᾶλλον δὲ ὑπώπτευεν εἶναι τοὺς λόγους συκοφαντίας, καὶ πᾶσι ποιεῖν ἐβούλετο καταφανὲς, ὡς εἴη διαβολαὶ τὰ εἰρημένα. διὸ αὐτός τε ἀνέκρινεν ἐπιμελῶς τὸν Ζειανὸν, ἐπαγγελλόμενος αὐτῷ τὴν ἐπὶ τῇ ἐπιβουλῇ ἀφήσειν δίκην, εἰ τὰ περὶ βασιλίδος εἰρημένα συνομολογοίη ὡς εἴη συκοφαντίαι, καὶ τῶν ἐν τέλει τοῖς