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he entrusted the examination to more distinguished men. But he similarly insisted in all cases that the things he had said were true, and that she was the cause of everything, explaining everything and devising ways and schemes by which their plans might be successfully accomplished. And he added persuasive words, by which he almost convinced the majority to suspect evil things already about the empress. This having happened, and Kallistos the patriarch having arrived at the palace, when Zeianus, being examined, learned that he was present, he demanded an excommunication from God by the patriarch, so that he would thus be compelled to speak the whole truth. Since it also seemed advantageous to the emperor—for Zeianus would not be so reckless of himself as to lie against the empress for the destruction of his soul with no hope of 3.344 gain—he permitted it to be done. And when the excommunication had been pronounced, he asserted what he had said before even more firmly. This especially shook the emperor’s resolve and persuaded him that the empress Eugenia was hostile to him, though previously he had in no way tolerated having evil suspicions about her. Being not moderately vexed and filled with grief at what had happened, he ordered Zeianus to be imprisoned and guarded in a prison, but he himself refrained from doing or planning anything concerning the freedom of his wife’s brother, reasoning that it was absurd and utterly dreadful that his mother the empress should show such bitterness and ill-will toward him, so as to do everything by which he might be destroyed, or might experience the most severe hardships, while he himself, as if deprived of reason, should release her son from prison, who would also be an enemy along with her. But when a short time had thus passed, Zeianus in prison, as if coming to an awareness of what he had done, and becoming afraid, lest after death he be condemned to be with the damned in Hades, since indeed, in addition to having slandered the empress, he had also received an excommunication from God and had chosen to be with the demons separated from God, sent a letter to the patriarch through one of his very close friends. It declared that the empress was slandered by him in the things that had been said and that she knew nothing of the plots with him and the conspirators 3.345; and that for the sake of his fabrications being believed he had wickedly and foolishly accepted the excommunication. But now, having realized into what a pit he had slipped through his senselessness, he begged to obtain forgiveness by revealing the whole truth, and to be released from the bonds of the excommunication. So Zeianus wrote such things; but the one carrying the letter, being sharp-witted and quick to seize opportunities, and realizing that if he took the letter to the patriarch, he would have provided a benefit to Zeianus alone, but by making it known to the emperors, in addition to benefiting Zeianus, he would also free the empress Eugenia from the slander and her son from prison, he arrived before the empress Eugenia, also bringing the letter. She immediately sent it to the emperor Kantakouzenos, and he, without delay, showed the letter to the young emperor. And so, the slander having been most clearly refuted, the young emperor was ecstatic with pleasure, because the hostility towards his closest relatives was dissolved, which he most wanted, and condemning the great wickedness of Zeianus for having rashly and vainly chosen such slander, he acted again to release his wife's brother from prison. But since affairs were calling him necessarily to Thessalonica and required his presence, he set out on an expedition with triremes. And after his return, sending from Tenedos, he brought his wife's brother to Epibatai, a certain fortress near Selymbria, so that the discussions might take place while they were near each other 3.346. And he asked him to lay aside the imperial dignity completely and to be content with the station of a private citizen, enjoying the first honors after the emperor and to have precedence over all the emperor's children in all things, except for the emperor Andronikos. And it was permitted for him to innovate a different style of dress, whatever he might devise, and to use it, but to do nothing and say nothing in an imperial manner. And if anyone should approach him as an emperor or

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ἐπιφανεστέροις τὴν ἐξέτασιν ἐπέτρεπεν. ὁ δ' ὁμοίως ἐπὶ πάντων ἰσχυρίζετο ἀληθῆ τὰ εἰρημένα εἶναι, καὶ πάντων ἐκείνην αἰτίαν εἶναι πρὸς ἅπαντα ἐξηγουμένην καὶ τρόπους ἐξευρίσκουσαν καὶ ἐπινοίας, ἐξ ὧν ἂν κατορθωθείη τὰ βεβουλευμένα. καὶ λόγους προσετίθει πιθανοὺς, ἐξ ὧν ὀλίγου δεῖν τοὺς πλείους ἔπειθε φαῦλα ἤδη περὶ βασιλίδος ὑποπτεύειν. οὕτω δὲ συμβὰν, καὶ Καλλίστου τοῦ πατριάρχου ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις ἀφιγμένου, ἐπεὶ ὁ Ζειανὸς ἐξεταζόμενος ἐπύθετο παρεῖναι, ἀφορισμὸν ἀπὸ θεοῦ παρὰ τοῦ πατριάρχου προὐκαλεῖτο, ὡς οὕτως ὑπ' ἀνάγκης ἅπαν λέξων τἀληθές. δόξαν δὲ καὶ βασιλεῖ λυσιτελεῖν, οὐδὲ γὰρ ἂν ἀφειδήσειν ἑαυτοῦ τοσοῦτον Ζειανὸς, ὡς ἐπ' ἀπωλείᾳ ψυχῆς οὔτω καταψεύσεσθαι βασιλίδος ἐπ' ἐλπίδι κέρδους 3.344 οὐδενὸς, ἐπέτρεπε πραχθῆναι. εἰρημένου δὲ καὶ τοῦ ἀφορισμοῦ, ἔτι βεβαιότερον τὰ πρότερον εἰρημένα ἰσχυρίζετο. ὃ μάλιστα τὴν βασιλέως γνώμην ἔσεισε καὶ δυσμεναίνειν αὐτῷ τὴν βασιλίδα Εὐγενίαν ἔπεισε πρότερον οὐδαμῶς φαύλας ἔχειν περὶ ἐκείνης ὑπονοίας ἀνεχόμενον. ἀχθεσθεὶς δὲ οὐ μετρίως καὶ λύπης ἔμπλεως γενόμενος ἐπὶ τοῖς συμβᾶσι, Ζειανὸν μὲν ἐκέλευεν ἐν δεσμωτηρίῳ φρουρεῖσθαι καθειρχθέντα, αὐτὸς δὲ ἀπέσχετο τοῦ περὶ τὴν ἐλευθερίαν τοῦ γυναικὸς ἀδελφοῦ τι πράττειν ἢ βουλεύεσθαι, ἄτοπον εἶναι λογισάμενος καὶ σχέτλιον κομιδῇ τὴν μὲν ἐκείνου μητέρα τὴν βασιλίδα τοσαύτην πρὸς αὐτὸν πικρίαν καὶ δυσμένειαν ἐνδείκνυσθαι, ὡς πάντα πράττειν, ἐξ ὧν ἂν αὐτὸς διαφθαρείη, ἢ ὡς μάλιστα πρὸς πολλῶν ἀφίκοιτο πεῖραν δυσχερῶν, αὐτὸν δὲ ὥσπερ ἀπεστερημένον τὸ λογίζεσθαι, καὶ τὸν υἱὸν ἐκείνης ἀφιέναι τοῦ δεσμωτηρίου, πολέμιον ἐσόμενον κἀκεῖνον σὺν αὐτῇ. χρόνου δὲ οὕτω βραχέος παραῤῥυέντος, Ζειανὸς ἐν τῷ δεσμωτηρίῳ ὥσπερ εἰς συναίσθησιν, οἷα εἴργαστο, ἐλθὼν καὶ δείσας, μὴ καὶ μετὰ τελευτὴν τοῖς ἐν ᾅδου καταδίκοις συνεῖναι καταψηφισθῇ, οἷα δὴ πρὸς τῷ σεσυκοφαντηκέναι βασιλίδα καὶ ἀφορισμὸν ἀπὸ θεοῦ δεξάμενος καὶ δαίμοσιν ἑλόμενος συνεῖναι τοῖς ἀπὸ θεοῦ κεχωρισμένοις, γράμματα ἔπεμπε τῷ πατριάρχῃ διά τινος τῶν πάνυ φίλων. τὰ δὲ ἐδήλου, ὡς συκοφαντοῖτο μὲν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ἡ βασιλὶς ἐπὶ τοῖς εἰρημένοις καὶ μηδὲν αὐτῷ συνειδείη καὶ τοῖς συνομόταις 3.345 τῶν βεβουλευμένων· τοῦ πιστευθῆναι δὲ τὰ πεπλασμένα ἕνεκα καὶ τὸν ἀφορισμὸν κακῶς καὶ ἀνοήτως δέξασθαι. νυνὶ δὲ εἰς οἷον βάραθρον ὑπ' ἀναισθησίας κατώλισθε συνιδόντα, τυχεῖν συγγνώμης δεῖσθαι τἀληθὲς ἅπαν ἐξαγγέλλοντα, καὶ τῶν ἐκ τοῦ ἀφορισμοῦ δεσμῶν λυθῆναι. ὁ μὲν οὖν Ζειανὸς τοιαῦτα ἔγραφεν· ἀγχίνους δὲ ὢν ὁ τὰ γράμματα κομίζων καὶ χρήσασθαι καιροῖς ὀξὺς καὶ συνιδὼν, ὡς, ἂν μὲν πρὸς πατριάρχην τὰ γράμματα ἀγάγοι, Ζειανῷ τὴν ὠφέλειαν παρεσχημένος ἔσται μόνῳ, βασιλεῦσι δὲ κατάδηλα ποιήσας, πρὸς οἷς ὠφελήσει Ζειανὸν, καὶ βασιλίδα τὴν Εὐγενίαν ἀπαλλάξει τῆς συκοφαντίας καὶ τοῦ δεσμωτηρίου τὸν υἱὸν, ἀφῖκτο πρὸς Εὐγενίαν τὴν βασιλίδα, φέρων καὶ τὰ γράμματα. ἡ δ' ἔπεμπεν αὐτίκα βασιλεῖ τῷ Καντακουζηνῷ, καὶ ὃς οὐδὲν μελλήσας, τῷ νέῳ βασιλεῖ τὰ γράμματα ἐδείκνυ. οὕτω δὲ σαφέστατα ἐληλεγμένης τῆς συκοφαντίας, ὁ νέος βασιλεὺς ἔνθους τε ἦν ὑφ' ἡδονῆς, ὅτι ἡ πρὸς τοὺς οἰκειοτάτους διελύετο δυσμένεια, ὅπερ μάλιστα ἐβούλετο, καὶ Ζειανοῦ πολλὴν μοχθηρίαν καταγνοὺς εἰκῇ καὶ μάτην ἑλομένου τὴν τοσαύτην συκοφαντίαν, ἔπραττεν αὖθις, ὅπως τὸν γυναικὸς ἀδελφὸν ἀφήσει τοῦ δεσμωτηρίου. τῶν πραγμάτων δὲ καλούντων ἐπὶ Θεσσαλονίκην ἀναγκαίως καὶ δεομένων τῆς ἐκείνου παρουσίας, ἐξεστράτευσε τριήρεσι. μετὰ δὲ τὴν ἐπάνοδον πέμψας ἐκ Τενέδου, ἤγαγεν εἰς Ἐπιβάτας, φρούριόν τι περὶ Σηλυμβρίαν, τὸν γυναικὸς ἀδελφὸν, ὅπως ἐγγὺς ἀλλήλων 3.346 ὄντων γίγνοιντο οἱ λόγοι. ἠξίου τε τὴν βασιλείαν ἀποθέμενον παντάπασι, τὴν ἰδιώτου τύχην στέργειν, τιμὰς καρπούμενον τὰς μετὰ βασιλέα πρώτας καὶ τῶν βασιλέως παίδων πάντων ἐν ἅπασι προέχειν, πλὴν Ἀνδρονίκου βασιλέως. ἐξεῖναι δὲ αὐτῷ καινοτομεῖν ἑτέραν στολὴν, ὁποίαν ἂν ἐπινοοίη, καὶ ταύτῃ χρῆσθαι, πράττειν δὲ βασιλικῶς μηδὲν, μήτε φθέγγεσθαι. ἢν δέ τις οἷα βασιλεῖ προσφέροιτο ἢ