popular lore). Shortly before his death, Edward changed his mind about the abandonment of Ceuta and dispatched an emissary, Fernão de Silva, to inform the Moroccans that the Portuguese would be fulfilling the treaty after all, and to make preparations for the Ferdinand's release. But the death of Edward left Silva stranded in Asilah without credentials. Having come so close to being freed, the news (which arrived in Fez in November 1438) came as a double blow to Ferdinand, who promptly fell into despair. Nonetheless, Abu Zakariya ordered the leg irons taken off in the expectation that a deal might yet be struck with the new regime in Lisbon. The new state of affairs took some time to sort out – Edward's death provoked an internal conflict in Portugal over the regency for his young son, the new king Afonso V of Portugal. At length, the upper hand was gained by Edward's brother, Peter of Coimbra, who finally became regent of Portugal in early 1439. In May 1439, Ibn Salah and Abu Zakariya finally received a missive from the new regency council that they intended to fulfill the terms of the treaty concerning Ceuta. But matters took another strange turn when Salah ibn Salah and Abu Zakariya bickered for control of the prisoner. In October 1439, a Jewish emissary from Ibn Salah (probably Master Joseph again) arrived in Fez intending to take Ferdinand and his entourage back to Asilah, but Abu Zakariya sent him away, saying he intended to continue holding on to the prisoner in Fez until the Portuguese sent someone with higher credentials who was empowered to undertake the surrender of Ceuta. As soon as the emissary left, Ferdinand and his entourage were clapped back in leg irons, stripped of nearly all clothes and kept permanently locked up in their dungeon, day and night. These new harsh measure were possibly precautionary rather than punitive to prevent any attempt by Ibn Salah's agents from trying to abscond with the valuable prisoner. In December, the prisoners (Ferdinand and his chaplain, Pero Vasques, excepted) were taken out of their permanent confinement to undertake hard road repair work in Fez. When the road work was finished in February 1440, the companions were assigned to new work in the palace gardens and carpentry and masonry shops. However, things had taken another twist in the interim; Salah ibn Salah had died over the winter