Rise of Rurik

Chapter 1233 Ambition Swells With Strength

When the battle in Kaiserslautern just came to an end, Ludwig's mighty army, which was going retrograde along Mainz Avenue, finally arrived at the foot of the Palatinate Mountain.

His cavalry regiment participated in last year's battle, and he even took the lead in the charge, directly leading the entire regiment forward.

The remains that can be seen everywhere in the deserted villages and towns are the work of the cavalry. When they went to the old battlefield to observe their masterpieces, the soldiers did not have the slightest worry. On the contrary, they thought it was a good sign.

But for an extremely large number of infantry units, the sensory perception is nothing but shock and fear.

Thuringian waiter Thakurf didn't want to take this muddy water at all, but the king's order was inevitable, so he reluctantly brought a weak brigade to join in the fun.

Most soldiers have gray beards, how much can a group of aging soldiers do?

The followers and soldiers have been asked to keep an eye on their surroundings and report to themselves if there is any trouble. This is the case in Thuringia. Once the situation is not right, they will hit it symbolically and then flee.

"My lord, there are bones everywhere here, is it really the king's work?" The retinue cavalry had never seen such a scene.

The horse's hoof crushed the bones and creaked, and the ferocious skeleton looked up to the sky with grief and resentment, and the soldiers' hearts were trembling.

Thakurf looked around, pretending to be calm: "Are you all scared?"

All the cavalry were silent.

He continued to yell in his hometown dialect: "Some people want to die fighting for the power of the great nobles, but we will not. Remember! The king's battle goes well, and we follow suit. If the battle doesn't go well, we withdraw. We must remember that our lives are our own. .You see that once my command flag retreats, don’t fall in love with fighting.”

"Roar!" The soldiers signaled.

Therefore, the existence of the Thuringian army is more like a lottery. They can only add to the icing on the cake when the battle goes well. If it doesn't go well, they are a group of deserters.

In fact, what Ludwig needs most is the Marquis' statement. At least the Marquis Thakurf is here, and that is enough.

In the final analysis, this is a marquis of the Alemanni region, not a vassal of Bavaria and Austria in his own core area. The vassals in your core area are disobedient? That is absolutely impossible.

Until now, Ludwig's main force is still his own personal army group. In the final analysis, this is the legacy left to him by his grandfather Charlemagne.

Part of the army that conquered the Avars was stranded in the east, and they constituted the main force of Ludwig's army.

He has not yet mobilized his full strength. If there is a major loss in this year's operation, it does not mean that he will completely lose his military advantage. No matter how bad it is, he can order all the eastern nobles to lead troops to join the battle!

It's just that, the nobles will claim huge power, and then they can only recognize semi-independent princes such as the Duke of Saxony and the Diocese of Cologne.

This was a compromise, and Ludwig was not reconciled.

The infantry army sent a large amount of luggage to each other, advancing steadily in a normal marching posture. They had been stationed in Mainz for a long time, and the soldiers knew about the **** battle last year, but now they came to the battlefield and saw the corpses all over the place, and their hearts were extremely shocked. Thinking of the Saxon thundering in front of them, they felt much better.

Ludwig still wore his purple robe, and instead of a helmet, he wore his golden crown in a high-profile manner.

The soldiers around him held up two flags, one with a black cross on a white background, and the other with the Three Lions flag representing Charlemagne.

People's hearts are changing with the times, leading the army to battle, the south wind blows on Ludwig's bearded face, he began to fantasize, why he can only be Caesar, as long as he seizes the opportunity to kill the elder brother, he is Augustus All.

As for the little brother Charlie who doesn't even have a fief, it's no problem to exile him. There is also his nephew Pepin II who jumped up and down with his elder brother. This person's Lombardy and Provence fiefdoms had to be deprived.

Because of the heavy losses in the successive wars in Kaiserslautern, he took it for granted that the Saxons also suffered huge losses. They drained the blood for themselves, that is, they gnawed at the gate of Strasbourg for the main force.

"Soldiers! Do you all know? That Liudov guy really thinks that Kaiserslautern has money. Haha, I have already transferred the gold and silver there. The Saxons are working hard for me, so that this group of rebels will be wiped out , relieved the hatred in my heart."

Ludwig was in a good mood, but he didn't dare to talk too much as he bared his teeth.

Until the scout hussar who was exploring the way ahead hurriedly repented, looking anxious as if he had learned something important.

The scout reined in right in front of Ludwig.

"How is it? Is there a fight ahead?"

"Report to Your Majesty, the Saxons...the Saxons..."

"Say it!"

"The Saxons actually won."

The scout was very excited, not only seeing a victory, but also because the battlefield was littered with corpses.

The news began to be reported to Ludwig, and even he, who had experienced many battles, was shocked. "A large group of spearmen defeated the cavalry again? Liudov is an underdog, and this time there is no help from the Rus..." He couldn't understand: "Forget it, since the battle is over, I'll go and see for myself."

Ludwig finally gave the order to speed up the march, and the whole army arrived at the mountain pass battlefield where the corpses were strewn across the field in the evening.

Standing on a horse on a narrow battlefield, he had been here last year, and he was still unable to break through the enemy's defense at that time.

The battlefield included the road to Kaiserslautern, which was now cleared. Ludwig could see corpses randomly piled up on both sides of the road. The poor corpses had been stripped of their clothes on purpose, and the exposed corpses had already begun to turn gray.

It has been at least two days since the battle ended, smelling it carefully, there is already a faint stench in the air.

There are more crows calling hoarsely, and the sky is densely packed with black shadows. He saw the crows pecking at the eyes of the corpse, and continuously digging holes into the flesh.

The horse's corpse was even more incomplete, and more crows gathered there. The cavalry sent to investigate alarmed them, and suddenly there were "black clouds" screaming.

Everything was done by the Saxons? Ludwig had some doubts. There was not a single black corpse of the Saxon army on the battlefield, and if those soldiers were alive, they could only be in the city of Kaiserslautern.

"Order the whole army to move on. I will spend the night in the city tonight."

Finally, Ludwig saw the victorious army. At first, he couldn't believe that the soldiers running around in front of him were the soldiers of the Saxon army. They changed their clothes, the civilians put on plate armor, and those who only wore leather hats also put on iron helmets.

They were still in black as a whole, and they didn't seem to be in awe or paying attention to the army from the north.

Even the soldiers couldn't stand it, and some people were angry for the king: "Your Majesty, the Saxons are too arrogant! They should be welcomed in line."

"Forget it. Let's move on."

Ludwig didn't want to make any statement. In any case, Kaiserslautern was once firmly controlled by him, and it was indeed a loss of face to be taken away. But the city was taken down by the duke of Saxony whose loyalty is questionable, and Liudolf won the honor, but he was not easy to ask for it.

The first thing to do is to see the man.

In fact, when the scout cavalry entered the mountain pass battlefield, they were intercepted by the Saxon sentry. The scout soon saw Liudov himself and learned some details.

The dilapidated palace was the center of the entire city. Liudov ordered a simple cleaning, and he stood there on horseback, as if he had become the owner of the palace.

If Ludwig enters the city, use this weedy palace as a meeting place.

The entire city was used as a Saxon army camp. When the main force of Ludwig's army tried to enter the city, it was surrounded by soldiers waiting in full battle.

The leading cavalry ordered to get out of the way with swear words, but the Saxons formed a wall of spears to force the cavalry not to attack.

"Presumptuous! Who do you forest bandits think you are obstructing? Make way for the great king!"

The Saxon nobles who were in charge of entering the city were equally arrogant: "Our Lord Duke has orders! The only ones who can enter the city are the Duke of Bavaria and the Marquis of Thuringia, you idiots on horseback! It is you who should step down."

"You...you are looking for death! You don't respect my king as His Majesty."

"Then kill you. Spear them down, brothers!"

After all, the person who ordered was a Saxon nobleman with the title of Graf. He took his hometown elders to participate in the war and contributed a lot, and also made a fortune in the post-war looting.

They are the nobles recognized by Liudov. They are equal to the earls in rank but much inferior to the earls of the Frank line. But it doesn't matter, they got a big benefit, won the **** battle, and now they only obey Liudov.

The noise suddenly caused the Saxons to be on high alert. After figuring out the basic situation, Ludwig had no choice but to admit it through gritted teeth.

He ordered the entire army to bypass the city, even if it took them longer. After all, Kaiserslautern is surrounded by mountains on the left and right, and Xiaoping, the Lauter River in the col, was not originally suitable for a large army to be stationed.

When the main force of Ludwig's army arrived at the southern exit, looking south was the Brisgau hilly area with somewhat trivial terrain. The relatively flat slopes were more suitable for camping and burying pots for cooking.

A large campsite lit the night with bonfires, and Ludwig owned it again after more than a year.

When he rode into the palace with a few personal soldiers as requested by the Saxon envoy, the moon was already high.

It was late at night, and Ludwig, who was supposed to suffer from the exhaustion of the carriages and horses, was greatly shocked. He was not tired, and urgently needed to see how the palace was tossed in the hands of the Saxons.

The heavy gate collapsed, some imitation Roman columns collapsed, and the gaps in the open stone slabs were filled with grass.

There are many warriors standing in the magnificent and heavy palace. They hold torches not just for lighting, but their existence is more like palace guards. Standing upright here is to demonstrate to the "guests".

"Liudov also knows how to show off? This guy is very good at playing, I want to see what tricks you have." Thuringian Houthakulf spat at any situation, and he deliberately stood behind Ludwig.

After waiting for a while, Ludwig became impatient: "Liudov! What are you doing?! Come out and see me!"

"Could it be that this makes you impatient?" After a while, a group of cavalry actually walked out of the dim hall.

Ludwig couldn't help but backed away for a while. He was surprised that the palace had become a racetrack, and after seeing Liudov's face clearly, he took three steps forward. He pointed with his big hand: "Presumptuous! Liudov, why don't you dismount after seeing this king?"

"Dismount? Yes. But didn't you promise me this city?"

"This matter? What I promise you is only the wealth in the city! This palace is my property, and you are not allowed to be presumptuous."

"But you lied to me." Liudov was still proud, and he had his own reasons for his stubbornness: "What about a hundred boxes of silver coins? The soldiers are desperate for this money, but according to what the captives said, the city never No money. You lied to us."

Ludwig had no intention of explaining this matter at all, and he had an idea to prevaricate: "There is money! It was all taken away by Lothair's army!"

"I knew you would say that. But we can talk about it slowly. I have more important things to tell you, and you'll thank me."

Because of the great victory, Liudov, who was full of energy, was extremely inflated. He felt that as long as he had more troops, he would be a vassal of the Franks, and Saxony could build a big country by itself!

After all, the kingdom of Wessex, a relative on the island, had already proved that the Saxons could build great states.

However, the Saxons in Europe have always been suppressed by stronger forces. Now this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Liudov feels that through this big victory, it has fully proved that he has received God's love and that he has become a king.

He dismounted, his arrogance undiminished.

Ludwig, who was badly usurped, was extremely angry.

"Are you angry? Ludwig!" Liudov simply called her by his first name, and he no longer concealed it: "My daughter is the wife of the eldest son of King Ross, and my son-in-law is also King Mercia. Now, I have a good relationship with the Rus and the Danes. My army is trained by them, and many of my guards are Danish soldiers. That's why my army can quickly defeat the enemy and get Kaiserslautern. And you, already Nearly ten thousand troops were lost for this city. Now the honor belongs to Saxony, not you."

Of course, it was impossible for Ludwig to agree with some theoretical rhetoric, so he held back his anger after he stopped speaking.

This Liudov is no longer easy to mess with. He has close contacts with various Normans, and we think that it is similar to ourselves.

But Liudoff almost hinted that he was no longer a nobleman under the Frankish system. Maybe he denied his status as "Duke of Saxony". Became a wolf.

Sometimes, as a king, you have to give up. For the Ross people, Ludwig has a strong mental trauma, and he is also extremely worried about the backlash against the use of forces named Nassau that are actually Ross.

He couldn't help but glanced at the pious Thakurf behind him. This cunning guy actually had a smile on his face.

"In that case, why should I come to see you?" Ludwig sullenly said, then turned around as if to leave.

"You can't go." Only then did Liudov dismount.

Holding on to the hilt of his sword, he approached Ludwig and stood behind him.

At this moment, the purple robe under the night cannot show its nobility, and the man with the golden crown on his head can't show his nobility in the face of the aristocrat's arrogance.

Ludwig still turned his back: "You won, and the city is plundered as you like. What do you desire? Do you really want to blackmail me with a hundred boxes of silver coins?"

"You can't take it out, but I still got some loot. It's true that I have the right to plunder, and Kaiserslautern is yours after all." Liudov had withdrawn his arrogance, and his tone was quite calm.

Ludwig knew that he didn't have the right to be angry. After all, he still needed the nobles in the west to work for him, so he couldn't provoke them and cause them to retreat privately.

"Fortunately, you know that the city belongs to me. How is it now, what gifts do you plan to ask for?"

"What if it's some key information? What if I wish you the victory over Strasbourg?"

"Do you have important information?" Ludwig turned around hastily.

And seeing Liudov clapping his hands, a man with a pocket cloth tied around his upper body was wrenched away from the shadows, and he was knelt down under the weight of a wooden stick by a guard who was obviously a golden-haired Dane.

"Who is this?" Ludwig asked.

"It's the general guarding Kaiserslautern! Earl Metz's eldest son, named Freibach."

"That's him?" Ludwig was a little surprised. He knew the two sons of Count Metz's family, and he knew that Metz had contributed a lot to Lothar in the civil war.

What surprised him even more was that Kaiserslautern was actually guarded by vassals.

"You didn't kill him."

"Now, if you want" could hang him. Liudov shrugged: "I will give this man to you, and you can do whatever you want with him." Let me just tell you that many of the soldiers who fought against you last year were from Metz. If it weren't for us this year, even if you win Kaiserslautern, you will suffer huge losses and lose the force to attack Strasbourg. "

"Are you persuading me to order him to be killed?"

"No." Liudov shook his head, "You do owe me a sum of money! After the battle of Strasbourg, let our Saxon army remove the wealth of 5,000 pounds of silver coins from the local area. As long as this is the case, I will continue Fight for you."

"You? Still want the plunder of Strasbourg?"

"You don't have to give it. We each take a step back. If you don't give it, I will withdraw."

Because he personally entered the occupied city, Ludwig could not see the corpses of the Saxon army, and judged that their losses were not much, so the battle they just ended had an extremely exaggerated battle loss ratio. Although he was unwilling to admit it, Ludwig had to admit that they were strong, and that they had captured large-scale armor, which made them even more powerful.

He needs this strong army. As for Strasbourg, Ludwig is very entangled in his attitude. Yu Xin hoped to see the local archbishop who refused to accept him lose his soul, and also wanted to bring it under his rule after the war. UU Reading www.uukanshu.com

After thinking about the pros and cons for a while, he resolutely agreed: "Okay! The premise is that you must join me in taking down Strasbourg."

"I will fight! But there may be 30,000 to 40,000 defenders there! I hope this man is lying." After saying this, Liudolf kicked the captured Freibach hard.

Ludwig glanced at him, unwilling to believe the numbers: "How useful is this captive? If Count Metz is caught by me, I will kill him with my own hands. As for the 30,000 or 40,000 defenders, don't listen. A prisoner of war's nonsense."

"Oh? Then you have this opportunity right now."

"how do I say this?"

Liudoff shrugged: "First of all, Sarabrücken was indeed destroyed, and the actions of Nassau forced Count Metz to detour to Schwabruecken in Brisgau."

"That kid Black Fox really didn't lie to me?!" Ludwig was a little moved.

"This time Adalbert, Earl of Metz, personally led the troops, and almost all the troops from the entire county came. They are about to arrive in Kaiserslautern, and a new battle will break out. Now that your army has arrived, it is still time to fight." Do not hit?"

"That's needless to say?!" Ludwig lost his anger in an instant. After all, the nobles' hypocrisy and deception are not public behaviors, and any matter can still be resolved through negotiations.

But those nobles loyal to Lothair openly flipped the table, and Earl Metz was the one who danced the most.

Looking at the captured Freibach again, Ludwig was murdered.

"Then let's fight! This is my honor. You Saxons retreat, and I will annihilate the Metz people myself."

"Obey." Only at this moment, Liudov finally showed the humility of a vassal. Previous chapter table of contents bookmark back page