A gorgeous crown was placed on a simple wooden table in the tent. King Rurik of Russia confidently claimed that this object was the "Crown of Aquitaine."
Seeing it appear in front of him, "Bald" Charlie suddenly realized that he always felt that today's adventure was all because of this.
King Ross will not be a purely good person or a purely evil person. He is probably a person obsessed with interests. Considering that I am not related to him, and have completely different beliefs, why would the King of Rus help him? So what if they were relatives, but it was not his relatives who took the crown away.
King Rus would not lie for no reason, and even if he lied, the cost of making a crown with a large amount of gold and precious stones just for display would be too high. It should be the crown that should belong to you.
Thinking of this, an intriguing thought came to mind.
Charlie suddenly asked, with an extremely urgent attitude: "Pipin. Where is my nephew Pepin? King Ross, you couldn't have picked it up in the grass or the river ditch, right?"
"You are questioning how I got it?" Rurik shrugged: "The Burgundian nobles will have a very full understanding of this matter. It seems that you care about that Pepin. I heard that it was you A nephew, is he really worth worrying about?"
Charlie hesitated and muttered deeply: "After all, he is my nephew."
"Come on!" Rick laughed for a while and then patted the monarch on the shoulder: "I have learned all about your situation. If Pepin is alive, you will be killed. You stole his throne of Aquitaine, you have no choice but to kill him , the throne is stable."
It seemed like a casual conversation revealed important news.
"What? He is really...dead."
"He is dead. I think I need to have a good talk with you about this matter. I can tell you now, I was the one who killed your stupid nephew. He dared to rescue Lothair."
"Where was he killed?" Charlie blurted out.
"Are you still anxious? It doesn't matter. The Burgundian army left Provence under the command of your nephew. They are going to Alsace to rescue your stupid brother. If they want to advance eastward, they must fight with this king. Head-to-head. Ross defeated Burgundy at Verdun and defeated your nephew Pepin. I killed him with my own hands on the banks of the Meuse. Pepin was buried in the priests' cemetery in Verdun, but I took the crown. Come down. I know, I will meet you."
Rurik said it very naturally, no matter how he thought about it, he was stating a fact.
Charlie did not dare to believe it or not believe it. A powerful Norman chief from the north personally killed a great nobleman of the Carolingian royal family in front of many Burgundian nobles. This kind of thing was too shocking. .
Charlie subconsciously took a step back. Rurik looked sideways and asked: "I just stated a fact and you are afraid? Listen, if I wanted to kill you, I would have done it long ago."
"You? Really not going to kill me?"
"Oh, do I still need to swear an oath in your cathedral? We are Normans. If you are unwilling to trust me, I can release you now. You can return to your military camp. Be sure to come down. Bring your tens of thousands of troops. Just under the city of Auxerre, my army will destroy all the Aquitaine army just like it did to the Burgundians.”
If Charles really did. He commanded tens of thousands of soldiers and horses, so he couldn't come alone, and it was impossible for him to negotiate with Rurik at such a close distance. The fact that he can stand beside Rurik just hints at his helplessness, and all his performances completely correspond to Reglaf's description - "Bald" Charles only has the title of king in the Aquitaine region and has no real power.
Rurik added: "My son said you are a good person. If it weren't for Reglaf's kind words, I would only capture you on the battlefield, let alone plan to take away the crown that should belong to you. Return it to you."
Charlie didn't know what to say after hearing this. He subconsciously took a step forward and peered at the crowns displayed in the tent with bright eyes, eager to take it for himself immediately.
Charlie thought for a while: "What price am I going to pay...? I'm already like this, what else can I do?"
"Why don't we talk frankly." Rurik Facing Charlie, he opened his arms and looked completely harmless: "You can tell me all the truth, and you must also tell me your truth. I just know that you are not strong, but I intend to make you strong. . Let’s go, I am willing to have lunch and dinner with you, and I will treat your cronies well. Don’t think about returning to your camp tonight.”
The first meeting did not disgust Charles, and the crown was still in the hands of the Russians. By plotting to murder Pepin, he might be able to get his lost crown back from Provence. If you try to steal it back from the Russians, you will not be able to do it with your own abilities. Secondly, it will definitely stimulate the Russians and lead to death.
Charlie still carried the lion war flag, and he decided to accept the invitation of King Ross.
To
As for the so-called crown on the head, is there any need for it to exist? The more he stood against an inferior fake in front of the real thing, the more Charlie felt like a buffoon.
Charlie realized that since King Ross had given him enough dignity, if he did not lower his guard, many things would become unclear.
He ordered his cronies on standby to put down their weapons, and then handed over their horses, spears, and even their swords. All the cronies realized that their monarch was making a huge bet with the ruler of Rus. Many people felt that there might be fraud in it. They were all absolutely loyal. At this time, they had no choice but to play along with their master in the bet.
Noting that "Bald" Charlie has fully cooperated, Rurik's side is no longer tense. However, it was learned that there was probably Count Poitier's troops behind Charlie. If that guy thought that Charlie was captured and launched an attack rashly, it would be a bad idea for Ross's side not to be on guard.
Some soldiers were allowed to return to the camp to continue stationing. The walls made of wooden carts remained the same, and the crossbowmen relied on them to continue stationing. Even when it was time to eat, people simply carried pottery urns filled with boiled wheat to deliver meals.
Eat less in the morning and more at noon and night. Originally, there was no need for Rurik to implement a three-meal-a-day system when he was stationed. Since the huge Aquitaine army was just south of Auxerre, as long as those guys existed, the stationed Russian army had to implement wartime meals. Standards in case of emergencies.
Everyone was happy to eat and drink peacefully every day, and even the militiamen of the Mercian Army were rewarded generously with boiled wheat.
Not long after Charlie and his cronies entered Ross Barracks, the rich and mouth-watering aroma of boiled wheat filled the entire world.
Now that they have formed an alliance with the County of Auxerre, the Rus-Messia coalition after lifting the siege also gave Conrad some food in the name of a reward under Rurik's instructions.
The reputation is not good, but the food given by King Rus is not adulterated at all. This is a deliberate act of kindness.
In fact, the siege did not last long. The biggest problem was that the fuel in the city was basically exhausted, and some houses had to be demolished. Even so, it still could not meet the demand for burning bread. Because whether it is cooking wheat or baking bread, a large amount of firewood is used. In peaceful days, firewood is cut down from outside the city and transported to the city, or black charcoal is transported from charcoal workshops outside the city.
Providing Conrad with food was more like providing reassurance. Only when the siege was lifted and material transportation became normal, the mess in Auxerre City was solved.
Conrad pushed his son to the front, so "Little Wolf" Wilfin took his soldiers and horses to the front line of the Ross-Messia military camp. As of now, he has very few combatable troops. , blending in the army and being inconspicuous, he was able to observe "bald" Charles's every move in a low-key manner, and not only lamented that the so-called King of Aquitaine was nothing more than that.
In Rurik's big tent near the river, Rurik entertained the king who came from afar with a sumptuous lunch.
He even poured a glass of wine with his own hands and approached Charlie personally holding an almost transparent glass filled with fine wine.
"Drink some of the fine wine brewed from Nassau and Coblenz."
Charlie took the glass, looked at it first, and drank it in one gulp without thinking. .
"Huh, I thought you would be more refined when drinking." Liu
Rick said.
"I've finished drinking, what else is there?"
"Are you hungry?"
"I'm hungry and thirsty. I didn't expect you Norman There are many treasures in his hands, even the cups are made of crystal?”
Rurik shrugged: “You are also a member of the royal family after all, so you don’t even know glass, right?” The Romans were very good at making glassware. They could make the glass look like crystal. It seems that only we can do it."
Check.Li actually wanted to say something like, "The treasure in your hands may not have been snatched from somewhere," but he restrained himself.
Rurik sent a sumptuous battlefield lunch.
The oatmeal porridge becomes thick, salty and fragrant due to the addition of cheese, honey, salt and thyme.
The barbecue is still sizzling and oily, and it looks like a roasted rabbit.
Among the alcoholic beverages are ale and wine with coriander seeds added. The former is fragrant and mellow, and the latter is very sweet.
If you don’t like drinking, you can also make flower tea using local materials.
Even though he was a king, the food served by Charles in the Aquitaine army was not exquisite at all. Field battles and marches are both difficult conditions. Under normal circumstances, you can't expect to eat any delicious food. In the past days, Charlie was always chewing on pieces of bread. At most, he would smash the bread as hard as a piece of wood and throw it into the vegetable soup. Perhaps the biggest difference between his food and that of the soldiers was that he could eat some game.
The food of the Aquitaine army and other noble armies is generally very rough and even rough. It is normal for the mouth to bleed because of the rations for a meal.
Rurik intended to have lunch with the boy, and based on his understanding of Charlie, he also found that he was only two years older than Charlie
There are some special furnishings placed in the large tent of the command post. A huge round shield serves as a decoration. There is also a battle ax hanging on the wooden stand. There is also a complete set of armor placed on the wooden stand, which is tied up. The overall chest plate armor, plate armor skirt, and the helmet hanging at the highest point is also covered with a real bear head.
The wooden table placed in the center looks like a wooden box that was dismantled and transformed with materials. The extensive use of iron nails and hemp rope binding makes it very easy and quick to make.
Rurik would allow some nobles and senior officers to sit at the table, and everyone would sit down and talk about many things.
The so-called command tent is the "althg" of the Russian army during the battle, but in name everyone can express their opinions, and the final decision maker is still Rurik.
With a delicious meal and wine in front of him, Charlie noticed that he was eating what King Ross was eating. All the miscellaneous personnel in the war room were cleared out, and only he and King Ross had lunch together.
Charlie started to eat. Either the meal was really delicious, or he hadn’t eaten anything good in the past. He ate it all in a very short time. In the end, he couldn’t help but hit him. An ugly burp.
After two consecutive glasses of sweet wine, he was slightly tipsy, but his overall mental state was still good.
Rurik wanted to have a lunch together to dispel Charlie's doubts, and it was a natural thing to entertain this kid. Now that both of us were full, we could have some confidential discussions on some things.
He looked around again and saw that he had indeed cleared out the idle staff. He simply walked outside the tent and ordered the soldiers on duty to move further away.
The guards were still worried about the king’s safety and allowed a foreign king
p>How can you not be nervous when entering the big tent while keeping your weapons?
Rurik didn’t take it seriously. He felt that Charlie had become easy to talk to and the rest of the things would be easier to handle.
He walked over to the wooden table and sat down. Directly across from him was Charlie himself with an inferior crown, and a pair of flesh and bones in front of Charlie.
Rurik put his hands on the table and pushed the dishes aside. He put away his smile while eating and said seriously: "As you can see, the crown of Aquitaine is indeed in my hand. "In fact, I can hand him over to you now. In exchange, you will give me some benefits."
My stomach feels comfortable and I can feel the smell of honey when I burp.
Although he was in the Russian military formation, Charlie felt that he was indeed a guest. King Ross doesn't seem to be very strong, at least he talks better than his uncle Bernard.
For so many years, no great nobleman has ever been willing to speak to him in a consultative tone, let alone any great nobleman who truly regards himself as a king and respects him in the true sense.
Charlie replied calmly: "I can transfer some interests, unless I really own those interests."
"Now I can tell you the situation where the Burgundians are in situation." So Rurik continued to state.
Rurik has fully realized that Charlie can only be regarded as a nominal commander in the southern army. Although he has a prince, he should be a mascot recommended by the nobles, and everyone can act together. reason.
Now that the Ross Army does not have to hide it, I am afraid that explaining their exact situation can immediately dispel some people's unreasonable thoughts and make them die.
So, Rurik briefly explained the Russian army’s expedition, assembly, and large-scale war.
The key points were not mentioned, and because the information was so powerful, Charlie was so shocked that he wanted to interrupt, but was often scolded to listen carefully.
Rurik is not having any discussions with Charlie this time. All the listed parties are facts. Some of the parties mentioned are in the Ross army, or are guests or allies. They can be immediately Stand up and face the line.
Moreover, the nobles mentioned will also appear before today evening to have dinner with "Bald" Charlie.
Gilbert, Count of Ramengau, Eberhard, Count of Jülichgau, Count Siegburg and his son, Conrad, Count of Auxerre, King Wilfen of Burgundy, Archbishop of Liège Hatgar, Archbishop Hribo of Auxerre, Count Bluefox of Gothenburg and his wife Gisla "Blackbird", King Reglaf of Mercia, Ariobbert from Alsace, Baron Heber of Erotus Special, the next generation Duke Bruno of Saxony, the next generation Duke Kasimislaw of Gdansk, the next generation Duke Askard of Smolensk, four cavalry captains of Rus...
Liuri The name of the dish usually mentioned a lot of noble names, and it didn't matter how much Charlie knew. It was precisely because he mentioned too many noble names that Ross seemedOne side was very sincere towards Charles, which further proved that the Ross side was by no means a Norman bandit, but another powerful force in the civil war of the Frank Empire.
Since King Ross said so much, Charlie was bold enough to respond by naming the dish.
As a result, Poitier-Poitiers, Autun, Agen, Angoulême, Toulouse, Gascogne, and other minor nobles
were captured by him Listing them one by one, he claimed with a wave of his hand that the actual strength of the Confederate Army was 30,000. He also went on to make a special explanation that the so-called Mercian Army was in principle part of the coalition, and these 30,000 people included Mercians who had joined Rus.
Not only that, Charles also claimed that he was already the son-in-law of the Count of Orleans. The reason why he went north from Autun this time was purely because of the lack of cooperation of the Count of Tours, which prevented the army from crossing the Loire River nearby. Had to take a detour.
In the end, after the army forced Burgundy to withdraw from the war, it should enter Orleans to completely control local power, and then march to Paris.
Rurik already had a basic understanding of Charlie’s grand strategy from his own son. Even if Charles's southern army did not take action, the Ross army would still need to attack the rich Paris plains just to maintain its war-to-war model.
The meaning of the words coming from Charlie's own mouth is completely different, and Charlie's clear eyes don't seem to mean lying.
Ha! What should Charlie give up? This is it.
Rurik was sure that he understood the actual composition of the Aquitaine army. As expected, this group of nobles was shouting a lot. How many of Charles's soldiers were among them? It sounds like there probably aren't any. Unlike himself, the Rus-Mercia coalition can be divided into three parts: the main force of the direct line, the allied army, and the son's army. In particular, the main force of the direct line controls the food, grass and baggage of the coalition, and it is the strongest combat force in the coalition. Not only is it well-equipped, but its soldiers account for 40% of the current coalition's strength.
Looking at Charlie, this boy categorically claimed that although he was the king, everything was controlled by his uncle Bernard.
Bernard.
Bernard's man, Rurik, also understood that this man obviously held the main force of the Southern Alliance. It is not an exaggeration to call him the de facto king of Aquitaine, but Bernard would never have a king's title. .
Some of the big news mentioned by Rurik had to make Charles rethink the future, especially the attitude of the Russian army towards the Burgundians and the behavior of the Burgundians that was completely different from the past. Different attitudes.
"Did the Burgundians re-establish their kingdom? They betrayed the emperor and then restored their kingdom? Conrad's Wilfen, is he the new king of Burgundy? He should obviously inherit The title of Auxerre..."
"My niece is not dead? You didn't murder her? Now you tell me that she is a countess now, and she is in your army. Thousands of warriors were loyal to her..."
"Gilbert actually resisted with all his strength. You killed ten thousand of his warriors and then captured him.Capture him. As a result, Gilbert also betrayed his emperor father-in-law and formed an alliance with the remaining soldiers..."
When Charlie was allowed to ask questions, he started asking questions nonstop. Rurik took the trouble to ask To explain, fortunately, I had plenty of flower tea with honey, so I drank a few more times to avoid getting hoarse after answering endlessly.
Charlie finally finished asking, and the sun began to set on his body. Sitting on the wooden chair, his head, which was dripping with cold sweat, was dry again. At this moment, he was able to accept a new situation that he had never imagined with ease.
"Are you okay? "Rurik held his chin with both hands and asked the seemingly paralyzed Charlie.
Charlie's eyes were as dull as a deflated fur, and he sighed calmly: "I have no reason to fight with you
, there is no reason to fight the Burgundians anymore. "
"Then don't fight. At least there won't be any fighting between us, and we can form a larger coalition and march north to Paris. "Having said this, Rurik stood up deliberately. He walked behind Charlie and held the young man's swords with his hands, as if an elder brother was talking to his younger brother again.
Rurik opened his mouth He leaned into the boy's ear and said, "I can help you become the king of Frank, so you need to occupy Paris. "
As soon as he heard this, as Rurik expected, Charlie's decadent and sluggish body straightened up instantly. If it weren't for the pressure of his hands, this kid would have stood up.
"You Look, you're nervous again. You will be king of the Franks and king of Aquitaine, and you will have real power, real power worthy of your power. Are you craving it? For this reason I can declare an alliance with you now, and you will be our honored guest. ”
“But what is the price? "Charlie couldn't wait to ask.
"I want you to recognize that Rus is a kingdom, that the county of Nassau-Koblenz is legitimate, that my son's Kingdom of Mercia is also an independent kingdom, and that the former The Kingdom of Burgundy established by the Burgundian nobles headed by the Count of Auxerre was also legal. "
"Admit it! I admit it all. "Charlie answered without thinking.
"Oh? So simple? "
"As long as you help me get Paris, I can give you all the wealth of the Earl of Paris. Rurik, King of Rus, what else do you want? ”
Charlie is like a fool who doesn’t feel sorry for his father’s land. Even if he wants to go there, he won’t get Paris. Besides, Nassau and Coblenz should have been Charlie’s fiefdom. Obviously this kid doesn't want to fight anymore.
Rurik further reassured: "Koblenz was originally your fiefdom, but now the situation has completely changed. The nobles actually came from Rus. They converted to God and no longer submitted to me in name. I can command the nobles of Koblenz to turn their allegiance to you, remember, in name only. ”
“Are you so nice to me? ”
“Yes. You have to be nice to me too. I have one more request now. "
"You say, I will be satisfied. "Charlie said impatiently.
"Rouen." Rurik specifically mentioned this term.
"The Count of Rouen?"
"Right? I heard that this place is now occupied by the Count of Saint-Quentin. I mean, kill that Count of Saint-Quentin, Saint-Quentin Quentin, Soissons, Meaux, and other places that originally belonged to your brother, I will lead the troops to help you defeat the local nobles. I will take away the superficial wealth, but the soil and local villagers will still belong to you. The Count of Rouen, I want you to do another knighthood ceremony and let my son Regrave also serve as the Count of Rouen."
"I will do it again." blurted out.
Rurik was satisfied. As soon as he released his hands, Charlie stood up happily, then turned around, opened his arms and hugged Rurik.
It's like a younger brother hugging an older brother.
What else can Rurik do? Naturally accepting the kindness of this silly boy, he patted Charlie on the back and comforted him in a condescending manner: "I know you have suffered too much injustice in the past years, and everything will be fine. Remember, I am the only one who can support you in the future. . ”
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