Part 4 Anti-Norman League]

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The siege on March 9th finally ended at sunset (

The Arab coalition saved the city of Jerusalem. At sunset, Egil also issued an order to ask the soldiers to retreat. With a continuous and short horn sound, the Crusaders began to orderly, from where they advanced, the slopes composed of ladders were retreating. The crossbowmen who acted as remote support also ran down the stairs of the tower cars and pushed the vehicles backwards.

----Of course, it is not correct to say that the battle is completely over--a group of more than 800 crusad soldiers were defending a tower on the walls of Jerusalem and refused to implement Egil's retreat order. These people continued to hold on there after the main force of the crusad retreat, facing tenacious resistance against enemies dozens of times more than them. The battle continued from evening to late at night. The Arabs organized several attacks to regain the tower, but were eventually repelled by the crusaders.

The heroic spirit of these soldiers not only brought a lot of trouble to the Arabs, but also made Egil change his plan---the Norman Emperor felt that this place could be used to protect the tower, so that the future siege would be easier. So the emperor sent troops to the battlefield again. He used two chariots to communicate with the outside of the city and the tower, and then smashed a wall outside the tower with a war hammer. Soldiers were constantly dispatched there.

that's all(

So, in the end, the Arabs had to abide by the loss of the tower. Saladin sent people to block the tower's walls and the roads inside the city with stones. He moved the civilians around him and used their houses to lay out a second line of defense - despite this, this place still became one of the weakest links in the Arabs' defense.

When the Crusaders retreated, some ladder trucks and baffle trucks were abandoned. In the end, the Arabs destroyed these machinery with axes and long halberds. Whenever a siege machinery vehicle was destroyed, a burst of warm cheers would erupt among the soldiers--they were also frightened by the power of these siege machinery.

However, some smarter, more thinking people were frowning - even if they destroyed these vehicles, it would not be of much use. The craftsmen who made these things were still there. Although there were very few wood in Syria, they would always get it if they wanted to find a way. If they destroyed these things, they could still make more. And they were not sure that the means used by the Crusaders today were all they had.

"But, it's all right that we won." Saladin, who had a slightly messy hair and looked dusty, sighed. Seeing the entire city wall covered with more than one layer of corpses, the Desert King said this with some uncertainty.

Thanks to the power of the Norman Empire's siege machinery, the results of this siege are quite surprising--as the crusaders on the attacking side have fewer casualties than the Arabs on the garrison (

Basil II's mood became very bad, and he was even more dissatisfied - according to the agreement between him and the Norman Empire, whoever captured the land in Syria would be the one who would win it - although the Norman Emperor also promised that these territories would not be listed as direct territory, but would be enfeoffed. This made Basil II somewhat relieved - but it was still not enough.

"Now, he has obtained Tripoli, and in recent times, as this guy continues to win, Posimmond of Antioch seems to have changed his mind and moved closer to him... In addition, Cyprus, Norman's navy, and a large number of crusaders. The Normans' power in the Holy Land is already quite powerful. If I don't do anything, then this land will be completely occupied by the Normans like Crimea, like Malta!"

At that time, after a day of war, more than a dozen heavy infantry teams were dispatched in succession. In the end, Basil II, who had nothing but thousands of corpses, complained to his confidant Ellius, in this way: "Do you have any good ideas? My general? I really can't think of any way to suppress that guy!"

Ellius sighed secretly, thinking to himself: If I had known this, why would it have been? What would it be wrong for so many Roman troops to do? Re-master Southern Italy, attack Ottoman Turkey to the east, or reinforce the Iberian Peninsula, and destroy all the Spaniards... However, the emperor believed the other party's sweet words and stupidly brought the army to fight Syria. The final result seemed to have no other effect except to make wedding dresses for others. The empire did not get any benefits here--and even if he took a step back, Ellius felt that even if the empire acquired territory here, it would be more than worth the loss (

Elius sighed like this and wanted to persuade Basil II to withdraw his troops as soon as possible. He transferred the army back to the battlefield of Asia Minor. In recent times, the Turks are ready to move again. Although the eunuch Nalsis is indeed a famous general now, his army will not exceed 30,000. It is enough to defend a little with such a number of troops. However, it is a bit insufficient to protect the entire Asia Minor...

In addition, in Spain, the empire had almost lost this territory. Christians in the north continued to attack, and in the south, the empire had a new enemy - the Moors who marched from the coast of Mauritania in North Africa. They landed in Gibraltar and captured the empire's city in southern Iberia. At the same time, they continued to march northward. The Iberian governor Belizaliu complained that he was even more miserable than Narcis. The army was left in his hands. Sometimes they even had to force serfs to participate in the battle.

A few days ago, Elius received even worse news - a few years ago, the territory of the Balkans conquered by the Empire became unstable. Religious reasons, enslavement and oppression, and the heavy taxes that Basil charged on the locals to maintain military expenditures, and the status of second-class citizens... In short, the Balkans can be ignited on Mars now. If there is another rebellion, the empire will have another battlefield. I don’t know how many lives should be added to quell the rebellion.

In Elius's view, the most important thing for the empire is to stabilize the situation and ensure that the existing territory is not infringed. Reorganize the army and repel the enemy's attacks. Reduce taxes, encourage trade and handicrafts, and restore the empire's economy (

However, this emperor who was very fond of merit did not know this... This guy had no other use except for his wealth and military power saved by previous emperors. What's even more sad is that this guy's strategic vision also had problems. He always said this: when he saw a chance, he turned around and attacked in that direction. He did not know how to set a long-term strategic goal. The empire opened up several battlefields at the same time. He provoked one enemy after another--but didn't know how to concentrate his strength and first defeat one of them...

In this way, under Basil's gaze, Elius sighed secretly and thought for a long time. In the end, the general mustered up the courage to advise Basil: "Your Majesty, I think that we should give up this war---we can't get anything here. The benefits will eventually be taken away by the Normans. And we can only waste our lives here..."

"You mean to give up?! You want me to give up all the glory, wealth, the fruits of victory, and the holy land of Jerusalem to the Norman boy?" Basil didn't expect that his confidant would say such words. He was extremely angry: "You think I am not the opponent of that person?! Do you think I am not as good as Egil Scadragrimson?!"

"..." Ellius was silent. After hearing Basil's complaints and roars, he continued to try to persuade him. He explained to him the current situation in the Eastern Roman Empire. However, Basil was still stubborn and did not listen to the advice and insisted on fighting this war. Ellius knew that his emperor was jealous of another younger and more promising monarch, and developed a comparative heart. He hoped to gain more reputation in this war to surpass his opponent - the Norman Emperor named Egier Scadragrimsson.

...

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