Chapter 1167 It Has Been the Battle of the Earl of Nassau
The oak keel was dug into the river mud, and the Russian soldiers bravely disembarked from the ship on both sides.
The arrows stuck in the soft ground were lost, and their arrow feathers were like harvested wheat ears. Seeing the enemy appear, the injured who did not want to die were struggling to escape even though they were squirming, while the remaining ones just wanted to end their pain as soon as possible.
Swords and axes launched their final merciful finishing blows, but two Frank soldiers who did not appear to be seriously injured were carried away after receiving a sap blow.
The boss wants to capture prisoners, at most he only wants one or two "tongues" to provide information, so the Russian army has no reason to revive all the wounded.
"Enough of the prisoners, cut off the heads of the others! They said that if the head is missing, they will not be able to go to heaven. Let them be angry in hell."
The leader shouted so loudly that everyone recovered the lost arrows and began the final "destruction". The scene was very bloody at one time.
At the same time, the escaping Frank army had run far away. Flag captain Quentin suffered another small setback. He could say that his loss of troops this time was still very small. However, the morale of the army suffered a big blow. The soldiers were inexplicable for the javelin.
, the arrow was missing and was frightened, the formation collapsed, the soldiers fled everywhere, and it would take some time to form a team.
This matter can no longer be reversed by shouting loudly, either by himself or by calling on a few more people. Even if his throat is broken by shouting, the running people are still running around.
While he was in a state of despair, he actually saw the Normans paddling ashore in their boats.
Quentin, who was riding a horse, gritted his teeth and was delighted that he was followed by a group of heavy cavalry.
"Follow me! Crush them before they land!"
No one doubted whether this was a conspiracy by the Normans. Quentin, who had suffered two losses, did not care too much. He wanted to make up for the lost face.
More than fifty cavalrymen smashed at the landing Russians like hammers. The ground was shaking slightly. The soldiers who were busy pulling out arrows and collecting the trophies heard the shouts of their companions on the ship not far away, as well as the sound of horns representing "battle" one after another.
As soon as they looked up, they saw the armed and iron horses running towards them without knowing whether to live or die.
At this moment, the Russians on the boat were already covering the brothers on the shore.
The javelin was fired again, and such shocking shooting was unable to stop the cavalry from continuing to advance.
"Don't be too busy! Let's leave quickly."
At this moment, the half-stranded longship had already piled up a lot of loot. There were also some captured short wooden bows and iron helmets scattered on the ground, and many of the boots of the dead bodies had not been removed. According to the old tradition, the Russian army
They will strip off some useful things from the enemy, even take away the rags and sell them for money. Now no one can care about it. A group of people are embarrassed and even comically rushed to put them on, and evacuated to the water in fear before letting out a long breath.
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The cavalry could not fight through the water, and the fleet could not land.
After six torque slingshots shot down a group of war horses at the last moment, the Frank cavalry retreated again.
One side is on land and the other is on water, so both sides will be exhausted.
Those cavalrymen were still within the firing range of their torsion slingshots, but the distance was already far away and the enemy positions were spread out, so the lethality of shooting was no longer significant.
Wadi, who was ordered to take action, did not hope to defeat the opponent's thousands of people with only 300 men at hand. Sometimes insulting the enemy's personality is more destructive than killing him. Of course Wadi can preach like this and call on his brothers to fight again.
He lifted up his clothes and continued to make indecent moves towards the enemy, accompanied by endless Frankish swear words. The brothers were still heroes who enjoyed grudges. Fortunately, they were not stupid, so they had no choice but to obey Wadi's request.
Yeah.
For a time, the longships lined up in a single column, covered with white squirming things, and they formed a "white wall" that once stretched for a long time. Quentin and his cavalry had retreated far away, and they all saw clearly the
What was squirming was something disgusting, and what I heard was even more disgusting.
"Damn it, they are scolding us. They make me so angry! They really make me so angry!"
What could Quentin do in a fit of impotent rage? He thought of a move, and spent some time gathering the loudest warriors in the team. He had only one order: "Imitate them! Swear them! Don't worry about swearing.
It's against morals. You can do whatever you want to deal with the Normans!"
The two sides fell into a war of words.
The Russian troops on the ship never thought that geothermal heat could be used
To fight tooth for tooth, brothers have always been the only ones to engage in a collective scolding war with Viking war cries. How could the enemy do the same?
Vardy was furious, and his brothers even more so.
"It's already like this. Why don't you land together and hack them to death?" Some soldiers really couldn't stand the humiliation.
"I know you are angry, but we have to endure it!"
"I can't stand it any longer!"
"Keep on enduring!" Wadi was insisting on being patient. His own face turned red with rage.
Fortunately, the veteran was more rational and did not rush to launch a beach landing. They continued to stand still. One of the reasons was to buy time for the troops in the rear to assemble. Vardy knew that scolding and harassment were all to tire the enemy, and
At night, the brothers would continue to organize manpower to create noise to make the enemy uneasy, and even find ways to steal and steal at night.
Of course, you can go downstream to ask for reinforcements, but it is your duty to rely on local military power to annihilate the invading Zhongwang *** team and recapture Koblenz. This is related to the brothers' honor.
No matter how you explain it, the Ross Army stationed in Nassau did give up Coblenz with almost no resistance. It can be said to be a ruse and has a bad reputation.
The scolding war here was very loud. When both sides got tired of scolding, someone with a very loud voice suddenly came out and said a curse word. After a while, a large-scale scolding war broke out again.
At the same time, a fleet of boats went around the bend of the river, escaped from the cover of the riverside woods, and suddenly appeared on the river.
"That's Koblenz right there. Boss, it's the one that's on fire."
"Keep rowing, and be on alert." The sullen Blue Fox didn't want to say much. He rowed with other brothers. In order to reach Nassau as soon as possible, he had no choice but to join the battle himself to add strength.
After a while, people with sharp eyes saw the boats frozen on the river.
Isn’t that our ship?!
"Boss, turn around and look. It's our longship!"
Hearing a roar from his subordinates, Blue Fox turned around and saw this bizarre scene.
The small flotilla is rowing against the current. On their starboard side is the residential area of Koblenz, where the open flames are still burning. On the port side are the barren plains and dense forests along the river. The masts of all the long ships in the fleet are flying the Ross flag. It happens that the same flags are flying on the river.
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From the perspective of the Franks, it was clear that the Normans had summoned reinforcements.
Nine new ships have arrived? Aren't there at least four hundred enemies?
Quentin's heart tightened, "Damn it, are you waiting for reinforcements to deliberately delay? Are you now preparing to land for a decisive battle?"
He ordered to stay away for the time being and began to publicize the impending decisive battle to his subordinates. When the soldiers who had been tortured heard that a battle was imminent, the armored soldiers quickly returned to the team. Everyone deliberately hid in a distant place and formed an array to wait for the landing battle.
However, there was no decisive battle.
At least not today.
During the fleet round, Wadi recognized the old master who stood up at a glance.
"Boss! Why...are you here suddenly?"
"It's you?! Vardy, what are you doing? And those people? Enemies?" Although Blue Fox had already guessed it, he still needed to ask.
"It's the Franks! As you can see, Coblenz was destroyed by them."
"I saw it all. Are you all okay? In such a tragedy, wouldn't it be true that many people died? Where is my brother?"
"Everything is fine." Vardy's relieved smile proved that the Ross Army was fine.
They negotiated on the river, and Blue Fox finally learned some detailed information.
According to the existing intelligence, Blue Fox believes that King Lothair's counterattack this year is to take advantage of the lost Koblenz. The war cannot be carried out according to the ideas of the Ross Kingdom. Now that something like this has happened, the Ross Expeditionary Force
The plan does need to be adjusted.
"Fortunately, I made the right judgment." Blue Fox sighed happily.
When he arrived for the first time, his appearance made the brothers feel that it was a divine force descending from heaven, but they saw that the reinforcements were only over a hundred people.
In fact, this is not the case. When Wadi learned that a serious Russian army of 1,000 people would be deployed in as soon as one week,
Entering the battlefield, what else could Vardy say? He just held his chest and lamented his former boss: "You are as clever as Rurik."
Since Wadi and his team are carrying out the tactic of exhausting the enemy, let's continue scolding them. Blue Fox said one more thing: "Light a bonfire as much as you can on the other side of the river at night, beat the drums and trumpets more, and scare them crazy."
The small fleet carried some production and living supplies and continued to fulfill its original mission. Blue Fox was very happy that the small fishing village of Landstein at the mouth of the Lanhe River had become a temporary large settlement.
According to tribal thinking, population is more important than land. Most of the residents of Koblenz moved to the other side of the Rhine River and were stationed in Landstein. If Nassau, controlled by his younger brother Black Fox, wants to rise, it largely needs to control more people as much as possible.
It has a large population. After all, Koblenz, which was only occupied last year, is still quite far from the village of Nassau. It is separated by the main channel of the Rhine River, which is about 300 meters wide, and it is even more like a natural chasm.
Taking advantage of the war, all the peaceful residents moved to the other side of the river. After the war, many people will definitely not go because they have to continue living.
The small fleet suddenly entered Llandstein, and the stationed Black Fox thought it was Wadi who had been sent out and returned early.
After all, the number of ships arriving was almost the same as that sent out, which was indeed the case at first glance. However, Black Fox took a closer look and saw the slimmer face of his second brother, and he was as happy as if he had picked up a piece of gold.
He was more than happy. After hearing that the blue fox was coming, Robert and his wife hurriedly approached the small pier. The family needed cash, and when they thought about getting the money right away, they tried hard to restrain their excitement, but their bodies trembled involuntarily with excitement.
Just as Mr. and Mrs. Robert had hoped, they watched helplessly as multiple heavy suitcases were being moved down.
There is a saying that the implementation of the contract must be done grandly, so Lan Hu deliberately opened all the suitcases in front of the Robert family in a public place.
Now, those present are Earl Robert and his wife, five vassal knights, the Blue Fox and Black Fox brothers, and even Father Conrad and Identity Bachbert as witnesses.
It is easy for good people to have evil intentions in the presence of huge sums of money. Blue Fox needs many witnesses to prove that the money was transferred to Robert.
Just as the blue fox thought, Robert's legs weakened when he saw the money. Thanks to the support of the two knights, he stood up steadily.
"Five hundred pounds of silver coins, divided into five boxes. Yours!" Blue Fox said very simply.
"Ah?! So much? I remember what you promised last year... was the final payment of 300 pounds this year."
"What? Too much?"
"No, no...hehe, the more money, the merrier."
"I should have given you three hundred pounds. But what?" Blue Fox shrugged and pointed his big hand towards the east: "King Ross is very concerned about your current situation. Although we were rivals in the past, there is no reason for us to fight each other.
King Rus will give you some more money to help you make a comeback. When you and your subordinates arrive in Tours in the future, our good relationship should be maintained."
This is actually the words of Blue Fox.
Regarding this matter, Rurik did not give any money at all. Instead, he sent his de facto eldest son, the legal King of Mercia, Reglaf, and served as Robert's follower in future escort operations. If it is true that he gave
The money was not something Robert could control. This was to fund his son's future activities in the southern Frankish world.
For a son to work as a follower to a down-and-out earl, such courtesy is definitely worth a thousand pounds of silver coins, because the political power behind it is endless.
After all, the down-and-out Robert needs international influence. He can't do it himself, so big shots help him.
International influence is invisible and intangible, but it is really useful at critical times.
At this moment, Robert's old Zhuhuang wife was much more influential.
Blue Fox actually gave him an extra two hundred pounds of silver coins, which was a lot of money but not much. He had a lot of troops and "stud" capital. If the money was gone, he would just grab it. What's more, this year he planned to sneak attack on the rich Maas River Basin. This year,
It can be said that he personally has all the cash.
No, Blue Fox used her words again and took out genuine northern jewelry - a necklace of colored glass beads mixed with amber.
This necklace is deliberately exaggerated. No matter how you look at it, it looks like a huge treasure.
The stones are strung together, making it very heavy, but wearing it around the neck can definitely show the wealth of the nobility in an exaggerated way.
But its actual value is not expensive.
With a huge amount of cash, the down-and-out nobles can quickly recruit a group of mercenaries to make a comeback. For the countess, Adelaide, the second daughter of the old Earl of Tours, she took the necklace and showed an exaggerated smile on her face full of crow's feet. This smile
Although it lacks the sense of beauty, Blue Fox still said some nice words: "My wife will be thirty years younger when she wears this northern jewelry."
"Well said. Joseph (Blue Fox's Christian name), you are a noble northerner. When I get to Tours, I will tell my brother about your kindness."
"Thank you for your kind words, madam." After saying that, the blue fox bowed slightly like a devout priest.
It doesn't matter whether it's a superficial act or it's really from the heart. The moment the money is handed over, it means that the contract is completed, so that his sister-in-law Sophia of Nassau officially becomes the Count of Leingau.
Even so, the Barony of Nassau is still the core of the current huge territory, and it is more appropriate to call it the County of Nassau.
The Count was faced with the Koblenz crisis right after its establishment, and retaking the territory across the river could be described as a battle for the founding of the Count.
Now is not the time to celebrate the official establishment of the country. What we are thinking about right now is fighting.
The two young men were present at the moment when the money was "gifted", but they were ignored by Robert, who was jealous of the money. It was not until he got the money that his identity was revealed.
One is the real King of Mercia, the de facto eldest son of Rurik, Reglaf, who is also the only daughter of the last princess of Mercia. This identity has even been recognized by the Pope of Rome, after all, his godfather is the Archbishop of the North, Eskil.
Even Regraf was still too young. Robert had a chance encounter with him two years ago. Unexpectedly, this child was asked by Rurik to be his follower when he went south. He even served as Ross's special envoy to a large extent.
The other young man is Bruno, the eldest son of the former Earl of Westphalia and today the Duke of Saxony. This child Robert is actually not a stranger. After all, the distance between the two counties is not small.
Far away. Nobles are very particular about marriage. Robert has reason to know a little about the children of his noble neighbors.
Today's Bruno is dressed as a Norman, or wearing a beautiful outfit, no matter how he looks, he is a Russian warrior. If the boy did not introduce himself in fluent Frankish, it would easily lead to misunderstanding.
Bruno was reluctant to dress up as a Norman and go to war at first, but after doing some ideological work, he took the initiative to jump on the Russian ship.
Can the boy fight? Maybe he can't bear to let him participate in the attack on the boy in Aachen. However, if he goes to Tours with Robert's family and goes as the eldest son of the Duke of Saxony, it will undoubtedly increase his future political capital.
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But it would be unreasonable for this kid not to participate in some battles when he puts on these clothes. Sooner or later, Bruno will become a military noble, and this is an irreversible obligation.
Isn't there an opportunity right in front of us?
To recapture Coblenz, the nobles gathered in the fishing village of Landstein reached an agreement.
The blue fox is coming! The generals who are good at fighting are coming! There are even a thousand elites coming at full speed in long boats.
The passive situation has to be reversed in an instant? Happiness comes a little too quickly.
Reinforcements are on the way, and the Norman army will far exceed the army of the Middle Kingdom. The Norman army will not take action against the refugees from Coblenz. They will abide by the contract and will only annihilate the Middle Kingdom who set fire to the city and killed the people**
*Team.
Two pieces of good news It doesn't matter that as night falls, the refugee camp in the huge Lan River mouth area quickly learned these exciting and good news.
The people felt that victory was already within their grasp and that they only had to wait a while longer to watch the war end and then go back and rebuild their lives.
However, the fate of the people cannot be decided by themselves. After all, they have all arrived on the north bank of the Rhine River.