Chapter 1174 Black Fox, Sophia Nassau and the Gift to King Ludwig in Mainz
More than 800 heads were sprinkled with lime and they were collectively sealed in eight wooden boxes. In order to prevent the stench from spreading, a large amount of lime was sprinkled on them, which made the gray-white heads look even more pale.
As Countess Sophia Nassau, if she were a timid woman, seeing her fiancé destroying the corpses of his enemies in this way, she would be frightened into insanity.
She is not a cowardly noble, Black Fox believes that is true.
In other words, every one of the elite men under her command were all Normans, and she was passively becoming like a Norman woman.
She was dressed up beautifully, with gold, silver and amber adorning this rapidly growing girl. After all, she had experienced a large-scale war and was nominally the commander-in-chief of the victorious side. Sophia's innocent days ended two years ago.
Now her eyes are full of alertness and caution.
After all, she is a hereditary noble under the Frankish system, even though she is a girl.
The maid dressed her in a shortened Chunik robe, tied her waist with a delicate leather belt, covered her head with a white gauze scarf, and decorated her headdress with gold, silver and amber.
Hidden by the robe are her Ross-style high-top leather boots, which are wrapped in soft linen, allowing her to walk quickly and freely.
It is also a plain white cloak and shawl, fixed with a gold-plated brooch. This robe is very unusual, with a large number of blue cloth strips sewn on it.
She is dressed in blue and white tones, and her brown hair is tied up on the back of her head. Her fair cheeks with slight freckles have a pair of dark blue eyes. These eyes are unusual, and they always reveal a hint of alertness, and even... a hint of murder.
meaning.
Just like there is a short sword hanging on her leather bag, the hilt is inlaid with a huge ruby, and the silver-plated scabbard is tattooed with complex gold patterns.
To a large extent, Count Sofia Na**'s dress today is to retain the traditional dress of a Frankish female aristocrat and try to imitate the Russian female aristocrat as much as possible.
After all, all the elite men under her command are Rus' warriors, and the soldiers' clothes are still tattooed with the flag of Rus' - interlaced blue strips of cloth sewn on their white robes.
She is the Countess, and the one who truly wields the power of the Count is the Black Fox.
There is no problem. Even though the two have not yet married according to Frankish law, the two have already acted together and even launched a military operation. This time, they will bring a "special gift" to meet Ludwig stationed in Mainz.
king.
She was busy dressing up in her boudoir, while Black Fox deliberately waited outside with his brothers.
When she walked out of the house and showed off her new image, no one dared to question that she was not decent enough.
"What about me...?" She looked directly at her young but fat husband Hei Hu.
"Very good. Even like a warrior, I like it."
"Really? But I've never really participated in a battle."
"There will be a chance, maybe you are willing. I heard that the Queen of Ross already participated in the war when she was twelve years old, and even the Duchess of Ostara has had war experience at your age..."
The names mentioned by the husband are all unfamiliar. Those women are all female nobles of Rus. Although they have never met them, maybe they just don’t have the chance to meet them now.
Sofia took a deep breath, inadvertently puffing up her chest, trying to suppress the nervousness and timidity in her heart: "It seems you want me to be the Valkyrie you call me? You really think highly of me. Let's go, let's go to Mainz."
"Then let's go." Black Fox patted his belly. He was very happy that his fiancée was becoming more and more feminine, and now she finally had the taste of a female warrior. He held Sophia's hand: "I really don't know that Luther
What will Vichy do when he sees us? Maybe he will be frightened."
"Maybe. But he is a savage man like you."
"Barbaric? How is it considered barbaric?"
"Killing, endless killing..."
"This is what war is like. Stop talking about it. You are a countess after all. The world will only remember that it was the Nassau nobles who defeated the Frankish army in Coblenz."
Sofia nodded lightly to confirm. The implication was that as a Nassau noble, she was responsible for the eight hundred heads chopped off. This kind of thing was simply unreasonable and unclear.
She was not frightened, thinking that Ludwig would only be surprised and that was all.
Of course, some people were stunned by this incident. That was Father Conrad of Nassau Abbey. As a clergyman, he went to Mainz this time not just to serve as a foil for the nobles.
What does the Nassau Whale swallowing Leingau mean? It means that the ownership of the entire old Leingau diocese will be changed. It will be moved entirely to the diocese of Cologne and will be separated from the diocese of Worms (Mainz). So healthy
Ladd will become the new regional bishop, and he needs to be recognized by Worms, and even more so by Cologne in the future.
The refugees from Koblenz have been diverted, and a group of people went to the plain wasteland of Limburg Ferry in the upper reaches of the Llan River to pioneer. The fishing village of Llandstein has now become a large settlement, and the dock here has also been urgently expanded.
Whether it was Coblenz, Nassau, or all Norman and Utrecht immigrants, after the war, Sophia issued a tax exemption order to the entire county in accordance with her husband's request.
In fact, it was the Black Fox who decided to grant the post-war people tax exemption for up to three years after careful consideration, which meant that the most critical tithe tax would be collected in the autumn of 845. This was to imitate the decree of the Kingdom of Rus, and the so-called post-war grant to the people was
After three years of rest and recuperation, people will definitely accumulate a lot of wealth, and they may be able to collect even more by collecting taxes by then.
This was benevolent government. The people found this measure incredible. The original one-year tax exemption was now expanded to three years. The nobles had indeed fulfilled their pre-war promises.
But for lower-level nobles and priests, if they do this, how will their money come from? Will everyone have to live as an ascetic for three years?
This is not the case.
Black Fox is full of confidence in trade. He feels that he can earn a lot of wealth just by selling wine to the outside world, or even just preliminary fermented grape juice. Summer nobles and priests only need to share some trade dividends, and they can use it to get cash.
There is absolutely no problem at this stage in purchasing surplus grain from farmers with cash.
What's more, it is now the time of the Frankish Civil War, and the Count of Nassau has a relatively strong army, which is not large in strength, and can directly obtain huge war profits by relying on "legal plunder".
So for the Black Fox, he brought eight hundred heads to see Ludwig, and these heads were simply a form of surrender.
All parties have demands, and the focus is on Mainz.
Ten long boats went upstream, and the Black Fox fleet consisted of 200 people. The rowing long boats towed the long boats that simply carried cargo. In addition to the 800 heads, there were 500 iron helmets and a batch of damaged armors.
.
It would be bad if Ludwig thought that there was a possibility of killing a good man and taking credit for it. Then, how could that man have any doubts when he saw a pile of damaged armor and helmets.
Anyway, the Nassau militiamen had a bad feeling about these helmets. Strangely enough, the militiamen took off the enemy's clothes, leather boots, belts, etc., washed away the blood and took them for themselves, but turned a blind eye to the helmets.
The militiamen felt that it was unlucky, and the Russian soldiers felt that there was no need to keep it for themselves. The scrap metal could be used to claim credit, and they might be able to make some money by selling it to Ludwig.
After passing through the relatively turbulent Spei Ferry, the fleet continued its journey in absolute silence and tranquility.
All the long ships furled their sails, the Russian flag was openly hung on the only mast, and Russian bucklers were hung on both sides of the ship. The large oars slid rhythmically. To outsiders, they must have thought that this was a group of pirates invading the inland river.
In fact, this is not the case. For Mainz, only the longships flying the Ross flag are not enemies. What's more, some ships here specially fly the flags of black crosses on white backgrounds.
Not far away is the city of Mainz. Father Conrad is wearing a black robe. He holds a huge black cross tied with intentionally carbonized wooden strips in his arms. He stands on the bow of a long ship just to make the viewer aware.
Having a clergyman on board takes away all fear.
But when they actually arrived in Mainz, the situation in the city had become very different.
"What's going on? There are people on both sides of the bank? No! There are actually a lot of tents?" Black Fox squinted and muttered to himself, casually asking Wadi, who was busy paddling, for his opinion.
Although Vardy is a baron, since the fiefdom of Limburg is now managed by Father Bachbert of Koblenz, he and his brothers do not need to worry there.
He was an old soldier. He looked around and said casually: "Last year I heard that Ludwig wanted to increase his troops. It seems that he is really doing this."
"I also saw some small boats floating on the river. What were they doing?"
"What are you doing?!" Wadi took a closer look and found that the people on the boat had obvious metal reflections: "Maybe he is transporting troops? I heard that his brother wanted to lift troops to kill him. He is raising troops just to protect himself."
"Maybe. Hehe." Black Fox suddenly thought of something and shouted casually and vulgarly: "Brothers came too timely. If we help him fight, it will be a great favor. Even if my second brother Lan Hu is not here this year, I am better than
He is not much different, the main thing is that you have experienced many battles. Brothers, you can still find a rich place to rob. Haha, we will make a fortune."
At the mention of getting rich, everyone gets excited and becomes even more motivated to paddle.
Regarding the troops on both sides of Mainz, those staying in tents came out one after another. Although they were not wearing armor, anyone with a discerning eye could tell that they were soldiers.
The appearance of the Ross fleet was completely uninvited. The troops of the Eastern Kingdom were alert, but the attitudes of the soldiers on the left and right sides were different. It may be that the soldiers on the north bank were on high alert, and the personnel on the south bank were laxly guarded.
Because there are a large number of Ludwig's troops directly on the south coast. They came from Bavaria in various ways. The newly arrived troops chatted with the veterans stationed in Mainz and learned more or less about the Russians.
The one on the north bank is different, because the army currently encamped by Margrave Thuringia Thakurf is indeed different from Ludwig's standing army in terms of attire.
The main city of Mainz is on the south coast. Black Fox and his brother visited once last year, and this time they also landed directly from the old place.
Both sides maintained a tacit understanding. Seeing that they were Russians, the soldiers on the shore not only lowered their guard, but also personally took the cable that was thrown, pulled the ship a little closer to the shore, and finally fixed it.
This scene made the black fox feel so strange that he jumped down slightly awkwardly, holding his belly, holding on to his straight white fox hat, and then took Sophia down with his hands.
The Ross army formed a team at the landing site. Father Conrad, who was still holding the huge black cross, took off his robe and looked around. He hoped to see some local clergy hanging around and at least have a few chats to avoid making his situation too embarrassing.
After hearing the news, a centurion came over. This man was wearing a full set of military uniforms. Unfortunately, his chainmail was somewhat rusty and his helmet also had a lot of scratches. This outfit looked like a veteran of hundreds of battles, but in fact he was too lazy to spend money to repair himself.
of stomach.
He organized his team a little, but no matter how he compared it, it was not as bright and advantageous as those uniformly dressed Russians.
He stared at the fat man who was the most gorgeously dressed and walked away, even though he looked younger. There had long been a legend in the army that the king had neglected a very fat Russian envoy, which later caused some unnecessary wars, so last year's meeting
It became a treat, and the relationship between the two parties was not bad.
Maybe...the fat messenger is here again?
"Who are you? Rose? You...won't come for no reason."
After all, it was someone else's territory. Black Fox maintained restraint and said respectfully: "It is said that the king of the east is here. We came from Nassau, and this time we brought a big gift to meet the king."
"Our King? This matter... is still allowed for me to report."
In fact, there was no need to report it. When the long boats on the river were visible to the naked eye, soldiers rushed to the city on horseback. When the Black Fox and his party arrived, Ludwig already knew that the Russians were coming. He just couldn't confirm whether it was Blue Fox or not.
That guy Fox is here again, but now they are different and can be negotiated and used.
Ludwig's attitude towards the Russians was very ambivalent. He could not forget the humiliation of his defeat on the Elbe River, and he continued to hate him but could not bear it anymore. In fact, he welcomed these guys to Mainz and used them as thugs.
Do something you shouldn't do.
No, a centurion had to wait for orders at the dock. The contact was not accidental.
Because on top of the city wall, Ludwig, who was dressed in armor, stood relatively low-key on a high place. He mingled with the soldiers on duty on the city wall to cover his whereabouts.
When he reappeared, he completely changed his clothes.
The ground was shaking, because a cavalry team walked out of the city's main gate very arrogantly. The leader was none other than Ludwig himself, who had put on his most gorgeous clothes. He did not wear a helmet, instead he wore a gold crown. Behind him
The cavalrymen and horses were all wearing armor, their mail armor and helmets were polished to a shine, the manes of the horses were combed and smoothed, and even the horses' hooves were new.
This was not Ludwig's deliberate act of honor, but because the cavalry had indeed changed its armaments and was actually preparing for this year's large-scale battle.
Objectively speaking, these heavy cavalry mobilized from Bavaria gave him strong self-confidence. Even if these elites had to be transported slowly and leisurely across the Inn River in small boats, they would still have to worry about the danger of their horses falling into the water if the boats were frivolous.
He thought it was the blue fox who came in person, but Ludwig, who was riding a tall horse, took a look for himself and was surprised to find that it was actually that guy's younger brother.
"I remember you! You are Paul." Ludwig pointed with the riding crop in his hand, while controlling the restless horse's hooves to walk left and right.
The black fox raised his head and squinted his eyes in the face of the sun, making his eyes, which were small due to his obesity, almost blurry.
"I'm Paul, Paul Black Fox."
"As expected. You! Why don't you bow to me when you see me?"
After being defeated by an army, Black Fox remained calm: "But I am not your vassal yet. However, some people should indeed salute you."
No, a gorgeously dressed girl walked out. Ludwig had noticed her a long time ago and subconsciously thought that she was a noble from the Kingdom of Rus, maybe a relative like Rurik's sister.
As a result, the girl's words surprised him.
"You? You are actually the youngest daughter of the Nassau family. What did you just call yourself? Earl?"
Sofia, who had just completed the etiquette of a female aristocrat, was indeed embarrassed when facing the superior king. She tried hard to suppress her cowardice and insisted on explaining her new identity: "I am the Count of Nassau-Coblenz-Leingau."
"You? Are you sure? I don't remember when I consecrated a new earl? Especially a woman." No, Ludwig's eyes stared directly at the black fox standing on the side: "What's going on?
What’s going on with this girl?”
Black Fox regained his composure and replied solemnly: "We are here today as members of the Earl of Nassau's army. Sophia is indeed the Countess. If you find it confusing, then admit our identity now."
"It's just puzzling. You? A arrogant Russian. Unexpectedly, you are more arrogant than your brother? Are you teaching me how to do things?! Are you worthy?"
"If you read the gifts we give you, you will have a deeper understanding of us."
"A gift?" Ludwig put away the riding crop, looked around and laughed: "A gift. My soldiers, you all heard it. A Norman wants to give me a gift."
These elite heavy cavalry were only loyal to Ludwig. They were the most elite soldiers. The king was laughing, and the soldiers were also happy.
"Okay!" Ludwig stuck his head out again: "Show me your gift! I hope it makes me happy."
"You... will be happy." Blue Fox smiled meaningfully, clapped his hands, and ordered his people to approach the large number of wooden boxes that had been moved ashore.
Ludwig approached the wooden boxes as he led a team on horseback. He was full of curiosity, imagining that they were filled with gold and silver. What he needed most now was cash for military expenses, and he simply ignored the strange smell that began to permeate the air.
"Please stay calm." After saying that, Black Fox gave his subordinates a gesture.
Some people were holding crowbars and preparing to open the box, while others took Sophia Nassau away to avoid it. Even Father Conrad turned his back and kept crossing himself, and no one paid attention to his abnormal behavior.
Ludwig and his soldiers were looking forward to the great gift from the Russians. As a result, the box was opened with a crowbar, and heads rolled out along with a large amount of white lime.
"What is this?!" Ludwig was shocked, his eyes widened and almost popped out of his sockets. He tugged on the reins, and the horse that had received the wrong command hung its front hooves high, almost knocking her off.
The entire cavalry team was deeply shocked. Even though they were veterans of many battles, they couldn't help but tremble when they saw the heads rolling in.
"What's going on? Are you threatening me?" Ludwig, who had calmed down, had already drawn his sword. By coincidence, it was the steel sword Rurik had given him.
So Black Fox naturally recognized this sword. After all, this sword was originally made by his old father. After changing hands several times, it finally fell into the hands of this guy.
His overreaction also surprised Black Fox, but the gift was more than just a roll of heads.
More wooden boxes were opened, containing damaged armor and trampled Frank-style iron helmets.
This fact requires no words to explain.
"They are all... all the relics of soldiers? Then these heads..."
"That's right." The squinting Black Fox said with a sullen face, "This is your eldest brother Lothair's army. It is said that they are members of the 20th Banner Corps, as well as some armed civilians from Metz."
"You Russians intercepted and killed them? When did you launch the military operation? You didn't even tell me?!"
"Shouldn't I tell you now? Here are eight hundred heads, including the heads of their commanders. We killed eight hundred of Lothair's elite for you. Isn't this a great achievement? Isn't this what you want to see most?
A gift that arrived?"
Ludwig had to calm down: "If this is true, you have indeed made a contribution. Well, I accept these horrific gifts. I give you permission to enter the city, and your troops have the right to garrison in the city. You!
Paul Black Fox! And you, Sophia Nassau. I need to have a good talk with you two, and I allow you to talk in detail in my palace."