Chapter 533 A big loyal minister of the kingdom intends to be king
Facing the new rising sun, those gray corpses lay scattered. The Vikings had cleared the battlefield and plundered everything they thought was valuable.
Poverty inspired the Balmok Vikings to have a strong desire to plunder, and now the brothers are boarding ships one after another, aiming for Bamburgh in the south.
A longship carrying Rurik arrived at the Avora, which was anchored and adrift at sea.
Several sets of rope ladders were thrown from the big ship, and a group of people began to climb.
A rope was thrown down, and Rurik's elite mercenaries skillfully tied the captured king. Eynred was like a fat sheep, being transported by the people on the ship and transported to the huge ship.
Although it was humiliating, Eynred was really shocked to be sitting on a huge ship.
Think about your own kingdom. It is a huge country located on an island, but there is not even a decent ship.
Even when I went to Frankfurt or even to the Holy See for pilgrimage when I was young, I would take a sampan and stop at the nearest European coast, and then walk the entire journey by land.
He saw that the Vikings had many ships, but the one he was building was sailed entirely by sails. This small mountain-like ship did not have a pair of oars!
After all, Eynred was the king of a kingdom, and Rurik did not really want to take his life, of course, provided that this person would cooperate with his decision.
The king was tied to the main mast so that he could see the structure of the ship clearly and feel the charm of the Aurora.
The sailor let out a long roar, and the rope binding the sail was pulled down violently. The ship instantly raised the sail, which shocked Eynred to the point where he had goosebumps all over his body. The wound on his left arm immediately oozed blood due to emotional stress.
He endured the pain and raised his head. He was like a slave after losing his crown. He looked up at the Vikings, no, the huge sails of the Rus. The huge blue interlaced stripes on the sails actually made him suddenly start to have thoughts in fear.
Some sense of closeness.
"That barbarian boy named Rurik actually regards the Gospel as a treasure? Can these diagonally intertwined blue patterns become a blue cross? Can they become the Lamb of the Lord after reading the Gospel? That's it.
Can you stop the plundering of our country?”
The beautiful fantasy was shattered in an instant, and Eynred did not dare to continue thinking about it.
His current situation is no different from that of a slave. He still remains absolutely silent and endures until he is released. As for his counterattack, he needs to think about it in the long term.
He also didn't want to think about the barbaric Vikings converting to their ridiculous gods and accepting the call of the Lord.
Those Picts in the north, with indigo tattoos all over their bodies, dared to call themselves lambs.
The kings of Mercia, Kent, and Wessex in the south are all willing to go to Rome for pilgrimage and spend money to "buy" a papal reward, but their methods towards the kingdoms of the same faith are no more merciful than these barbarians.
The Viking fleet resumed sailing, losing many brothers and gaining a large amount of loot.
Is the expedition really worth it now?
Of course it’s worth it!
The vast number of young men in Balmok, due to extremely backward productivity, cannot support a tribe of 20,000 people even if the Narvik Fjord is large enough.
People all believe in fate. When a soldier dies on the battlefield, people's regret may only last for two or three days before they pack up their weapons and rush to another battlefield.
The Balmoks and Shetlanders still maintained their fighting spirit, thinking that they would run to Bamburgh to get the king's ransom, and every brother would make a fortune!
Even as they rowed, they were already discussing heatedly how many silver coins they could get and whether they could take away a pure woman to be their wife.
They have not evolved to a situation where the leader of the family who leads the army can take all the spoils. The leaders of the family naturally have great achievements. They have the right to eat the fattest meat, and the rest of the meat is swept away by the brothers.
There is no situation where who eats meat and who can only drink soup.
From Lindisfarne Abbey to the small coastal bay where Bamburgh is located, you can take a forest road and a strong traveler who prepares his luggage can complete this journey in as little as one day.
Due to the twists and turns of the forest road, the land distance between the two places is actually close to 40 kilometers.
The British Isles in this time and space are still sparsely populated, and the situation in Northumbria, which has been ravaged by civil strife, is even worse. During this journey, the lonely traveler must carry weapons to guard against wolf attacks. However, in the current situation, the forest wolf can only remain
Be alert and avoid.
The defeated Northumbrian army, whether they were regular kingdom warriors or armed farmers, most of the escapees lost their weapons and had to find suitable wooden sticks in the woods, the best crutches ever, as short-hand tools for self-defense.
spear.
They still had some fighting ability, but they were killed by the king, the priests were killed, and they were frightened by the destruction of the Holy Land.
They went straight to Bamburgh like crazy and lost too much physical strength. When the first group of people arrived under the wooden city wall of Bamburgh, there were still a group of people struggling to move in the forest.
It wasn't until after this death that the forest wolf, which was dormant and waiting, launched an attack on the lone warriors and farmers at night.
What does the escape misery of this group of people have to do with the Vikings?
Their escape did have an advantage. When the rout appeared, the people of Bamburgh who were waiting for the news just felt that the sky was falling and the earth was falling.
The cavalry warrior named John escorted the king's golden crown helmet. The cavalry gathered together and swore not to let anyone else tarnish the king's golden crown again.
These are His Majesty's noble cavalry! They are right below the city!
The few defenders of Bamburgh immediately lowered the drawbridge and the cavalry rode in.
John and others had just entered the city, and people waiting for news immediately gathered around them.
"You all get out of the way! I'm looking for the queen! Where is the queen? Where is Prince Ella?" John held up the king's golden crown helmet. People looked at this noble thing and instantly had an ominous premonition.
This was something unspeakable, and no one shouted loudly that he was defeated.
For a moment, the crowd moved out of the way, and Queen Anna, feeling that something was wrong, took her ignorant young son, escorted by several maids, and tremblingly approached the proud cavalry under her husband's command.
Seeing Her Majesty the Queen, all the cavalrymen knelt down on one knee one after another.
Only John walked forward with a sullen face and the golden crown helmet in his arms.
"What happened to the king? You have battle marks on your body!"
"Is the king really..."
John knew that he was risking disrespect, but he did not die in battle with his brothers or rescue the king. He even hoped that he would be sentenced to death afterwards.
He refused to answer the queen's words, rather rudely took off Ella's velvet hat, and placed the heavy golden crown helmet representing the king's military power on the head of the little prince Ella.
At this point, he suddenly knelt down on one knee. Although he still did not answer the queen's question, in this tragic scene, even if Queen Anna was a simple woman, she could tell that the king had died in the battle.
The king's death was confirmed at the Earl of Bamburgh's mansion. Although the king's body was not obtained and the queen was very suspicious of it, her son had already worn his father's golden crown!
As a king's woman, she is destined not to have the sadness that ordinary peasant women should have. As the top noble of the kingdom, Queen Anna instantly understood her responsibilities.
His son Ella is the official heir to the throne of Northumbria!
Even if Aynred has multiple sons, another Elbert family has the right to compete for the throne of the Kingdom of Northumbria (after all, it is the merger of two small kingdoms). Now these are all a thing of the past, and the new king is Eynred.
pull!
She was not happy that her son was the king, and the serious situation was driving her mind crazy. However, the ignorant Ella was still asking her mother where her father had gone?
There was no need for anyone to spread the news. Behind the cavalry who had escaped, a group of dejected infantrymen began to enter the city. These infantrymen, who were in good physical condition, were so frightened that they escaped overnight and arrived at Bamburgh. They were intimidated.
A forced miracle.
Whatever residents had suspected was now true, and the situation was decidedly more horrific.
The monastery was burned! The holy place was desecrated! The news from Edinburgh was also confirmed, the town was burned!
The kingdom's army was defeated miserably by the powerful barbarians!
They were barbarians more terrifying than the Picts. They had iron heads and extremely hard shields. Their arrows could easily knock off people's heads. Even the invincible kingdom cavalry was defeated miserably.
Those wolves that are hungry must be heading towards Bamburgh!
But the king, the Earl of Bamburgh, the cavalry captain and all the elite warriors, the Bishop of Bamburgh who held the sacred weapon, and a large number of young priests. They all died on that battlefield!
Bamburgh actually entered a state of leaderlessness, and Bamburgh also fell into inevitable chaos.
At night, the hungry soldiers forced open the warehouse, took away the wheat and began to feast on it to fill their stomachs.
Taking advantage of the chaos, a group of farmers who fished in troubled waters also began to loot wheat.
How could a handful of guard soldiers and the few remaining priests of Bamburgh Abbey put an end to the chaotic scene?
Finally, the kingdom’s cavalry came out again!
The man's name was John Stockwood, and his crime of saving the king was immediately pardoned by Queen Anna.
The kingdom is facing a major crisis, and it is the time when the young master is in doubt. The so-called power without military defense is completely empty talk on this chaotic island.
The ignorant Ella was finally frightened by the chaos and burst into tears. The weight of the golden crown made him uncomfortable, but his mother ordered him to wear it.
The queen urgently appointed John Stockwood as the temporary cavalry captain, leading the warriors who still firmly defended the king's authority to suppress those who caused chaos! Especially for those who took advantage of the chaos to destroy and loot, and were no different from barbarians.
Just follow the practice of sneaking into the city and behead them when discovered.
Perhaps, being loyal to the new king and serving the queen who is already the queen mother is the greatest loyalty to the deceased king.
Thirty cavalrymen appeared leading more than a hundred infantry soldiers wearing chainmail. They went straight to the granary and rushed directly towards the people who were still looting food.
The horses knocked away the food grabbers, and the swords began to kill them.
The infantry behind the cavalry still refused to give up. Even though the panicked "grain-grabbing army" was already fleeing, the pursuit continued for a while.
A bloody suppression was quickly completed, and young John felt that he was better than his predecessor Aston. He even thanked Aston for dying in the battle, giving him a chance to make a fortune.
The success came too suddenly, and he arrived at Bamburgh clearly feeling depressed and self-blame. It had only been half a day, and the flames in the night illuminated his face. John stood among a large number of corpses, his face stained with blood.
Written full of desire for power.
In this bloody scene, a loyal and patriotic man deliberately took over the supreme power himself.
"Perhaps, I can still become the Prime Minister. Queen Anna is young and widowed, and Ella is a little kid. Can I possess her with my military power and merit? It was I who personally took over the golden helmet from Eynred.
You can wear it on your head! I can be the king. After I control the cavalry, which noble dares to disobey me? Anyone who disobeys will be trampled to death by my iron hoofs."
Maybe a cavalry soldier shouldn't have such unreasonable thoughts, but as a cavalry captain, why can't I?
In the past time, Northumbria has had countless great kings, and the royal power has changed hands in countless families.
The prerequisite for being king is military power! Now, there are family members of the late king in Bamburgh City, and he is the captain of the cavalry. This position in Northumbria is equivalent to the second holder of military power after the king.
John's idea was by no means delusional, he did have a chance to become king.
He immediately gathered his brothers whose swords were dripping with blood, and informed everyone of their interests: "Brothers! King Eynred led us to failure. He has brought shame to the kingdom! He is a tyrant! He is even more incapable of defeating the barbarians. Now
You follow me and elect me to be the palace prime minister. Now the barbarian army is coming to kill us. We have stabilized the people and armed ourselves. With this city, we will defeat the enemy. You elect me to be the palace prime minister and wait until the enemy is defeated.
, the lowest soldier can be an infantry squad leader! You can all become nobles, and you can all be served by slaves. Only I can give you these! Please support me."
Some people were skeptical at first, but as some shouted and shouted their support, all the soldiers cheered.
After all, King Aenred could not give a person destined to be a soldier a chance to prosper. As the saying goes, everyone has his own destiny, and a lowly person will still be a lowly person if he becomes a warrior of the kingdom.
Everyone has just experienced a narrow escape, is there anything to be afraid of?
John Stockwood, the son of a small local lord, was actually the lowest noble in the kingdom. For such a warrior who thought he was willing to stand up for the poor and humble, the brothers took risks one after another.
He decided to organize city defense work immediately, but that would all happen tomorrow and during the day.
He wiped the bloody sword clean, led more than a dozen like-minded men and went straight to the Earl of Bamburgh's mansion to meet the Queen Mother Anna and the new king Ella.
However, Ella has not yet been crowned, and Anna is still the queen.
In the count's mansion, Anna is anxiously waiting for the good news to calm down the chaos in the city.
Seeing the triumphant return of the cavalry captain she had ennobled, she stood up excitedly and rushed forward without caring about her own dignity.
She originally thought that John would kneel down on one knee and salute naturally, but the man still stood upright holding the hilt of the sword in his hand.
Anna couldn't care less: "Is the matter resolved? I can't hear the noise. It seems you succeeded."
"It was indeed a success."
"Oh! That's great." Anna forced a smile on her pretty face, and she realized that the situation was a bit strange. Under the soft light of the chandelier, he saw the greed in the eyes of John and his entourage.
"There's nothing to do now. You can go out for now. Too many things have happened and I need to calm down. I also want to accompany the Countess of Bamburgh." Anna issued an eviction order.
John still had no intention of retreating. He ordered his followers to avoid him and invited Anna to the hall to discuss the matter in secret.
Anna was startled, and suddenly felt that the situation was very complicated, so she changed her face and asked sternly: "Is there anything else?"
From the corner of his eye, John saw that everyone was avoiding his work, and even the maids felt something was wrong and hid one after another.
He dared to reach out and hit his chest, but was immediately pushed away by an angry Anna.
"presumptuous!"
But John didn't stop, and immediately grabbed her neck and pulled her to the secret maid's dressing room in front of young Ella.
The oil lamp was lit, and Queen Anna was pressed on a low table. She was yelling and kicking, but her skirt was still pulled up by John. Then, there was another burst of pain, and Anna burst into tears...
John was fully aware of Anna's identity. She was just the daughter of a lower-level noble. She was valued by Eynred for her beauty, and she was favored because she gave birth to a boy.
She was still young, just in her early twenties, and because of this, John prided himself on seizing the opportunity.
While John was doing things, he got close to Anna's face and said sternly to the painful woman: "Your power was all given by the late king. Who would recognize a child as king? Now I am the captain of the cavalry, and I will be yours."
A man will naturally protect you. I will be the Prime Minister."
Anna murmured while crying: "Why do you do this to me? You want to be the palace minister, you don't need this kind of thing. You are humiliating me, you might as well kill me."
"No! I am protecting you. I am older than you, and I am in the prime of life. How can that old man Eynred give you the joy of being a woman? Be my woman, and I will come to Northumbria.
King! I will treat Ella as my own son! I will lead the people of Bamburgh to defeat the barbarians! Listen, if I don’t stand up, this city will be destroyed in a few days, and your son will be killed by them.
Cut off your head and you will be captured by them, stripped of your robes and tattooed, tied up and sold as a fat sheep. They are more cruel than the Picts."
After such threats, Anna lowered her head. She said nothing and could only accept her fate.
Suddenly, she felt a hot feeling in her belly and realized that there was no going back.
The new king is Ella, which is a joke. It seems that this John Stockwood is the biggest threat to the royal power. She regretted her dead husband and guarded against threats from neighboring countries her entire life. In this battle, she was defeated by the barbarians at sea.
Here, what is even more terrifying is that the real threat to the royal power has surfaced!
The threat is not outside, it's within! It's in the highly skilled cavalry!
After all, Anna is a woman who knows how to compromise. She immediately knelt down on her knees regardless of her manners, looking up at John with pleading eyes: "I support you in becoming king, and I will marry you. I just ask that you do what you promised."
, treat Ella as your son.”
Seeing this woman's tearful prayer, John felt refreshed and exhausted.
He caressed Anna's neck and said arrogantly: "Of course, I will confer the title of Earl of Ella. And my and your child will be the real prince."
At this moment, Anna's tears moistened John's hands, which revived John's fighting spirit.
He picked up Anna and went straight to the bedroom.
After the appointed Anna ordered her son Ella to avoid him, she finally took the initiative to throw away her robe and serve her new man just like she served the previous king. She was so proactive and knowledgeable, all she wanted was that she and her son could still be together.