Rise of Rurik

In the view of the marching Quentin Banner, all the nobles who continued to stay in the Coblenz area were traitors. With King Lothair's permission, he could attack all the rebels.

There was no resistance as they marched all the way, which once puzzled him.

The families of the executed knights showed no resistance, and the disarmed knights' retinues also cried out that they were innocent. The murderous Frankish army stopped them in their defense, and in the face of the "exposure order", the villagers also "bitten" each other.

Quentin is not a local lord. He holds the title of knight as a companion to the standing army officers, and his soldiers are also professional soldiers.

They were the military legacy of Charlemagne to his descendants, so imitating the standing army of the Roman legions that they did not hesitate to kill.

Even those who were to be executed were Franks.

The ancestors of the people living in Koblenz are the Moselle tribe under the Alemannic people, which was defeated and annexed by the Franks hundreds of years ago. More than three hundred years have long made the locals forget the past. They don't understand that a few years ago everyone was still a subject of Lothair. Nowadays, small Koblenz changes owners frequently. Why do ordinary people have to fight for power and profit? The nobles paid the price in blood?

Quentin doesn't care, his order is to eliminate the rebellion and cleanse the Normans of their poison. The only thing he has to consider is that if he fails to complete the task well, he will be deprived of his status as flag captain. The feeling of being demoted to a soldier is more painful than beheading.

Villagers expose each other? very good! Anyone who is pointed out is a traitor! All will be hanged!

The village became a den of demons, but the army still clung to their victory. The rebels' homes were ransacked, their livestock and poultry confiscated to use as food for the army, and their houses were deliberately burned to create fire and smoke to frighten the enemies who held the "German Corner".

The villages in the mountainous areas were "inspected" one after another, and the arrival of the army was bound to be a disaster.

Burning villages caused smoke and dust, and improper operation could even cause a village to catch fire.

The ashes are skyrocketing, but the local water vapor has always been naturally strong.

In the evening of that day, it rained heavily all over Koblenz, which extinguished the fire and made the ground suddenly become muddy. The people who lost their homes cried bitterly. They did not dare to scold the shamelessness of these troops. Now they cuddled up to the priests and prayed for God's salvation.

What about the priests? The priests stationed in the village had to obey the Bishop of Koblenz. They had nothing to say to the soldiers and could only try their best to comfort the lambs who had suffered huge losses.

First came the warning of heavy fires and smoke that could not be ignored, and then came the heavy rain. Along with the rain came a steady stream of refugees fleeing into the villages and docks below the mountains.

Three knights fled with their families. They took the entire village with them and arrived at the dock with only limited belongings.

They set up a temporary camp, and the young priests who fled with the team went straight to the monastery, explained the disaster to Bishop Bachbert, and prayed for salvation.

But they saw that Quentin's flag team had to inspect villages one by one and attack the rebellious knights, so their movement speed was naturally slow. After a rain, the road became muddy, which further slowed down their speed.

Finally, the new village is in sight, and you can even see a larger wooden building.

The situation was extremely strange. The scouts who took off their armor and transformed into light cavalry went to investigate and found that the entire village was empty. The scene was extremely strange. Apparently some of the cattle and sheep had not been taken away, but the poultry raised were wandering around the muddy village path.

It was as if all the villagers disappeared in an instant.

But the ruts, horse hoof prints and dense footprints on the ground proved that people were fleeing.

"Maybe I went too far?!" After listening to the scout's emergency report, Quentin reexamined his conscience for a moment.

The king's order is absolute!

After some psychological struggle, he held the riding whip and walked forward: "Keep walking! The rebels are afraid of crime and run away. We will camp in the village! Let us eat and drink enough to continue the crusade!"

They slaughtered abandoned cattle and sheep, and soldiers were ordered to search the entire settlement for property, find hidden grains, and light a fire on the spot to eat.

After another day of rest, all the houses were set on fire according to the principle of crusade.

At first, those houses with thick haystacks were difficult to ignite because the roofs were moist. Thick white smoke first emitted. When the flames slowly ignited, the white smoke turned into gray-black smoke, and red flames shot into the sky. The soldiers Facing this crazy warmth.

Quentin, the flag captain in armor and stomach, still stood upright with his sword drawn: "Remember! We are ordered to attack the rebels and the Normans! Show your courage! Don't show mercy!"

He did some war mobilization, and now it is the third day of the crusade. The soldiers who were somewhat conflicted at first have now given up everything.

…

At this moment, a large number of refugees had gathered on the flat land of the river mouth under the Koblenz Fortress. They heard that King Lothair's army was rushing towards them and killing people. Various rumors were flying all over the sky, and the most terrifying rumors were none other than the Kingdom's army. Unbelievably, he pointed the butcher knife at his own people.

Even though everyone generally didn't believe it at first, the mountain residents who escaped said similar words, and there was no room for disbelief.

How many people are gathering in the river mouth plain area below the mountain now?

At least two thousand people escaped with limited belongings, and as an important farming area, the river mouth area has always had a large population.

There are as many as five thousand people crowded here, which is already an extremely dense place based on the current population density of Frankia.

Those people who were unwilling to live under the control of the new Nassau ruler left a year ago. These people who successfully fled to the river mouth area under the mountain not only support Nassau, but what they need most now is the salvation of the new lord.

The fishermen's spontaneous escape has begun. They are making rafts on the shore. Even if the limited fishing boats carry a small number of people, they try to squeeze in as many people as possible and carry portable rafts across the Rhine River. Their destination was the fishing village of Landstein on the other side, now the riverside port of the Baron of Nassau.

In this regard, Eric, who was stationed in the fortress, as a Russian, at this moment he and his nearly 200 brothers transformed from conquerors to defenders of the people.

Do they really regard this group of scurrying people as their own?

They are not so virtuous, they are like a large group of animals that surrender to themselves. The Ross garrison has the right to ask for tribute from them to live. If someone comes to kill these people intentionally, wouldn't it ruin the lives of the brothers? Way to make money. They still have the old idea of ​​regularly demanding tribute from the Ross tribe, and it is this idea that drives these tough warriors to protect the poor.

Spontaneous river crossings are fraught with dangers. During the high water season in early summer, the flow of the Rhine River is faster, and overloaded fishing boats are at risk. In order to survive, paddlers no longer care too much.

This boat accident suddenly appeared in front of everyone. People gathered on the riverside watched the boat float and screamed as the poor man was swallowed by the river water.

There were loud cries and screams, but the operation to cross the river could not be stopped.

The number of refugees in the fishing village of Landstein gradually increased, and the operation to cross the river for survival continued.

All the boats were used for people's self-rescue. The thick smoke burning not far away perfectly proved the approaching danger. People were shouting "Satan's apostles are going to kill us." The chaos on the ferry never stopped. This is Father Bach. Bert couldn't be appeased either.

On the contrary, the Ross garrison took the initiative to leave the fort and maintain order at the dock.

They threatened the men who robbed the ship with swords and axes. Since they had witnessed the tragedy of capsizing, and in order to avoid another disaster that would sink the precious ship with them, Eric simply let them know what tyranny is.

Two men who were crazy about robbing the boat were caught out and beheaded in public. Their bodies were kicked into the Rhine River by Eric, and one of their heads was held high by him.

He yelled only one thing in broken Frankish: "Another robber. Kill!"

The crazy trick of killing one person as a warning to others has indeed achieved great results. Father Bachbert who witnessed all this did not do anything to stop him. The priests kept crossing themselves and watching silently. Some young priests even knelt on the ground and prayed to God for rescue.

However, the archangel did not descend to earth. Suddenly, the people gathered at the pier cheered collectively.

They once regarded the dragon-headed warship as a terrifying monster, and the monster on the bow clearly depicted the little devil under Satan.

Otherwise, the open oars are like the wings of a six-winged archangel, and the sturdy and spacious warship will save everyone.

They were so sure because the Russian soldiers stationed in the fortress killed the rebels and at the same time announced to the helpless people that reinforcements would arrive soon.

No, reinforcements began to approach the dock.

Black Fox mobilized ten long ships, accompanied by a large number of small barges behind them.

The longboats were filled with warriors busy paddling. They wore armor in order to fight fiercely with the enemy after arriving at Coblenz.

Knights Gilbert and Ballard, as well as Count Robert, who was about to leave, took out all their personal guards at this moment.

Saving the people from fire and water is the most important thing. This time they cooperated with the Norman Rus for the same goal, and everyone worked hard.

In the eyes of the Ross army stationed in Nassau, a group of outsiders dared to run wild in our territory, and they must be killed without return. This tribal consciousness that disappears in a short period of time makes them have a strong will to fight.

The obese Black Fox dressed up like a brave warrior, but the iron helmet buckled on his head like a fat fish, and the fat was squeezed out. Along with the mustache that he deliberately started to grow, his appearance was really too funny.

No one would think that their boss is really a warrior, and even if they really fight, they have to listen to the actual instructions of the old guys Eric and Vardy, but the way he supports the monster on the bow of the ship and holds the steel sword high is very refreshing and objective. Shan, a fat man, pressed down on the bow of the ship, which was slightly tilted due to fast paddling, making the ship sail more steadily.

The appearance of the longship caused a sensation, and similarly, the roaring crowd on the other side also opened the eyes of the black fox.

"Hey! Vardy, when do we still have so many people?!"

Wadi, Blue Fox's old follower, is a rescued slave who is now a rare and powerful general of Black Fox. This guy does not have a title for the time being, but his title is a certainty.

Wadi didn't know either. He had rich combat experience. In his eyes, the presence of a large group of civilians was a crazy constraint on combat. They should disappear! The existing fleet must remove them as quickly as possible.

"I don't know!" His answer was simple.

"Ah? What do you know? Give me some advice!"

"Evacuate the people and move away their surplus food and grain. After that, it's up to you."

The black fox thought that this was indeed the case. After transporting the people, they had to feed them. Using their food to feed themselves was the right way. After this chaos is over, they each go back to their homes, and if there are difficulties in life, they will talk about it later.

But he thought again, "No! What about our Coblenz Fortress? We still have to hold on and we cannot give up without resistance."

"Let the fortress go to hell! Boss, we don't have the strength to fight those people now. Unless they are not a huge thousand people."

"That's right. Then destroy the fortress and set it on fire deliberately. We can't let them get what we can't get."

The longships arrived at the pier one after another. With the previous actions of killing chickens as a warning to monkeys, facing the savior-like ship, no one dared to board the ship rashly, no matter how anxious the waiters were.

The Rus warriors, who carried bucklers and wore uniforms, quickly became empty.

Without further ado, without bothering to clean up the large amount of mud on his boots, Black Fox hurriedly met with his stationed subordinate Eric. After some pleasantries, he made an appointment: "Since you have started to evacuate, I will leave the rest to you. Use all your strength." Longboats carried people to the other side.”

Seeing his boss Black Fox again, this young fat man has the decisiveness of his second brother Blue Fox, which makes people admire him with admiration.

This kid has really grown up after experiencing the war. In fact, this kind of person is extremely important at critical moments.

"So, what about the fort we're garrisoned in?" Eric had to figure out the new situation.

"No more!"

"ah?!"

"Our troops are limited and we will not fight them to the death."

"This! It's not honorable enough. The brothers are planning to sacrifice blood to Odin!" What Eric said represented the thoughts of many warriors.

Vardy came forward and patted the old man on the shoulder: "This is the territory of the Franks. Don't you and I believe in their gods? Put the blood sacrifice aside and clear this area. We won't worry about the decisive battle after that."

"Just do it according to my decision." Black Fox emphasized again: "This is my wife's order. Remember, she will soon be an earl. In the future, you two and your brothers will have a higher status here. Go to Her canonization still needs to be confirmed later.”

It sounds funny, but it's true. The mentality of the Russian people stationed here has changed drastically. Being pirates and adventurers all the time is not a long-term solution. Everyone still needs a noble status to live their lives!

No, Black Fox shouted in a half-joking manner: "Wardy, Eric, you will all be barons from now on. Our brothers must be knights at least. Take a long-term view!"

An efficient evacuation operation finally began. The oarsmen were reduced to twenty people, and the remaining space could be used to rush in fifty unarmed civilians. If children were transported, one boat could transport a hundred people.

Just sail 200 meters through the Rhine River channel, unload the personnel directly at the deserted beach on the other side, and have them walk to Llandstein upstream not far away.

A long ship sailing such a short distance can take some risks of overloading. With ten ships on the line, the transportation speed can be said to be extremely fast!

As if this is not enough, everyone hopes to be the first to board the ship, and they need a more powerful presence to stand up and intimidate.

Until now, Robert is still the Count of Laingau, and he has stepped forward.

Count Lai Yingao came in person? ! Isn’t the area opposite Lai Yingao? ! Hasn't Nassau always been a vassal to Ingau? ! So we have permission from the count to go to the other side?

Or even come to Earl Yingao to serve as our queen? !

The majority of civilians had limited access to information. They did not know that Robert was about to leave and that Lyingau and Koblenz had merged. They only know that the great nobles in the north are helping them now, and the Normans have become good people.

On the other hand, King Lothair's army was killing indiscriminately, and no one could ignore the thick smoke rising from behind the mountain. It was like an ax hanging above the head that could fall at any time. It was this situation that was the most terrifying.

Because they had to worry that Lothair's frantic army might rush out at any time and kill the fleeing people wantonly.