Rise of Rurik

The essence of a private banquet is to "talk about things." Black Fox noticed that Ludwig would order the waiter, and the stone room at this high place had indeed become a good place for both parties to have secret talks.

The things to be discussed in detail next are indeed very important. Ludwig was nervous and even lost his mind. These are also considered by the Black Fox.

Black Fox was standing beside the bed. He felt that if he really angered this guy, he would be thrown out and killed if he didn't make a strong move.

He still had to explain the situation, but the focus fell on "King Ross's decision."

"Everything is ordered by King Rurik of Rus. He determines the combat operations. He even had his eye on your Aachen two years ago."

"What? The conspiracy started two years ago?" Ludwig had never thought about this possibility, but now that he thought about it carefully, he felt a little relieved. "You Normans are aggressive. That guy Rurik! He..."

"Does the king resent him?" Black Fox lowered his attitude and asked cautiously.

"That's Aachen! It's New Rome! He clearly knows what Aachen means."

"It was precisely because he knew Aachen that he ordered the army to go on an expedition. We learned a lot of rumors. It is said that there is a mountain made of gold and silver in the city of Aachen. It is full of gold. The soldiers of Rus all want to make a fortune."

"This... is ridiculous!" Faced with the absurd rhetoric, Ludwig smiled bitterly: "It seems that you pirates always only think of this reason for plundering, and there are no new ideas? Do you really think there is a building in Aachen? Jinshan?"

"Otherwise? Isn't it possible?"

"What? Do you believe it too?"

"I..." Black Fox didn't believe these outrageous legends at first, but he was willing to believe them once more people spread them. After all, Aachen is the capital of a great country. The northern world has always said that Frank is powerful. Now that we finally have the opportunity to attack their capital, isn't it natural to make a fortune?

Black Fox composed himself: "When I learned how to speak, I heard about Charlemagne and the strength of the Frankish army. At that time, everyone said that your country is full of gold and silver."

"What now? You have clearly seen the real Frank. What do you think? You still think there is gold and silver everywhere? You! Paul, you married a Frank noble, and now you are ours! I am very dissatisfied with your rhetoric, you are still a Norman Really? I advise you to cut off from the north and forget about your King Rurik."

"My king..." Black Fox couldn't explain it for a while. He was actually very conflicted now.

He calmed down again, changed his tone slightly, and changed some terms: "At least, all the tribes of the Normans now believe that Frank has a lot of wealth, and Aachen must be very rich. In the past, they had illusions but no strength, but now With strength comes opportunity. Everything is like fate. When Charlemagne conquered Denmark, those Danes wanted revenge. Now, in addition to the desire for revenge, they also have the desire to take advantage of the opportunity to make a fortune."

"Oh? As you say, the Danes also joined?"

"Yes. The son of the King of Denmark, a warrior named Yinvar, joined them."

"Yinvar? I don't know him. I know that Ragnar, he is not that good. His son must be just as bad." Ludwig asked: "What other Norman nobles have joined them. I have ordered you to know Tell everything in full."

"yes."

Black Fox's description is highly selective. For example, the Duke of Saxony asked his son to participate in the expedition. Although the family was a large noble in the Frankish system, it was Charlemagne who used military means to force the Principality of Saxony to merge into the imperial system half a century ago. Bruno boarded a Russian ship and attacked Aachen, which can be regarded as an act of revenge for the family.

But when that boy Bruno really got on the ship, Blue Fox didn't want him to really participate in the robbery of Aachen.

Insightful people know very well what it means for the Frankish nobles to attack Aachen. For those who attack New Rome, nobles from all walks of life have the obligation to deprive them of their titles and kill their entire family.

But if the Normans did such a thing, they would do it. As for being attacked by the Frankish nobles, let's see on the battlefield.

Black Fox deliberately concealed some things, but he finally explained Bruno's situation, and incidentally also explained the Mercian king Reglaf, and the Ross fleet transport.

Sending Robert and his family to Tour.

These matters will be explained in detail later and will not be discussed for now.

The current situation is that the Kingdom of Rus takes the lead, followed by Swedish nobles, Danish nobles, and even a few Norwegians. All the Normans in the Frankish nobility concept used part of their military power, and under the leadership of the so-called Count Blue Fox of Gothenburg, they were ordered to attack Aachen.

Ludwig's scalp became numb the more he listened to Black Fox's slow narration.

"This is not robbery! It is clearly an act of war between countries! You! Are you declaring war on the entire Frank?"

"Oh?" Black Fox paused and was surprised: "But isn't your capital in Regensburg? Aachen is your eldest brother's city. King Rus knows that you are under great pressure now, so he sent troops to help You. King Ross thought you were happy."

"Bah! My grandfather's grave is there. What good intentions can the Normans have? Didn't you just explain that the Danish nobles joined the war for revenge? If they dig out Charlemagne's body and destroy it, wouldn't it be... a disservice to the king? insult?"

The words were full of threats, and the words were full of killing intent. Considering his current situation, the black fox would not use words to stimulate the increasingly irritable bull, but he would not tell him that King Ross had already thought of it.

The black fox pretended to hesitate and asked slowly: "Charlemagne is a great hero. I don't want this to happen. But what if this disaster really happens?"

"Then. I will treat all Danes as people who must be killed."

Seeing Ludwig's murderous eyes, Blue Fox quickly explained cheerfully: "Your Majesty, don't worry about this. Although he is attacking Aachen, King Rus vowed never to destroy Charlemagne's tomb. If anyone dares to destroy it, the nobles will do it." Even the soldiers will be beheaded, and the punishment will even affect their families, who will be killed. Because the King of Rus knows the greatness of Charlemagne, he does not want to go to war with all the Frankish nobles. "

"Rurik really means this?"

"Yes. You have seen Rurik. He does things in a measured way. He will not do anything unless he is forced to do it."

Ludwig finally calmed down: "In that case, why attack Aachen? Just to help me fight? Do I still need to thank him for attacking Aachen? He can obviously choose other targets. Or send troops to Mainz is here to solve my urgent need, and if he can raid Strasbourg, it will be of great help to me."

The Black Fox of Strasbourg, the place name mentioned in the last sentence, really needs to be vigilant: "I saw the king's army on both sides of the Inn. Could it be that you are planning a war."

"Stupid question. You are a smart man, but you still can't understand?"

"I don't understand."

"Don't pretend to be stupid. Huh!" Ludwig rolled his eyes at Black Fox, "You guys arrived just in time. We'll talk in detail later. Continue talking about Aachen. Tell me, what happened to Rurik? Do you think that plundering Aachen is helping me? My eldest brother has deployed a heavy army there, and the imperial nobles loyal to him are also there. Do you really have four thousand people? You are still throwing eggs at stones, be careful of the whole army being annihilated."

"Not necessarily. In my opinion, Lothair's army is nothing more than this. We just beheaded eight hundred people in Coblenz, so the king can count those heads himself."

"You don't need to teach me, and don't ask for credit for this anymore. The king's people are already counting, and they will also investigate whether you killed Liang. Just continue."

"Yes." Black Fox had no choice but to continue.

Even if he told him the secret he learned, Ludwig had no ability to interfere in distant Aachen, and even the army was entrenched in Mainz, which was approaching the limit of his abilities.

Black Fox said a lot. According to the information learned from many sources in the Kingdom of Ross, Lothair's garrison in the west was not mainly to guard Aachen, but to the west of the Maas River, with the frontline directed at the rebellious Earl of Flanders.

Ludwig knew this Count of Flanders very well. Baudouin II, like his father, was a man of both sides. The essence of his family was to obtain benefits, and his attitude was very flexible about who he was loyal to. However, after experiencing the war two years ago, the Earl chose a side for the first time purely out of profit considerations. Legally, that guy was a vassal of the Eastern Kingdom, that is, Ludwig's vassal.

It is said that based on the intelligence provided by the Count of Flanders, the main location of Lothair's western garrison can be known, and even the overall defense position of the so-called imperial nobles.

Not only this nobleman's information, but also Henry Nassau, Earl of the Netherlands, and Archbishop of Cologne have provided some information more or less.

Especially Duke Liudolf of Saxony, who did not send troops to participate, but provided strategic intelligence to the Norman army in accordance with the treaty. Without sending troops to participate in the war, it cannot be said that the Principality of Saxony participated in the attack on Aachen or even the possible sacking of Aachen, and the various nobles cannot condemn him afterwards.

At this moment, the black fox smoothed things over for these nobles: "Everything they did was for the king. Think about it, an army of four thousand people suddenly appeared in a rowing boat, and they fought to the death with your eldest brother's army, even if it didn't really happen When they invade Aachen, they will definitely plunder the villages. These are the plans of King Rus. Will Lothair just sit back and watch his capital and nearby areas be devastated? He will be attacked from both sides, and this will create conditions for the king's sudden advance. You We suffered a loss in Kaiserslautern last year, why don’t we seize the opportunity to get it back this time?”

The trick of opening up a second battlefield was indeed a bit too advanced for Ludwig.

The Frankish army did not advance suddenly and eat everything in one move. It carried out outflanking and annihilation on a battlefield. This tactic was not new. However, Ludwig did not dare to think of launching a coordinated offensive on an extremely large battlefield. At least he had never done so himself. Moreover, he lacked elite troops and was unable to divide his troops for a strategic roundabout offensive.

Essentially, he lacked the considerable conditions to do so, and subjectively, he never thought so.

In other words, Ludwig did not want to find a way to kill his eldest brother, but he just wanted his eldest brother to give up the idea of ​​cutting down the vassal and seizing power, and fully implement his father's determination during his lifetime.

But Aachen is the new Rome, and this city symbolizes the glory of Frankfurt. Moreover, his grandfather and father are both buried there.

The Norman army launched a cross-sea attack. It seemed that it was easy to bring out an army of 4,000 people. It is not difficult to imagine how many people that Rurik could bring to fight in a larger war.

Their opening of a second battlefield can indeed help Mainz relieve the pressure, but that is Aachen.

He felt uncomfortable, but what could he do while standing in Mainz except cursing at the ruthless Rurik? Incompetent, angrily stamping his feet and cursing, he looks like a fool.

Ludwig did not scold, he had nothing to say to the Normans.

He continued to look into Black Fox's eyes: "Paul, tell me now, are you a Norman! Or a Frank?"

"It all depends on your attitude, Your Majesty."

"I'm asking you, I want to hear your thoughts."

"They are Normans, Franks, and Nassauans. However, my children must be the king's vassals, and my army is willing to serve the king. As long as it is not a war against the Norman allies, our army can Do whatever dirty things you don't want to do."

"Any dirty stuff? Paul, there's something behind your words." Ludwig narrowed his eyes. Likewise, the black fox narrowed his eyes.

One is old and the other is young, one is thin and the other is fat. In this moment, both of them become old foxes.

Finally, the roast lamb dinner was delivered to the table. At this moment, night fell, the wooden windows were still open, and the oil lamps were lit indoors.

The relatively dim indoor flames were constantly trembling, and the atmosphere in the room was also extremely strange.

Sensing that something was wrong in the atmosphere, Sophia did not dare to use the knife even when faced with the greasy roast lamb.

Why is the atmosphere weird? The Black Fox noticed that Ludwig, who had just been furious at the Normans for deliberately attacking Aachen, should now have completed his inner reconciliation.

Ludwig calmed down and was indifferent to the roasted lamb. In fact, the three people in the room turned a blind eye to the lamb.

"Beheaded hundreds of people, and one of my brother's flag troops was annihilated by you. The news spread that it was a great victory, so you must have suffered a lot."

Faced with the news, Black Fox proudly explained: "Almost all the losses were from the militia, and the militia's losses were not many."

"How many people are that?"

"One hundred people."

"That's it? You just said it casually, right? You want me to believe that you can kill them with only such a small loss?"

Hundreds of people? That's my big brother's standing army. If they were like this, I wouldn't have lost last year. "

"But this is the fact. If your Majesty is willing, I can describe the scene in more detail."

"Say it."

An explanation, although it is still incredible, considering the strength advantage of the Ross-Nassau coalition and Robert's hard command in the final battle, at least logically, there is no problem for this coalition to win.

In other words, the strength of these Russian troops stationed in Nassau is extraordinary. The fact speaks louder than words that Coblenz is still in Nassau's hands.

But according to Black Fox's detailed description, Nassau, who was originally a vassal from Yingau, has now become a guest. The Count of Ingol is in this room, the little girl who is looking at the roasted lamb with eyes full of enthusiasm but with determination.

At this moment, Ludwig was actually very willing to admit that this girl became the Count of Leingau. Not only that, she also had to be the Count of Coblenz. Together they were called Nassau-Koblenz-Leingau. Earl Gao's identity is completely legal.

What is missing here is just a grand ceremony.

Ludwig could sit still, he wanted to use Nassau, and he also knew that Nassau needed to be used to gain benefits. This matter was tacitly understood by each other.

"So, how many troops do you have now? I want to know the number of Norman soldiers in Nassau and the number of militiamen that can be mobilized."

"Yes. Five hundred Normans and one thousand militiamen."

"That's fifteen hundred people. I can't believe that little Nassau can provide so many troops. You! Even the Marquis of Thuringia can't provide so many troops, but you can."

"Not only the soldiers, but also our boats." Black Fox pouted, declaring his dissatisfaction with the forced borrowing of the boats.

At this point, Ludwig took the initiative in the negotiation. He knew the other party's demands very well, and he happened to have important demands of his own.

"The king can recognize the identity of you and your wife, or recognize your wife's title, and you!" Ludwig pointed with a big hand: "The king can make you Baron Wiesbaden."

"Wiesbaden?" The black fox was a little confused, but Sofia suddenly sat upright and her eyes were trembling strongly.

"It's Wiesbaden. It seems, Sofia... you know that city very well."

"I……"

"What are you hesitating about? My child, don't forget that you are the great noble, and your husband has no status at all now. This is wrong! If you want to serve the king, you need a status." After that, Ludwig Then he looked at the black fox: "You should really ask your wife what Wiesbaden means."