Rise of Rurik

In the early morning, the riverside camp was plunged into thick winter fog. At least the sun rose. When the north wind blew again, the earth returned to the cold and dry nature that winter should have.

The soldiers who had slept all night got up, skillfully added new firewood to the ignited firewood pile, and then cooked the wheat. After eating a belly of wheat porridge, they put away the cooking utensils and extinguished the bonfire, and returned to their groups regardless of the mess in the camp. , start a new day’s march.

The march will last from morning to about evening, and will not be stopped midway unless necessary.

The days have indeed entered the year 844, which is also the coldest January.

How strong an army is, its performance on the battlefield is of course the most important. Large-scale battles are often completed in a day or two, and before that there is a long period of stationing and marching.

Marching with a large amount of baggage is the norm for an army. Soldiers and horses seem to be boring and consuming food and grass for a long time.

Although they were accompanying him back to the castle in the fiefdom, Baron Erotus Herbert and Reglaf's army were marching side by side, and now they could be said to be euphemistically foretelling the fight they would fight side by side in a few months.

He noticed that when Reglaf gave the order to be stationed, the entire marching queue quickly stopped accompanied by the sound of horns in different rhythms.

There was no chaos in the army throughout the whole process, and each department formed a small army with a hundred people.

A certain distance was maintained between the small units, so that although the queue of the land troops was very long, they still remained orderly, so that they could stand still immediately after hearing the sound of the trumpet.

This was something Herbert had never imagined before.

According to his traditional understanding, the organized militia went to the battlefield with a variety of weapons, and they were supposed to drag a large group while marching on the road.

, if they are marching in the wilderness, they will definitely form a group, with no regular beauty.

Observing this Mercian-Saxon coalition army from a close distance, marching with them around the clock, their infantry formations were like marching ants, and the fleets traveling on the river were like giant water snakes.

Now the army was encamped in the wasteland beside the road and the river.

Herbert also noticed that the long line split into a dozen or so troops, roughly the size of a hundred men. They each designated an area, then cut down trees on the spot, mixed the branches and grass into a firewood pile, and drilled the wood into a pile. The craft of making fire from wood, as the first pyre caught fire, other pyres were ignited one after another.

Another group of people used the cables thrown from the ships. Both big and small boats were pulled to the shore, and the ropes were tied to the wooden piles that had just been laid.

Under the setting sun, the campfire was rapidly filled with smoke, and Herbert calmed down. He dismounted and walked along the riverside, and finally came to the campfire where Regrave sat down to warm himself.

He held the hilt of his sword and raised his hand in greeting.

"You're here. As far as I know, this place has entered your territory." Regraf put his hands on his knees and raised his head to chat.

"That's it." Herbert sat down and pointed his big hand straight to the north: "Actually, as long as I want to, I can take my entourage directly home now. This place is very close to my castle. Moreover, you The big trees that are chopped down now are actually my property.”

"Oh? You won't ask me for some money to buy firewood, right?" Regraf said with a smile.

"Am I a miser? As for you. You brought an army across my territory again, and I saw that your men obeyed your orders completely. Your army

Apart from cutting down some trees, there was no harassment of my village chief, nor was there any conflict with the knights loyal to me. "

"Is this a compliment? Isn't it natural?"

"That's not the case." Herbert shook his head: "I found that you are very good at managing the army. Just like...the legendary Alexander of Macedon. Or, in other words, like Caesar."

This was obviously meant as a compliment. Bruno was sitting aside. He squinted at Reglaf's self-absorbed stupidity and couldn't help but raise his head and interjected: "Herbert, in this case, our brothers don't have to stay in your castle tomorrow." . Our troops are on their way."

"It is true that I can no longer accompany you." Herbert couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as he thought about his experiences in the past month. "What a dream journey. Your army did not harass my villagers, but the people watched you. I The knights are also paying attention to your every move. After all...if your people dare to enter the village and attack, the knights will organize a militia to fight back without my order."

Although the words were strong, Herbert felt that he needed to explain these issues thoroughly first.

He said meaningfully: "Because of this, I am sure that when I gather the knights, my elite warriors will be happy to fight alongside you."

"Very good. I also promise that my people will not harass your villagers at any time. At most...just like now, I have to cut some firewood from you to keep warm."

Herbert nodded deeply: "It doesn't matter, I'm also here to warm up the fire. I'll use my firewood to keep us warm together. In this case, I also promise! I will restrain my subordinates and do whatever they want.

Never cross the Touai River to the west, and my men will not steal your property. "

"The...Touai River in the west?" Reglaf keenly noticed a key word in it.

"Of course, maybe you haven't clearly realized how big Anjou is yet." Herbert spoke impatiently, which also revealed that he was well prepared.

"Very huge?" Regraf raised his head and became interested.

He had originally planned to lead his troops to the city of Anjou and take the newly recruited men to completely accept the fiefdom. Looking at Herbert's sudden expression, the fool also realized that the problem was not simple.

"Of course it's huge."

"How big is it? Is it really comparable to Turbine?" Reglaf had his own understanding of Anjou, and he was all ears to listen to Herbert's unique description.

"I'm afraid that's the case. As far as I know, Tour's strength before was that it had control of Anjou and Bourges. Now that Tour has lost Anjou and Shannon, its strength must not be as strong as before." At this point , Herbert couldn't help but mention the twenty exiled knights who had recovered their identities.

Herbert said again: "Friend, you should really think about why you have twenty Anjou knights. And I can organize at most ten knights."

"Oh? Does that mean there are twice as many knights in Anjou as you?"

"Of course not. Many knight families were destroyed by the former Count of Tours. If the Count of Anjou had not been defeated in all aspects more than ten years ago, that man could organize a hundred knights! Each knight organized ten mounted retinues, and the Count of Anjou led I also heard that there is no problem in going into battle with a thousand cavalry.

According to some ancient legends, decades ago, Charlie the Hammer organized an army to fight back against the enemies who crossed the Pyrenees. Find Shuyuanwwwｗ. zhaoshuyuan.com The Earl of Anjou went into battle with two thousand cavalry. "

"Anjou actually has such strength?" Reglaf suddenly stood up in surprise. He didn't think that what Herbert said might be bragging.

It seemed that he was eating like crazy, and Bruno, who was sitting here with him, didn't think it was bragging.

Because you are on the flat Great Plains of Aquitaine, standing on the Roman Avenue and looking around. In winter, without the cover of withered grass and crops, the villages exposed on the horizon are very easy to identify. What you feel is the number of villages here. a lot of.

Each village may be a knight's fief. If there are ten villages, there may be ten knights behind it, and an armed force of at least a hundred cavalry.

Compared to Saxony, Aquitaine and the Loire region, large areas of forest have long since been developed and have been replaced by vast farmland. Even with a rough planting pattern, this place is rich in water and grass, and there is rarely severe cold even in winter. It is almost the best plain area in the whole of Frankia. It has a pleasant climate and a large area. It can support an astonishing population and an even more amazing war potential.

The Touré River in the west is the western border of the barony claimed by Herbert. If you cross this small river, you will soon find the ruins of a city fortress...

With nothing to do, Herbert decided to sit down in front of a warm campfire and tell the two young men from the north the basic facts about Anjou and Poitier.

It turns out that the large forest south of Shannon is the natural boundary between the Kingdom of Tours and the Aquitaine region.

However, the dividing line.

The small town we encountered while walking through this forest was called Ludan, and it was actually within the jurisdiction of Baron Erotus. This small town is centered around the monastery. The priests manage the daily life of the residents here, and the few permanent residents of the small town also work for the monastery service.