Chapter 227 Antioch is free
According to incomplete statistics, nearly one-third of emperors in Chinese history died abnormally.
In the European Catholic world, between 600 and 1200, about one-fifth of the monarchs died due to murder.
For a monarch, or someone like a monarch, how to deal with endless conspiracies and face the crisis of a large number of deaths is a matter of course.
But Gareth is different.
Others went through a lot of hard work to get rid of the guards around the target, and finally reached the king, preparing to get rid of so-and-so.
For Garris, it was only when the assassin came to kill him that he realized why there were no guards around Garris.
To a certain extent, if there are too many guards around Garris, Garris will not be able to protect him.
Altaïr faced this situation.
After he completed various disguises and was thankful that there were no guards around Garris, he realized that it seemed that Garris never needed other people's protection.
Altaïr was already captured as soon as he made a move. When faced with Garris, his attack was as non-threatening as a kid playing around.
After many years of career as an assassin, Altaïr was certain that as long as Garris was willing, there might be no one in the world whom Garris could not kill.
The reason why he is still alive is only because of Garris' kindness.
In the castle hall of Antioch, Altaïr was thrown in intact except for the two letters on his body.
Even some of the daggers and hidden weapons hidden on his body were not taken away.
At one end of the hall is a high platform with a simple and solemn throne. Behind the throne hangs a faded pennant, with the emblem on it vaguely visible.
Looking up and forward, the young man was sitting on the throne.
The position that was originally occupied by the Prince of Antioch was now occupied openly by Gellis.
As a young man not much different from him in age, Garris and he seemed to live in two different worlds.
"You said you were an Imam?"
"Yes."
"When will the Franks also say that they are Imams?"
Altaïr showed himself to be unruly, and it was too much for a Frank to call himself Imam.
The word Imam has completely different meanings among Sunnis and Shias.
If the Imams in Sunnis are just ordinary leaders, then the Imams in Shia are regarded as the representatives of God on earth and possess supreme religious and spiritual authority.
They believe that Imams are not only religious leaders, but also inheritors of sacred knowledge and have the unique ability to interpret the hidden meanings of the Quran and guide believers.
The Ismailis emphasize that the Imam is directly appointed by God, has infallibility and immunity from sin, and is the intermediary between God and mankind.
Even the Ismailis, to which the Assassins belong, believe that human history is divided into seven cycles, each cycle started by a prophet.
The first six prophets were Adam (Adam), Nuhai (Noah), Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Moses), Jesus (Jesus) and Muhammad.
They believe that although the seventh Imam Ismail is in hiding, he will reappear in the world and become the seventh prophet, ushering in the seventh historical era.
The Ismailis are a Seven-Imam sect, which is different from the mainstream Twelve-Imam sect.
But no matter how you say it, Gareth's behavior of calling himself an imam is too blasphemous in Altaïr's opinion.
Garris did not answer his words. He just stood up and took two steps closer to Altaïr's direction.
Then Altaïr's pupils shrank sharply, because Garris' figure suddenly grew a bit larger, and came to him in an almost shrunken manner.
Subconsciously, Altaïr drew his dagger and stabbed Garris.
But unlike before, this time, Garris wasn't even interested in stopping him.
When Altaïr stabbed Garris with his dagger, Garris dissipated like the wind and lightly patted Altaïr on the shoulder.
Altaïr froze. He was absolutely sure that he had not blinked before, but Garris just disappeared!
And appeared behind him.
"I'm not interested in arguing too much with you. I just want you to deliver a letter for me."
"Given the current situation in the Levant, I have no intention of a conflict with Rashid al-Din Sinan."
"In fact, if it weren't for my appearance, your future would have been determined long ago."
"The flood sweeping across Eurasia is brewing, and you may be able to witness it in your lifetime."
"Mulayi was humiliated and the country was destroyed, and the cries will be deafening!"
"Tens of millions of people drowned in the torrent of blood, and their screams echoed in the air."
"The Golden Law of Islam exudes supreme glory!"
"Definitely broken and destroyed in blood..."
Gareth stuffed a letter he had written into the stiff Altaïr's collar.
This letter is written to Xinan, the old man in the mountains.
On a side note, Garris thought Sinan was quite interesting. What kind of assassin would actually carry a letter from his employer with him during an assassination?
This makes it clear that we are trying to divert trouble to the east.
If Altaïr's assassination was successful, either Altaïr himself was captured, or he dropped two letters on the ground.
Then the first target of Garris' men to take revenge would be Bohemond, and they would not think of attacking Masyaf with a large army.
And the revelation that Saladin was also complicit in this matter was also a leverage for Masyaf Castle.
It was telling the Kingdom of Jerusalem that they had reached an alliance agreement with Saladin. If the Kingdom of Jerusalem gathered a large army to attack Masyaf, Saladin might take advantage of it.
This shows that Sinan behind Altaïr is indeed a wise man.
Since he is a smart person, Gareth finds it easy to deal with him.
Regardless of war or peace, Garris always needs to reach a consensus with Sinan, the Old Man of the Mountain.
The full name of Sinan, the Old Man of the Mountain, is Rashid al-Din Sinan ibn Salman ibn Muhammad Abu Hassan al-Basri.
As for why the old man in the mountain has such a long name, Garris can still explain clearly. Every word in this long list of things has its own meaning.
"Rashid al-Din" means the religious teacher (this is the title).
"Xinan" is the name.
"Ibn Salman" means that his father is Salman.
"Ibn Muhammad" refers to Sinan's father's father named Muhammad.
"Abu Hassan Basri" means the Abu Hassan family of the city of Basri.
Reading it backwards is more in line with the habits of the Chinese people, and it means Sinan, the son of Salman, the grandson of Muhammad, from the family of Abu Hassan in the city of Basili.
Altaïr was free, but he was in a trance.
Because, for the first time in his life, he saw what it was like to transcend mortals.
Garris didn't show him much, but just what he witnessed with his own eyes was enough to subvert his previous understanding.
The Frankish man who claimed to be the Imam also made a prophecy, referring to the future of the Muslims and describing the fate of their order.
Nowadays, there is a nation that is rising in the north of Peach Blossom Stone. In time, it will inevitably gather into a flood and sweep all the way to the west.
Anyone who tries to stop it will be overwhelmed.
Finally, Garris stuffed a letter into himself and asked himself to go back and deliver the letter.
The man who called himself Imam did not reveal his ambition to control Masyaf.
"Prophet", "Hermit", "Imam", "Holy One of Jerusalem"...
These words kept swirling in his mind, making Altaïr, who had been so arrogant in the past, look humble and helpless.
……
After the assassination broke out in the square, Antioch entered a state of martial law.
A large number of soldiers walked through the city of Antioch. Under the command of Lance, these people appeared in front of the official residences without warning.
Immediately afterwards, these people opened the door and rushed in to control everyone in the house.
This arrest operation mainly targeted the Bohemond family and a certain group of officials originally appointed by Bohemond.
Lance, who was walking around the streets, had made a list early and was arresting people according to the list, trying to ensure that no one was missed.
In fact, what those Frankish officials thought was private information had actually been rumored among the public for a long time.
Through various clues, Lance showed a delicacy that was inconsistent with his status as a knight and obtained a lot of information.
For example, Bohemond has an illegitimate daughter who is now being raised in his wet nurse's home.
And the illegitimate son of Joslan, the leader of the Antioch branch of the Knights Templar, had a fierce fight with Bohemond's illegitimate daughter.
Because of this, Bohemond's attitude towards Joslan was extremely bad.
After arresting all those who should be arrested, and before those people could cry out, Lance had people read Bohemond's letter to Sinan in public.
With Altaïr present and Bohemond's seal unmistakable, there is now both human and physical evidence.
Even the need for torture to extract confessions is gone.
Garris did not show up, and the soldiers directly detained these people.
When these people were being escorted down, some tried to resist but were beaten to the ground, while others slumped and refused to get up, but were dragged away... There were even some who shouted loudly: "I want to see Garris!"
But it won't change Lance's decision.
So these people began to curse Bohemond.
If you find an assassin to murder, why do you write a letter to the other party to keep the record?
Of course, this is what Xinan, the old man in the mountains, did deliberately. For Xinan, killing people is a common occurrence.
By asking others to write a letter and leave evidence, this in itself is a way to use others to blackmail them in the future.
There are too many secrets in the castle of Masyaf, and those secrets mean all kinds of favors and constraints to the small castle of Masyaf.
Like a spider, Sinan, the old man of the mountains, weaves a spider web in the Levant.
He lives in the middle of the spider's web, exploiting the greed and fear of others to reap countless benefits.
For those who trade with Sinan, every commission they make is a deal with the devil. They don't know which day they may become a bargaining chip in the deal.
But even so, if they can easily get rid of their enemies, they will still pursue Assassin tirelessly.
Bohemond was one of them, but what he didn't expect was that with his noble status, in the eyes of Sinan, he would also be the target of being docked to survive!
"You, you... no, you can't do this! You can't, you can't do this!"
"I...I am the prince of Antioch! I am, I am the prince of Antioch...!"
Bohemond kept shouting while being dragged down.
In response, Lance walked up to him, kicked him a few times without saying a word, and then spat in Bohemond's face.
That's it? And the prince of Antioch?
What awaits this guy will only be a cold cell.
And outside Antioch, when the second opportunity comes, there will be a bloody storm.
In the land of Antioch, Gareth had already authorized it.
Unlike Tripoli, which was peacefully liberated and would be incorporated into the Second Kingdom, Antioch has its own national conditions here.
Without ruthlessly killing a group of people, how could Lance deploy the manpower of the cult?
……
Bohemond was thrown into a cell, and his treatment was completely different from that of other noble officials.
He was sent to the deepest part of the prison, where he was imprisoned with those who had committed the most heinous crimes.
When the jailer opened the cell door and pushed him into the cell, he saw the person he hated most - his stepfather Leonard.
The moment he first met Leonard, Bohemond felt a hint of instinctive fear.
The old man in front of him left too many shadows on him when he was young.
And when Leonard turned over while lying on the straw and saw Bohemond being sent to prison, he couldn't help laughing, as if his messy hair and shabby prison clothes couldn't hide his almost crazy temperament.
"Are you here too?"
Leonard was a little amused. He, the former Prince of Antioch, and Bohemond, the current Prince of Antioch, fought for a long time, and ended up in the prison of Antioch City. What does this mean? Is this considered karmic retribution?
"Let me guess, the reason why Garris's army appeared in Antioch City was because you asked them for help?" Leonard asked.
Bohemond didn't answer, but Leonard knew this stepson very well, and he knew that he was right just by looking at his expression.
"There is a price to pay for asking for help. No matter what you promise, whether it's money or land, Garris and the others don't care."
"The only bargaining chip you had at that time was the title of Prince of Antioch. So they asked for the right to rule Antioch, and specifically requested that the city be under their direct jurisdiction." Leonard analyzed lightly.
Bohemond's eyes flickered slightly, and Leonard could always grasp his every thought through guessing.
When he was a child, he made mistakes, and Leonard would be like this now, able to guess almost exactly what he was doing just by guessing.
This feeling of being seen through by his elders made him deeply embarrassed when he was young and rebellious.
"At that time, you never thought that the city of Antioch was actually not in my hands. You took it for granted that you had lost all the land anyway, so you would be satisfied as long as you earned back one or two cities, right?"
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"As a result, Garris and the others figured out that I was deceiving you, so they went to the other side of the river valley and took over the city of Antioch directly."
Leonard looked at Bohemond with a hint of pity. This guy was involved in a contest between people on a completely different level than himself. The little tricks he showed off would only push him into the abyss.
"Then, did you think of your Antioch family's tradition and plan to break your promise?"
"Yes." Bohemond finally spoke, saying only one word.
"Breaking a promise requires strength. When I led the horse for the Eastern Roman Emperor, do you think I dared to break the promise under his nose?"
While speaking, Leonard looked Bohemond up and down. He was also curious about why this guy had the courage to try to break his promise when the other party controlled the situation. Then Leonard suddenly realized the truth.
"You...could you have found Assassin?"
Seeing Bohemond's mind exposed, Leonard suddenly laughed. The laughter became more intense, followed by unconcealable sadness, and tears flowed down unconsciously.
"The ninety-year foundation of Antioch was destroyed in your hands!"
Leonard growled. He had feelings for Bohemond and had devoted his heart to Antiochus. At this moment, he was completely swallowed up by anger.
No matter how Bohemond loses, he is still the child he raised.
"What kind of organization is Assassin? I have told you so many times! They are called 'the unbelievers' among the pagans, and their existence itself is a distortion of the world. How dare you trust them? You How dare you..."
As he spoke, Leonard suddenly realized more truth. Perhaps the young man in front of him was even stupider than he showed.
"You had contact with Assassin back then, right?"
Leonard stepped forward and forced Bohemond into a corner. He wanted to dig out the truth that had been buried for more than thirty years, and he got the answer from Bohemond's eyes.
Leonard's face was ferocious, and he slapped Bohemond hard on the face.
"Are you that impatient to wait? Or do you think I will leave Antioch to your brother?"
"Isn't it? Isn't it!" Bohemond finally broke out and spoke completely and fluently. "He is smart and sensible. You care about him in every way and leave all the benefits to him. Compared with him, I am nothing!"
After Bohemond's emotions were vented, Leonard seemed a little disappointed.
He had promised Bohemond's mother that he would leave Antioch to Bohemond, and even said these words to him face to face many times.
But obviously, Bohemond never believed it and was only immersed in his own insignificant cleverness.
"So...you are not qualified to compete with me, nor are you qualified to fight with Garris. The more you rely on these little tricks, the easier it is to destroy yourself."
……
[Then he would have to spend all the revenue of that country in guarding it, which would be a huge expense. As a result, gains turn into losses. 】
Due to Bohemond's unwise behavior, in the eyes of Reims, the princes of Antioch had become a completely unstable factor.
Lance has only two choices before him: either appease these restless princes and give them money and privileges to quell their dissatisfaction; or completely eliminate them and eliminate hidden dangers!
It was impossible for Garris to be stationed in Antioch for a long time, and the short-term comfort could only sow more troubles in the future.
Lance knew that he was different from Gareth. Since he couldn't make these people completely change their minds, he could only ask them to see God.
After all, in this land, rulers come and go. For the people, the life and death of these rulers who are not of the same race cannot arouse their resonance at all.
Among the two opportunities mentioned by Lance, the first was Arslan gathering Tukpo, and the second was Garris leaving Antioch.
When Garris was in Antioch, many things were not suitable for him to do. After all, doing it that way would lead to all kinds of gossip.
The Tucopo assembled by Arslan can bring military advantages to Lance, so that he can complete the annihilation and purge of the Antioch nobles even without the help of Garis.
A character like Arslan is more like a military contractor in a sense.
Military contractors have a special place in history. Simply put, they are a type of military entrepreneur who earn high profits by providing military services to monarchs or city-states.
Most of the time, as long as they are paid enough, monarchs can obtain a professional army that is more elite than feudal levies.
The feudal levy system was inefficient and could no longer adapt to the increasingly fierce European battlefield environment.
Under the feudal system, knights only served their lord for 40 days a year and had the right to refuse to fight abroad.
For this reason, monarchs often tried to break the monopoly of the feudal army, usually through mercenaries.
In the 12th century, this trend was not obvious, but with the development of productivity and the rise of the commodity economy, European monarchs gradually gained control of huge financial resources.
They gave nobles more tax options to avoid military service and collected taxes from the cities to arm the country.
To some extent, this was a compromise on the feudal system, as monarchs continued to rule countries with a predominantly feudal system for centuries to come.
Although they have accumulated more wealth, they still lack direct control over the grassroots and find it difficult to establish a standing army with a recruitment system on a large scale.
Maintaining a large-scale standing army was also very difficult for the monarch. Therefore, during the war, mercenary groups provided by military contractors came into being. In later generations, people like Wallenstein even had the ability to influence the Holy Roman Empire. fate.
In return, in addition to receiving high monetary returns after victory in the war, military contractors also received a share of newly conquered land and the title of nobility.
Although Arslan's pursuit of acquiring a fiefdom was not common during this period, it had a basis in reality. Especially in the Levant, a paradise for adventurers, there had already been similar precedents. Of course, these precedents did not include the land. Cobo.
In Lance's opinion, if he wanted to wipe out the old Norman aristocratic forces in the mountains of Antioch, he would really need some external help.
For example, the Tukopo mercenaries serve year-round.
I had a cold these past two days, I was low on energy, and my thoughts were intermittent, so I scraped together 6,000 yuan.
(End of chapter)