Chapter 167 March Date [5k high-definition reset version]
“Master Knight, you can eat the fish.”
Looking at the roasted river fish in his hand, the leader The knight on the bridge of the nose did not eat. He looked around and saw that there were only seven or eight remaining knights around him.
Their armor was covered in dust, and they lay on the dirt without any trace of knightly etiquette.
Escaped from Fort Joan of Arc during the night, and they ran for half the night before they got here.
A few days ago, their daily breakfast was exquisite cheese bread and steak.
Now there is only a palm-sized fish that is roasted black.
He is the knight commander of the Duke of Kush, and those people are just a group of unarmed farmers.
Now that the Duke of Kush is dead and Castle Joan of Arc has been captured, they have escaped from the battle and have lost all their honors. Maybe the knights will be deprived of their titles.
When he thought of this, the knight couldn't help but burst into tears. It didn't matter that he cried. The other knights felt sad and started crying too.
"Okay, don't cry, don't cry." After crying for almost ten minutes, the snub-nosed knight named Drolte held up his long sword and stuffed the blackened fish into his mouth. "Wipe your tears clean. What does it look like?"
"Knight Commander, what should we do now?"
Long blades of grass scratched Drort's waist, and he looked at Castle Joan. direction, the goshawk was circling in the morning light.
"Let's go and report to Prince Condai. Even if they resist, they dare to kill the noble Duke..."
The flat-nosed knight took a deep breath.
"When the edict arrives, I will let them know what cruelty means!"
…………
In the City Hall of Fort Joan of Arc, the Salvation Army has been hung on the wall flag.
The soldiers and wounded lay down on the expensive corridor carpet, leaning their heads on the shrine and dozing off.
Busak, who came to deliver documents, had to tiptoe to find space between the body and hands and feet on the ground before he could push open the door of the conference hall.
Inside the gate, Jeshka was standing in front of Horn to report to him on the previous handling of the robbery.
"...Those gangsters who take advantage of the chaos and do whatever they want will all be hanged. I still say the same thing, no killing, no robbery, and no insult to women.
They want to extort money, gamble or I turned a blind eye when looking for Liu Ying. Don’t push yourself too far.” Walk outside.
At this moment, Horn's head was wrapped in gauze, his beard was unkempt, and his eyes were bloodshot.
On the velvet seat in the city hall, Jeanne's arms were hanging on her chest, her head was leaning on the back of the chair, and she was snoring occasionally.
Busak handed several pieces of white paper stuck with plaster to Horn: "We got about 40,000 gold pounds from the city hall and the church, and we are currently using it to buy medicinal materials and Gauze, this is the account."
Picking up the account, Horn glanced briefly and put it aside: "Are the granaries open?"
"Yes, first. The batch of relief grains has been distributed, but the grain merchants are very dissatisfied and want to see you..."
"How are the citizens?"
"They are also clamoring to see you. They insist that the Duke's tens of thousands of gold pounds belong to them and want to get them back."
"Dream, tell them that these money are the devil's assets. , they say the money is theirs, that is, they are supporting the devil." Horn took out a note and wrote on it, "If they don't accept it, they will be convicted of 'helping the devil' and sent to the ice vegetable cellar in the west to sober up. Wake up!"
Stamped the note with a radish, and took a bite of the crispy radish: "Is there anything else?"
"Here is it. Picking up the note, Busak pulled out a yellow paper with rough edges and handed it to Horn, "This is our statistics of casualties after the war."
Although he knew that after this battle, there would be no casualties. It must have been extremely tragic, but when he saw the list sent by Busak, Horn couldn't help but choke.
Horn and the others mobilized nearly 12,800 young people in total, and many more workers joined later, both men and women. In total, there were about 15,000 people.
Among the refugees from the Salvation Army, 476 died, 1,127 were seriously injured, 1,453 were slightly injured, 1,644 were missing, and 1,912 escaped.
Finally, according to the final statistics, only about 8,300 people can continue to fight, of which nearly half of the veteran soldiers were killed, and less than one-third of the first batch of trained holy gunners died.
To be honest, if Darnay can really grit his teeth and hold on, gathering the remaining knights and Horn and the others to fight bloody battles on the citizen road, it might be Horn who gets his head chopped off.
But the Duke has lived a long life and has always been an offline monarchy. He spends a quarter of the year outside.
He lied that he was training a secret army, but according to the current intelligence, he was actually socializing in the capital of France. How could he be so ambitious?
Putting down the list in his hand and putting it on the table, Horn walked to the window.
Opening the small round window, Horn looked outside. He had not slept all night, and the fatigue in his eyes could not be stopped.
At this time, the bell representing the morning was ringing. In the City Hall Square under the bell, the wails of the injured almost drowned out the bell.
Boiling cauldrons were boiling linen gauze, and columns of smoke rose in the center of the city.
Specialized medical soldiers from the old camp used splints wrapped in straw ash to splint broken bones of refugees, or poured freshly prepared medicine into the mouths of wounded soldiers.
The adults led the children to look for their relatives and friends among the sick patients and corpses while crying.
In front of the city hall, there were corpses and refugees lying there. The refugee army, who had been fighting for a whole night, was so tired that they just found a place to sleep.
In the sound of the bell, the door of the city hall opened. Not only the elders, but also the refugees from the Salvation Army each elected representatives and entered the chamber.
Horn stood by the window to enjoy the breeze, but did not sit down immediately. Instead, he asked the seated senators and representatives to first listen to Busak's summary report on Bamanda's confession.
It wasn't until Busak finished speaking that Horn limped to the table and sat down.
"You have all listened to Bamanda's confession. Let's discuss it." Knocking on the table, Horn said in a deep voice.
The senior members of the Salvation Army looked at each other, but no one spoke.
If Bamanda had not lied, then this news would be simply shocking.
What came from the empire was not 3 or 4 command companies, but all 9 command companies, along with 5 mercenary groups of 5,500 people, a total of 8,200 people coming from the east.
To the east, the church led 900 extraordinary knights, 2,000 serf soldiers, and 1,800 armed peasants to form an army of 4,700 people, and went upstream from the river.
More than a hundred extraordinary knights stepped forward in batches and almost defeated Horn and others' more than 10,000 migrant army. If it weren't for the clockwork muskets, the migrant militia would have collapsed long ago.
If Fort Joan of Arc had a city wall, it could still be defended, but Fort Joan of Arc does not have a city wall yet.
The Duke's castle cannot be captured in a short time. What if the enemy attacks and the defenders break out?
"Brother, I will attack again with a few children later." Jeanne said with bloodshot eyes.
"The moat can't be crossed."
"Otherwise we dig soil to block the moat first."
"Have you considered the earthwork?" A former civil worker cursed , "Three days are not enough trouble."
"Or we can hide in private houses and fight them."
"We can quickly go to the castle in front and build a defense line first. …”
"It's too late."
Looking in the direction of the sound, a white-haired old man was sitting on a pony by the door at some point.
“Where did the old man come from?” Du Valon immediately walked out and directed the other guards to come forward, “Fork him out.”
“Wait.”
Horn stopped the guards. He remembered this man.
When he was at the bridge before, he was the one who pulled himself away and avoided the charge of the knights, otherwise he would not have been only slightly injured.
“Are you the one who pulled me up on the bridge earlier?” “I’m just a secret party member passing by.” The white-haired old man said to Horn, “I told you My name is Crispa, Carrie was the one who contacted me before."
Everyone suddenly realized, is he from Ruo'an's party?
"What advice does Crispa have?" Madeleine asked curiously.
"You relied on luck to defeat those few banner knights and squire knights. Do you think you can defeat Prince Condai's nearly three thousand extraordinary knights?"
Pa, who goes by the undisguised pseudonym Crispa Slick sat calmly: "With all due respect, even if you take that castle, it is still impossible to defeat the Imperial Company, and you will not even be able to resist."
"We can rely on the castle for defense, and we can also set up defense lines along the way." Madeleine responded unconvinced.
"You have less than three days in total, and the enemy has 12,000 regular troops. What defense line do you want to set up?"
Paslik pointed to the tightly packed wooden houses outside: " I won't say anything else. What if they set fire to the city? Don't even think about getting water. I wonder if they will be waiting for you by the river."
Jeanne wanted to retort, but thought of what those knights had done, she stopped talking.
In the eyes of those foreign knights, the people of Qianhe River Valley are just livestock. What can they not dare to do?
“I heard you say that mortals defeated extraordinary knights, and I found it funny. Two-thirds of the defeated extraordinary knights were electrocuted to death by witches. What do you mean by mortals defeating extraordinary knights?
You have produced more than 10,000 young men, but now there are many casualties. Only about 8,000 are left who can actually fight, and they are all untrained soldiers.
You have many soldiers in the field. Extraordinary Knight, you have hundreds of infantrymen fighting in the streets. How many guns can you use to defeat them at one time?
Or do you want to learn the way of being a lycanthrope and go to the mountains and forests to shoot an arrow and change places?
As I said before, these refugees under your command are all ordinary people, without any training or organization. They are beast-turned-humans who have been hunting since childhood. ”
The atmosphere that had been slightly relaxed became dull again. The dull atmosphere pressed on the hearts of these elders and representatives, making them somewhat breathless.
Only Horn looked at the old man. , looking thoughtful.
“Then we can leave in groups. Madeleine suggested, "Although the big rivers are blocked, Fort Joan of Arc is a water and land transfer center, and we can escape in batches from small roads and waterways." ”
"Hey, that's right. Wouldn't it be nice to break through the water and land barriers before the command company arrives?"
Amidst the discussion among the people, Paslik's cold snort seemed extremely harsh.
"If you run away, what will the villagers of Fort Joan do? If they can't catch you, guess who they will vent their anger on?
Do you know that if it weren't for you, Those villagers will never come into the sight of Prince Condai. They will only harm the citizens and craftsmen.
Why, you still want to take over the entire village of Jeanne d'Arc, a total of 70,000 to 80,000 people nearby. Put it on the ship and transport it?”
The entire meeting hall fell into silence again. It was not until this moment that they realized that they were facing a dead end.
If you fail to hold on, you will be bulldozed by the order.
If they fail to fight, the villagers will be retaliated by the nobles.
Escape is impossible because all land and water checkpoints are blocked.
Everyone was so determined to save the refugees at Fort Joan of Arc, but in the end nothing was done?
Even the most determined Jeanne fell into a trance. Could it be that everything they did had no meaning?
But this trance only lasted for a moment. After Jeanna woke up, she looked at the old man in front of her angrily.
"That sounds nice, then you must have something to do?"
Paslik smiled mysteriously at Jeanne: "Bring a pen and paper."
First of all Stunned, Jeanne immediately grabbed the paper and pen from the table and handed them to Paslik with great anticipation.
Paslik picked up the quill, scolded Fang Qiu, wrote a line of big words on the paper, and gave it back to Jeanne.
Jeanna took the piece of paper and saw six simple words written on it: "Haha, I won't say it."
"You!" Jeanna instantly blushed. , "This is a critical moment of life and death for tens of thousands of refugees in Fort Joan of Arc. If you have a way, don't hide it."
"Haha, I won't tell."
"You Is there anything you can do? Are you trying to amuse me?" The veins on Jeanna's forehead jumped twice.
Horn stepped forward and comforted Jeanna who was furious at the teasing. He bowed to Paslik and said:
"Master Crispa, if you can help it, don't tease Jeanna." , We don’t have much time.”
Crossing his legs, Paslik looked Horn up and down, and said carelessly:
“I have a letter from Hema Stone. Duchess."
Paslik took out a patent leather envelope from his arms: "This letter only has a header and a seal, but I don't care what I write on it, as long as it is within my ability. , the Duchess of Hema Stone will admit it is true.
Needless to say, I believe you should also know how precious this favor is.
As long as I write down my plea for the people of Fort Joan of Arc, for the sake of the duchess, they will not start a massacre. At most, they will provoke the local citizens, wealthy businessmen and armed small landowners.
This does not mean that the refugees who participated in the siege of Fort Joan of Arc can escape. If they and their families stay in Fort Joan of Arc, they will still be implicated by you..."
The eyes of the surrounding Salvation Army executives all lit up, and Madelan said impatiently: "Then let's take the Salvation Army and leave by boat, and go to Kasha County to find..."
"Hey, eh, who told me? I’ve given it to you, I’m just telling you, I’m so damn awesome. Paslik took the letter into his arms and said, "Besides, why should I give it to you?" ”
"Master Crispa, you said so much, it can't be just to tease us, right?" Sissi looked at the white-haired old man in front of her and begged.
“Tsk, there is no spirituality.” Paslik shook his head, “Do you know that the most important thing for a leader is to be able to draw a pie, and you have to learn one more.”
< br>"Then what do you want?" Horn's originally calm voice finally had some waves.
"I'll be blunt. First, let me tell you that this letter to protect the villagers will not last long, at most three months. By then the knights will still go on a killing spree.
You are responsible for the sins you have committed. You are not allowed to escape.
I can tell you a place, just near Fort Joan, where you can train. During this period, it will be difficult for the knights to attack, but they will not retreat.
In three months, you have to leave that place, reoccupy Castle Joan of Arc, and drive the knights out completely. Do you dare to agree? ”
Three months to defeat those knights?
Everyone’s eyes were focused on Horn’s face, and they were all waiting for Horn’s answer.
“I promise you. "Horn replied, staring directly into Paslik's eyes.
Paslik shook the letter in his hand: "Even if you don't go out, I still can't do anything to you. After all, you are a rare witch man. John III will not allow us to kill you...
I I just hope that the decision you made under the tree last night will also be your decision in the future, and you will not let those innocent souls look down on you."
"That is also what I am most afraid of."
"Okay." Holding out two fingers, Paslik continued, "Second, you must join the Ruoan Party and share the technology of the alchemy gun, and you must also recognize me as your entry master. ”
This is what Horn wants to do. He has no foundation and also needs resources to maintain his current team.
"I promise you, the initiation ceremony can be held at any time."
"That's not urgent." Paslik raised his third finger, "Third..."
said At this point, Paslik suddenly became silent. He stroked the letter in his hand, glanced at Jeanne, and sighed:
"I have a god-granddaughter. I watched her grow up. You are destined to To make her sad, I only ask you not to hurt her, can you agree?"
A white-haired figure appeared in front of Horn's eyes. He did not look at Jeanne and said in a deep voice: " I can’t guarantee it, but I’ll try my best.”
"That's enough." Paslik stepped forward and gave Horn a high-five, "Don't let us down."
"The knights will be here in three days. Think carefully about what to do." Let the refugees go with you." After saying this, Paslik turned and walked towards the door.
“Hey, hey, hey.” Busac, who was awakened from a dream by a series of changes, shouted, “That one is on the territory of Castle Joan, not far from us, and a place that can still resist knights. , you haven’t said it yet.”
“Actually, you all know that place,” Paslik yawned, “Didn’t you just come from there?”
(End of chapter)