Eskil could not guarantee that the blue fox was really caught by the local nobles. He was an old acquaintance with the Earl of Bremen. Even though they had not seen each other for a while, he still clearly remembered the Earl's face.
A team of priests held fire pots soaked in rosin. A fire dragon appeared in the dark night. Many citizens who lived nearby pushed open the second-story windows and stuck their heads out to try to find out.
Priests, it seems? Is today a big day? Need a nighttime ceremony?
When Eskil and others arrived at the inner castle suspension bridge and faced the released wooden suspension bridge, their previous speculations seemed to have come true.
The armored soldiers were waiting for orders first. When they saw the black-robed priests, they were all respectful and even spontaneously retreated.
At this time, a man pushed the priest away. He took off his burqa hat and shouted at the top of his lungs: "Hunter! Hear my voice! I am Robert, Robert Richard von Hamburg."
"Robert? Did I hear you correctly?!" A voice came out quickly, and soon a strong man came over menacingly with a sullen face.
The torches illuminated people's faces. Saint-Eskilde took off his hat, and his weather-beaten face looked particularly kind.
The other man smiled maliciously, it was Robert, Count of Hamburg himself.
Both of them were old acquaintances of Count Hunt of Bremen, and they fell in love with each other at first sight.
Hunter happily went up to him, hugged his old friend Robert, and said politely: "Are you performing a miracle? You suddenly appeared in my castle. Robert, is there something big that makes you have to come? And..."
Eskil coughed twice and got straight to the point: "I'm just here to verify a question. Sir, please answer me truthfully."
Hunter quickly crossed himself and said, "Please speak."
"Three of my ascetics disappeared mysteriously, and there is a legend that they were captured by your people. You know, this kind of thing is crazy! I hope this statement is just slander from evil people."
Hunter obviously took a step back. Unexpectedly, not only did the church come to ask questions, but Saint Eskil also seemed to have received a miracle from the Lord and suddenly came to Bremen, and it was the saint himself who asked questions.
"This matter is more complicated."
"That's right." Eskil continued to ask: "There is a fat man among them. I hope this man was not beaten to death by your men."
"No! There is no such thing. My people did catch such a suspicious person. Although they are in my dungeon, they are now eating and drinking well."
A stone fell to the ground, and Robert's guess turned out to be true.
The blue fox in the dungeon was quickly released, and he reappeared in front of Eskil intact.
This was a farce, and no one could accuse the Count of Bremen's men of wrongdoing. But things have just begun. A suspicious fat man, Saint-Eskilde and the Earl of Hamburg’s secret visit. Many events seem to have many coincidences, and they must hide shocking secrets.
The Earl of Bremen had his own methods. He first ordered his men to pull back the suspension bridge on the grounds that it was too late, and then he wanted to listen to the teachings of the saints and drink some wine with his friend Robert. He must understand all the tricks in it, because his intuition dictates that there may be a crisis behind it.
Priests pay attention to asceticism. As for an ascetic eating himself to be fat, there must be a hidden meaning behind the absurdity. What's more, this person chatters endlessly in Norse and is very good at speaking Latin, but he is not good at Saxon and Frankish.
In this way, Blue Fox suddenly became a guest from prison. He was still dressed as an ascetic, sitting in the Earl of Bremen's banquet hall illuminated by oil lamps, facing the black bread on the table with no appetite.
No one really had an appetite, but the Count of Hamburg was happy to clink glasses with the Count of Bremen and drink ale.
Hunter asked directly: "Please tell me all the truth. All signs indicate that you are doing secret things. For the safety of my territory, I need to know the hidden truth."
Robert shrugged: "Originally, I didn't need to hide this matter. I wanted to tell you later, but since I've been exposed, it doesn't hurt to explain now."
"Speaking."
"It's a military threat."
When Robert said this phrase, he saw that the thick-haired Hunter's beard swelled in extreme tension, his head resembled a lion, and his eyes were as wide as copper bells.
"You...are so alert?" Robert couldn't laugh even if he wanted to.
"Where does the threat come from? I understand! It must be the Normans."
"The Normans. Do you remember the pirate who stole Durist (about twenty kilometers east of present-day Amsterdam)?"
"Horik? The dog kept by His Highness the Prince?"
"It's a bad dog." Robert shook his head. "He has left Durist and is now the king of all Denmark. Among the many Normans, Denmark is the most threatening to us. Horik expelled the northern priests , that man betrayed his faith and started killing people again. Saint Eskil fled Denmark, and that man threatened to use force against us. The war is about to start again!"
For a long time, the Franks have not cared about things north of the Great Wall of Schleswig. The lords were all contributors to Charlemagne's expansion war. After winning the enfeoffment, their first priority was to consolidate and improve their rule. They had no idea what was going on in Denmark. Secondly, there is also a lack of channels for understanding.
Based on his own knowledge, Robert described the terrifying possibility in an embellished way: "The Normans will cross the Great Wall. Horik is a hateful pirate. Now that he is king, he has the ability to plunder crazily. He lacked strength before, but now We should be able to raise an army of five thousand people.”
Five thousand people does not seem to be many. Charlemagne responded to a hundred calls and an army of 100,000 people could be assembled.
But these five thousand Norman warriors are in a cramped area north of Schleswig. A large group of hungry wolves are imprisoned in a small cage. Once they break out of the cage, the first person they encounter will be bitten in the most terrifying way. .
"Hamburg will be attacked first, then your Bremen, and Baldwin's Flanders, and the whole Saxon region is in danger. Many Saxon rebels escaped the Wall and became Normans, if they choose revenge , will not be afraid of death. The evil god they believe in promises that the souls of those killed in battle can... go to the evil god's paradise, but they are eager to die in battle. I don't have the slightest ability to resist this army going south, can you?"
Count Hunter of Bremen was on pins and needles after hearing this. He was covered in cold sweat under his robes, and his feet in his boots seemed to be soaked in ice water.
Hunter trembled: "I can't... Even if I spend all my wealth to recruit militiamen, I can only gather two thousand people at most. Those are farmers with spears and sickles, not qualified warriors. I can spend at most three hundred Elite."
Robert was stunned for a moment, then smiled bitterly: "Three hundred people? What a strong army. Unfortunately, if I include the militiamen, I can make up to eight hundred people at most."
"What about Baldwin, who pulled Flanders?" Hunter asked.
"He? A coward! Horik was robbing families in his territory. This coward let it go so that he could offer silver coins to buy the bandits' stop. Horik is a hungry wolf who cannot be fed enough. Our prince thinks he can use this person to deal with Luo Tyr, now this hungry wolf is ready to bite its master."
Things have become very difficult. The words were spoken by Robert, who is the lord at the northernmost border of the kingdom. The many conflicts he faces are the most difficult, and the information he receives must be accurate.
Hunter was very grateful to his friend for the war warning, so he could probably guess the purpose of Robert's sudden incognito departure - to go to the princely city of Regensburg to report the enemy's situation in order to claim credit.
"We must unite," he said.
"We alone are not enough."
"If Baldwin is a coward, who else can we unite with?"
"Russian."
"Who is that?"
"There is a person sitting in front of you, a real Russian." Robert's attitude has been very clear.
Hunter glanced at Blue Fox: "This fat man?"
"Exactly."
But as for Lan Fox, after he was released, he just stared at the conversation in Frankish and couldn't understand anything.
Hunter didn't want to talk to a fat ascetic. He didn't know the identity of the other person. Even if he was a priest, he must be a very low-level priest. Eskil regarded this person as an important person, why should he think highly of him?
Hunter implored Eskil to describe the situation in the north. As someone who had seen the entire process of the war, Eskil was not stingy with words in describing the cruelty of the war.
The Russian fortress was besieged by a thousand people, and all one hundred Russian warriors were killed. Five hundred Danes also died. The port of Heideby was a sea of fire, and if it wasn't rain falling from the sky, it would be a real regional scene.
"Fat Joseph was protected by the Lord and survived. He was originally a messenger from the Russians and wanted to establish good contact with us."
Now that Saint-Eskilde had spoken, Hunter reluctantly began to look at the fat man.
Blue Fox was ordered to describe information about the Danes and the Russians, so he spoke in Latin throughout the process, and was translated into Frankish by Eskil, which was enough to embarrass the Count of Bremen. The Ross envoy Qiao Zhuangcheng was an ascetic, and he definitely deserved to be arrested for being suspicious, but the other person actually spoke Latin. This time, Hunter felt ashamed.
In any case, after some investigation, Bremen was the first commercial city that Blue Fox saw when traveling south. The city’s wool trade can make up for some of the current shortcomings of the Ross Principality, and the Principality can also open up a new wheat, Where salt is imported.
Blue Fox assessed the situation and immediately took the right medicine after learning the general content of the conversation between the two counts.
"My master has a feud with the Danes. Now the Danes are burning my shop and stealing a lot of wealth. This will definitely arouse the anger of the prince of Rus. Maybe the prince will organize an army of three thousand people to sail to Denmark to retaliate. It will be a big war." , if we can get your military support in the south, the probability of victory is very high. Denmark must lose their strength, which is beneficial to us businessmen. Even if we have different beliefs, at least you will not object to the purchase of Russian iron and leather. .”
The mysterious Rus people seem to be in the eastern sea, and the distance is obviously not a new threat to the kingdom. But wait! This fat man clearly said that the Russian army of 3,000 people could cross the sea to attack Denmark. Do they have such strength? If so, aren’t the Russians just as dangerous as the Danes? Sure enough, any Norman is the same.
The visitor's attitude was very clear. Even if this visit was accidental, the Ross envoy's request to form an alliance with Bremen was not a joke. This fat man came prepared.
Hunter showed off his cards directly: "I'm worried that you Russians will become the new villains. Even if you convert, your prince will still be a barbarian. I can't believe it!"
"You can barely believe it." Eskil stopped translating now and simply participated in the discussion in person: "Hunter, my son. I stayed in Ross for half a year, and the prince of Ross allowed me to build a monastery. I am already there. A bishop was arranged. According to my observation, the Prince of Rus is very interested in our faith, and many people there have converted. The Rus people are not pirates, they have their own business. Especially the Prince of Rus, he is a very young man , as handsome as you were in your youth, and a fair-haired brave. You can be friends with each other."
"It's all wishful thinking!" Hunter said this, his heart was slightly shaken, but he forced himself to calm down.
Eskil was indeed wishful thinking. He ignored the fact that he was under house arrest and an accompanying priest was killed. Seeing Prince Rurik treat his subjects well, he did not hesitate to think of Moses and his people, rather pedantically. Trying to draw equal signs as much as possible, coupled with the close contact with the blue fox, Eskil continued to suggest himself, and increasingly felt that the Russians could become converts and good people.
He was full of compliments about Prince Rurik, completely ignoring that this young prince was actually a murderer.
Eskil is ambitious: "I will go to the Russians to make the greatest attempt and try to convince them to convert. Then I can feel at ease and return to Bremen to take up my post. Maybe you should accept the olive branch offered by the Russians... …”
Hunter still can't fully trust him, and now that Eskil is standing up for the mysterious Rus, he is "relaxed."
"If Russians are willing to come to Bremen to do business, that's okay. They should pay city entry tax, customs tax, religious protection tax, head tax, business tax, commodity income tax... water tax, food tax." With ten fingers, Hunter could easily name ten types of taxes.
Lan Hu tried hard to suppress his anger. Zhou frowned and asked, "Does the Ross businessman still have to pay the inhalation tax when he arrives in Bremen?"
"What a coincidence, I should set up this tax." Hunter patted his thigh and glanced at Blue Fox with a conceited look.
It was directed at this expression, but it was more aggressive than verbal abuse.
Blue Fox secretly cursed in his heart that the Earl of Bremen was playing with fire. The Ross Navy was fully capable of reaching Bremen, and it would not be an exaggeration to use force to punish the arrogant provocateurs.
Only the Russians have always collected taxes (tributes) from others. When did the Russians have to pay taxes?
The Earl of Hamburg made some unreasonable demands, but the Earl of Bremen was so arrogant.
Blue Fox tried to end the conversation, but Robert, Count of Hamburg, hurriedly persuaded his old friend not to treat the Russians like big fat sheep. Because unlike Hunter, Robert knew that the elastic sword he liked to mention was made by the Russians, and saying it was a "reward from the Lord" was just a nice way of saying it. The Russians can export many excellent weapons, and even if they cost a lot of money to buy them, it is still worthwhile, not to mention the fat man Joseph Blue Fox claimed that Ross is willing to exchange things for rye.
Because Hamburg, Bremen and Flanders, the county in the northwest corner of the Three Kingdoms' territory is a protrusion in the macro perspective, and as a lowland area, there is a serious lack of minerals. If iron tools can be obtained from the Russians, it will be beneficial to the three counties.
Hunter did not realize this. He did not want to form an alliance with Ross, but he did not prohibit doing business. Most of the ten taxes he had described with his fingers were improvised inventions, just hoping that Joseph Blue Fox would shut up in despair. City entry tax, customs duty, and business tax are all three taxes that must be collected. Even so, Hunter thought about it and did not open his mouth.
After all, Bremen is a special existence. It is the bishopric designated by Charlemagne and the core stronghold of the kingdom in the north. As a vassal, he has the title of "Von Bremen". Foreign barbarians are friendly and trading.
Hunter, on the other hand, was pleased with the infighting among the Normans.
Such an unexpected night meeting fully enhanced Rose and Werder Bremen's understanding of each other, but in fact it made the Blue Fox angry and itchy to the teeth. This self-respecting nobleman who loves hunting and suppressing bandits dares to ask for tribute from Ross. This is a serious sin and requires huge wealth to make amends!
The meeting ended up with everyone talking about their own opinions, but there was still an intended outcome.
In a sense, Blue Fox is an outsider even as the Ross envoy. After Hunter realized the major threat from the Normans, he naturally had to strengthen his defenses to guard against the sneak attack of Horik, the great pirate who proclaimed himself king, because the quietly flowing Weser River Directly leading to the sea, Horik's gangsters have also made sneak attacks against the current before. It is for this reason that when Robert raised the alarm, Hunter really believed it.
Since the Earl of Hamburg had to bravely run to Regensburg, it would still take some time to head south to Frankfurt. The team needed a batch of food, drinking water, clothing, and especially materials for building tents. Hunter was willing to fund these supplies.
Not only that, an autographed parchment letter from Count Hunter of Bremen was also stuffed into a wooden box with several pieces of amber inside. The box was unlocked but sealed with wax. The letter will be delivered to Prince Ludwig, and the words are full of evil words towards King Horik of Denmark. Yes, who would give a good word to a group of gangsters who looted their territory?
