Dejected refugees flooded the streets of Dusseldorf.
The sudden arrival of the refugees caused uneasiness to hang over the entire town.
Seeing these refugees sleeping on the streets, wearing ragged clothes, kneeling and begging, the mayor was almost bored. Because it was only one night, when people got up this morning, they found many new frozen corpses of refugees on the streets.
The townspeople and businessmen in the town also gradually learned from the refugees that the village of Lohausen had been ruthlessly looted.
In the mouths of the refugees, Count Loon's army was like demons crawling out of hell. Their sharp claws ruthlessly and brutally devoured every living person they saw.
Panic began to grip the hearts of everyone in the town of Dusseldorf, whether civilians, merchants, soldiers, or nobles.
In the huge earl's palace tower in the center of the town, Earl Berg, dressed in blue robes, paced back and forth in front of his throne and the trestle table covered with clean white linen, his face full of anxiety and gloom.
"How is this possible? Who gave these bastards the courage to assemble an army to attack in the snow?" Earl Berg shook his head, feeling that he had lost a lot of hair from worry.
"My Lord, although I don't want to admit it, unfortunately I have to tell you that whether it is based on the lord of Lohausen Village or the spies who have just returned from the Earl of Loon, the news they sent back points to Loon. Earl Weng has assembled his troops in the ice and snow and is heading towards our march to attack."
Next to Earl Berg, a lean man wearing a large black hooded robe said cautiously. His expression was the same as Earl Berg - a look of disbelief.
"Are the spies we sent to the other side of the river just a bunch of losers who only spend money to drink and eat meat in the tavern every day? Why did such important news reach my ears now?" Earl Berg frowned. , there was anger in his voice, and his sharp questioning eyes made the lean man unable to raise his head.
"Dear Sir, they have actually done everything they can. The spy who just came back said that his companions released the carrier pigeons in the middle of the night a few days ago, but I don't know what happened. The pigeons did not survive the storm. And send the news back in the snow and mist.”
The lean spy leader swallowed and took off his hood, revealing his hair that was as sparse as autumn weeds and the beads of sweat on his forehead. He continued: "Now this will bring the information back. The spy disguised himself as a handyman and followed Count Loyon's army across the ferry, assassinated their grooms and night watchmen in the middle of the night, snatched a fast horse, and rushed back overnight."
Earl Berg wanted to say something, but in the end he just moved his lips, and all the resentment and unwillingness finally turned into a sigh.
"Don't talk about it now. Since things have already happened, we can't change it. Now, we have to think carefully about how to deal with Count Luo Weng, this cunning fox!" Count Berg said, squeezing his fingers tightly. His fist slammed the armrest of the throne that was wrapped in wolf skin.
"Judging from their current marching posture, they are likely to besiege the town of Dusseldorf. It is too late to gather the knights and soldiers of the entire earldom now. We must be prepared to defend the town." The spy leader said the old quartermaster next to him.
"Old Wellerman, what you said makes sense." Earl Berg turned his back and sat on the throne. His originally impetuous heart gradually began to cool down, and reason was returning to his brain. "I think I have to wait for them." Before besieging the town of Dusseldorf, send out all my couriers and messengers, and ask the barons to assemble their armies and kick the butt of Count Lowen's army that is besieging the city."
"What a good idea. Then we can fight out of the town and cooperate with the barons inside and outside, so that Count Loyon will be attacked from both sides!" The old quartermaster Welleman said with a victorious smile. He couldn't wait to see the enemy. The scene where Earl Loon fled with his tail between his legs when being attacked from outside.
"In addition, we have to move the nearby villagers, supplies, grain, grass and livestock to the strong walls of the town. This way, the tragedy like Lohausen Village will not happen again, and the bastard Count Loon will not be able to plunder our village nearby. Get supplies!" Quartermaster Wellerman said with a blushing face and blowing his beard.
As a result, the horses in the entire Dusseldorf stable were mobilized.
Scouts, messengers and messengers all went into battle, carrying orders in their pockets, and rode out of the tall town gate, galloping in all directions.
………………………
At this time, on the main road leading to the town of Dusseldorf west of Lohausen village, a large army was slowly advancing.
At the front of the procession were the Count of Loon and his vassals, as well as the well-equipped personal guards of the counts and barons.
They were followed by mercenaries and poorly armored freedmen soldiers.
Unlike the mercenaries who were still fully armored, some of these freemen soldiers wore leather armor and uniforms that had been washed by countless battles, while others wore rusty iron helmets.
Following the freedmen soldiers was a huge team composed of serfs and poor people. Most of them held wood axes or pitchforks in their hands, and a thin, fragile-looking broken wooden shield.
Some of the serf soldiers, who looked like they had been on the battlefield and collected trophies, owned a bent spear or a rusty armed ax with a curled blade.
Behind the serf soldiers were handymen who didn't even have weapons.
They were lightly dressed, but they did the hardest and most tiring work in the entire team. The worst thing is that when sieging a city, they are often used as cannon fodder by their lords, carrying siege ladders, pushing siege vehicles, and charging at the front line under the rain of arrows.
Marching on the snow-covered road, "enjoying" the howling cold wind, no matter they were the private soldiers of the lords, the free people's soldiers, the poor serf soldiers, or the handymen, they were all struggling at this time.
Every mile traveled was a huge challenge for them.
Sometimes, among the ranks of poor serf soldiers and handymen, someone was blown down by the biting cold wind and fell to the side of the road, and never got up again.
"Can't these damn lazy people hurry up? I didn't see how fast they ran when they plundered the village yesterday!" Count Luo Weng rode a beautiful brown war horse and looked at the slow pace of the main road behind him with some dissatisfaction. Tuntun's marching army.
"My respected monarch, it is not easy to assemble an army on a snowy day, let alone march in such bad weather." Baron Quenier's voice came from the side of Earl Loon. Come, but this did not eliminate the count's dissatisfaction.
"The reason why I braved the huge opposition to assemble the army in the wind and snow and hire mercenaries was to catch Earl Berg off guard so that he could not gather his troops, and then we defeated them one by one. Now it seems that this marching group The slow bastard ruined my brilliant plan!"
"Alas." Baron Quinnier sighed and said nothing more.
He learned from his men that even though the army spent last night in the village of Lohausen and bonfires were set up in many places, nearly twenty poor serf soldiers still froze to death overnight.
He was very unhappy to see such attrition for non-combat reasons, although the number was not large.
But Count Loon didn't think so. In his opinion, it was just freezing to death, no big deal. He believed that the fertility of those lowly farmers was frightening, just like hares without natural enemies, and the population would double in a few years.
The originally gloomy sky became much brighter, and the endless falling snowflakes began to subside. The snow mist became as hazy as thin silk clothes, and the visibility was much higher. This is undoubtedly good news for Count Loon.
After the weather improved, Count Loon's army gathered speed. Not long after they moved forward, a fork in the road appeared in front of them.
"Quenir, Yubes, it seems that you are going to bid farewell to me here." Count Luo Weng's scout whispered a few words in his ear. The count breathed a white breath and turned his head to face his two The capable vassal said.
"My lord, I will keep my mission in mind, and after quickly sacking their scattered settlements and castles, I will join you with money and provisions, and together we will capture the town of Dusseldorf."
"Very good, now gather your men." Count Luo Weng nodded with satisfaction.
This time, he brought a total of 1,100 people with him on the expedition, including 200 mercenaries.
Count Lowen will lead 600 people to besiege the town of Dusseldorf, while his two most powerful vassals will each lead two to three hundred people, and they will be divided into two groups to plunder the Earl of Berg. At this time, Count Berg is in a scattered state. He led a group of leaderless vassals, plundered their wealth and food supplies, and finally joined forces with Count Lowen to launch a general attack on the town of Dusseldorf.
"Captain Jerram, I want you to gather all your people to the left side of the fork in the road. Fox, I want you to go to the front of the queue. You are familiar with this area. You will lead the way later." Kun Baron Neil's squire rode up to the march of free folk soldiers and mercenaries, loudly conveying his master's orders.
Soon, Baron Quinnier brought his private soldiers, the mercenaries he hired, and the free folk soldiers and poor soldiers in his territory to the main road leading to the north.
"Fox, you know the Barony of Dorsten and the village of Verde very well, don't you?"
Riding a black pony next to Baron Kunir was a fat middle-aged man wearing a bright yellow dye robe. He wore red and white tights and a pair of deerskin boots polished with lard.
A gust of cold wind lifted the green hood of the slightly fat man, revealing a pair of eyes filled with cruelty and resentment. His pupils were flashing with a green and fierce light.
"That's right, respected Lord Kunil, I know every plant and tree there very well. There live my dear friends on that land, as well as enemies that I long to tear into pieces..."
Fox lowered the hood with his hand again, and a low and hoarse sound as harsh as a crow came from under the hood.
