The small ferry was carrying no cargo and was rising and falling following the ripples of the Rhine River. This made Father James, who was a little seasick, look pale. He was not a man familiar with water.
"The last time I took a boat ride was decades ago. The sea crossing from England to the mainland almost made me vomit out my intestines!" Father James seemed to want to divert his attention to relieve his dizziness, mocking himself. said the sailor next to him.
The sailor's face is covered with wrinkles, his skin is red and dark from the sun, and the dense scars on his hands look very old. At first glance, he looks like a tough guy who has been making a living at sea all year round. He looked at Father James teasingly and said: "Landlubbers can't defeat the Vikings!"
Father James knew that the old sailor was making fun of the fact that the English suffered a great loss without a navy in the early days of their struggle with the Vikings.
Ever since King Alfred had the foresight to form a fleet of his own that belonged to the Anglo-Saxons, it was no longer as easy for the Vikings to sail straight in from the mouths of the rivers in southern England as before.
Two strong Simon soldiers boarded the boat fully armed. After gaining weight, the ups and downs of the boat were much smaller. The sailor untied the rope connecting the ferry to the small pier, and moved the long wooden oar against the direction of the current.
"I hope Father James can arrive in Cologne safely and bring me some good news!" Simon stood on the south village wall of Fordeburg, looking at the small boat not far away leaving the dock and rowing towards the upper reaches of the Rhine River. , said to himself.
If Lange's messenger takes the land route, he will inevitably take a detour between hills and forests, and the soldiers responsible for escorting must always be wary of robbers and robbers on the roadside, so the speed cannot be increased.
Father James does not need to worry about these problems if he takes the water route. The small boat only needs to sail upstream along the Rhine River, and there is no need to worry about encountering pirates.
"Sir Julian... I hope you can stand on the side of justice as always and make the right choice." Simon said silently in his heart.
Sir Julian was now in a difficult position. This time he chose to betray the monarch who single-handedly promoted him, and made a righteous decision to secretly bring the news to his savior Simon, which made Simon begin to face up to this Lange scoundrel whom he had despised.
It is undeniable that Sir Julian has done many bad things and used many unpleasant words to stab Simon, but at least now, he is changing and he is seeking spiritual salvation.
In the next two days, the weather was not kind to Simon. Rumbles of thunder and sultry air swept through Simon's territory. The fierce summer rain sent gusts of wind as his vanguard. The gusts roared past the earth and swept the fertile fields. The pea stems and leaves and the green wheat stems were blowing here and there.
Before the heavy rain came, the farmers built fences with willow sticks outside the newly cultivated fields, and made scarecrows out of hay, old linen clothes and straw hats. The fence prevents wild deer and rabbits from rushing into the farmland to eat the crops, while the scarecrow is responsible for keeping the birds away.
Big raindrops fell on the dry ground and disappeared quickly, but this was just the beginning. The heavy rain clouds carried countless such raindrops and floated over. After a while, the land was so dry that it collapsed. Small puddles were washed out.
Simon looked at the rain outside the window and couldn't help but worry about Father James on the journey. At the same time, his gloomy mood caused him to start making some worst plans, such as what he would do if Lange's messenger arrived first, and what he would do if Baron Luke led his soldiers to attack Fort Esbai...
Suddenly, the wooden door of the castle tower hall was opened a crack, and a strong, wet man walked in with heavy steps.
The young man took off his rain-stained cloak freely, put it on the wooden chair next to the fire pit to dry, then casually picked up a piece of meat from the plate at the end of the table and chewed it in his mouth. The chewing sound of "ba ha ha ha ha" suddenly resounded throughout the hall.
Simon knew who he was without guessing - little Klein.
"Is everything going well?" Simon said, waving to the servants next to him to signal them all to get out.
"It couldn't have gone smoother. That slow old fat pig in Huerta didn't even notice my presence at all." After all the servants and soldiers left the tower hall, little Klein confidently patted his chest and said.
"You came back before Herta, I guess..."
"You guessed it right," little Klein nodded confidently, "it's time to send this damn traitor to hell."
"I know," Simon's eyes turned cold, and he had already made murderous intentions. "Where is he now? Is he still in Bruges?"
"He has replenished the goods in Bruges, disposed of the stolen goods that Jimmy stole and sold to him, and now he should secretly meet with Baron Luke in the city of Kortrijk. By the way, my lord, you want to hear about the relationship between this traitor and Luke. Any details about the contact with Baron Ke’s contact person?”
"No, it's not important anymore. I believe you. Now go to Sir Bill and ask him to bring a few tight-lipped cronies to ambush Herta with you. His carriage is loaded with goods and he will definitely come back by the main road. "," Simon said, wiping his neck, "Find a remote place and let him evaporate. You know what to do. Don't leave any witnesses."
"Okay, sir, I can guarantee that this treacherous rat will never return to Fort Esbai," little Klein nodded. Just as he was about to turn around and leave, he suddenly remembered something and turned around and asked, "By the way, what about Herta's wife Fat Betty? Do you want to deal with it too?"
"It's not necessary," Simon waved his hand. "These days, there are too many examples of businessmen encountering robbers on the road and never coming back. We act secretly, and she won't suspect it. In addition, although this woman is Tong He Erta is just as cunning and stingy, but at least she’s not a bad person, and it’s very risky to deal with her in the village.”
"Then let me say hello to Mr. Ludwig and ask him to send someone to keep an eye on Fat Betty?"
"Yes, but you have to be careful not to be exposed. I don't want rumors to suddenly spread in the village that Herta was assassinated by his lord."
"Okay. What should we do with Jimmy, the militiaman who hides the loot?"
"I will take him with me on this expedition against the Magyars. If he dares to escape during the battle, you can shoot him with a bow. If he dies in the battle, he will be considered to have paid for his theft. The price he deserves. If he kills a few Magyars and survives," Simon smiled playfully, "then consider him equal to his merits. But if he still dares to hide the loot, you can just steal it from others. If he wins, I will personally send him to the gallows."
Simon has his own plans for dealing with this.
This time, unlike the last time he executed Village Chief Duden, Huerta was very cautious in gathering information for Baron Luke, and it could be said that it was watertight. It was difficult for Simon to find direct evidence to execute him in front of everyone. In addition, he is different from the scumbag Duden who everyone shouts about. This Herta, who knows how to survive, seems to be very popular in Esbai Village.
In this case, if you want to get rid of him, the most suitable place is in the wilderness where there are no witnesses.
As for Fat Betty, she actually has no bad intentions. In addition, she seems to have a high reputation among the women in the village. If she has no contact with Baron Luke now and in the future, Simon certainly has no need to kill her.
As for Jimmy the Militiaman, since little Klein wanted to take a long-term approach to catch the big fish, he did not take advantage of others' stolen goods at that time. Although the lords in this era are the law in their own territories, executing a militiaman who defends the village without direct evidence will cause a big blow to Simon's prestige, and will also make other militiamen passive. .
The rain stopped, and little Klein left as quickly as he came. He took a basket of easy-to-preserve black bread and meat sticks from the lord's kitchen. It seemed that he had already planned the place where he would squat and the food he would need when waiting.
There was still no news from Father James, which made Simon a little anxious. He wanted to focus on something else. Just when he was confused, the carpenter apprentice in Keoser Village sent him a "Guteng Tucker Spear".
"Good day, my lord. All the Guteng Tucker spears you ordered have been finished," the apprentice said, sniffing. "The top of each spear has been wrapped with a layer of iron. Even as a The handle is a pure blunt instrument, and it is absolutely qualified.”
"These are enough to make the damn Magyars miserable," Simon said, picking up a spear and looking over it happily. It is conceivable that when the pagan cavalry are dismounted, what awaits them will be a merciless hammer blow.
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
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