"Call everyone to me!"
Hai'an was referring to other family members, including his second daughter Yin Mo, who was not disturbed except for his sickly son.
That night, Wulf, who was sleeping, and a group of soldiers left behind by Oran were rounded up by the royal army.
Malm was also asked out of the room by the maid.
Then the third daughter Pepa was also called.
Several people were brought to King Ella one after another.
"Mother, those guards are making a lot of noise." Yin Mo was extremely impatient at first, but seeing his mother's cold face, he didn't dare to say anything more.
"Father, mother."
"Your Majesty (King and Princess)."
When Malm arrived, he didn't understand what was happening, and Ulf became nervous.
After being sent here, he could not receive a lot of information from Oran and could only pass the news back to Wang Ting in one direction.
At the moment, I don’t know that Olan has done such a big thing.
Ella had Oran's two letters given to Ulf and asked him to read them again.
Olan's taunting threats made Ulf sweatdrop while reading...
When he finished reading, he almost lost his balance, and then Princess Haian said in a stern tone, "Hang Ulf!"
"No!"
Ulf clasped his hands together and pitifully begged the two majesties for mercy.
In order to save his life, Ulf did not care about his posture.
After all, he was a priest and a monk. Hai'an was just angry and wanted to scare him. What he cared about most was his brother's safety.
But punishment is inevitable, and he added, "Hang him up and don't give him water."
Ulf was dragged out just like that. Before leaving, his eyes met Peppa's...
Then Haian looked at Malm and said, "You bitch, you are just like your mother, so good at seducing men."
Malm received a ladylike education since she was a child. She was grateful for her parents' kindness, lowered her head and endured the scolding.
"Your Majesty, you see, she is as cunning as her mother. She is not your child at all, she is an illegitimate daughter!"
The birth of Malm has always been a concern for Ella. Recently, for some reason, rumors have spread again in the towns outside the royal court.
The king never thought that this was a scandal spread by Ulf, who was not restricted in his activities after Ulf and Pepa had an affair under his own eyes.
Pepa thought that as long as there were various scandals, Ella would be less likely to be violent towards her.
Ulf has been immersed in this affair, and even because of Pepa's threat, he privately set fire to his place of residence and the surrounding areas, destroying it.
Pepa even wanted to use rumors to harm her sister and receive the same treatment as herself. It would be best for Ella to kill Ulf as well. Then Mr. Oran might be angry with the Egyptian royal family and send people to attack?
What Ulf just read out, among everyone present, she was the only one who was excited.
"Bring me the whip!"
After Haian asked the maid to get the whip, King Ella asked the non-royal members to go down, leaving only the second son-in-law William.
Then, Hai'an looked at Malm, but glanced at Pepa.
She and Guile had no father since childhood, and Gulie was very timid when he was young. Before the age of twelve, the two even often slept in the same bed, and their relationship was far better than that of ordinary siblings.
If you can't hurt Malm, then take it out on Pepa.
When the first whip was applied, Pepa curled up in pain. Seeing this, Malm stepped forward and grabbed Haian's hand, but was pushed away.
So Malm turned to protect Pepa.
Pepa's eyes were as cold as a snake, but Malm didn't care.
When protecting others, don't think about gains and losses. As long as you feel it is a good deed, then do it.
After all, before losing everything, Pepa also called herself sister.
After a few whips, King Ella quickly shouted to stop, "Do you want your brother's life?"
Hai'an, still angry, finally walked away, followed immediately by his daughter Yin Mo.
King Ella was distraught and told William, "Go get ready and leave for Dan City immediately to meet Oran."
When King Ella left, only Malm and Pepa were left, hugging each other.
Hai'an struck hard, leaving several red marks on Malm's back, which made her eyes tear up from the pain.
William walked over to help the two girls up, but Pepa glared back, "Get away!"
After he was in trouble, William was among the people who wanted to belittle him.
Pepa couldn't bear to say it. One day, when she mastered the power, she would return them one by one.
"Bitch, your future end will be to go to a brothel to pick up customers. At that time, I will send different people to patronize you every day."
William then looked at Malm, "Olan is crazy. If you become a couple with a madman, you will end up in a miserable situation. I'm waiting for you to beg me."
Malm did not respond to William. Don't fight with unnecessary people.
She endured the pain and helped Pepa up and said, "No matter what the fate is, as long as a person doesn't give up, doesn't despise himself, and has a good heart, I believe there will be a day of redemption."
The silver wedding ring that Oran gave her was now on her finger. Although it was simple and inconspicuous, it gave her the confidence and motivation to live.
Pepa hesitated to speak, and finally replied, "If that day comes, I will pay you back everything I have done to you."
Malm didn't understand what she said, so she left immediately. After returning to the worship room, she prayed to God again and again to protect the people she cared about and the relatives around her.
Until receiving the order, follow to Dan City.
…
Oran was riding a horse, thirty miles outside Dan Castle, pacing back and forth.
He has two things to do right now, one is to meet with Ella, and the other is that the guild merchants he sent were arrested in the former royal territory of Yorkshire. He had previously sent his trusted butler Nanamp to deal with them. , received the news the day before yesterday and will return to the territory today.
The other thing was the meeting with the king.
This time, in order to save Kongni and Guile, he hid his evil deeds. Accompanied by Princess Haian, Ella mobilized very quickly. The morning after receiving the letter, a team of nearly two hundred people headed towards Dancheng.
On the way, he also met the scouts sent by Oran many times and exchanged information.
Without Cyrus, William became the most important military knight around King Aella.
On the way, he suggested that he should bring more people, launch an attack, and capture Oran directly.
But Ella was afraid that her direct private soldiers would be damaged, and Shi Meng's team also took advantage of the chaos to sneak attack in the direction of the royal court, and had no intention of facing off against Oran.
Even after thinking alone for a night, Ella discovered that if Guile was not around, the princess's power would be reduced by more than half.
From another perspective, this is not so bad?
Once people use unfair means to obtain some kind of benefit, they are also afraid that others will use unfair means to seek for themselves.
For a long time, Ella used wine and women to help her think.
His heart became cold and selfish.
And in this way, Olan saw through his trump card.
Oran invited Ella to meet and sent people to the highlands near Dan City to check the king's team in advance.
Combined with the information gathered on the road, we know that the king has indeed agreed to the talks, and the number of people he brought with him does not seem to be a decisive battle?
Oran tried his best to fight, but Ella always wanted to preserve her strength.
Even if Ella is stronger, she still doesn't have the advantage.
Get rid of Ella and the variable Shi Meng.
Olan acted on two fronts. At the same time, he also sent someone to tell Shi Meng that he was attacked on his way back and several of the king's knights were captured. Now the king's men are dispatched from Dan City again. Why are they here?
Ask Shi Meng to help defend the friendly alliance between the two.
Olan made such a request rashly, so Shi Meng naturally couldn't agree to it. He had to wait and see the situation first.
He also sent people out to investigate and saw the king's troops on the high ground outside Dan Castle. Although he didn't know what King Ella wanted to do?
However, King Ella's movement was the territory that Oran wanted to cede to the Vikings, so Shi Meng's acceptance of the new territory would naturally have to be postponed for a few days.
Because the rain slowed down the march
That night, Ella's army entered Dan City to deploy.
But he did not stop his actions because of the darkness and the rain, and directly sent his knights to meet with the people of Oran.
This time, Olan will not enter the city. The two of them agreed to go fifteen miles each tomorrow morning and negotiate the terms in the open air.
At midnight, Nanamp redeemed the caravan and brought people to Oran.
This was a caravan of eight people selling wool. The car was full when they left, but empty-handed when they came back. Except for Nanamp, everyone looked very bad.
Olan was finishing his midnight snack. He rewarded the uneaten food and asked the chef to get more food.
"Take it easy."
With Oran's words, these people immediately took off their smelly socks and clothes, warming themselves by the fire while eating food.
My hands were not washed, my legs were covered in mud, and I kept eating one mouthful after another regardless of whether it was dirty or hygienic.
Oran didn't mind. The group of people helped him venture back, which was enough to get the honor of eating at the same table with the lord.
After the eight people had eaten and drank, Olan asked, "The Vikings occupied Kent, and the southern countries sent troops to strictly guard the key roads. It doesn't matter if you go out to trade, whether you fail or succeed, but I want to know who is making things difficult for you." ?Slap Ben Burr in the face? Sheriff of Yorkshire 'Gliese'?"
"Your Excellency, you are not the Sheriff of Gliese, but the knight of Mercia." Nanamp explained.
"Mercia?"
"Your Excellency, you sent someone to ask the Governor of Gliese to exchange our goods for their wheat, and to abolish the merchants of the two counties and collect tariffs when entering each other's places. These have been implemented.
Although we are nominally loyal to His Majesty Ella and they are loyal to His Majesty Osberg, there is no problem with cooperation.
But just a dozen days ago, King Osberg's whereabouts were unknown. It was only when I arrived in Yorkshire that I found out that the former king died in battle, and the Mercian army announced in a letter written by the former king before his death that it was a special state of war. , they want to take over the three southern counties until the former king's "heir" appears.
After I brought the ransom, Sheriff Gliese helped us mediate and told me the truth so that we could leave safely. Now Mercia has stationed in the three southern counties, controlling many business groups and nobles, and directly expropriating their wealth for free. "
After Oran heard this, he asked the members of the business group one by one, and finally called Sals over.
Several people relied on guesses and estimates to figure out that the former king had entered into an alliance with a foreign country to send troops to the Vikings in exchange for the two countries helping him to regain his throne.
The details of the deduction may be lacking, but the general idea is as good as Olan expected.
It turned out that the last time the southern army defeated the Vikings and returned to Kent, they wanted to recover Kent in one go.
The former king took the initiative and proposed that if he was restored, he would exist as a subsidiary of Wessex and Mercia.
During a war, all parties strive for their own best interests.
Mercia made a plan and let the former king's army and the Queen's army of East Anglia serve as the vanguard.
The two powerful men paid lip service but did not deliver. When they saw that the former king and queen's troops were in danger, they did not rescue them.
In the end, Osberg's whereabouts were unknown, and the Vikings wanted to take advantage of the victory to attack, but due to insufficient numbers, they were blocked by two powerful forces.
A few days later, Mercia received the news that the former king had died in battle, and they quickly sent a thousand people to take over the three southern counties and forcibly expropriated the wealth of the merchant group. This led to the redemption by Oran people.
The fifty-year-old former king passed away without restoring the national borders.
One wave has not calmed down, another wave has arisen, the vast battlefield is filled with violent storms.
Looking at the rain outside, Olan had a headache thinking about it.
This kind of thing cannot be hidden. King Ella just found out later than he knew, probably only two or three days later.
It rained intermittently until midnight.
Nanamp was cautious and didn't say much, but Sals was thinking about how to maximize his interests.
English proverb: "Chaos always produces great heroes."
Sals became more and more excited as he thought about it. Just when he was about to say something, Olan broke the silence first. He looked at Nanamp, "Do you think we can fight against the Vikings alone?"
"It's difficult." Nanamp saved face and didn't say it was impossible.
"Eight counties, eight county chiefs, we occupy two, two parts of the force. If we can cooperate, the force will become eight parts, with a population of up to 200,000, and the size of the army that can be mobilized is no less than four to five thousand .
In this way, you can fight against the Vikings and even have a local advantage.
Originally, if I held the Thain Conference, even if it was successful, the participants would probably be limited to the four northern counties.
If we add the west side, the "Carlisle County" that supports the king, there are only five counties, and the strength is still weak.
Now that the former king has died in battle, the situation has changed again. Look, it's like the rain outside.
It rains intermittently, sometimes loudly, sometimes smallly, and I don’t know when it will stop.
We are like businessmen who are on their way and see rain impeding their progress.
The first is to just wait until the rain passes and the sky clears up. This way we can see the situation clearly, take the least risk, but the result is the most passive. There are various possibilities: others do not need our goods, or the road collapses due to rain.
Reflecting the current situation, the Mercians may have successfully swallowed up all three southern counties.
We want to send business groups there in the future, but the taxation alone will overwhelm us.
It is unrealistic to confront such a powerful neighbor, and we can only become a vassal.
The second is to calculate the changes in rain intensity, do not stop, and adapt to changes.
Originally, I was not very sure that the conference could be successfully held. I even estimated that the worst outcome would be that the negotiations would fail and the balance of power among the three parties could only be maintained.
We, Shimon, kings against each other
But I can clearly predict the intensity of this kind of rain, so I’m not afraid.
But add Mercia and it's different.
The Mercians will not contact us before they swallow up the three southern counties, but there will definitely be other means after that. This will make the rain heavier, and King Ella will bear the brunt. We can surrender to the Kingdom of Mercia at any time. I am still an earl. Could it be that Can he surrender to the throne?
There is only one way for the king to reduce the rain, and that is to cooperate with me and the other county chiefs and counts.
According to the law of the kingdom, the throne of Northumbria is a 'male-first succession system', and only members of the Norn family are eligible to hold the position.
As long as the meeting passes and the former king's faction abdicates, the kingdom will return to the unification of eight counties. "
Oran stopped here, and Sals smiled and answered, "Your Excellency, York County has contacted us, and they should immediately send someone to notify them that a meeting will be held. In addition, early tomorrow morning, we will contact King Ella Negotiate the terms and bring all the county officials together as quickly as possible to help him reset."
“What about the cow neck?”, Nanamp asked.
"You can let him go first." Sals suggested.
"Isn't Niu Neck's wife about to give birth? I want the child to have no father as soon as it is born." Oran objected.
"Your Excellency, don't make decisions out of anger. He can't be turned out of your hands. We can uproot him after he stabilizes."
"No, we and the king are suspicious of each other. We should first have a military alliance to enhance our feelings. This is the last major group of Vikings in the territory to cause trouble. Gomen has surrendered to us and is not included in this group.
Eliminating all the Vikings who had occupied the four northern counties in the past king's time is a great feat and will make King Ella gain more respect from the county chiefs. I will ask him to agree, and he will definitely agree.
Sals, Bember is tired of these old northerners who keep barking like vicious dogs on the land of Northumbria. "
After Oran finished speaking, he stretched out his hand and said, "Soon, these hands will be stained with blood that cannot be washed away in a lifetime, but I am happy!"
"You are right, anyone who dares to hinder you will die."
Sals saw Olan's expression and told himself that this was indeed the true king he was looking for.
After the meeting, the forces within the territory that had just subsided were mobilized again and prepared to attack Shi Meng.
However, due to over-recruitment, conflicts broke out between the knights and the people in the next few days, resulting in more than 30 casualties.
As a result, the surviving rebels and the knights who caused the conflict were all killed according to different charges.
But no one cared, at least not Oran, and Kunsang and the others took the blame.
The rain continued until the next day. When Olan and Ella met, it was still raining, but Olan had already figured out the intensity of the rain and felt relaxed.
When the fat king approached on a white war horse, Oran dismounted in the rain and saluted King Ella,
"Your Majesty, this rain will never stop."
