A group of thirteen horsemen galloped on the snow-capped King's Road.

The first rider wears a chain mail hood and an iron nose guard, a cotton armor lining, a long-sleeved plate chain mail outside, an elbow iron arm guard, a cowhide boot on the feet, a steel dagger and a single-edged short knife at the waist, and a black heraldic cloak; Under the black war horse, the front saddle hangs a horned riding bow and sheepskin quiver, the right hangs a steel long-handled knight's sword, the rear saddle horse mattress covers a leather round shield, a cavalry short spear and a battle axe hanging from the left and right sheaths.

Behind him, the two horsemen wore nose guards and iron helmets, half-body chain mail, lined with cotton armor, and covered with black robes and cloaks, the front saddle of the war horse was hung with a heavy axe, the back saddle was placed with a round shield mattress cover, and the spear pouch was tied to the sheath, and one of them held an eight-foot-long heraldic flag in his hand, the bottom end of which was on the right horse's pedal. Ten riders in cotton armor of various colors and robes and capes followed closely behind the flag, and they all carried bows and swords or horses and spears.

More than a dozen military horses stepped on the layers of snow on the ground and raised their hooves, making a loud rumbling sound.

The pedestrians who passed by sporadically on the road and the troops who rushed to the battle line to change their guards avoided the menacing cavalry team, and the look of disgust on their faces was filled with unconcealable awe and admiration.

"Sir, what a majesty! I've been following you for more than a year, and this is the most imposing one. Ron said excitedly with the blood-eyed wolf heraldic flag in his right hand and urging the horse to catch up with Art.

Art slowed down his horse, let the war horse under him pac forward freely for a short rest, and then turned his head slightly and said to Ron: "This time I brought so many riders to Besançon for the sake of strength, don't you know how powerful our cavalry is, others can't see it?" Except for a few of you sentinels, the others are only barely riding horses, let alone riding and shooting, slashing, they are all shelves, and there is no majesty. ”

Ron's pride was not extinguished by Art's cold water, he immediately turned to look at the ten horsemen following behind him, although he knew that most of them were just new riders who could just control the horse and stabilize their figures, but this pleasure of leading the charge of the brigade of "cavalry" made him addicted, he straightened up and urged the horse to run a few steps, sat on the saddle and turned to Angus and said: "Sergeant Major, we must train a real cavalry when we return to the valley!" ”

Angus kicked his horse's belly and replied with a smile, "Training cavalry is not something that can be done with words, but if Lord Art can earn enough money, we will definitely be able to train an elite cavalry team in the future." ”

"Well, when the time comes, I must join this cavalry team, ride on a war horse and charge into battle to kill the enemy and make meritorious contributions......"

…………

In order not to get too tired from the horses under them, the group galloped for two days on the King's Road before reaching a town ten miles southeast of Besançon, where Arte ordered everyone to rest and repair for the night, and then enter Besançon the next day.

Although it is only a small town, it is richer than other places because it is close to the city of Besançon, the court of the country, so there are all kinds of taverns, inns, shops and workshops in the town, the roads in the town are relatively clean and tidy, and most of the pedestrians who come and go on the carriageway are also wearing thick jackets and felt hats, which is very rich.

"Across this street, there's a little inn called Homecoming at the other end of town, how about we rest at that inn tonight?" As a native of Besançon, Angus was familiar with the surroundings of Besançon.

"You're more familiar than I am here, and you just have to decide these things."

Art stared at a southern goods store in the town, and asked Angus intently, "Sergeant Major, there are also southern goods stores in a town like this?" ”

Angus recalled, "In a normal town, there would be no southern goods shops, but here it is close to Besançon, and there are often southern goods caravans and hawkers passing by to stop, so there are southern goods shops." ”

"Is this place regulated by the Guild?"

"I don't know very well, but a year ago a year ago, a small town north of Besançon was ransacked by a group of unknown men, and some people rumored that the trade guild in Besançon sent someone to do it." Angus turned his head to look at the southern goods shop that he had just passed by, and continued: "This southern goods store must have just opened, I came here last spring, when it was still a leather shop. can open a southern store under the nose of the guild, there must be a shadow of the guild behind this shop......"

chatting all the way, and after a while, the group walked into this inn called Homecoming, and from the slightly panicked look of the innkeeper after seeing Angus, it can be guessed that Angus must have acted as a city hooligan who was forced to cheat and cheat to eat and drink.

Angus stared at the shopkeeper with a panicked face for a long time, smacked his lips, took out a sheepskin money bag from his bosom and threw it to the shopkeeper, and said, "Ruhl, this is the money I owe you, take it, and the rest of the money will be for our food and lodging tonight." ”

The thin shopkeeper looked at Angus incredulously, cautiously opened the money bag filled with copper fennil and small silver coins, looked up and caught a glimpse of a dozen heavily armed guys standing outside the door, the shopkeeper suddenly put away the money bag and slapped it into Angus's arms, and said in a loud voice: "Master Angus, you take the money back, eat and drink as you like, just ask you not to rob my store and don't hurt my family." The thin shopkeeper was short with a crying voice, and he was about to kneel.

Art and Ron, who were following Angus, were full of black lines, and Ron whispered in Art's ear, "How many evil things did the sergeant major do before to make the shopkeeper so afraid. ”

Art just chuckled softly and shrugged his shoulders.

Angus was very embarrassed by the shopkeeper, he did often eat and take cards in this inn before, and he had also beaten the shopkeeper to rob the store money, but now he has changed his ways, and his military salary and military reward have accumulated to a thousand more than a thousand dollars in the past six months, and he really intends to find the shopkeeper to pay off the debt this time.

Seeing the awkward scene at a stalemate, the clever Ron hurriedly stepped forward and said to the innkeeper, "Standing in front of you is Angus, the commander of the southern border of the palace and the lieutenant of the army of the knight Sir Art. Lord Doyle. ”

The shopkeeper didn't understand for a while, so Ron patiently explained: "We are an army returning from the palace crusade, and we will not use half a copper coin to eat and live in your shop." ”

The shopkeeper's frightened expression was relieved when he realized that the group outside the door was not Angus who had brought the robbers who had looted the goods in the store.

Angus had already been made impatient by the shopkeeper, "Why are you still staying?" Let's prepare wine and meat! ”

The shopkeeper quickly put the money bag in his arms and ran into the back kitchen of the store to prepare the food with a smile.

"Lord Art, I'm sorry for making you laugh~" Angus touched his head in embarrassment and brought Art into the store.

The wandering mercenaries sitting on the longest and largest wooden table in the store saw a dozen guys in armor and swords rushing in, and quickly stood up to make room for them.

The group took their seats one by one, and soon the innkeeper and two bartenders carried a wooden tray to bring food to the table - half a roast lamb prepared in advance, several large wooden bowls of minced meat porridge, a large vat of onion stew, two pots of apple jelly pears, and a whole barrel of light beer.

Yate was thoughtful, not very interested in the large pot of food in front of him, and hastily ate a piece of mutton and drank two beers before returning to his room to rest.

The rest of the people at the table, especially the ordinary soldiers who rarely had a meal with Art on weekdays, let go of their restraints when Art left. In the past few days, the saddle horse has been tired, and when they are in a hurry, they often eat a few mouthfuls of hard rye bread in the snow on the side of the road, and their mouths have long been bitter, and as soon as Art left, everyone undressed and unbuttoned, grabbed the meat, vegetables and wine on the table and poured it into their mouths, and kept talking loudly about the battle formations and the enemies they had experienced in Tarburg in the past six months, and soon the guests in the hotel were sitting around the big long table and listening to the legendary stories that happened in the southeast mountains, and the innkeeper was busy adding food and pouring wine for everyone. The money bag in his arms clanged as he stomped forward and backward.

The bustle in the inn lasted until late at night, and it was not until the food in the back kitchen of the innkeeper was running out of food that everyone went back to their rooms to rest with their round bellies......

The next morning, Ron pushed open the door of Art's room and brought a steaming bowl of bread and mutton soup paste, and Art got up and put on a heavy set of plate chain mail with Ron's help, then took the wooden bowl and poured the mutton soup bread batter into his mouth and gurgled and swallowed.

Art wiped the corners of his mouth and asked, "Have the soldiers all eaten breakfast?" ”

Ron replied as he fastened his belt for Art, "The guys have already eaten, and are now resting downstairs, ready to go." ”

Art was satisfied, he thought that the soldiers were still asleep in their rooms after the all-night feast last night, but they were ready to go, "All right, let's go into Besançon." ”

............

When a group of thirteen horsemen rushed towards Besançon from the southeast, the commander of the defending army at the east gate of Besançon really waved a sweat, because Besançon City did not have a cavalry team with a blood-eyed howling wolf heraldic flag, and a charge of more than a dozen cavalry could crush a peasant army of hundreds of people, so the sudden appearance of the strange cavalry team made the garrison commander of the city frightened, worried that there was a sudden alarm, and quickly ordered the defenders under the city to put away the drawbridge and close the city gate, and the archers on the city also rushed to the battlements to prepare to release arrows.

Art saw the movement at the East Gate, waved to stop the group behind him, and then called Ron to give a few words.

Ron, holding the heraldic banner, drove his horse slowly to the city wall, and declared himself to the defenders of the city, and handed over the court papers, and the commander of the garrison called the literate tax collector in the doorway, read the papers, and double-checked them before the drawbridge was lowered and the door was opened to welcome the army returning from the battlefield.

After entering Besançon, Art asked Angus to take the cavalry to the barracks in the city's church square, while he himself took Ron into the court to hand over the paperwork for the completion of military service to the clerk, and when Art wrote his name on the parchment on the clerk's desk and stamped his seal, the war between the Count of Burgundy and the Duchy of Swabia was of little concern to him for the time being, and all that remained was to wait for the court to spare the energy to reward this group of knightly apprentices. The swallowtail on the Arter heraldic flag may soon be cut off.

Art went out of the palace gate, took his weapon, stepped on his horse, and said to Ron, who was following him, "Ron, let's go back to the barracks to get our gifts and visit Lord Earl Balwin, I don't expect the nobles of the palace to take the initiative to remember the blood we shed in Talburg." ”

.............