In the palace, Ferdinand anxiously awaited the report from the front.

He must not appear panicked in front of outsiders, he must appear calm and confident, when in fact his anxious state of mind at this time is unimaginable to anyone.

No one knows better than him what the Ebro reservoir means to Aragon, and the severe drought that has persisted for several years has left the Zaragoza region facing signs that the nearby water system may one day dry up completely.

This time may be much faster than one might think, and it may not take a few generations for the city of Zaragoza to become a dead city.

Ferdinand would never allow this to happen, and that would make him the most failed king in the history of Aragon.

Ferdinand could not accept the proximity of the distance between a king who had almost united Aragon and Castile and the monarch who had led to the decline of Aragon.

There was a rush of footsteps, and Ferdinand's body did not move, as if to stand up and remind himself to calm down, and he sat there with a slight stiffness, his eyes fixed on the door.

An entourage walked in quickly, his head still covered with sweat, and he held a mud-stained envelope in his hand: "Report from the front line of Your Majesty!" ”

The nervousness of the entourage finally affected Ferdinand, and he immediately stood up and took two steps to take the report from the entourage, paused slightly, took a deep breath, and slowly opened it.

Then who had seen the king first glance at the contents of the letter, and then began to look at it little by little,

As his eyes flickered, Ferdinand's face became agitated, and then his face turned red, and his hands holding the letter trembled slightly.

Then he closed the letter in his hands, put his hands together and put his fingers against his forehead, and muttered softly: "Thank you, God, this is a miracle, it is a miracle." ”

After a long while, Ferdinand looked up and said to the squire, "Go and call the messenger, and I will ask him for some information myself." ”

The attendant immediately responded, and it was not long before a soldier walked in with a tired face and a flask in his hand.

"Tell me the results of the battles at the front, I mean, how did you achieve victory?"

Ferdinand said as he remembered something and waved at the squire beside him: "Don't disturb us, I want to listen carefully to the reports from the people on the battlefield, and go and gather everyone to let them know about our victory." ”

The squire's heart was finally relieved, and he walked out briskly, not forgetting the king's command, and then he immediately trotted down the corridor to the other side of the palace to inform the courtiers who were in the palace.

It soon became known that good news had come from the front, that the Aragonese army had won its first victory in an enemy engagement that had invaded the Western Territories.

Such an exciting news instantly caused jubilation in the court, and the gloomy atmosphere that had been suppressed for a long time was swept away, and some suggested a grand ball to celebrate the victory, while others simply called on the servants to bring good wine to congratulate them on the hard-won good news.

Everyone gathered around the soldier and eagerly asked about the battle, which made the soldier, who had already drunk a lot, spin around and dizzy for a while.

"It's really good news, isn't it, and it really should be celebrated." An old nobleman sighed as he sniffed at the maid who was pouring wine for him, and then laughed and drank the full wine in one gulp.

Ferdinand smiled and looked at the hall that had suddenly become a mess, he used to care about etiquette and rules, but today he didn't scold those ministers who were a little presumptuous.

Everyone was so excited, Aragorn had been facing blow after blow since the events of Castile Drama.

From Ferdinand's escape from Castile to his sudden unpreparedness for war, Aragorn seemed to be in a completely passive situation, so much so that many people could smell defeat before the war broke out.

This lack of confidence in victory was the most terrible of all, and even a strong army often had a bad future if the defeat was spreading, especially when they were facing an opponent who had defeated the French.

This anxiety has been suppressed in everyone's minds, and when Ferdinand ordered troops to protect the reservoirs of the upper Ebro River, the mood was mixed.

They hoped that the Aragonese army would win, but at the same time they told themselves in their hearts that it was almost impossible.

Time passed in such torments and contradictions, and just when everyone was almost desperate, the good news finally came.

"This is God helping Aragorn." One of the nobles suddenly exclaimed, "We should hold a great Mass of thanksgiving, so that all the people of Salagosa will know the good news, and they must know that the army of Aragon is invincible." ”

"Yes, it should be so," Ferdinand immediately replied aloud, but then he changed his gear, "but now is not the time, our victory is still small, so small that it has only driven the enemy's vanguard into the Ebro, and if it is a pagan sacrifice we would be too petty. ”

Ferdinand's 'witticism' caused a burst of laughter from the courtiers, who of course knew that the king was talking back, but it also made sense, since their current victory was only the defeat of the enemy's vanguard, and their greater enemy was Gonzalo.

However, this victory was enough to restore the confidence of the Aragonese that if they could defeat the Cassie army once, there would be a second, third, or even complete defeat of the invading enemy.

The laughter and even nonsense in the court continued until midnight, and later the retinue had to send the drunken courtiers out of the palace one by one.

Ferdinand had drunk a great deal of wine, and he seemed so excited that he didn't seem to be getting enough of it, and he had the soldier called in to give him a detailed account of what had happened at the front.

The attendant brought the already drunk soldier into the room and turned to leave, and when the door closed, Ferdinand's smiling face instantly became unsightly.

He stood up and grabbed the soldier by the collar, dragged him to a chair, then picked up a nearby jar of water and threw it in his face.

The soldier immediately became alert, he first looked blankly at the king standing in front of him, and then immediately panicked and tried to stand up.

"Okay," Ferdinand commanded, "and tell me more about what happened." ”

"We defeated Your Majesty," the soldier repeated in a somewhat dazed manner what he had already said many times, "that is, we were defeated, we were attacked, and those Castilian and Sicilian did not directly occupy the reservoir, but ambushed us on the way, and that's how Your Majesty defeated ......"

"That's the only way?" Ferdinand angrily asked, "Tell me the details, I want to know every detail." ”

"But that's all I know, Your Majesty, when the battle began, I was in the second team, I was a drummer, and we were still on the march, so we didn't know anything about what was going on in front of us, and then it was all chaos."

Although he had said this more than once, the soldier still had a look of horror on his face as soon as he remembered his previous experience, which seemed to infect Ferdinand, and made his ugly face even more gloomy.

Concealing the truth of his defeat, and even faking the illusion of victory, Ferdinand felt sad about the situation he faced.

But he had to.

The Aragonese had been at a disadvantage from the outset, and hearing about the defeat in the first battle of the front now was likely to cause panic, and perhaps even the possibility of peace talks with Castile had been proposed.

This was absolutely unacceptable to Ferdinand, who would rather fight a war with that George Modilo Astamara that would last for generations, and even make it impossible for the two countries to get out of it, than to compromise with that usurper.

"No, I still have a way, I can still go to the Portuguese." Ferdinand turned back and forth angrily, although he had tried to ally with Manuel but was refused, but he did not care, he believed that if the benefits were enough to concede enough to make the Portuguese tempted, he could impress Manuel.

The relinquishment of some of the land that had been disputed between Portugal and Castile for many years should have satisfied Manuel's appetite and vanity, and as for the resentment of the Castilians, Ferdinand could no longer care about that.

He believed that as long as he could defeat Alexander and return to Castile, the sacrifice would be nothing, and even if it went well, he could simply declare himself the regent of his grandson Charles in such a situation.

Thinking so, Ferdinand immediately began to write to Manuel, he had already found the most suitable messenger, and looking at the soldiers sitting there crampedly, he felt that it was wisest to send this man far away from Zaragoza as soon as possible.

Ferdinand's letter was written with great difficulty, and he wrote it several times when he was not satisfied, and it was not until he tossed back and forth a few times that he finally wrote the letter to Manuel.

Seeing that some of the things in the letter were still unsatisfactory, Ferdinand had no intention of correcting them, and he thought that perhaps this would seem more sincere, and it did not matter whether Manuel could sense his earnestness.

Then he thought about it, and then took a gemstone ring from his hand and put it in a folded envelope.

Sealing the envelope and watching the cooling wax turn into a dark red lump, Ferdinand took out a money bag from the drawer of the table next to him and handed it to the soldier along with the letter.

"Listen, I want you to get out of town at once, the money here is enough for your journey to Lisbon, I suggest you take a boat, remember not to contact anyone on the way, and if anyone asks you about the front, answer as you said before," said Ferdinand, taking the money bag and letter back a little, "and if I hear any unfavorable rumors about the front, you know what will happen." ”

The soldier nodded in horror, and when Ferdinand asked him to falsify false news of his victory at the front, the soldier knew that he was in serious trouble.

Now that he was able to leave Zaragoza, he had a good amount of money to pay for, and he could not help but be secretly grateful for God's mercy.

"Go out of the city overnight, and I'll have someone send you out of the city."

Ferdinand waved his hand at the soldier with some irritation, he didn't want to see this man again, it reminded him of the shame of lying to please the nobles.

The night was dark, and the sound of horses' hooves was heard on the stone-paved road.

Two fast horses galloped forward along the street, and the men on the horses were wrapped in cloaks that kept out the wind, and when the wind blew the cloaks swelled up, like bats at night.

In the distance, the shadow of the city gate was already blurred, and the lights on the tower looked unusually clear in the night.

The man running in front of the two turned back and waved his hand to his companion, signaling him not to speak.

The person behind him immediately made a clear gesture, and he pressed the hood on his head as much as he could, perhaps affected by the emotions of his companions, and he couldn't help but get a little nervous.

The two men continued to gallop their horses along the street, and only two more blocks were needed before they could reach the city gate.

Suddenly, several figures flashed out of the corner of the crossroads, although those people were still a little far away, but many years of life and death experience on the battlefield made the person behind immediately feel dangerous!

The men came so fast that he didn't even bother with his companions, who had not yet reacted, and he immediately fell down on the horse without hesitation.

A short gust of wind greeted him, and several black shadows flashed in the darkness at a speed that was almost invisible.

The rider in front didn't even have time to notice what was happening before he was shot down by an oncoming crossbow bolt.

At the same time, the men had already drawn their hidden swords and pounced on the person behind them who had just dodged the crossbow arrows and straightened up.

Without even thinking about it, the man pulled out the dagger from his leg and stabbed it into the horse's thigh.

The neighing of the war horse echoed through the silent streets, and the horse galloped madly at the rush of those who rushed up because of the pain.

The sturdy body of the war horse slammed into a person, and the huge impact knocked the person directly backwards, and fell to the ground with the accomplices behind.

The man on the horse did not stop at all, he clamped the horse's belly with all his might, grasped the reins with one hand, and with the other he struggled to remove the shield that hung from the saddle, and swung it with all his might.

The heavy shield immediately turned into an offensive and acceptable weapon, and with the resistance of the strong shield, the man immediately smashed away a stabbing sword, and at the same time smashed the edge of the shield on the man's shoulder, and with a scream, the man fell to the ground, clutching the broken shoulder bone and screaming.

The man kept waving his shield, and his mount rushed forward in a frenzy, and in an instant, it had rushed out of the besieging men.

"You don't want to win a real soldier!"

The man shouted at once, and instead of bothering his companions, he kicked the stirrup so hard that the spur and dagger wounds spurred the mount down its neck and galloped in the direction of the city gate.

A few sharp sounds of breaking wind passed through his ears, and the man instinctively leaned down.

But suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his back as if he had been bitten hard, and then his body couldn't help but move forward.

He knew he had been shot, but it wasn't serious.

Because he has seen people on the battlefield who have been shot directly through the body, and he has also seen people who were shot in the heart and killed them instantly.

He's at least alive now, but not yet deadly.

There is a city defense army near the city gate, and you can run there and live!

The thought made the man endure the pain and urge his mount to run.

Behind him came the sound of the pursuer's hoof, and the man did not look back, but slammed the horse's body with all his strength with the edge of the shield in his hand, which was already unusually heavy, and his right leg was unable to exert any strength at this time, which made him know that he must have been injured in the leg.

His vision was a little blurry, due to the loss of blood, but he gritted his teeth and ran forward, just wanting to get to the city gate as quickly as possible.

An impatient shout came from behind him, but the man was in good spirits, for he had already seen the shadow of the city gate at the end of the road ahead, and even the shadow of the guards on the tower, who seemed to be looking down in alarm.

"Saved."

The man grunted in his throat, and he felt cold and weak in his hands and feet, and he would fall off his horse almost at any moment.

The guards under the city gate had also been alarmed by the movement in the streets, and they stared vigilantly at the dark streets in the distance, and when they saw the figures in the distant streets, they immediately issued loud warnings.

"Help me, I am the King's messenger!"

The people being chased shouted with all their might.

There was a commotion among the guards at the gates, and just then an officer in half-armor walked in front of them.

"Stand still, or you'll be shooting arrows!"

The officers shouted at the men who were rushing at them, and the demonstrators raised their swords in their hands.

The guards raised their weapons, and the archers on the walls aimed at the men below.

"Damn it, it's just one step away!"

The man in charge let out a low curse of annoyance, but he still did not dare to rashly attack the soldiers, and after grabbing the reins of his mount and going around the street, the men looked fiercely at the prey that had run in front of the guards, and could only curse in a low voice.

The pain in his back had turned numb, and the soldier finally staggered and fell off his horse after holding on to his way through the line formed by the guards.

"I am the king's messenger, messenger ......" but he kept repeating it, because he knew that this was the only way to save his life.

But he didn't know if it was a hallucination caused by excessive blood loss, but before he passed out, he seemed to hear the officer who was watching him say in a low voice, "I know who you are, and I'm waiting for you." ”

In the Cathedral of Zaragoza, the elderly archbishop is lying in bed panting for breath.

He suffers from rheumatism every season because of the colder weather, and this pain is only just beginning, and as the weather gets colder, the humid climate of Liberia in the winter makes him feel as if he has experienced a punishment in hell.

A priest pushed the door in and came to the bedside and said respectfully, "My lord, the man you are looking for has been found, and they have sent him to the prayer hall at the back." ”

The archbishop, who had been in pain, suddenly became refreshed, sat up with the help of the priest, then put on a civilian robe tremblingly, and walked out with the help of the priest.

In the middle of the night, the cathedral is less solemn and more eerie, and the footsteps of the two men walking down the corridor echo like the whispering of the devil in hell.

The prayer hall is an octagonal building, which still has some traces of Moorish culture, but it is said that when the pagan monastery was demolished to build the cathedral, the then king of Castile, Alfonso VI, ordered the small building to be preserved.

The prayer hall has a basement that rotates downward, and there is a cemetery that houses the tombs of several of the kings of the Kingdom of Aragon.

Several people were waiting there, and among them were the leader of the group that was chasing the soldier in the street, and the officer who was guarding the city gates.

The soldier had fallen to the ground unconscious, his head dripping with sweat, and his body trembling and swinging.

"What's wrong with him?" The archbishop asked, looking down at the soldier.

"My lord, he wasn't very obedient, so we helped him a little." The leader said a witty remark, but when he saw that the others were silent, he took two steps back.

"My lord, someone saw it when I brought him out," the officer whispered, "and perhaps Ferdinand will soon find out about it." ”

"So what," the archbishop said, glancing at the officer and then at the others, "you should have known from the beginning that we would upset His Majesty the king by doing so, but I don't want to be blinded by lies, or that anyone would like to listen to the tales of singing and dancing, but we can't, don't expect that Aragorn can change a king, but not an archbishop." ”

"Of course, my lord," the officer bowed respectfully, "we know what to do, and we owe allegiance to you. ”

"No, you are wrong, you are not loyal to me, but to God and Jesus Christ, and Ferdinand has made it very difficult for us to be so devotion to God at times, knowing that the war between him and the Regent of Castile has affected the dignity and authority of the churches of the two kingdoms."

The archbishop looked at the soldier on the ground again, "Wake him up, I want to know what news he brought to Ferdinand?" ”

A scoop of cold water was poured on the man, and the soldier immediately woke up with a stir, and he struggled to get up, but he was dizzy and fell to the ground, until he saw in a blur the kind face of an old man gradually approaching him.

"Tell me what you know, boy, and what the king told you to do," the archbishop asked the soldier softly in the reassuring tone characteristic of his usual sermons, then tilted his head slightly to bring his ear closer to the soldier's quivering lips, and nodded slowly.

"I see," the archbishop shook his head slightly as he was helped to his feet, looking at the gazes that were cast at him, "Ferdinand lied to all of us, but it's nothing, now that we know the truth, we have to have our own plans." ”