October 27 was a rainy day.

The sky overhead was leaden gray, and the clouds looked low, as if they were so heavy that they could fall at any moment.

A gust of wind blew, mixed with a wet smell, and there was a chill that seeped into the bones.

Alexander walked cautiously, the boots on his feet stained with a dark purple stain, the color of mud and blood.

There was a man lying in the mud ahead, and Alexander tried to dodge him and took a step to the side, but the boot sank into a shallow pit, and the muddy water poured in down the shaft of the boot, which was not high, and it was cold and slimy.

The hunters next to him tried to help him, but Alexander waved his hand to stop him.

He carefully withdrew his foot and stood in front of the man.

It was a soldier of the Papal Army, lying on his back up, his face dead gray, and his unclosed eyes were also gray, looking like the eyes of a fish that had dried up from the water.

The man had been lying here for a day and a night, and the mud that had flooded the open ground the night before because of the rain had overwhelmed him, and now he was covered in muddy water, as if he had just crawled out of a grave.

Seeing Ofreuil and Machiavelli approaching with a deep foot and a shallow foot, Alexander looked at them: "What news has you brought me?" ”

"My lord, the final result is out." Oflaiyi raised his hand and shook a crumpled piece of paper in his hand, "We suffered a total of 133 casualties in this battle, of which 41 were killed in battle, 92 were lightly and seriously injured, and 20 were seriously injured. ”

"yes, not so little." Alexander felt a little heavy, in addition to those who died on the spot, many of those who were wounded would also lose their lives, and even eventually found that more people died from their wounds than directly in battle.

At the same time, he was secretly relieved that after a battle, the casualties had reached one-fifteenth of the total strength, and a large part of them came from the southern flank, which was not very strong, but even then his army did not collapse.

Alexander knew what such a result meant in this day and age.

He already has a force that can stand up to a strong enemy.

"Oflei, remember our first battle?" Alexander asked suddenly.

"Of course, my lord, that's our way to Mount Sunniro." Oflaiyi nodded, and couldn't help but show a hint of emotion on his face.

Alexander was so weak at that time that after making a great contribution to the Bogia to take over Rome, he was forced to leave Rome by Caesar with the slightest word, and most of the Agri people at that time did not know what was happening, they simply did not want to leave the bustling city to suffer in the ice and snow.

And now, Ofleiil looked out into the open field, and outside the city of Livorno, they had completely defeated Caesar's Papal army!

"I told you at the time that I would take care of all the injured people, and I did." Alexander instructed Oflei, "I will still promise you that I will not forsake anyone who serves me and is loyal to me, and that everyone who does this deserves it, you know what to do." ”

"Yes, my lord, our men are being housed in Livorno, and I have sent a message to Pisa, believing that they will be able to send someone to take care of our men tonight."

As the captain of the marching army, Ofleiil knew very well what Alexander was concerned about, and he carefully reported his previous arrangements to Alexander, and then he looked at Machiavelli next to him.

"Our results have come out," Machiavelli bowed slightly to Alexander, he didn't need to do this, but when he said this, the Florentines instinctively wanted to express some kind of heartfelt feeling in this gesture, "We have found a total of 155 corpses of the Papal army, but these are not all found on the battlefield, some are further away, in this open field there are actually only more than 40 people. ”

Alexander nodded, he had already discovered this phenomenon just now, and now listening to Machiavelli confirmed his thoughts.

"Diplomat, why do you think there are fewer corpses of the enemy on the battlefield?" Alexander looked at Machiavelli with amusement.

"I think it's because of the will to fight," the Florentine man considered how to answer more appropriately, he knew that the Count was testing him, or rather to see if he was useful, which made Machiavelli a little excited, and he told himself that he had to give an answer that would satisfy the Count, which was important to himself and to Florence, "When our army appeared on their flank, what I remember seeing the most was not how the enemy resisted, but how their army instantly became panicked, I even remember the small chaos that caused when a few soldiers fell, and many of the Papal troops began to retreat without even thinking of resisting. ”

Alexander nodded slightly, he knew that Machiavelli had been watching his army closely, not only because he was also in control of Pisa as Count of Montina, which posed a great threat to Florence, but also because the future great writer had an extraordinary interest in military affairs, and if all else did not change, at some point in the near future he would become the military commander of Florence, and then form his first and only civilian army.

Just thinking of the achievements of this army, Alexander couldn't help but secretly shake his head.

"Mercenaries who have little loyalty to their employers are not only undisciplined, but more importantly can never be counted on on the battlefield." Machiavelli looked into the distance, "We have been counting in the direction of their retreat, and the highest number of casualties were found on the low hill that was almost out of the open field, probably because their men tried to get ahead of the hill, so they caused more damage. ”

Machiavelli said and looked down at the numbers in his hand, and said a little excitedly: "My lord, we have captured 110 people, several of them are officers, and we have captured 2 of their detachment flags. ”

Machiavelli felt a hint of pride when he spoke of this final victory, and even though he knew that it was not his army, and that in a sense, the stronger the army, the greater the threat to Florence.

The capture of the military flag is the highest honor for an army, even if it is just a detachment flag, it is enough to make people proud.

"Captured the flag?" Alexander was a little surprised, he knew what the flag meant to an army, and considering that some armies would rather burn the flag with their own hands than let the flag of honor fall into the hands of the enemy before facing total annihilation, Alexander understood why Machiavelli seemed so excited.

"Does this mean that two of Caesar's armies have been removed from his sequence?"

"At least there won't be any more names for these two detachments from now on." Machiavelli nodded.

"Oh," Alexander smiled, though he knew that it seemed like a great ease, and that as long as his army existed, both flags would be proof of the pride of the captured troops, but to Alexander he didn't really care about the gain.

The Papal Army was a mercenary, which doomed them to be unwilling to pay a greater price for honor, and if it were the Swiss, maybe these two flags would have some meaning, but these mercenaries would have little value.

They could have changed their banners and names and continued their old jobs, but it was unlikely that these people would continue to eat under Caesar.

"Gather everything that can be used," ordered Alexander, and he didn't need to give this order, just look at the figures walking around in the open field to see what the soldiers were doing. ”

Seeing the surprised looks of the two people beside him, Alexander glanced into the distance to the south.

"I think that Nomelo will be back soon, and I think it would be better to make him anxious first."

With that, Alexander turned and walked on the muddy ground in the direction of the city of Livorno, where he still had a guest to be pacified.

Caesar sat on the bed with a slight distraction, his army defeated, right before his eyes, and stood side by side with his enemies and watched his army be completely crushed.

It sounded ridiculous, but he couldn't forget what he saw.

Brave, determined, and obedient to orders, this was Caesar's deepest impression of Montina's army.

He felt that he had seen an army that he had always longed for, and that the Papal army at the same time had disappointed and even surprised him.

He couldn't have imagined that many of the supposedly experienced mercenaries he had hired with a lot of money would collapse without firing a single shot or sword.

If Caesar was satisfied with the Papal army's performance in the battle against the breastop, then when the northern flank of Montina's army suddenly appeared on their flank, the Papal army was in complete confusion in an instant.

Perhaps it was even clearer to observe from the enemy's position, that Caesar saw the whole process of his army from complete order to collapse with a bang, he saw a group of Papal troops that became confused because of surprise when the figure of the first wave of bohemians appeared on the flank, and then saw the Papal army that had every opportunity to organize resistance in the short time after this army was suddenly attacked, because of confusion, panic, confusion and God knows what reason, there was every opportunity to organize resistance, In the panic of the sudden spread of the plague, he was in a state of confusion.

First they were frantically swept and slaughtered by the small number of Bohemian cavalry, and then the infantry on the northern flank of Montina appeared on their way.

Caesar noticed the way the infantry seemed to be fighting in a rather unusual way, they were not in a neat formation when they were advancing quickly, but they quickly formed a dense formation when needed.

Their musketeers were interspersed among the spearmen, rather than in front of the formation, as he had seen in Gonzalo's army, and Caesar noticed that Montina's army had significantly more musketeers than any other army, and that they shot with much better speed and order than any army.

As soon as the musketeers' volley-gun fire at a certain distance had an effect, causing confusion among the enemy, the Montina army would immediately rush forward.

They obviously do not wait for the enemy to recover their senses, but resolutely and decisively charge towards a group of enemies who have just been struck and have become confused, often with the result that the enemy has already retreated in panic and confusion, perhaps before the actual hand-to-hand engagement.

The rest of the matter was much simpler, as the Bohemians ran around the open like rabbits, and Alexander's chasers, who had impressed Caesar, mounted their horses to join in the chase.

The whole process of the battle was not complicated, and even Caesar had the impression of being too simple and crude, but his army, which had been built with a lot of money, was defeated by such a tactic that did not seem to be very mysterious.

Caderon looked at his master with some concern, Caesar had been silent since yesterday, and he didn't eat after waking up this morning but sat on the bed in a trance, which made Caderon a little worried about whether he had an accident because he couldn't withstand the blow of the head.

A sneer suddenly came out of Caesar's mouth, and under Cadron's worried gaze, Caesar raised his head and smiled at his attendant: "Give me something to eat, I'm hungry." ”

"Yes, sir." Cadron nodded happily.

Whatever it was that made Caesar seem to have a sudden enlightenment, at least it was a good thing, and Cadron opened the door to find something to eat, and then he saw Alexander, who happened to be walking outside the door.

"My lord, I'm going to find something to eat for my master......"

Alexander had a strange feeling when he looked at Cadron's face, which seemed to have some kind of exotic style, but since he had not come to see the squire, he waved his hand to let him go, and then stepped into the house.

Caesar had a sneering look on his face, and he decided that Alexander had come to show off to him.

However, as soon as Alexander spoke, Caesar couldn't help but be slightly stunned: "Are you ready to leave?" ”

Caesar was stunned for a moment, then smiled: "Are you going to let me go?" ”

"Of course there are conditions," said Alexander, "in addition to the conditions I have made before, I hope that His Majesty the Pope will pay you an additional ransom, and you should know that the battle that took place yesterday has cost me a lot." ”

"But you won, haven't you," Caesar was not angry, he looked at Alexander with a calm expression, "or you could make other conditions, such as getting my father to agree to your marriage to Lucrechia, in fact, I always thought you would make such a request." ”

"Lucrezia and I don't need that as a guarantee."

Alexander secretly sneered, to be the son-in-law of the Borgia family?

He hasn't lived long enough.

"You know, we could have been good friends," Caesar shook his head with some regret, "but you chose to be my enemy. ”

Alexander nodded silently, he knew that Caesar was right, even though perhaps even Caesar himself did not know it, and it was the right thing to say.

Alexander's goal was to quickly establish a base in central Italy, with Montina as the center, to gain a foothold before the French invaded Italy again, and then to build up strength in the turbulent years that followed.

Caesar, on the other hand, had almost universally known ambitions for Romagna.

They are destined to be enemies.

"How much ransom do you want my father to pay for me?" Caesar asked calmly, "Don't worry, my father will pay a lot of money." ”

"I believe that," Alexander smiled strangely, "so I'm going to ask you to stay a little longer." ”

"What do you want to do?" Caesar had a look of astonishment on his face, in fact he did not seem to care as much about his situation as he appeared on the outside, especially after suspecting that someone was trying to eliminate him while he was on his way, Caesar was more eager to get out of his present situation and return to Rome as soon as possible.

He didn't even trust the Papal army at this time, and after seeing Alexander's army, Caesar was already secretly thinking about how to build an army similar to Montina's army, and he made him want to be free as soon as possible.

"Don't worry, I won't let you stay too long, but I need you to stay for the time being."

"Guarantee, what guarantee?"

"Keep me safe during my stay in Rome."

Alexander's answer stunned Caesar, and he looked at Alexander with an incredulous look: "You are going to Rome, at this time?" ”

"Yes, at this time," Alexander nodded, "I promised Barendi and Shosha to see them, so I must keep my promise." ”

"My God, you're a madman!" Caesar finally stood up impatiently, and despite the persuasion of Cadron, who had just entered the door with a stunned face, he kept walking back and forth on the ground, "I actually let such a madman defeat me, this is simply God's greatest punishment and ridicule for me to renounce my priesthood." ”

"Don't worry, God won't laugh at you, but if you don't lie down and heal your wounds, if you die because of this, maybe there will really be a lot of people who will laugh at you."

Alexander ignored Caesar, who was still walking around angrily, and instead looked at Cadron, who was standing next to him, a little overwhelmed.

"I want you to come with me to Rome."

"Why, he is my squire, and you have no right to command him at will." Caesar protested dissatisfied.

"I'm sorry sir, but now I'm in charge here." Alexander waved his hand and motioned for a somewhat dazed Cadron to follow him out of the room.

"Your Excellency, you know that I must be with Caesar, and that it is my duty." Cadron stood in front of Alexander and said uneasily, and at the same time he looked at Alexander with some confusion, and some did not understand why the count had to follow him.

Looking at the young and beautiful face in front of him, Alexander suddenly wondered if if there was another chance for Caderon and Lucrezia to meet, would the two still have an ambiguous relationship.

However, such speculation is obviously meaningless, the current Lucrezia is certainly not what she used to be, and this Caderon is no longer the favored henchman of the Pope.

"You get ready, maybe Nomelo will be back soon."

Alexander estimated that both Alexander VI and Nomelo would be surprised when they heard of the battle in Livorno, and that Nomelo would return as soon as possible because he was worried about Caesar's safety.

Looking at Cadron, who had been leaving blankly, Alexander looked up at the gloomy sky, and after a slight groan, looked at Busako, who was standing next to him.

"What is he doing now?"

Although he did not say his name, Busako already knew who Alexander was asking, and his face trembled slightly, as if he wanted to say something else, but finally he whispered, "I am reading the Bible." ”

Seeing Alexander's inquiring eyes, Busako explained: "He asked the chaplain to read him a passage of the Bible, and then he memorized it all night. ”

"Yes," Alexander whispered to himself, waving his hand, "let's go see him." ”

Busako nodded a little excitedly, he had been giving this order to Alexander all night, but now he was a little uneasy.

"You have a good relationship with Carlo," said Alexander, "and it was he who recommended you to be the captain of the huntsmen." ”

"Yes, my lord, but I know I shouldn't intercede with him."

"Shouldn't it?" Alexander asked rhetorically and said no more, and Busako, led by Busak, walked down an alley to a house.

There was a guard at the door, and Alexander bowed slightly.

Alexander noticed that the guard was not an Agri, but a sailor soldier who had been recruited in Pisa, and that most of them, with the exception of some who continued to work as their boatmen, decided to stay.

Alexander knew that this should have been arranged by Oflai, and it was clear that it was not appropriate for the Agri to guard Carlo.

"When a man is tempted, he must not say, "I am tempted by God," because God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone. A familiar voice came out of the room: "Everyone is tempted, yes...... It is led and tempted by his own selfish desires, so, so ......"

The voices in the house paused, as if forgetting the next sentence.

"Therefore when lust conceives a child, it gives birth to sin, and when sin grows up, it gives birth to death." Alexander whispered outside the door, and when he heard what appeared to be something knocked down inside, he waved his hand to Busaco next to him.

Paolo Busacco seemed a little hesitant, but seeing Alexander's eyes, he motioned for the guards at the door to follow him and retreat into the distance along with the other hunters.

Alexander opened the door, and the slightly dim light made him squint slightly.

A vague figure stood in the room, the man standing very straight, his eyes shining in the dark.

"Are you memorizing the book of James?" Alexander walked into the room, and after getting used to it a little, he found a chair and sat down, "Tell me why you are reciting this paragraph?" ”

"This is the apostle's exhortation to the world to see their own selfishness and desires," said Carlo, sullenly, "and I now know that it is all because of my own selfishness, for my own selfishness and jealousy, that I have provoked a war and killed too many people." ”

"Yes, to provoke a war for your own selfish desires," Alexander nodded with a little emotion, "so do you think you have repented, or have you been forgiven after repenting?" ”

"No," Carlo shook his head vigorously, "I don't deserve to be forgiven, and I can't be forgiven. ”

Alexander sighed secretly, Carlo's words were exactly what he was going to say.

It is possible to repent, but it is impossible to forgive.

"Carlo, you are a good soldier," Alexander stood up, "keep praying, maybe God will give you a fair result." ”

With that, Alexander turned and walked out of the room.

The lead cloud overhead was black, and Alexander looked up at the cloud that seemed to be about to be completely suppressed, and took a deep breath.

A cold wind poured into his throat, and Alexander shivered.

Tomorrow will be a good day.