Princess Margaret awoke from her nightmare again, her long hair hanging over her shoulders, and she looked up to see the moonlight shining on the white snow, and through the flower windows of the courtyard, reflected on the walls covered with algae.

Fragments of the past still emerge from the dream, some of the old things of Margaret's uncle, King Edward the Confessor, on his deathbed. She couldn't help recalling those days, when King Edward had always been very kind to her and Christina, and even allowed them to live in Westminster, and sent people to take care of them, and as for his brother Edgar, it was a different attitude altogether, and the king always kept him close to him, and his food and water were strictly monitored, but the poor child was ignored in the presence of outsiders, and this kind of thing has not ceased since Margaret returned to England. Another person who impressed her was Queen Edith, a woman whose face always looked like a withered leaf, and only occasionally shone when she saw the king.

Margaret has always disliked Queen Edith, thinking that she is a shallow and flashy woman, but even the maids in the court can see that the queen's obsession with the king has reached a crazy level, and Margaret also pitied her because of this. When the queen's father, Earl Godwin, and King Edward had a feud over Prince Alfred's death, and then the count forced the king to marry his daughter, the king was so humiliated that he took a lifelong vow of chastity. Even so, Queen Edith tragically fell into this infatuation, even to the point of deliberately pleasing her. On one occasion, when Abbot Gwen, who had come from Normandy and refused to kiss the Queen of England at court, the Queen began to feel despised, but after a slight complaint was immediately rebuked by the King, the poor woman immediately complied with Edward, and publicly stated that the clergy should be forbidden to kiss women, and presented Abbot Gwen with a robe of unusual ornamentation. However, when the Earl Godwin's family was exiled by the king, Edith was immediately sent to a convent until her father and brother returned to England with an army.

Margaret remembered the year before King Edward's death, when Queen Edith, who had always favored this younger brother, pleaded with the king, and they quarreled so much that they forgot about Margaret's presence in the next room, and in this way, she heard the terrible secret. The king tried to justify his suffering, and Edith continued to fight against Tostig, and even began to suggest that the king was too weak and indulged Harold's unscrupulousness, and finally King Edward roared angrily: "What do you want to kill your brother?" Like what was done to your father? ”

Margaret had heard whispers that Earl Godwin had fallen in front of King Edward at a banquet and never woke up, and that there had been sensational rumors about this suspicious event, and that there had even been a similar death of King Hardknout a long time ago, which led to King Edward's accession to the throne. However, after hearing the quarrel between the king and the queen, Margaret learned the truth of the time: the queen hated her father and family because of her husband's alienation and disgust, and committed the most heinous crime in the world. She did not reveal the secret to anyone, but after witnessing the tragedy caused by this unhappy marriage, Margaret has been trying to avoid the same fate from befalling her, she has rejected many noble suitors and publicly declared that she will enter the convent and dedicate her years to the glory of serving the Lord.

In the early morning, Margaret, who was sleeping soundly, was awakened by the vice-dean of Hildegard, and a pain was immediately felt in her arm, which was that Mama was tucking her right hand into the sleeve of a robe made of silver-gray wool.

"I'm sorry, my child." Mama Hildegard said this, but the movement of her hands did not slow in the slightest.

After tying the last ribbon, Margaret was finally freed from the torment, and when she came to the hall, she saw Bishop Aldred already waiting.

"Your Highness, we have important news." Bishop York said.

Margaret guessed it had something to do with the messenger who had returned from the south last month.

Sure enough, the bishop continued, "We have sent an envoy to the Scots, as the prince wanted, and asked them to send troops in advance. Now that the emissary of King Alba has arrived, I hope you will join us in welcoming him on behalf of the royal family. ”

Margaret was a little curious, what kind of envoy needed her to entertain? With such doubts, she waited in the hall, as Bishop York had intended.

When the Scottish envoy finally arrived, Margaret looked up to see a man dressed in Gaelic robes, somewhat pale, bearded, very handsome, with long limbs, dressed as a noble Irish warrior. At this time, the Bishop of York introduced to the princess: "Your Highness, this is the younger brother of His Majesty Malcolm, the Supreme King of Alba, the Venerable Prince Donald. ”

Margaret naturally greeted the noble messenger with the utmost courtesy, and always maintained proper manners and courtesy in her reply. In order to support Edgar's cause, Margaret gave all her personal fortune to her brother, but she did not want to show shabby in front of the Scots, so she took out all the gold and silver ornaments she had left and gave them to the prince's attendants. It's just that during the whole process, Prince Donald's eyes looked at Margaret's slender white fingers from time to time, which made her feel a little unhappy.

After the Bishop of York began to talk to the Scots about the mission, Margaret left the hall. Prince Donald casually glanced in the direction she had disappeared, and then relayed King Malcolm's reply to the Bishop of York. The Bishop was a little uneasy when he heard that the Scottish army would not be dispatched until spring, and although he did not yet know the situation on the Southern Front, he saw the danger in Edgar's letters. Aldred welcomed the entire mission into Bebanburg from the snow, already feeling unwell, but he still repeatedly begged the other party to consider the possible impact of the timing of the army, but Prince Donald repeatedly replied that this was the king's will, and the Bishop of York was helpless, until he seemed to have some attack of illness, and he had to send the Scottish envoy away.

At about the same time, the guards of Durham spotted a number of scattered soldiers from the south, and after they had been admitted into the city, the English learned that they were troops from Locien, and that after a long journey, exhausted and hungry, they had warmed themselves with hot water, and had recovered from the fire for a long time, before they spoke of the battle on that snowy night.