The Duke of Normandy stood beside a reticulated stone wall embedded in the wall, near which a chandelier flickered. His figure had long since been deformed by years of uncontrolled eating, and compared to the tapestry on the wall with delicate silk threads depicting the Battle of Hastings, the real-life Duke William looked bloated and senile, like a giant tree hollowed out by time.

"We already know that Philip is behind Robert, and that some of the Flemish people on our side are no longer reliable, what can you tell us about the English side?" The Duke stared at the Count of Evreux like an owl watching its prey.

William, Earl William of Evler, a bold and reckless Norman nobleman, was at this time with a trembling attitude: "The King of England was busy building roads, churches and palaces, and had recently taken a large number of high-priced relics through the Duchy, supposedly to be placed in Westminster Abbey in London. ”

Hearing the disapproval in Earl Evler's voice, Duke William nodded and commented: "Edgar is a smart man, although it costs a lot to buy these holy relics now, the benefits from the pilgrims in the future will be a hundred times great!" Then he changed his words again, "But since he spends his money on such things, at least he will not break the covenant and go to war against us." ”

The duke's eldest son had approached the eastern front, followed by thousands of the Count of Flanders, and at least five hundred knights, both warriors from the regions of Bruges and Arras, as well as troops from the Corbi region belonging to the royal family of Capet. These armies turned south from the direction of Amiens, apparently trying to join the main forces of the King of France.

At this time, the duchy was like a volcano about to erupt, and all the seemingly dormant Norman lords kept their eyes open and watched for any disturbance in Caen. Aldric, the English spy who appeared at Bishop Odo's trial, was following his lord in the direction of Caen. The gray mane of the horse's back was mixed in the wind, but the young squire did not care to spare his horsepower, and pursued after the four hooves of the red horse in front of him.

Alderick's current master is Drogo de la Beaufget of Flanders, who had been routed by the English while in Brittany, and after joining up with Alain Loufus's men, they were defeated by Stephen de Blois and Hughard Barnes at the Siege of Rennes. Despite this defeat, Drogo was one of the closest Flemish nobles to the Duke of Normandy, and his wife was a blood relative of the Duke himself, which gave him great power and wealth, so that upon his arrival in Caen, none of the Norman sergeants who recognized the lord prevented him from meeting the Duke himself, and Aldrik led Drogo's horse to a stable. Looking at the heavily guarded ramparts around him, the Englishman did not show the slightest discoloration, for the spy not to feel any trepidation in the middle of the whirlpool at this time, but rather to give him the satisfaction of being at home, and what better place to find out information than in the depths of the enemy's lair?

It's a pity that the days of this principality are coming to an end, where will fate lead itself next? The Englishman thought so, combing the glossy fur of his horses over and over again, while his lord saw the majestic Duke of Normandy in the castle.

The veil made it difficult for the court to discern the conversation between the Duke and Drogo, but the latter's rare poise was evident from far and near, and the noble Flemish lord quickly departed with the Duke's gifts and blessings, and no one noticed the sweat on his forehead.

"My lord, is Robert of Flanders worth the price we pay?" William, Earl of Evreux, asked softly when he saw that Drogo had gone away.

"Prepare diplomatically, for if it weren't for the chaos among the Germanic peoples, I'd rather deal with the Bishop of Utrecht. In the present situation, the Flemish people have no restraint on their backs, and with my rebellious son here, he threatens us even more than the King of France! "Everything is worrying, and Duke William can't help but sigh to himself, so preoccupied that he can't detect the abnormality of Drogo's talent.

Two days later, Odrick awoke in the morning light again, the yellowish sunlight shrouded in all around, and beside him lay a naked Drogo himself. The Englishman strained to breathe in a breath of cold air through his nostrils as he felt the heat coming from his lord. His hair was a little unkempt, but fortunately it was shaved short so that it didn't fall over his ears, and he gently pushed Drogo with his elbow, waking up the dreamy Flemish nobleman.

"It's time to hurry, my lord." The English man's voice was a little hoarse—if only there was a pint of a refreshing beer, he thought.

The place where they were was was not far from Amiens, and the Count of Flanders' military camp was in this direction, but Drogo clearly had other plans than to go to the opposing army immediately.

"Let's go north." Drogo's grey eyes shone with a sly glint.

This decision came as a surprise to the English, who almost thought for a moment that his identity had been revealed, but his square was not disrupted, and as a spy, this invisible disguise was naturally a necessary skill. Odrick was not stupid enough to ask his lord if he was going to England, or even make such a suggestion, he already knew the other party's biggest secret, and it was obviously not a good thing to be clever in everything.

Ghost needles covered the low, humid land, and the Flemishmen and Englanders disappeared in the direction of the coast, and a yellow finch streaked across the sky behind them like a gorgeous note. The breath of death was finally getting farther and farther away from the two fugitives, and in the court of Caen, the terrible crimes of the Flemish people were only just being exposed.

Duke William dipped the cheese in wine vinegar, the lampreys on the table were intact, like delicate works of art, and the Duke listened to the Count of Evler's sweaty report on the astonishing news.

"Drogo has been gone for two days before you found out about this?" The duke's voice was as soft as velvet, but it made the nobles present even more uneasy.

"That devil is so cunning that if it weren't for a black cat, those attendants wouldn't have found the corpses in the walls of the cellar until they died." Count William, at the risk of angering the Duke, boldly explained.

"Why did Drogo kill his wife?" The Duke plucked the meat to the back of the fork and put it in his mouth, chewing it to pieces.

"That devil's squire confessed that Drogo had an affair with his English squire." The words of the Count of Évre made everyone at court whisper, and in this day and age, such a heinous crime was not heard of every day.

"Got it." The Duke waved his hand impatiently and motioned for Count William to sit back in his place.

The truth of the matter is extremely absurd, Drogo, a Flemish man, not only killed his wife and the Duke's blood relative, but also came to Caen with his secret lover after committing such a crime, and even succeeded in gaining the trust of the Duke, and went to the Count of Flanders with a sum of money from the Duke of Normandy himself!

If the Duke of Normandy was once the feared leader of the war, then the Drogo affair was the greatest mockery of the Duke, almost trampling William's dignity to nothing.

With Drogo's flight as a boundary, the Flemish nobles of Normandy left the duchy one after another, and these lords who had been rewarded by the Normans poured into the banner of the Count of Flanders like a tidal wave, even the previous house arrest of Madame Margaret had no such effect.

For the Duke of William, time is running out, if the Flemish and the King of France join forces, the biggest disaster may befall the Normans, at present, most of the Flemish who had served the Duke of William have fled to Robert's side, the Duchy's forces are becoming more and more stretched, King Philip saw the weakness of the Duke of Normandy, and officially issued a threat of war to the Normans. Over the years, the once immature French king has become more and more deceitful, quietly expanding the royal realm by half, and threatening the Duchy of Normandy from the southeast.

The continent began to rise violently, Emperor Henry had begun to prepare a decisive battle against Rudolf von Reinfelden, Duke of Swabia, and William, Duke of Normandy, was once again besieged by wolves.