In the camp of the commander of the army of Lu Mei, the three generals Vitaz, Fallone and Cantano were arguing. Crown Prince John's henchman, General Vitaz, suggested that the rear army column be immediately withdrawn so as not to be surrounded by the Roma Turks. But two other generals, Farone and Cantano, quarreled with him, and one demanded to attack the Turks to the east to support the main force led by the emperor. The other believes that the situation is unclear in the dark and should be defended in place.

The pale face of John, the crown prince of Lumei, who was known for his handsome appearance and graceful demeanor, sat on the ground without regard for dignity. The fall of the Northern Army, the fatigue of the long march, and the sudden appearance of the main forces of the Turkic army. John Komnenos had completely lost faith in this campaign, and had hoped to establish his prestige as a succession to the throne through this expedition, but he had suffered a humiliating defeat.

Fallone had tentatively sent hundreds of cavalry to the east to attack, and at first it was very smooth, but suddenly the Turkic cavalry on both sides of the road attacked the flank, and the Turks were covered with protruding antlers on the narrow road, and the infantry archers hid in them and fired arrows at the tall Lumei cavalry. Many of the horsemen's horses tripped in the darkness, and few were able to retreat back into the camp in full.

General Cantano shouted: "Don't step into the trap of the Turks!" General Vitaz also said: "Your Highness is the last hope of the country!" Only Fallon asked in a loud voice to go and join the Emperor immediately. John Comneenos was full of discouragement, and he couldn't listen to what the three generals were arguing about.

The sound of the Turks shouting and firing arrows outside did not stop. A small camp to the east was breached by the Turks, the roads were crowded with routed troops and livestock, and the frustration and fear of the retreaters quickly spread throughout the rear column. In particular, those hawkers who were mixed in with the chaotic army, with their incorruptible tongues, exaggerated the horror of the Turks as much as possible.

In the darkness, you can see the constantly shaking torches of the Turks, occasionally reflected by the shiny scimitars. Behind the low wall of the rearguard column, the soldiers of Lumei carefully dodged the arrows falling from the sky, and suddenly there was a rapid sound of horses' hooves. The defenders peered through the cracks in the wooden fence, and a group of cavalry of the Janissaries rushed out of the darkness with eagle emblems. The cavalry had apparently just been in the middle of a fierce battle, many of them carrying Turkic arrows on their horses and armor, and two messengers, one of whom was holding a double-headed eagle insignia scepter, a symbol of the Herald status of the Emperor Alexey.

The sixty horsemen rushed to the edge of the trench without slowing down before stopping. The cavalry came to the bottom of the drawbridge of the arrow tower, and the training ground was scattered, their spears on guard against the Turks outside, and the two messengers of the emperor who were clustered in the middle came to the front of the drawbridge. One of the letters tightened the reins with force, and the war horse under his crotch neighed. The messenger held his scepter aloft, and the golden double-headed eagle emblem stood out in the firelight. Another shouted, "Drop the drawbridge!" ”

The officers guarding the barracks hurriedly exchanged the secret words and passwords in the army, but did not dare to slack off, and immediately lowered the drawbridge. Praetorian cavalry swarmed around the Emperor's messengers. No sooner had the last rider stepped onto the opposite bank than the drawbridge was pulled up behind them, and the Turkic cavalry who followed them were shot back by a barrage of crossbow arrows from behind the wall.

In order to guard against the tricks of the Turks, behind the drawbridge, five or six hundred heavy infantry armed with round shields lined up on three sides, and more than sixty horsemen were pressed in a small open space. The surrounding Lumei soldiers stretched out their bright torches to the cavalry, and the horses snorted uneasily, and these cavalrymen who had just rushed from the darkness suddenly felt the fire dazzling, and they couldn't see the surrounding situation clearly, and there were rows of bows and arrows pointing at them on the wall. Two messengers turned over and dismounted, one holding a scepter, and shouted, "By the will of His Majesty the Emperor, take us to His Highness John." ”

Crown Prince John was informed by the guards that the news brought by the Emperor's messenger was of great importance, and no other general could be present when it was delivered. John Comneen was amazed, "Is it difficult for Your Majesty to break out of the encirclement of the Turks and demand that he quickly return to Lumei to inherit the empire?" "Whenever the old emperor dies, it is the best time for the generals of the Lumei Empire to have the best time to support their troops and stand on their own. Filled with the fear of the unknown, he immediately asked the guards to take the two emperor's messengers to his private tent.

In order to ensure the safety of His Highness, both messengers disarmed their swords and underwent a detailed search by the guards to make sure they were not carrying sharp weapons, and then they waited in the tent. A moment later, John saw these two uninvited guests, and a trace of surprise flashed in his eyes, it was actually the face of Xia Guoren. Under the reflection of the firelight, Zhao Xingde's expression was solemn and calm, and he looked at John Komnenos with hope, as if the hope of the Lumei Empire was in His Highness.

After about a stick of incense, John Komnenos walked out of the tent, his face even paler. After that, the two emperor's messengers followed him inseparably. The crown prince summoned several generals, presented the decree of Emperor Alexey, and decided to leave a small number of infantry to guard the baggage in the camp, while he himself personally led the main force of the rear army to move closer to His Majesty the Emperor. Several generals did not dare to question it, and immediately divided their preparations. In a short time, the various heavy infantry and light infantry battalions lined up and opened their camps in an orderly manner in accordance with the regulations of the Lumei army.

The cavalry, wielding their swords, drove away the routs and hawkers who were congested on the road, and the heavy infantry that followed hurriedly pushed the heavy wagons and the antler stakes deliberately set up by the Turks on the roadside, and the infantry in front had already made contact with the Turks who separated the main column from the rear army, and the archers in the rear, although they could not see the position of the Turks, still released arrows under the command of the officers while advancing. The arrows flew out in the direction of the torch swaying, and although only a few Turkic cavalry were shot, it forced these Turkic cavalry to dare not come closer.

In order to protect the safety of Crown Prince John, under the orders of His Royal Highness, the cavalry of the Praetorian Guard, who came with the Emperor's messenger, surrounded him. Looking at John Comunen, whose lips were pale and seemed to be holding back anger and fear, Wang Tongdeng grinned: "Okay, it's really yours." "Emperor Lumei's decree was written on parchment, and Zhao Xingde wrapped the dagger given by Chun Yuzhen inside, and forged a wax seal with vague seal marks on the outside, saying that this was a secret order that only Crown Prince John could see, and evaded the search of the guards. As soon as the crown prince heard that the messenger had sent Emperor Alexei to the rescue instead of passing the throne to him, his face immediately changed and he hesitated. If it weren't for Zhao Xingde using a dagger around his neck, I'm afraid he would still be unwilling to send troops now.

Zhao Xingde smiled faintly and said in a deep voice: "The general is outside, and the king's order is not affected." If it weren't for the fact that His Highness also wanted to do this, we wouldn't have to take such a big risk. "The two real emperor messengers, not long after they left the camp, were tied up by the Xia Guards, and hid in an unknown col on the road, only to wait until the dust of this battle had settled, and then send people to find them.

In the dark night, except for the Turkic cavalry in the distance, who kept running with torches, no one in the vicinity dared to hold the torches high at will. The Praetorian Guards of the Xia Kingdom did nothing other than tightly surround the crown prince John to prevent emergencies. Zhao Xingde temporarily played the role of the chief herald of Crown Prince John, and whenever he needed to urge a certain army to strengthen the attack, he would humbly ask for instructions, and after obtaining the approval of the crown prince, send heralds to give orders to the generals of the various departments. Crown Prince John was so obedient to him that the former commanders of the guards and heralds were jealous.

More than 20,000 columns of the Lumei rear army marched eastward, and the Turkic cavalry only harassed from a distance, and the Turkic defense line in front was quickly shattered by the Lumei heavy cavalry and heavy infantry. Crown Prince John Komnenos exhaled lightly, it seems that the two Praetorian Guard officers of the Xia State just now did not deceive him, the Turks were not strong enough, and only bluffing troops were arranged between the main column and the rear army column.

While threatening him with a dagger, Zhao Xingde claimed to have seen the Turks tie torches to swaying branches. "I can assure Your Highness that the Turks are attacking the Antike army of the front army with all their might, and it is absolutely impossible to eat the rear army in one bite." John Komnenos suddenly remembered the threatening words of the Xia State officer. "Most of the armies loyal to the Komnenos are at the side of His Majesty the Emperor, and if they are wiped out by the Turks, then the foundation of the Komnenians' ruling empire will be destroyed. Even if His Highness is able to ascend the throne for the time being, he will inevitably lose his country in the rebellion that will follow. Only by rescuing them from the encirclement of the Turks can His Highness win the support and loyalty of the legions and successfully ascend to the throne as emperor. ”

Now that I think about it, what this Xia Guoren said still makes some sense. "Perhaps, he saved the reign of the Komnenos." John Komnenos thought with some humiliation, but he was still staring at the officer who was obviously the mastermind with hatred, and Zhao Xingde actually turned his head to smile and salute him.

"Brother Zhao, it seems that this Highness remembers you." Wang Tongdeng looked at Zhao Xingde, who was calm in the firelight, and sighed, "I can also be called guts, but I really didn't expect that you would do something like taking the crown prince hostage and almost killing the generals." ”

Zhao Xingde smiled slightly and said: "No matter what his identity is, compared to the lives of hundreds of brothers, it is just a piece of papyrus." "If he was in Bianliang, he might not have done such an extreme thing. The exposé case was falsely accused, and Zhang Bing's death made Zhao Xingde's mood change greatly. He noticed John Comneen's gaze not far away, turned to him with an apologetic smile, and gave him a military salute.

"Brother Zhao, have you ever thought that if this matter doesn't work out, we will all die in the Lumei military camp?" Wang Tongdeng asked.

"In life, there are always some things that are worth risking your life to do." Zhao Xingde said in a deep voice, under the light of the fire, a smile suddenly appeared on his face, and in the distance, Emperor Lumei's camp was already in sight.

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