Chapter 510: Outwitting Wittenberg (Part I)
Just two days after Herman IV's information arrived, representatives of the Imperial Diet also brought an official letter from the Imperial Diet. At this time, Marin had already passed the period of anger and completely calmed down.
If it had been two days ago, Marin might have dragged the representative out for a slap. But after two days of calmness, Marin's heart was already calm.
However, in order to cooperate with the other party, Marin still pretended to be stunned and angry, and almost beat people.
And the representative of the Imperial Diet was none other than Henry, Duke of Braunschweig-Lüneburg, a baron named Larick. As the in-law state of the Electorate of Saxony, the Duke of Braunschweig-Lüneburg was naturally on the side of the Electorate of Saxony.
In the previous war, Frederick III would not have been willing to share it with too many people if it weren't for the fact that Frederick III disliked the poor combat effectiveness of the army of the Duchy of Braunschweig-Lüneburg, and the looting of Lübeck and Hamburg was too great. Therefore, the army of Lüneburg did not participate. Otherwise, perhaps the coalition forces would have had the participation of Lüneburg.
As a person on the Saxon side, Baron Larick naturally commanded in front of Marin and wanted to be angry with Marin. But Marin's anger has long since dissipated, so although it looks like a big fire, it's just a show. If it's really hot, Larrick might break his leg by Marin.
However, Marin was surprised to find that Larick was accompanied by the Elector of Saxony, Frederick III......
Of course, this was not discovered by Marin himself, but the two entourages suspected of being Frederick III were in the toilet, and the conversation was accidentally overheard by Marin's men.
According to the guard, who happened to be in the toilet and overheard the other party's conversation, the two men came with Baron Larrick to see if they could get the news back to Wittenberg, so that John could rest assured.
"Reassure John...... Hmph......" Marin sneered.
The negotiations have not yet begun, and the war is not over yet. At this time, you reassured John, didn't you let John let his guard down? Was Frederick III so stupid?
Marin did not expect that, in fact, Frederick III sent these two men back only to observe the situation in the battle of Wittenberg, and did not ask the two men to report what had happened to Worms to John who stayed behind. In fact, the two men were supposed to have followed Baron Larick to convey the decision of the Imperial Diet and then quickly returned to Worms to report to Frederick III.
But the problem is, these two fools have their own selfish intentions......
You must know that Frederick III did not marry and had no descendants, and the Elector of Saxony would definitely be inherited by John in the future. Therefore, in the eyes of these two fools, John is the ironclad crown prince, the future master. Therefore, pleasing John is also very important in the eyes of these two fools.
Now, Baron Larick held a letter from the Reichstag and put pressure on Marin, who seemed to them that Marin should not have the courage to resist the pressure exerted by more than 180 German princes. Therefore, they were a little eager to enter Wittenberg to report the good news to John, so as to win John's appreciation and lay the foundation for their future careers.
After learning the thoughts revealed by these two fools when they squatted in the pit, Marin had an idea and decided to plan for it......
For this reason, Marin deliberately arranged the accommodation of Baron Larick and others very badly. Then, he told them in an apologetic tone - "Please forgive me for the inconvenience during the march......"
Isn't the accommodation Marlin arranged for them more than bad? Not to mention the three of them squeezing into a tent, the tent has not yet been cleaned up, and it is full of the smell of the feet of the soldiers who used to live in it......
As a result, Larick and the two Saxon attendants didn't sleep well in the middle of the night......
While apologizing, Marin also gave the three of them an idea - why don't you go to Wittenberg to rest? After all, Wittenberg is a big city, and the accommodation in it is certainly much better than the barracks......
Sure enough, the two fools took the bait. They had wanted to go into the city to deliver news to John and curry favor with John, the future Elector. So, at the instigation of the two of them, Baron Larick also agreed to enter Wittenberg to rest.
In order to allow the three to enter Wittenberg with peace of mind, Malint ordered the tentative attack to be halted for several days, and the besieging troops were withdrawn far away from the city gates, so that the three men and their retinue could enter the city.
But the general in charge of defending the city was cautious and did not open the city gate to welcome the three into the city. Because, they were afraid that Marin would take the opportunity to send cavalry into the city (in fact, Marin did have the intention of doing so). Therefore, the three of them and their guards all entered the city in hanging baskets.
After seeing Baron Larick and the two stupid squires enter the city, Marin was a little regretful (because he couldn't take the opportunity to send troops into the city), but he quickly collected his mood and showed a strange smile that had succeeded in his plan......
Why is Marlin so happy? The reason is that those two fools, since they wanted to curry favor with John so much, would definitely tell John the good news that the Imperial Diet supported Frederick III to put pressure on Marin.
It would have been a good idea to tell John the news. But it's wartime. Telling John such good news is about to cause something big......
What's the big deal? Will it make John let his guard down......
Originally, John was responsible for staying in Wittenberg, but he was still very cautious, for fear that Wittenberg would be breached, so the defense was in place, and he sent many people to patrol the city in the middle of the night.
However, after listening to the report of those two fools, it is inevitable that he will be very happy. In addition, Marin suspended the tentative attack on Wittenberg at this time and completely stopped the attack. In this way, it would give John the illusion that Marin was forced by the Imperial Diet to abandon the attack on Wittenberg......
In this way, the vigilance of the other party will decrease. When the time comes, Marin's chance will come......
On the third day, Baron Larick, who had had enough rest, went down the city in a hanging basket and came to Marin's camp, urging Marin to hurry up and negotiate with Worms.
Marin, however, had a reason for delaying – Marin said that the captured Elector Joakim I of Brandenburg and King Hans of Denmark remained in Schleswig, the capital of the Duchy of Schleswig. The letter asked Marin to bring these two important figures to Worms to participate in the negotiations. Therefore, Marin needed time and sent someone to fetch the two men. When the two arrived, Marin would personally rush to Worms to participate in the negotiations.
In addition, Marin specially evacuated his men and horses from under the walls of Wittenberg and set up camp a few kilometers away from Wittenberg City, so as to reassure the defenders in Wittenberg......
At the same time, Marin repeatedly expressed to the envoy Baron Larrick that he supported the decision of the Reichstag and was willing to fight with Saxony and Brandenburg......
Everything seemed so harmonious, it seemed, just waiting for the two heavyweight prisoners of war of Joakim I and King Hans of Denmark to be in place...... In order to meet these two important tasks, Marin sent two thousand cavalry to escort the ...... along the way