The "duel" between Lady Ripley and William Parr, Earl of Essex, soon came to an end, as almost everyone present could tell that it was a one-sided duel. No matter how hard the Count tried, tried his best, or used all the sword skills he knew, he could not defeat the passive defense of the Baroness Isabel Walton.

Captain Hawkins, who stood behind a line of attendants on the east side of the church courtyard, stroked his beard and smiled knowingly when he saw the Earl of Essex's face full of decadence, while the lady opposite him always had a calm and wise expression. Turning his head to the pipe next to him, he whispered, "Let's go back." ”

Just as the butler and two servants followed Captain Hawkins out of the duel, they suddenly heard "Bang! The sound of a metal object falling to the ground was heard. Captain Hawkins, with his back to the dueling arena, paused, pondering that it must be the sound of the Earl of Essex's sword being knocked to the ground.

Unexpectedly, when he subconsciously looked back at the two people in the dueling arena, he found that Lady Ripley's hand was empty. And her handguard sword, which had been given to her by the Earl of Surrey, had fallen to the ground beside her. Captain Hawkins folded his hands behind his back, pondering once again why the Baroness he knew was knocked off his sword.

At this time, the Earl of Essex, who had a sword in his hand, attacked the baron with his sword as if he had a chance of victory. It was too late, but it was too fast, and when the lady stretched out her left hand to block the earl's sword-holding right arm, her right hand had already drawn the short sword from her left waist like lightning. Without waiting for the other to react, he took the short sword in his hand and sent the tip of the sword upward, which stopped just at the jaw of the Earl of Essex.

William Parr glanced down at the tip of the sword at his jaw, then raised his eyelid to look at Isabel who was wielding a short sword and said, "Shall we continue?" ”

Isabel smiled faintly and looked at each other, "If you think you're still angry, you can continue." ”

William didn't answer her immediately, just stared at her face silently and nodded, "Isabel, did you deliberately knock off your sword by me just now?" ”

"Well, I don't know. Perhaps, it was an accident. ”

"Well, I guess, we can stop."

The two of them lowered their arms in unison, each retracting his sword. When Isabel stepped to the side to pick up the handguard sword that had fallen to the ground, she caught a glimpse of Captain Hawkins behind the squires. Captain Hawkins didn't speak, just nodded at her with unusual respect. Isabel also nodded, in response to the captain's courtesy.

As Captain Hawkins and his attendants left the courtyard, Isabel stood beside the Count with her hands behind her back and said, "William, do you have any thoughts of vengeance against your wife's lover now?" ”

After the swordsmanship "duel" just now, the anger in William's heart seemed to have decreased a lot. Glancing at the baroness beside her, she shrugged her shoulders and said, "Isabel, I do have that thought. It's just that I don't know where my wife and her lover and children are. ”

"My God, William, you ......"

"Don't worry, God will punish them with poverty and pestilence."

Isabel gazed at the Earl of Essex, pouted and said, "As you wish." ”

———————————

On 31 May, the day of their duel, a French fleet loaded with 2,000 cavalry and sergeants arrived at the docks outside the town of Leith Harbour near Edinburgh, Scotland. The arrival of this French expeditionary force was a plan previously laid out by King Francis I. When he learned from a letter from Queen Mother Guise of Scotland that the Scots had successfully resisted the English attack, he decided to send an army to assist his old allies.

Soon after the French army landed on the shores of the Old League, the Scottish spies sent by the English border army quickly obtained more detailed information about the French army from some local residents. Immediately afterward, a secret letter about the landing of French troops on the Scottish coast was delivered to the Duke of Richmond's castle. A short time later, the letter was sent to the desk of Earl II of Cumberland, who was acting as Chairman of the Northern Council.

Three days later, the Earl II of Cumberland had several attendants deliver the secret letter and a letter he had written to Whitehall. After some consultation, Henry VIII and his privy counsellors decided to let the Duke of Richmond and Lady Ripley return to the north as soon as possible to strengthen the defenses of the Anglo-Soviet border and prevent the Franco-Soviet alliance from raiding the English border.

The Duke of Richmond spent some time with his wife, Mary Fitzroy, as a matter of routine, and completed some of the marital affairs as husband and as a husband as permitted by law. When he suddenly received instructions from Henry VIII, he was so excited that he planned to return to the north immediately, not wanting to stay with his wife for a moment.

However, Lady Ripley is not in the City of London, nor in the luxurious residence of the Earl of Essex?! The Duke of Richmond, recalling some of the things Isabel had told him before leaving, hastened to send two royal postmen in the name of Henry VIII to Plymouth with a letter from Henry VIII.

So, a week after the French expeditionary force landed on the Scottish coast, Isabel Walton, who was far away in Plymouth, received a letter from Henry VIII. Fortunately, she did not sail with William Parr on a 300-ton armed merchant ship that had been built, or to show off her armed merchant ship to the other side.

After explaining some specific matters to Captain Hawkins, he and the Earl of Essex each led their own squires on their way back to the city of London. On the way back, the Earl spoke to Lady Ripley about the current situation, "Isabel, do you think this French army will join the Scots?" ”

Isabel shook her head slowly as she rode her horse, thinking about the possibility of what the other party said, "I don't think the Franco-Soviet army will easily attack our border. Because our border army often crosses the border to raid the Scots, they also need to be on guard against our attacks. ”

The Count trotted on his horse as he looked down in thought. When he looked up, he asked the baroness beside him, "Isabel, if there is a war on the border, you... Will you go to the border? ”

Isabel's body rose and fell as the horse's body trembled, and as she looked at the road ahead, she said, "William, I'll go." This is an instruction from His Majesty, and His Majesty needs His Highness and me to strengthen the defenses of the border. ”

"Isabel, I don't mean His Majesty's instructions, but war."

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