Isabel's thoughts turned, and she suddenly remembered a problem that needed to be solved urgently: spies. The two captains of the guard at Carlyle Castle could have thought of recruiting the Scots as spies, but wouldn't the Scots, who were only one border away from the two captains of the guard and a castle, think of recruiting spies and providing themselves with all the news of the English army?

She was a little annoyed, why did she only think of such an important issue now, because she valued her family and ignored the ever-changing battlefield situation? Or is it too gullible to Sir Thomas's report to the Commission? Since the border war two weeks ago, she has relied on the contents of Jazz's report as the only reliable source of information, and has relied on the content of Jazz's report to analyze the situation of friend and foe and the battlefield environment.

What if Sir Thomas was bought by the Scots? Or was Sir bribed and sent back to Carlisle Castle by the Scots to act as a double agent? Or had the Scots been giving false information to his spies, falsely claiming that James V's army was still assembling in two towns on the western border, when in fact it had already been assembled on the Anglo-Soviet border? Or did the Scots send spies directly into any place south of the English border to spy on secrets, intelligence, and reconnaissance through covert or overt means?

Suddenly, countless questions related to intelligence and military espionage popped up in Isabel's mind. At this time, a manservant brought wine to the three of them. When the three of them were drinking, she bluntly threw the question out, "Sir Thomas, after you reported to the Commission on the 11th that the Highlanders had assembled their troops at the border, did the Highlanders also send spies into the area south of the border before your report?" For example... Carlisle town? ”

Sir Thomas had only heard of Isabelle's audience with Henry VIII and the new queen and his appreciation. It was only after such a close meeting today that he was convinced that what he had heard was not an exaggerated praise for Isabel. Putting down his glass, he glanced at each other and smiled lightly, "Miss, how much do you know about the country of Scotland and its people?" ”

"Scotch whisky, Low and High Country Scotland, the early 18th century Anglo-Soviet merger into the Kingdom of Great Britain, the Scottish skirt and bagpipes, the national hero William Wallace, the Scottish Gaelic, Edinburgh, the Duke of Edinburgh, the husband of the ******?" It seems that Isabel's knowledge of the people and things of Scotland is limited to these aspects.

At this moment, she couldn't say everything that came to her mind. He looked at Sir Thomas, and then the corners of his mouth furrowed slightly, "This kingdom is poor, there is no pepper and cinnamon from Calicut, no gold and silver from the East, no richest trading city in Europe like Antwerp, and even the climate is not as comfortable as in the kingdom. ”

"Well, it seems that Mademoiselle knows a lot about Scottish affairs."

"Sir, you want to tell me that the poor Scots don't even have the money to hire spies?"

"No, miss, I want to speak language."

"Language?" Isabel was a little surprised, but she came to her senses, "Sir, can you elaborate on that?" ”

The deputy chief of the guard smiled lightly, "Miss, let me tell you." The vast majority of the country's population speaks only Irish and Scottish, an important tradition that has been maintained since the 5th century. ”

Historically, Scottish Gaelic was once the language of most of Scotland. It was brought from Ireland by the Scots to Caledonia in Great Britain (about the whole of present-day Scotland) from Ireland around the 5th century. Until the end of the 15th century, the Anglos, or the English, still referred to their language, Scottish Gaelic, as "Scottish".

At the beginning of the 16th century, Scottish Gaelic became the "Irish language" of the English population. On the contrary, "Scottish" is used specifically to refer to "Low Scottish". Low Scottish is the language spoken by the Low Scots, which is very similar to English and is sometimes referred to as one of the dialects of English. In fact, many people in England believe that Low Country Scots is a direct derivation of English.

In contrast to the Scottish Highlands in the north of Scotland, the Scottish Lowlands in a broad sense encompasses the whole of central and southern Scotland southeast of the line between Dunbarton at the mouth of the River Clyde and Stonehaven on the North Sea coast. As a result, the aristocracy and people living near the western border of England came into contact with Scots who spoke Low Scottish in their daily lives.

Isabel also knows a little about Scotland's unique language. At this point, she didn't want to correct the deputy guard's statement, but nodded slightly, "Well, sir, I hope I can continue to hear from you." ”

The Deputy Captain of the Guard then introduced some of the habits and linguistic customs of the people of southern Scotland near the western border. Isabel listened quietly to the other party's words as she pondered questions related to military espionage. When the other party finished speaking, she looked at Sir Thomas thoughtfully, "Sir, I remember that there is a place on your map called 'Langdon', right?" ”

Sir Thomas nodded, "Yes, Miss. This village called Langdon is under the jurisdiction of Carlyle and is the closest village to the Gretnut Green countryside in Scotland. ”

"Well, is the village of Langdun still inhabited?"

"There are also some old people and children."

"Sir, this is the time of war between the two countries, and those who live in this country will be the first to be harmed by the Scots. Or rather, some poor Langdonians were willing to accept some of the benefits of the Scots, and to do something for the Scots to spy on the news. ”

The deputy chief of the guard, who was sitting across from Isabel, nodded, "Miss, Sir and I are both familiar with border affairs. The Scots are also plotting and carrying out the espionage you are talking about. ”

"Well, I only hope that the Scottish spies won't easily burrow into Carlisle Castle or reach the northern counties."

"Miss, so far we have not found a Scottish-speaking London or a Scotsman entering the castle. After all, their accents are all too easy to identify. ”

Up to this point, Isabel had not used her piercing eyes to find any clues in the words, expressions, and attitudes of the two knights. Of course, the two knights, who were officially knighted by Henry VIII, were bought by the Scots to serve the Scots, who were poorer than themselves? Such an assumption is inevitably too unrealistic.

Later, Sir Thomas spoke to her about his visit to Carlyle Castle. When the knight heard his intentions be stated, he could not help but be amazed at the behavior of the baron's eldest daughter.