In the quiet garden, only the sound of soft footsteps sounded, the cicadas chirped with the swaying of flowers and plants, the wind caressed the roses all over the garden, but the gorgeous flowers had thorns on them.

As the night wore on, the lights came on all over the city, especially the one that surrounded the hillsides around the harbour.

Reflected in the blue sea from mid-air, with the waves, swaying, flickering, like a string of flowing pearls, and the pieces of stars densely covered in the sky reflect each other, it is very beautiful.

Emperor Alexios stood on the fence of the garden with Baron Barion, the famous protector of the Holy Land, and from now on he could see the city at night.

"I've never seen such a beautiful view, this is a city blessed by God!"

Barrian's heartfelt admiration, incidentally complimenting the magnificence of Constantinople, and his fawning made Alexios quite proud.

The Emperor smiled humbly: "Is the Holy Land of Jerusalem not as good as here?" I have heard that the Holy City under King Baldwin is now thriving in trade and the country is thriving. ”

When Barian heard this, his face became serious: Your Majesty, don't you know that since the Battle of the Valley of Springs, the Kingdom of Jerusalem has signed a peace treaty with Saladin, the Sultan of Egypt.

Now the pagans are free to enter and leave the holy city blessed by God, and there is nothing we can do about it! May the Lord forgive me my sins! ”

Alexios could no longer remain indifferent, he also drew a cross on himself, silently prayed to God for a while, and his pious appearance also shook Baron Barian.

Baron Barian said with emotion: "God's people are suffering, the holy land is disgraced, and we, God's servants on earth, are also guilty!" ”

The baron bowed his head sadly and continued to tell the story of the situation in Jerusalem over the years: "Your Majesty, since the sudden death of His Majesty Amalek due to illness, the situation in the kingdom has taken a turn for the worse.

Our warriors of the Knights, who once feared the infidels, are now busy vying for power, and they ignore King Baldwin's requests.

Even when the kingdom stood by in times of crisis, and now insisted on confronting the king of Egypt after peace, Jerusalem was now in danger of confrontation with the pagan nations. ”

The Emperor was already silent when he heard this, and of course he knew who those people who were fighting for power that Barian was talking about, Alexios' titular grandfather, Rennald of Shatillon.

During the Second Crusade, Reynard of Châtilon came to Palestine with King Louis and stayed. He is fickle, capricious, and disgusting. He was the one who was primarily responsible for Harding's defeat.

However, he is handsome and brave. Constance of Antioch fell in love with it, and the two were married. Through Constance, Reynard became Duke of Antioch.

Soon after, he embarked on a predatory expedition to Cyprus, which caused displeasure among the Byzantine emperor and his own king. In 1160 A.D., Nur al-Din's forces took him away at the behest of the Crusaders for 16 years.

After his release, he married Stefanie of Miyi (Constance had died during his imprisonment) and through her became Lord Karak and Monreale.

Karak is located at the southeastern end of the Dead Sea. In order to carry out an assault on innocent caravans and Red Sea ports, he set out from this castle and tore up two peace treaties with Saladin, causing numerous troubles.

As a result of these and other misdeeds, Saladin besieged his castle twice, vowing to kill him with his own hands one day. And Renald's final ending was also killed by Saladin himself, this person is the biggest-stirring stick.

But given his complicated relationship with the Roman royal family and the royal family of Jerusalem, Alexios did not intend to get rid of this man, and it did him no good!

"How is King Baldwin's health lately?"

This was the Emperor's primary concern now, the Emperor did not intend to participate in the internal strife of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, for the time being he still focused on the Turks in the East, and he hoped that King Baldwin would be able to resist Saladin's attack before he could free his hands.

Barian pained his hand at the balustrade of the garden and said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty King Baldwin has been fighting against this powerhouse of the pagans for three years since he led his army to defeat Saladin at Mongisa at the age of sixteen.

We have no support from any Christian nation, and His Majesty sustains the Kingdom only by his very ill body, and how I wish I could bear this sin in His Majesty's place! ”

Alexios was well aware of the dangers of leprosy, and the heroic knight king was supposed to be in his prime, but the plague caused him to lose control of the kingdom.

The leper king was not trusted to lead the Franks in defending the Holy Land, and the Roman Church even openly opposed the succession of a leper king.

Fortunately, the Bishop of Jerusalem insisted that Baldwin was already an oiled king, blessed by God, and ignored the orders of the Roman Church, so that the king could succeed to the throne.

Even so, in the Battle of Mongisa, King Baldwin issued an order to the kingdom, and only 300 knights responded to the call, which shows the hearts of the people at that time.

But King Baldwin proved that he was a good defender of the Holy Land, and in this way he ruled the kingdom for ten years, even in spite of the turmoil.

"I will write to my uncle, Lord Bohemond, Duke of Antioch, to bring about an alliance between the Principality of Antioch and the Kingdom of Jerusalem!"

Alexios knew that the meat play was coming, but Barian also spoke to his heart, and he was equally worried about King Baldwin's early death if he became ill.

And if you haven't recovered Anatolia yet, you probably won't be able to catch up with the famous battle for the Holy Land, so it is necessary to add a heavy piece of marfa to the Crusaders.

"I would like to get Port Acre as a permanent port for the Imperial fleet to anchor."

The emperor put forward his own conditions, which would be his first step in infiltrating the kingdom of Jerusalem, and since they were sent to the door, there was nothing to be embarrassed about.

Barian looked directly into the emperor's eyes, and finally sighed lightly: "Your Majesty's request is not excessive, the battle of Harim, the kingdom has actually lost control of the port of Acre, and the shadow of the Egyptian fleet hangs over the outer seas of the kingdom.

But we can't drive out the enemy, the kingdom's grain trade at sea is all controlled by the infidels fleet, and if Your Majesty's fleet can defeat the Egyptians, why don't we hand over the port of Acre to Your Majesty! ”

The Emperor was thrilled to receive Baron Barryn's promise, and Byzantine influence on the Crusaders began to decline as soon as Emperor Manuel died, and now he will continue this work until Jerusalem is included in the Empire.