After half a day's arduous march, William's army finally reached noon in front of a small village called Lou, a few miles from the city of Alençon.

By this time, the small village, which only had more than 300 people, was deserted, and the inhabitants had long since been driven out by William, because this was the battlefield that William had chosen.

William rode his horse to a hill about 60 meters high, which can be said to be the highest point of Lu Village, with a minimum altitude of 123 meters and a maximum of 202 meters in Lu Village, a radius of 12.96 square kilometers.

Looking around, the outline of Alençon City in the distance can already be seen, looking down at the Lu village that is being demolished not far away, William couldn't help but sigh: "This will become a battlefield, Alençon rebels, this will be the place where you are buried." ”

"Young Master William, you are right, the sinners of Alençon City will eventually pay the price for their shameful betrayal." Steward Osborne, who was following William, nodded in agreement.

"Steward Osborne, how long will it take for this civil castle to be completed?" William turned around and said to Steward Osborne.

"If you go back to Young Master William, it will only take two days, and the Tugangmu Fort you asked us to build will be completed." Steward Osborne pointed to the thousands of troops busy on the side and said, "Since we have brought a lot of prefabricated wooden rafts, and we also use the remaining timber from the demolition of Lu Village, we can save a lot of time for logging and harvesting timber, and we only need to dig up the soil around the hillside to build adobe and then install the rafts and timber on top of it." ”

This civil castle built by William is typical of the early Middle Ages.

A typical hill-city castle is built with a high mound and then a deep and wide trench dug around it, and the adobe of the man-made mound usually comes from the soil left over from the trenches around the moat. The sides and top of the mound were to be fenced off with thick pointed wooden strips, and towers were built at intervals, the number of towers depended on the financial resources of the lord.

In just 200 meters, no less than thirty towers were built, and William would send archers and infantry to attack the soldiers who tried to reach the castle with bows and arrows, improvised javelins, stones, etc.

The appearance of this wooden fort is not a rectangle common in the Middle Ages, but a circle and polygonal shape that is easy to defend, somewhat similar to a simple bastion, of course, William was pressed for time to make such a simple shape.

"Beware of digging several light and dark trenches around the fort, placing wooden spikes inside, and arranging some horse-repellent cavalry on the outside. Don't forget to build a cistern when building a civil castle, we need to be prepared for a long battle! William pointed to the busy construction site with his right hand, turned his gaze to Steward Osborne, and said, "Go, Steward Osborne, go to the construction site and help me command the soldiers to build the earthen fort, and the speed will be accelerated, the word is spread in Alençon that their mayor Scott and the knights of Kay are reorganizing their army, and it will not take two days to leave the city to seek a decisive battle." ”

"Yes, Master William, I'll go to the construction site to arrange work." Saying that, Osborne's butler bowed, turned over his horse, and rode towards the wooden fort construction site on the high ground not far away.

As Osborne's steward faded away, William looked up at Alençon, where William had sent two councillors to be bribed by Osborne's butler, and it was with their help that William could effectively grasp the city's movements.

Of course, these two councillors, who were bribed by William's promised benefits and privileges, could only help William find out the news and incite the councillors, generals, etc., and they would not do dangerous actions such as opening the city gates, at least until they saw William win.

William withdrew his gaze, collected his mood, and turned his horse's head to head towards the wooden castle camp, only to see Sir Hubert slowly riding towards William.

"Your Highness William, you should find an opportunity to return to the Evre County Guard before the war, if you have any three strengths and two weaknesses, this will teach me how to explain to Lord Robert Duke." Sir Hubert rolled over and dismounted, fell to one knee, and pleaded earnestly.

"Well, Sir Hubert, you don't have to be trying to comfort me, I know what I'm doing." William waved his hand at Sir Hubert, and said in a resolute tone: "Only here can this army be twisted into a rope; It is only with me that the rebels of Alençon and the cavalry of the Count of Kay will launch a continuous assault on this citadel, depleting all their forces here. ”

"Your Highness William, none of this is the most important thing to me, as long as you are safe and sound." Sir Hubert had no intention of getting up, and knelt down on one knee and pleaded, "Your Highness William, if you don't return to the Everes Guard, I won't get up." ”

"Well, get up, Sir Hubert, and I have been able to get all this way thanks to you and Steward Osborne's help, so I will not give up easily." William put his hands on Sir Hubert's arms and said in a firm tone: "Sir Hubert, you get up first, I will take care of my own safety, if our army is defeated, I will immediately evacuate with you." ”

Hearing William's promise, Sir Hubert breathed a sigh of relief, stood up and said, "His Royal Highness William, you should not go to the front line on the battlefield, I am worried that there will be a stray arrow that will hurt you, this request His Royal Highness William, please be sure to agree to me." ”

In fact, Sir Hubert knew very well that William had led his army to the outside of Alençon to fight the rebels, and there was no turning back.

Whether it is the glory of the Normandy family, or the expectations of Earl Robert, the generals and the whole army, these are like the mountains behind William pressing him to keep advancing, and the only thing Sir Hubert can do is to persuade William to cherish his life on the battlefield and not to take risks easily.

"Well, well, Sir Hubert, I promise you, I will give you full command of the front, and I will wait for your good news in the main building of the wooden castle." In the face of Sir Hubert's affectionate plea, William had no choice but to stiffen his neck and agree.

"Your Highness William, I'm relieved that you can say that, and please go back to Mubao quickly." Sir Hubert's iceberg-like face finally showed a bright smile and said in a cheerful tone.

"Let's go, Sir Hubert. Driving—" said William and Sir Hubert, turning on their horses and riding towards the camp of the castle of Murmur.