Although William cried heartbroken and unable to see things for the past two days, the strong William still stood up, he took over the responsibility of defending the Normandy family and the principality, and ordered in a hoarse voice: "Order all the nobles, municipal officials, and merchants of the city of Rouen, in order to pay tribute to the spirit of the Duke of Robert, all of them are not allowed to wear black mourning clothes and pray for the Duke of Robert in the city church, and all banquets, dances, and celebrations must be stopped!" ”

As the new duke, he gave the first order to the city of Rouen, but the nobles, municipal officials, and wealthy merchants who received the order began to celebrate and feast as if the death of the Duke of Robert was a cause for them to rejoice.

When William heard the news, he was furious and ordered all the nobles and officials in the city to come to the Duke's palace to accept William's punishment.

As a result, the edict warrant was torn apart on the spot by the nobles and officials, and the heralds sent by William were mercilessly teased.

After pushing William's envoy back, the crowd seemed to be celebrating a holiday, but instead reveled more unscrupulously, and their words were full of foul language against William.

Realizing that his orders had no effect on the noble officials of Rouen, William sent more than a dozen knights loyal to him to take over the army from the barracks in Rouen, only to be driven back by the generals of the local aristocratic coalition army.

Now, William was unable to issue orders to the city of Rouen, no one would follow William's orders, and even the troops stationed in the city ignored William's instructions.

"Steward Osborne, you're back, how are you doing?" William asked anxiously.

"Young Master William, I'm very sorry, most of the stewards I sent to the county of Rouen to take over the manor have been driven back by the local nobles, and most of the manor that originally belonged to us has been usurped by the local nobles!

There are only a few dozen estates still under our control. Steward Osborne shook his head helplessly.

William, Duke of Normandy, inherited hundreds of estates, most of which were concentrated in the county of Rouen, while the rest were scattered among the counties of Mortan, Urburg and Evre.

Since the local nobles of Rouen dared to encroach on William's estate, it is also very likely that the estates in Mortin and Euburg will be swallowed cleanly, and perhaps dozens of estates in Evreux will survive under the protection of Count Robert.

"Damn!" William slammed the table with his right hand hatefully, gritted his teeth and said, "Steward Osborne, are Lord Duke Arlen and Uncle Robert here?" I've been writing to them for a few days, and they're almost there!

As long as they are there, I have a chance to regain control of the county of Rouen, and when the time comes, I will settle these rebellions. ”

"Back to His Royal Highness William, Lord Arlen has already brought people here, but Count Robert fell ill when he received the news of the Duke's death." Steward Osborne shook his head and said in a regretful tone.

"Hey, when I settle this place, I'm going to visit Uncle Robert as soon as possible!" William sighed, looked at Steward Osborne, and said:

"In that case, we also need to be prepared to fail. Please also collect all the belongings and food supplies in the manor and the castle into the castle, and the craftsmen in the castle and the manor should also be well collected, and we must transfer all of them to the Barony of Vernon as soon as possible, even if it is to requisition merchant ships!

In addition, we have troops guarding the harbor below the castle, which is the only safe passage from us to the outside world! ”

There was a small port on the side of the Seine in Fort Rouen, which William still controlled, and the Seine was the only communication artery to the Barony de Vernon that William had at his disposal.

Although the local nobles of Rouen, who had now rebelled, did not brazenly raise the anti-flag and send troops to attack Fort Rouen, they began to lead their troops to occupy the main transportation arteries of Fort Rouen, preparing to blockade Fort Rouen.

"Yes! His Royal Highness William, it is expected that in another six days, all the materials and personnel will be transferred, and when we evacuate, we will not leave anything for the enemy. Steward Osborne nodded in response.

"Then please, Steward Osborne!" William nodded.

After explaining the transfer and evacuation of supplies, William arrived at a barracks in the castle, which was now crowded with dozens of tents.

There were not only 400 men under William's direct command, including the cavalry of his companions, but also 22 knights of his cronies and 80 knights under their command, with a total of 500 troops.

With the strength he now has, William has no chance of winning if he sees the opportunity to surprise the army in Rouen, but William does not want to risk the precious lives of his soldiers.

In essence, William, whose soul comes from the 21st century, is a man who cherishes his life, and he will not act easily without more than eighty percent certainty.

William came to the knights' camp and summoned Bruce. Sir Dalton, Brad. Anderson Cavaliers, Austin. Twenty-three knights, including Knight Hugh, and their attendants, stood in front of the stage and said in a loud voice:

"I think everyone knows what we are in now, because of the rebellion of the local nobles, we have lost control of the situation in Rouen, and we are trapped in Fort Rouen by them.

But this is temporary, as long as we guard the castle and wait for the transfer of supplies to my territory, Baron de Vernon, we will leave Rouen together and go to Barony Vernon.

As long as you are loyal to me, even if you lose your estates in Rouen, I will compensate each of you an estate of the same size in the county of Evreux.

Will you follow me and never forsake me? ”

As soon as William's words came out, all the knights present expressed their allegiance:

"Yes, we are willing to follow you forever!"

"We have sworn allegiance to you, and this is an oath that cannot be broken."

"Protecting you is Duke Robert's entrustment to us, and we will never give up our mission!"

......

"Leaving for the time being now is to retract your fists and play better in the future.

Although we have temporarily withdrawn to Evre, one day we will fight back again.

These rebellious noble knights will be punished as they deserve, and you will be rewarded as you deserve, perhaps some of you will be given a manor, and some may even become barons and vice-barons.

I will never break my promise to you here! William waved and said in a loud encouragement.

"Oooh! ......”

All the knights present raised their hands excitedly and cheered.