William rode his horse to a hill not far away, looked far away, watched his father and his army disappear from the sky, put away the sadness of parting, turned his horse's head and galloped towards the castle.

As he galloped all the way, William came to the barracks, where he met Faller, Sir Hubert, the old butler Osborne, and his companion cavalry, who were ready to set off.

Seeing that William had arrived, Sir Hubert stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, William, your army has been assembled and standby, and now there are 120 heavy cavalry, 40 light cavalry, 150 conscripted baggage soldiers, 12 blacksmiths, grooms, and medical officers, and 32 four-wheeled baggage carriages. ”

"Sir Hubert, I have worked hard for you, and without your help, I would not have been able to train these cavalrymen." William nodded and smiled.

"It is my honour to be of service to you, Your Highness William." Hubert saluted with his right hand on his chest.

The tall, burly, middle-aged brown-haired knight with a resolute face was Sir Hubert and William's second guardian, and was now serving as instructor and deputy leader of the companion cavalry.

Don't look at Hubert's polite and easy-going speech, in fact, he is a ruthless character. Following Duke Robert back then, Hubert was a good hand at fighting, and it was said that he should have been awarded the title of baron long ago after getting such a great credit, but it was a pity that he violated the moral bottom line of the nobles by killing nobles and prisoners of war and civilians in order to defeat the rebels, so Hubert is just a knight so far.

In the past two years, Sir Hubert has been sent by his father Robert to protect William, and his tyrannical temper has been subdued a lot, and he has spoken much more easily to others.

"Palle, you lead the Javelinmen as the vanguard to reconnoiter ahead; Steward Osborne, you go and gather the baggage caravan and the levies to follow as the middle army, Sir Hubert, you go and gather the army, and lead the cavalry of your fellow cavalry to guard the baggage caravan. William looked at the crowd and commanded.

"Yes, His Royal Highness William (Young Master)" Everyone bowed and saluted, and after receiving the order, they began to assemble the army.

In just half an hour, an army of nearly 300 people lined up in a neat line, divided into three parts, and slowly drove out of the castle of Rouen.

"Go, target Evler." William commanded with a wave of his right hand.

......

It was already approaching evening, and William's army was approaching the banks of the Seine after a half-day march.

Seeing that the sky was getting dark, William ordered everyone to camp on the small hill not far away, put the baggage wagons end to end in a circle, and sent levies to cut down trees to build a three-meter-high watchtower.

Turning his horse's head, William looked up at the Seine, only to see the wide surface of the river, the sparkling and golden water flowing quietly, like a green ribbon winding around the land of France.

The Seine, which originates in Burgundy and flows through Paris to Rouen, is the mother of France and Normandy, gently soothing Normandy and France with a kind smile.

In the evening sky, illuminated by the bright moonlight, the river is dotted with boats, busily shuttling the Seine, toiling to transport goods and catch fish, bringing prosperity and large taxes to the territory on both sides of the Seine.

Of course, the wide Seine and its deep interior bring not only prosperity, but also disaster.

The Seine, which connects the English Channel, was often exploited by invading Vikings, who sailed in droves across the Seine in droves, sometimes capturing ships to loot cargo, sometimes rallying to attack towns and plunder the countryside.

These Vikings ravaged both sides of the Seine, leaving the lords on both sides of the river unaffected, and only the county of Rouen, which was directly under the Duke of Normandy, was less attacked, after all, the ancestor of the Duke of Normandy was also the famous Viking leader Rollo.

More than 100 years ago, William's ancestor Rollo led more than 100,000 people across the North Sea and the Mediterranean, occupying the then Duchy of Normandy and the vast territory around it.

This story is a legend in the history of the Norman family, the ancestor Rollo from an ordinary Viking sailor to a duke with a vast territory, as a descendant of Rollo, Normandy has a certain tacit understanding with the Vikings.

Retracting his chaotic thoughts, William turned around and saw that dinner was being eaten in the camp at this time, and as he walked all the way, the cavalry of the center of the camp was gathered in six or seven, enjoying a hearty roast of lamb, fried steak, black bread without bran, and beer, laughing and talking while enjoying the performances of the bards and jugglers. And in the dimly lit corners of the camp, poorly dressed levies bowed their heads in twos and twos and ate hard black bread mixed with sawdust, wheat bran, and weeds, which these peasants could not eat every day.

William shook his head a little helplessly, he was powerless to change anything, the class gap has existed since ancient times, and his identity as a ruling class determined that he had to stand on the side of the knights and nobles.

Walking into the brightest central tent, Sir Hubert, Faller, and Osborne were already sitting at their respective tables waiting for William to come back for dinner.

When William was seated at the top, Osborne, the old butler, clapped his hands outside the tent and beckoned the cook outside to serve the food.

After a while, the table was filled with fluffy white bread, seven or eight French dishes, and a small barrel of red wine, and a closer look at the steak fried with black pepper, baked pork chops with honey and red wine, steak with caviar and cold noodles, seasonal vegetable salad, roasted Camembert cheese, pickled meat and vegetable soup, and other dishes of color and flavor, which were obviously carefully prepared by the old butler Osborne to the army cook.

William, seated at the top, clasped his hands in front of his chest and closed his eyes in prayer: "The poor will be fed and filled, and those who seek the Lord will praise him; Their hearts will have eternal life. Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, from today to ever, and forever. Amen. ”

"The poor will be fed and fed ......"

Sir Hubert, Phalle, and Osborne joined William in prayer.

William enjoyed and cherished this sumptuous dinner, and before he left the county of Rouen, William and his family were able to get supplies nearby, but after crossing the Seine and advancing towards Evreux, they did not have so many ingredients to procure.

When everyone had finished their dinner, William turned to Faller and said, "Fare, you have to work hard tonight, in addition to arranging for the soldiers on duty at night, you must also send light cavalry to reconnoiter the surroundings and find the villages and towns where the boats gather, and tomorrow we will collect the boats to cross the river." ”

"Obey your orders, Master William." Faller stood up and bowed.

"Sir Hubert, the affairs of the camp are left to you." William turned his gaze to Hubert on the other side and said.

"As you command, His Highness William." Sir Hubert stood up and bowed.

In the middle of the night, the lights of the camp were gradually extinguished, and William and the soldiers fell into a peaceful sleep, where the night was silent, and not far away the sound of wooden oars paddling, boats approaching and whispering on the banks of the Seine, and a pair of eyes flashed with excitement.