The siege of Cipti continued, and with hundreds of dragon-headed warships on board, William was sure that he would not let anyone go, including Henry I.

In the evening, after inspecting the front line, accompanied by Count Hubert, William hurried back to his camp to discuss with Baron Hubert the two pieces of military information he had just obtained.

William hoped that it was all good news, but unfortunately it was all bad news, and the bad news was worrying.

"Count Hubert, I have two things to discuss with you." William looked at Hubert and spoke first.

"Speak!" Count Hubert nodded in response.

"First of all, our ally, Baldwin V, Duke of Flanders, a traitor who stood still when we needed it most, is now leading his troops to seize a large part of our rightful territory, the county of Amiens."

As soon as William's words were finished, Count Hubert stood up angrily and said angrily: "This filthy thief, shameful coward, despicable traitor, His Highness William, you should immediately fight back, teach them an unforgettable lesson, and cut off the outstretched claws of the Duchy of Flanders." ”

"I have ordered the Earl of Richard and Baron Andrew not to hesitate to give me a hard lesson to the lowlanders. But..."William's tone paused slightly, and said: "However, the number of troops in this Duchy of Flanders is as high as more than 20,000 people, and they are led by the veteran Count Boulogne, which is indeed not so easy to deal with, and with the troops in the hands of the Count of Richard, I have no expectations that they will repel the invasion of Flanders." ”

"Then what we should do, I will listen to your arrangement." Count Hubert also had a heavy face, and he didn't have any expectations that the Eastern Route Army would be able to defeat Flanders' army, not to mention a large vassal state like the Duchy of Flanders, their army was not limited to this, and they could call together an army of the same number again at any time to fight.

"Let's not talk about that, I'll tell you another piece of bad news." Speaking of this, William's face became more solemn than before, and he looked at Count Hubert with a gloomy face and said: "Today I received news from Emma, saying that the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire is ready to move, and his court is full of requests for Henry III to send troops to the Kingdom of France to regain the crown of the King of France and the glory of the Frankish Empire.

Even Henry III, King of the Kingdom of Germany and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, wanted to increase his power and prestige by capturing France.

Now that our war with Henry I has brought the Kingdom of France to its lowest point in history, it is at its weakest point, and the vast and fertile plains and rich and prosperous cities of the Kingdom of France are like a large jar of delicious honey, constantly attracting the greedy eyes of pretenders to France. ”

William paused in his tone, and suddenly his right hand clenched into a fist, raised it high, and slammed it on the table, then stood up, stretched out his right hand and pointed to the east, and said angrily: "The Kingdom of France is mine, the crown of the King of France is mine, and none of them can snatch it away!" ”

"You are the Chosen King, the destined king of the Kingdom of France, and no one can replace you. At your command, all the Normans will stand by your side and fight for you. Infected by William's impassioned ambition, Earl Hubert also stood up with an excited expression and echoed in a loud voice.

The seizure of the Kingdom of France has always been an obsession in the hearts of the Normans, when William's ancestor Rollo settled in Rouen on the Seine River, he could not wait to send troops to occupy the vast area around the Seine, that is, attracted by the fertile and warm plains of the French Kingdom and the rich cities, which undoubtedly had a fatal attraction for the Normans from Norway, which was cold all year round.

This desire was deeply engraved in the DNA of all Normans, and as the generations reproduced, the desire to possess France did not disappear, but was passed down with the unique Norman culture and language, and influenced William's ambitions and goals.

William pressed down with his right hand, motioned for Hubert to sit down, returned to his place, and said in a low tone: "I am self-aware, and the strength of our Normans alone is not enough to fight against the mighty Holy Roman Empire.

In addition to the mighty Holy Roman Empire and the insidious Duchy of Flanders, my father-in-law, Emperor Ferdinand I of Spain, also had his eyes on the Duchy of Gascony and the Duchy of Aquitaine, which were close to the Kingdom of Castile.

At the same time, it is not excluded that King Canute II of England and Denmark coveted France and Normandy.

Faced with such a situation surrounded by wolves, what will you be prepared to do, Count Hubert? ”

However, it is clear that William did not ask the right person, and that Count Adolf should be consulted in such a complex foreign matter.

The Count of Hubert was clearly blinded by William's words, and could not figure out how to keep the Kingdom of France from being taken away by the others, surrounded by wolves.

"Your Highness William, I beg your pardon for being stupid and unable to come up with a way to preserve the entire Kingdom of France." Count Hubert paused, hesitated for a moment, and said: "Then it is better for us to seize the essence of northern France first, as for some territories in the south and east, we can temporarily cede them, as long as you get the territory, you have the opportunity to take these territories back." ”

"No, I won't." William did not hesitate to reject Count Hubert's suggestion, patiently explaining to him: "If only part of the territory of North France were to be captured, and the rest of the territory was occupied by the Holy Roman Empire and other states and princes, then we would be in a dangerous situation of being semi-surrounded by hostile forces such as the Holy Roman Empire, unable to continue our expansion on the European continent, and strategically at an extremely disadvantageous position."

But if the Kingdom of France remains in its favor, it will be a barrier for us to separate ourselves from the Holy Roman Empire and the rest of the world, buying us precious time to develop our strength.

To keep the Kingdom of France intact is to temporarily deposit the land we deserve with Henry I, and to wage war again to take it at any time if we wish. ”

"Are you going to spare Henry I?" The Count of Hubert was persuaded by William's words, and it was indeed a good idea to let King Henry I of France go for the time being, and let it become a barrier to Normandy.