It was a settlement in the plain between two small rivers, and the low and dilapidated thatched houses were like small mushrooms that broke through the ground after the rain, huddled together in a mess, and the nest-like doorway was open empty, and I could still feel the breath emanating from it even from such a distance.

Outside the village there is a stone wall, the mottled skin reflects the long years it has experienced, perhaps also acts as a levee during the flood season, the wall is overgrown with moss and lush weeds, a few goats raise their front hooves and happily gnaw on the turf, the dirt that is dragged down kicks up misty smoke, children in dirty coats gather around the pool in the center of the village to play and play, mothers wash their clothes while staring at their children with tender eyes, old people leaning against the sunny wall, Humming and chirping, the men were already working in the fields, busy in the green fields.

In the center of the village there is a slightly higher wooden walled city, which may be the residence of the local lord, or the house of the tax collector stationed here, the sharpened wooden stakes are buried deep in the ground, and the gaps are not left close to each other, enough to be as tall as two people, ordinary people can not climb with their bare hands, a few guards carry spears and bows and arrows to patrol back and forth, looking down on the ruled peasants, the watchtower of the bell man yawns chatting, carefully cutting off the rotten part of the apple with a knife, and then passing the time comfortably with Erlang's legs.

The army of Nijmegen had been broken into many small units, like an octopus with outstretched tentacles, and pounced on all corners of Speyer, and the small detachment I led was composed entirely of the knights of the Count of Hesse.

Rollo was sent on a special mission, so another attendant took his place for the time being, and we made our way down the river to the outside of the village.

The scouts who had sent out the scouts had not yet returned, so I ordered everyone to dismount and rest, and to run to a place with a good view to observe the situation on the other side.

"My lord, the scout is back." The attendant came to the back lightly, trying not to disturb me, and it was inevitable to be nervous as the lord's personal attendant for the first time.

"That's right, let him come over."

I waved my hand without looking back, and a moment later the scout, disguised as a beggar, came over and bowed down, he was a member of my guard, and since none of the knights of the Count of Hesse would pretend to be dirty and unidentified beggars, I had to arrange for the people around me to investigate.

This wandering beggar was common in this era, and he was not suspicious of the sudden appearance of stranger villagers, and his high cheekbones and narrow face were just right for the role he played.

The scout's face was covered with black mud to hide the healthy complexion on his face, and his greasy hair and smelling torn shirt were fitting for the occasion, and he stood respectfully with his hands down, waiting for the Duke's question.

"What's going on in the village?" I fanned the hem of the chain mail and raised my hand to wipe my face, this ghost weather was like a steamer, and the sun was almost baked.

"The village is not big, only about 20 households, the elderly and children account for the majority, the men are all farming in the fields and have not returned, and there is not a lot of oil and water."

He reported what he had seen......

"There seems to be a tax collector sent here by a knight stationed in the walled city, he should have some accounts and stocks, the wooden walled city is less than fifteen steps before and after, and a maximum of ten soldiers can be stationed, and there are three guards and a bell man standing on the city wall, the others can't see it, it is estimated that they are either sleeping or going out to have fun, the garrison is very weak, and a small charge is absolutely nine out of ten."

"Very good, you count as two copies of today's loot."

I patted him on the shoulder with satisfaction as a reward for raising the quota of the loot, and the latter was so grateful that he thanked him again and again before following the attendant.

Hearing that the knights who had returned from the scouts stood up one after another, their eyes flashing with the desire of the beast to pounce on them, especially in the face of these unarmed peasants, who were like lambs to the slaughter.

A Hessian knight with a relatively high status came up, and his so-called identity was not enough to have a direct conversation with a noble duke, but as a relatively prominent leader among the thirty Hessian knights, he was elected as the leader, and at this moment he was the spokesperson of the Count of Hesse, so he could talk to me.

"Your Excellency!"

He couldn't have lowered his waist any lower, and his tone was humble and cautious.

"Shall we go now? The sunlight is so poisonous that everyone doesn't dare to remove their armor. ”

"No, wait for my orders."

I shook my head and gave him an expression of understanding: "The men of the village are all working in the fields, and they will start when they come back, and I said that no one should be let go, and that there should be as few killings as possible, but nothing should be left for them, understand?" ”

The Hessian knight nodded as if he didn't understand, turned around and just took two steps, and I added: "You can take off your armor and eat first, you can also see, this small village has no ability to resist, and it's no problem if you don't wear armor." After speaking, the two of them tacitly hehehe, happy, and got rid of their obscene faces.

The sun slowly moved from the middle of the sky to the west, and by the pool in the village square, only a few scrawny old men were still lying there, motionless like dried sausages hanging outside the house.

The men on the field carried farm tools, and came back from the field in twos and threes, and the Shiba Inu raised by their own family flatteringly circled the heels of their masters, alarming the fat pigs that were turning over in the pool to cool off, and it barked angrily, and frightened the puppies to bark wildly.

There was only one soldier left standing guard on the walled city, and the rest of them probably hid in the shade and slept lazily, and the air after noon was like fermented bread, rapidly swelling, and it was already the time when people were most likely to get sleepy during the day.

"Let's act!"

I took the water bladder handed by the attendant, pulled out the plug and poured it on my head.

"Again, move fast, kill as little as possible, raze this place to the ground and leave nothing behind, immediately find a cool place to make the bed, I have to hurry up and squint for a while."

The knights, who had been impatient for a long time, were immediately busy putting on their armor, and in addition to leaving the necessary number of people to be responsible for the defense, I also sent the attendants around me, and the circle would be suffocated by my side, so that I could see the world and get some decent booty.

In fact, this small village was almost defenseless in front of knights armed to the teeth, and even the condescending lord's walled city was not a strong fortress, and the wall made of logs could be easily destroyed with a dozen horsepower on a rope.

Sure enough, the knights who were scattered out were like tigers descending from the mountains, cooperating with the siege of the village from all directions, and the poor bell man was nailed alive on the bell frame before he could stand up.

The demons on horseback broke into the thatched huts with swords and cats, looted valuable things, and then drove out the frightened peasants, and then burned the ruined houses.

The screams of the women and the cries of the children kept me awake, and the attendants craned their necks and stared intently at their comrades of good fortune.

Turning over in despair, I finally gave up the intention of continuing to sleep, rubbed the corners of my eyes tiredly and sat up, and found that the village had been shrouded in billowing smoke, and the conspicuous wooden city in the village was also wrapped in the raging fire and turned into ruins, and several knights deliberately rode their horses to chase each other in the crowd of people fleeing together, making the frightened peasants become more and more panicked, in order to obtain a perverted sense of achievement, I pouted the corners of my mouth, turned over the war horse led by the squire, and ran towards the place where the knights gathered outside the village surrounded by several people.

"A big victory, my lord." The leader of the Hessian knights tugged at the reins and said excitedly to me that he should be very rewarding to look at.

"No surprise, knight."

I nodded at him gracefully, and looked around at the knights who were busy collecting the spoils of war, many of whom got the peasants' freshly dried sausages and pickled melons, which showed that the local life was still well-off, and the peasants' grain stocks had run out this season, and they were waiting for the harvest Last winter, they saw the ripe wheat to pay taxes and satisfy their hunger, so it was normal to find bread and wheat cakes among the booty.

As for the free-range pigs, dogs, sheep and poultry, they will be supplied in unlimited quantities as ingredients for tonight's carnival, after all, we can only stay for one night, and we can't take too many things with us, so eliminating them on the spot is the only way, and overeating is the best way to boost morale.

The squires of Nijmegen were much more calm in the face of what they had in their hands than the Hessian knights who were scrambling to pack the booty, and psychologically speaking, the city-dwellers from the richest cities in all of Germany looked down on the rags all over the ground, and if they had to find a reason, they were far more fascinated by the thrill of robbery than with the loot.

After entering the village, the Nijmegen attendants began to lay siege to the tax collector's walled city, and through the selection of highly qualified people, it took a very short time to conquer the most magnificent building in the village, and to catch the tax collector who was about to flee with his pockets, and from the latter he searched for detailed accounts of local taxes, gold coins accumulated over many years of oil deduction, and wool and cured pork that were too late to send away.

"You're the fat-brained tax officer?"

I sat on the low fence at the entrance of the village, looking at the fat man who knelt at his feet and kept kowtowing.

"Tell me, who is the lord here, and what good things are hidden that we haven't found?"

The fat man shook his head like a rattle, his face trembled like two dusty fat jelly, and he pinched his throat incoherently and shouted:

"No, sir! This is the mining of the knight of Nekar, for God's sake, everything in the village is here, I really don't know what is left, please spare me! ”

"Spare you?"

I kicked him in the chin with my sharpening, and watched in a playful tone as the fat man's face slowly turned into a pig's liver.

"Knight Nekar, is it? Where is his fiefdom? As long as you take us honestly, not only will you spare your life, but you can also return the bag of gold coins you have in your private possession. ”