That night, Li Tianhao and the others rushed to the post station, and after washing off the sand and soil on their bodies, everyone began to listen to the detailed report of Senas and Aram to Frank while drinking wine and roasting meat. Pen, fun, and www.biquge.info

Senas touched his head and said, "According to what the two of us know about the Frank Empire, this is a completely different country from the Yaqui, Parchi, Arubania and even the Paz Empire. In this country, the divine right is the supreme power, not the royal power. So there are so many kings in this country that they can carry a lot of buckets, but what they can actually rule is only a small prince, or even just the domain of a manor lord. The real power was held by the people known as the high priests, who were scattered throughout the country and constantly preached the teachings of the gods to the people, and the kings were only responsible for collecting taxes from their own domains to support their knights and defend their territories from infringement. Even the issue of civil litigation cannot be completely decided, because a considerable number of people will choose to accept the divine judgment presided over by the priests. ”

"It's incredible," Li Tianhao Although he had heard that the system of the Kingdom of God was different from that of other countries, he couldn't help but be surprised when he heard Senas's narration with his own ears: "There are so many kings in this country, so how can this country function?" ”

"As far as I can see, the Frankish state is actually a very loose state structure, and its state is quite weakly based on its rule. It is the only means of unifying the kingdom in the name of God, but in reality the priests have little power to interfere with the specific means of governance, and it is difficult for the kings to interfere in politics as long as they do not take measures that are contrary to the gods and scriptures. The kings were in their own hands, and no one had the right to interfere with how others were governed, so there were countless laws in the land, and the lords were fixed to the lord's land. Some of the larger kings also gave them titles, but these lords were free to govern without being constrained by the king, and all they had to do was send troops to fight for the king. Senas said as he put half a leg of lamb into his stomach.

Li Tianhao frowned and said, "If according to what you say, this country doesn't want to mobilize an army to deal with foreign enemies, then why did they send such a large army to fight in Yaji before?" ”

Senas washed the lamb down his throat with a large sip of ale, then wiped the grease from his mouth, and laughed, "I was about to say this." You think that there are so many kings in this country, and the kings will divide more lords and knights, and these people naturally want to get married and have children, but the territory is only so small, how can it be enjoyed by so many children and grandchildren? In the end, only the rightful heirs could own the territory, and the remaining brothers would either become his courtiers or fend for themselves. These people have been trained by the nobility since childhood, and of course they are not willing to do the work of the peasants easily, so they will become mercenaries almost without exception. These mercenaries roam around the country and fight for the kings, and the kings of the country will clash over various issues from time to time, so the war will not be broken. The strength of each king is limited, so the number of knights is very small and very valuable, and the combat effectiveness of the peasant soldiers is very weak, so the temporary army of mercenaries has become the choice of many people, their combat effectiveness is strong, and they do not need to be raised in peacetime, which is quite a cost-effective deal. Therefore, the last time the Frank Kingdom sent troops to Yaqui, all those troops except for General Fisher were specially appointed. ”

"I see," exclaimed Müller, who had killed General Fisher in the first place, and no one knew better than him about the fighting power of this Frankish army: "If you are a mercenary, the quality of the Frankish army is really quite good." In particular, they are heavy infantry in heavy armor, which is very difficult to deal with. ”

Senas pointed at Muller and nodded, "You're to the point. Most of these people are the children of nobles to fend for themselves, and their families are all wealthy, so it is still possible to buy a strong armor for them. You haven't seen the armor of these nobles, and wearing that kind of armor is simply impeccable. However, this armor was so heavy that after wearing it, he could only sit on the horse, and it was difficult to walk if he dismounted. But all of them were skilled in horseback fighting, swordsmanship, and bows and arrows, and they were all quite great warriors. ”

Alam, who had not spoken at this time, suddenly interjected: "That's right, I have participated in nearly sixty sword competitions, and although I have won all of them, I also have to admit that these people's swordsmanship will be very practical on the battlefield, but they are clumsy when they compete, especially when the opponent is me." ”

Li Tianhao slowly bowed his head when he heard this, and said: "In this way, Frank's mercenaries are still easy to deal with, if these nobles and knights are organized into an army, it will be a terrible armed force." ”

"Exactly!" Senas raised the wine glass to the position of his eyes to pay tribute to Li Tianhao's insight, and said: "On the surface, these princes and nobles of the Frank Kingdom are fighting around like a plate of scattered sand, but they have the same beliefs, and the great priests really can't completely control them, but they can restrain their behavior in the name of the gods. ”

"You mean that if the priests are interested in waging foreign wars, they can do so through God's will?" Li Tianhao immediately understood the meaning of Senas's words.

Senas smiled knowingly, "That's true. In my opinion, the spiritual leader of the Frank Nation, the chief priest, Gragul, is an old man with a peaceful heart, but his deputy, the second archpriest, Magraln, is an ambitious fellow. He had already emptied the chief priest and held the actual divine power, and he knew that the remnants of Aqui were already yesterday's yellow flowers, but he was slow to break off relations with them, apparently preparing to keep them as an excuse for his future. I am afraid that he will agree to trade with us for another purpose. ”

"Exactly," added Aram at once, "I have heard from the ladies that the region on the coast of the Dichic Sea, through which we have passed, has become the richest part of the Frankish country because of its frequent commercial contacts, but the northern part of the country is still in a rather backward and impoverished stage. The people there are taller and more bloodthirsty and warlike, and I think that if we engage in large-scale commercial trade with them, it will inevitably widen the gap between the rich and the poor between the north and the south. ”

Li Tianhao nodded and said: "At that time, the people in the north will covet the wealth of the south, and if the princes of the south do not want to fall into the fate of being attacked, then the best way is to send the northern Yankees on the ship to the source of wealth." Maybe that's Frank's purpose. ”

What everyone here is saying is based on the analysis and speculation of the available information, and these speculations cannot be used as a basis for judgment until more reliable information is obtained. Li Tianhao knows this, and he will not rush to conclusions, anyway, with the development of trade, the spies on both sides will continue to infiltrate each other, and the quality and quantity of intelligence will continue to improve at that time. Even if his current speculation was correct, it would take a long time for Frank to conceive the plot and actually carry it out, and before that, Palch had plenty of time to prepare, and his enemy was still in Arubania in the east, the veteran named Adlem. (To be continued.) )