Continue to promise the two more

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Most of the soldiers in the Norman siege at the foot of the Amalfi Mountains saw the smoke and flames rising from the valley of Aversa in the north within a day, and their hearts immediately began to waver, "Did Count Haverley really wipe out the Greek rebels?" So was it the attack of the remnants of the rebels that was causing the disturbance in the city of Avelsa? ”

At last, even Bohemond stood in front of the tent with a grim face, and then he saw Haflair, who was also uneasy, and asked in a stern tone, "What the hell are you talking about Gawain. Lusail annihilated no. ”

"I believe I told you at the earliest, and I didn't find Gawain's body, but the detachment cut off seven hundred rebel heads and captured hundreds of people, according to normal reasoning, it was difficult for them to organize an attack, which was basically equivalent to rout." Haflet was anxious to defend himself.

"If there is no corpse, it means that he is not dead!" Bohemond shouted angrily.

"But at that time, it was your Excellency that you were anxious to announce the death of the enemy chieftain, that Gawain, and the destruction of his army, so as to add weight to the negotiation and blackmail against the city of Amalfi." Not to be outdone, Hafrey protested, and then the entire gathered count nobles talked, and Bohemond stood there with his head bowed in frustration, panting, "I also need a detachment to go to Aversa to fight the enemy and find out what is going on." ”

Several counts shook their heads, saying that it is really difficult for our army to organize now, from the flag bearers to the ordinary Calabrian soldiers, they all sat by the luggage, gave up and continued to fight, waiting for Amalfi's indemnity money, and the military pay could not be paid. "Your Excellency, you should have listened to the Pope's mediation a long time ago, but the situation is difficult to ride, and your mother Gaita may have been delirious before she died, and it is hard to imagine that you would listen to her plan."

"There's nothing wrong with Geta's plan, it's the guy who is called the Red Hand, and now Collins has routed Tancred. He made trouble in Calabria again, extorted a large ransom from me, killed my captives, and made a despicable surprise attack on Avelsa! And my uncle, my rich and powerful uncle Roger in Sicily, his performance was not at all worthy of the strength he usually boasted of, and Bohemond's fleet all bypassed the Strait of Messina and appeared here, but Roger's! When the enemy swaggered into Calabria. None of his fleets appeared in the Ionian Sea, let alone intercept the enemy, damn it! Bohemond made various gestures, anger threatening to overwhelm his sanity, "The roots of the Normans are all in Avelsa, and no one would do such an act in such a sacred place, even if there was a war between the nations on a daily basis. ”

Soon. The two monks and monks, who had had all their hair stripped of by Gao Wen, stood by the tent. Accompanied by several gloating Amalfi emissaries, Bohemond sat down on a folding stool in agony, accompanied by his dog and eagle, and then the two monks handed him a letter from Aversa:

"The first nobleman with a sword in the Roman Empire, the Lombard company Aconis, the commander of the Red Hand Brigade, the Grand Duke of Calabria and Lucania, Stephen. Gawain. Lusail, in the name of Christ, to his beloved brother, Bohemond of Apulia. Morality. Tver.

I'm in Aversa now.

That's right, your worst fears have happened,

And it can get better or worse with my heart and mood.

Twenty-one noble ladies of repute, nearly seventy monks and nuns. In my hands, I don't want their reputation and body to be ruined.

Therefore remove the siege of Amalfi, or I will give all the noblewomen and nuns to my subordinates as slaves, and all the monks to be castrated;

In addition, I razed and destroyed all the statues in the cemetery of the monastery of Avelsa, a small matter that you can explain to your subordinates.

Be sincere, or I will go one step further and dig up the graves of your father and your ancestors, and set the bones on fire, so that all the wild dogs will eat them.

You don't have to guess how much you miss me based on your handwriting and signature, because Gawain can't write at all, and I wrote this letter on my behalf, and he was a member of the Norman monastery, so I have no patience to wait for your reply.

Please pray for me Christ, may Christ protect you. ”

The corners of Bohemond's mouth were trembling slightly, there was such a vicious person in the world, even more vicious than him! He tried to tear up Gawain's letters, but because of his public demeanor, he finally endured it.

Then, with an effort to smile, the Duke corrected the conditions to the Amalfi envoys, "According to the original plan, the Dukes are merciful and humane, and I hope that everyone will be preserved, and I will surrender thirty thousand silver coins, and I will swear before the envoy of the Holy See to withdraw my troops and return to Calabria and Taranto." ”

"No, I think the plan should be changed, now Amalfi has the chips in hand, and the rules of the game can't be according to the old ones, otherwise the world will laugh at our wisdom." The plenipotentiary envoy said proudly, with extreme mockery, "We have reduced the peace fee to 10,000 silver coins, and we cannot let the prince come for nothing, and I can't pay the military salary for the expedition, I heard that you have mortgaged your title and fief." ”

"You are fooling me, and the fate of Amalfi will be utterly destroyed, just as God did to Nineveh." Bohemond scolded.

But the plenipotentiary envoy, in the presence of Owenceth, the abbot of Monte Cassino, was unusually tough, "Your Excellency Pantagleoni has entrusted me with the news that Amalfi will not hesitate to fight hand in hand with the friendly forces of His Majesty the Emperor of Constantinople, and he will come back with his sword anyway when the robbers have fed him." ”

"Twenty thousand silver coins" In front of many Normans' agony lords, Bohemond had completely abandoned his dignity and haggled like a Syrian peddler.

"Then it is decided, by the way, Your Excellency, if you have mortgaged everything to the Pisa, then please keep your noble soul, because the ship of Amalfi bound for Fullerster in Egypt is still short of oarsmen, and if the prince does not dislike it, we will arrange for you to take over this post at our discretion, with additional allowances." The plenipotentiary teased this mercilessly, and handed over the diplomatic paperwork.

In the flying snowflakes, Bohemond felt a biting cold, and the sea and mountains in front of him were dull and desperate gray: but I still firmly believe that Mother Gaita's original plan was flawless, and it was Gawain's sword that pierced in, and all the beautiful illusions of Ayara were cut to pieces.

Everyone present heard that the dignified Duke of Apulia actually hiccuped, the kind of hiccups with a sad meaning, one after another, and then the Duke took off the ring, covered it on the paperwork, dipped his finger in the ink, and pressed it on

"Gawain, you dare to challenge me, so good, even if Bohemond goes to hell, I will take you with me!" Bohemond burped again, thought. (To be continued......)