-

On the day of departure, the army assembled outside the castle, and most of the nobles with the surname of Fire Sparrow went to battle, while the rest of the clansmen stood at the gates of the city to offer their blessings for the battle.

However, Mo Shi was neither in the army nor in the crowd of people seeing him off.

Moshi fell seriously ill just before his departure, and even the Duke himself came to visit him and told him, "The bow and crossbow you have made are exquisite, and the catapult is ingenious. We've stepped up to build a new crossbow team, and I think they should be able to master their skills after intensive training. ”

"Yes, that's where crossbow arrows are superior to bows, they're more powerful, more precise, and easier to handle—"

At the mention of his design, Mo Shi's mood was still a little high, and he tried to get up from the bed.

"But learning and connection are still necessary, and I think there's a lot of room for improvement in the crossbows made by those craftsmen today—ahem...... I mean, from a mechanical point of view, ahem......"

The Duke pressed his shoulders and pressed him back into the pillow as easily as a child.

"Oh, it really doesn't matter to you, you feel like you're going to cough your lungs out, that's ...... Well, in any case, may God bless this army and also wish you a speedy recovery. ”

This meant that Mo Shi did not have to go with the army to fight.

It's not that Mo Shi subjectively wants his illness. But in all fairness, the fact that he didn't have to go out because of the sudden wind and cold was a perfect reason, and it also made Mo Shi's mind a little less burdened.

He had heard that wars between lords rarely really grew to the point of destroying their families and countries.

Maybe it's time for him to take a break......

And now, all the people who came to visit him have left, and Duna has also gone to the washroom. The music of the marching army gradually drifted out of the castle. Now the room is very quiet. Great for sleeping.

Sleepiness quickly crept up his hot nerves.

"Hello, Mr. 021814 Mo Shi, after comprehensive analysis, your current civilization index has increased from 0.015 to 0.02%," a familiar female voice suddenly sounded in her ears, "It is expected that the upside will increase in the future, reaching 0.05%. Do you need to apply for an advance?'

Even if you look at the data alone, this is obviously a far greater improvement than before.

Inventions that seem to be limited to remote towns are not at all a notch different from the invention of appliances within the duchy: the use of advanced weapons in the Duke's army meant that the arms race was bound to rise in the years to come. And this is precisely a form of civilizational evolution.

——This angle is worth pondering.

As to whether to apply for an advance......

Thinking like this, Mo Shi pulled open the eyelids that he wanted to close with difficulty, stretched out his hand and groped for the staff beside the bed, and held it in his hand.

He had a high body temperature and a splitting headache, and finally had to give up the act of picking up his staff. And when he fell back to the bed, his body quickly fell asleep because of the relaxation, and he automatically pushed all the civilization advances and weapons of war to the back of his mind.

Mo Shi's illness is typical, and he can diagnose and treat it himself:

High fever and colds caused by overwork and cold, and pneumonia may occur. All he needed was rest and a few anti-inflammatory pills – but unfortunately, he could only get the former.

The bluebird's healing technique slowly took effect.

Mo Shi thought that he should not die from a cold wind.

So he fell asleep more comfortably.

-

Bluestone Fort. The city of the Marquis of the Autumn Crow.

It was a valley city embedded in the mountains, and a breeze warmer than the outside world stirred through the city, blowing the vellum paper in front of the marquis's table. The black raven, disturbed by the sound of paper, made a loud chirp and flapped its wings to the eaves.

"Pamu, my child. Novan ...... Norwen ...... "The marquis, who is over the prime of life, sits. He sat in a rocking chair under the corridor, letting the wind blow his gray hair toss back and forth.

He was no longer young, his blonde hair faded, his skin wrinkled, his body puffy, and his fur was messy, and his retainers had to recustomize his armor and weapons. The last time the Marquis went to war was in his youth before he was fifty years old, before he was even married, and he followed his father north to fight the dreaded Darkwings.

Firesparrow had also had many disputes with the Autumn Crow, but the Marquis thought that these histories had nothing to do with him, as they had been married for more than three generations and had a stable time.

The Marquis had no idea that this war would happen.

Damn, shit!

Damn it—that damn old fellow, the "poet" of the Fei family, his minister on the left! Nowen would get him into such a big trouble, he never expected. Norwen was his best friend and most trusted retainer, and he wouldn't have let him accompany Pamu to the Firesparrow's house to settle the marriage. Yet, however......

Thinking of this, the Marquis couldn't help but cry.

He was already at this age, and he was the Marquis of Autumn Crow, and no one would accuse him of crying.

As soon as he cried, his young and beautiful Mistress of Oria would come up and kiss him on the cheek, saying "Don't cry, baby, don't be afraid", and then wash his face and massage his fingers.

So he found comfort for a while.

But he soon became sad again, for when he saw his mistress, he remembered his cold and arrogant wife, and then of his children.

His eldest son was frail from an early age, which showed that he was an imperfect man abandoned by the gods, and although the Marquis tried his best to find a cure for him, the final result could not be reversed. Fortunately, the second son, Pamu, was strong and fierce, and he was a fierce and brave Afaya. He had placed all his hopes on Pamu, and even wiped the crown that symbolized the knighthood many times...... But why did Nowen kill him? Why did he do this, why did he betray them?

The Marquis was puzzled, and cried even more fiercely, and sobbing was very funny.

His courtier, the young Willy Fei, who was Norwin Fei's nephew, stepped forward at this moment.

If the Marquis had not been so indecisive and old, Willy Fei (and his entire family) should have been implicated and punished for his uncle's mistakes, but because the Marquis favored him, he was not blamed too much.

"Don't be sad, Lord Marquis, I know that you are now grief-stricken, and are about to give your charity to your enemies. But no, my lord, we are the chicks under your wing. He knelt down before the Marquis, his hands on his puffy calves and rubbed them gently.

To satirize the young courtier, they called him a "flattering poet."

He has a gentle voice, a handsome appearance, and is proficient in law and rhyme, and also has a talent for magic, but unfortunately he has only learned three degrees of spells, and his talent is insufficient. Those who talk about him behind his back say that he is not religious enough to be loved by the gods.

"What should I do, Willy, the Firesparrow's army is on its way to the plains, and I have to face his wrath. ”

"No, how could that tragedy be your fault? You lost your child......" and your best friend. But Willy swallowed the second half of the sentence wisely, "You are the one who was pierced through the chest by the sword, but those cruel and rude fire sparrows actually took advantage of the situation to accuse you, hurt you, and even start a criminal war when you were most sad!"

"But, but...... Indeed, we ruined what should have been a perfect marriage contract—"

"Not like that, my lord. This is clearly a trick of the firespinches! they are greedy and eager for your western hunting grounds, and sooner or later they will start a war. ”

So far, there is nothing wrong with the young man's statement.

But when the Marquis continues to sob, Willy Fei exposes the shortcomings of the courtiers (as they are called).

He began to praise the greatness of the Marquis and the majesty of the Autumn Crow with unlimited rhetoric. In the end, although the Marquis was delighted, the war would not subside.

"Tomorrow you must go see the carriage and the armor, my lord. You'll set out early next month to show the Firespinches your invincible army. Finally he said, "May I come with you?"

The Marquis laughed, looking like a trembling mass of fat.

He patted the young man on the shoulder, laughing almost coughing, "Oh, lovely Willy, but, you're a cripple! Cripples can't go to war, you know. This is an affront to the gods. ”

"I'll be useful!" he said with some urgency, "I won't let you down or my father, my right leg can't walk, but that doesn't mean I can't hold a sword! I'm good at my bow and arrows, and I've been in spear duels—and my magic, my lord, my 'blessing' will make your armor as hard as black stone—"

"But your spear skills are really bad, you broke your right leg in that duel, don't you remember?" the marquis laughed again, as if remembering some funny scene, "well, I also heard that you once crushed a poor servant alive under the hooves of the two-horned horse for a wrong blessing. ”

The young man's face turned pale, and he gritted his teeth for a moment before he could barely smile.

He still sounded extremely deferential, as if he was laughing at himself, but his expression was not calm, and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly: "That was a long time ago, when I was really eager to be in the limelight, childish and ridiculous. ”

"Don't be in a hurry, lovely child, you are still young, sooner or later there will be a suitable position for you. The Marquis said, "Norwen has been a retainer all his life and has never been to the battlefield, which does not mean that he is not an excellent, excellent ......"

Inadvertently mentioning old friends and betrayers, the marquis's mood gradually fell again.

Willy had to say the good things many times in a different way.

By the time he was finally able to leave the marquis's room, it was almost nightfall.

He walked through the corridor, and the ravens crowed to give him a headache.

He picked up a lump of snow and threw it at the big black bird, which the raven deftly dodged.

"Idiot......" he muttered to himself.