"Michael, you do the math now. If 500,000 people eat half a kilogram of grain a day. How many tons of grain to eat in a month. Princess Mary took her daughter in her arms and said to her eldest son.

As a mixture of Mongolian and Italian, Michael has a darker complexion. High nose bridge, big wavy curly hair, very beautiful. Looking at her handsome son, Princess Mary felt extremely satisfied. Mother and son were on a boat bound for the mouth of the Tiber River, and in a few days the Eastern Roman royal family would return to Rome.

Michael was not at all touched by his wife, and experienced the punishment of not completing his homework many times, Michael took a pencil and began to calculate on a piece of paper. After some calculations, Michael replied: "Mother, you need 7,500 tons of grain a month. ”

This number made Princess Maria's expression look much more ugly, and she turned to the governess next to her, "Did Michael miscalculate?" ”

The governess hurriedly replied, "Back to the queen, little master Michael is not wrong. ”

In Latin, Michael or Michael are the same name, but in China they are different because of the spread of Nestorianism. Princess Maria did not know this, and the reason why she chose the new Chinese unit of measurement was because the Yuan Kingdom copied the Great Song system of weights and measures, and the fleet responsible for transporting grain used this unit of weights and measures to provide food to Boyan.

The ship that was now responsible for transporting grain was a steamship with a displacement of 2,000 tons, and it was on this boat that Princess Maria was travelling in. Having seen the supply of food from Egypt to the Mongol possessions of the Great Khan, Princess Maria knew how difficult it would be to fill a ship of this size with food. This is a direct demonstration of how difficult it was to feed the 500,000 people on the expedition to Italy.

At this time, Marshal Boyan looked at the envoy sent by Hao Ren, the lord of the Yuan Kingdom, and listened to the messenger's response that Hao Ren promised to let his youngest son marry the daughter of Marshal Boyan. For kings, all vows are not as straightforward as marriage. When Hao Ren agreed to the marriage, the cooperation between the two parties was equivalent to having a basis for cooperation.

No matter how arrogant Boyan's attitude was, Hao Ren, who was far away in Kyiv, didn't care. If Boyan had gone on an expedition to Italy before receiving an official order from Kublai Khan, it would have been called rebellion. Therefore, Boyan had no way to ask Hao Ren for marriage at that time. Bo Yan just said it, and Hao Ren would not agree. Wait for Boyan to officially set off before sending someone to propose, and Hao Ren will be happy with this family business.

The reason for agreeing is not the personality and ability of Marshal Boyan, but the fact that Marshal Boyan is on the front line of attracting the attention of the countries of Europa. The Great Song Dynasty took the Principality of Athens, and the Marshal Boyan took Italy. The Europa situation has changed dramatically. According to the information that Hao Ren learned, the Eastern Roman Empire, the Great Song Dynasty, and the Great Marshal of Boyan actually had a secret agreement that was not known to Kublai Khan.

The Great Song Dynasty agreed and supported the Eastern Roman Empire to recapture Macedonia, Thrace, and other former Eastern Roman Empire territories west of the Bosbroses. Marshal Boyan said that the future Kingdom of Italy and even the 'Western Roman Empire' were willing to join forces with the Eastern Roman Empire to take out the Republic of Venice. Return to the Eastern Roman Empire the lands that the Republic of Venice had taken from the Eastern Roman Empire.

The area that the Great Marshal of Boyan, the Great Song Dynasty, and the Eastern Roman Empire had to work together to solve was called the 'Balkans', and the Balkans were next to the current Holy Roman Empire. Hao Ren did not believe that the Holy Roman Empire could turn a blind eye to the major changes taking place under his nose. Once there is no Holy Roman Empire behind it, the only enemy in front of the Yuan Kingdom is probably the Teutonic Knights.

When Lord Hao Ren was praying for the future, Kong Sande, the director of the Logistics Bureau of the Ministry of War, came to report, "Your Majesty, the new iron cannon has arrived. It's all five-pound guns. ”

"Have you tried?" Hao Ren asked.

"Tried it, the cannon is really good." Kong Sande sighed and said: "King, I only knew that the Song artillery was sharp before, but now I have seen the Song army's means of casting cannons with my own eyes, and then I know that the Song artillery is actually drilled in such a thick iron pillar!" No wonder their guns are so light and so sturdy......"

Hao Ren nodded. He was also frightened by the metal processing capabilities of the Great Song Dynasty, and those factories were full of huge iron guys weighing thousands of pounds. These iron guys roared so loudly that they couldn't hear anything else when they went in for a while. The five-pound cannon embryo weighing hundreds of pounds looks like a toy compared to those huge equipment.

In order to build these huge factories, Hao Ren paid a very large price. When he first decided to cooperate with Da Song, Hao Ren did not expect that he would have to pay such a huge price. Up to now, Hao Ren still owes Da Song a lot of money. The money will be repaid with grain, and it will not be paid off in full until the year after the big year.

However, Kong Sande seemed to be surprised, and he kept talking. Hao Ren had to ask, "How many five-pound cannons were sent?" ”

"One hundred and twenty." Kong Sande hurriedly replied.

“…… Have you tested them all? Hao Ren continued to ask.

"It's all tested. It was tested with the method of stuffing gunpowder. After doing this, the air tightness test is done again, and the gun does not leak. Kong Sande said excitedly.

Hao Ren was stunned, he thought that the arsenal established by the Song State had only sent thirty or forty cannons. When Da Yuan was not defeated, he was also casting artillery, and the tradition at that time was that there was no way to fulfill the contract. Let them cast even a pound of cannons, saying that it will produce twenty guns in three months, at least one more month. Even if the delivery is started, the quantity is not enough.

After the establishment of the Yuan State, Hao Ren simply gave up. In the big yuan with a population of 20 or 30 million at that time, most of the capitals had hundreds of thousands of craftsmen, and in the end, it was still like this. There are only 2 million people, of which 1.2 million are still the Marza people and local people who have only returned to the Yuan Kingdom in recent years. The other 100,000 are Mongols who have stayed here before. Hao Ren didn't expect these people to be able to forge cannons and guns now.

"Let's go, let's take a look." Hao Renxing stood up at the rush.

Riding a horse to the military camp outside Kyiv, I saw rows and rows of five-pound guns on the teaching field. Hao Ren jumped off his horse and walked in front of the artillery, and saw that these cannons were all placed on steel turrets imported from the Great Song Dynasty. When I looked at the door, I saw that all the guns were the same size, as if they came out of a mold.

After looking at the artillery, Hao Ren found that the new arsenal had also made the planned musket. Contrary to the fact that each gun in the Great Yuan was somewhat different, the muskets of the Great Song Dynasty were exactly the same. Hao Ren took a standard round bullet and stuffed it into each muzzle, and found that each muzzle could be reloaded very smoothly. Hao Ren is going to be forty years old this year, and he actually burst into tears in front of the public. You know, the Mongolian musketeers had to learn to cast their own lead bullets. If you don't know this technique, you can't use the Mongolian musket. This was one of the reasons why the musket was gradually abandoned in Hao Ren's army. As long as it is not too different from the bow, the versatility of the arrow is high. But the bullets of the musket could not be separated by even the slightest difference.

"My lord, one hundred and twenty cannons, three thousand six hundred muskets, and three thousand six hundred handcuffs." Kong Sande said with emotion.

Lord Hao Ren didn't answer, and he found that fear was beginning to dissipate from his heart. The Mongol armies of the Great Yuan era knew that they were defeated by the firearms of the Song army. Now it's the turn of the people of color to know the power of firearms.

Marshal Boyan didn't know that his importance in the heart of Hao Renguo had declined at this time. Mongolia attaches great importance to marriage contracts, and now the daughter of Boyan Dashuai is still young, and she will not officially talk about the marriage process until she is at least fourteen years old. It is estimated that her daughter will be fifteen years old when she leaves the cabinet. Although it was ten years later, no one would ruin the marriage.

The commander in Rome was sure that his men had begun to leave Sicily and go to live in the area he had already set aside. This is conducive to supervising the local nobles on the spot, facilitating the obtaining of grain and grass from the local nobles, and reducing the overall pressure on the Marshal Boyan. The grain of the Yuan State transported by the Great Song fleet could only be supplied to more than 50,000 elite troops fighting on the front line.

While Marshal Boyan was making plans, the herald brought new news. The allied forces in northern Italy had already moved south after assembling in Florence.

The marshal originally wanted to meet his wife and children in the city of Rome, but at this time he could only leave this job to the steward and lead the troops to the front by himself. If the coalition forces in northern Italy can be annihilated, the purpose of the recent campaign will be achieved.

The total number of allied forces was more than 20,000, which was the largest military operation in Italy in recent years. The nobles were wearing ancestral armor that looked very metallic. But most of the guys who wear it like this have never been to the battlefield. Those knights or armed priests who had participated in the crusade wore crusader equipment, with linen clothes on the inside and chain mail on the outside. Outside the chain mail is another layer of linen clothes with a cross painted on it.

Not only is it lightweight, it can be used at any time, but it is also breathable. In the past, when the Crusades had just begun, many people did not wear linen clothes over the chain mail, and as a result, the iron chain mail was hot under the sun, which was very uncomfortable. After suffering hardships, consideration when marching becomes very important.

In addition to the Mongol army knowing the movements of the Italian coalition army, the Italian coalition army also knew the movements of the Mongol army. The troops and horses of both sides were massing in the general direction of Rome. Although Rome is now a small city of no importance, Italy still considers itself to be a descendant of Rome. This is especially true of the blonde, blue-eyed Germanic barbarians of northern Italy. Further north in Italy, the Holy Roman Empire was simply the Germanic barbarians who had never been to Italy, and they were even more enthusiastic about Rome's reputation.

By May 17, 332 of the Great Song Dynasty, near a plain northeast of Rome, the warring sides had tacitly adopted this place as their main battlefield.

"Marshal, the harassing forces have been blocked." One of Boyan's generals, Ali, a true god cultist, regretted his retribution.

Ali was a descendant of the Mamluks, and for these Mamluk cavalry, they were convinced only by strength. The Mamluks have served many powers, all kinds of people. After the Mamluk dynasty was annihilated and the remnants fled further south of Biesa, the Mamluks immediately expressed their willingness to serve their new masters.

"Engage them head-on." Boyan said indifferently. Only when he faced Zhao Jiaren's army in his life did he lose a frontal battle.

Opposite Marshal Boyan, the coalition forces are also making final preparations. As a coalition army, there are a lot of all kinds of bullshit. For example, the Mecchidi family in Florence asked the Republic of Venice for more money.

For the Venetian merchant aristocracy, they certainly could not accept blackmail. So the gang said that as long as the war was won, Venice could pay more. At least until now, out of an army of more than 20,000 people, 7,000 of the 18,000 mercenaries were hired by the Republic of Venice. In the end, everyone finally reached a consensus. After all, there is still a long way to go before winning the war at this time, far from the point of tearing your face.

The representatives of the Republic of Venice returned to the camp with a feeling of humiliation. The nominal commander of the army of the Republic of Venice was the Doge of Venice. The governor also said that he should not deal with the northern scum for now, and wait until the Mongols are dealt with before they are dealt with. The Governor did this because he believed that his greatest enemy was not his allies.

Including the Doge, the fleet of the shipowners of the Republic of Venice has been attacked by the Great Song fleet in the past half month, and two fleets have been destroyed. The Battle of Rhodes was long over, and after several battles with the Great Song fleet, the Republic of Venice had given up its desire to fight the Great Song fleet, which was like a giant beast on the sea. Just when they thought that it was not too late for the gentleman to take revenge for ten years, the Great Song fleet, which had not taken the initiative to attack, suddenly moved.

After the annihilation of the Duchy of Athens by the Great Song army, the Great Song fleet began to attack the ships it saw at sea. The terrible flotilla snatched cargo, captured sailors, sank ships. The captured sailors were sent to the slave markets of Egypt to be sold. In order to save these valuable seafaring talents, the Republic of Venice passed a decree that Venetian merchants in Egypt could buy Venetian slaves first, and when they were sent back to Venice, the Republic would pay for their indications.

Even at such a huge cost, they were able to redeem less than a tenth of their sailors. With the news of the seizure of the Duchy of Athens by the Great Song army, new news came from Egypt. The Great Song Dynasty had already sent the captured Venetian sailors to Africa for sale, and there was no possibility of redemption in the future.

Now Venice also understands that no matter what, it is rumored that the Great Song and Mongolia are fighting fiercely, but in the Mediterranean, the Great Song and Mongolia are allies. If you want to solve the Great Song Dynasty, you have to solve the Mongols. If you want to solve Mongolia, you have to solve the Great Song Dynasty.

Although Venice also sent envoys to Baghdad, where the Mongol Golden Horde was located, to sow discord, at least for the time being, Mongolia and the Great Song Dynasty were still the common enemies of Venice.