For the sake of secrecy, the Saxon military filled the junction with boulders at both ends of the canyon, sealing it off.

According to the information provided by Rajesh, the prisoner bull led the cavalry unit to blow up the sealing stone in the north and led the army into the canyon. Although the road is not easy to walk, it is nothing in terms of the endurance and agility of the northern war horses, not to mention that the "Temple Mercenary Regiment" sent people to march south along the high places at both ends of the canyon in advance, and did not find any ambush.

Stormtooth was in no hurry to attack. He ordered the soldiers to rest in their formations. The sappers set up gun emplacements in hidden positions, collected fuel such as firewood nearby, and boiled some broth for the soldiers to eat with dry food.

The Marquis of Brackbarn had given the order to enter the trenches last night. There was a justification for this: yesterday at noon during the inspection and lunch, he saw on the site that the trench was beginning to take shape, and although it was not deep enough, it was sufficient in terms of length and width.

The city of London is huge, and because there are no walls, it is crowded with people on the outskirts, and it takes a lot of time to make a detour from inside and outside the city. In the view of the Marquis of Brackbarn, the most important part of the fortification was the northern side, so yesterday's inspection was also dominated by the northern line of the city.

He is only one person, and he lacks skills. The supervision of the defense works to the east, west, and south can only be entrusted to those below.

Just as the Marquis of Brackban issued one battle order after another, and the entire kingdom's military headquarters was enveloped in tension, the pale-faced Chancellor of the Exchequer strode into the Marquis's office and glared angrily at Brackban and a group of senior officers who were gathered around the map.

"Is this what you call fairness?" Ragrent was furious and slammed a bloodstained dirty cloth on the table.

The battle plan has been issued, and the orders that should have been given have been completed. The Marquis was puzzled by the Chancellor's approach, and he frowned and waved his hand, motioning for the officers to go down and do as instructed. When the door was closed, and there were only two people left in the room, the marquis asked seriously, "What's wrong?" ”

The Chancellor's eyes were bloodshot, and he raised his hand to the Marquis and roared in a low voice: "You promised to give them a sumptuous lunch, which will be used to offset the payment for forced labor." You...... You liar. I was so naïve to believe your lies. ”

The Marquis of Brackbarn was stunned, and his face immediately became ugly: "Make it clear, what's wrong?" ”

Laurent roared, "Keep pretending, don't tell me you don't know anything." ”

"I don't understand what the hell you're talking about." The Marquis was also angry: "I have been busy since yesterday, the Giant Vanguard Army has come too fast, and the news came from the scouts yesterday afternoon, and I have been staying here to arrange the battle plan...... What exactly are you trying to say? ”

The Chancellor's anger subsided in part, and there was still doubt in his eyes: "You really don't know? ”

"Tell me, what the hell is going on?" A bad feeling welled up in the Marquis of Brackbarn's heart.

"Your men withhold food." The Chancellor of the Exchequer told what he had learned and gritted his teeth: "White bread was replaced with brown bread, and the butter was deducted by half?" Two-thirds of the way down the eggs? The deficiencies are offset with cabbage and onions. Finally, bacon and sausages...... It was swallowed directly by them and was not distributed, and there were only a few meatless bones in the soup. ”

The Marquis of Brackbarn's face was full of shock: "What did you say? This...... It's true? ”

"Ask your quartermaster! They knew exactly what they were doing. "Laurent's eyes flashed with hatred? His gaze then shifted to the blood-stained dirty cloth on the table: "The whistleblower was killed by them?" I learned about this from another source...... In fact, it's no secret. Last night there was already a commotion in the civilian area, and many people were unhappy about the special supply of the northern front? I reckon Count Cummier will come to you soon, just like me? It's all the same thing. ”

The Marquis of Brackbarn felt a blackness in front of him? He took two steps backwards and slumped into his chair.

As the military minister of the kingdom, he was well aware of the consequences of "unfair rewards and punishments". If you change to normal times, there are many ways to suppress things yourself. But now it's different, there are tens of thousands of brave and warlike northern giants outside the city? An attack could be launched at any time.

“…… Examine! The Marquis viciously squeezed out the words from between his teeth: "These bastards who dare to embezzle military supplies must be severely punished!" ”

"Punishment?" The Chancellor of the Exchequer shook his head slowly? His expression became a little sad, he raised his head to look at the marquis, his gaze was very complicated: "Is there any point in saying such things now?" ”

"It's a special time and things are spreading fast. Those who get a full lunch under your supervision are happy? Also very satisfying. They have been talking about it since they returned yesterday, and it spread quickly among the civilian population. Is there too much difference between white bread and brown bread? Almost everyone is talking about it. ”

The Marquis of Brackbarn felt a wave of exhaustion hit him, so much so that he didn't even have the strength to stand up? I had to prop my hands on the chair and barely maintain a straight posture.

He knew exactly what that meant.

Unfair distribution can cause big problems. What if it's just in normal times? Is it a big deal to have the police headquarters send someone to maintain order? Forcibly keep things down. But now it's different? The army of the northern giants is outside the city, and they have a very small chance of winning with their army that lacks weapons, and if they do not get the support of the people in the city, the so-called "capital defense war" will not be able to fight at all.

It's just a passing thought in my head.

"I'll give you a squadron, and you'll be in charge of it." The Marquis of Brackbarn quickly cleared his mind, and a fierce gaze was released in his eyes: "Catch when you should catch, kill when you should kill, I need a safe and stable rear, and I can't go wrong anymore." ”

The gloom on the Chancellor's face eased slightly with the Marquis's words. He subconsciously ...... It can also be said that he nodded hesitantly, and his heart was mixed with relief and worry at the same time. The former was because the Marquis's attitude and handling were the same as before, which gave Laurent hope; The latter came from some of his own ideas.

“…… Buck, it's not as simple as you think. After thinking for a few seconds, the Chancellor of the Exchequer called out the nickname of his long-lost friend: "If it's just an ordinary ink-hungry material, you can deal with it as you want." The question is...... People from the royal family are also involved. ”

"Who?" Brackbar asked bluntly.

"Duke Wemerson's son." Laurent said seriously: "I have checked, many things are related to him, and I suspect that he is behind all this. ”

Brackbarn opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.

Duke Weimerson, the uncle of King George, was a discreet and well-known nobleman.

Countless examples have long proven that a good man does not necessarily have a good son. This sentence could not be more appropriate for Duke Wilmerson. Although the old duke was of high character and respected, his son ...... Especially the eldest son, who is simply a guy who does all kinds of evil. He has been involved in almost all the evils of the world, so much so that people don't want to mention this guy's name at all, and they all use "that bastard" or "duke's son" as a pronoun.

Duke Wemerson was too old to walk, and he didn't have a few years to live. But it is undeniable that when he was young, he made outstanding contributions to the Saxon kingdom. For the sake of this venerable old man, King George gave a "personal order" among his ministers: no one was to touch his son until Duke Wilmersen died. Whether it is liquidation or accountability, everything will wait until after the old man dies.

Part of the reason why the Count Commo, the Inspector General of the Kingdom Police, is full of grumbling and sad about the situation in the capital and the kingdom comes from "that bastard". In fact, the noble criminal group, represented by the son of Duke Wilmerson, is getting bigger and bigger, and they believe that the reason why this country is now is because their ancestors have made meritorious contributions and suffered injuries on the battlefield. These young nobles then ran rampant, took care of each other, coveted high positions above the court, and were even more dissatisfied with the situation controlled by the king's important ministers.

There was a proverb in distant Saxon antiquity: a fisherman's son can sail a boat, and a general's son can ride a horse. This is similar to the ancient Chinese "dragons give birth to dragons, phoenixes give birth to phoenixes, and the sons of mice can make holes".

The duke's son is certainly not a petty rascal in the slums, and there is a marked difference in hierarchy and insight between violent thinking and intrigues.

A nobleman, especially a nobleman with a good family background, no matter how visionary, evil, and domineering he is, he will not make a brainless act of destroying his foundation at a critical time.

Taking a step back, even if he is a heinous madman, there are other people around him who will judge the situation and stop it.

A simple reminder from the Chancellor of the Exchequer made the Marquis of Brackbarne think a lot in an instant. He felt a chill on his back, and cold sweat soaked through the shirt he wore under the leather armor: "...... You mean, they have other ideas? ”

"They" refers to those headed by the sons of the dukes.

Laurent did not give a direct and accurate answer. He licked his dry lips and hesitated, "They don't like you, and they don't like me." They have always believed that we control the military and financial power of the kingdom. Even the Holy Lord can't guess what everyone is thinking, so I can only analyze it according to normal logic: they want to use this war to achieve the goal they have always wanted, to get us down. ”

Just when the two of them were silently falling into thought, they suddenly heard a muffled sound with a slight vibration in the distance.

Immediately, the door was pushed open from the outside, and the adjutant in leather armor and uniform ran in, and he saluted the marquis, and with the anxiety on his face, he said breathlessly: "Report, the northern giant has opened fire." ”

……

Stormtooth divided the artillery team into two groups, and the main target of the first phase of the shelling was the tower, which was located outside the city of London. These towers were in disrepair, and although they were built under the orders of the Marquis of Brackbarne, they could not stop the powerful cannonballs. After three salvos under the guidance of artillery observers, there were no buildings more than two meters above the ground level on the outer positions leading to the city of London from the north.

Rather than sending out the infantry, Stormtooth ordered the shells to be replaced, and the second group of artillery adjusted the muzzle elevation angle to bring the entire city into range.

When the Marquis of Brackbarne and the Count of Laurent ran out of the room, they heard a sharp whistling sound in the air, and then saw the buildings in the distance enveloped in a huge explosion and fire, rising thick black smoke and quickly igniting a blazing flame.

Chemical phosphorus production requires a rigorous sealing process. Tianhao came up with the concept of "incendiary bombs" and, based on his own experience, drew a diagram of the internal infrastructure of such bombs in the era of civilization. Researchers from the Ministry of Science and Technology conducted a number of tests, and finally determined that the first batch of special artillery shells was developed on the basis of gasoline incendiary bombs by purifying fuel oil and adding various substances, as well as pressing part of white phosphorus into a sealed environment.

After three rounds of shelling, one hundred and twenty white phosphorus incendiary bombs fell into the city, immediately unleashing tremendous power.

All wooden buildings within the blast radius were set on fire, and the terrifying flames continued to burn even when they stuck to the surface of the stone. The heat and fire set everyone in the circle on fire, and those who were killed on the spot were undoubtedly lucky not to suffer from pain. Thousands of people howled in the fire, running desperately, slapping the flames on their bodies desperately, rolling back and forth on the ground, but to no avail. The raging flames held them firmly as if the devil's hand had held them firmly, their clothes were quickly burned away, their skin turned from burnt yellow to charcoal black, and violent activities such as running intensified the cracks, and the dying let out hoarse screams of exhaustion, watching the skin on their arms, thighs, chest, abdomen, and other places peel off one after another, revealing a half-ripe pink muscle tissue that emitted a trace of steam.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, who witnessed all this, had a face as white as earth, and he stood there trembling: "Put out the fire...... Organize people to put out the fire. ”

It was the only thought in his head.

The Marquis of Brackbarn was a little quicker to react and more thoughtful. He gave a series of orders in a hurry.

"Order the police headquarters to immediately send people to maintain order and extinguish the fire as soon as possible. Also, send someone to inform the royal guards and ask them to protect the king from entering the underground vaults. ”

"What the hell are the troops doing outside the city? Pass my orders to attack the giants' positions. ”

"Send a messenger and ask when reinforcements from the south will arrive?"

As he spoke, he turned back into the house, and when he came out, the Marquis had an extra arquebus of fine workmanship.

Laurent looked at him with admiration: "You want to go into battle in person?" ”

"My family and I have been serving the king." The Marquis of Brackbarn's face was full of hideousness, and he skillfully examined the gun in his hand, and said as he loaded the gunpowder: "I am a Saxon, and this is my country, my city. In the face of a strong enemy, there is only a fight to the death. ”