The municipal residence of Erengrad was built on a small hill, and like the temples of Thor, the god of thunder, the god of bears, and Daha, the god of fire, the high point symbolizes its majesty and power, and people must look up when they walk through the temple, symbolizing the transcendence of the gods over mortals, and similarly, when walking through the town hall, they must also look up, symbolizing the power to rule the people......

It's not something to be proud of, but the commoners of Errengrad, or the commoners of the entire kingdom of Kislev, are used to the status quo of nobles ruling over the commoners......

And in this palatial municipal residence, an important meeting is going on at this moment. Representatives of the four great family forces that control Erlengrad are talking in this council hall, talking about their next steps.

Although Tilles informed them to come to the meeting, he himself did not dare to be late, as a city magistrate, he had some power, but not all, finance, army, foreign trade, black market, port, police agencies were firmly controlled by these big families, they all cooperated on weekdays, and there were gang fights, but on the whole, the four families were still in a state of balance.

For example, the Morlock family controls more of the army in Errengrad, and forty percent of the officers of the defending army are members of their family. However, the Morlock family has less involvement in the city's finances, which is mainly controlled by the Marcus family, as we all know, the army needs finances to maintain, and soldiers will riot without a salary, so the relationship between the Marcus family and the Morlock family is very delicate, both sides need each other, and both contain each other. Walking around the dinner party, family marriages or something is very normal.

Another example is that the Brandon family controls the black market and gang power in Erlengrad, and seventy percent of the gang leaders are secretly commanded by their family members. Anything that is shady in the four major families is often done by these gangsters. The black market provides them with a lot of benefits, but at the same time, the black market and the gang are subject to the control of the police, and on the side of the police department, the Brandon family does not have many people of their own, in the armed police department of Erlengrad, most of them are people from the Leo family, and the senior personnel of the police department, most of them are promoted by the Leo family, or by Leo himself, the police force can be said to be loyal to this family, if the gangs in the city do too much, then, the police will also take care of it, if it is too much, this needs to be solved by the people of the two families......

There are other places, such as the port, which is controlled by the Tilce family itself, and the customs clearance of all goods must pass through the hands of Tils' son and son-in-law to enter and exit Erlengrad, as long as he does not agree, the interests of the four major families will also be damaged, so these five old men in the council hall are kind and kind on the surface, but they all have their own hidden thoughts in their hearts. It's just that when it comes to Erlengrad's independence and rebellion against the Ice Queen, their opinions are unanimous.

"The Northern Coalition is gone, swimming along the Leinsk River. ”

"When?"

"Just two days ago. ”

Tiles said straight to the point as soon as he entered. They have a lot to discuss, and there's no need to beat around the bush.

"Did you send someone to track it down?"

The nobleman Frank Leo asks that he is the youngest of the five old men, and that he is in charge of the police force in Erlengrad.

"Yes, my men are keeping an eye on them. ”

Tills returns.

There was no one else in this hall, not even the servants who poured the wine, only the five of them, and once the bronze door of the conference hall was closed, the news here would not be revealed for half a minute.

"What is their purpose? to prepare for a full-scale siege in the future, and to go out to collect and store grain?"

Brandon said with contempt. As the boss of the black market and the gang forces in Erlengrad, Brandon has always been like this, with a ruffian, and he is not necessarily very respectful to anyone. Even in front of the queen, he did not hide his prodigal nature at all. Of course, he didn't have much chance of meeting the queen directly......

"It looks like this......"

"It's not that simple, if even we can see the trick, then our opponents won't play like this. Brothers, believe me, Cohen and I are old acquaintances, we have dealt with each other for a while, and I still know him well. He's an arrogant guy who looks down on others, but he's definitely not a fool. Plundering grain is most likely just a pretense. ”

Sitting in the middle of the rectangular wooden table, Tilce said unhurriedly.

Montreal Morlock soon agreed. The great nobleman of Erengrad, who held the vast majority of the city's troops, had a deeper understanding of war than anyone else in the room, after all, he was also a soldier, and had been at the helm of Errengrad's army for more than thirty years, inheriting the family business from his father.

"Plundering food is necessary, but it is precisely because it is necessary that it becomes a cover, an excuse. This is such a valid reason and motive, isn't it? However, you and I both know that Erlengrad is not short of food, we have plenty of food, and we don't have to worry about food in the future, this port will provide us with a constant supply of supplies. As long as the sea route is not blocked, Erlengrad will not be truly blocked. ”

"So your point is that the old witch is actually trying to confuse us so that she can blockade the port of Errengrad?"

Brandon asked.

"Isn't it? The upper reaches of the Leinsk are small villages and towns, how much food can be stored? The old woman's real target is Kislev Bay, and I reckon she will occupy all the ports along the coastline in the near future, and use them to create a fleet, a fleet large enough to blockade the city's harbors. ”

Montreal Morlock said that his long association with the military, combined with his military background, made him speak in a tough tone. Everyone heard it, and he was confident in his judgment.

"That would take at least a year. That old woman will wait that long?"

Leo questioned.

"Whether she can afford to wait or not is up to her, maybe she couldn't wait before, but this time she must wait, because not only are we fighting against her, but many lords are also unhappy with her and are refusing to carry out her orders. ”

"Maybe she'll attack the city directly?"

"That would be too risky, a forcible siege would have killed thousands of civilians, and if Catalina had done so, her Tsar's throne would not have been secure. Although the people are easy to deceive, they are also a very terrible force to unite. ”

The five great nobles are discussing in this luxurious palace. However, many conspiracies are also born in private, like a masked ball, where everyone meets with a common purpose, but all have their own interests in mind.

"So, it's now certain that Cohen's forces are basically deceiving us?"

Leo asked.

That's pretty much what it means. What is a coalition army in the North? It's just a rabble, they can't even come up with uniform clothing and weapons, there are more than a dozen lords alone, and in some places there are only a few hundred people, what kind of combat power can such an army have? So, don't worry about them. They can go wherever they like, and as long as Kislev's Krem guard is not dispatched, we have no real enemy. "Read the book

The old general Morlock said. The others nodded in agreement.

"But there is one thing we have to do. ”

Tilles reminded the crowd.

"What's the matter?"

"Crackstone Castle, Vallow City...... The old woman's men are heading to these two castles, you know, we can't leave our allies behind, this war is still long, and we need not only money and patience, but also allies. Without allies, we wouldn't be able to fight that old woman for long on Errengrad alone. ”

Tills said, his eyes rolling as he watched the expressions of his colleagues.

Jerrah Marcus was the first to make a statement -

"My opinion, we must go to the aid of these lords. The allies at the beginning of the war were critical, and we could not afford to lose them. Let the Bloody Mercenaries go to relieve the siege of Vallowburg, they should be used. These people have been eating and drinking in our city for so long, and they are just in time to test their combat power. ”

The Marcus family held the financial power of Erengrad, and his words carried a certain amount of weight. Several other aristocratic bigwigs also nodded when they heard this. Clearly, they are once again in agreement on the matter of supporting their allies.

"But there's a problem...... "Mercenaries are good, but loyalty is a problem, and if someone is willing to pay a higher price, they will sell their old employer and fight for a new one." Also, these mercenaries don't really fight to the end. What I mean is that once it is discovered that there is a huge disparity in strength between the enemy and us, and there is a possibility of defeat, the Bloody Hand Mercenary Group is very likely to flee on the spot, or even directly join the other party. ”

As the Chancellor of the Exchequer at Errengrad, Jeram Marcus did not actually lead troops, but he still had a deep understanding of military politics. In fact, although he himself had not led troops into battle, his nephew had such experience, and his nephew Yudaan, who was in the prime of life, was serving in the city defense army under Morlock as the captain of one of the troops. In this regard, Morlock has long known that it is just that the relationship between the two families has always been "close", and there is no need to tear their faces, so they turn a blind eye to this kind of mutual infiltration, after all, no one can completely eradicate anyone, and they have to rely on each other.

"That's a real problem. ”

As the leader of the meeting, Tills should be with him. He continued to squint at the crowd......

"But allies still have to be saved, and we can't give up on rescuing our allies just because we're worried about the loyalty of the mercenary group, can we?"

Morlock said solemnly.

"Yes, yes, that's for sure. "I have an idea. ”

Several of the great nobles looked at their prefect with different looks in their eyes. The upright Leo has serious eyes, the cunning Brandon pretends not to hear, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer Marcus and the commander-in-chief of the garrison army Morlock look mysterious.

"If one of us can go with the mercenary group, then these mercenaries will not dare to betray us, and when there is any emergency, this person can be disposed of on the spot, and the seedlings of rebellion will be strangled in the cradle. ”

Tilles proposed.

Of course, this proposal Tilce had actually discussed it privately with Morlock and Marcus. Although the four major families in charge of Errengrad City seem to be a balance of power, there are still differences when carefully considered, and the most important military and financial strength is in the hands of the Morlock family and the Marcus family, in fact, the power of these two big families is slightly superior.

So, as soon as Tilles finished speaking, the cunning Brandon immediately fell silent, he had already thought of a way out, once the two families united Tills to stand up and "shuffle", then, he would smuggle out with all his property and join the Ice Queen.

However, this does not seem to be the case, and Tilce quickly turns his gaze to the upright Leo. As the youngest nobleman among the four major families, he is also the weakest one, although he controls the police power of Erlengrad, but his economic strength is not as strong as the other three families, and the police station is not all his people, and the other three families have been spying on his power for more than a day or two. After all, it is still too much for four big families to control a city together...... In addition, a municipal magistrate has a meeting of five people when there is a matter, and the discussion has to be discussed for half a day. Unlike the Ice Queen, maybe as long as she says a word, the army can move.

"Leo, what is your opinion?"

The bad guys do it to the end, Tilce asked the young nobleman Leo in front of everyone.

"I ......"

Leo was about to answer when he felt that something was wrong. Why, among so many people, does Tilce only ask himself, but not others? If he says that he agrees with such a plan, then Tilce will surely go with the flow and say, "Then you go, you are the most suitable." In this way, he is equivalent to being squeezed out of Errengrad...... The police force that he has worked hard to manage for many years will also be handed over little by little with his departure. But if you don't agree, it doesn't work, it seems that the other few of them have negotiated.

"Leo, we're all old friends, and we can't afford to lose allies in the current tense situation, can we? The Bloody Hand Mercenary Regiment is a tough force, if you can lead them......"

"No, they won't listen to me. They will just go with the money. ”

Leo resisted. His face turned pale, and he stared angrily at the others present.

"We will support you, you don't have to worry about the funds. Tilles said, turning to Jeram Marcus again. "Right, Marcus?" he said.

The latter nodded slightly, his eyes misty.

Feeling fooled, Leo angrily left his seat, and the bronze gate was opened with a thud, but it was Erlengrad's guards waiting for him outside the door......

"So, what about the remnants of the northern army in the east of the city?"

Driving Leo away, the big guys continued to sit at the delicate long wooden table, discussing.

"Let the mob meet them, there are too many mobs in the city, just enough for them to go out to vent their anger and have a few mouths to eat. ”

Marcus whispered......