A month before General Adil was looking at the wisps of black smoke in front of the ruins of the granary, a Vekia merchant ship was docked in the port of Aaron.

The foreign policy of the country of Vikia is simple: the countries bordering it are all hostile except for the subject states; It does not border with all its allies except enemy countries.

Expansion-minded Vekia is essentially non-aligned, and once its borders extend to the edge of a country, its next move will certainly be to sharpen its knives and prepare to annex territory. Now, Vicchia has friendly neighborly relations with Rhodok and Salander. A neutral country like Vekia is extremely important to both warring parties. For example, this inconspicuous merchant ship almost served as the diplomatic hope of Rhodok and Salander.

On the merchant ship was an envoy of Salander from Sharitz, more precisely, an envoy of the second prince of Salander. The second prince chartered the ship shortly after the naval sortie, and at that time, Fort Gammich was not even under siege.

The Rhodok took this very seriously, and as soon as the merchant ship came ashore, a group of soldiers boarded the ship, and soon these people disembarked with a man with a nonchalant expression. This man has passed the prime of his life, his physical condition is gradually deteriorating, and the pain in the cervical spine is more frequent, which makes him upset. This time, he was commissioned by the second prince, who hoped to have a supporter in the future as a new sultan, who was not so legitimate.

The man boarded the carriage that had been waiting for him for a long time at Aaron's Wharf and headed downtown. The secret servants of General Enor and General Garcia have returned to Aaron, and these two will participate in a secret meeting of them, the Grand Duke, and the Messenger of Salander. In fact, before Rhodok entered the war, he had already begun to receive different contacts from within Salander, and the second prince had been secretly trading with governments behind the old sultan's back for a long time.

For this war, it was advantageous for the Sultanate to enter the war of Salander: the Salanders were able to reap the benefits when the Swadia and Kugit were wounded; And the war was also beneficial to the second prince, and the war allowed the Sultan's pro-army to be transferred to the frontier as much as possible, leaving an empty capital.

In the past, the capital of Saland, Kuba, was guarded by 9,000 soldiers, and there were more than 10,000 troops at the disposal of the surrounding provinces. And if the Sultan really reached a critical juncture and quickly armed the local garrison, more than 30,000 soldiers would be armed in three days. Of course, most of these soldiers are not well trained and cannot afford to fight tough battles, so they can only save in a short period of time.

What really terrified the Sultan was one of his personal guards called the Mamluks. This elite force of more than 900 hoplites, mostly from Kugit and Vecchia--- two countries that fought the tribes east of the mountains all year round, brought back hundreds of sick and dying orphans each year, which the Saland's envoys paid a premium for. After the worst of their suffering, these children received the same care as the Sultan's father in Salander, who was given bright clothes, delicious food, and, after a little older, a bewitching beauty.

The Sultan gave them an extremely privileged living environment, and also sent the best coaches in the army to train the children harshly. These children grew up with the warmth and extreme cruelty of the Sultan, and most of them became "good sons of the Sultan and murderers of the enemy" when they came of age. The soldiers of this army, cut off from all contact with the outside world in peacetime, enjoy a life of heaven and hell in their own small circle, and their world is only the Sultan, and they are in perfect tune with the Sultan's heartbeat.

Of course, these people are a great obstacle for the second prince. The prince knew that if the Mamluks saw themselves as a threat to the Sultan, they would be defeated by even ten times as many troops as them. In order to transfer this army, the second prince's protégé set off public opinion before the war, and everyone began to spread a rumor: "The only thing foreign countries are afraid of is the Mamluks, and once the Mamluks of the Sultanate appear on the battlefield, only the royal knights of the Svadia Empire dare to try their edge."

This legend made the future owner of the Mamluks--- the Grand Prince listen to the blood boiling. The upright prince approached the old sultan and asked to personally lead the Mamluks to serve at the front.

The old sultan clasped his fingers together, looked at his eldest son quietly, and said softly, "These soldiers are reserved for you to guard the palace." The old sultan quietly warned his son.

"No, no, now that the country's health is tight, there is a lot to be done on the frontier", the eldest prince grinned and continued to persuade his father, "Let me take these boys to war!" I will demolish the temple church in Dehrim and bring every brick back to Dukuba, where I will build a temple dedicated to Allah and let the imams posthumously make you a saint after you die! ”

The old Sultan liked his scheming son very much, although the second son was more like his own youth.

When the princes were young, a southern estate once offered the sultan a basket of fresh strawberries. The Sultan singled out the largest strawberry and asked the two princes to decide for themselves who would get it. The Sultan had his own plan: if any prince offered to give him the strawberry, he would give him the rest of the basket. When he saw this strawberry, the second prince quickly glanced at the basket that the Sultan was hiding behind him, and the eldest prince happily reached out to the Sultan to ask for it.

When the Sultan said that there was only one, the eldest prince immediately muttered that he loved his father very much, and prayed for him every day, and the Sultan smiled and said, "Shouldn't the elder brother let the younger brother?" The eldest prince immediately sat down on the ground and said that he wanted to be his younger brother.

At this time, the second prince took up his brother and said to the Sultan, "Give it to my brother."

The Sultan smiled and gave the eldest prince the largest strawberry, and then gave the second prince the remaining basket of strawberries.

While the eldest prince was munching on a large strawberry and staring at his brother and father stupidly, his eyes full of happiness and a little doubt, the Sultan saw the sly smile that flashed in his younger son's eyes. The look startled the Sultan.

When more than ten years later, when the second prince had already befriended officers and courted the powerful everywhere, the eldest prince was thinking about going to the frontier to open up territory for the Sultanate, and wanted to expose his back to his younger brother with a sly smile without reservation.

The Sultan refused the request of the eldest son, but sent the eldest son to a prominent position in the general's palace in Dukuba. The Great Prince can control the army at any time. This protection was interpreted by the eldest prince as his father's favoritism, as the second prince had been sent by the Sultan to the seaside a few months earlier to familiarize himself with the army. While the eldest prince was giving up on himself and holding feasts and drinking all day long, the second prince continued to manipulate public opinion and demanded that Salander's army be transferred more to support their allies, the Kujits.

Nine of the thirteen elders jointly asked the Sultan to increase his troops to "do the will of Allah"; The officers of the capital have asked to lead their troops to the front line to make meritorious achievements; The small people in the market whispered that the old Sultan was afraid of the enemy like a tiger, and did not dare to let Salander's sons give it a go.

The old sultan was finally pressured to send garrisons in the capital and several surrounding provinces, and when he heard the news, the eldest prince happily ran to the assembly places of the various expeditionary forces to help dispatch and work generously. The Oriental people who invented paper have a saying, called: "When you are betrayed, help you count the money", and this saying is most suitable for the eldest prince.

In this way, after three reinforcements to the front, the defenders of Dukuba and the surrounding area were less than 10,000. Six hundred of the Mamluks were led to the station by members of the royal family. By this time, the second prince had completed the reorganization of the navy and the armies of the coastal provinces, and had in his hands more than 7,000 soldiers who were loyal to him. After the prince had the power of the army, he was not in a hurry to reinforce the fort of Gamage, but sent an envoy to test the mind of the defenders of Gamage, and when he learned of the reply of General Adil of Gamage, Salander's navy disappeared from the sea, and the sea was empty, and the second prince showed Adil his strength and goodwill, but since Adil was unwilling to become his ally, the prince no longer fought too much for this potential ally.

The army of the second prince began to return to Shariz and assembled there. Waiting for the return of the messenger sent to Rhodok.

As General Adil watched the black smoke rising from the ruins, His Royal Highness Prince Salander II welcomed back his envoy in Sharitz's mansion.

"Your Royal Highness", the messenger who returned without a break bowed to the second prince.

"What is the attitude of the Rhodoks?"

"Archduke Rhodok entrusted me with my sincere condolences to the future Sultan of Salander". The messenger straightened up with a blank face.

While General Adil was searching for spies in the fortress of Garmic, a detachment of light cavalry set out from Sharez for the fort of Garmic, with the following order: "Cease all confrontation with the Rhodoks at once, or else the fort will be regarded as a rebel area, and the defenders of Garmic will then become the common enemy of the Salanders and the Rhodoks." There were four executioners in the pair of hussars, their butcher's knives hidden in their sleeves, and if General Adil refused to carry out the order, they would kill General Adil and replace him, and would make contact with General Garcia as soon as possible.

At the same time, more than 5,000 princes' guards packed up their bags and sneaked out of the city walls at night, and these men assembled on the outskirts of Sharitz, and then quickly marched north to the capital.

Many of the officers of the Salander army defending the capital received the signal, and their nerves began to tense. They quietly gathered their close followers from their respective units and told them that the country was being led into the abyss by the stupid Sultan and the incompetent Great Prince, and that it was time to stand up like a man to save the country and get her back on track.

All know that this is just rhetoric, to save the Motherland? It's just a fancy reason. But think about it, what could be more tempting than the fact that in the past, women who could not get titles, land, and beauty even after a lifetime of hard work now have an opportunity to make them readily available?

On the evening of the third day, as General Adil was frowning as he read a document named Sultan in the fortress of the fortress of Kamichi, the defenders of Dukuba saw dust rising from the sky.

"What's that?" A Salander soldier said curiously, pointing to the horizon and to his companion.

His companion made an eyebrow with his hand and looked at it, "I don't know, I haven't heard that any troops are coming to Dukuba recently." You wait, I'll go and ask the chief."

After a while, a city gate officer squad leader lazily climbed to the top of the city with a betel nut. As soon as he saw the scene in the distance, his eyes widened and he spat out betel nut. This low-ranking officer of Salander had served in the navy and had excellent eyesight, and could see the masts of enemy ships in the distance in the sunlight. At this time, he muttered to himself: "This is enough for more than 3,000 people, which general has returned?" ”

While the gate officer was wondering, a group of soldiers climbed the city wall. At a glance, the city gate official knew that a big man was coming, so he immediately stepped forward with his helmet straightened and bowed humbly, "Selam!" My lord! ”

"Well", the visitor turned pale, looking at the dust raised in the distance. "How's the garrison going?"

"No problem, sir." The city gate official replied: "Even since last night, the messenger has not returned since he left the city, maybe the bridge on the road is broken or something, and this morning I have not seen the farmers from the southern villages come into the city to catch the market, and it is not as lively as usual." And my lord, I can't talk about it anymore, you see, the army over there seems to be a problem with the scheduling, I haven't received any news that the army is approaching, I have to report to my boss."

"Very well", the nobleman who came wiped the cold sweat from his face with a handkerchief, as if he was a little flustered, and then took out a document from his arms, "The Sultan ordered, welcome the soldiers into the city to rest." These people are about to leave the front line, and the Sultan wants to personally comfort them. Go down and open the gates of the city, and keep the horses away. Don't worry, those people were recruited by the Sultan. ”

The city gate officer looked at the document, and the signing department was not the usual city defense department, and the person who signed it was not someone he was familiar with.

"My lord, 'the warriors are full of thousands of people do not enter the city', this is the old rule of the city gate officials, I am afraid that without the Sultan's personal order, I will not be able to open the city for you. I could wait until the order comes before opening the door, but now that this group is coming suddenly, I have to go and close the gates, so please get out of the way. ”

"What, do you want to disobey? Ah, you see, the Sultan's messenger is coming," the nobleman said in surprise, pointing behind the city gatekeeper. The city gate official did not move at all, standing in place and staring at the comer.

"Sure enough, sure enough, I guessed it", the city gate official said in a low voice, while the nobleman was still pretending to look behind him, the city gate official kicked down the nobleman, "Hmph! When grandpa cheated recruits like this in the army, you were still breastfeeding! ”

Seeing this, the guards brought by the nobles drew their scimitars and forced them up, and the soldiers under the city gate official were at a loss and looked at each other blankly. Some of the soldiers heard the noise and came out of the battlements to see what was going on. The gate officer jumped back and shouted, "Close the gate!" Light the fireworks! Hurry up! A sucker! ”

The gatekeeper shouted as he ran, and the nobleman got up and motioned to his men to turn out the little uninteresting little man. The gatekeeper was quickly stabbed in the back, and he ran and cried out as he bled out: "Close the gate! You fools! Hurry up and come out, don't sleep, the enemy is coming! Fireworks, ah'''''"

As the city gate official called out the last word, he was stabbed to the ground with a spear by a nobleman's own soldier, and he was still writhing: "Close the door" "Ah" "Close the door"

The nobleman walked over with disdain, slit the throat of the city gate officer with a knife, and turned around and ordered the soldiers to clean up the stubborn resistance of the soldiers under the city. Sporadic fights soon began on the walls.

When several soldiers of the city gate officer heard the news, they immediately ran downstairs and pushed the thick gate with great effort to close it.

At this time, the advance party of the cavalry of the army from the south had already broken under the tower.

Several cavalrymen rushed in at the last moment when the gates were closed, and beheaded several soldiers who were willing to die to protect the capital. After this, the soldiers of the nobles opened the gates of the city, and in a short time bands of cavalry and infantry swarmed into the city.

The Sultan knelt on the edge of a lotus pond and quietly looked at the clear water, it was almost summer, and the lotus flowers were about to bloom again. May the future of the Sultanate be as bright as a lotus, and may the virtues of the Sultanate be as fragrant as a lotus.

At this moment, the panicked shouts of the messengers were heard in the corridor, from far and near. The Sultan looked up at the south of the city and saw black smoke rising from the south of the city, and his expression was calm: "My brother has come to snatch my brother's strawberries."

The Sultan shook his feet and closed his eyes.