Egypt, Kamon Village.

Outside the window, the sound of horses' hooves wakes the Coptic village from its slumber.

Menes leaned over the window and looked through the crack at the attire of the passing army: "It's the Praetorian Guard of the Governor of Ibn, why don't they even light a torch?" ”

"It seems that they are most likely defeated, otherwise they would not have run so badly."

"I didn't expect it to be so fast!"

In the evening, this army had just passed through this town, and it was not long before it was broken and fled, and the fighting power of the crusaders was indeed as strong as the legend said!

Menes felt like a fire was being lit in her chest.

There was a shout of killing.

The defeated army of the Governor of Ibn, seemingly leaving some of its soldiers behind, and after a long shouts of slaughter, the crusaders, dressed very differently from Saracen's army, arrived in the village of Kamon.

Menes watched carefully the crusaders they had never seen before—they were dressed in a very different way from the Saracens, wearing no veils or turbans, like steel-clad beasts.

The fiery war horse is like a red ghost in the dark night.

The Crusaders slowly passed through the village roads surrounded by knights on fiery red horses, their robes emblazoned with distinctive crosses and eagle emblems, which made the Copts sigh quietly.

"O God, they are the crusaders, the warriors of Christ!"

"The army of the governor of Ibn is no match for them at all, is it that from now on the belongings of Damietta will pass into the hands of the Crusaders?"

"Will these Franks forcibly enlist us into the army? My son and husband are still serving in the army of the governor of Ibn. ”

There was a murmur in the village.

Many Copts have a mixture of anticipation and fear in their eyes.

It would be nice that the Crusaders could drive out the Saracens for them, and that Egypt would be restored to the arms of Christ.

But who knows, if the jackals are driven away, it will be the tigers and leopards who come?

Even if they are all Christians, who can guarantee that heretics will be more merciful than heretics?

Zoroastrian texts, while advocating the destruction of the pagans, also advocate forgiving the pagans when they show obedience, and the Saracen rule for centuries has indeed been tolerant.

On the contrary, the province of Damietta was the front line of the Crusader War, and suffered a terrible military disaster, and the Franks and Saracens burned almost all of Damietta in this land that did not belong to them.

At that moment Menes pushed open the door and cried out in an unfamiliar Gallic language: "Who is the noble King of the Dead Sea?" Guardian of the Holy Lance? ”

King of the Dead Sea?

Jeanne, riding on the back of a fiery red war horse, quickly reacted, and the King of the Dead Sea should be the Copts' complimentary name for the lords of Outer Jordan.

Jeanne waved her hand back from the cavalry guarding her, and rode up to him: "The marquis is behind, do you have anything to do with your lordship?" ”

It's actually a woman?

Menes had no idea that the Crusaders would let a woman take on the role of an officer or even a general, and she was a little overwhelmed for a while.

"I am the guardian of the holy spear personally appointed by the Marquis, and I am also the supreme commander of this cavalry team, so you can tell me anything."

Jeanne's voice was calm, without the eagerness of a pursuer.

Celinina had already brought Lothar's orders, the enemy had already suffered heavy losses this time, and the goal of annihilating the enemy's living forces as much as possible had been achieved, and it was only the icing on the cake to wipe out the enemy's fleeing elite.

"This is a conspiracy, noble lady."

Menes reacted, scolded his short-sightedness, and hurriedly said: "Ahead is a dangerous silt, it looks no different from the flat ground, but as long as you step on it for a long time, the river will not reach the surface of your feet - if a cavalry passes from there, it will definitely fall into the silt!" ”

Jeanne frowned.

What the other party said may really become a reality.

Coupled with Lothar's order, she was not allowed to take too much risk, she thought for a while, and still ordered: "Stop the pursuit, collect the corpses of our comrades, and collect the spoils, and we will return to the camp immediately." ”

After giving the order, Jeanne looked at the Copts in front of her and asked, "Interested in joining the Crusaders?" ”

Menes had a look of surprise on her face, and hurriedly said, "When, of course, noble lady! ”

In the distance, look at the crusaders who are gradually moving away.

Senmut felt a blockage in his chest, and almost spurted blood, in this battle, he lost nearly sixty percent of the military strength of Damietta Province, and the elite Mamluks of the Governor of Ibn also lost nearly half, and finally the plan to make up for the mistake was in vain, and now, no matter how much the Governor of Ibn trusted him, after going back, his fate was not much better.

As the cavalry company led by Jeanne returned to the camp, Lothar was relieved.

When it was dawn, look at the mountains of armor, weapons, and belongings piled up in the camp.

Lothar couldn't help but be a little shocked, last night, Jeanne and how many infidel armies did they defeat and kill?

These supplies, ordnance, Lothar will not be lightly moved.

If the Copts were willing to cooperate with him and join him, these ordnance would be able to arm tens of thousands of troops in no time.

But the money looted from the corpses of the enemy, he must collect and exchange it for gold coins, part of which is rewarded to meritorious officials, and the other part is to upgrade the servants, even if there are no elite materials, at least everyone must be upgraded to the full level first.

It's noon.

The second army, belonging to Baron Argonne and other Transjordan vassals, successfully crossed the pontoon bridge and reached the opposite bank.

By evening, the crusaders on this side of the river, numbering nearly 20,000 men, were crowded into cramped makeshift camps, and he would continue his march when the last Crusader army had crossed the river to-morrow.

Next, Lothar's primary goal was to build a fortified fortress as a fulcrum for his invasion of Egypt.

This fulcrum, Lotha, had long been considered, was the base camp of the governor of Ibn and the port of Damietta, the capital of the province of Damietta.

With a permanent population of more than 100,000 and a busy shipping schedule, it is one of the most important cities in the Delta region (Lower Egypt).

Just taking the city and gaining a foothold, Lothar's crusade to the south was not a vain.

In the future, the Crusaders will be able to land here from Europe and from the Kingdom of Jerusalem without having to travel a long overland.

But in order to conquer the port of Damietta, you must first occupy more than a dozen fortresses and fortresses along the way, and this is not counting the small wooden forts that many villages have, if you really storm all the way, it will take too long, not to mention, the losses will be very heavy.

In the evening.

The guards came to report: "Your Excellency, the head of Tinis, 'Mahmud,' and many of the Coptic chiefs of the nearby villages, have sent you gifts and want to be summoned by you. ”

After receiving Lothar's answer, some Copts wearing robes and turbans carried heavy gifts into the tent.

Among them, a roll of extremely thick cashmere carpet is the most impressive.

Lothar didn't rush near the delicate cashmere blanket – he had heard in his previous life that Europeans would give blankets stained with the smallpox virus to the indigenous Indians, an early bioweapon that he was not afraid of, but that did not mean that his soldiers were immune to it.

"I'm going to open this gift."

Naturally, Prajna squatted down and untied the delicate tapestry.

There was a bright and beautiful woman's face inside—her long black hair was wrapped in a blanket, soaked with sweat, and stuck to her milky white skin, and at this time, her eyelashes trembled slightly, and she looked at her timidly like a fawn.

Lothar was stunned for a moment, and said in his heart, this gift is really ingenious, but it is a pity that he has no blessing and no interest.

Facing Jeanne's teasing eyes, Lothar ordered: "Take her down, and then let Jeanne be your maid, you don't need someone to wash your clothes and put on armor for you anyway." ”

Jeanna's eyes swept subtly over Pranya, and she nodded, "There is indeed a lack of such a person." ”

"Let the leaders come in and see me."

Lothar sat back on his throne and thought to himself, "Mahmud, this is a typical pagan name, and it seems that the one who came to see me was a convert who had taken refuge in Zoroastrianism. ”

"Salute to the great King of the Dead Sea, Keeper of the Holy Lance, Patron of Hebron, His Highness Lothar."

As soon as they entered, the Coptic chiefs saluted Lothar in an unfamiliar Gallic language.

"God bless you, do you come to contribute to the great cause of the Christians in Egypt?"

Lothar's face was solemn, although the Copts had long been second-class citizens, but the Saracens had conquered Egypt for nearly half a century.

Perhaps because of the Saracens' more tolerant religious policies, many Copts retained their Christian faith, but at the same time, it meant that they did not resist pagan rule.

Lothar was well aware of this, and the slogans he preached—the salvation of the Egyptian Christians, the recovery of the diocese of Alexandria—were only shouted to the Crusaders; In fact, there is a high probability that the Copts do not need his salvation.

The Copts looked at Mahmoud at the same time, waiting for his translation.

After translating, Mahmud said to Lothar: "We are willing to provide the Crusaders with wheat for three thousand warriors to fight for a month, and send a thousand soldiers to join the Crusaders. ”

A smile flashed in Lothar's eyes.

Yes, the Copts did not need his salvation, but he had defeated the governor of Ibn, and the province of Damietta was about to fall into his hands, and the Coptic leaders had to bet on him.

Lothar drew a cross in front of him, and his face was reverent: "Thank you for your deep understanding, and I grant you the exemption from this year's taxes. ”

With Mahmoud's translation, the Coptic leaders showed joy and respectfully thanked him.

"You need not worry that my rule will be too harsh, and I am even willing to make the Saracens in Egypt continue to hold on to their old faith," said Lothar. This, I swear by in the name of God. ”

Mahmoud was overjoyed to receive the promise, and hurriedly leaned down and saluted respectfully: "All Copts will appreciate your kindness and generosity. ”

The Copts accounted for the vast majority of the Christians in Egypt, but there were also many Catholics and Orthodox Christians, who had deep contradictions with each other, and the Saracens took advantage of the contradictions between Egyptian Christians when they ruled Egypt, making it impossible to unite.

The Copts, who converted to Zoroastrianism, represented by Mahmud, feared that Lothar would ban Zoroastrianism in Egypt.

The Egyptians, who still believed in Coptic Christianity, feared that Lothar would enforce Catholicism in Egypt.

But Lothar is not stupid, religion is in his hands, it has always been just a tool.

He intended to rob the Saracen clergy, but that did not mean that he would ban Zoroastrianism in Egypt.

Compromising with each other, seeking Egypt at the lowest cost, and then firmly grasping the kingdom through the thousands of loyal vassals they have canonized, such as the tree of life rooted in the ground, is the best solution at the moment.

(End of chapter)