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「……安格斯大人，哨卫来报，伦巴第人没有跟上来。」
威尔斯军团骑兵连副长贾法尔快步来到安格斯身边。
Angus, who was resting his horse and drinking water under a tree by a stream on the edge of a hilly forest five miles southeast of the Lombard Cavalry, was not surprised when he heard the news.
Angus stood up and threw the wine naan in his hand to Jafar. Without saying a word, this guy with an amazing capacity for drinking picked up the wine naan, bit open the cork, and drank a few big gulps. The beard on his chin was soaked by the dripping wine. If Angus hadn't walked over quickly and grabbed the wine naan, this honest guy would not have left a drop of wine behind.
"You bastard, leave some for me"
Angus grabbed the wine naan, shook it a few times, and quickly stuffed the cork into it.
「嘿嘿嘿，安格斯大人，我这不是渴了吗」跟着军团一众高阶军官混熟了，这个曾经的异教徒开始变得油滑。 Jafar wiped the remaining wine from his thick beard and suddenly spoke again, "By the way, Lord Angus, although those bastards didn't follow up, they didn't retreat either. I was afraid that the situation would change, so I arranged for two guys to keep an eye on them."
After many raids on the Lombards in recent days, Angus has already figured out the details of his opponent - the opponent will neither pursue them closely nor let the enemy succeed easily. All in all, conserving strength and waiting to see what happens is the consistent aim of the Lombards at this moment. It's not that the Lombards are weak in strength or bravery, but that the current situation is no better than in the past, and if there is a slight difference, they may lose everything.
Since the beginning of the confrontation between the Duke of Lombardy and the Burgundian Palace Guards, Angus has been leading more than two hundred men from the legion's cavalry company to continuously harass them. After a few days of piecemeal fighting, the Lombard cavalry lost more than thirty cavalry before they knew it. The mercenaries who went north to join the cavalry corps in besieging the Palace Guards of the Marquis of Burgundy suffered more than fifty casualties, which was an impressive record. Looking back at our own side, five people were killed and 13 were slightly or seriously injured, but the overall strength is still there.
This morning, the guards around Art broke through many obstacles to find Angus and others. They brought out the news that the army would fight the Lombard army tomorrow morning, and passed Art's secret order to Angus.
The senior officers of the cavalry company were very excited when they heard the news. In recent days, they have been hiding and doing missions such as raids and harassment behind enemy lines, which has made everyone feel very frustrated. As the core combat force of the Wells Legion, it is not in line with the style of a cavalry company to be unable to compete with its opponents on the battlefield. However, in order to cooperate with the legion's actions, Lusignan and other high-ranking officers had to obey orders and listen to the legion's instructions.
Now that the opportunity for a decisive battle with the Lombards has finally come, Jafar, Reyek, Red and other company deputy captains have asked for help.
In the temporary cavalry company command tent, Angus and Lusignan looked at each other and smiled. Seeing these guys working hard and preparing to beat up the Lombards, the two of them felt more confident.
"Guys, please be quiet." Lusignan patted the long table made of simple wood in front of him. The deputy captains of the company immediately stopped arguing and focused their attention on Lusignan, who was near the main seat.
"Lord Angus and I have discussed together. This battle is related to the life and death of the entire legion. Our cavalry company, as the main battle force of the legion, cannot be absent. The earl once said this wise saying - to raise an army for a thousand days, to use it for a while. Our cavalry company has rarely been able to fight since the day it was formed. Fight face to face with a large number of cavalry or infantry. Firstly, the cavalry company has been newly formed, and the combat skills of the new recruits are much inferior to those of the veterans. If they go to the battlefield to fight, they will lose their lives in vain. Secondly, the cavalry company, as the sharp sword of the Wells Legion, will drink the blood of the enemy easily if it is not unsheathed. "
Lusignan's mouth went dry as he spoke. He picked up the wooden wine glass in front of him and took two sips of Welsh beer, feeling relieved in his throat.
"I believe you all know how much energy and money the count has spent on training our cavalry company. Just the purchase of horses, weapons and armor cost millions of pfennigs, plus daily horse feeding and training, weapons and armor repair and maintenance, and your salary is much higher than that of ordinary soldiers. You don't need me to calculate these accounts, you also understand."
Several company deputy commanders nodded and murmured a few words.
"In this southern expedition to Lombardy, the cavalry company is mainly responsible for the tasks of disturbing the enemy's baggage and shielding the battlefield. There are few opportunities to compete with the Lombard cavalry. Even so, we still have to take care of the horses and don't dare to let the horses consume too much energy. These days, you must be holding back your anger, Lord Angus and I can see it."
“This time when we go south to fight, the Count intends to let the new cavalry company train their skills under the leadership of veterans to familiarize themselves with the battlefield environment as soon as possible so that they can play a greater role in the subsequent war. Now, the opportunity has come...” Lusignan glanced at Angus who was sitting in the main seat.
Angus, who had been listening to Lusignan’s speech, sat quietly without saying a word, only nodding his head from time to time to express agreement. As the chief officer of the Legion, Angus rarely speaks at military and political meetings. This is not because he is lazy to think, but because of the subtle tradition of the Wells Legion.
At the beginning of the establishment of the patrol, Art, as the commander, was the first to speak at almost every military and political meeting. Firstly, this is because most of the soldiers in the patrol team are from laboring miners and farmers (not of high rank). They are only familiar with the transportation and farming work they are engaged in, and they have no brute force. In addition, in that era, most of the people who could receive education were the children of nobles and merchants. As long as the people at the bottom could have enough to eat, how could they bother to study military issues.
Secondly, Art’s status is different from other people’s. As the son of a baron with a noble background, Art was born with a noble aura. The innate sense of distance between nobles and civilians always makes these subordinates who are from civilian backgrounds feel inferior. In addition, due to their lack of experience in battle, they have nothing in their minds, so they naturally don't want to talk too much.
As the team expands, more and more people need to be managed, and affairs of all sizes are complicated. It is obviously unrealistic to rely on Art alone to support it. As an ordinary person who traveled back to the ancient European Middle Ages from modern times, Art cleverly assigned large and small matters to his officers, and he only made arrangements in the general direction. This not only improves efficiency, but also allows Art to free his hands. It also indirectly cultivates the officer's ability to think independently and solve problems. It can be said to kill three birds with one stone.
As the opportunities to participate in military and political affairs increase, the enthusiasm of army officers of all sizes is also increasing. Even suggestions provided by ordinary soldiers may appear in the military discussions of the legion. As a result, not only did the officers and soldiers become more motivated to offer advice and suggestions, but various conspiracies were often used against the enemy.
“…The current situation is roughly like this,” Lusignan pointed to the battle map on the table and told several people about the current situation between the enemy and ourselves. "The front line in the north is our legion reserve group, the Palace Guards Corps and the elite soldiers around the Count. More than a thousand people from the Lombard Cavalry Corps are blocking the Palace Guards' southward path. According to our sentinel inspections in the past few days, there are Lombard mercenaries moving north one after another, totaling about 1,500 people. But... ..." Lusignan paused and waved a few people over, "Last night, about a thousand people secretly returned to the outside of Santia City. It seems that it was a conspiracy played by the old guy, the Duke of Lombardy, to deliberately confuse the Santia City defenders in an attempt to make Lord Odo and others relax their vigilance and catch them off guard."
Hearing this, Jafar and others broke into cold sweat, feeling that they had a heavy responsibility.
Angus, who had been silent for a long time, now said, "Don't worry, everyone, the defenders of Santia City have already received the news. Tomorrow, the bastards outside the city will know how powerful we are." "
"Brother Otto, don't worry. The guys are all holding back this energy. Tomorrow we will tell the bastards in the city whether they have come back or not." Standing behind Otto, Baron Sapp, Captain of the Sapp Company of the Welsh Army, and brother-in-law of the Earl of Wales, Phoenix, replied respectfully.
Although he was a baron, the only son of Galvin, the palace finance minister, and the cousin of Flanders, the king of Burgundy, Phoenix did not show any sense of superiority or arrogance in front of Odo. On the contrary, he had great respect for the deputy commander of the Welsh Legion and the Baron of the Province of Wales who had climbed up from the bottom step by step relying on his own military exploits. In daily combat meetings or battles, Phoenix never overstepped his bounds and always addressed the burly man in front of him as Commander Odo. But in private, I would affectionately call this rough guy Brother Otto.
And Odo also appreciates Phoenix's character more and more, but this is not because of Phoenix's multiple identities, but because this distinguished rich young man is becoming more and more friendly in dealing with others, and his military attainments are getting higher and higher. He is also willing to ask for advice humbly, and is warm and generous to others. He is no longer the impulsive, arrogant and conceited rich young man before.
In this expedition, Art deliberately arranged for Phoenix to follow Odo. Firstly, it is to cultivate Phoenix's overall planning and command capabilities for future army operations, and secondly, it is to have someone to take care of Odo. As his brother-in-law, Lottie would always tell Art that he must take good care of his brother every time he went on an expedition. Ever since Phoenix became lame, Art has always felt ashamed of him. Every time he goes out to fight, he will definitely consider Phoenix's safety. If anything happens to his brother-in-law, he can neither explain it to his wife nor face his father-in-law, Lord Galvin, who has always supported him unconditionally.
At present, Art’s worries are obviously unnecessary. Phoenix seems to be a different person since his injury. Maybe it was the cruelty on the battlefield and the fear of death that made him no longer regard war as a child's play, or maybe it was the injuries left on his feet that made him understand the meaning of living. Phoenix was lucky to have survived, albeit with an incomplete body. But the soldier who rescued him was not so lucky. It was with a new understanding of life and war that Phoenix slowly learned to grow in war.
In an arrow tower at the corner of the city wall in the northwest corner of Santia City, Odo, the deputy commander of the Welsh Legion, looked serious and his face was solemn. The heavy full-body chain mail was stained with blood, and the dent on the full-face helmet was caused by the stones smashed by the trebuchet outside the city yesterday and splashing in all directions on the solid city wall. At that time, the enemy stormed all the gates of Santia like crazy. As the commander of the city defense, Odo led the reserve team to run around. Whenever there was an emergency, the reserve team would rush to fight as soon as possible.
In the early morning of yesterday, the mercenaries outside Santia launched the most violent attack since the siege of the city. Just after the patrol returned to the station and rested for less than two hours, Odo was awakened by a rapid knock on the door. Without time to think, Otto picked up the broadsword leaning on the bed and staggered to the door. He opened the door and was told by his own soldiers that the mercenaries outside the city were attacking the city from all directions regardless of life and death.
Otto ignored his dizzy eyes, braced himself, and immediately ran towards the city wall. Just as he ran under the north city gate, a huge boulder crossed the city wall and flew directly towards Odo's position. Soon after, Odo shouted "Get out", kicked his feet hard, and sent his whole body out. He took advantage of the situation and fell to the ground, narrowly avoiding the flying boulders. The guard following him was not so lucky - his right foot was hit on the knee by a boulder when he stepped out, and his whole body was carried around several times by the inertia of the boulder. By the time they landed, their calves below the knees had already flown to the corner of the wall, and the thighs below were smashed into pulp, bleeding profusely... Then several boulders flew in, killing and injuring seven or eight soldiers.
Seeing this, Odo quickly got up from the ground and reached the north wall in a few short steps. Looking at the collapsed walls everywhere, Odo took the leather buckler handed over by his own soldiers, used the cover of the city wall to come to a wall with the largest gap, and carefully looked out of the city. I saw that the group of mercenaries who had no military discipline and exuded the smell of copper a few days ago were now organizing an attack in an orderly manner...
As soon as the trebuchet stopped, the shouts of killing were heard all around Santia City. The Lombard mercenaries were divided into multiple teams, pushing battering rams, carrying ladders, holding spears, broad swords, chains, flails, axes and hammers, and swarmed towards the city of Santia like ferocious beasts. This group of guys, who usually looked inconspicuous, looked like a mighty army at this moment, running towards the city wall desperately.
Perhaps he was tricked several times by the defenders of Santia City in the past few days and hundreds of people were killed. Or maybe these guys received some signal, and the endless temptation of money prompted them to launch this desperate attack.
As soon as the two sides came into contact, the battle became intense. If the Wells Army had not made sufficient preparations before the war, Santia City would have been in danger.
It was not until sunset that the battle ended with the retreat of the Lombard mercenaries. The city of Santia escaped another disaster...
"...I don't know what the current situation is there, sir, but there is a cavalry regiment of more than a thousand people." Odo's eyes were full of worry. After the battle during the day, Odo had a new understanding of the combat power of this group of Lombard mercenaries, and he could not help but be a little worried about the fierce battle tomorrow.