Chapter 696 Before the war
"Your Excellency, are you worried about the attitude of the Provence court towards the assassination of the monarch?
As an advisor to the army, Robert could see Art's thoughts at a glance.
Art stood up slowly, holding on to the armrest, taking his time. He replied slowly: "For the Provence court, as long as the Burgundy Kingdom can fulfill its agreement, defeating the Lombards together is their biggest concern. Regarding rumors that the monarch has been assassinated, I believe the Duke of Provence has his own judgment~"
Ate put his hands behind his back and walked back and forth in the tent.
"What I'm concerned about now is when we can take Solonborg and open up the road to continue south. Now the Provence frontier army is making rapid progress. We have not moved for many days since we took the city of Santia and the southern counties of Lavati. It seems that it is time to speed up~"
An After hearing this, Gus said decisively: "My lord, please rest assured. Once the army arrives outside Sauronburg, we will do our best to seize the territory belonging to your family in one go and realize your wish for many years!"
Otto, who has always been calm, was also ignited by Angus's passion. "Yes! Capture Sauronburg and restore the honor of your family!"
"Well, with your words, we can capture Sauronburg soon!"
"I am willing to serve you!" Everyone bowed and beat their chests,
Gulu~Gulu~
As soon as he finished speaking, a growling sound broke the solemn atmosphere in the tent.
Yat clenched his fists and covered his nose, turned around and pretended to cough.
Gulu~Gulu~
Following another burst of restlessness~
After Odo and Angus looked at each other, everyone laughed loudly.
"Hey, sir, please forgive me, in the moment of urgency, I actually forgot about this~"
When Bob saw this, he ran out quickly, went straight to the Radial Base camp, and ordered the kitchen to prepare food and drinks for a few people.
After a while, several servants followed Bob and delivered several large bowls of rich stew and several pieces of fine wheat bread with adult vegetable soup to the tent.
After a hearty meal, several people returned to their tents to rest.
It was a peaceful night~
The next morning, it was almost dawn.
The legionnaires began to pack up the camp after breakfast.
At sunrise, large groups of people have already set off one after another, heading east along the business road to the north of the market town. After crossing the ancient stone bridge across the river, we walked south for three miles, climbed over a gentle hill, walked north for a while, and then entered a mountainous and hilly area to the east.
On the way, after two short rests in the wilderness, the marching team arrived at the mountain pass market town that had been occupied by the Palace Guards.
After receiving the captured supplies, he rearranged the defense of the market town, and then rushed towards Sauronburg with a squadron and a small team originally belonging to the Guards Corps.
Just after noon, more than 3,000 soldiers of the Welsh Army arrived less than two miles away from the scheduled location.
At that time, the Palace Guards had already set up camp on a gentle slope near the village ten miles away from Solenberg, and began to dig deep trenches along the camp and place spiked wooden stakes.
In addition, in order to prevent the Lombard cavalry from attacking the army camp, the Praetorian Guards also placed a large number of horses outside the camp.
The cavalry around the camp and the sentries placed everywhere have also been deployed as the eyes of the entire legion. In order to monitor the movements of the Soronborg garrison at all times, the Palace Guards also sent two cavalry teams of about thirty people yesterday to detect the movements of the Lombards around Sauronborg.
According to the layout of the Chinese army’s command camp, this camp will serve as the rear camp for the attack on Sauronburg. Once away from the heavily guarded Sauron Castle, it was relatively safe. Secondly, the grain and grass are stored here to facilitate the subsequent supply of materials to the army.
"Report to the Commander of the Legion, most of the Wells Army has arrived less than half a mile behind my camp. The company captain ordered me to come and report to you."
When Comer, the commander of the Palace Guards, was discussing the defense around Sauronburg with his high-ranking officers in the newly built command tent, the messenger brought the news back.
Commer slowly raised his hands on the table, looked at the messenger at the door, and asked, "How many are there?"
"Return to the Legion Commander, this~" the messenger couldn't make up his mind for a moment, "There are probably thousands of people, and their queue is very long. Until the other side of the hill, you can still see a large number of heraldic flags higher than the soldiers' heads."
Comor held his chin in his hand, thinking constantly in his mind about how to greet the thousands of troops who had just arrived.
"Forget it, never mind!" Comor waved his hand and ordered to his subordinates present: "Everyone, come with me to meet the Welsh Legion's troops! Attach the kitchen and prepare drinks and food!"
"Yes, Lord Commander of the Legion!"
After saying that, the group of people walked out of the tent, got on their horses, and galloped in the direction of the Welsh Army. When they arrived near a hill, Art, who was riding on horseback, raised his hands and raised his eyebrows. He could already see hundreds of large and small tents set up by the Guards on the top of the mountain.
"Sir, there's a situation~" Ron pointed to several war horses galloping towards the team not far away.
Matt looked in the direction of Ron's finger and said: "They should be from the Guards. Let's go and have a look~"
As the sound of waving riding whips came, Angus and others followed Art and rushed out of the team, running straight towards the cavalry not far away~
"".. - Lord Earl! ""
Not far away, the legion commander Comer, who had already clearly seen the face of the incoming man, shouted, immediately got off his horse, and led the accompanying officers to walk quickly towards Yate.
"Dismount!" On the other side, Art has already landed on his feet,
"My Lord Earl, it's so good to see you again~" Comer bowed down, clenched his fist and saluted Art. He changed his previous cold expression in front of his subordinates.
Att helped Comor up and said politely: "Lord Comor, there is no need to be polite." Then he reached out to help the leader of the Guards Corps in front of him who was wearing armor.
Commer slowly raised his head and looked at Art, then glanced around at the people following Art, with a hint of disappointment in his eyes.
Even this brief moment has already been seen by Art. But the war was imminent, and Art didn't intend to explain too much to Comer.
"Lord Comor, let's go~" Art reminded him softly.
Comor turned around, realizing that he was a little rude, and hurriedly replied: "My lord, please!"
Att got on the horse, kicked the horse's belly lightly, and walked slowly towards the village not far away.
After a few people walked some distance away, an officer standing next to Comer asked softly: "Master Legion, why don't you see the monarch? "Shut up!" Comer lowered his voice and said sternly, "Remember, from now on, no one is allowed to inquire about anything about the monarch. Anyone who disobeys the order will be subject to military law!"
"Yes, Master Commander!"
Not long after, the group of people had arrived at the garrison camp.
This place is a village abandoned by the war between many gentle hills. The terrain is low and the surrounding area is blocked by hills, forming a natural barrier. The surrounding area is sparsely populated and close to commercial roads, which facilitates the movement of people and the transportation of materials.
In addition, it is only half a day's journey from Solonborg, so you can move forward and retreat freely. This is also the main reason why Yate used this place as a temporary camp for the southern expedition army.
".—Your Majesty, Earl, please come this way!""
Comor dismounted and came to Art's side, inviting him to go with him to the command tent built on the highest hill.
Following the large path on the gentle hill, the group quickly climbed to the top of the slope.
Att stopped, took a breath, and wiped the thin sweat from his forehead. He stood on a high place and looked around. From where Att was, he saw hundreds of military tents of the Guards Corps scattered in an orderly manner on the top of the hill next to the command tent and on the surrounding relatively flat land. As always, the layout is neat and orderly. There are several groups of soldiers around the camp wearing armor and holding long guns, constantly patrolling the surrounding area.
The village located between the hills was used as a place to store supplies and park carriages.
The other side of the hill was set aside by Comore as the camp of the Welsh Army.
The two armies are separated by less than half a mile, facing each other and relying on each other.
After reading this, Art couldn't help but sigh, "Lord Comor is worthy of being the commander of the Palace Guards Corps. Whether it is marching, fighting or setting up a camp, he is extremely thoughtful."
"Odo, pass on the order. The Welsh Army is stationed on the opposite hill and around the village. The Chinese Army Command Camp is set up on the opposite hill. At the same time, several cavalry are sent to patrol the surrounding area. No unauthorized persons are allowed to approach."
""..—My Lord Earl," after everyone sat down, Comor, who was sitting at the top of Art's right hand side, said, "I have sent people to the area around Solonburg to monitor the movements of the Lombards. According to reports from the outpost, the Lombard soldiers inside have begun to take action."
Art knocked on the table and said, "Tell me the specific situation~"
"Yes! Earl. "People." Comer continued, "According to the report from the outpost, the garrison on the northern wall of Sauronburg suddenly increased by more than twice last night, and additional manpower was deployed in other places to varying degrees, making the defense more tight than before. Since last night, the Lombards have continued to raise the walls and improve the defense. They have also sent a cavalry of more than 60 people to patrol around Sauronburg. If there is any sign of trouble, these guys will send people back to report~"
"In addition, the two garrison camps outside the city have also stepped up inspections and continued to deepen the surrounding trenches. The peripheral horses and spiked wooden stakes have also moved about 400 steps to the outside. According to my estimation, they should know that we are planning to take action——"
Yate smiled slightly and said : "This is not surprising. Your Guards Corps captured the mountain pass market town and two military forts along the way in one day. It is impossible that the garrison in Sauron Castle did not know about such a big movement~"
Senior officers of the Guards Corps, including Comer, nodded one after another, quite satisfied with their achievements.
"Unless they pretend to be deaf and mute and act as if nothing happened!" After Art said, he spread his hands and showed a funny expression,
causing everyone to burst into laughter.