Chapter 699 A quick decision
"Let's talk after you come in!"
At hurriedly got out of bed, grabbed the bear skin next to the bed and wrapped it around him.
Hence Ron walked into the tent, walked skillfully to the candlestick, took out the fire stick and lit the candle on the table.
In addition to the tavern clerk who ran out from Sauronburg to report the news, Ron was also followed by the family's old kinsman, Sir Lodge, who followed Ater southward when the Welsh Army passed through Lavati.
Because the matter was of great importance, after receiving the news, Sir Lodge brought the tavern clerk to report to Art.
"Sir Rocky, let me tell you, the tavern boy, what's going on?" Art rubbed Hansong's sleepy eyes.
“Quickly, tell the Earl that Ross asked you to be brought out!” Rocky urged the tavern boy standing aside.
"Yes, Master Lodge." The tavern clerk immediately turned to look at Art, "Your Majesty, the steward asked me to bring a message, saying that the Lombard Palace will send three thousand troops north to support Sauronburg in the near future. Please take precautions early."
When I heard the news. Art was relaxed for a moment, and then asked: "Is the news reliable? How did you know about this?"
"Back to your lord, Earl, this was overheard by the steward when several soldiers stationed in Fort Sollon were drinking and chatting in our tavern~" The tavern clerk told Art the source of the news.
Matt knocked on the table and whispered softly: "Three thousand troops? With such a big movement, Stanley and the others should have sent back the information long ago. Then Ron and Sir Rocky looked at each other and said, "Master, could it be that the information is wrong?"
"Probably not!" Art gave his own conclusion, "The members of the task force are always cautious. If there is any disturbance in the south, we will get the news, unless~"
"Unless what?" Rocky looked at Art intently and asked uneasily.
Matt breathed a sigh of relief and replied: "Unless all the members of the task force are wiped out!"
"What?" Ron's eyes widened and he couldn't believe that this was coming from his own master.
The guys in the task force have been following Art for many years, and most of them have good friendships with Ron. If the entire army was wiped out, it would definitely be a blow to Art.
Matt stood up slowly, opened the door curtain, walked outside, and looked at the sky outside. It was pitch black.
Looking at the outline of the mountains in the distance, let the cold wind blow on your face. He stood there for a long time, still unable to figure out what went wrong.
After a while, Art turned back and walked into the tent and said to Ron: "Immediately send someone along the trade road to the south to inquire about news about the Lombards.
If there is anything unusual, immediately report it Report."
"Yes, sir."
"Also, let them find the members of the task force, and see them alive and dead!" There was a hint of uneasiness in Art's eyes.
As the sharp knife in the hands of Art and the eyes of the Wells Legion, the task force plays an irreplaceable role. If, as he expected, the entire task force was wiped out, it would only ignite Art's flame of revenge again.
After calming down, Art said to the tavern clerk: "Go with our people and return to Sauronburg while it's dark. Tell Ross to pay close attention to the situation in the fort. Late tomorrow night, our army will raid the Sauronburg garrison and ask him to prepare for the response~"
"Yes, Lord Earl "People!"
Art patted the tavern waiter on the shoulder and promised: "After the event is completed, you will be given a heavy reward as an internal agent in the attack on Sauronburg!"
The tavern waiter gritted his teeth, expressed a firm expression, bowed and beat his chest, "I am willing to serve the Earl!"
"Ron, take him down, hand him over to our people, and set off immediately!"
"Yes, sir!"
After Ron said that, he took the tavern boy out of the camp and ran down the mountain. Hearing this sudden news, Art had already fallen asleep.
Looking at Sir Lodge's thoughtful look, Art took two steps forward and asked He said: "Lombardy has increased its troops by three thousand, what do you think?"
Rocky touched his severed finger, raised his head and replied: "Sir, thousands of our troops are marching to Sauron Castle in great force. The Bardi Palace must be afraid. As the gateway to the south, Sauron Castle is their last chance to stop the northern army~"
"You mean that the Lombard Palace must send troops to reinforce it?"
"Yes, my lord. I judge that although the spies you sent to the south have not received the news yet, it may be that the Lombard court is weak in recruiting troops~" Sir Lodge glanced at Art.
"Go on."
h "Yes, my lord." Sir Lodge walked slowly and said eloquently, "After the war started, Lombardy has sent tens of thousands of troops to the western front and the northern border. The Patriotic Army was defeated and the river leveled. Later, in order to deal with the thousands of soldiers and guards under your command, Duke Witote even spent a lot of money to recruit a mercenary group of thousands of people. As a result, the entire army was wiped out in the first battle and the palace army retreated to Sauron Castle and entered the defensive stage. "
After hearing this, Art nodded, "It is indeed as you said. After the Battle of Santia City, the Lombard army was unable to retreat and never launched a large-scale attack again. If it were not for their lack of manpower, the Duke of Lombardy would definitely not sit back and watch us continue to move south. ”
Art walked to the long table, pulled a chair and sat down, and then motioned for Sir Lodge to sit down.
“What do you mean by the lack of recruitment in the Lombard Palace?” Art was confused.
"My lord, as I just said, the Lombard court is already stretched thin in terms of military resources, and it is difficult to recruit soldiers on a large scale to go north to defend the enemy."
"Then how do you explain the three thousand troops mentioned by the soldiers of Solenberg?"
Rocky smiled and said: "My lord, you just promised my tavern clerks rewards and credits after the war, why can't the Lombard court promise additional troops to the officers and soldiers stationed at Soronborg?
Matt leaned back in his chair and raised his head, forgetting to glance at the tarpaulin above his head. "Could it be that the Duke of Lombardy wanted to get the Soronborg garrison to work for him with a secret letter to increase troops!"
Rocky smiled and said nothing.
"If it is true as you analyzed, then when the three thousand reinforcements can be gathered is a big problem."
"That's right!"
Art took a long breath of relief, and the anxiety a moment ago disappeared.
Now the army is only ten miles away from Sauron Castle. It set out in the early morning and arrived before noon and began to attack the city. If everything goes well, Sauronburg can be successfully captured early tomorrow morning.
Even if Lombardy did send reinforcements northward, Sauronburg had already fallen before they arrived.
Perhaps everyone thinks that Sauron Castle is impregnable, enough to block thousands of troops outside the fort under the city wall, preventing them from advancing even half a step.
But they never imagined what kind of disaster this cunning and insidious Earl of Northland would bring to them·
"Quick victory!"
Art slapped his palm on the table and stood up suddenly.
「Your Excellency is wise!」
At dawn, thousands of troops from the Southern Expedition Army had already marched to a wheat field two miles south of the camp.
Three thousand elite soldiers of the Welsh Army were in front, and a thousand strong generals of the Palace Guards were behind. Everyone wore armor and held swords, and followed the queue south with steady steps.
The fleur-de-lis and flying eagle heraldic flag representing the court and the blood-eyed howling wolf heraldic flag belonging to the Earl of Wales were held high by the flag soldiers and swayed in the cold wind.
Three miles away, the vanguard of the army consisting of two hundred cavalry and crossbowmen opened the way in front, and had repeatedly competed with the sentry cavalry outside Solonburg. Due to the huge disparity in strength between the two sides, the Lombard sentry with less than 30 men abandoned seven or eight corpses and retreated towards Solenberg.
South, the southern wall of Sauronburg.
Earl Terman, the leader of the Lombard court, accompanied by his confidant Viscount Rhodes and several high-ranking officers, stood on the city wall, looking towards the retreating figure to the south~
When he learned the news that Burgundy's army was heading south, Terman was both excited and nervous. But he did not let the war go to his head. To be cautious, he sent two groups of messengers to the south to ask for help before the northerners besieged the city. Looking at the third group of messengers who had just walked out of the city gate and had climbed over the hill not far away, Terman sighed heavily.
"Your Majesty, do you think the palace reinforcements will arrive on time?" A leading baron next to Terman asked innocently, "Huh?"
Terman slowly turned his head to look at the leading baron and glanced at him, feeling extremely dissatisfied.
This guy is not a confidant of Terman's men, but was forced into his hands by the palace before the expedition. As the leading count who commanded more than 2,000 men and was ordered to garrison Soronborg, a place that was related to the survival of the entire Lombardy, some dignitaries in the palace were inevitably a little worried about this guy with outstanding military exploits. Rather than giving him a subordinate who can lead troops in war, it is better to say that some nobles in the palace have arranged for him to be an informant around him.
Even so, Terman never looked directly at this guy who made him feel uncomfortable.
"If it weren't for the imminent war, and seeing that you are still of some use, I would have thrown you, the guy who disturbed the morale of the army, off the city wall to death!"
The leading baron instinctively took a few steps back, bent his knees, and his body was shaking constantly, "My lord, please calm down, I don't dare to do it anymore I"
Terman saw that this guy suddenly gave in, so he paid no more attention to him. He immediately turned around and said to the confidant officers on the side: "It is estimated that those bastards will arrive at Solonburg at noon at the earliest. Everyone, prepare to meet the enemy according to the original deployment!"
"Yes, Lord Earl!"
To the north, near an abandoned farm,
Odo, the deputy commander of the legion who was half a body behind Art on horseback, looked at the corpse of the enemy sentry that was casually dragged to the roadside and discarded by the soldiers, and couldn't help but sigh.
"Sir, I really didn't expect that these Lombards, who have been huddled in Solonborg for many days, would have the courage to attack our army's forward.
Isn't this just banging your head against a stone?"
Officer Att glanced at the Lombard sentry who was lying face down on the ground with his right arm cut off, and said calmly: "A dog bites when it is in a hurry, let alone a flesh and blood warrior~"
"What you say makes sense~"
Odo understood the metaphor of Att.
"Command the whole army to speed up!" After speaking, Art lightly kicked the horse's belly and rushed towards the front of the team.
"Command the whole army to speed up and advance!"