Rise of Rurik

How did Frank's civil war evolve? Blue Fox learned a large number of names of nobles from Liudov, and his brain hurts but he has to.

He estimated that since this guy knew so much, he also knew a lot about the situation in Aachen?

Although the plan to attack Aachen is not to be kept secret, this is not the time for fanfare.

The Russian army will not raise the flag and mark it with Frank: "We will rob Aachen."

A detailed talk is not enough, a private close talk is still needed.

An oil lamp is lit in a secret stone room, and the dark environment feels suitable for a conspiracy.

Liudov felt that before the Ross army stationed at the mouth of the river was about to leave, Blue Fox insisted on making such a move, which was naturally a conspiracy. He stubbornly chose the room and made all the servants avoid him, and Lan Hu himself also came in person.

"Why is that so? Even if you want to conspire, just open up and say it." Liudov sullenly looked at the old bearded face of the blue fox under the oil lamp, which looked like a wild beast, such as a fox.

"Hehe, it's a conspiracy. Before I explain my intentions, I want to hear your attitude."

"I?"

"Hehe. Do you... hate Frank? Also, your ancestor was indeed the leader of Vidukind?"

"You?" Liudov frowned suspiciously, "Why are you asking this?"

"Oh, I didn't mean to offend."

Liudov narrowed his eyes, "Yes, I am naturally a descendant of Vidukind. There is no doubt about it."

Even so, Lan Hu guessed for a moment that this guy might not be completely sure about his life experience. Maybe it's a real direct descendant, maybe it's a side relative, or it's just a spiritual successor. But none of that is also a problem.

"I am a nobleman and a businessman." Blue Fox cleared his throat and reiterated.

"What do you say?"

"I am also a soldier. In the north, if your father and brother are killed, you must avenge tenfold. Your ancestors were persecuted by Charlemagne, and your people were killed by Charlemagne. How about you? Obviously, you choose to rebel now. As for continuing to be loyal to Ludwig , is just a stopgap measure.”

"This... What are you asking me to do when you say this?"

"Then." Blue Fox saw the complexity of Liudov's spirit, "Maybe you don't dare, but your son and grandson might dare. If there is a chance, be completely self-reliant! If, I mean if."

"What? You... think highly of my son?"

"Bruno? Otto? Your youngest son has the same name as our old king of Ross. Listen. If we attack Aachen and shame the mighty Charlemagne, wouldn't it be a happy revenge?"

"Ah?" Like a boatload of stones pressing on his chest, Liudov bent down and retched, but nothing came out in the end.

"Are you okay?" Blue Fox still didn't change his face.

"I understand. You guys!" Liudov pouted and pointed at the blue fox: "You want to rob Aachen!"

"How? I want your support. I can see you want to!"

"I…"

"You just want to!" Blue Fox knocked on the wooden table violently: "If you don't want to make a move, we will help you."

"That's it? I don't think it's easy."

"Oh, if you say that, it means that you are willing to cooperate, which is very good." Blue Fox no longer tried to hide it, "I want your help."

"But I won't send troops. This kind of thing... Even if I want to do it, I can't do it myself!"

"Hesitation is just thinking. If you have an idea, you will definitely do it. I don't force you. I want information."

"What information?" Liudov asked, clutching his chest.

"Further information about Aachen. This time, I don't want to hear you talking about those nobles. I just want to know about Aachen. If you know, be sure to tell me a road that can reach Aachen quickly. Be more detailed!"

At this moment, Liudov was actually facing great mental torment. He had learned that Rurik himself had personally ordered the expedition instigated by the Russians, and that preparations for the war had even begun last year.

Some of the aristocrats who came to Hamburg were old faces from the war two years ago. They came with the purpose of making a fortune. As for revenge and the like, it was just a clumsy rhetoric to cover up their desire to plunder. They don't talk about revenge, but they claim carelessly: We are here to get rich.

What about yourself?

Facing the sullen face of the blue fox, facing the constant questioning. The clenched hands were about to crush his phalanges, Liudov thought about it and finally completed the ideological struggle.

"Yes! I will teach you how to reach Aachen."

"You teach me? Very good. I will give you a piece of paper, and you must try to draw it as much as possible, try to... I can understand it." Blue Fox finally said.

The expedition of the Russian army brought some special supplies, especially paper.

The cost of parchment paper is too high. On the other hand, the paper made of Ross’s birch bark has a hard texture and a little gypsum powder is intentionally added. The color of the paper made in this way is whiter, and it absorbs ink but not too much. Writing feels good.

There was no market for parchment in Rus, and papyrus was also used in Eastern Rome due to its geographical location.

Eskil and his church organization in the north need some writing materials to make a lot of office records.

Paper was not expensive in Ross due to production issues, and a small batch of paper was awarded to the Northern Church. Eskil readily accepted this gift, so that what was written on the wooden board could be copied onto paper.

The same small batch of paper was also given to Liudov as a gift, so that he could record something, and even as a kind of toy - a paper airplane.

No, the blue fox fiddled with the little toy invented by King Ross without hesitation, folding a piece of white paper into a special shape, as if it had grown wings and really glided in the air.

Playing around, the game dilutes the tension of the secret meeting. Now with an oil lamp, Liudov simply drew the "Road Map Plan for Attacking Aachen" on a piece of white paper.

Now even if Rurik draws a rough map of Western Europe in person, it is difficult for Liudov to understand the structure of the coastline with his limited geographical knowledge, and it is also difficult to understand the geographical relationship between his own Hamburg and those cities in the south.

He only knows the approximate locations of cities such as Cologne, Aachen, Paris, and Mainz. Of course, there is no problem with the positional relationship between the cities. The distance between each other and the specific orientation require the blue fox to understand it abstractly.

Liudoff once again emphasized the Maas River, a tributary of the Rhine River at its mouth, and clearly pointed out its relationship with the County of Flanders.

With particular emphasis on the town of Maastricht and the corresponding church, he describes the split between Liege and Maastricht.

He described another name of Aachen, "New Rome", emphasizing that the cathedral of "New Rome" was magnificent because it contained the huge wealth plundered by the Franks when they defeated the Avar Khanate.

These descriptions confirm that Aachen and the surrounding areas do have a lot of wealth, but there are no powerful vassals in the area, or these areas are the territories directly controlled by King Lothair.

He particularly emphasized a Roman road that was repaired and widened, which is the road from Maastricht to Aachen. Some people call it the "Emperor's Road". This infrastructure is one of Charlemagne's achievements.

However, according to Liudov's understanding, because of Flanders' blatant rebellion, a group of Lothar's troops were stationed in lowland areas such as Brussels and Liege to confront the Earl of Flanders.

"If your army wants to attack Aachen, you can only capture Maastricht first, but if you do so, it is likely to have a **** battle with the Frankish army. Do you really want to fight them?"

Liudov has already named the road to looting and the hidden risks, and the blue fox is a little confused: "How do you know that there is a large army stationed? Why didn't you say it earlier?"

"You didn't ask me, I think you don't care. Anyway, your army comes and goes without a trace, and you don't care if you are proud." Liudov shrugged: "I don't do nothing, I am an old man after all. Nobles, have been in touch with some southern nobles. Otherwise, how would I tell you other news about the Earl of Tours?"

The blue fox narrowed his fox-like eyes and clicked his mouth: "You are a smart person, and you know how to reveal the news slowly, so as to continue to gain benefits."

"It's human nature."

"That's fine. I'm a businessman. If you help me, I will rebate. We will continue to cooperate in the future. You can rest assured that I will help you speak well in front of King Ross after everything is done. Our alliance will only become stronger in the future. "

"Oh. I'll leave it to you."

Rough drawings were drawn on blank paper, under which Liudov wrote a large number of detailed descriptions in Saxon. Compared with his poor drawings, written descriptions were more important.

Now, Blue Fox, who has important information in hand, thinks that he has completely figured out the route, and he has to make a new battle plan based on it.

Because he never thought about it, Lothair actually deployed a strong standing army on the west bank of the Maas River. Of course they were ordered to guard against Flanders. If Aachen is attacked, this group of troops will surely return to the defense!

Fortunately, Liudov is really a kind person. He focused on describing several ferry crossings on the Maas River, and even the pontoon bridge in the town of Liege.

The army of the Middle Kingdom went to station on the west bank of the Meuse River, and it took a lot of effort to simply cross the river by boat. He is not sure if Maastricht has built a new pontoon, but he is sure that there is always a small pontoon on the Maas River in the town of Liege.

The kingdom's army is not good at water warfare, so the ability of the cavalry to make surprise attacks should not be underestimated.

"Try to find bridges and destroy them. Try to find all kinds of Frankish ships and destroy them on the spot, and send people to patrol the Maas River to force the enemies who may return to the defense to stop on the river bank." Blue Fox confirmed his cognition again, Satisfied with Liudov's intelligence.

Walking through the so-called "Emperor's Avenue" is no problem, but Blue Fox hopes to use the local waterways to give full play to the advantages of the Ross army.

Liudoff mentions a river called the Geul, which, although not connected to Aachen, is very close to the city.

The Hull River is an extremely important source of domestic water for Aachen, but the diversion canals dug by the Kingdom are not navigable at all, and even the Hull River itself is not conducive to traveling.

Liudov lacked confidence in this, but in Blue Fox's view, the longboat's extremely low draft would dare to forcibly break into even a small stream and swamp. Although he didn't know the specific situation of the Hull River, he felt that forcibly passing through was not a big problem.

He even mentioned a village that must be passed through on the way to march—sageul

What is the meaning of this village? Because there is a mine near the village, a kind of silver-gray ore is produced locally, from which lead can be extracted, so the village got its name.

But that is not ordinary lead. The lead produced in other places is brighter than that produced in other places, and even its ore is more shiny, and the bronze utensils made of it have a different color.

(This is actually a lead-zinc mine, and the name of the village is the same as zinc zink)

There are mines, or lead mines. Lead is a good thing, and it would be a pleasant surprise to plunder it. Of course, the blue fox also focused on a small village. He learned that this village also had a bridge that had to be taken down. It seemed that after passing through this village, there would be no obstacle to Aachen.

Maybe if Liudov himself was **** and beaten up, this guy could reveal more information. This is like a guy who has been constipated for a long time, and he has to come out bit by bit when he goes to the toilet.

This person was not happy enough, and it took him three consecutive meetings to get quite sufficient information. Fortunately, some key issues have been resolved.

Blue Fox can tell himself: "I can leave happily, and the next step is to see how I can make a fortune in Aachen."

When he came to Hamburg, Blue Fox took away not only half of Regalaf's army, but the most important thing for him was the intelligence documents that were treasured in his leather bag.

What kind of enemies might be encountered in the expedition to Aachen, how to deal with them, and how much property would be plundered once successful, all the nobles knew the bottom of their hearts, and there was no need to risk their luck blindly and confidently.

The longship that was about to leave was making final preparations, and even Regalaf said goodbye to his wife Alice for the last time.

"This couple is quite easy and serious." Sitting on the boat, Askad whistled boredly. He was actually quite jealous of his cousin.

Kyle ha slammed his guy: "Brave as you, isn't it easy to find a beautiful woman to marry?"

"Who knows?" Askad laughed, "At least I don't believe in their gods, and I'm not bound by some commandments. I can marry many, haha."

Regalaf has not yet completed the final wedding with Alice just because he is not old enough. Unlike the rules of Ross and other Nordic people, men and women are considered adults at the age of twelve, which means that all adult obligations must be fulfilled, including marriage. Frank has a different standard. Especially for men, a noble boy will be canonized when he is fifteen years old, which means that he has become an adult and has the obligation to lead troops to fight and marry.

Liudov hoped that the two could get married as soon as possible, so that the relationship would be completely solid, but Bishop Eskil was in Hamburg, and he always emphasized the rules and regulations. Of course, the Liudov family has already identified this son-in-law psychologically. If Eskil does not act as the emcee of the wedding, the wedding will be meaningless.

Liudov endured, including his inner displeasure.

After the secret meeting, he was in a complicated mood and lay down quietly in his room clutching his chest. He drove away all the guards and even made his wife and children avoid him.

Until late at night, he got up suddenly, and then sent someone to pick up his sleeping eldest son Bruno, and turned him to his room.

Even if Bruno was very unwilling and slapped him, he had no choice but to appoint him.

Bruno was already sixteen years old, and Liudov, who was a duke, had already granted his two sons the status of earl, even if it was not in line with the laws established by Charlemagne.

Bruno now belongs to an earl without a fief. According to tradition, he does not need a fief, because it is logical that this kid will inherit the dukedom of Saxony in the future. It's just that he is already an adult according to various regulations. It's really unreasonable for a canonized nobleman to have no clear military exploits.

After an ideological struggle, Liudov felt that he had chosen to attack the Middle Kingdom secretly and gave the Ross army very clear information. He also thought that he was purely self-deceiving. Of course it's not convenient for me to fight, why not...send the eldest son there, dressed as a Norman soldier, hiding the Saxon flag.

In this way, at least the northerners knew that the eldest son of the Duke of Saxony was involved in the war. In the northern world where military force is important, even if this kid didn't kill anyone, this gilded journey is enough to attract the attention of all the Norman nobles.

After all, those famous Norman nobles are in the army!

No, when the long boat was about to leave, Liudov personally saw him off on horseback.

Blue Fox, who was still waiting on the shore for the reunion of the little Legolaf couple, was relieved to see the cavalry galloping towards them.

Liudov yanked the reins and jumped down swiftly. He didn't respond to the blue fox's greetings, but immediately dragged down the somewhat dazed Bruno, and then grabbed his eldest son by the neck and twisted him all the way to the blue fox.

"A young warrior? Well dressed."

"It's my eldest son Bruno, you've clearly seen him many times." Liudov corrected him.

"Of course I do. What are you bringing him here for?"

"Do you still need to question? I've thought about it. If I don't send out one soldier, it doesn't seem right, and I shouldn't send too many troops. I'll leave this kid to you! Let him dress up like you and let him see the world. After that, Liudov pushed the eldest son over.

Bruno looked a little sluggish and timid, which caused the nobles to laugh, even Askad laughed the most, and even Regalaf couldn't help laughing at his uncle.

"Don't laugh! Don't laugh!" After all, Bruno wants to save face~www.readwn.com~ Brothers, be quiet! "The blue fox shouted, and then grabbed Bruno's neck, and saw that the kid hurriedly grabbed the right arm of the blue fox with both hands. Seeing that it was difficult to break free, he simply kicked him violently to break free.

Blue Fox shook his body: "Good boy! Some people suspect that you are a coward, maybe you are not. Your father asked you to fight with us. Yes. Follow us to prove yourself. If you die in battle, it is your fate."

"Just go." Bruno also shook his body, deliberately shaking his chain mail, and then took off his helmet to reveal his curly hair, revealing his freckled face. He didn't even look at his father Lyudov anymore, he went straight to the longboat of the Rus, helped the boat to capsize violently.

"Decisive enough." Lan Hu didn't say anything more, he turned his head and looked at Liudov again: "We have no obligation to protect your eldest son, and of course we won't let him rush to the front. Life and death have their own destiny, .”

At this moment, Liudov's face was livid: "I understand! It is impossible to hand over the title to someone who has no military exploits. My Saxony needs warriors."