People in the Middle Ages, draw cards to get promoted

Chapter 45 Baron Lothar
Half a month away from the holy city of Jerusalem, the breath of war is becoming more and more obvious.

Holding water-drop shields and kite shields, and wearing red cross robes with white backgrounds, Knights Templar sergeants walked on the street in groups.

Those idlers in the past, the most restless elements in Jerusalem, are now being detained by the sergeants of the Knights, preparing to serve as conscripts.

The temporarily expanded blacksmith's shop has extended to the street, and the sound of the hot furnace and the hammer hitting the iron ingot can be heard endlessly.

The knights of the Teutonic Knights also rarely appeared in the holy city. They wore black and white cross blouses and surrounded a leading nobleman to the palace.

"Brother, do you know who the current head of the Teutonic Knights is?"

Lothar asked.

"Brother" is a simplification of "Brother Christ", and any Christian believer can call each other this way to express closeness.

Of course, the premise is that the status is similar.

It was not uncommon for a pariah to call the knight lord "brother" and get a good deal of beatings.

"The Teutonic Knights?"

The royal knights looked surprised: "Oh, I see, you are talking about the group of Germanic knights living in Acre, right? They don't have a grand master yet, and currently a council similar to that of the ancient empire presides over their daily affairs , but recently they have been intensively preparing for the election.”

Lothar's expression changed slightly.

It turns out that the Teutonic Knights at this time don't even have a grand master?

His mind became more active. If he made certain achievements, as a Germanic nobleman, would he also have the opportunity to compete for the position of the head of the regiment?

No, this is not in line with my plan.

What he wants to be is a secular lord, not a church knight. The latter is too much restrained by the church, like a castle in the air, powerful but illusory.

Instead, let Hans try it.

It's just that he is too young and immature, so it's hard for him to stand out in a short period of time.

"Has there been any changes in Jerusalem during this time?"

Lothar said: "I heard that Baron Godfrey's heir, Belian, is said to be dueling with Guy of Lusignan. What's going on?"

A sad expression appeared on the royal knight's face: "This matter is a bit complicated. It is said that Guy saw Lord Belian enter Princess Sibyl's room with his own eyes. So he challenged Lord Belian. According to the regulations, the defeated Those who are not allowed to pursue Princess Sibilla again."

Lothar frowned.

Could it have something to do with the veil I asked Hans to give him?

The two entered the palace one after the other.

Lothar waited in the room for a while, and then the maids in tulle came in one after another.

Their graceful figures were looming under the tulle, and Lothar's soft hands stripped off his clothes without any explanation.

"Master Lothar, please follow us to take a bath."

...

A quarter of an hour later, a refreshed Lothar walked into the hall of Baldwin IV wearing a silk shirt.

Candles as thick as arms were burning in the hall, and the sunlight projected from the narrow windows made the smoke hazy.

Baldwin IV was still sitting in front of the table, holding a quill pen and writing something.

It was as if he hadn't moved since the last time he left.

Candlelight flickered.

Baldwin IV said without raising his head, "Did you kill Kokbu?"

Lothar nodded and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

There was a hint of relief in Baldwin IV's eyes. He put down the pen in his hand and motioned Lothar to sit down.

He smiled and said: "As expected, I read correctly, you went deep into the enemy's territory, raided a governor's castle in a surprise attack, and successfully broke through it. You are an outstanding general just like your father."

Lothar said modestly: "Thanks to the blessing of Heavenly Father, and the cavalry under Baron Godfrey's command is elite enough."

"Don't be humble, you are the core of this operation."

Baldwin IV supported the table, tried to stand upright, smiled and said: "If this matter cannot cause conflicts between Sasanian King and Saladin, it is my fault in planning, and you have tried your best."

"How should I reward you for your service, Lothar?"

Lothar shook his head: "No matter what you bestow on the subject, the subject will accept it, and thank you for your magnanimity and generosity."

Baldwin IV sighed lightly, and his laughter revealed a hint of chill: "Oh, you have gone through life and death for the future of the kingdom, and the nobles of the kingdom are still fighting endlessly for power and profit at this time."

He slammed the table down:

"With these insects, how can we govern the country well?"

Lothar remained silent, but lowered his head slightly.

Once the game of power starts, there is no room for it to end. No matter whether the noble party or the queen party, any party takes power, it will suffer a huge blow to the other party.

Nobody wants to budge.

The fighting will never stop.

Baldwin IV vented his anger and gradually calmed down: "Knight Lothar, who do you think I should betroth Sibilla to?"

"Everything is up to you to decide."

Lothar still did not rush to export. Whether it is the monarchs of the East and the West, they are sensitive and suspicious when it comes to the issue of heirs.

"Lothar, are you really loyal to me?"

Lothar said quickly: "Of course, I swore in the name of the Heavenly Father."

Baldwin IV sighed: "They also swore to Lothar, I know you are different from them, I hope you can be blunt to me."

Lothar was silent for a moment, then said:

"Your Majesty, I don't know who is more suitable, but Guy is obviously not qualified. This is a reckless, self-righteous traditional knight. If you hand over Jerusalem to him, the kingdom will be destroyed in his hands sooner or later."

He was talking about Guy, but in fact Lothar was also talking about the Queen Mother Party.

The ideas of this group of people are too radical. They are obviously not as strong as Saladin, but they still want to fight against Saladin, and then expand their territory, regain Antioch, and even occupy the fertile and rich Egypt.

It may not be stupid. The knights of the Crusaders are indeed elite. In these years, in the small-scale conflicts with Ayub, they have won more than lost.

This gives them blind self-confidence.

And now, the military strength of the Crusaders is also rapidly expanding, and the funds left by King Ardabil are rapidly being converted into soldiers.

"Guy."

Baldwin IV heaved a long sigh: "I understand what you mean. It is legal but stupid to hand over the kingdom to my mother and sister."

"But the king is not omnipotent."

Baldwin IV felt very helpless about this, and the balance of domestic power had long been unbalanced.

The king's party is sandwiched between the noble party and the queen's party, and its power is weak. It is difficult to speak for him.

And once the king goes on the field in person and confronts the domestic dignitaries, everything will become uncontrollable.

"Actually, I prefer you, Lothar."

"You are young and promising, and your talent in military strategy is no less than that of Regent Raymond, and your political acumen is no less than that of Godfrey."

Lothar shook his head resolutely and said: "But Your Majesty, you should have heard what Baron Godfrey said. I have two witches under my command. It is really impossible for me to marry Princess Sibilla."

"It's a pity. Although my elder sister has a bit of a desire for power, she is actually a very good wife."

Baldwin IV was silent for a moment, and said: "That is Belian, but he is still too immature. I don't know when he will grow up, and I don't know when I will die suddenly and return to the embrace of the heavenly father."

Lothar hesitated, but still didn't say that he might have a way to cure leprosy.

The eight characters have not been written yet.

It would take a long time to summon a high-quality medical entourage, even if he obtained a fief.

"What do you think of the duel between Belian and Guy this afternoon?"

Lothar asked back: "Does Your Majesty want me to guess the winner?"

"There is no suspense about winning or losing. Belian is a young knight, and he is definitely not Guy's opponent. What I want you to see is how to reject Guy's marriage proposal to Sibylla after this battle."

Lothar was silent for a moment, and said: "It's difficult, the Queen Mother's party is too powerful, if Belian loses in the holy and fair duel of the knights, and then wants to betroth the princess to him, there will be too much resistance."

"Then it's up to you to fight for him."

Baldwin IV said in a deep voice: "The glove thrown by Guy was not picked up by Belian. He just verbally agreed to the duel. According to the rules, he can find someone to replace it."

Lothar shook his head: "Belian is a very self-respecting knight. He didn't pick up the gloves because he used to be a blacksmith and didn't understand this rule. It wasn't because he wanted to cheat at the beginning."

"You mean, Belian won't agree?"

Lothar nodded and said, "That's right."

"Then let Heavenly Father decide it all."

Baldwin IV pulled out his cold and awe-inspiring sword and put it on Lothar's shoulder again: "Knight Lothar, in the name of the blood of the Baldwin family and the king of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, I promote you to be the Baron of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, and give you The royal domain, Jogrisburg as your fief."

Lothar knelt down quickly, and said a little excitedly: "Thank you for your generosity, Your Majesty."

Baldwin IV shook his head: "This is not worth your expectation. Fort Yogryus is a barren place. It has been under the control of the royal family for a long time, but no one cares about it."

"Sorry, Lothar, I originally wanted to give you Bethlehem as a fiefdom, but the current situation in the kingdom makes it impossible for me to withstand the pressure of the courtiers and give you the rich and sacred Bethlehem."

Lothar shook his head and said, "That's enough, Your Majesty. I will make more contributions in the future."

Many knights can hardly be promoted to baron after serving the king for a lifetime.

Although the baron seems to be a low-level lord, in fact, in Jerusalem, he has already entered the hall and is eligible to enter this game of power.

"Get up, Lothar, do you want to play a game of chess?"

Lothar shook his head and said, "Sorry, Your Majesty, I won't."

Baldwin IV smiled and said, "I'm the one who's sorry. Because of this sickness, I seldom go out. The only pastime is playing chess."

"It's actually very simple, let me teach you."

Lothar followed Baldwin IV and sat down opposite the chessboard table.

"The way to be a king and to be a general is all on this square-inch chessboard. The king, queen, bishop, knight, chariot and guards all perform their duties."

(End of this chapter)