《King of Mercenaries》 Chapter 1: The Unlucky Wandering Knight Chapter 1: The Unlucky Wandering Knight Marin is very depressed. He had intended to go home and y some "European Situation". He had finally developed near max affinity with the Holy Roman Emperor. But now, his friend, Li Liang, called him to provide backup for an uing fight. It all started when Li Liang was out jogging at night and a group of thugs shed into each other. Li Liang was caught up in the midst and beaten as well. Li Liang naturally refused to ept it and called a few of his friends for some revenge. Marin was tall and athletic. Ever since a young age, he was adept in martial arts and wrestling. Li Liang would sometimes refer to him as the "beast". Although Marin was ying "European Situation" with great fervor, he still had to curse his luck and pedal his electric bike to "maintain justice". As everyone arrived, Li Liang promised a hot pot and a pack of cigarettes for everyone. Somewhat invigorating the atmosphere. Under the leadership of Marin, they found some of the gang members still in the area. Like a knight, Marin sprung forward in a horseless charge. The thugs were really weak at fighting. Before, they had relied on numbers but now it was evenly numbered. The fight was quickly concluding, as everyone finished their opponents. But Marin was also carried away, his vision focused forward. Leaving him oblivious to the danger behind. Then, a solid brick mmed into him in the back of the head. As the man felled from the strike. Marin lost consciousness as he tumbled down. "Ah a brick these broken martial arts couldn''t stop " Hisst thought as he went into darkness. ... After a long time, who knows how long Marin finally woke up, but it didn''t feel right. Because, as he opened his eyes, he didn''t see the white walls of the infirmary and its soft lights. It wasn''t even his own apartment. Instead, it was the smell of green grass, a fresh taste in the air. "I swear! Li Liang you a bastard! Ah, your brother was injured but you tossed him into the wild. Didn''t even send him to the hospital!" Marin scared to get up, but he suddenly realized that this didn''t seem to be his voice. It was rtively tender and young. But it still came from his mouth Marin has seen plenty of books and movies, so he wasn''t unfamiliar with this plot. "It shouldn''t be. no. did I pass through?" Marin quickly stretched out his hand and looked at his own body. Then, he looked down and saw a young and thin body. It was covered with a strange clothing, and his white tender hands were obviously not his own. Suddenly, Marin thought of something. "Fuck don''t tell me this is a gender-bender, right?" Thest thing he wants is to stuck in a situation simr to "Go Princess Go". If he turned into a girl The mere thought sent chills down his spine. With a tense mood, he slowly peeked down into his bottom garments. After a moment, Marin breathed a sigh of relief he was a man. Or rather, judging from the hair, a boy. With his mind rxed, Marin finally noticed the incredible hunger in his stomach. But that didn''tst long as he soon fainted back onto the patch of grass. ... For a long time, Marin felt hungry At the same time, a memory fused with Marin''s consciousness. It was clear that it was the memory of the original owner By reading the memory, Marin learned that this body of the original owner, also known as Marin. Of course, not the Chinese Marin, but the Western Marin. More precisely, it was a Marin from the German region at the end of the 15th century. Hoffman family''s young wandering knight. What is a wandering knight? First of all, it is a knight (most often a trainee knight). Generally possessing a horse, ance, and a knight''s armor. Some knights, even have armor on their warhorses. In addition, all knights, basically from childhood have underwent rigorous training. Hence, they are not only skilled at charging but also familiar with closebat. Theirbat effectiveness is generally much better than that of ordinary foot soldiers. In Medieval Europe and during the Renaissance, the knight was the lowest feudal lord in Europe. Above it were Barons, Viscounts, Earls/Counts, Marquis, Dukes, Princes, Kings, Emperors. But not every knight is fortunate enough to get a fief and be considered a noble. The opportunity to rule a fief was most often given with service to a higher-leveled lord. Moreover, the knight''s fief is generally rtively small. Theprising of one or more viges. For example, Marin''s family the Hoffman family, was located in the Ruhr region of Germany. This knight family, only had a small vige and a small amount of cultivatednd. With all of the arable and barrennd added together, the entire territory equaled about 80 hectares. [Trad: Or ~200 acres, just remember the conversion rate is 2.5] 80 hectares ofnd, it seems like a lot, right? During the same time period, in the Ming Dynasty, it was absolutely a lot. Enough for the family to not worry about food or clothing. However, thanks to the low level of agricultural practices in the Europe, it is hardly much. The mostmon practices would be a rotation farming system, ranging from two or three-year cycle. With the third year left empty to restore the soil. During the time before the Industrial Revolution, 40 hectares only had an annual output of 5,000 kg of rye. On average, the rye production is only 156 kg per hectare. If there was a famine, the output can fall to 100 kilograms. With this kind of yield, it was no wonder why tens of thousands of people starved to death every year in the Middle Ages. Although the Hoffman manor could almost be considered arge manor, it''s production was only around 100 kg of wheat per hectare. As one of the top students in the History Department in college, Marin was clear that from the Han Dynasty onward, wheat production averaged 200 kg per acre. In the Ming Dynasty, rice yields sometimes even reached 500 kilograms. Marin was very familiar with the source of the problem. The Europeans didn''t know how to use manure. For the longest time, Western farming involved plowing, sprinkling the seeds, and pouring some water on it. Then go do something else. Generally, even the peasants didn''t know to pluck the weeds. As for the fecal matter, the Medieval Europeans pretty much defecated anywhere and everywhere. Making the cities constantly filled with a repulsive smell. This also led to the flies and the rampant spread of diseases. The outbreak of the ck gue was by no doubt linked to the horrible sanitation in medieval times. During the same period in the East, farmers would consistently travel to the city collect feces. There were even children that specifically carried baskets of poop. The feces were ced under the field, creating the high yields of ancient China. Furthermore, it was the primary pir that sustained the growth of the Chinese civilization. Meanwhile, Europe cities could be considered to be filthy, dirty beyond words. A center for flies and rodents. Breeding a variety of diseases that periodically raged uncontrolled across the continent. Anyhow, Marin probably thought a bit too much. His predecessor was simply a wandering knight per the German traditions. Since Europe uses the eldest son inheritance system, it would be destined for the other sons to suffer. The eldest son would take the inheritance and the others could only curse their luck. If it was a big aristocratic family, the situation may be better. For example, if it was a king''s younger sons, although there is no inheritance, the king can seal them as a Duke or an Earl. Give them a piece of his own territory and they would have no troubles for the rest of their lives. For Dukes, Earls, and other high-ranked nobility, if their territory wasrge enough, it''s only a small matter to throw some meat for your other sons to feast off of. It was the small-time nobles that had the bad luck. Their territory was quite small and only just enough for the eldest son. Leaving the younger brothers to drink the northwest wind. [Trad: Wind blows NW in China during the winter] For example, the Hoffman family''s 200 acres was mainly thin soil. Barely enough for the household and the eldest son. (Not only for himself, by also the horses, attendants, and money for weapons, armor, and tools.) It quickly became increasingly hard to support Marin and the others in the family. So, as the smallest feudal rank knights were forced to make a decision. Typically, it ended with giving the other sons a horse, a set of armor, and ance. Then send him out to make a living for himself. As for the daughter, typically they were married to some poor aristocracy and perhaps with a dowry included as well. Exceptions include entering the Church as a nun. Under normal circumstances, the knights driven out were forced to seek refuge under that of higher-leveled nobility. This included services such as fighting in the lord''s battles. Of course, not every one of the knights that were driven out of the house had a chance to find their own employer. A lot of knights could not find work, nor were they willing to be demoted to doing menialbor. Thus, they had to wander around, looking for temporary employment opportunities. So, a new group appeared the wandering knight. These wandering knights grew up in the knight family. From a small age received extensive training in fighting. Their martial arts were very good, fighting a dozen conscripted farmhands was not a problem. Some were strong enough that a single one on horseback could rout a group of robbers. In fact, these wandering knights were an early form of German mercenaries. However, they were a scattered people. Since everyone wanted to be employed by a great noble and strike it rich, there was never the formation of any groups. Until a few years ago, when the future Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I was battling in Burgundy, he saw firsthand the strength of the Swiss mercenaries. This sprouted the eventual rise of German mercenaries in this period. (Author Note: The Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I did not officially be the Holy Roman Emperor until 1508. Prior to this, Maximilian I was only iming to be the recognized by the Church. Without the coronation of the Pope, the foreigners only recognized Maximilian I as the King of the Romans.) It was currently the summer of 1494, Maximilian I was recruiting his army for another period of turmoil. Marin Hoffman''s father, Fritz Von Hoffman, after hearing that the emperor was recruiting, decided to send his second son the 16 years old Marin. Originally, ording to tradition, Marin was to wait until 18 years old to be kicked out of the house. But Old Hoffman felt that this was a rare opportunity. If a trainee knight obtained meritorious service, then chances were that he would be formally be promoted to a fully-fledged knight and obtain his own fief. So, he decided to let Marin go get his chance early. However, he overestimated his second son''s real-world experience. Soon, the 10 gold coins were cheated away and Marin was left penniless. Then poor Marin with no money to stay or eat. In desperation, he rode into the forest to try his luck at hunting. First, the meat can be eaten and fur traded for money. But Marin was a knight, not a hunter. So, chasing animals was not his forte. Can you imagine a knight in heavy armor with hisnce, chasing a little hare? The weight of the armor itself would reduce the speed of the horse. How would it be possible to keep up with nimble wild animals? All the slow animals had long since been hunted. The previous Marin had no crossbow and didn''t understand archery. Leaving him to haggardly ride on his horse, aching in hunger. Finally, after two days of not eating, he fell from his horse and fainted on the grass. That''s when Marin finally passed into his body. Chapter 2: First, Survive Chapter 2: First, Survive Marin wasbing through these memories. However, he was trulymenting the previous Marin''s terrible intellect. Who tries to catch deer in heavy armor, something that even light cavalry may not be able to do. Suddenly, Marin thought this idiot didn''t swap with his soul from the 21st century, right? Thinking of the possibility, he shuddered. If such an idiot touched his body, what would happen? Wouldn''t he be cheated until he had no clothes left? However, after some thought. Marin felt that it was hopeless to return back now. Any past connections were no longer his concern. As he was thinking, another wave of immense hunger hit him. Marin finally remembered this body had not eaten for two days. Struggling to stand up, Marin saw his stuff ced not far away. Hisnce and his horse still grazing leisurely. This horse''s name was Carl. It was given by Old Hoffman to Marin during an early age. From when he was 13, the original Marin had taken care of this horse. Including shoveling manure, training it, and caring for it. Since then, it''s been three years. So, when the original Marin fell on the ground, Karl was rather obedient and stayed around to chew on some grass. Horses can eat grass to quench their hunger. But it''s a shame that ordinary people can''t eat grass The hungry blonde, Marin, encountered his first challenge, food. Currently, he was wearing fifteen kilograms of armor. This included a breastte and a clunky helmet. After all, the Hoffman family was considered very poor. There was only one full set of Gothic te armor for either Old Hoffman or Adler to wear. Besides the breastte and helmet, there was no protection for the legs and feet. As for the warhorse, Karl, there is no iron horse armor. Rather some simple wooden armor made out of oak boards. Then brushed with ayer of ck paint, it looked like real armor from afar. Albeit, this wooden horse armor actually did provide some protection, to a certain extent. Back to the main issue. Marin''s hunger constantly assaulted his nerves, his body and brain reminding him food. But does he go to find food? Marin became desperate. Once he took this body, it had not eaten a morsel in two days. Marin had inherited the original owner''s riding and martial art prowess. Along with his experience in street fighting, his ability wasn''t too bad. But the problem is that his body is already exhausted. "Hmm, should I kill the horse?" Marin looked at the Karl that was still chewing on some grass. Karl seemed to sense some foreboding, but only raised his head and gave Marin a nce. "No, I can''t. I''m a wandering knight. What''s a knight without a horse? To medieval knights, their horse is like a second lifeline. So, whether it be killing the horse, or selling it. All of them were not options Marin could take. "But I''m so hungry!" Marlin cried out. Looking at Karl, eating grass with a very satisfied look. Marin licked his lips. "Maybe, I can eat some grass..." Thinking of the military special forces and what they eat during field survival training, Marin decided to challenge himself. Then he crawled up to Karl . then prepared to fight the horse for its grass. Why would Marin fight the horse for grass? Whenever horses are grazing, it is said that they generally only like to eat delicious juicy des of grass. As long as it wasn''t too hungry, it would typically refuse to eat the substandard grass. Marin looked at Karl with his weird horse-like smirk on its face. He could infer that the cluster of grass is indeed very delicious. Then, Marin hurriedly snatched a few pieces of grass and stuffed it into his mouth. "Ah! Pah! so unptable why do you like it so much?" Marin grew angry and red at Karl. But of course, Karl being a horse, didn''t care and continued munching on his grass. The grass probably is really delicious, but only for specific herbivores. As for the human since when do they eat grass? But the grass had a strange taste. When Marin initially stuck the grass in his mouth, a vaguely familiar taste assaulted him. That feeling it was like green tea leaves. Spitting out the grass out of his mouth, Marin remembered that the Red Army sometimes ate grass roots. However, he never recalled them eating grass leaves. So, he changed his strategy and started to eat some roots. The taste of the grass roots really was better than the leaves. At least it didn''t taste so strange. And so, Marin ate heaps of it. After that, he took out the copper pot, and filled it with water out of the creek and drank it. After resting for a while, plus the energy brought by food, Marin''s physical strength recovered a lot. Then he began to consider the next survival problem. Whether it is the former Marin, or the current Marin, they were very principled people. So, Marin was not willing to resort to roadside robbery as some fallen wandering knights did. Thus, he has only two options either hunting for a living or traveling back to Hoffman Manor for help. However, Marin still had some fear about meeting the Old Hoffman and his mother. If they saw the massive change in him, then they could notify the Church, and Marin could easily be burned at the stake. During this time, it doesn''t require evidence for the Church to burn people to death. So, after much deliberation, hunting was the only option left. In fact, there was a third choice. For example, you can choose to find a big lord and swear loyalty to him. However, only Marin was only sixteen, his body was still developing. He was neither tall or strong enough. His current height was only about 1.7 meters. In this era, this would be considered normal for a German. But when ced in the category of knights, he was still very short and thin. Mainly because in this era, themon peoplecked nutrition. Naturally, they would grow to be shorter. But a child of a knight family, from a small age, would have eaten enough nutritious food that they generally didn''t grow to be short. Big aristocrats pay particr attention to the pomp. Preferring tall knights withrge muscles. With his current physical stature, it would be difficult to curry some noble''s fancy. The option being the Emperor, who should now be anxious to recruit mercenaries. After all, Marin had no chancepeting against actual knights, but if the recruitment was of general mercenaries, the chances were much better. Eventually, Marin decided he will hunt for his food, clothing, and travel expenses on his journey to Vienna to meet the Emperor. During this time, the Italian War was about to start. The German and French forces will sh at Italy. Finally, his hobby of inte reading woulde in handy. Chapter 3: Hunting Chapter 3: Hunting Marin was quite familiar with archery from his past. Rather, he was somewhat of a hunting enthusiast. Ever since China banned guns, Marin was forced to learn and perfect his archery skills. Moreover, Marin had once personally crafted an English longbow. Regrettably, the arrows had to be made by a specialized craftsman. With the bow, he went into the mountains and started hunting birds and rabbits. Of course, in the Middle Ages, bows and arrows were very important weapons. Their price being very expensive. As for the production of an English longbow, putting aside the specialized wood and other materials, just the crafting of the bow would take two or three months. The present Marin had no time to make one. Nor would he have the money to buy the bowstaves. But, Marin also knew an important hunting skill trapping As long as the camouge was cleverlyid, even the most sensitive of animals can be deceived. Because animals are animals, they often pay attention to the movement around them. A useful survival trait when its predators are fast and nimble. Hence, they concentrate on seeing and listening to their surroundings. Leaving them susceptible to the trap underneath their feet. So, if the trap is arranged realistically, it can basically catch most animals. Of course, the premise is that animals happen to walk onto the trap. Marin started to look around him. He was in a forest near the German Rhine. There was a stream running next to the road, a good source of water for animals. Having watched "Animal" quite often, Marin figured out that many animals, especially herbivores, will travel to the local water source in the mornings. Making it the optimum time for him to catch something. There were no tigers or lions in Europe; the fiercest wild beast being a wolf. However, wolves infest the forest at night but don''t generally appear in the mornings. So, venturing to the river on the mornings is nothing too dangerous. Marin was riding along the small stream back and forth a few times. Repeatedly dismounting and squatting on the ground to observe the animal footprints and feces. Finally, he narrowed down the three most trafficked areas. As for the three ces, the terrain was all rtively t, with virtually no trees to speak of. Probably the reason herbivores would choose this area because it''s convenient for a hasty escape. Even if something wants to ambush them, it would be next to impossible as there is no dense vegetative cover. Having chosen a good location, next was theyout of the trap. A sad reminder for Marin was that he didn''t have anything to dig the pit. Strictly speaking, Western Europe at this time had not fully adopted iron tools. In many estates such as the Hoffman Manor, the serfs used wooden tools. Only in Italy, Ennd, or some other affluent areas where metallurgy has developed enough are they widely used. As for theck of copper and bronze, it''s mainly due to its scarcity. The avability of European copper will only rise when mines are established in Sweden. Copper will alsoe from the East from sources such as Thand or Japan. But without these sources, its value sustained an exchange ratio of 15 silver to 1 copper. Much too expensive formoners and even lower nobility to use casually. Since Marin''s money was cheated away, he, of course, had no money for metal tools. He was forced to find a tree and use his dagger to cut a branch off of it. Forming a small wooden pick. Using that, he finally started to dig his traps. Digging with wooden tools truly required much more effort. Fortunately, as it was next to a stream, the soil was quite soft. Otherwise, the wooden pick would stand no chance. As for the soil that was moved, it was just thrown into the water. After digging a pit, it became time to cover it. The disguise must be very natural. If not, then animals won''t be fooled. Marin hurried off into the forest to collect lots of dead, brittle branches. Then finally carefully covered it with the branches and dead foliage. After a half hour, Marin finally finished with the first trap. Running around and finding no ws, he could only nod in satisfaction. Then, the n is to use the same process to arrange two more pit traps. After a few more hours, Marin looking at the gradually darkening sky. Anymoner in the area could tell you that around this time of the year, wolves would be even more numerous than usual. Furthermore, with more wolves and less food, they be particrly aggressive. If Marin stayed overnight in the forest then maybe he and Karl would be supper for the wolves. So, Marin found a small nearby town. In nearly every town, there was a church. A rtively good ce for sleeping outside. So, he tied Karl and fell asleep beside the horse. The spring weather is still very cold, Marin carried neither a quilt or nket. For the sake of warmth, Marin changed his location. Behind the church was a stack of firewood. Beside it was a pile of hay. Luckily, summer had not yet started. Or else, the hay would be teeming with snakes. In his previous life, back when Marin was a child, he was ying hide and seek with some other children. Opening a haystack, he saw dozens of snakes coiling together. The mere sight would make people''s scalps tingle. During spring, the snakes were usually still hiding in their deep dirt holes. The next morning, Marin was awakened by the sun that arced a bit over the horizon. In fact, the members of the church had undoubtedly found him. Rather, no one dared to disturb him because of his dress, which signified him as a wandering knight. In this era, wandering knights were not somethingmoners could mess with. If the church had their own guard then naturally they would not fear one or two wandering knights. However, this was only a small church in a small town. Wandering knights generally had a reputation of being potential thugs, leaving others afraid to provoke their wrath. Waking up, Marin threw off the wheat straw that he piled atop himself. Grabbing his horse, he traveled to the stream where he washed his face and gathered some water. Riding into the forest, he dug up some more grassroots and ate them as breakfast. Luckily, this body was used to drinking cold water in the mornings. If it were his old body then there would be a good chance of developing diarrhea by drinking cold water so early in the morning. It was important to note that diarrhea in the medieval times was a very serious issue Marin was hopeful that he would catch something. So, he rode his horse and checked the trapsid down yesterday afternoon. The first trap, had nothing. Obviously, no animals had set foot on it. Marin dejectedly shook his head, continuing onwards to the second trap. Approaching the second trap, Marin was pleasantly surprised to find that the grass cover was broken. However, what made him even more depressed was that it was empty. Probably, an animal mistakenly stepped in but escaped before they fell in. "Ugh, how can I have such bad luck!" Marin shouted to the sky. Now onto the final trap. Walking up, Marin was surprised that the third trap was also triggered. What could it be? Marin was careful to take hisnce and leaned over the rim. Looking into the pit, he finally saw the animal a male red deer. As to why he could tell it was a buck? Very simple, as it was nearing summer, bucks would start to grow antlers. This particr deer was quite big, about in the prime of its life. With a visual inspection, Marin found it to be about approximately 130 cm tall, 180 cm long, about 180 kilograms. Such a tall and vigorous deer, only ce Marin could see one was at the zoo. To catch such arge one, it made him overjoyed. Chapter 4: Meat is cheap and wheat is expensive Chapter 4: Meat is cheap and wheat is expensive Marin looked left and right and found that there was no rope to hold the red deer. In desperation, he had to pull out the grass on the side and began to prepare the straw rope. Speaking of it, the work of knitting ropes, even in the rural areas ofter generations, there are not many young people who know how to do it. Because theter generations of business are too developed, a variety of nylon fiber materials are sold in arge number in rope stores, not only cheap, but also better quality than straw rope. Therefore, everyone went directly to buy a chemical fiber rope. Marlin''s past life was also boring. When he was a child, he was a lonely old man child''s who loved to make straw ropes and sandals when he was bored. He learned the skills of knitting straw and sandals. Then, it just happened toe in handy today... Marin used the braided rope to hold the red deer''s neck, then grabbed the red deer''s front leg and pulled the red deer out of the trap. Then, Marin took the horse with his left hand and the red deer in his right hand. He couldn''t stop the red deer who was trying to escape. He dragged the red deer to the nearest city... The city closest to Marin at this time is the city of Bonn under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Cologne, the Bonn of the capital of West Germany. Marin spent a long time, only to bring the red deer outside the city of Bonn. But at the gate of the city, he was stopped... It turned out that in ancient Europe, entering the city was to pay the city tax. The tax on the city is not high, as long as the two empire Finney (theoretically Finney and pennies are equivalent). The problem is that Marlin is now penniless! In desperation, Marin had to inquire about the market outside the city and went to a market outside the city. You know, this year, two Finneys are also very impressive for the poor, almost equivalent to a day''s work. In order to save the city tax, some people simply set up a stall somewhere outside the city. Of course, local officials are not stupid. Are you setting up outside the city? OK, I can designate a market for you. However, those who set up stalls in the market must pay a tax, the same as in the city. As for the buyer, there is no need to pay taxes. However, this is also conditional. That is, the stall outside the city must be a small business. If you are a big business, you want to set up a stall outside the city to save the city tax. The tax official will bring you a trouble with the sheriff. In general, the stalls outside the city sell some cheap materials for the country. For example, farming tools, coarse cloth, needlework or something. As for the high-priced and rare materials such as salt, although the countrymen are also in great need, officials are absolutely not allowed to sell at the market outside the city. Because this will affect their taxation. Of course, people who are too far away from the city can also buy it at the market once every five days. But there are also tax officials in the market, which are very tightly targeted to business people. Marlin came to the simple market outside the city, naturally not to sell red deer. Because there can be no big buyers outside the city. He came here to get the city tax. After thinking about it, Marin felt that his body, horses and weapons armor must not be sold. But to get the city tax, you have toe up with something. I want to think about it, only the short knife on my body can be sold. This short knife is used for survival in the wilderness of Marin. It can also be used as a dagger to defend itself. The quality looks very good. But Marin is hungry now, eating grassroots for two days, and seeing someone selling ck bread on the market, he started to drool. Therefore, he decided to get the tax into the city and sell the red deer so that he could eat a normal meal. In a nutshell, Marin''s short knife is of good quality. After all, this is for the Cavaliers. In the case of the Cavalry losing thence, the Cavaliers may have to pull out a short knife and desperately fight with it. Therefore, the quality of this short knife is generally good. But now Marin can''t manage that much, and he doesn''t want to sell a good price. So, this excellent short knife worth 20 Finney was sold to a butcher by Marin with 8 Finney. With the cost of entering the city, Marin happily took the horses and red deer to the city. But what made him depressed was that his tax on the city had four Finneys. The reason is that the red deer he is holding is a "bulk cargo" and he has to pay some taxes... In fact, If it weren''t for Marin''s face as a knight, the guards might have to ask for 20 Finneys and even ask for the price of the deer. Moreover, the general people are hunting and even need the franchise of the lord. If a civilian is not licensed, huntingrge animals in the territory, may be executed by the lord. Only the wandering knight like Marin, the lord is not very willing. Because the wandering knight is a martial art masters who dare to kill people. The ordinary lords are afraid to provoke them. Moreover, many of the wandering knights have old friends and rtives, so provoking them is not the good thing to do. The soldiers in the defending city are just low quality infantry. How dare to offend the knight? Legend has it that some years ago, a baron killed a wandering knight who had hunted himself in his own territory. Then, after two months, the family of the wandering knight came with a group of knights and killed the baron. Also ransacked the baron''s manor. The family of the baron took things to the Imperial Court and did not solve it. Although the status of the baron is higher than that of the wandering knight (the deceased that is), but for the family revenge for their son, they really can''t say that they are wrong. Moreover, the baron killed a knight for the prey he hunted, and it was too much. Therefore, this is the case, in the end, only the retaliators (knights) returned the stolen property. Since then, the lords, are not willing to provoke the wandering knight. As long as it is not long-term hunting in your own territory, it is generally not considered. Even if it is discovered, it will only be sent away, not as fierce as it is to civilians. Because these wandering knights themselves, or their families, may be martial arts high-powered thugs... Of course, if you are hunting in a local lord territory, like Marin, if you are known by the local lord, they may be able to send a knight toe back and ask for it. However, the spread of news is extremely backward in the medieval era, andmunication is basically dependent on it. When the local lord knows the news, he will send someone toe and recover. Maybe three or two days have passed. And Marin itself is a hasty man on horse, where to find where he went? Even if it is found, it is useless. Unless, Marin is greedy, staying in this long-term hunting, giving people the opportunity to catch the thieve... After entering the city, Marin quickly entered the city and spent a long time trying to find a restaurant that was willing to acquire the red deer. But the price makes Marin so depressed that he wants to vomit blood... Why? The restaurant owner actually only gave 4 Finney a pound of venison price to buy the red deer. Moreover, it is based on a 50% meat yield. In other words, this venison, the boss is only willing to pay 800 Finney. In addition, because you can get a veryplete deerskin, as well as by-products such as decorative antlers, deer bones can also be used to soup. So, the boss agreed to pay 300 Finney. In other words, such a big red deer can only sell 1100 Finney... ording to Marlin Hoffman''s memory, the current value of five pounds per pound of wheat (this price will rise sharply after the beginning of the "price revolution" in the 16th century, by the 17th century, almost one or two per pound of wheat) Shillings are even higher. However, meat prices seem to have been rtively stable. Even the less valuable rye is worth 1 Finney per pound. In other words, the price of a pound of venison is not as expensive as a pound of wheat... We must know that in modern times, the price of a pound of wheat is also a little more, and the venison, at least twenty pounds. This is still venison, if it is wild venison, it must be dozens. In other words, the price of modern venison is at least ten times that of wheat. In the medieval Europe, the price of wheat was more expensive than venison, which made Marin extremely shocked. In fact, Marin''s knowledge is short. You know, this is the Middle Ages. The current German region (excluding Hungary and other regions, but many regions of post-Pnd, as well as the Nethends and parts of France, about 560,000 square kilometers), the poption is less than 10 million. In theter generations of Germany, the poption of 350,000 square kilometers has a poption of 80 million. Therefore, the German region at the moment is still considered to be sparsely popted. Like the Rhine and the southern mountains, there are currently arge number of forests. In the forest, wild deer, wild goats, hares... There are many wild animals like this, enough to kill and eat. Not only the German region, but now Europe is sparsely popted and there are many wild animals. As long as you have a musket or you are good at using a bow, you can always hunt the prey, so no shortage of meat, and you can sell it (provided you have the qualification to hunt). At the same time, the European medieval agriculture was so low that it did not match the shoes of the Ming Dynasty. Wheat per acre in Europe is better in the Italian region, which can reach 150 kg to 200 kg per acre. In other regions, the yield per acre is generally about 100 kg. Of course, this is also rted to the current climate. After all, this era is a "small ice age" and the temperature is low. But more reasons are that European farming techniques are extremely low. They don''t know how to apply fertilizer, and the plow for arablend is also very backward. For example, in the Tang Dynasty, China began to use the Qufu Plough, which was very advanced andbor-saving. In this era, there were only two kinds of ploughs in Europe the Saxon heavy plow and the ordinary light plow. The shorings of the light plow are obvious it has a shallow depth of cultivation and can only open the surface soil with poor results. The Saxon plow, the effect is very good. But it is too cumbersome and requires several horses to pull together. (European horses arerge in size and strong in strength, which is very suitable for horse riding. Therefore, horses have been popr in Europe, and cattle are used rtively little. Many cows are raised as cows or beef cattle.) However, in Europe, how many horses can ordinary people have? Obviously impossible. Therefore, the Saxon heavy plow can only be used by nobles and wealthy households. The smallndlords who are generally poor are not worthy of the Saxon heavy plough. No manure is applied and the cultivation is shallow. This has led to a generally low level of agricultural production in Europe, which has led to high food prices. In contrast, because there are many wild animals in the wild, and the Europeans themselves will graze extensively, the meat source is very rich, which also led to the low price of meat in Europe in this era. ording to Marlin Hoffman''s memory, at this time the beef was only 4 pounds of Finney, while themb and pork were only 3 cents a pin. In other words, the cost of eating meat is lower than eating wheat bread... Of course, the price of rye is even cheaper than meat. Therefore, the poor people generally eat mixed "casting" of rye, earth, wood chips, stones and wild vegetables (why the sake of saying that casting? Because such a ck bread can kill people, can be used directly as a brick, it''s called the medieval "Nokia''s super hard loaf bread"). Even the Hoffman family, who is a knight family, usually eats brown bread. Only in major festivals, will it be a luxury to eat white bread made of wheat flour. Of course, the ck bread that the Hoffman family eats is not the same as the ck bread that the poor people eat. At least, the ck bread that Hoffman''s family eats is not so hard, and it is not mixed with dirt and other things. It is a normal ck bread. Thinking of this, Marin''s tears are full: "I didn''t expect that medieval wheat is more expensive than meat! What''s special, I used to look through the novels, and thought that the author brags, I didn''t expect that the reality is so!" Before crossing, Marin had seen many novels that crossed into ancient Europe. For example, in a novel, it is mentioned that after the 17th century in Europe, the price of wheat was expensive and expensive, reaching a few pounds per quart (12.7 kg). To this end, the protagonist also made a fortune with the use of modern agricultural technology. "Well, it seems that I have to find a way to grow wheat and get rich!" After all, Marin is a purely rural child, no stranger to farming. But the problem is that thend must first havend! In the age when this feudal lord owned thend, you were rich and might not be able to buy goodnd. Even if you buy a goodnd, if the real kind of wheat makes a fortune, the lords around will be jealous, and wille to rob. Therefore, when Marin wants to go, he still feel that it is better to go to the Emperor Maximilian I. First, help the emperor''s fight, and then strive to establish battle contribution, get a piece ofnd. Then, with thend, when he be the lord, he will be recruiting serfs and will use modern agricultural techniques to produce tons of wheat and be a local tyrant... Chapter 5: Staying in the hotel to take a shower Chapter 5: Staying in the hotel to take a shower After 1100 Finney got to his hand, Marin immediately went to a hotel. In the past two days, he has not slept in bed and feels very ufortable. However, the price of a hotel in Bonn is quite high, and a single room has 10 Finneys per night. Sitting in a small hotel in the town, one or two Finneys a night is enough. However, people are worth the money. At least, the hotel in the town, dirty to die. There are no mandatory health requirements in this year. The average cheap hotel, which is very messy and tastes great. Even the quilt inside is a smell (this is the memory left by the former Marlin Hoffman living in a country hotel). And this house in the city of Bonn, although the health can notpare with the hotels of the next generation, but at least there is no strange smell inside. It seems that the owner is still very concerned about cleaning. After handing the horse to the stable in the backyard, Marin asked the hotel owner for arge oak barrel and a few pots of hot water - obviously, Marin wanted to take a shower... Although it is early spring, you can take a shower every few days. But what Marin fears is that the former Marin was a devout Catholic. Under the propaganda of some of the idiots, many believe that bathing can cause illness. As a result, many Catholics do not take a bath for many years. For example, the famous Sun King Louis XIV, in the 72 years of reign, actually only washed 7 times. Then, his lover, even in the bed was stunned by the strange smell on his body... Ok, the above is the spit on the Sun King. In this age, people who are in high positions, especially the king, the duke, are most afraid of death. And some bishops preached that if they would take a shower and people would easily get sick and die. Therefore, people who are generally afraid of death will not take a bath. And the family of knights like the Hoffman family, are ready to die, they are not so afraid of death. But because of religious beliefs, people in the Hoffman family can''t wash a few times a year. ording to the memory of the predecessor, the Hoffman family generally bathes more in summer and autumn. Because, during the summer training for the Cavaliers, there are too much sweats. In the autumn harvest season, there are many rye and smoky harvests (the Hoffman family is going to the field to participate in the autumn harvest), and they also need to take a bath. As for other seasons, the climate in Europe is cool. Therefore, people in the Hoffman family have fewer baths in the rest of the season. "My God, I couldn''t feel myself stinking these two days!" Marlin was shocked... In fact, it is not surprising that Marin''s two days have been busy thinking about how to live, how can he consider hygienic problems? Moreover, it is difficult for ordinary people to find the strange smell of their own body. Unless, I am really stinking... With the urge to vomit, Marin came to the big oak barrels and hot water sent by the hotel buddy. Then, Marlin began to take a bath in the room... This hotel was opened by Jews. Jews do not believe in Catholicism, and many of them travel between Europe and the Middle East. The Middle East, especially the Turkish region, is very popr for bathing, and the Turkish bath is very famous. Therefore, Jewish hotels are generally cleaner than local hotels, and also supply hot water for people to take a shower. Of course, the treacherous Jews are also more expensive in terms of fees. Into the big oak barrel, because there is no soap (in fact, Europe is soapy in this era, but it is more expensive to sell, 10 pieces of Finney, generally only aristocrats and rich people can afford it.), Marin had to use Rub your own hands with your hands to remove dirt. I know how to wipe it with one hand and get the dirt of one hand... Young people have a strong metabolism, plus three months without taking a bath, the natural dirt is very thick and thick, with ayer of skin. Fortunately, Marin took a shower in time to make himself feel refreshed and feel that his weight has been reduced by a few pounds... But after showering, Marin found another trouble - he didn''t have clean clothes to change... However, it is no wonder that the medieval Europeans were awkward, and the original owner of the body was just a 16-year-old boy. Where is the self-care ability? Therefore, in the clothes package, there are only a few dirty clothes to change clothes... In desperation, Marin put on one of the cleanest. Then, walk out of the hotel, under the guidance of the hotel owner,e to a tailor shop... Obviously, Marin is going to buy clothes. The price of ready-to-wear is also a shock to Marin - a set of ordinary clothes made of linen, even asking for 15 Finney, the more expensive cloth, 30 Finney or more. You must know that in this year, the average person works, and the daily wages are only 2 Finney. Craftsmen work, only three Finneys a day. Fifteen Finneys are almost equivalent to a 7-and-a-half-year sry for a strong man. Fortunately, Marin had made a huge red deer before, and changed enough money. Otherwise, he can''t afford a suit. Marlin, who originally nned to buy more sets of clothes for washing, only bought two sets of linen and brought them back. After returning to the hotel, the original set of dirty items in the bag, and some old clothes, Marin was originally intended to throw away. But now, Marin silently picked up the tub and went to the well to wash the clothes... At dinner, Marin spent six Finneys, asked for a piece of dark bread, and a roast goose, and ate a big meal. However, European cooking talent is too bad, a good roast goose, it is no taste, only salty taste... It is no wonder that this year, the Big Voyage has just begun, Europeans have not yet upied the Southeast Asian spice production. Therefore, the price of spices in Europe isparable to gold and is rare. Generally, only the aristocrats and the rich will eat ginger, aniseed, cinnamon, nutmeg and other spices when they eat meat. Ordinary people, it is good to put some salt. It is said that on the Russian side of the Orthodox Church, the highest etiquette for entertaining guests is to serve white bread made of wheat and salt... Eating a roast goose without any taste, Marin began to open his brain again - if he relied on his Chinese cooking skills, in the European market of this era, it would not be profitable. But not long after, he woke up again. This era is not the era of the rule ofw. Yes, he uses the cooking skills of Chinese food. Although it can make the business boom in a short period of time, the Europeans can swallow their tongues. However, the secret recipe of cooking is bound to be found and it is difficult to protect themselves. The reason is very simple, the age of the nobility in the Middle Ages. In this era, the nobility eats everything, and the civilian life is like a mustard. If you master the recipe of cooking, you have no status. Then, if you are a nobleman, you dare to send someone to arrest you, and then torture you to get the "secret recipe". Then, in order to monopolize the market, this nobleman may limit his concurrent freedom, and may kill him... "In the end, if you want to mix in the Middle Ages, you still have to have an aristocratic identity!" Marin sighed, stuffing the roast goose in his dish into his mouth, and then went back to the room with a belly full to rest. Chapter 6: Riding while shooting is a technical activity Chapter 6: Riding while shooting is a technical activity The next morning, after Marin got up and washed, he got a piece of ck bread without mud and licked it. He simply filled his stomach and went out shopping. Last night, Marin thought about the middle of the night and strengthened his determination to rely on the Emperor Maximilian I. Because, although Maximilian I was a poor man, he was an emperor, but he was able to give himself a high status. As a transmigrator, and someone who also watched so many novel like this situation, there are a lot of ways to make money in his mind. But in this age when the nobility was rampant, there was no status, and no amount of wealth could be kept. Therefore, Marin needs to use the emperor to obtain a high enough social status to block others'' shackles of their wealth. And how to get social status (that is, the title)? Very simple, battle! As a graduate of the history department, Marin has read Western history and knows that in the "Thirty Years War" in the 17th century, there were two talented strategists who had be low-minded but became the great aristocrats with warfare - Wallenstein and Tilly. These two big man, all born in the ordinary declining small aristocratic family, are not big aristocratic children. However, bymanding the mercenary to make great contributions to the battle of the great aristocracy, the twoyers of the aristocratic world, one is ennobled Duke (Warrenstein), the other is ennobled Earl (Tilly). Marlin may not have the same talent as Wallenstein, but there is no problem with relying on a set of "Spanish squares" to fight the world''s Tilly. At least, he knows how to y the Spanish square. The original creator of the Spanish square, General Crdoba, will have to wait until 1503 to find out the prototype of the "Spanish square" of more than a century. And this tactic, Marin is very clear. Even Marin knows the Morris phnx of the Nethends, which is more powerful than the Spanish squad, and the Gustav line, which is close to the modern battlefield. As for the dwarf artillery tactics, let alone talk about it. The tactics after the mid-19th century were useless. Because, there are no such advanced weapons. After all, Marin is a liberal arts student. Although science is also good, it is not professional. Therefore, he can get a maximum of guns or something. I want to get a gun after the gun, and the bottom fire technology can''t solve it. This technology requires a professional from chemistry to solve... Of course, the above is purely Marin''s thoughts. In order to disy his "talent", he must first be mixed into the mercenary recruited by Maximilian I. Otherwise, everything is not possible. To be mixed into the German mercenary formed by Maximilian I, first arrived in Vienna, the home of the Habsburg family. Since the resumption of Austria from the Hungarian kingdom in 1490, Maximilian I moved his office from the Principality of Burgundy to Vienna. Although the emperor often went to Innsbruck in western Austria, many important things were still handled in Vienna. The big event of recruiting troops must also be done in Vienna. Now, to go to the army, you must go to Vienna. However, from Bonn to Vienna, it is more than 800 kilometers away. Marin is now focused on this, and he also carries a huge knightnce. Although Carl is a good horse, but the weight is so big, you can only walk more than 160 km a day, stop and go, or you can''t afford it. In fact, the average te knight, when the expedition, will bring 5 attendants to help themselves with armor and knightnces. Before the war, he was also responsible for putting the te on the knight and putting the knight on the horse. Also Marin he has no te armor, otherwise, ''I can''t put it myself". Marin calcted that he had to go to Vienna at least for ten days. And the less than 1,000 Finney left in his hand is not enough. Because, he lives, eats and drinks, about 15 Finney a day (usually about 5 Finney is a meal, it''s not bad to eat). And the damn war horse Carl, eat more than him, eat 10 Finney''s feed a day. The horses are very delicate. If you let the horses eat the grass and don''t make up the body for the feed, you may not be able to wear the heavy armor. Because, the horse''s feed, mainly oatmeal (Europe, there is no soybean in this era, soybeans are still in East Asia and India, it will be introduced to Europe in the 18th century). These things are rtively expensive in medieval Europe, where agriculture is backward... Marin was not a person who took a ticket and then sat on the mountain of gold. In order to arrive in Vienna smoothly, Marin decided to try hunting along the way to improve his life. After all, the former Marin, often with a homemade English longbow during the holiday, went hunting in the back of his hometown and had a good archery. After making up his mind, Marin began to pay attention to the shops selling bows and arrows when he was shopping in the city of Bonn... After visiting a few streets, Marin quickly found a weapons store selling bows and arrows. Looking at the dazzling bows and arrows in the weapons store, Marin frowned. why? Because there is no English long bow that Marin is most familiar with. Marlinter produced a long bow of Ennd himself and used it to hunt many times in his hometown. Therefore, for the bow and arrow, Marin only touched one type, and only mastered one kind - the English longbow. Although Marin made the English longbow, it was not the use of yew, but the Chinesemon willow, but Marin used to the English longbow. The biggest difference between the English longbow and other bows and arrows is that the bows of other bows and arrows are forcibly bent and fixed, and they are heated and fired to maintain their fixed shape. In this way, although it is more efficient to manufacture, it will damage the tension of the bow and reduce the range. If you want a higher range, you can only use a harder bow with arger pull. The bow of the English longbow is bent by the "bow". The wooden strip used to make the bow will be fixed to a bracket, and then the ends of the strip will be caught by the rope. Then, the archer will pull the rope and hang it at a point not far away, causing the strip to begin to bend slightly. After a period of time, the strip adapts to this curvature and then increases the curvature... so iterates until the strip fits the curvature required to make the longbow. In fact, the secret of the production of the English longbow, for a long time, is a unique secret of the United Kingdom. Because the English longbow soldiers are the British elite. It was not until around 1596, when Elizabeth I was in thete reign, that the British officially gave up the longbow soldiers, and the secrets of the British relics were poprized. But at that time, Europe was already the world of firearms. However, the longbow soldiers were eliminated, not that the longbow soldiers were not able to kill, but because the longbow soldiers were too expensive to train. An excellent longbow soldier may have to train for more than ten years and must train for a minimum of a few years. For example, Marin''s predecessor used the English longbow, and it took him seven or eight years to be more proficient in archery hunting. At the beginning, Marlin archery was not reliable than the national football goal. After all, he didn''t have the guidance of a famous teacher. He relied on online tricks to practice archery. Even making the English Longbow is a post that I saw on the Inte around 2006, and then made it ording to the steps on the post. Longbowmen need so much time to train, can a firearmsman? It only takes one or two weeks to train. Above the battlefield, no matter how long you train, whether it is a bow or a gun, it is a death or injury. The cost of the British training longbow soldiers is very high. Even the longbowmen became the privileged ss of Britain after the Cavaliers. Every dead longbow soldier is a huge loss for the UK. The firemen are different. Just a serf who is stupid and honest, and after a week or two of training, can use the guns to fight. Even if it is dead, it is convenient to supplement. If the musketeer (not the one like in the Three Musketeer, but the one using musket) died, they could take another batch of strong men to train for a week or two. However, if the longbowmen are killed, they may not be able to show another batch for many years. Moreover, the biggest difference between the longbowmen and the muskets is that the muskets can deal with enemies wearing te armor. The Longbows, however, can do little damage to the te armor. For a variety of reasons, the British finally gave up the longbowmen who had made them proud and turned to the use of firearms. However, the musket shines, in fact, after the emergence of the Spanish phnx in 1503. It is now 1494, the firearms have not taken the lead. Even the arquebus gun appeared only around 1450. This year, unliketer, technology can be promoted so fast. The arquebus has appeared for more than 40 years, and no one has yet noticed the excellentbat effectiveness of the arquebus. Simrly, in thete 16th century, there was guns in France, but it was not until the mid-17th century that the guns became popr. It is no wonder that it is necessary to know that in the Middle Ages or in the world of the church, all scientific knowledge is actually suppressed by the church, and the speed of science and technology is very slow. Moreover, new scientific knowledge also needs to prove itself. For example, the arquebus was used by Gonzalo de Crdoba in the battle of Charin, relying on a spear and a musket to defeat the French army. In the same way, the flintlocks were also taken seriously by the European countries after they shined in the "Thirty Years War." In Europe today, the arquebus is still a rare thing. Even cities like Bonn sell fewer muskets. Instead of selling bows and arrows, there are several shops. Moreover, the current steel technology in Europe is not enough, and the guns produced are always bad. For example, King John II of Scond died in 1460 because of artillery bombing ident. In the 16th century, after the further development of European steel technology, the bombing ident will be greatly reduced. Because there was no familiar English longbow, Marin had to retreat to the next level, bought a recurve bow with a pull of about 60 pounds, and bought 30 arrows. In fact, whether it is theter Marin or the current Marlin, it is a strong bow that can pull 100 pounds of pull. Needless to say, Marin inter generations is a strong rural youth, and there is no shortage of farm work, so the strength is great. Marin of this world, although only 16 years old, but also received the martial arts training of the knight from a young age, the strength is not small, it is possible to use a 100-pound strong bow. However, Marin knows that a strong bow like the English longbow is good for adults. If you have such a strong bow in your youth, it is easy to cause deformation of the posterior spine. For example,ter generations have verified that some medieval English long-bow archers have been deformed because they have been trained to strengthen the bow. Marin''s current body is still a growing 16-year-old boy. He didn''t want to have a long bow because of the use of a strong bow. Therefore, he chose a 60-pound ordinary recurve bow as his hunting weapon. However, the original Marin''s memory did not have the use of bows and arrows, andter Marin was only familiar with the English longbow. Therefore, it took Marin several days to be familiar with the use of the recurve bow. After testing, the effective range of this recurve bow is within 100 meters. However, the distance that can be aimed is only about 50 meters. It may not be enough to kill the enemy, but it is enough for hunting. Familiar with the use of the recurve bow, Marin left Bonn, hurrying in the direction of Vienna, and began to use the recurve bow to hunt... But what made Marin so depressed was that he hadn''t hit the prey for a long time... Why is this? Very simple, Marin is so embarrassed, because he want to learn Mongolian cavalry style tactic,e and shoot. Speaking of it, Marin''s shooting, put it into modern point of view, is very good. Can shoot prey in the forest, the arrow method is also OK. But that is on the ground... Moreover, Marin is used to hunt, is generally with a bow and arrow, quietly went into the forest, seeing unprepared prey, the sneak attack seeded. This is basically equivalent to shooting a fixed target. For high-speed moving prey, Marlin''s hit rate is actually not high. And riding while shooting the arrow immediately... Hey, he''s all tears when it''s said... Sitting on the car in the immediate and future generations is apletely different concept. The car has shock absorbers and the road is t. And riding, but it''s bumping up and down... Therefore, Marin, who wants to y and shoot, is aiming at the prey, but the horse is on the next bump, and the arrow is immediately hitting the tree... Moreover, he rode a horse, and the sound of the horseshoe inevitably alerted the prey, causing the small animals to flee in advance. Marin is only a target for shooting fixed targets. For small animals moving at high speeds, there are some tricks. For seven days in a row, Marin failed to hit a prey by riding a shot. Fortunately, he sold some red deer before he saved, otherwise he must starve to death. Simrly, it is because of a little savings that he dares to y like this. "It''s not easy to ride a shot!" Marlin looked sad. Think about it too, the Huns and the Mongols, who started riding the sheep on the slingshot when they were five years old. When you grow up, it is basically equivalent to practicing riding for more than ten years. Even so, the "old driver" who has been practicing for more than ten years does not dare to say that riding on a high-speed running horse can stably shoot the prey in running, let alone this newbie? Therefore, although the riding is handsome, it relies on many years of hard work and some talents to master. For Marin''s half-baked, Mongolian style shooting is basically like gambling probability, the prey that he shot, he is the unlucky one that hits the trees... Chapter 7: Receiving two attendants 1 Chapter 7: Receiving two attendants 1 In this way, Marin went all the way to Vienna, practicing riding and shooting all the way, hoping to hit the prey. But it was not until the territory of Wrttemberg (Wrttemberg was to be promoted to the Principality in 1495) that he still could not practice riding. In desperation, Marin had to give up the idea of Mongolian style archery to get prey. In fact, he can also shoot. However, after dismounting, he had to quietly touch the prey and then attack the prey. The problem is that his horse is not quiet, always snorting, and the hoof is still a few times, making a big noise. The prey heard the sound and was scared away. If you don''t bring the horse out, you can send it to the hotel. However, the prey is basically deep in the forest. The area of the town near the edge of the forest is basically nothing prey. Because the prey on the edge of the forest was basically killed by local hunters. And from the small town near the forest into the depths of the forest, you must ride the horse. It''s time to ride a horse, and Marin doesn''t worry about putting the horse in a ce he can''t see. When the horse is tied, it will make a sound to scare away the prey. But Marin was tied too far, and Marin worried that the horse was stolen. After all, in the Middle Ages, war horses were very precious assets. Marlin yed a hundred times of hunting, and the second harvest, may not be able to exchange for a horse. You know, amon horse, like Karl, costs dozens of marks (1 mark = 160 Finney, 1 pound = 1.5 mark). Even the mostmon pony, it is about ten marks. If Carl was stolen, Marin not only lost the means of transportation, but also lost the qualification to be a knight. Therefore, Marin will never ignore his own war horse for a few prey. These days, he met several knights in the middle of the night. However, the knights are all behind. In general, in addition to the lonely wandering knight (he has seen several), the knights with real estate are surrounded by five knights. Among them, two followers helped the knight transport armor andnce. The other three, there are ways to explore, and even help to cook. In general, one or more of these five attendants can be yed. This can be yed, generally responsible for the night, to protect the knight from being attacked by others in his sleep. After all, the Cavaliers are aggressive and there are inevitably a few enemies. "Hey, if I have a waiter to help me look at the horse, I can safely enter the forest to hunt!" Marin could not help but feel. However, I think that there are hundreds of Finneys in my body, and there is no such thing as a field. Where will there be attendants to follow me? Be aware that the knight''s attendants, out of loyalty, are usually chosen in the serfs of their own manor. After all, if the attendant is rebellious, and his family is still in the Knights'' Manor, it can''t run away. Marin now has less than 800 Finney left in his hand, and it is okay to hire a waiter temporarily. However, it is difficult to guarantee that the war horse will be handed over to this person if he is temporarily employed. Will this person ride the horse to run because of greed. After all, a horse is worth about six or seven thousand Finneys, enough to make an ordinary person live a long time. You know, the sry of an ordinary person is nothing more than two Finneys every day. Thinking about it, Marin felt that it was better to dig a trap and hunt. After all, I can''t shoot without shooting, and I''m not willing to let go of the war. Only digging traps is the most appropriate. Then he went to the cksmith shop and was ready to buy a shovel to dig a trap. Thest time I used a wooden pickaxe to dig a hole, I almost got myself stuck. This time, he is ready to use professional equipment. What surprised him was that there was no such thing as a shovel in Europe at this time. Only iron hoes, hammers, shovel, etc... Excavating the soil is obviously the mostbor-saving and easy to use. As a result, Marin had to customize a short-handled engineering squad shovel to the cksmith in ordance with the style of the engineering squad used by theter generations. Of course, without folding and other functions, just a wooden handle with an iron shovel, dedicated to digging pits. The next day, Marin paid 10 shillings and got a very practical engineering squad tool. In the past, Marin went to the back mountain to hunt, and also took an online shopping engineer, digs traps in the woods, pits prey, and is very skilled. Sure enough, after getting the engineers favorite tool, Marin was like a fish, and soon he was able to dig seven or eight traps in the depths of the forest. Moreover, these traps are dug deeper and are not afraid of prey jumping. After covering the dead branches and turf, Marin rode on horses and returned to the town where he stayed. Halfway, Marin encountered some running prey, and took the arrow to open the bow - sure enough, no kill. After recycling the arrow, Marin was not discouraged, but he went back to the hotel happily. ... The next morning, Marin rode forward with anticipation to go to the trap where he dug the pit yesterday and check the harvest. Sure enough, I found the fourth trap and found a wild boar. Then Marin tangled, the wild boar is a very ferocious animal, if you let it up, it may be able to kill you - the wild boar has fangs. So Marin had to make a decision - kill the wild boar and drag it back. After making up his mind, Marin stood on the top of the pit, took the arrow and opened the bow, and shot the arrow in the pit. After wasting five arrows, Marin had toughly shoot the wild boar. The thickness of the wild boar was not blown out. At such a close distance, Marin shot 6 arrows before killing the wild boar. If you meet it in the wild - killing Marin is easy, you will not choose to hunt wild boars. If you can''t kill it, you are sure you are finished. I am afraid, only the professionalnce that hits the heavy armor can threaten the wild boar. Marin did not immediately drag the wild boar, but ced it in the pit first. Then he rode on the horse and went to check the remaining traps. In addition to harvesting prey, there is also the meaning of destroying the trap. Why? Traps can not only pit to prey, but also pit people. Daytime is the time of human activity, and there may be hunters entering the depths of the forest. If you hang into a hunter, you are guilty. Therefore, after checking the trap for prey, Marin will usually get rid of the cover on the trap, and then set up a wooden stick to remind others that there is a trap. After several traps, Marin harvested two rabbits. But in thest trap, Marin was stunned. Why? In this trap, it seems to have caught something. Moreover, it is a tall, strong young man. However, looking at the posture in the trap, it seems that the head is first thing thatnded. Therefore, this guy seems to be dizzy. Of course, this cargo is definitely not life-threatening. Because, after all, the trap is not the bottom of the masonry, but the softer soil. The reason why the goods are dizzy is that the head has been hit. Soon, this tall young man woke up and looked awkward. "This... what is going on?" The tall young man scratched his head and seemed to wonder. Looks like this guy is not smart enough. "Sorry, sir, you fell into the trap that I dug for hunting. It''s all my fault. You have this money, I hope to help you." Marin took out 10 Finney and handed it to him. This young man. It is said that 10 Finney is not too small, and can be worth 5 days of work for ordinary people. Moreover, this young man seems to have suffered nothing. However, what surprised Marin was that when the tall and healthy young man got up and saw Marin''s dress, he began to panic. I saw him squatting at Marin, saying: "Respected knight, the viin has identally destroyed your trap, please forgive me!" After that, he didn''t pick up the silver coins that Marin handed over. Marin squatted and responded. This era, but the era of the nobility, civilians such as ants. Originally, it was Marin''s trap that hurt this young man. However, after seeing the armor worn by Marin and the horse on the side, the young man realized that he was a knight. Therefore, he is afraid. You must know that in the chaotic German, the nobility is thew. If the aristocratic lord killed himself in anger, no one would judge for himself. Although this tall young man is taller and stronger than Marin, he dare not reveal a little dissatisfaction. Because, as everyone knows, the knights are all trained from a young age. Ordinary people, even if they have great strength, do not necessarily y the knight who has learnedbat skills. Moreover, even if you win, it is not only a good thing, but will bring disaster to your family. So, after seeing that Marin was a knight, this tall young man decisively recognized. "Don''t be nervous, I''m not malicious. Right, what''s your name? So what did you do in the depths of the forest early in the morning?" "Responding to the knight, the little man called Kahn. The small morning came to the forest. I wanted to catch a few prey and go back to the stew to give my mother a make-up." "Kahn..." Marin had some idea, looking at the looks of this guy in front of him, very ugly... Then, Marin smiled. "Hahaha, Kahn, it''s too apt..." "Ah?" Kahn wondered, is his name so funny? Afterughing enough, Marin asked with a good spirit: "Kahn, you said you are hunting, what about your weapons?" "This is the javelin..." Kahn looked embarrassed. Marin looked at it, that is, the wooden stick that had been sharpened. Just, can this thing be used for hunting? Marin deeply doubts. "This stuff can also be used for hunting?" "This...the viin is also the first time to go hunting. It is, my mother''s body is too weak, and there is no food at home. So, I want to get only the prey for the soup to give it to my mother..." Kahn scratched his head. "Mother..." Kahn''s words evoked Marin''s memories. In memory, the pictures of the mothers from his time in China and the mothers of this world kept shing in my mind... For a long time, Marin sighed and said to Kahn: "Kahn, let me go, help me move things, I will pay you!" "Well!" Kahn was happy. He did not dare to ept Marin''spensation, but did not dare to ept Marin''s employment. If you have an employment, it means you have money! Then, beforeing to the pit of the wild boar, Marin pointed to the dead wild boar and said to Kahn: "Kahn, help me bring the wild boar up!" "Yes, Master!" Kahn, who reached a height of around 185, jumped off quickly and took out the wild boar weighing about 200 pounds. By the way, he also pulled out the 6 arrows of Marin. Later, under themand of Marin, Kahn dragged the wild boar and walked in the direction of his home... Soon, Marin and Kahn came to Kahn''s home, a forest side cottage. Chapter 8: Receiving two attendants 2 Chapter 8: Receiving two attendants 2 Through conversations on the way, Marin learned that the Kahn family was originally a serf from a nearbyndlord. However, since Kahn began to develop in the past few years, he can eat especially, and one person can eat three people''s meals. Although, Kahn is also more energetic. If it is ced in which knight cor, chances are that Kahn will be recruited as a knight. Because, Kahn has the potential to be a fierce. However, the owner of the Kahn family is just an ordinaryndlord, and does not need a rice bowl that can be yed. Plus the manor''s harvest in recent years is not good, sost year, the Kahn family was swept away. Kahn''s father, Zimmerman, knew some woodwork, so he went to the city to work for the carpenter shop. Kahn, together with his mother, two younger brothers and a younger sister, built a simple wooden house on the edge of the ck Forest. Usually, Kahn goes to the forest to take the dry branches as firewood (the logging is subject to the approval of the lord), sell it to the city people, and earn a little money. Kahn''s mother, with her younger siblings, went to the forest to pick wild mushrooms and dried them when the food was eaten. Because Kahn eats a lot, so although Zimmerman''s ie is not bad, the family also tried to find ways to subsidize the family. However, everyone is still very tight. This year, Kahn is already 18 years old. Zimmerman had already taken Kahn to the city at the beginning of the year, intending to make him an apprentice. However, after seeing Khan''s horrible appetite, the craftsmen''s shop refused Kahn without batting an eye (they did not have pay money to apprentices, but they had to take care of the meal). In desperation, Kahn had toe back to apany his mother and his younger siblings. Unexpectedly, Kane''s mother, Jenny, got sick and was weak. Because the mother spent the time spent on medical treatment, the whole family began to be hungry. So, Kahn thought of learning the hunters and quietly went to the depths of the forest to hunt (the lords here are not strict with the people hunting the tubes, Many people have quietly hunt and have been caught up to the most.) It is a pity that the first time hunting, not only did not hit the prey, but he became a prey and fell into a trap. Beforeing to the wooden house, Kahn put down the wild boar, pushed open the old fence in front of the house, and shouted: "Mom, I aming back! Come to the guests!" Soon, a pale-faced middle-aged woman, with a fifteen-year-old boy, a little boy of about 12 years old and a little girl of about ten years old greeted them. "Kahn, what is this master?" The middle-aged woman looked at Marin and knew that the other might be a knight. "Respecteddy, my name is Marin, I am a knight." Marin introduced herself. "You are too polite, the knight are noble , we are just civilians, we can''t stand your courtoisie!" Middle-aged women feared. In her memory, only civilians have been saluting or even bowing to the nobility. How can aristocrats salute civilians? Moreover, she is just a bottom woman without a surname, and she can''t afford the title of "Mrs." That is, Marin, the traverser, does not pay much attention to social level differences. Resting on another knight, you will never take a blind eye to a civilian. Being able to talk to civilians will make you feel very right. Hearing that Marin was a knight, and the younger boy and the little girl were scared to hide behind the woman. Instead, the fifteen-year-old boy looked at Marin with a curious look and was not afraid. "Cole, are you jealous? Don''t you give the knight a salute?" Kahn nced at his second brother Kohler. Kohler reacted and gave Marin the ritual salute, but after finishing the "ceremony", he still looked at Marin with a curious look. Of course, this is not the kind of arrogance, but a peek like a little boy. "Kahn, go, drag the wild boar in!" Marin said casually. "Sire, are you asking?" "Open the boar in your house, let''s have something to eat together." "No, no, how dare we eat the things of your master!" Jenny shook her head. "that''s nothing. But, can you help me with some food mydy?" Marin could see that Jenny''s illness was good, but her body was still weak. About half of them are also hungry. "Ok..." "Kahn, can you skin the pig? Is this wild boar still untreated?" Marin suddenly remembered that the wild boar seemed to have not been treated yet. "Yes, sire, I worked as a helper in the ughterhouse in the city at the beginning of the year, so I will skin the pig! You are good, look at me!" Then, Kahn took over the new purchased knife that Marin handed him, a sharp knife, and went to deal with the wild boar. Although the technique was somewhat unfamiliar, Kahn finally managed to clean the wild boar. However, the wild boar skin was damaged because Marin had shot several arrows at the beginning. Jenny quickly cut ten pounds of wild pork meat and went to the kitchen to cook ording to Marin''s request. An hourter, Marlin looked at the food on the table, with some frowning. "Madam, you only barbecue and cook meat?" "Well? Yes. Don''t everyone do this?" Jenny didn''t understand Marin''s meaning. Marin also reacted instantly - where did Europeans know how to cook. However, he could not bear to see the delicious wild pork, wasted on the roasting and cooking of ancient German cooking technique. Then Marin asked: "Madam, is there a pot in your house?" "Ah? There is, there is a pan!" "Pan..." Although it is not a professional pot for cooking, it is better than nothing. Then, in the surprised look of the Kahn family, Marin took off his armor and walked into the kitchen. After entering the kitchen, Marin called Kahn and let him burn wood. And he himself began to prepare for cooking. But what makes Marin desperate is that Kahn''s family has no oil for cooking. It is no wonder that in this year, Europeans only had two expensive edible oils, butter and olive oil, which were only used frequently by nobles. Well, also use some animal fats. "Yeah, animal fat!" Marin patted his head, then, with a short knife, went to the boar corpse and cut some pig fat, thrown into the pot and simmeredrd. After taking out therd, Marin took out Jenny''s help to cut the sliced meat, threw it into the pot and began to stir fry. In addition tord, Kahn''s family only has a salt seasoning. In desperation, Marin can only choose to put some salt. Half an hourter, a scent fluttered out of the kitchen, causing Kahn, Kohler, Kleinman and Maria to drool. After the fried meat on the table, in addition to Jenny, everyone stared at it with slobber. "Don''t watch, let''s have something to eat!" Marlin took the lead. Others began to hesitate, but after Kahn serve himself, the children began to rush to eat. In a short while, a te of fried meat was gone. "Sorry, sire, the children are too hungry!" Jenny looked at it and got it. She grabbed the food of the knight and was not afraid of being killed. But Marin didn''t care. This fried pork was not very tasty because of theck of seasoning. Of course, that is rtive to the summer cooking of theter generations. In this era, it was Marin who first ate cooking. "Nothing, this is nothing. If you can''t make a big fuss!" For the second time, Jenny didn''t dare to let Marin do it herself, but she nned to do it herself. Under Marin''s instructions, Jenny also reluctantly fired a te of fried meat that was still worthwhile. Then, it was divided up by several "bear" children. "Oh, it''s delicious. If you can eat meat every day!" Kahn sighed with satisfaction. "Get it, my brother, unless you can be a nobleman''s follow-up, have a chance to live this life." Kohler was poisoning his tongue. The aristocratic followers, even if they are eating cold and cold, have the opportunity to eat delicious food. As for civilians, you can only eat ck sticks and bricks. "Aristocratic followers..." Everyone turned their attention to Marin - isn''t this a ready-made aristocrat? "Big... sire, the waiter whocks errands around you?" Jenny asked nervously. She can see that Marin is a knight, but there seems to be no knight attendant. Maybe because it is still young. "The attendant... there is none yet, I intend to be recruited by the Emperor and recruit a few attendants there." Marin said his n, and it was not a secret anyway. "Emperor... Emperor... His Majesty..." Several countrymen were stunned by Marin''s n. Usually, the knight are high in their eyes. The Emperor is said to be much bigger than the knights. The Kahn family unanimously determined that Marin''s future is boundless. Can a knight who can serve the Emperor have no future? Then, Kahn immediately looked at Marin with a look of dissatisfaction: "Adult, can you ept me as a servant? I am very energetic!" After that, Kahn also showed his muscles and showed his strength. "It''s very powerful, can you move the stone at the door?" At the door of Kahn''s house, there is a big stone, about three hundred pounds. Marin saw the stone at the door and asked with a funny joke. "You are so good!" Kahn said, and ran over it, lifting the stone and raising it to his head. Marin was shocked and could lift up to 300 pounds of weight, which is a lot of strength. You know, Marin himself, the past life can only pick up (not lift) 200 pounds of things, in the afterlife can be regarded as a strong man. What he didn''t know was that this 300-pound stone was actually the "sports equipment" that Kahn used to exercise. The limit of Kahn was more than 300 pounds. It was extremely abnormal. "Good, a little strength, it''s right for me to get armor andnce!" "So?" "As long as you like, just follow me, 3 Finneybor every day!" "Then... eat it? Adults, our family, Kahn eats a little bit..." "How much can you eat? How many?" Marlin is not surprised. Generally, the strong are all endless food hole. For example, Xue Rengui, the amount of rice he ate each meal was calcted by the bucket, not with a bowl. "At least 6 pounds of food a day, if you open it, you might have 8 to 10 pounds..." Jenny was a little embarrassed. However, this is an important issue, and she does not dare to deceive the knight. For adults in general, it is enough to eat two pounds of food a day. Their family''s food barrel, Kahn, eats at least 6 pounds a day... "Oh... you can eat. But, Kahn, can you dare to go to the battlefield with me? But he will die at any time!" Marin didn''t care about the amount of food, but he was courageous and courageous. "No problem, sire, will l follow you to have a meal to eat? If you are full, you can do it, and you are not afraid of death!" Kahn said sternly. "Well, I like the daring man. OK, I will ept you!" "Thank you for your appreciation!" Jenny was very surprised, not only for Kahn to get a good future, but was also happy for this poor family to get rid of a big eater. "Sire... you see, can I follow?" Kohler saw that the older brother was on the knight, and it was very heart-warming. "Khler, do you have any special skills? Your big brother has strength, do you have special ability?" Marin recruited his men, but he would ept special ability. "I... I remember well, I am good at ounting..." "ounting... Have you read books?" In the Middle Ages, ounting was not something that ordinary people could. In general, only aristocratic families, merchant families, and wealthy households will teach their children to settle ounts. "No, I was stealing the teaching from the Jewish merchants in the town and would use Arabic numerals..." "Stolen learning..." Marin is speechless, and stealing can learn to settle ounts. It seems that this Kohler, IQ is quite high. However, he and his older brother, Kahn, are really brothers? Who ising next? Then, Marin took a few three-digit addition, subtraction, multiplication and division of Kohler, and found that Kohler answered well. Kohler couldn''t answer it when he was in the four mixed operations. "Probably, Kohler is the mathematics level of the third grade of elementary school..." Marin remembers that the four mixed operations seem to be fourth grade. The mathematics level of the third grade of primary school seems to be enough for the ounting. Then, Kohler also gloriously became one of Marin''s attendants. As for the smaller yman, even if it is an individual, Marin will not want it for the time being. Because he is not a nursery school, he will not bring a child. Then Kahn was ordered to go to the city to find their father, Zimmerman. After all, the son follows others as a servant, and the father should know. Chapter 9: A group is more powerful Chapter 9: A group is more powerful Zimmerman heard that the eldest son and the second son had to follow a knight to follow, and rushed back. Seeing that Marin is so young, I can''t help but feel a little embarrassed. However, the medieval Europe was very strict and he did not dare to raise objections. Moreover, some people are willing to take over the eldest son and his big stomach, and he is also somewhat happy. Just hope that this young knight will not be poor because of his eldest son. In that case, the eldest son will be dismissed again. After the two sides discussed it, Marin naturally nned to put the heavy armor, thence and the spare stirrup (although it was wooden) with Kahn, and he was happy and the horse was rxed. However, although Kahn''s strength isrge, he has always carried a lot of things that are heavy, and it is also a lot of pressure. At the moment, Marin also has no money to buy a pony for Kahn and Kohler, and the cost of raising horses is also high. So, Marin thought about it and decided to let Zimmerman, who is good at carpentry craft, help him build a wheelbarrow. Why choose a wheelbarrow? This is not just because the unicycle can pull the goods. When ites to pulling goods, two-wheeled carts load more. However, the two-wheeled cart has a drawback - it is not able to takeplex terrain. For the unicycle, the terrain can be ignored, the mountain road still walks happily. Because the wheelbarrow has only one wheel, it has a strong ability to oveeplex terrain. From the south of Germany to Vienna, Austria, there are many mountain roads. Therefore, an all-terrain wheelbarrow is more suitable than a two-wheeled cart. Marin and Zimmerman returned to the city and came to the carpenter''s shop where Zimmerman worked and started to build a wheelbarrow. Although there are also wheelbarrows in Europe. However, the European wheelbarrow, with its wheels in front, causes people to push up and needs to withstand the power of lifting the car. Therefore, the European unicycle has a smaller loading capacity. And Marin guides Zimmerman to create a Chinese-style wheelbarrow. Chinese unicycle with wheels in the middle. In this way, the cargo on the car, the pressure is mainly on the wheels. European-style unicycles can only carry the weight of two or three people. The Chinese unicycle can carry the weight of six people, and the efficiency is much higher than that of the European unicycle, and it is morebor-saving. When the Chinese unicycle was built, Marin put the armor, thene and the stirrup on the wheelbarrow. The weight of seven or eighty pounds, for the Kahn with the cart, there was no feeling. Kahn himself is very powerful, and he is good at long-distance running (also practiced, the poor in the Middle Ages can not afford to ride the carriage, where to walk). Therefore, he pushed the wheelbarrow and it was very easy. Even sometimes, his brother Kohler was tired, and Kahn also let Kohler sit on the wheelbarrow and take a break. And he continued to push the car and follow Marlin on the horse. Marin is also a lot rxed. After a few pounds of armor weapons have been taken, he has been a lot easier. As rxed as he is, there is also the horse. If Marin controlled the speed, a lot of time Carl would like to rush. Kahn is really good at eating. He eats at least 6 pounds of food per day (mainly ordinary brown bread, normal bread without earth and wood chips) and some vegetables, sometimes eating some meat, which costs about 10 Finney per day. Marin didn''t have much money right now, so he had to take Kahn and Kohler to live in a low-grade hotel. If the room is bigger, Marin will let Kahn and Kohler slip on the floor. If it is smaller, let Kahn and Kohler live in one room. He lives alone. And because of the dissatisfaction of the dirty quilt in the hotel in this era, Marin bought a new set of goose down quilts (no cotton in Europe at this time, naturally no cotton quilts), loaded with rain-proof pigskin bags, ced in Kahn On the wheelbarrow. Every time he stayed at the hotel, Marin threw the hotel''s original dirty quilt to Kahn and Kohler. And himself, the cover is clean and quilt. After all, Kahn and Kohler are pure medieval people, and there is no difort for this. The only thing that didn''t fit was that Marlin forced them to take a shower... then, These two goods were also refreshed by Marin, and they were not born with filth, and the clothes were clean. This makes the two boys very ufortable. After all, they are used to being dirty. In view of the fact that Marin has two more mouths to eat, and one is a food bucket, Marin decided to restart the hunting n. Marin''s n is actually very simple, from the town to the depths of the ck Forest, there is a long distance. Not riding a horse, it will be very tired, and the time is not enough. If it is dark, it stays in the forest and is easily eaten by wolves. To this end, Marin let Kahn stay at the hotel, taking care of his armor andnce. And he himself, carrying a bow and arrow, and riding with Kohler to the depths of the ck Forest. Kohler is still a 15-year-old child, and still small. Its weight is estimated to be seventy or eighty pounds. He and Marin shared a ride, in fact, and Marin''s body armor, hand-held weapons are not very different, in this certain period of time, war horse is fully able to withstand it. If you ride with Kahn, it is estimated that Carl can''t stand it. (Artimer''s note: poor horse) In the depths of the ck Forest, Marin dismissed Kohler to let him take the horse and wait for him, and he himself, with bows and arrows, sneaked into the deer in the forest. By the cover of the tall weeds in the forest, Marin managed to get close to a group of red deer. Then, at a distance of 30 meters, Marin scored an arrow and shot a strong male red deer. But when shooting other red deer that fled. Of course, Marin is not discouraged. He can hunt down a big red deer. It is already a good luck. After that, Marin shot two hares again. At noon, Marin bundled the body of the wild deer and the hare and ced it on the horse. And he and Kohler took the horse back and walked. Back at the hotel, Marin asked the cook to roast two fat hares. As a result, Kahn ate a wholerge roast hare, while Marin and Kohler separated another slightly smaller one. Early the next morning, Marin asked Kahn to push the body of the red deer with a wheelbarrow, enter the nearest city, and sell the red deer.This red deer is smaller than Marin''sst capture. Moreover, because of the middle arrow, the buckskin suffered some damage. Therefore, Marin only sold 800 Finney. However, this also made Marlin very happy. It was so easy to see Marin making money, and Kahn''s heart tickles. The next day, at the request of Kahn, the caretaker of his armor andnce, he took Kahn and Kohler and went to the ck Forest again. Of course, because the horses do not move, they have limited distance into the forest. But fortunately, they did meet the prey. Kahn thought it would be easy to shoot the wild deer with a bow and arrow, so Marin silently handed the bow to Kahn and asked him to try. Sure enough, Kahn has no talent for archery, and he is basically ying the lottery, and it is very outrageous. Kohler also tried, although the head is much better than Kahn, but it did not kill. After all, the art of archery is not understandable overnight. Especially the shooting of wild deer tens of meters away, it is really very important. Ordinary people may shoot a target 10 meters away, and they can get on the target after many exercises. However, the prey that was shot thirty or forty meters away so it could not be trained in a short time. And those wild animals with high alertness are unlikely to get you close to him within ten meters. Therefore, if it is not an old hunter, it is difficult to hunt with bows and arrows. It is easier to aim at it with crossbow. However, theirs many ces in the Middle Ages in Europe where it is ouwed. You want to buy, and no one dares to sell it. Although the 15th centuryw order was not as thorough as it used to be, it is difficult for the average person who want to obtain a crossbow. Because the nobles are also afraid that civilians will use it for assassination to kill them, so most of them support the prohibition of such weapon. Only the army will be allowed to equip the crossbow. Civilians are banned and may be used of having the motive to assassinate the nobility. After the two failed, they had to admire Marin''s superb shooting andment on the power of the knight. In fact, it was his boring life, and it took him a few years to practice in his hometown. For the average European knight, who is going to waste time practicing archery? Only wretched countries like the United Kingdom know how the Knights fight in France, and they have specially developed the Longbows. Generally speaking, on the European continent, only those old hunters are proficient in archery. With the advent of arquebuses, many hunters who followed the pace of the times also switched to arquebuses and gave up the bows that were difficult to train. After Kahn and Kohler gave up the archery attempt, Marin once again entered the forest to hunt. Kohler''s brain is clever. He suggested that after Marin''s sneak attack, let Kahn, a stupid big man who runs, go out in a certain direction, drive out the deer group, and drive the deer group in the direction of Marin''s ambush. In this way, Marin can still get a second shot. Unlike before, after shooting the first deer, the rest of the deer escaped. Marin adopted this opinion, allowing Kahn to ambush in the other direction of the deer. When Marin''s first arrow was shot, Kahn suddenly ran out and rushed to the deer group, driving the deer group in the direction of Ma Lin''s ambush. The first match was not sessful, because Kahn took the deer group in the wrong direction. After a few times, Kahn gradually grasped the way to drive the deer. Even when the deer group deviated from the predetermined direction, Kahn also used the method of throwing stones to forcibly correct the direction of the deer''s escape. Marin found that Kahn couldn''t shoot, but it was good to lose the stone. Then, after the first time, the deer group fled in the ambush of Marin. Marin faced the deer group that rushed over, took the arrow and opened the bow, and took another one. Then the deer swarmed and found that the front was a trap. Then they started to turn around and escape. However, it is time to forcefully stop in the run and then change direction. After all, deer are deer, not humans, and their brains react more slowly. When the direction was changed, the deer group was obviously stunned. Thest check, with the cooperation of the three, for a long time, actually hunted three deer. "Sure enough, as a team it is more powerful. How do you say that words. A group is more powerful!" Marin was very emotional. I think that when I was hunting, I was always worried that the horse was stolen. Today, when hunting, Kohler is responsible for watching the horse, and Kahn cooperates with the prey to greatly enhance efficiency. The next day, Marin pulled the three deer into the city again and sold 1900 Finney. was also a huge sum of money. At least, it is no problem to feed the food barrels of Kahn and Little Kohler. After that, considering that Kohler''s body is not strong, it can''t be done for a long time. So, Marin spent 1000 Finney, bought a half-sized calf, and equipped with a saddle, let Kohler ride on the road. Unlike cows and horses, horses are more delicate and need to be eaten regrly. And cattle, usually only need to eat grass. Only when thend is cultivated, the physical energy consumption is toorge, and it is necessary to add a meal. It can be said that the cost of raising cattle is much lower than raising horses. This is one of the important reasons why the ancient Chinese farmers raised cattle and cultivatednd without raising horses. Marin bought a cow for Kohler riding, and there is also a big reason to consider the cost of feeding. His own horses cost ten Finneys a day. If you buy another horse, the capital consumption will be bigger. Therefore, buying a cow is the best choice. The calf bought for Kohler, has quick temper, and they are still not convinced. However, Marin first got the calf drunk with a spirit, and then gave a copper ring to the nose of the cow, and the calf immediately became docile. In the days that followed, Marin usually left the equipment in the hotel, then took a horse and a cow with Kahn and Kohler and went hunting in the depths of the ck Forest. The specific allocation is - Marin and Kohler riding, Kahn riding a cow. After arriving at the ground, Kohler took care of the horse and the cow, while Kahn went to Maring to go hunting. In this way, this three-person goldbination hunted a quartet in the ck Forest, hunted a lot of prey, and sold for a lot of money. Then they hunted around the Danube River in the eastern part of the ck Forest, Marin had earned more than 100 marks by selling prey, and reced most of them with gold coins. Chapter 10: The Emperor has not recruited Chapter 10: The Emperor has not recruited But after leaving the ck Forest, Marin found that the prey began to decrease dramatically. Why? Because Marin entered the agricultural area in southern Germany. The southern part of Germany is rtively warm and agriculture is more developed than in the north. The poption is denser and the development is higher. The high degree of development means that there are fewer natural forests. Then there are fewer wild animals. On the way to Vienna, the three boys wanted to repeat themselves. Unfortunately, in densely popted areas, there are few wild animals, and the hunting of nearby hunters has caused Marin to stop hunting every day. Sometimes, after two or three days, Marlin can get a prey. Even, this prey may be just a hare, not enough for the barrel of food for Kahn''s stomach. In order to subsidize the food expenses, Marin began to walk specifically on the road near the forest. After all, the southern part of Germany is a ce with more mountains, and there are more wild animals near the mountains. But there is also a downside, that is, Marlin three people were robbed by robbers. But these robbers couldn''t get on the wheelbarrow. Then Marin was brave and rushed to the head of the bandit with ance, the bandits were frightened and fled. Marlin, who realized the problem, stopped putting all the armor on the wheelbarrow when he was on the road, but put the breastte on him. However, Marin felt that with the formal Gothic te armor, he had too much heat, you can get tired more quickly than normal and he helmet is too much confined . So he found a cksmith who was good at building armor and asked the cksmith to use cold forging to create a two-thirds breastte that he wore like a French cavalry. This breastte only protects the vitals and the arms and does not protect below the waist. But at the same time, it also allowed the knight to be more free and facilitate the cooling, and they were able to bend and turn around immediately. Moreover, its structure is also very simple, in fact, two pieces of cold forged and sturdy iron tes protect the torso back and front, which are stringed together and hung on the shoulders and the waist the rest is the armor for the arms which are stringed to the shoulders. Then, Marin asked the cksmith to create a cavalry knive (Artimer''s note: imagine a messer but shorter) with a hand guard for the European Cavalry. The reason for creating a cavalry knive is to cope with an emergency. Because, Marin''s te armor andnce are generally on the wheelbarrow. In the face of the robbers walking, Marin had time to put on the armor and pick up thence. If he encounters the rapid impact of riding a gangster, he may not have even a reaction time. Therefore, pulling out the cavalry knives at the waist became the best choice. The cavalry knives of theter generation standard cavalry knives are straight, and can cut, which is more convenient and practical. Moreover, this knife looks very beautiful too. As for Kahn and Kohler, Marin bought them two spears. At the crucial moment, let them take a spear and pierce the enemy and what Marin didn''t think was that after Kahn got the spear, he didn''t killed a robber, but he killed a wild boar. One day, when Marlin was on the road, he suddenly met a wild boar who didn''t know what to do. The wild boar quickly rushed to Marin''s mount, scaring Marin to be overwhelmed. Draw a horse knife, the wild boar skin is thick, it is difficult to cut. At the crucial moment, Kahn stood up, raised his spear and mmed it into the wild boar. Once he didn''t seed (because the wild boar skin was too thick), Kahn struck again for the second time. Finally, before the wild boar collided with the horse, he was killed by Kahn and began to fall on the ground. The responding Marin quickly dismounted and pulled out the cavalry knives to fill the boar. Then the wild boar was sold for a good price. In view of Kahn''s loyalty to him, Marin bit his teeth, took out 1800 shillings from the private vault, bought a strong ck cow, and then bought a small four-wheeled carriage. In this way, Kahn from the pusher of the unicycle, gloriously promoted as a ox driver. In the same way, this strong bull is not a restless one anymore. Marin''s technique was re-applied, and the strong cow was tamed with spirits and copper nose rings. After that, the big ck cow named "Li Chen" by Marin became the pulling cow of the cart. The sad reminder is that Kahn doesn''t seem to be good at driving the oxcart. It was a small and thin Kohler, and soon started to drive the oxcart. Then, Kahn went to ride the calf. Kohler started to drive the oxcart. Marlin also named the Big ck Bull and named it Das. Looking at Kahn''s "mighty posture" with a spear riding a cow, Marin suddenly had a bad interest and nned to train Kahn as a "cattleman". Then he began to teach how Kahn used to ride ance and a spear on the back of the horse. So, the ignorant Kahn began to learn how to be a "cow knight" based on Marin''s flicker. When the three men arrived in Vienna in early May, Kahn had learned to ride on the back of the cow and use a spear to poke people. Even Das, the calf he rode, can alsounch a trot charge with Kahn in a short time. In the contemptuous eyes of the guards of the city of Vienna, Kahn rode a cow, armed with a spear, and dly followed Marin into the city of Vienna. As for Kohler, he used a whip to beat the big ck cow "Li Chen" in a low-key manner. He drove the ox cart and followed the two... After entering Vienna and looking for a hotel to settle down, Marin rushed to the area to inquire about the Emperor''s recruitment. But what disappointed Marin was that the emperor had no ns to recruit mercenaries recently. As early as 1487, Maximilian I had recruited a German mercenary army of 15,000 infantry and 1,500 cavalry. The leader was the Count of Frederick II. von Hohenzollern of the Hohenzollern family. However, this has a problem, that is, in this era, almost all Emperors, Kings and Dukes in Europe have a very bad financial situation. Even if it was the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximilian I could only rely on the Habsburg family-controlled Austria ie and the newly-controlled Burgundy Principality to tax arge family andrger mercenary group. These 15,000 infantry and 1500 knights have already made Maximilian I''s finances tighter. In the absence of a temporary attack, Maximilian I will not expand the army. Moreover, Austria and Burgundy under the control of the Habsburg family did not all provide for the military. Arge part of the tax is also used to support therge group of officials in the two ces, and the nobility of all sses. Just the Habsburgs themselves, there are a bunch of coteral members to support. Otherwise, the emperor''s finances will not be so tight. In addition, for the Hanseaticmercial city and other imperial cities in the Holy Roman Empire, during the war, ording to the agreement between the two sides, it is also possible to temporarily levy a war tax. Because the independent status of thesemercial cities is specially given by the emperor. Therefore, in return, when the emperorunched the war, they were obliged to provide the emperor with a certain military expenditure. However, this money is not so good. If the emperor is fighting a war against foreign invasion (such as the Ottoman Turkish invasion), these cities will not hesitate to provide certain taxes. But if the emperor himself fights external wars, these cities may not be willing to pay taxes. Or, even if you pay taxes, you will get a big discount, or you will be obedient when paying taxes. At the same time, during the war, the emperor could also temporarily add taxes to the Austrian and Burgundian under the control of the Habsburg family for war. But the daily taxes of Austria and Burgundy, it is very difficult to feed the mercenary army. So before the war, the emperor had no financial resources to expand the army. This is the drawback of the European economic system - the tax is not returned to the central government, but to the lords of various ces. This led to the financial difficulties of the central dynasty and theck of money to support too many troops. Unlike the feudal dynasty of China, from the Qin Dynasty, all the finances were returned to the court, which made the Chinese dynasty have enough financial resources to support hundreds of thousands of troops. It seems that Europe did not begin to establish a stable, unified modern tax system until the end of the 17th century. Then, by the 18th century, the European national war was no longer a small tens of thousands of people, but arge-scale tens of thousands and hundreds of thousands of people went. Marin recalled the history he had learned in the previous life and found that although King Charles VIII announced his sovereignty over the Kingdom of Naples at the beginning of the year, he had not assembled enough troops to invade Naples. It seems that Charles VIII only assembled 37,000 troops to enter Italy at the end of August this year. At present, the messenger of Charles VIII is estimated to recruit mercenaries in Switzend. The news that Charles VIII is preparing for the entire army should also be transmitted to Vienna, but Vienna is can not make the decision to fight, and it is estimated that it will take a long time. You know, the Holy Roman Empire is a country like the aristocratic parliamentary system. Whether it is fighting with the French, it is estimated that the Imperial Parliament will have to argue for a long time. The main core is that the emperor needs to expand the army if he wants to y. The expansion of the army requires the imposition of a war tax. Commercial cities must temporarily impose a war tax. Even the dukes and counts are obliged to contribute money to the emperor during the war. But for this money, it is estimated that it will be noisy for a few months, and there will be no result. Of course, those nobles are not distressed by the money. They just feared that the emperor would be strengthen by expanding the army and then use it against them. You know, this is a criminal record. The French king had done this kind of thing. From the beginning of Philip IV, the French king began to suppress the princes and even confiscated the church property. The men of Philip IV were even sent to the Avignon of France because of the conflict between the Philip IV and the pope. It is precisely because his men kidnapped the Pope, that Italy did not have the constraints of the Pope in a hundred years before it began the Renaissance... Of course, this is far away. In short, if the nobles really support the emperor, they will inevitably get burned in the end, and they will lose the privilege of self-government. After all, the emperors are ruthless. ording to memory, the "sacred alliance" against France''s invasion of Italy seems to have been established in March 1495. At that time, the Holy Roman Empire really joined the war. Therefore, Marin can be sure that the Holy Roman Empire is unlikely to expand. Even if the army is expanded, at least it will be passively expanded after the French army officially entered Italy in August. It is only in early May that it is estimated that he will not be able to participate in the emperor''s army for at least three months. Chapter 11: Traveling back to home Chapter 11: Traveling back to home For the next few months, Marin thought about lying all night in the bed of the Vienna Hotel. The consumption in Vienna is very high, the clean hotel, the amodation for the three people includes the cost of keeping the animals, 40 Finneys a day. And Marin''s group of three, plus the money for the horse, is also up to 40 Finney a day. It is the two cows grazing, but also to charge. After all, this is Vienna, not a small town. It is not a ce to eat grass. It has to be paid for by people. More than 80 Finney''s consumption a day makes Marlin feel a bit too much. So Marin decided to leave Vienna for a while and go to a lower consumption of the group. If you can hunt and make some money, it will be more perfect.After making up his mind, the next morning, Marin asked Kahn and Kohler to pack their bags. After finishing the package, Marin went to the hotel owner to check out. Then he took the two attendants and came to them saying I''m returning home. As for which road to take, Marin also thought about it - they returned to the ck Forest. There''s many animal and resources in the ck Forest, and Marin''s archery technique is very good. With the cooperation of Kahn, they can rely on hunting to make a fortune. Moreover, it seems that the lords near the ck Forest are not very strict with the poaching problem, which is very suitable for Marin. Marin''s n is to raise a lot of money by hunting. With the money, so you can change the equipment and equip Kahn and Kohler better. Also, after the end of the Italian war, I would buy a small manor for myself. As for status, I still have to rely on the emperor to fight. He knows the oue of the war. The first Italian war, the Empire was defeated by France, and there were great military achievements to gain. As long as you save your life on the battlefield, and use historical knowledge, you can get some of the lowest-level aristocratic status of the official knight. If you are lucky, you may be able to be ennobled a baron or something. There is, Marin needs to recruit 3 more knights. The average poor knight also has 5 or more squire. But raising 5 knights is a big expense. Some knights are very poor in character. If they have no money, they will go to the road to rob. But Marin is a man of discipline and will not do such a wicked thing. Therefore, he decided to rely on hunting to save enough money. After squandering the money, he not only had to recruit five servants, but also bought a pony for each servant, and equipping them with weapons and armor such as mail armor and spear. He thought about it, Kahn can be regarded as a goodbat force, but Kohler is a little thin, can only serve as a role for the quartermaster. The servants are, but the knight''s most trusted partner and men. Therefore, in addition to ability, reliability is the most important. The reason why Marin chose Kahn and Kohler was that he was interested in Kahn''s honesty and truthfulness. As for Kohler, it is actually because of his knowledge. Moreover, Marin knows where the Kahn family is, and if they dare to betray, they can go to their homes to settle ounts. Nowadays, the economy in the German region is very bad and there are many people. But these refugees, Marin did not dare to recruit from them. Because the majority of the disced people are unknown, not so reassuring. Recruiting them as ordinary soldiers that can be, but recruiting them as attendants is not appropriate. You know, the knights basically leave his back to the attendant, and they can''t be sloppy. Thinking about it, Marin decided to return to Hoffman Estate to recruit attendants from the serf family in Hoffman Estate. There are more than 20 serfs in Hoffman Estate. Marin "remembers" and there are still some great guys in it. Adler Hoffman, his "big brother", has already picked up five knights. In the manor, there are still many good guys. After all, these serf families do not have only one child per family. Some people have several children. Because the manor output is insufficient, Some people with more children even have to send their children into the city. Otherwise, Hoffman Estate can''t support so many people. After all, Hoffman Estate has only 1200 acres of thinnd. Of course, before returning home, Marin felt that it was right to rely on hunting for more money. In fact, Old Hoffman is now also responsible of the future armor and horses of the three sons (not the elder one because he''s going to stay) and five knights. After all, as a father, even if he is drive his sons out of the house, he must have prepared for for them a horses, an armor and ance. In addition, there is a lot of travel expenses. Marin''s n is to utilize the Hoffmans to make a little of money after returning home, so that the economic situation in the manor is better. By the way, he also wants to point out the agricultural technology at home so that the manornd can produce more. If the manor''s economy is in good shape, then his little brothers Simon and Albert can also be equipped with better horses, armor and weapons when they are driven out of the family. Don''t be like me, even when you leave home, you don''t even have a full te armor, let alone a servant and squire. Moreover, with sufficient funds, his little sister, Anne, will be easier to marry. After all, if the dowry is more important and then it is more likely to marry a good family. In order to bring enough money to go home, Marin took Kahn and Kohler and once again plunged into the ck Forest and started a crazy hunting. The ck Forest is veryrge and muchrger than the ck Forest of modern generations. After all, the development and industrialization ofter generations in Germany is very high. In the Middle Ages, because of its limited poption, there were many undeveloped ces, and the ck Forest still maintained a veryrge area. In order not to get lost, Marin bought apass to avoid getting lost in the lush ck Forest. Spring is also a season of recovery, and the animals in the forest are very active. There are still many adult animals, and during the day, they are doing shy things in the forest. In this case, the wretched Marlin will "bless" them with two arrows. Then, a pair of bitter "couple" became Marin''s spoils, and was then reced by a lot of money. The medieval ck Forest is too big, and there are too many prey. This also led to the trouble how the three boys transported the prey back to the forest town. As ast resort, Marin untied the big ck cow "Li Chen" and put it on the saddle, so that it also entered the forest to transport prey. Because the four-wheeled oxcart is unable to enter the depths of the forest without any road. In some ces, because the three boys hunted too much prey, it even caused the price of meat to fall. At the most, Marin hunted six red deer from the forest one day, resulting in local venison prices, which fell from 5 Finney one pound (retail price) to 4 Finney one pound in a short period of time. Also fell from 4 Finney to 3 Finney. Of course, some time after Marin''s departure, the price of venison here has returned to normal. To this end, some local lords also sent people to drive Marlin and his party. Because the prey that Marin hunted, in the eyes of the lords, belongs to their private property. However, the lords who are sealed on the edge of the ck Forest are usually small lords. The territory of powerful lords is mostly in areas where farming is well developed. Only the small lords who are not strong will be send to the ck Forest. These small lords generally do not dare to offend the wandering knight. Even if Marin is crazy hunting, they just send people to drive away. Marin is also very conscious, basically staying in a certain area for a day or two, selling prey, immediately shing people, not giving others the opportunity to catch on the spot. When the local lords learned that Marlin and his entourage had hunted arge number of prey and sent people to drive them away, the three were long gone. On average, Marin three people can catch two or three red deer every day, as well as a number of hares and foxes. It was the wild boar in the forest, and Marin do not dare to provoke it. Because, he was not sure to damage or pierce it''s thick skin with a 60-pound bow. As for Kahn being able to kill a wild boar alone, Marin felt that it was also idental. Because, thest time the wild boar did not go to Kahn, but to the horse, Kahn is on the side of the wild boar, so the wild boar is not ready to kill Kahn or dodge. Unless Kahn is wearing a full set of te armor, he can confidently challenge the wild boar. But letting a follower wear a full te armor, it is too extravagant, as for Marin''s te armor, Kahn can''t wear it. Because Kahn is much taller than Marin. The three boys hunted and made money on the road, and enjoyed the beauty of the ck Forest by the way. By the time he entered the territory of Marker, Maring was surprised to find out that his personal assets had reached more than 500 marks. This is almost close to the ie of Hoffman Manor a year. "Hunting is lucrative!" Marin was infinitely impressed. However, Marin is also very clear that he was able to get a sum of the more than 500 marks because others are watching him as a knight. Otherwise, if it is an ordinary hunter, when entering and leaving the city, he will be extorted by the defending soldiers and will be collected by the lord for most of the profits. Even if it can hunt down the prey worth 500 marks, at least 400 marks will be extorted by the lord, tax official and defending city soldiers. Moreover, it is impossible for a general hunter to have a horse. This has led to the fact that the walking hunters cannot go too far inside the ck Forest. Staying in the ck Forest for the night, he will end up be eaten by the wolves. Not only that, they also don''t have the same shooting skills as Marin, and a partner like Kahn. Therefore, the sess of Marin is generally difficult for hunters to copy. The people who really have the status of knights generally don''t practice archery. They are generally used to melee, and a very few of them will shoot arrows. Besides, among those who has status, who will lower himself to be and hunter? Even Marin himself believes that hunting is just a short-term matter. If a transmigrator makes a living by hunting, it is simply the biggest shame in the world. Chapter 12: The Hoffman Estate Chapter 12: The Hoffman Estate When the three figures of Marin and the two brothers appeared on the dirt road in front of Hoffman Estate, a skinny serf ran in to inform the Hoffman family. "Master, madam, Master Marin is back!" "What, is Marin back?" Old Hoffman stood up, but anger quickly fell to his face. As for the old Hoffman''s wife, Mary Hoffman, she is full of joy: "It''s good toe back, juste back! I won''t see you for a few months, I miss him!" "What do you want him to do? This waste thing, I let him sign up for the emperor''s army, and this time he came back, obviously not selected, he is too ipetent!" Old Hoffman angry. "You are an old thing, my son cane back safely. Why do you have to give the emperor a life? Then again, Marin is only 16 years old and his body is growing. I said wait until he is at least 18 years old, then you can drive him off!" Madame Mary was not happy, and made a fuss. Old Hoffman seemed to be somewhat afraid, but he did not say anything. In fact, Frings Hoffman is a very stubborn person. However, he was rushing for Maring to leave two years in advance. Therefore, in front of Mrs. Mary''s anger, he had to be silent. "Father, I heard that Marin is back?" Flint''s eldest son Adler Hsien rushed into the manor''s living room and asked. He just came out from the training ground in the backyard and heard that his brother came back and immediately rushed to the living room. "Well,e back, at the gate." "So let''s go meet him?" "To him? I am an old man, can I have a son to meet his brother? Go!" Old Hoffman blinked directly. "Okay..." Adler did not argue with his stubborn old man and went directly to the gate of the manor. At the same time, Mrs. Mary, who missed her son, went out together with him. At the gate of the manor, Marin first ordered the old Quincy, who guarded the gate of the manor, to bring his horse and two cows to the barn of the manor: "Hey, Uncle Quincy, trouble you with these two guys to tie the three animals into the barn." "Yes, Master Marin, I will do it!" After that, the old Quincy took Kahn and Kohler to the barn to shack the animals. Marin just turned his head and saw a humanoid monster with a height of 1,9 meter rushing to him. Marin was shocked and asked to pull the knife. But he suddenly remembered that his saber seems to have just been ced on the cart. Because he was home, he did not intend to carry weapons with him. In a hurry, he had to make a move, and he rushed to the shadow. "Ah--" When the shadows made a cry, Marlin knew that he had made a mistake. Because, this voice was sent by Marin''s elder brother Adler. "Marin, I am kind enough to wee you, you kicked me!" After Adler, who was tripped to the ground, climbed up, he cried dissatisfied with Marin. He also had no defense at all. He used to open his arms to embrace his younger brother. As a result, he was kicked out without any precautions and was directly overturned to the ground... "Oh... Adler, I didn''t mean it. I just turned around and saw a ck shadow rushing at me. I thought someone was attacking me, so... this is my instinctive reaction..." Did not tell Adler, if it is equipped with a saber, Marin may have rushed to cut Adler with the knife. At this moment, a kindly female voice that made Marin extremely familiar came from behind: "Marin, my dear son, are you back?" Marlin suddenly felt a shock, this voice, the memory of his predecessor Marin was too deep. In the memory of his predecessor, when Marin Hoffman was a child, he always cried and went to his mother to seekfort. At the same time, it is also seeking asylum, so as not to be continued by the old-fashioned old Hoffman. Then, it seems to be the instinctive reaction of the body, Marin plunged into the arms of Mrs. Mary: "Mom, I am back! You are okay!" Involuntarily, it seems that this body instinctive reaction, Marin is very close to Mrs. Mary. "Good boy, mom is everything, I miss you very much!" When the mother and son staged a touching scene of mother and child, the sturdy Mr. Adler, but screamed at the side: "Mom is entric, she loved Marin the most, she have not held me since a long time!" In fact, of the sons of Hoffman''s family, Mary really loves Marin. Of course, this is also because Marin loves to be spoiled. Isn''t there a sentence, "The child who will cry has milk to eat". Keke, it should be said that the child who is spoiled (not the bad way, ex: cocky, arrogant...) will make the mother love more. Then, Marin took off Mrs. Mary''s arm and returned to the main house of Hoffman Estate, and Adler was a little jealous behind Marin. In fact, Adler is only 19 years old, still a big boy. However, his strength is too strong, and the height is as tall as 1,9 meter, which is much higher than the old Hoffman. It seems that Adler is a majestic brawny guy, but in fact, Marin knows that Adler is still a big boy, and his mind is not too mature. Of course, when ites to fighting, the general strong soldier is definitely not his opponent. Marin estimated that he himself could not beat an Adler. Although, both of them have practiced martial arts. After entering the hall, Marin saw a mad old Hoffman. Out of the fear of the old Hoffman in his memory, Marin gave the old Hoffman a greeting. "You''re back?" "Yes, father!" "You failed to apply for the emperor''s army?" "Oh... no, I arrived in Vienna, but the emperor did not mean to recruit soldiers." "Howe? Did the emperor not recruit more than 10,000 people before?" "It is precisely much because of the huge army that he recruited is more than 16,000 people that the emperor''s finances were very tight. he couldn''t afford more troops for the time being. So I went to Vienna and I didn''t see the emperor recruiting people." "It turned out to be like this..." Old Hoffman''s face turned better. "Right, isn''t Italy going to be a war zone? With the character of the emperor, you should be jealous and enter. If the emperor is in Italy and the French, you should recruit more soldiers and mercenaries." Mrs. Mary suddenly made a noise. Marin was taken aback, but remembered that his own aging mother seems to be a descendant of the upper aristocracy, and they are more insightful. At least, it''s smarter than the old-fashioned old man who only knows how to solve problems with muscles. "Yes, mother, the emperor will inevitably participate in the Italian war. However, the emperor is short of money, he is now asking for money from the imperial parliament with the representatives of the princes and the city state. But, you know, those princes and city representatives wants to save money so much? I guess this will drag on for a few months. When the emperor is going to get the money, he will have money to recruit new recruits. I n to go to Vienna again in a few months." "Oh? Little Marin, how do you know this?" Mrs. Mary was amazed. She grew up watching her second son. Although, Marin is better than Adler, who knows only to talk with muscles, but he is not so eye-catching. "Oh..." Marin began to think about how to answer this question. He forgot a bit, his cheap old man is a less intelligent muscle brain, but his own mom wasn''t, she was an authentic aristocraticdy is born, clever and knowledgeable. If it wasn''t for his mom''s family that was betrayed by a coup, this stupid, old man just saved his mom who fled, and staged an old style drama of "the hero saves the beauty". They didn''t even have the possibility ofing together. ording to mom herself, she is the granddaughter of Tom Burlock, the former Earl of East Frisia, and the only surviving descendant. Tom Bullock became the ruler of the East Frisian (county) after unifying the 12 Frisian tribes in East Frisian. However, in 1435, he was betrayed by his trusted general Focko Ukena, and killed by the rebels, and the family was killed. However, his second son, Fred, escaped. Later, his wife gave birth to Mary. Later, Ulrich of Cirksena''s family reced Focko Ukena and became the new ruler of East Frisian. But neither Focko Ukena nor the Ulrich family have ever acknowledged Mary''s intention to give the throne back to the bloodline of the Brock family. Even, they secretly sent people to kill the young Mary and his father Fred. Because, if it is admitted that there are still people living in the Brock family, their dominance is not justified. Old Hoffman, in a escort to a baron, went to the north and halfway saved Mary Brock, who was being chased. And poor Fred Bullock, in order to cover his daughter, was killed by the assassin. Since then, the helpless Mary, simply married the old savior, Hoffman. In a word, the Hoffman family, in ordance with the rules of the Germans, actually had the qualification to inherit the East Frisia. But the Middle Ages also talked about strength. The Hoffman family is nothing more than a poor family of knights, andpare it to the more than 3,000 square kilometers territory of the Cirksena family in East Frisia, the strength is a hundred times that the Hoffman family. Moreover, because Mrs. Mary''s Fred''s only daughter who was just amon businessman (who was sinking when she was born) was fleeing, the Cirksena family believes that Mary''s descendant does not inherit the qualifications of East Frisia. Based on this principle, many aristocrats who originally made a deal with the Brock family did not recognize Mary''s status, only as an illegitimate daughter of the Brock family. Of course, the more important reason is that Mary is now helpless and does not have the strength to recapture East Frisia. However, Mary Brock was educated by his father''s aristocrats teachings from a young age, with a high level of education, a smarter head, and a more insightful experience. For example, for the Hoffman family, although the old Hoffman is the master, many decisions are made by Mrs. Mary behind the scenes. The original Marin also saw Mrs. Mary''s "powerfulness" and sought her shelter as soon as she was beaten, so that Old Hoffman could not continue. Since it is difficult to fool the cheap mom, Marin thought about it and thought of an excuse: "This is the case, Mom, when I left the family, I have encountered an ascetic journey through the world..." "Ah... ascetic..." The ascetic monk is a rare presence. In the Middle Ages, the priests of Europe, most of them fell into the ruling ss and the oppressive ss, began to oppress the people themselves to enjoy the benefits. But under such circumstances, there are still some really devout priests who are able to withstand poverty, rely on the gift of ordinary believers and the hospitality of the abbey, and some are like monks of the oriental. These people are extremely fanatical about religion, their will is very firm, and they are very respected by ordinary people. Moreover, many of these people travel all over the world and are very knowledgeable people. "Yes, an erudite ascetic. I think he is pitiful, he gave him 10 gold coins!" "You are a ruin!" Some old Hoffman, who is a little boyish, is a little angry. "And then?" Mrs. Mary is very interested in this. "This an ascetic feels that ''equal trade'', so he decided to impart a lot of knowledge to me, in exchange!" "Teaching knowledge? Great luck!" Mrs. Mary, a descendant of the nobility, knows the importance of knowledge. "Well, this bitterness, once traveled the world, and traveled to the far east..." "Ah...that huge oriental empire?" eximed Mrs. Mary. In the Middle Ages, with the publication of Marco Polo''s Travels, Europeans are very much looking forward to the ce in the East that is said to be full of gold. "Yes, he told me a lot about the world and taught me a lot of knowledge..." Then, Marin began to tell everyone in the Hoffman family, including the younger brothers and sisters who had just returned from the outside, about the "fictional" adventure and the real world. Geography, history, math, politics... that level is no less than that of Mr. Shan Tianfang''s storytelling. Chapter 13: A great virtuous monk disciples Chapter 13: A great virtuous monk disciples Once, Marin had been speaking for a while, although it was not particrly good, but he also seeded in giving a mouthful of white lie. In the Middle Ages, Europe was a society with very closed information. Even the clever Mrs. Mary can only say that she is much smarter than the average person, but she is not the opponent of Marin who has been given a huge amount of information. In the story made by Marin, he himself became famished and was nced at by the erudite monk who was called Einstein (Artim''s note: LOL). After a simple test, the great man named Einstein gave all his knowledge and understanding to Marin. "You mean, it took the monk only a month to pass on all the knowledge to you?" "Yes!" Marin wanted to say that it was two or three months, but after he left home for a month, he received two attendants, Kahn and Kohler. After that, the two boys are clear, so it''s easy to make things. "What can you learn in just one month?" Mrs. Mary is not so believing. "Hey... Einstein has taught me a lot of things, let me digest it slowly, I am still digesting some of it now." "What you just said is the part you digested?" "It''s far more than just talking about it. It''s just a little bit of knowledge. There is still a lot of useful knowledge!" Marlin pretended to be proud. Because, 16-year-old boy, it should be like this. "For example?" Old Hoffman interjected. "Well, the problem of farming cattle." "Cultivated cattle?" Old Hoffman felt a bit strange. "Well, yes. We know that in Europe, most people use horses to cultivatend instead of cattle. The main reason is that the cows have a strong temper. Those young, energetic bulls have too much temper. It is impossible to drive the fields to the fields. Only some of the old cattle and cows can be used for arablend because of the temperate temperature..." "This is the case, although the cost of raising cattle is very low, but the temper is too strong, it is difficult to tame it for arablend. And the horse temper is calm and obeying themand. Therefore, although the cost of raising horses is much higher than that of cattle, people are still more willing." Old Hoffman agreed. It is true that Europeans do not know how to use the bull nose ring to tame the young and violent bulls. The cow temper is very quick, even if the temper is good, sometimes the temperes up, and the cow does not move. Unless you are a very strong knight, you can pull the guilty cow. The East is not the same. During the Warring States Period, the Chinese people came up with the trick of using the cow nose ring to make the tempered cows obey. Because, there is in the nose a nerve that''s sensible, and when the nose is pulled, the cow feel very painful and has to be led by the nose. It is because the Orientals can easily take the bull nose and walk, which can easily drive the cattle to cultivatend. Therefore, the East has a developed cattle farming. Europeans have not been able to find an effective way to tame cattle, so they must use horses. As for cattle, only a small part of them is used to farm. After all, the cows usually graze on the grass. Unlike horses, who often has a higher feeding costs. This situation has also led to another result, that is, Europeans raise more horses and do not pay much attention to cattle. Even people can raise cattle and eat meat, but also raise cows. Orientals, because of the cost of raising, are more ustomed to raising cattle. Moreover, the cow is also a treasure. In ancient China, the government was strictly forbidden to ughter healthy cows, otherwise they would go to jail. However, because of the over-raising of cattle in ancient China, the number of people raising horses was very small. It also caused theck of horses in ancient China and theck of cavalry. It was difficult to fight against therge number of cavalry of the nomadic peoples in the north. Can only be passive defense, can not counterattack. But, the cost of raising a horse is very high. War horses need to be fed every day, and horses must be treated frequently. Unlike cattle raising, only when the physical energy consumption in the arablend is toorge, it is necessary to add some fine materials such as soybeans and eggs. In the rest of the season, just graze on the grass. Even in winter, eating hay can be done. Therefore, the cost of raising cattle is much lower than that of horses. Just like Hoffman Manor, in order to cultivate 1200 acres ofnd, you have to raise 25 horses, which cost a lot. Every day, if you are feeding 25 horses, you have to spend the money on oat, not to mention the twenty-five horses that are more expensive. "But, I heard from the teacher that in the far east, people basically raise cattle to cultivatend." "How is this possible? You know, the temper of the cow is very violent. The Iberians (Spanish) also specially engaged in the bullfightpetition. It can be seen that it is difficult to tame the cow. Generally, if you raise 10 cows, only three heads are suitable to cultivatend. " Hoffman felt incredible. "This is the case in Europe, but my teacher has been to the ''Ming'' empire in the far east, where I learned a simple way to make the oxen obedient and make most of the adult cows (who''s temper too violent except for the ox, of course, the ox are castrated and they are honest. They can all be pulled down to cultivate thend, and they are very obedient." "Is there such a magical way?" Old Hoffman was moved. The 30 horses (25 for work + 5 for war) at Hoffman Estate are too costly to raise. Every year, these horses need to spend two to three hundred marks to feed (specifically, one horse spends an average of 4 Finney per day, while a horse consumes 10 Finney every day). And Hoffman Estate, the annual ie, is only more than 600 marks. Coupled with the family''s consumption, Hoffman Estate has almost no money left every year. If you can raise the cost of raising the horse, most of them will be reced by cows (still leaving a few horse-drawn carriages), which can save at least a hundred of marks per year. In fact, for the whole of Europe, the cost of raising horses has always been a big problem that gued farmers. European food is so expensive, it is not worthwhile. However, although the cost of raising cattle is low, there are too few "solid cows" that may be used for arablend. Not only is Hoffman''s heart moving, but Mrs. Mary, who knows how to do it, was breathing a little faster: "Marin, do you really know this way?" As the "matriarch" of the family''s financial power, Mrs. Mary is very sensitive to the cost. "That is of course, if you don''t believe it, you can look at the ox cart and the cow that I drove. The two cows were used by the oriental method, and the use of a nose ring made it very honest." "Nose ring? What is that?" Old Hoffman and Mary asked in unison. "It''s a small thing that makes the cow obedient. The nose of the cow is very sensible. Wearing a nose ring in the nose of the cow, the cow feel pain, and then has to follow the order honestly." "What are you waiting for? Let''s go see!" Old Hoffman stood up and raised the lean Marlin and went to the barn. Mrs. Mary and several other children had the need to keep up. When I arrived at the cowshed, everyone immediately watched the cows on the nose ring. Then, Old Hoffman also stretched out the rope with the nose ring and pulled it. The big ck cow "Li Chen" who was pulled down was very dissatisfied and called "moo" twice. But his own handle is in the hands of the old Hoffman, and it is helpless. "Look, this cow is yelling at me, it seems very dissatisfied. However, I still have to listen to me!" Old Hoffman cried iparably. "Right, Marin, how did you put the nose of the cow on the nose of the cow? You know, the cow is very tempered, hurts it, and you don''t need to kill you with a ram of the horn?" Adler asked. He knew it was more powerful than him, knowing that cattle are very ufortable when they lose their temper. Even if he is strong, he was almost hurt by a cow. ording to Marin''s physique, it is impossible to hold a big ck cow like "Li Chen". "This is very simple. Put some spirits in the cow''s feed and drunk the cows. Then, bundle the drunken cows and just pierce them." "Can it still be like this?" Adler and a few others stayed a little. "Crap, don''t you be so hard? Don''t you be afraid of being pierced by a horn?" "Sure enough, the knowledge taught by monk is so good!" Mrs. Mary could not help but sigh. Before, the savvy Mrs. Mary still had some doubts about the authenticity of Marin''s words. However, she saw the big ck cow "Li Chen" and the calf "Das" who were obsessed with the bull nose ring, and had to believe that Marin was the knowledge imparted by the high school. She looked at Marin. There is no other exnation for such a "great" approach. Then, Marin was at the Hoffmann Manor, sitting on the name of "Einstein''s disciple"... Chapter 14: The oriental plough Chapter 14: The oriental plough The Hoffman Estate is located in the southeast of the small town of Bochum in the territory of Markbo, on the north bank of the Ruhr River. This ce is a hill, and the in only ounts for a small part. The ancestors of the Hoffman family used to be one of the guards of the Marker State Court, but they were not very valued. Therefore, when the Knights'' territories were separated after a certain war, they were assigned to this hilly area. In theory, Hoffman Estate has 500 yugrams (1000 acres) ofnd. But in fact, in this 1000-acre site, only 200 acres (1200 acres) along the Ruhr River are suitable for farming. The remaining 800 acres are basically hills. Moreover, these hills seem to be very poor, and even a tree can not grow out, only long and thin weeds. This was mainly because the ancestors of the Hoffman family had sinned the pce of Markbo. Therefore, in the distribution of thend, the pce secretly sealed the Hoffman family to this unfortunate ce. And those who are lucky, sealed to 6,000 acres are all cultivatednd, then, this knight family is very rich. Even if the European agricultural level g, 6000 acres ofnd is ced there, it is difficult to find poverty. If it is in the Ming Empire of the East, who has 6,000 acres ofnd, it is definitely a bigndlord. Liu Wencai, thendlord, has only 10,000 mu ofnd at home. But in the Middle Ages in Europe, 6,000 acres ofnd is really not an anecdote. In general, the French knights has basically 1,500 acres. Therefore, the French knight is very rich and well equipped. During the Anglo-French war, the king easily summoned two or three thousand knights. In the UK, only a few thousand knights can be found. The rest, had to use the long bow soldiers to join.As for the Holy Roman Empire, the Imperial Knight, the family of knights who work for the Emperor, is also generally 1,500 acres ofnd. The knights in the territory of the Principality, the Bodhisattva and other territories below are smaller. After all, the Principality of these Principalities has a limited area, and there are not as many territories as the French and the Emperors. Therefore, the knights in Marker''s country are generally only 1,000 acres, and not all of them are cultivatednd. In general, this 1000-acrend can be more than half of it is the cultivatednd, even that it is good. For the Hoffman family, it''s so bad, only a small part is cultivatednd, so the days are too tight. In order to increase revenue and reduce expenditure, the Hoffman couple are all hurt their brains. Nowadays, I heard that cows can be used instead of horse farnd. Old Hoffman and Mrs. Mary are very happy. In order to prove Marin''s assertion, Mrs. Mary immediately sent Adler to the city of Bochum to purchase five strong bulls and a barrel of spirits. After returning, ording to Marin''s method, five bulls were put down with spirits. Next, the five cows were tied with a rope. After that, Marin, a professional, put the ring in the middle of the bull''s nose and pierced the hole with a knife. Then, Marin cleaned the perforated wound with spirits to avoid infection. At first, the 5 bulls certainly didn''t adapt, but the copper rings were on the nose, and they didn''t dare to move. A few dayster, several bulls finally epted their lives and no longer rebelled. Then, the old Hoffman quickly let the serfs take 5 cows to the 600 acres ofnd, try to use cattle to cultivatend. "Hey? Five cows raise the bar." Marlin looked at the 5 cows in the field and pulled a heavy plow together. "Saxon has a heavy plough, haven''t you seen it?" Adler looked at Marin contemptuously. Rarely, Adler found an opportunity to crush Marlin in terms of IQ. "5 cows pull a plow, it''s a waste of cattle." "This is also a no-brainer. The Saxon ploughing is deeper and better for crops. With a Germanic plow, a horse or a cow can pull, but the farming is too shallow and not good for the crop." Mrs. Mary exined on the side. The reason why Hoffman Estate has raised up to 25 horses is that I used a 5 horse parallel Saxon plough. The deep-growing Saxon heavy plow can make rye production high. "I am really a pig, why didn''t you think of Qufu?" Marin patted his head. "What happened?" "I suddenly thought of a kind of oriental plough that the teacher taught me. It is efficient andbor-saving. The Qufu plow is much stronger!" Marin flicked. "Is there such a good thing?" Old Hoffman and Mrs. Mary are all looking at the light. Only Adler, who has not yet been exposed to the management of the estate, is less sensitive to agricultural matters. "You wait and see!" Then, Marin found a serf in the Hoffman Estate who knew how to forge iron and woodwork, and began to smash the drums. The next day, the Qufu plow with the wooden body iron head debuted. The Hoffman family once again came to the farm to watch the effect of the "Oriental God Plough". Under the guidance of Marin, a serf put the Qufu on the shoulder of the cows, hand-joined the rope attached to the nose of the cow, and held the Qufu plow in one hand, and began the cultivation experiment. Half a dayter, the serf gradually mastered the use of the Qufu Plough. Then he shouted excitedly at Old Hoffman: "The Lord Lord, this is amazing! A plough with one cattle, the effect is almost the same as the 5 horse-drawn Saxon plough!" "Really?" Old Hoffman couldn''t believe it. But after he went down to the ground, he opened thend that had just been plowed by Qufu, and measured the depth with his hand. It was close to the depth of the cultivation of the Saxony heavy plow, and the effect was very good. "It''s amazing. So, don''t you say that with 10 cows, I can easily cultivate 600 acres in half a month?" (Note: A cow cultivates an average of four or five acres per day.) "In theory, this is the old man!" "Can a horse to move this plough?" "Try it!" Marin said in an understatement. Then, the serf put the Qufu plow on the shoulder of the horse and began to test again. It turns out that a horse can also pull this "Oriental God Plow". After the test was sessful, Old Hoffman decisively sold 15 horses used for arablend and exchanged 15 cows. Then, a number of "Oriental God Plows" were built in the manor for the spring ploughing of theing year. Even Qufu Plow and Bull Nose Ring were regarded as strategic secrets and were temporarily ordered by the Hoffman family not to be rumored. The Hoffman Estate is surrounded by hills and the Ruhr River in the south, therefore, the old Hoffman decided to close the door to enjoy the benefits. As for the emperor or the count? Old Hoffman thought about it and gave up. Because, in Europe, in addition to the warfare and the emperor''s favor, other methods are difficult to obtain the fief. Putting this technology up, rewarding a few dinars at most, it is impossible to reward the title and the affordablend. Don''t give the title and the fief, a little money reward, old Hoffman can not care. Therefore, he simply enjoys the benefits of the Qufu Plow and the Bull Nose Ring, and he has the benefit of his own house. Chapter 15: Promoting Bathing Chapter 15: Promoting Bathing Because of the sess of the Qufu Plow and the Bull Nose Ring, Marin''s right to speak at Hoffman Estate has been greatly improved. Old Hoffman and Mrs. Mary began to pay attention to Marin''s opinion. Seeing that he had the right to speak, Marin decided to take advantage of his own opportunity to make some modifications to the backward Hoffman Estate. In addition to improving productivity, at the same time, it is necessary to change some bad habits of people in the manor. For example, Ma Lin''s first reform n is aimed at the bathing problem. The Hoffman family, apart from the Marlins who passed, the other are devout Catholics. Everyone is very convinced that the church''s propaganda of the non-bath is true. Therefore, in addition to the often trained sweaty Adler training to wash the body with water, the Hoffman and Marin''s younger siblings have to take a shower for a long time. In order to cover up the odor caused by long-term non-bathing, Mrs. Mary also specially applied musk and other spices to her body. In fact, the number of baths in the Hoffman family is quite good. For example, they will take a shower every few days in the summer. In the winter, the time interval may be longer and there will be no bathing for two or three months. Some devout believers, it is normal to not take a bath for a few years. For example, the Sun King Louis XIV, only took 7 baths in the 72 years. They have a sword for ten years, and he has taken a shower for ten years. When the family was eating together, Marlin was somewhat reluctant to be too close to his rtives. Because they have a bit of astringency caused by not taking a bath for a long time. This gives Marin an illusion that he is not eating at a noble family, but eating with a group of monkeys who don''t like to take a bath. Maring, who couldn''t bear it, immediately arranged the serfs who would be carpentry in the manor, circled two huge oak barrels, painted them, and dried them for a few days as a bathing bucket. At the same time, he built a closed small room on the side of his room and ced the tub. Then, in the eyes of the whole family, Marlin started the "suicide" of taking a bath every day. "Dear, why are you tormenting yourself like this? Is it the fact that you did not enter the emperor''s army hit you so much? You can''t think of suicide." Mrs. Mary looked at Marin with concern. Old Hoffman, who has already picked up his sleeves, is ready to "save" Marin out of the tub. When Marin heard this, he first squatted and thenughed: "Haha, Mom, who told you that the bath is suicide? This is really ridiculous!" "Stop, this is what the highly respected bishops say!" Old Hoffman angered. "Dad, my teacher used to walk the world. He told me that in Turkey, people see bathing as a habit. Every town has a public bath." "Don''t tell me the Turkish pagans, they are devil believers." Old Hoffman was very dissatisfied. "Even so, there are public baths in ancient Rome. The ancient Romans often went to the bathroom to bathe, and did not say that the ancient Romans were sick and dead!" "Isn''t ancient Rome destroyed by our great Germans?" Old Hoffman retorted. "They were defeated by the Germanic army." Marin was speechless and very anxious for the old Hoffman''s IQ. "This..." Old Hoffman couldn''t think of a rebuttal. "Dear, are you sure that the bath will not get sick?" Mrs. Mary asked with concern. "I''m sure, and very sure! My teacher said that people in Asian countries, including the great empire of the East, are used to taking a bath. I have never heard of a bath that will make people sick." "But the bishops of the church will never lie to us?" Adler retorted. "That''s good, may I ask, is there a bath in the Bible that is sick? God has not said this, and Jesus has not said it. This statement seems to have been transmitted after the ck Death. There is no basis at all. " "But I still feel wrong..." Old Hoffman could not refute Marin, but still insisted on his own opinion. "Nothing, if you don''t believe, you can watch. I am taking a bath every day, seeing that I have to be sick!" "But, child, I am afraid..." Mrs. Mary is still very worried. "Don''t worry, Mom, I won''t make a joke about my life!" In the next few days, Marin took a bath in high-profile every day, and sang the German version of "The Bathing Song" in the small bathroom. It was a very high look, which made the whole family very confused. Kahn and Kohler, under the orders of Marin, took a bath in Marin''s small bathroom after bathing in Marin every day. Of course, they have another bath tub. Half a monthter, Marin''s three people bathed in a high bath, and the family was very worried, for fear that Marin suddenly became sick and then snarled. However, Marin, Kahn and Kohler are all alive and kicking. Then, the Hoffmans, and Marin''s brothers and sisters, began to wonder. Later, in order to forcibly change the habits of his family, Marin sneaked away and quietly deceived his two brothers, Simon and Albert, into his room, and then violently stripped the tub that was thrown into the small bathroom. His whole family blown up, Old Hoffman even carrying a stick f to chase Marin. Even Mrs. Mary, who has always loved Marin, was angry this time. If Marin had personally proved that the bath was okay some time ago, Mrs. Mary had to join the ranks of killing Marin, and together with the old Hoffman, Marlin made a "double-ying doubles". In the family''s worries, Simon and Albert, two skin monkeys, did not appear ill. Then, the family began to feel relieved. Adler was so stupid and bold to start trying. Marlin told the manor in the manor that he had built several wooden barrels. Adler asked for a return and set up a small bathroom in his room. Then, I also learned Marin and started to take a shower... However, Adler was not as clean as Marin, not washing every day, but washing it once or twice. But even so, Adler is considered to be "deviant". The next attempt is Mrs. Mary. As a woman, nature prefers to be cleaner. There was nothing wrong with seeing the two sons taking a bath often. So she also hearted. Then, she began to bathe often, washing herself up in white, fragrant... And then, she couldn''t escape the old Hoffman''s ws. "Go and go, the dead ghost, the body is stinky, go to the bath, or don''t think about sleeping in bed!" Therefore, the old Hoffman with grievances joined the bathing army. With Mrs. Mary taking a shower and sharing with her daughter Anne, all the family members of the Hoffman family started taking a shower. When I was eating with my family again, Marin never had the feeling of eating at the Because of the sess of the Qufu Plow and the Bull Nose Ring, Marin''s right to speak at Hoffman Estate has been greatly improved. Old Hoffman and Mrs. Mary began to pay attention to Marin''s opinion. Seeing that he had the right to speak, Marin decided to take advantage of his own opportunity to make some modifications to the backward Hoffman Estate. In addition to improving productivity, at the same time, it is necessary to change some bad habits of people in the manor. For example, Ma Lin''s first reform n is aimed at the bathing problem... The Hoffman family, apart from the Marlins who passed, the other are devout Catholics. Everyone is very convinced that the church''s propaganda of the non-bath is a pure public paradox. Therefore, in addition to the often trained sweaty Adler training to wash the body with water, the Hoffman and Marin''s younger siblings have to take a shower for a long time. In order to cover up the odor caused by long-term non-bathing, Mrs. Mary also specially applied musk and other spices to her body. In fact, the number of baths in the Hoffman family is quite good. For example, they will take a shower every few days in the summer. In the winter, the time interval may be longer and there will be no bathing for two or three months. Some devout believers, it is normal to not take a bath for a few years. For example, the Sun King Louis XIV, only took 7 baths in the 72 years. They have a sword for ten years, and he has taken a shower for ten years... When the family was eating together, Marlin was somewhat reluctant to be too close to his cheap rtives. Because they have a bit of astringency caused by not taking a bath for a long time... This gives Marin an illusion that he is not eating at a noble family, but eating with a group of donkeys who don''t like to take a bath in the gang of the gang... ... Maring, who couldn''t bear it, immediately arranged the serfs who would be carpentry in the manor, circled two huge oak barrels, painted them, and dried them for a few days as a bathing bucket. At the same time, he built a closed small room on the side of his room and ced the tub. Then, in the eyes of the whole family, Marlin started the "suicide" career of taking a bath every day... "Dear, why are you tormenting yourself like this? Didn''t the army that did not enter the emperor hit you so much? You can''t think of suicide..." Mrs. Mary looked at Marin with concern. Old Hoffman, who has already picked up his sleeves, is ready to "salv" Marin out of the tub... When Marin heard this, he first squatted and thenughed: "Haha, Mom, who told you that the bath is suicide? This is really ridiculous!" "Stop, this is what the highly respected bishops say!" Old Hoffman angered. "Dad, my teacher used to walk the world. He told me that in Turkey, people see bathing as a habit. Every town has a public bath." "Don''t tell me the Turkish pagans, they are devil believers." Old Hoffman was very dissatisfied. "Even so, there are public baths in ancient Rome. The ancient Romans often went to the bathroom to bathe, and did not say that the ancient Romans were sick and dead!" "Isn''t ancient Rome destroyed by our great Germans?" Old Hoffman retorted. "They were defeated by the Germanic army, and they were not soaked in a bath..." Marin was speechless and very anxious for the old Hoffman''s IQ. "This..." Old Hoffman couldn''t think of a rebuttal. "Dear, are you sure that the bath will not get sick?" Mrs. Mary asked with concern. "I''m sure, and very sure! My teacher said that people in Asian countries, including the great empire of the East, are used to taking a bath. I have never heard of a bath that will make people sick." "But the bishops of the church will never lie to us?" Adler retorted. "That''s good, may I ask, is there a bath in the Bible that is sick? God has not said this, and Jesus has not said it. This statement seems to have been transmitted after the ck Death. There is no basis at all. " "But I still feel wrong..." Old Hoffman could not refute Marin, but still insisted on his own opinion. "Nothing, if you don''t believe, you can watch. I am taking a bath every day, seeing that I have to be sick!" "But, child, I am afraid..." Mrs. Mary is still very worried. "Don''t worry, Mom, I won''t make a joke about my life. But teach me, but a great man, not a bishop with limited levels!" In the next few days, Marin took a bath in high-profile every day, and sang the German version of "The Bathing Song" in the small bathroom. It was a very high look, which made the whole family very confused. Kahn and Kohler, under the orders of Marin, took a bath in Marin''s small bathroom after bathing in Marin every day. Of course, they have another bath tub. Half a monthter, Marin''s three people bathed in a high bath, and the family was very worried, for fear that Marin suddenly became sick and then snarled... However, Marin, Kahn and Kohler are all alive and kicking. Then, the Hoffmans, and Marin''s brothers and sisters, began to wonder... Later, in order to forcibly change the habits of his family, Marin sneaked away and quietly deceived his two brothers, Simon and Albert, into his room, and then violently stripped the tub that was thrown into the small bathroom. in... This whole family can be blown up, UU reading Old Hoffman even carrying a stick full of manor to chase Marin. Even Mrs. Mary, who has always loved Marin, was angry this time. If Marin had personally proved that the bath was okay some time ago, Mrs. Mary had to join the ranks of killing Marin, and together with the old Hoffman, Marlin made a "double-ying doubles". In the family''s worries, Simon and Albert, two skin monkeys, did not appear ill. Then, the family began to feel relieved... Adler was so stupid and bold to start trying. Marlin told the manor in the manor that he had built several wooden barrels. Adler asked for a return and set up a small bathroom in his room. Then, I also learned Marin and started to take a shower... However, Adler was not as clean as Marin, not washing every day, but washing it once or twice. But even so, Adler is considered to be "deviant"... The next attempt is Mrs. Mary. As a woman, nature prefers to be cleaner. There was nothing wrong with seeing the two sons taking a bath often. So she also hearted... Then, she began to bathe often, washing herself up in white, fragrant... And then, she couldn''t escape the old Hoffman''s ws... "Go and go, the dead ghost, the body is stinky, go to the bath, or don''t think about the mother''s bed!" Therefore, the old Hoffman also grievances joined the bathing army... With Mrs. Mary taking a shower and starting with her daughter Anne, all the family members of the Hoffman family started taking a shower... When I was eating with my family again, Marin never had the feeling of eating inside the sewers. Chapter 16: Rectifying Environmental Sanitation Chapter 16: Rectifying Environmental Sanitation It took almost a month for Marin to make the whole family get used to taking a shower. This is the hottest time of July, the year. If everyone does not take a bath, God knows what kind of taste will be emitted. ording to Marin''s estimate, Charles VIII will enter Italy at the end of August, and the news will be transmitted to Vienna. Then, the Empire Council will argue for a while before it will grind and agree to increase taxes, or simply no results. When the first batch of taxes is collected, at least until November. By that time, Maximilian I, who had money, would have the temper to recruit mercenaries again. However, Marin, who has read history, is more optimistic that the emperor can receive taxes from Austria and Burgundy under his control. In other regions, it is too difficult to receive tax revenue. But even if taxes are received in these two ces, it is enough for the emperor to expand on a small scale. So, in the past few months, Marin ns to reorganize Hoffman Estate. Because, once the emperor began recruiting mercenaries, he would definitely go to Vienna to "get a name" and there would be no time to manage the Hoffman Estate. With limited time, Marin took the time and carried out drastic reforms in the manor. The reason for his reform is the advanced knowledge he learned from the very developed Eastern Empire with his non-existent monk teacher, Einstein. Because of the previous sess, although still can not be 100% believed, but the Hoffman couple also learned seven or eight points for the great knowledge Marin learned. So, they held the psychological test, let Marlin let go of the reform experiment in the manor. After promoting the bathing problem, it is natural to have matching washing clothes. So, the next thing Marin promoted was to wash clothes and change clothes frequently. The reason given by Marin is also very strong - taking a bath and changing clothes frequently can prevent the growth of the disease to arge extent. This theory is actually a modern health theory. However, the reason for putting an end to the disease has greatly shocked others. Therefore, the family is extremely supportive. Anyway, for the Hoffman family, they will not be able to wash their clothes, and they will be able to hire a serf woman in a manor. They will not have to spend money to enjoy the meal. Before that, Mrs. Mary was actually changing her clothes. Only the old masters such as Hoffman and Adler did not change clothes very often. Therefore, this program has no resistance to promotion. Then, Marin asked the whole family to wash their hands before and after meals, so as not to put dirty things in their mouths and take them with them. In this regard, Mrs. Mary, who loves to clean herself, expressed her support. So, this n was passed. Before bathing and changing clothes and washing hands, in fact, it is personal hygiene. After solving personal hygiene, Marin began to solve environmental health problems. The main problem of environmental sanitation is actually the concentration of manure, the dumping of garbage, and the problem of cleaning in residential areas. In the Middle Ages, apart from the educated aristocrats, most ordinary people have bad habits of defecation. This also makes the smell of feces floating in the cities of medieval Europe. The main road is okay, and local officials will organize people to clean up. And in those small streets and alleys, there are many people who are urinating and defecating. Therefore, as long as you leave the main street and enter the remote areas of the city, you can smell the smell. And these feces everywhere can also breed flies and mosquitoes, which in turn lead to terrible infectious diseases. In the city, Marin was not in control, but when he was hanging out in the manor the day before yesterday, he identally stepped on a big dung and made him sick for a long time. Therefore, it is a big problem that Marin urgently needs to solve in order to concentrate on the toilet and refrain from urinating. When Marin proposed a n to concentrate on the toilet and ban reliving on the spot, there was no objection from the family. Men don''t care, they are going to the toilet anyway, and Mrs. Mary is more wee. After all, she is also resentful of the feces that are everywhere. It is very simple to promote this article in the Hoffman family, but when the serfs in Marin called the manor to announce the promotion, they were protested by many serfs: "Master Marin, what are you doing so little things? Everyone is like this..." "Yeah, yeah, other manors are like this, and people in the city are all there to solve it..." ... Marlin is very angry, and it is reasonable to cope with your urination everywhere. So he issued mandatory measures - "In the future, If I found that someone was urinating in the territory, grabbed doing it once, will be fined a Finney!" This measure made the serfs sigh. After all, the serfs were reluctant to ept and were used to being oppressed. But a fine Finney, that''s a big deal. At this time in the German region, ordinary helpers, working in the city, only gain two Finney a day. The serfs in the country can only earn one Finney a day. Therefore, a fine Finney is basically to let them work day by day!Although they are very dissatisfied, they can''t resist. After all, this is an era of nobility. The status of the serfs is a little better than the ves. Basically, they have no right to speak. They can only passively ept the rule. If it''s the free citizens with higher status, they may be fiercely rebellious (most of the European uprising and revolutions are made by the citizens), but the serfs do not have any enthusiasm to resist. Therefore, this program has also been implemented smoothly. In order to cooperate with this n, Marin organized manpower and built several public toilets in the serf vige, which were divided into men and women. As for my own, it is not necessary. Although the knight is the lowest level aristocrat, but the living habits are still close to the nobility, the family originally had a toilet, it does not need new repairs. Later, Marin nned the garbage dump area and arranged for people to clean the main house of Hoffman''s house every day and put the garbage in the dumping area. Then, in the area where the serfs lived, he also set up a garbage dumping area, asking the serfs to pile up the garbage instead of dumping them everywhere. In addition, Marin asked that the manpower of the barn should remove feces every day, and the cow dung and horse manure should be removed every day, and piled up together, and pitted together with human feces. As for why this is done, it is the problem of Marlin suddenly thinking of gunpowder. Gunpowder requires saltpeter, and saltpeter is the most importantponent of gunpowder. But there is no saltpeter mine in Europe. In this era, it is either imported from the Middle East or collected from soil nitrate from the feces. However, with the rise of Ottoman Turkey and the blocus of the sea andnd trade channel to the East, from this moment, Europeans had to go to the feces to find soil and nitrate to control the saltpeter.Marin heard about the theory and knows the principle of the point, but the specific process is not clear. But this is not a problem. Now the price of saltpeter is not cheap. ording to Marlin, the price of a pound of gunpowder is as high as 10 Finney. And the price of saltpeter reached 11 Finney per pound. And the saltpeter, sulfur and charcoal required for gunpowder, the most expensive is saltpeter. Because Europeans find saltpeter from the fece pit, the number is really limited, so the price is very high. The Hoffman Estate has more than a hundred people, plus dozens of animals, and the amount of manure per day is veryrge. Marin dug a number of long-shaped pits in the remote lower vent of the manor, specifically for collecting the soil. The feces produced by so many people, used to produce the soil, is estimated to be a small ie. After solving the health problem and getting the industry to produce saltpeter, Marin reformed the farm tools in the manor. First of all, stone tools have been eliminated. Later, Marin introduced the iron shovel in the east to facilitate farmers to manually excavate loose soil. Not only that, Marin also vigorously promoted the techniques of seeding and hole nting. Europeans are currently popr for spreading, shallow sowing, and uneven seed distribution. Some ces are not scattered, and the seeds are sparsely distributed. In some ces, too many seeds are sprinkled, and the seeds are too dense. When the seeds germinate, it is easy to cause multiple nts to be too close topete to absorb soil nutrients. Then, each nt did not grow well. The artificially controlled tracing and hole broadcasting have solved this problem well. Originally, Marin was nning to introduce the brakes that were invented during the Han Dynasty. However, Marin had never seen a brake. Therefore, for the time being, he can only promote artificial saltpeter and hole seeding. If there is an opportunity to send someone to the East, he must introduce a brake. Because the sowing efficiency of the brakes is much higher than the manual on-demand. Chapter 17: Im going to raise a cat Chapter 17: I''m going to raise a cat The reform of the manor continued, but when Marin entered the barn, he was angered. Why? It turned out that there was a bunch of mice in the barn. Angry Marin,manding everyone to chase mice, but how flexible is the mouse? One wave of young people sent by Marin, only one person hit a mouse. The rest of the mice, all escaped. When he was having dinner, Marlin was angry: "Why are there so many mice? Is there no cat at home?" "Cat?" The whole family looked at Marin like a fool. Marin also realized that he was wrong, he cautiously asked everyone: "What''s wrong? Is there something wrong?" "Marin, don''t you know that cats are evil incarnations?" "Cat evil? Is there such a saying?" "Well, my brother, I heard that the evil ck cats are all bad wizards. They are the incarnation of ominousness and disaster!" sister Annie said seriously. "Oh, sell the cake! How do you have such an idea?" Marin thought of it at this time, and the medieval seemingly has the saying that "the cat is an evil incarnation." Looks like, because the cat called the mate in the middle of the night, the voice is too loud, making people feel scared. "The bishop said!" When ites to this, the most intelligent Mrs. Mary is somewhat unconfident. Because the bishop said that he could not take a bath, this has been overthrown in Hoffman Estate. "It''s all nonsense, the cat is the natural enemy of the mouse. With the cat, we are not afraid of the mouse stealing food. I looked down, because there is no cat, the mouse is too daring now, stealing too much food. The only mouse that was killed was because it was too fat, and it could not run!" "Hey - haha -" The younger siblings were amused. "Don''tugh, these abominable mice are eating bread you eat, do you understand?" "Oh..." The younger brothers and sisters seemed to understand, but they were suppressed by Marin''s powerful anger and had to pretend to understand. "So, Marin, what are you going to do?" asked Old Hoffman. "I want to raise a cat!"'' "Oh... but my brother, there are no cats around us. Since the church people said that cats are evil creatures, there are basically no cats here. Where do you catch kittens?" "Nobody raises a cat?" Marlin was a bit dumbfounded. In his opinion, there should be a lot of people who have cats. Just go find someone who has a female cat and a cat. "Yes, under the publicity of the church, everyone gave up raising cats. Of course, it also caused the flood of mice." "No wonder the ck death was raging..." Marin eximed. "Hey? Marin, what do you mean by this? The ck death and the cat have a rtionship?" Everyone was taken aback. "This is the case. It was introduced in the medical books of the East. The ck Death is also called gue. It originated in the East. This disease is mainly transmitted by mice, so it is called gue. It is said that the ck Death originated from Asia. The Vian merchant ship was brought from Asia. And, mainly through the rats on the Vian merchant ship." "Son, is this the case?" "Yes, Europeans don''t raise cats, so they cause mice to flood. And the ck Death is spread by mice. Now there are so many mice in Europe, of course, the spread is fast, and there are more dead people!" "It turns out that, then, let''s go to raise a cat!" Simon, Albert and Anne were scared to say. "But where are we going to catch the kittens?" Marlin also had some helplessness. "I know where there are cats!" Mrs. Mary thought about it. "Where?" Marin is also a spirit. "My hometown, East Frisian!" "East Frisian?" "Yes, the Frisians are mostly fishermen. They are good at driving a boat to go fishing. Therefore, the Frisians living by the sea have a lot of fish in their families. Walking in the fishing vige by the Friend seaside, you can see that every outdoor has dried a lot of salted fish." "That..." "Friend people don''t have cats, but cats like to eat fish. So, outside the Frisian fishing vige, there are always a lot of stray cats. They sometimes steal fish and fish that are hung outside. There''s a time when they go to eat the internal organs of the fish that the Frisians killed after killing the fish..." "Hey - the kitten is so poor -" Annie couldn''t bear. "That is, there are a lot of stray cats outside the fishing vige of Friend?" "Yes, a lot, still a lot." "That''s good, Adler, we took a few followers to the frisian seaside to catch a few kittens!" "Catch cats?" "Correct!" The next day, Marin and Adler mounted on the horses, apanying them, and two attendant of Adler on the horse. Kahn and Kohler wanted to follow. However, they only ride cows and are not skilled in horse riding. Therefore, Marin let the attendant of Adler who are good riders follow. Bochum is not far from East Frisian, only four hundred miles. And Marin, a few people, did not wear bulky armor, are lightly loaded, only with a sword, but also a double horse. So, on the third day, they arrived at the beach. After arriving at the beach, Marin really found a lot of stray cats in the grass near the seaside fishing vige. However, these stray cats are very cautious, and when they see peopleing in, they hide in the thick grass and find it hard to find. Moreover, they are very agile and flexible. However, this is hard to beat Marin. Once upon a time, Marin used the method of catching sparrows on the papers (supporting the basket with bamboo poles, sprinkling the rice below), and slightly changing it to catch the cat. The specific method is to buy a few big fish from the seaside fishing vige, and then buy a few wooden baskets. Then, Marin grabbed the wooden stick with a rope and supported the wooden basket. Below the wooden basket, it was a sea fish that smelled. The stray cats in the grass have poor living conditions, and many cats are often hungry. So, many cats couldn''t help but tempted and ran under the wooden frame to eat fish... Under the order of Marin, several baskets were pulled down. Then, a cat was caught. By this way, Marlin captured more than a dozen cats. But these cats are mostly kittens, those adult cats, most of them are very cautious and savvy, not easy to be fooled.What Marin wants is the kitten. Because the kitten can stay. And those old cats are easy to escape. Among the dozens of cats, Marin removed adult cats and several ck cats. Because, in Europe, ck cats are considered to be a symbol of ominousness. Although Marin wants to raise a cat, he does not intend to raise a ck cat that makes people fear.Finally, Marin picked five beautiful-looking kittens and nned to take them away. However, considering that cats love to eat fish. Moreover, Hoffman Estate is close to the Ruhr River and can be considered for fishing. So, Marin was in the fishing vige and recruited several bankrupt fishermen. It''s ridiculous to say that Hoffman''s Manor, while on the Ruhr River, should be eating fish. But in fact, because Europeans regard bathing as a taboo, people are reluctant to enter the water. Therefore, in addition to the fact that fishermen in coastal areas have to fish in order to survive, there are few fishermen in the ind areas, and only a few people are fishing in their leisure time. This is because, in the ind areas, if there is no field, you can choose to hunt or choose to work. Therefore, there are few ind Europeans who fish on the rivers. This also leads to a lot of freshwater fish in the ind river. Therefore, Marin intends to bring these fishermen to settle down on the Ruhr River in Hoffman Estate. They were then authorized to fish on the river near the Hoffman Estate (in medieval Europe, hunting and fishing were authorized by the nobility and most of the catch was handed over to the nobility). In this way, people in the manor can eat fish from time to time. Chapter 18: It turned out to be a coal mine. Chapter 18: It turned out to be a coal mine. Returning to Hoffman Estate, after Marin settled five kittens, he began to house the four fishermen. These fishermen were fishing for generations by the sea. However, these families were not lucky. They sinked the fishing boats on the sea (a fishing boat bought by four families). Be aware that fishing boats are the most important property of fishermen. The fishing boat is gone, which is equal to the copse of this family. The vessel is very expensive for ordinary fishermen. Without a fishing boat, it means that the whole family has no hope. Although they are able to escape browning in the water, it is hard to avoid the hunger at home. Seeing bankruptcy is just around the corner, just as Marin came to recruit fishermen. The four families who had nowhere to go, simply followed Marin. Marin''s familynd was on the riverside, he helped them build a house, and settled down the four families. But the problem ising - they don''t have fishing boats. The four families have brought fishings, but there are no boats. Originally, ording to the wishes of the four families, they wanted to ask Marin to help them buy a Hansa speedboat- a single-decked dhow that is skilled in speed. However, Marin considered that the ind river is not the same as the outer sea. The wind is strong at sea, and the sail can drive the ship. In the river, there will be frequent wind or breeze. At that time, the sailboat is not moving. Like the big "ind sea" like the Mediterranean, there are often no winds. Therefore, Vians and Genoese are popr with paddle boats like the galley. Driven by sails when there is wind, sailors paddle together when there is no wind... Although the Ruhr River is not small, it is not big. It would be a waste to introduce the Italian galley to fish. Thinking about it, Marin decided to use the ind river boat of the East - the shake boats. Shake boats are generally notrge, but the maximum discement is more than ten tons. However, the rocker has a big advantage - it isbor saving. There is an old saying - "one scull three paddles", which means that shaking one scull is equivalent to three paddles. But the invention of the Orientals is also a very scientific thing. His advanced point is that the rear of the seesaw is simr to the propeller of ater ship. The paddles are left and right, and it is moreborious to draw. Marin found several craftsmen in the nearby town and spent several days working together to build a small wooden boat with a discement of about five or six tons and built a seesaw. Not only that, Marin also asked the craftsmen to build an awning on the boat, which is convenient for hiding from the rain. Some are simr to the awning boats in Zhejiang. To be honest Marin knows that the captain is unwilling. So, when he started to give people a demonstration, the ship was swaying and sometimes spinning. Fortunately, the Frisian fishermen he recruited were more talented than him. A few dayster, Marin did not know how to shake the demonstration, Frisian fishermen, but mastered how to shake, which made Marlin very shy. Then, several Frisian fishermen began to smash the barges on the Ruhr River and casts for fishing. It seems that no one in this era caught the fish in the river. Therefore, the harvest of several fishermen is great. Each time you fish, you can hit back hundreds of pounds of various river fish. As the lord of the four families, the Hoffman family got half of them and was given priority. But what makes Marin speechless is that Old Hoffman and others (except for Mrs. Mary) seem to be eating fish for the first time. Old Hoffman and Adler are stuck by the fishbone, and they are so painful. Fortunately, the three children were not stuck. Mrs. Mary decisively ordered that the child was only allowed to eat meat without a small fishbone on the belly. The rest of it was given to Mrs. Mary, who grew up on the beach. As a Frisian, Mrs. Mary grew up from how to eat a fish and naturally would not be stabbed. Since then, Hoffman''s family has eaten fish, and Mrs. Mary has covered the meat on her back. As for the meat and fish seeds on the fish belly, it is divided by others. Marin also showed a handful of oriental cooking that was said to have been learned from "the monk Einstein", using a Chinese-style iron pot custom-made from the cksmith shop. Made a lot of delicious meals. For example, fish, although there is no balsamic vinegar, but there is apple cider vinegar in Europe, Marin made a sweet and sour fish, it is very delicious. The sweet and sour fish has not yet been baked, and the saliva of the younger brothers and sisters has turned into a long river. But Marin also has a depressed face - Europe is hard to find ginger, onions and garlic. However, the taste made is not so authentic. What surprised Marin was that in this era, ginger was regarded as a precious spice imported from the East and expensive. Although not as precious as the extremely expensive spices such as cloves and nutmeg, it is also expensive. ording to Old Hoffman, in the northern part of Germany, a pound of ginger is generally worth 8 shillings (96 Finney), and in some ces with inconvenient transportation it was reced by a sheep. A sheep has dozens of pounds of meat, ording to 2 Finney a pound ofmb (wholesale purchase price), but also arge number of Finney, almost a hundred Finney, it is too expensive! In fact, counting the value of wool and sheepskin, a sheep, estimated to be worth about 160 Finney, is almost 1 mark. (Note: Before the rise of Ottoman in Europe, thend trade with the East was still very smooth. So, the spices were not particrly expensive at the time. But after the rise of Ottoman, it began to block thend trade route, making European spice prices go crazy. For example, in the early Middle Ages, the price of ginger was only 2 shillings per pound. But because of the Turkish blockade, the price of spices began to skyrocket. When Turkey wiped out the Mamluk dynasty in Egypt, thend trade route was basically isted. It can only be obtained by the Portuguese sea route. By the time of Elizabeth I, the price of ginger generally rose to the point where a pound of ginger was reced by a sheep.) Not to mention the fact that ginger, the whole family of the Hoffman family had eaten the oriental dishes made by Marin, and each of them was full of oil and could not care for the image. Mrs. Mary seems to be aware of the value of this oriental cooking, personally studied oriental cooking with Marin, and ns to open a restaurant in the city. But Marin strongly disagreed: "Mom, I know that it is sure to make money with this oriental cooking. But, have you thought about it? If there are such delicious meals, those big nobles will let go of this secret technique? They will definitely find a way. It''s probably not a luck of the Hoffman family, but a huge disaster. After all, the Hoffman family is only the lowest level noble of the Empire." Marin said that the wise Mrs. Mary reacted. She was born in arge aristocratic family and naturally knew the aristocrats. My son said true, his family is only the lowest level of the bottom aristocrats,pletely unable to hold the pressure. If Baron "allowed" them to hand over their culinary secrets, and the Hoffman family could not resist. In the end, Mrs. Mary decided that this kind of cooking was personally controlled by herself and was limited to being given to her own family. ... On this day, Maring, who had enough to eat enough, decided to go to the back of his own territory to see. It is also strange to say that the Hoffman family''s 1,000-acre blockade, in addition to the 200-acrend on the Ruhr River, and other 800-acre hilly areas, can not only grow crops, trees can not grow, weeds grow very poor. So, Marin decided to go to the back hill to study and see why the hills of the Hoffman are so poor. Although Marin is not a geologist, as a student of history, geography is not bad. Not to mention the problem of soil, but some simplemon sense is still known. Under the leadership of Marin, a few strong young people in Kahn went along with Marin to the back mountain area to excavate the soil for Marin sampling. After investigation, Marin found that thend seems to be somewhat salinized in the hilly terrain. Therefore, thend here is very poor and the nts are growing badly. This made Marlin a little upliftings. He wondered if there was salt mine underground here. This suspicion is not unreasonable. Bochum is in the afterlife, but it is a famous mining city with abundant underground reserves. Maybe, underground, Hoffman Estate, buried a salt mine. You know, in the Middle Ages, salt prices were very expensive. How expensive is it? In the Middle Ages, as an ind nation, the price of salt was rtively cheap, with a shilling (about 48 Finney) one quart (12.7 kg) (equivalent to 1.7 Finney / Penny a pound). In continental Europe, except for the salt prices in the Mediterranean coastal areas, which are simr to those in the UK, salt prices in other regions are much more expensive than those in the UK. In the Deutsche region, the price of salt in the northern coastal area is about 2.5 pounds a finney. Ind areas, like Bochum, are only a few hundred miles from the sea, about 3 pounds a hundred. In the ind areas of the south, the salt price can be as high as 5 Finney. If a salt mine can be found underground in the Hoffman Estate, there is no difference between a silver mine and a silver mine. The salt of white flowers can exchange silver for white flowers, and it is not sold. The Duke of Lneburg, relying on the salt mine of Lneburg, became a famous tycoon Duke . With the enthusiasm for finding salt mines, Marinmanded a few people in Kahn to use Chinese iron shovel to start digging in the back hill. After digging a lot of ces, finally, in a small hilly valley in Houshan, a few meters deep underground, Kahn dug up a ck stone. "This is... coal..." Marin opened his mouth in surprise. I did not expect the salt mine, but found the coal. Marin thought about it, but he felt normal. Where is Bochum? Ruhr area. The Hoffman Estate is on the banks of the Ruhr River. In the Ruhr area, the coal mines are everywhere, and the hills of the Hoffman Estate dug out of coal, which is very normal. However, coal in the Middle Ages is not as valuable as salt, nor is it very popr. Why? Very normal, everyone must eat salt. And coal, people do not have to use. Coal can be used as fuel and firewood can. Those areas far from the coal mines, instead of spending the time to transport the coal from a distant ce, it is better to pick up the firewood as fuel. Unless it is in the city, whether it is firewood or coal, it must be brought in from outside. Moreover, the transportation of this city should be convenient, and the transportation of coal mines should be convenient. Now it''s the Middle Ages, not the era of steam engine that consumes a lot of coal. Plus there are coal mines everywhere in the Ruhr area. Therefore, coal mines are not so valuable. However, then again, the back mountain of the Hoffman family was originally a broken ce. Now, there are coal mines in the area, so I will not waste this ce. When the whole family learned that there was a coal mine in Houshan, they were very happy. At the moment, although coal is not worth much, it can also sell money. Moreover, Hoffman Estate is on the banks of the Ruhr River. By then, as long as a dock is built on the banks of the Ruhr, coal can be sold out by ship. The Ruhr River passes through the Rhine River and can reach many cities, making transportation very convenient. However, the price of coal is really not very high at the moment. For 288 gallons of coal (288 gallons, weighing about 1.5 to 1.7 tons), the retail price in the Ruhr area is only 3 shillings (36 Finney). Even if they are sold to the big cities on the Rhine, they are only about 5 shillings. Salt, one quart (12.7 kg), can be sold for at least 4 shillings. Therefore, coal and salt are iparable. But in any case, Hoffman Manor is easy to transport water, dig out the coal and sell it to various cities, and still make money. Old Hoffman invited a professional miner to make an assessment. Assessed, the hills of the back hill of Hoffman Estate, all underground is coal. Moreover, they are all first ss coal. It is estimated that it is not a problem to dig up millions of tons. These estimated coals that can be dug are not more than one hundred meters deep. As for the under 100 meters, it is still difficult to dig with medieval technology. Do not say anything else, the deep well drainage is a big problem. The British in the 18th century, in order to pump deep water, invented the steam engine. The steam engine is actually perfected on the basis of the coal pumping steam engine. It is not the first invention. Because of the discovery of the coal mines, the Old Hoffmans and Marin began an urgent discussion on how to mine coal and transport sales. First of all, the Hoffman family must definitely go outside to recruit a group of serfs to be miners. The serfs that are now incapable of being reced by the manor. The main reason is that there are many children born in the serf family, and the serfs required by the manor are limited. Therefore, every year the estate will drive away some redundant serfs. These serfs were forced to go to the city or the mine to work hard, like the Hoffman Manor, there are seven or eight young men who went to the city to work hard. Marlin knows that it is dangerous to mine coal underground. The Hoffman family''s coal mine is obviously an underground coal mine. Although it is not buried deep, it is also underground, not open-air. And going down the mine is dangerous. Coal mines often st copse. Therefore, Marin is not willing to use the farmer''s serf as a coal miner. Therefore, it is the best choice to recruit people outside. Then there is the transportation problem. After the mine is excavated, the track isid and the mine car is pulled along the track to the Ruhr River. This distance is also about two kilometers away. After pulling to the Ruhr River, the Hoffman family also had to build a dock for the merchant ships that pulled the coal to park. The Hoffman family itself does not have a merchant ship, so you can only contact those middlemen and let theme to the dock to pull coal. Of course, in this case, the Hoffman family can get up to 2 shillings per tons of coal. But even so, it can make the Hoffman family''s ie increase a lot. After all, if you are purely relying on farming, then the ie can not be high. Chapter 19: Coal Mine Management Chapter 19: Coal Mine Management After the coal mine, Marincked some interest in the reform of the manor agriculture. They all became coal boss sons. Even if you farm, your home will not be able to turn the waves. Moreover, Adler said that although he is the eldest son, with the coal mine ie, he is willing to share with his brothers and sisters, especially the one who discovered the coal mine is Marin. Adler is not a stingy person, and not awkward for money. The manor is not given to the younger brothers, it is the family tradition. But for this coal mine, it is not ancestral. Although it is underground in the manor, if it is not Marin''s whim to do "geological investigation", the coal mine has not been unearthed. Of course, Adler also said that when he is alive, coal mine ie can be distributed to his younger siblings, but he does not guarantee that future generations will do the same. Because this coal mine belongs to the Hoffman family. As the next patriarch, Adler agreed to distribute the interests of coal mines to his younger siblings while he was alive. But Adler''s son, after bing a new patriarch, may not be so generous. But even so, Marin and his younger siblings can get a lot of benefits. Even if they mine 100 tons of coal, the Hoffman family can at least earn a shilling of 100 shillings, which is 7.5 marks. 365 days a year, the Hoffman family can earn at least 2,700 marks. In fact, a skilled miner can dig 15 tons of coal (Newcastle UK) every day. Even if you are unskilled, it is no problem to dig seven or eight tons coals a day. Then, recruiting 20 miners, digging 200 tons a day is no problem. And the Hoffman family''s ie will double. Of course, the premise is that the Hoffman family''s coal must be sold out. However, the Hoffman family''s coal is first-ss coal and is the most suitable for fuel. Therefore, its sales are at least better than ordinary coal. Adler and Old Hoffman negotiated and were willing to give 30% of the coal mine revenue to the younger brothers and sisters. Among them, Marin scored 10%, and the remaining 20% were divided by two younger brothers and sisters. Of course, this vision is wonderful. However, for a long time, coal mines are not necessarily profitable. Because, mining, the early investment is huge. For example, recruiting miners requires building a dormitory for miners. Also build a mine track to the dock. Then, the dock should also be repaired, so that it is convenient for the coal ship to stop... More than that, you have to go to the city to find a businessman who is willing to distribute the Hoffmann family coal. In order to master how to operate the coal mine, Malin went to other coal mines in the Ruhr area to inspect. Then, he got some data through some means. The data shows that in general coal mines, miners can dig about 10 too of coal every day. Of course, there are not only coal miners in the coal mines, but also workers who are responsible for lifting coal from the deep wells, and workers who use hand-drawn mining trucks to transport coal to the warehouses where coal is piled up outside the mine. Generally speaking, the current coal miners in the Ruhr area are working 3 Finney per day, and the crane is responsible for lifting the coal and pulling the coal to the warehouse, the daily wage is 2 Finney. On average, the cost of working every charcoal from the outside to the warehouse is about 3 Finney to 4 Finney. But things don''t stop there, because the cost of transporting coal is too high and the traffic is small. Therefore, the general coal transportation is carried on the docks of the Ruhr River or the Lipper River. From the mine to the pier, it depends on how far away each mine is from the dock. There is a long way to go, just to transport a charcoal coal from the coal mine to the dock, you have to pay four Finney costs. For low cost, one or two Finneys are also required. Of course, there are also very good conditions, such as the mine in Hoffman Estate, only 2 km from the Ruhr River, and the transportation cost is very low. However, this is much more than cost, because the sale of coal, it is also taxable. The Holy Roman Empire is different from other countries. Other countries are mining mines and pay taxes to the royal family. In the territory of Mark, the Hoffman Estate is responsible for paying 2 Finney''s taxes to the Earl of Mark for every sale of a charcoal. In addition, after the coal is transported away from Mark, if it passes through a vassal state, it will basically pay a Finney tariff. If you pass through multiple vassal states, you will have to pay a lot of money. Therefore, the use of shipping coal, in addition to low transportation costs, there are also the meaning of avoiding the taxes on thend. After all, on the big river, as long as you don''tnd, few princes will not send ships to chase you for taxation. Tax officials will only be taxed when the ship is docked. After all, this is the Middle Ages, the tax officials are also afraid of water, they do not dare to "take a bath". When ites to the destination city, it is also necessary to pay the import tax and the city tax. Therefore, a charcoal coal, those merchant ships will generally only give the coal boss 2 shillings per charlelong. But even so, the mine owner''s profit, at least there is a shilling every tons. The ship owners, as long as they have stopped at a few ports, arrived at the destination, even if they sold 4 shillings per tons, there was a shilling profit. However, this has a premise - you have to sell the coal first. We must know that there is no industry in the Middle Ages, and there is a special demand for coal for iron and copper smelting. Because these productions require the high temperatures created by coal. Others, such as cooking and boiling water, can use local firewood. Therefore, the market for medieval coal is small and belongs to the buyer''s market. If coal is so good to sell, it is estimated that many people in the Ruhr area will make a fortune by selling coal, just like the boss of theter generation of Shanxi coal. Unfortunately, this era is medieval. Marlin, who has been baptized by the aftermath of the market economy of globalization, knows the importance of sales. So, he said nothing, pulled up the Hoffmans, let them bring enough money, went to Cologne, thergest city on the Rhine. It stands to reason that the tworgestmercial cities in the German region are Hamburg and Bremen, and it would be better to go to these two ces. However, Marin knows that Bochum did not have an ind waterway to Hamburg and Bremen. Only after the opening of the German Canal in theter generations can the waterways in Bochum and Bremen be opened. Right now, if you want to transport the coal to these two ces, you must first transport it out of the Rhine estuary and then transport it from the sea to arge circle. However, the risk of shipping at sea in this era is too great. Therefore, considering the safety and transportation costs, Marin felt that it was close to finding a big city to sell coal. The Rhine River, Cologne is the first city to be deserved. Even the imperial capital of Vienna is not as prosperous as Cologne. At the same time, Cologne was also the residence of the Archbishop of Cologne, one of the seven electors of the Holy Roman Empire. Manymercial activities on the Rhine River are centered around Cologne. Here, merchants gather, many nearby vassal states, will send business representatives to Cologne City to be responsible formodity procurement. Therefore, coal is better sold here. Marin and Hoffman came to Cologne and found a hotel to stay. Then, Marin spent money, from the local owner of the innkeeper, got some information from the businessmunity in Cologne and the news of some businessmen he wanted to know. After screening, Marin selected three more famous coal distribution managers. The reason why the choice of coal managers, rather than the coal merchants themselves, is what Marin realized when he worked inter generations - if you want to sell products to the other boss, you must make the boss feel that he is profitable. But if you really want to do this, your own concessions will be great and you will suffer. But managers are different, they just work for the boss, but they also have power. However, they are just working for themselves, not the boss himself. So, wanting him to buy your goods is actually very simple - that is, you can bring enough benefits to him personally. Therefore, the manager who has the purchasing authority is very popr. Inter generations, many business people responsible for promoting products will bribe these managers with purchasing authority. Of course, it''s not a bribe that can get everything done. There is also a premise that your goods are not too big a problem, and there is not much difference from other people''s goods.Marlin, who knew this, met with the three managers he selected andunched a bribery trick. But what made him depressed was that the first two managers said that their coal suppliers were personally set by the boss and they had no right to change. Therefore, Marin had to give up. Fortunately, the third manager has a loud voice he is the boss''s nephew. After paying a huge mark of 50 marks, the agent of the coal dealer, Wright, agreed to buy from the Hoffmann family''s coal mines two monthster, after the contract with the previous dealer expired. The ship came to load coal. Of course, the quality of the Hoffmann family''s coal is also very good. Although Wright was jealous of bribery, it was also after testing the samples taken by Marin that the quality of the Hoffmann mine was first-ss, and he was able to ept the bribe with confidence and signed with Old Hoffman. Moreover, the price given by Old Hoffman is also low - as long as 2 shillings per Chartron. In fact, the price of first-ss coal in the Ruhr area is generally 2 shillings 3 Finney per Chartron. Therefore, Wright chose Hoffmann Mine, which is not a loss. After solving the sales problem, Marin and the Hoffmans rushed back to the manor. Next, it is the excavation of coal mines and the transportation of coal. Under the dispatch of Marin, Adler was sent to the Ruhr River to supervise the construction of the coal terminal. Old Hoffman was responsible for repairing the road from the coal mine to the river, andmanding the serfs to repeatedly crush the road with the stone that was invented by Marin. Mrs. Mary is responsible for supervising the carpenter to build a batch of Chinese wheelbarrow for the shipment of coal. Because, Marin estimated that if a 2 km long mine car track was built, the input cost would be too great, and the Hoffman family could not get the money for the time being. So he simply decided to use the wheelbarrow and the oxcart to transport the coal.The oxcart is ready-made, but the oxcart has a problem. Once the road is muddy on a rainy day, the oxcart will not move and affect the shipment of coal. The wheelbarrow is actually intended to be used when it rains and the road is not dry. Because the wheelbarrow is an all-terrain vehicle, you can walk on the grass. Moreover, the Chinese wheelbarrow can hold five or six hundred kilograms of goods, which is very convenient and practical. As for Marin himself, he took Kahn and Kohler out to go to the old coal mines and purchased two sets of brackets for lifting coal cars for the mine to lift coal. After buying the equipment, Marin did not leave immediately. Instead, he quietly sent people to contact some of the most skilled miners in the old coal mines. With 4 Finney''s "high price" every day, he digs away five identities and is free. Experienced miners of civilians. The Hoffmann Mine is a newly opened coal mine and production may not be guaranteed if all neers are used. And once the output can''t keep up, Old Hoffman is equivalent to default, but to lose money to Wright. Therefore, Marin dug up five skilled and powerful miners. Then, Old Hoffman recruited more than a dozen healthy serfs who had not dug coal from outside the manor, and learned mining with five old miners. With the master, I believe that these dozen young men will get a little faster when they dig up the coal. Of course, some of them are responsible for transporting coal to the terminal. In this way, by the beginning of September, the Hoffmann family coal mines officially began operations. At this time, the news that King Charles VIII of France led the 37,000 French army into Italy and finally reached the German region. Marin knew that the Emperor''s Majesty must have been anxious. Because the emperors of the ancient times have regarded Italy as their ownnd, and they are not allowed to be touched by others, especially the French with strong momentum. Therefore, Marin also temporarily put down the family coal business, began to prepare, and nned to go to Vienna to go to the emperor. Chapter 20: Choosing some servants Chapter 20: Choosing some servants Because of financial resources, Marin intends to increase the number of attendants from two to five. Because Kohler has a good brain, but his body is too thin. When a military officer is still sessful, thebat power is very bad. Therefore, Marin felt that it was better to find another fighting force instead of Kohler''s position. But Kohler continued to follow him as a quartermaster and steward. So, shortly after the news of the Frenchman''s march into Italy, Marin asked Old Hoffman to help him choose a waiter in the manor! Hearing that Marin was going to the battlefield. At this time, the old Hoffman was not happy. Why? Because of his second son, the business talents that he showed, made Old Hoffman feel that Marlin could have a good life even if he did not go to war. Before, he drove Marin out of the house to cast his army, also for the survival of his son. But now, Marin''s ability is so strong, obviously no need to go to work hard. Therefore, neither the old Hoffman nor Mrs. Mary are willing to let Marin take another risk. However, this time Marin''s attitude is very determined. He is very clear that with his own skills, it is not difficult to be a rich man in the future. However, in the age when the nobles in the Middle Ages took everything, the rich could not control their own destiny. Adlerter wanted to inherit the Hoffman Manor and be anded knight. Marin and two younger brothers will be wandering knight. In order to have the ability to dominate his own destiny in this dark age, Marin had to go to the battlefield to take risks. Besides, the sess of Wallenstein and Tilly can always stimte him. Therefore, Marin insisted on going to the emperor and fighting for the emperor. In fact, Marin is so determined, in addition to his own fame, there is another important factor - he knows that the first round of the Italian war France will be defeated. Followed by the winning side, still afraid that there is no warfare? Moreover, on this battlefield there is actually the Holy Roman Empire, the Italian princes of Venice, the Papal States, the Principality of Mn and Florence, together against France and Savoy. It can be said that Maximilian I was not alone in the fight. Moreover, when the French army entered the Italian penins with arrogance, at the beginning, the Emperor did not send troops to block. Even the Italian princes and the Papal States did not stop at the beginning. Only Naples sent troops to block it and was defeated. In Marin''s view, the choices of the Holy Roman Empire and the Italian princes were not exactly what they wanted, but they were so urate. After all, at the beginning, the French and Savoy coalition forces, as many as 60,000 people (37,000 French troops, 23,000 Savoyards), such a huge army, is extremely rare in the Middle Ages. At that time, whoever resisted was absolutely killing itself. Even if Naples sent troops to block it, but the French army was too strong, the result was direct defeat. When the French army conquered the kingdom of Naples, the Italian princes gathered under the call of Venice and the Papal States and invited the Holy Roman Empire to participate. After all, Italy is torn apart and there is not enough power to confront the French. Venice was the first local tyrant in Italy. As themercial overlord of the Mediterranean, Venice''s fiscal revenue was not under France, and even higher. In the era when mercenaries began to rise, as long as you have money, you can recruit enough troops. Therefore, the rich Venice is the most powerful prince in Italy. Only the power of the Pope''s special appeal can bepared with Venice. Marin estimates that in order to win over the Holy Roman Empire, Venice may pay a portion of the bill. However, it will be until the establishment of the Holy Alliance in March next year. Marlin was reluctant to wait until then, because Emperor Maximilian I would certainly be able to raise some military expenses this year. Other than that, his own territory, Austria and Burgundy, can also search for some war taxes. And for him, he must strive to enter the emperor''s army as soon as possible. Mix some qualifications. In addition, the emperor is also sure to pay more attention to those who are "starting" early, and may be trained as an officer. The army that will be temporarily recruited after the "sponsorship" of Venice next year is estimated to be more than the cannon fodder. Because, the batch of mercenaries, it is estimated that there is no training time, it is necessary to enter the battlefield. ... Seeing that Marin was so determined, Old Hoffman did not say anything at all. After all, he also knows that the title and the cover are yed on the battlefield. So, in the end, Old Hoffman decided to cooperate with Marin and choose a waiter. To this end, the old Hoffman summoned a young man in the manor, as well as the young man who was a serf, for Marin to pick. Marin''s request for the attendant is very high. He wants a warrior who can fight with him and loyal. Just like the stupid boldness of Kahn, although he eats a bit, he is brave and loyal. Unfortunately, not everyone is as brave as Kahn. When Marin chose the attendant, let the boys challenge Kahn and wrestle with them. As a result, none of them was Kahn''s opponent. In desperation, Marin had to lower the requirement and no longer use the Kahn meal as the standard. After picking the right and left, Marlin finally selected only three young, strong, and obedient boys. Originally, he wanted to pick four. However, except for the three people selected, others are either too thin, too timid, or too sinister to meet the requirements. You know, in Marlin''s view, his attendant is basically his own meat shield. At dangerous times, the attendant should protect him and fight with him. Therefore, if thebat power is too low, it will be easy to be killed; if it is timid, they will easily escape, and a traitors will not do it; in times of crisis, such people may abandon them. Therefore, Marin is rathercking. Just as Marin had a headache for the attendant, a selected waiter named Sauer suddenly said: "Master Marin, are you looking for a brave, reliable follower? Well?" Marin mmed, but still replied: "Yes!" "I know such a person, I met when I was working hard in Bochum. His name is Schwartz. He is a very strong hard worker. He has great strength and is very loyal to people." Sauer is heavy because of his family. When I went to Bochum City the year before, I worked hard to earn money. The friend he knew was also a coolie. "What is the way?" "He is actually a descendant of the knight, but his grandfather did not have the right to inherit the territory, so he left the manor and went to Bochum City to do business. However, his father was not good at business, doing business at a loss, owing a lot of money. In desperation, Schwartz had to work hard in adulthood to help people earn money to raise their families and pay debts." "After being a nobleman?" "Well, Schwartz is physically strong, tall and tall, and probably as strong as Kahn. And he seems to know a little about martial arts." "In this case, why didn''t he go to be a wandering knight and go to a lord?" "Young Master, when the knight want to fight horses and armor they buy it. Can you afford to buy Schwartz''s current family situation?" "Oh...and..." "And, because their family owes a lot of money, the creditors don''t allow their family to leave Bochum City, and avoid them escaping to escape." "It turns out that, so, Sauer, will you ride a horse? If you will, lead the way, I will go see this Schwartz in person." "Only a little..." "Young imprudent, you told him toe over, why wouldn''t they go to see him personally!" Kahn did not understand. "Stupid, you didn''t listen to Sauer saying that their family''s creditors don''t allow their family to leave Bochum City?" "Oh..." Kahn groaned and touched the back of his head. This IQ made Marin very speechless. Then, Marin, Kahn and Sauer, riding a horse, went to Bochum City and saw Schwartz who was licking rye at the door of a granary in Bochum. He saw a ck-haired, tall man about 1 meter 83, who is full of muscles. He is carrying two bags of rye in a rxed face. This bag of rye, at least 100 pounds. And Schwartz, there is a bag on the left shoulder, a bag on the right shoulder, and a rxed face. "The strength is not small!" Kahn could not help but admire. After the end of Schwarzbor, Marin asked Sauer to invite him to a beer hall to discuss things. "Excuse me, are you looking for me?" After Schwartz came to the beer hall, he first introduced himself to Marin and then asked politely. "Mr. Lange, I heard that you are a descendant of the aristocracy?" Schwartz has a surname, surnamed Lange. In the Middle Ages, only nobles and identities had surnames. The general serfs, such as Kahn and Sauer, have only names and no surnames. Some senior aristocrats, in the middle of the surname, will also add a "Von". "Yes, my great-grandfather was a picking knight, but my grandfather was not an heir. Moreover, our one is declining. You have seen it, I am a coolie now!" Schwartz looked depressed Answered. "I heard that you will have some knight martial arts, why not go to be a knight?" Ma Linming asked. "Mr. Hoffman, you know, the situation in our family, can I afford the horses and the armor? In fact, don''t say that I have a horse, and our family does not. As for my martial arts, it is basically ancestral Some of the horses are fighting martial arts. As for martial arts, because there are no horses, I have no chance to practice and have only learned some theory. Strictly speaking, I have not been riding horses until now." He replied earnestly. "Oh..." Marin was stunned by Schwartz''s honesty. Inter generations, Marin participated in many interviews and interviewed others. Ever, only people have to praise themselves, and there is no self-destructive shoring. Schwartz''s sincerity makes Marin a little unustomed. However, Marin turned to be overjoyed. Isn''t such an honest person exactly what he wants? "I want to hire you to serve as my knight. Are you willing?" Schwartz was silent and did not answer immediately. "Given you have a certain martial arts, you pay 4 Finneys a day, eat and drink are counted as me." Marin opened the conditions. Schwartz is still silent, seemingly thinking. "Young Master, why do I only have 3 Finneys a day, but you give him 4 Finney?" Kahn grumbled dissatisfiedly. "You are still very stupid to say that when you eat three people''s meals alone. The cost of your meal is much more than others. When you can eat as much as others, and I will pay you 4 Finney a day!" Kahn didn''t talk. "Mr. Hoffman, I am very tempted by the conditions you open. However, our family owes a lot of money to others. The creditors do not allow members of our family to leave Bochum." Schwartz said helplessly. "How much is your family owing to others?" Marin asked curiously. "50 marks..." Schwartz said helplessly. 50 marks, equivalent to 8,000 Finney, may not be too much for a manor, but for a poor family, it is a huge sum. You know, Schwartz is a coolie, twice the amount ofbor per day, but only earns 4 Finney days. Moreover, the money for eating has to pay for it. Although his appetite is notparable to Kahn''s meal, it is much more than normal. Moreover, the Schwarz family, whose father was dying because of business failure. The family, now only adult Schwartz, and her mother make money. In addition to the father lying in bed at home, there are two younger brothers. Schwartz couldn''t make a few money when he was struggling, and his mother helped people to mend their clothes and earned less. Therefore, the debt of 50 marks almost copsed his family. "So... Mr. Lange, do you mind trying to wrestle with my attendant?" "Oh... well..." Schwartz stood up and went outside the beer hall, and the three Marlins followed the past. On the open space next to the beer hall, Kahn and Schwartz both stood and began to wrestle... "Ah--" Kahn yelled and rushed forward, trying to catch Schwartz and fall. Schwartz was very cautious and did not immediately face Kahn attack, but evaded it. Then he grabbed Kahn''s arm and began to test Kahn''s strength. Although Kahn is a rice bucket, his strength is naturally great and heavier than Schwartz. Schwartz tested and found that Kahn was stronger than himself. If he fight, he may suffer. So he began to use somebat skills to avoid Kahn''s collision. The two men''s matchups are very long, and it''smon that Kahn is mming, and Schwartz tries to avoid direct collisions. Marin saw it here and knew that if he dragged it down, Kahn''s loss would be fixed. Because, Kahn does not know how to save energy, the front is too strong, and the consumption is too great. Sure enough, after a long time, Kahn gasped. After a while, Kahn didn''t seem to be so fierce. Then, taking advantage of Kahn''s chance to breathe, Schwartz shunned Kahn''s frontal charge and violently mmed him to the ground with his skill. "Yes, strong, and more thoughtful." Marlin was very satisfied. After the test, Marin extended his right hand: "Wee to you, Mr. Lange, I need a powerful attendant like you!" "But... Mr. Hoffman, I can''t leave Bochum..." Schwartz said with dismay. He knows that following a knight may be dangerous, but it is also a rare opportunity. Because, he is confident that he can have a piecend with his own skills. As a descendant of a knight, he is not willing to be a humble person forever. "Nothing, as long as you swear allegiance to me, I will help you pay off!" Marin said carelessly. "That is 50 marks..." Sauer stayed a little. Schwartz also had some stays, but he did not respond immediately, but first went home to discuss with his father. The next day, Schwartz rushed to the hotel where Marin lived, officially responded to Marin, expressed his willingness to be a Marin''s attendant, and sworn and signed a contract document on the spot. Marin also went home and took 50 marks to help the Schwarz family pay off their debts. Moreover, Marin also arranged Schwartz''s parents and two younger brothers, lived in Hoffman Estate to help manage the coal mine. Schwartz''s father, Quincy Lange, as a descendant of the nobility, is literate and understands calctions. Although he does not have a business talent, it is still possible to settle ounts. Moreover, although the old Quincy body is not good, it is actually overwhelmed by the mental pressure of debt. After arriving at Hoffman Estate, I saw hope and his body immediately began to improve. His new job is actually the entrance to the coal mine ground, counting the number of coal miners mining. Because the Hoffman mine has such a rule - coal miners (except for neers) if you dig more than 10 tons coal every day, every time you dig a charcoal, there will be half a Finney bonus. And these are the statistics of people who can count on writing. Previously, this thing was done by Old Hoffman himself. However, as a manor, it is inevitable that some of the identity will be lost. For the descendants of the aristocrats like Old Quincy, it is just right to do this. Moreover, this work is not heavy, it can be done in the shed above the mine. Even if the gas explosion orndslide under the mine does not affect the people above the mine. Not only that, Marin also promised Schwartz, allowing Schwartz''s two younger brothers to follow Marin''s two brothers, Simon and Albert, to practice martial arts and practice equestrianism. In the future, when they grow up, they will be the attendants and assistants of Simon and Albert. For such a draw, Schwartz was naturally touched and expressed his willingness to apply. So, Marin''s men finally had a general (Kahn can only be regarded as a brave bodyguard, such as Dian Wei). Chapter 21: The beginning again Chapter 21: The beginning again After recruiting the attendants, Marin began training these attendants. After all, he is going to fight on the battlefield. His attendants can''t understand anything. Marin paid for himself and bought a mail armor and a spear for each of the six attendants. In addition, Marin also asked the cksmith to create an iron helmet for everyone. Its style is naturally the imitation of the famous German M35 helmet. Of course, this is not a steel helmet, but an iron helmet made of pig iron. The quality is iparable with the real steel helmet. But in this era, it is enough. Old Hoffman is not awkward, knowing that his son is going to the battlefield. Moreover, now the family is well-off, coupled with Marin''s Eastern arablend technology, resulting in surplus livestock at home. So he simply took out 5 horses and equipped them to Marin''s attendants. As a result, five of the more capable attendants, each of whom was assigned a horse. As for the thin Kohler, it is still driving a four-wheeled ox cart pulled by the big ck cow "Li Chen". As for Das, it was thrown at the Hoffmann Manor. The next thing is to train the riding of the five attendants. In fact, the five attendants, except for the cows that Kahn had been riding for a long time, were a bit of a ride. The other four, including Schwarz, have never been able to ride a horse. In the days that followed, Marin trained five people to ride horses every morning, while in the afternoon, they trained them to use spears and fight. In riding training, Kahn is more prominent. Inbat training, Schwartz crushed others. Even at the time of the battle, Marin was not an opponent of Schwartz. Mainly, although Marin''sbat skills are not worse than Schwartz, the physical quality and Schwartz''s difference are too far. The 16-year-old Marin is about 1 meter 73, and his body is still thin and his strength is average. The 20-year-old Schwartz, who is 1.83 meters tall, has muscles. Therefore, two people with simr martial arts levels, Schwartz relied on the body to crush Marin. Only in the immediate moment, Marin can rely on superb riding, and Schwartz can''t find North. But this is also because Schwartz is not used to riding. When Schwartz riding be fluent, Marin was to be suppressed again. Therefore, the helpless Marlin began to drink ribs soup every day, striving to grow taller and stronger. As for the smuggling of Kahn, Marin found in his training that his spear was not used well. But picking up the stick and swearing, Kahn is very talented. So, Marin simply let the craftsman create a mace, so that Kahn make use of his strength. Then, in the battle Kahn, who began to use the mace (not nailed) hit Schwartz. Unlike before, when it was a spear, Kahn was always "tick" by Schwartz. In the riding, the Kahn who waved the mace on the horse seems to have a great increase in power. Even Marin, who had the strongest riding in a few people, dared not easily hit Kahn, who was wielding a mace. However, at the beginning, Kahn only knows how to wield a mace and does not know how to avoid or block ance. Therefore, Kahn was always hit by ance. But after the brain opened, Marin began to teach Kahn how to use the mace to first offset the opponent''snce, and then quickly backhand waved the mace to the knight himself. (This trick can only be used against the te knight, because the knight charge is usually arge hand-heldnce, it is sometime used by both hands, and the knight wearing a full te armor.) The result of this was that Marin himself was pitted by himself - Kahn practiced the battle in the immediate aftermath, and used this method to take Marin down... Fortunately, the ground they practiced was covered with thick grass. Marin and Kahn are also wearing a breastte. Therefore, being squatted will not be hurt too much. But falling from such a high horseback is also very painful. Moreover, although wearing a breastte, Marin was smashed into the chest by a mace. Still suffered a certain amount of damage. Of course, it is only a minor injury. Otherwise, in the horse battle of high-speed hedging, the party that wasid down was basically hit by flying, and it was easy to be broken or even smashed. In addition to training the martial arts and riding skills of the five attendants, Marin also began training their IQ. In particr, let them be familiar with their orders. The most basic is IQ training, such as turning left and turning right. But the most basic turn to the left and turn to the right, also makes Marlin a little crazy. Of the five people, probably only Schwartz''s head, who had had been trained to be a knight, was smart. The other four people are all goods with developed limbs and simple minds. Whenever Marin issued an instruction to "turn left" or "turn right", the scene suddenly became chaotic. Only Schwartz, the two instructions are better done. As for the other four eucalyptus heads, I trained for a month, and they got a lot of military sticks. Then, it is the problem of the horse going forward and backward. Let these 5 guys line up and go forward, generally no problem. After all, he also trained the for a month. However, as soon as the charge isunched, someone will immediately rush ahead and someone will fall behind. In the end, Marin gave up the idea of a wedge-shaped charge. He also felt that this kind of request is too difficult for those guys with inflexible heads. It is no wonder that the infantry phnx requires all soldiers to slowly advance in ordance with the rhythm. The reason is that as long as it rushes, the formation will basically be scattered. In general, only when chasing the enemy who fled, will it be required to let go of the charge. After thinking about it, Marin didn''t ask them to charge in a formation. They only asked for a neat and backward movement at the speed of normal walking. As a result, the five people were barely qualified. Thus, in mid-October, Marin estimated that Maximilian I also began to collect war taxes in his own territory. When he arrive in Vienna, the first batch of taxes should be in ce. At that time, he may have the opportunity to enter the army of the emperor. After all, to fight the French 60,000 troops, the emperor is also more prepared to send troops. The 16,000 army that the emperor himself currently holds must also maintain local security. Do not say anything else, the Habsburg family is currently hostile to the Kingdom of Hungary. A few years ago, King Mahagas I of Hungary also encroached on most of the territory of the Habsburg family''s nest in Austria, and also upied the old nest of Vienna in the Habsburg family''s nest. If it weren''t for the sudden death of Magath I, Maximilian I had no chance to retake Austria. Now the royal dynasty of Hungary, which controls the Kingdom of Hungary and the Kingdom of Bohemia, is very powerful. Therefore, the army recruited before must guard against Hungarians. In order to participate in the Italian war, a new army must be recruited to participate in the war. In order to join the emperor''s army as soon as possible, Marin decided to take five assistants who had a little bit of training, and Kohler''s oxcart went to Vienna. At this time, the coal mine at home finally began to make a profit, which is much earlier than Marin expected. But it is not surprising, because Marin has already helped solve the biggest problem of the coal mine, the sales problem. Now, the Hoffman family will ship the excavated coal to the dock, and the cargo ship of the Wiggins Chamber of Commerce will be loaded. Moreover, the people of the Wiggins Chamber of Commerce are very proud, and the money is on the spot. After selling a few ships of coal, the Hoffman family immediately had funds. After Marin decided to officially set off, Old Hoffman gave Marin more than 300 marks, which made Marlin''s money reach 800 marks. And, under the guidance of the old Hoffman, Marin saved his money and deposited 600 marks into the bank of the Hanseatic Business Alliance. With the credibility of the Hanseatic Business Alliance, Marin can use the deposit slip to get money in anyrge-scale city in the Holy Roman Empire. And himself, leaving 200 marks of cash, handed over to Kohler, who is driving the ox cart. At the same time, Marin''s armor and stables, as well as fivence (when thence is in the knight, if the opponent wears a hard armor, it is easy to break, so prepare for spare), they are also ced on the oxcart. . As for Marin himself, he usually wears a M35 iron helmet, wearing a two-thirds breastte, carrying a sabre, and marching forward. As for the other fivebat attendants, in fact, each person also wears a two-thirds breastte (made by the own cksmiths of Hoffman Estate, the quality is average), but generally ced on the oxcart, until they are battle they put it on. At the same time, horseback riding to Vienna is actually an exercise for five attendant riding. Normally, the five men wore helmets, wearing the mail armor and holding spears (except for Kahn, who took the mace), and some simr to the Lancers who used the spears to poke German tanks inter generations. In order to exercise the five followers and their own guts, Marin also took them to the forest to attack the wild boar. How terrible is wild boar in the forest? Generally, hunters do not dare to provoke wild boars. Because the bow and arrow is very difficult to hurt the wild boar. The musket, the power of this era''s musket is not enough, it is difficult to kill a wild boar. Only the powerful guns of theter generations can kill the wild boar. Therefore, hunting wild boars in this era is a very dangerous thing. However, Marin is not a person alone, but he has 5 beaters to follow. Moreover, Kahn and Schwartz are still fierce brothers. For the first time hunting the wild boar, there was some ident. The horse that Sauer rode was scared by the wild boar, causing Sauer to bended by the horse and suffered some injuries. After that, Marin simply let Kohler take care of the horses. He took the five attendant and walked around to kill the wild boar. Kahn and Schwartz were really fierce, and Marin had to go down the drain. Especially the Kahn strength, with a mace he is like a mammoth. There was a wild boar that just rushed up and didn''t hurt anyone. It was cracked by Kahn''s mace. Schwartz is also extraordinary, he often uses Kahn, let Kahn yelling to attract wild boar attention. And he sneaked a wild boar from the side. As for Marin, he stood behind the crowd and directed everyone: "Fast! Surround it, Sauer, Tara, Gand, raise the spear, and hold it on the line... Kahn, the big door, pick it up... Schwartz, ready to attack, right..." Then, a wild boar that was wronged, was shot by Schwartz on the eye, and it was horrible, bloody, and alive. Along the way, Marin took five hitters and killed more than a dozen wild boars. Not only did they exercise their courage and cooperation, but they also sold a lot of money by hunting wild boars. At least, we have solved the food expenses for everyone along the way. You know, there are 3 big men and 5 horses more than before, but the cost has increased a lot. Chapter 22: Lost Chapter 22: Lost When Marin came to Vienna again, it was already at the end of November. In fact, if Marin wants toe early, it will take only ten days. After all, there are no walkers in their ranks, they are riding and driving. However, because on the way, Marin often led the team to kill the wild boar in the forest, wasting a lot of time. Therefore, Marin and his party arrived in Vienna at the end of November. In other words, they spent more than a month from departure to arrival. After entering the city, Marin began to look for a ce to live. But what surprised him was that at this time the hotel in Vienna City was almost full. After many inquiries, he realized that Emperor Maximilian I began to recruit mercenaries. Therefore, the warriors who want to work for the emperor all over the country areing. This led to the fullness of the Vienna hotel business. In this era, Vienna is just a city of more than 20,000 people. When the Ming Dynasty was put in the same period, this poption is equivalent to a state city and a city. But in medieval Europe, this is already a big city. How many hotels can you have in a small town with a poption of more than 20,000? Therefore, when thousands of young people who volunteered as mercenaries flocked to Vienna, the hotel would not be enough. Many of them couldn''t live in hotels, even bought tents and settled in the city directly. Marin and his team of seven people, as well as six horses and a cow, naturally can not find thend. To this end, Marinte dealt with the residents of the city, rented a small yard, and temporarily hired the owner of the yard to help buy the fodder of cattle and horses. After finding an cement, Marin continued to go to the pub in the city to inquire about the news. The situation and Marin''s estimates are not much different, and even worse. Originally, Marin believed that although Emperor Majesty had difficulty getting money from the Imperial Parliament, he could still get a war tax in Austria and Burgundy. But the reality is that Austria''s tax is no problem. After all, the Habsburg family has been ruling here for a long time, and the control is not bad. The Principality of Burgundy was inherited by Maximilian I through the marriage of the daughter of "Bold Charle" the Duke of Burgundy. Strictly speaking, Maximilian I is currently only the regent of the Principality of Burgundy. The true master of the Principality of Burgundy is the son of Maximilian I, the Philip "beautiful". Of course, this is Philip''ster nickname. At the moment, Philip is still a big boy who is about the same age as Marin. In the Principality of Burgundy, there is its own aristocratic parliament. And this council has the local tax rights. Even if the Duke levies taxes, he must obtain the consent of this council. Unfortunately, the Burgundian Parliament, and Maximilian I did not deal with it very much. Once, Maximilian I was ced under house arrest in the Burgundian pce by the Burgundian Parliament. Finally, the father of Maximilian I sent a soldier to rescue him. Therefore, the control of Maximilian I in the Principality of Burgundy was not as strong as Marin thought. It is as difficult as Maximilian I to impose a war tax on the Principality of Burgundy as much as it is difficult to obtain a war tax authorization in the Imperial Parliament. Therefore, Maximilian I has only collected a number of war taxes in Austria. The number is limited and the number of troops that can be supported is limited. If you want to expand on arge scale, at least you have to wait until the Imperial Parliament and the Burgundian Parliament agree that he will impose a war tax. At the moment, the emperor with limited funds can only recruit some troops first. However, when the emperor was recruited, the enthusiasm of the people of the country was high. You must know that to fight for the emperor, getting a sry is secondary, and being able to be a nobleman is the most tempting. What is the emperor? The emperor was thergest aristocratic powerhouse of the Holy Roman Empire. As long as the emperor is willing, he can promote a count as a duke, seal the duke as a king, or seal an ordinary person as a noble. As long as you can give a noble title, Even if you don''t get a sry, there will be a lot of people going on. Therefore, as soon as they heard that the emperor recruited troops, all kinds of people from all over the country flocked to Vienna. Among them, there are sons who have no inheritance rights, such as wandering knights, bankrupt farmers and handicraftsmen, and even gangsters. They all do the same rich dreams and gather in Vienna. Among them, the most favored by the emperor, the number of wandering knights. The wandering knights are all born in the knight family, all of whom are martial arts and have far more fighting power than ordinary people. Moreover, wandering knights usually bring their own horses, armor and weapons. As long as the wandering knights are teamed up and trained a little, they can be put into the war as a powerful force. At the same time, Maximilian I was actually a te control, especially fond of Gothic te. Otherwise, he will not personally design the famous Maximilian armor in a few years. However, for Maximilian I, there is a big problem - it takes a lot of money to feed the knight. In general, recruiting an infantry, paying only 3 Finney''s sry every day, and providing soldiers with free meals during the war, that is, the kind of ck bread that can be used as a brick. Recruiting a knight is not the same, recruiting a knight, paying a sry of up to 2 shillings per day (24 Finney). In addition, the cost of the knight''s five attendants is the responsibility of the knight, but the knights and the followers, as well as the food of their animals, must be undertaken by the emperor. Therefore, the cost of recruiting a knight is high. Moreover, after the battle of Nancy, the situation of the knight fell after the situation of the Swiss pikemen restrained the te knight. Maximilian I, who also imitated Swiss mercenaries, began recruiting civilians in Germany to serve as pikemen and learn Swiss tactics. Of course, the role of the knight is also great. Not to mention the love of Maximilian I for the armored knights. On the battlefield, once the enemy''s pikemen are torn apart, they need the knights tounch assaults and expand the results. And the enemy''s artillery positions also need the knight to stop. Because the artillery threat to the pikemen''s front is too great. In the Anglo-French war, the French were initially unable to find the North by the British longbow soldiers. However, after the heavy use of artillery in thetter half of the period, they gradually reversed the situation and eventually rushed the British out of France. The artillery bombarded the pikemen lined up in a dense formation, absolutely sweeping arge piece. Napoleon, the iparable general and emperor, was relying on arge number of artillery pieces lined up to smash the other infantry line. However, at that time, the French army used a huge variety of ammunition, but now the artillery is still a solid bullet or even a stone bomb. This time, Marin heard the news that the emperor decided to use the Austrian tax to recruit 500 knights and 5000 pikemen. When he heard that the emperor only recruited 500 knights, and Marin felt bad. You must know that there are many small countries in the German region, and the knights are everywhere. Therefore, in the German region, there are wandering knights everywhere. Today, the emperor recruits, and the wandering knights whoe to apply for it are estimated to be thousands. However, as long as the emperor has 500 people, this is too pit. This difficulty is much more difficult than the undergraduate entrance exam. It is difficult to test the famous university. In fact, the Emperor recruited the 500 knights and used them as military officers. In Europe, officers are generally aristocrats. For example, the emperor''s armymander is currently served by the Earl of Hohenzollern in the Swabian Division. However, an army, in addition to senior officers, also has grassroots officers. It is impossible for civilians to serve as officers, even if they are not at the grassroots level. At most, civilians can only mix a nonmissioned officer. Therefore, the general grassroots officers areposed of knights, the worst, but also the wandering knights of the knight family. Because, in this era, civilians have basically not received military education. Only aristocratic families will teach military skills and tactical tactics. Therefore, these 500 knights are actually the grassroots officers prepared by the emperor for the future army. It turns out that Marin''s feelings are right. When the news was received, the poption of Vienna increased instantaneously. In order to prevent some mercenaries who are not afraid of death from messing around in the city, Maximilian I arranged the recruitment of infantry outside the city of Vienna. As for the city, he was only responsible for recruiting knights. But what surprised Marin was that there were already three or four thousand wandering knights in the city. Moreover, there are also wandering knightsing from all over the world. Finally, by the end of December, Maximilian I announced the beginning of the contest, to select the knights. Thepetition is implemented in the elimination system. If the first round is eliminated, there will be no more opportunities. And if you can survive the first round, there is another chance to challenge. The officialpetition is divided into three games. After the draw draws the opponent, the first game is not a match, but the organization personnel verify the knight warriors, armor and weapons. Especially the war horses, you can''t take work horse as a war horse. To this end, there will be professional professional horses, reviewing the knight''s war horse. After all, the emperor recruited ready-to-use mercenaries who needed to be recruited to bring their own horses and weapons armor. If the emperor is to prepare for the war horse, the cost is too high. Therefore, only the knights who havepleted the warhorse and the armor of the weapon can enter the second round - the battle. After the end of the battle, it is a horse fight. Marlin was not very lucky, and in the first round he got a very strong knight. Looking at his face, it is estimated that around the age of twenty-seven, it is the peak of a knight. Marin was only 16 years old and still not fully developed. The first round of verification of horses and weapons armor, naturally no problem. The armor legs and boots that Marin originallycked were also re-matched at the Hoffmann Manor. In the second round of battle, Marin and the knight, fighting with wooden two-handed swords. For the battle, Marin has little strength, but both the opponent and Marin have richbat skills. Moreover, the traverser Marin also knows the Taiji principle of "four or two."Therefore, in the battle, although the strength is much smaller than the opponent, Marin often uses the "four or two pounds" approach, always swaying the wooden sword that the opponent hase across, making the opponent''s fierce attack no achievements. European knights, martial arts are not like the Eastern martial arts, and they are paying attention to footwork. Because, even if the knight is fighting, he is wearing a full-body te it is inconvenient to want to move for a long time on foot. Therefore, the knights fight, usually using two-handed swords or battle mace (Bec de Corbin), violently shing or confronting each other. Because both armor are very thick, the fight continues until one yield. Marin is not afraid of violence. Although, his strength is much smaller than his opponent. However, he knows a little Tai Chi sword. Even with a two-handed sword, he can also sh the other side''s sh. However, the Taiji sword is not good at attacking. He can swing the other''s wooden sword, but he can''t bring his opponent down. Because, the knight who yed against him, the bottom te is very stable, even if the wooden sword is swayed, he will not lose his focus. So, in the duel, Marin and the knight yed for a long time. Unlike thepetitions of other knights, often one or two outbreaks, one person lost. In the end, the referee was impatient, and announced that they were fighting together. Then, the two entered the horse battle. Thepetition was immediately carried out on a long strip ofnd. In the middle of the field, there is a wooden fence. The knights on both sides are on the side of the fence, and the fences are on the right side of their direction. After the start of the contest, the two knights drove their respective horses and began to elerate. The right hand mmed thence and violently collided over the wooden fence. Moreover, the requirements of thepetition, only to stab the opponent''s chest, prohibiting the stabing of the head and the horse, this is to minimize casualties. It is because of these many restrictions that Marin can''t let go. Hard against the opponent, Marin''s strength is obviously not an opponent. However, when wearing a full set of armor, he can try dodge on the horseback. Sure enough, after the first collision, Marin felt the strength of his opponent''s strength. Although Marin escaped the hit of the opponent''snce, he used his ownnce to open the opponent''s stance. However, this round of collision made his arm numb. After barely resisting the two rounds, Marin felt that his arm was not his own. Finally, in the third round of the hedge, the opposite knight seemed to adapt to the style of Marin, stunned a shot, avoided the blockage of Marin''snce, and quickly stroked Marin''s breastte and knocked down Marin from the horse. This knight''s horse speed is much higher than when he yed against two rookies at home and Kahn and Schwartz. Moreover, there is no soft dirt on the ground, but an iced dirt. Therefore, after falling off the horse, Marin could not climb for a long time. In the end, it was only after the help of the attendants that they were carried back to the cattle cart that Kohler drove. However, in ordance with the principle of a round of elimination, the knight were selected, and Marin was already unsessful and did not qualify for the challenge. So, lying on the cart, Marin was hurt. Not only was my body hurt, but my heart was also sad. "As a traverser, am I not the protagonist? Why, this knight trial, I can''t even go through the first round? When I can''t be an emperor''s knight, how can I stand out as an officer? Is it a gunman of the pikemen?" In bed, Marin thought sadly. In fact, the most important reason why the Marin''s ce is to apply to be recruited by the emperor is for Marin identity. Now Marin, don''t look at the difference between a piece of equipment and other knights, but in fact, he is not a real knight. At least, the official does not recognize him as a formal knight. Like Marin, he has the resources and abilities of a knight, but has not yet been officially recognized. There is a special name - the trainee knight. Trainee knight, can only be regarded as a prepared knight, not a formal knight. You know, the officially recognized knighthood is aristocrat. The trainee knight can only count as a civilian before he is sealed. There are three types of knights. The first one is the most wanted, called thended knight. This kind of knight is usually set up by the senior lord or the king as anded knight after the heroic battle, and rewards the seal (thend). The seal can be hereditary, but only if this family of knights, each generation must provide a fully armed knight for the lord to fight for the lord or king. If there is no person in the family who can serve as a knight, the seal may be withdrawn. There are also those that are not taken back, depending on the mood of the lord of this knight family. Like the Hoffman family, it is the family of pickers in Mark Bo. The eldest son of each generation of the Hoffman family must wear a te armor and ride a war horse to fight when summoned by the count. Below the sealed knight, it is the Knight of the House. These knights are generally born in the non-eldest sons of the aristocratic family, including the knights, who were born without inheritance. In order to keep their nobility, they have been practicing martial arts and riding a war since childhood. Because there is nond for them, the non-eldest sons of these noble families (usually low-ranking aristocrats) have to apply to the great aristocrats to be the knights of the great aristocrats or kings. They are stationed in the castles of the great aristocrats for a long time like mercenaries and keeping the safety of the aristocratic family and castle property. In return, the king or the great aristocrats will give these knights the official knight title. Since then, these people have be nobles and enjoy many privileges. As for the trainee knight, before the official title, it was just an ordinary person, not a nobleman. Although, theirbat power may not be worse than the official knight. The reason why Marin sharpened his head to apply for the Imperial Knight was to obtain a formal knight title and obtain the lowest aristocratic identity. With the aristocratic identity, Marin will not be used as a bodyguard by the big guys, and will be killed. In fact, in addition to recruiting knights, the emperor also recruited heavy cavalry. The heavy cavalry is almost the same as the knight, wearing a te armor, holding ance, and charging with the knight. Moreover, these heavy cavalry are also basically from the knight family. However, Marin did not want to be a heavy cavalry. Because even if it bes a heavy cavalry, it is impossible to obtain a knight title. Without a title, you cannot be a nobleman. Moreover, inbat, the official knights are naturally officers, and without the knight''s title, they are naturally big-headed, and at most they are higher than the infantry. Medieval Europe, aristocratic identity, like the identity of the schrs of the Ming Dynasty, is a versatile pass. In the Ming Dynasty, schrs can walk the world without being restrained. Ordinary people, if they leave their hometown, they must go to the official government to open the way, otherwise they will travel illegally. The same is true in Europe. The nobility can travel across the world and even exempt from the city tax. And civilians, must enter the city to be included in the city tax, and pass the various taxes. Moreover, sometimes you encounter an arrogant tax official, give you a tax, ckmail you, you have no way. But for the nobility, they have no right to do so. Even the aristocrats are killing people, and they will not be sentenced to death, and they will lose up to a maximum of money. Unless he killed the same aristocrat. In short, the nobles who are traversing Europe can do anything, as long as they do not encounter nobles who are more powerful than themselves. This is also the reason why Marin wants to have an aristocratic identity. At least, when he is a nobleman, he will not be killed easily. Chapter 23: Making a mercenary group? Chapter 23: Making a mercenary group? In the days that followed, Marin, who was unsessful, was depressed, and he was so sad. And a few attendants, do not know how tofort him. For example, Kahn, whenforting Marin, is basically like to salting Marin''s wounds: "Young master, it''s okay, isn''t it that you are short and weak? If you eat more meals, your strength will be bigger, and you will grow taller..." When he heard this, Marin really couldn''t wait to kill him. But when he turned his head, Marin would drink milk every meal, and he would drink ribs soup. Moreover, since it has already lost, Marin feels that there is no need to stay in Vienna. After all, the consumption in Vienna is very high. Especially after thousands of knights and their attendants flocked to Vienna, many merchants sat on the ground, causing food prices to rise. Marin is not alone, but with 6 men and 7 animals, the food is very expensive. So, Marin took six men, rode on the car, settled the rent, and left the lively city of Vienna. After leaving the city of Vienna, in a small town on the west side of the city, Marin saw a recruiting point for the emperor to recruit pike infantry. Out of the instinct habits of Chinese people who love to watch the lively, Marin stayed in the town, with a few men, strong onlookers recruiting the scene... The mercenaries of the Holy Roman Empire were actually the new arms established by Maximilian I after imitating the Swiss mercenaries after the Battle of Nancy. Therefore, the spearman became the most important part of the infantry. The Swiss Union also belongs to the legal territory of the Holy Roman Empire. However, since Switzend began to produce mercenaries, the Swiss began to use force to obey the orders of the Habsburg royal family. Moreover, it also encroached on the traditional territory of the Habsburg family in Switzend. In the battle of Nancy, the father-inw of Maximilian I was horrible in the hands of the Swiss mercenaries. Since then, Maximilian I has also begun to imitate Swiss mercenaries and began recruiting arge number of civilians who are willing to be soldiers in the country to form a spearmen''s army. Because the Germans have always used the knight, they are not familiar with the spear infantry. Therefore, Maximilian I''s 15,000 spearmen and 1500 knights, although the coach is the Earl of Hohenzollern (belonging to the Hohenzollern family Swabian, non-Brandenburg''s Franconia) and Friedrich II (Count of Hohenzollern), but many instructors in the infantry are from Switzend. After all, Switzend is also the territory of the Holy Roman Empire, and although many local lords and parliaments are confronting the empire, there are still many mercenaries who are willing to serve the emperor. Because the emperor can give them the European aristocratic identity. As a result, Maximilian I recruited some mercenary officers from Switzend, trained new German mercenaries, and used Swiss to learn from the Swiss tactic. The Swiss spear array is basically learned from the Macedonian phnx, but unlike the Macedonian phnx, the Swiss spears'' infantry, unlike the Macedonian phnx infantry, is equipped with a small shield for the left hand, but with halberd. In the selection of mercenaries, there were one Swiss in the officers responsible for recruiting. In general, whether or not to ept admission, this Swiss "expert" nodded. ording to the requirements of the Swiss, qualified mercenaries must be strong. This is the basic requirement of the soldiers. The second is to "lightly loaded into battle." What is "lightly loaded"? In fact, it is not to drag the family to the mouth. For example, many mercenaries and quasi-mercenaries who came to Vienna to apply, many people even brought their families. Is there such a drag, can you still fight? Can you still march? Some newlyweds are not willing to separate, so men bring a woman to apply. This is all good, and some even brought an elderly aunt. Bring the old man together, can you march? and so, The Swiss military officer''s disposal is that no one will take care of you. Otherwise, with the family, it is impossible to march. This is also an early feature. After the proliferation of mercenaries in the 16th century, it seems customary to take the family to march. Because there are many people applying for the application, the Swiss officer also requires the applicant to use the long stick to fight. Whoever wins the opponent with the club head first wins, the winner is epted, and the loser is eliminated. Because of the tight schedule, the officers responsible for recruiting did not give the chance to resurrect the challenge, and the round of knockouts went straight. After all, for the empire, the choice of infantry is enormous, and there is no need to be so sophisticated. The infantry has to choose 5,000 people, and each person has to undergo conditional review (such as whether or not to carry a family member), plus various types of registration, and then group and contest, so the duration is quite long. Marlin is also watching enough. One day, Kahn suddenly said: "Young Master, are we going to apply for the pikemen?" "Get out of the way!" Marin said without a good breath. He is a knight (although he has no official title, but is a trainee). If he goes to be an infantryman, he is expected to be jokes and die. Moreover, the pikemen are standard soldiers. He is a passer, can he be used as cannon fodder? It''s a shame to pass people across the world. It''s estimated that you can throw people on Mars... Not to mention the artillery units of thence infantry, that is, the irregr cavalry in the cavalry (such as reconnaissance cavalry,manders, patrol cavalry, etc.), Marin is not willing to do. Of course, this also has the reason that Marin is not good at those. After all, the irregr cavalry is mainly a saber, and Marin is not proficient in the saber''s knife, only proficient in the use of thence. "Or, young master, you recruit a team ofnced soldiers, you are an officer? Small to train the five before the young master, and you are quite a trainer and, the young master you did not say, the emperor will you continue to recruit mercenary?" Kohler interrupted at this thoughts. "I recruit them myself?" Marin mmed. Before, because of the strong knight plot, he was quite a mighty knight, and at the same time he was not willing to be a pikeman of the cannon, so he did not consider it. In fact, he also thought about setting up a mercenary group by himself. However, the cost of forming a mercenary group is an astronomical figure, even an infantry mercenary group. Therefore, he has not thought about this aspect for the time being. "Yeah, Master, you have hundreds of marks in your hand now. You can recruit hundreds of people for the time being, and train them for a while. When the training is fruitful, it is estimated that the emperor will carry out the second round of recruiting. When you take it, If you have a well-trained infantryman, how can you mix a military officer? When you are young, you have to appoint me as a quartermaster!" Kohler said with a good dedication. "Hundreds of people... OK?" Marlin hesitated. Originally, he nned to wait for the rich to recruit thousands of people and form arge mercenary group. At the very least, it is necessary to form a few big squares or something. However, he now has only 750 marks in his hand and can''t afford too many soldiers. But thinking carefully, ording to Kohler, first recruit hundreds of mercenaries, train them, and raise them for a while. They are not raising them for a long time, as long as they raise the second round of recruitment of the emperor. It is estimated that the emperor will have a second batch of moneying early next year. At that time, his own men and horses also trained almost. With hundreds of well-trained soldiers, I have to mix apanymander. "Ah, hahahaha..." Marin in his thought couldn''t help butugh, letting a few attendants be embarrassed. Chapter 24: Pulling people into the occupation Chapter 24: Pulling people into the upation Deep in his mind, Marin remembered the county Earl of Tilly during the "Thirty Years War." This man relied on the Spanish square that was learned in Spain, and it was used throughout Europe. In the end, it was only by this trick that he was enobled with the title of the Empire Count. If it weren''t for thest time he met Gustav II, and then killed him, the man might be promoted to the Duke. Tilly did not have any knights, and, in the 17th century, the knight hadpletely fallen. This guy relied on the infantry tactics of the Spanish phnx, from a small mercenary leader to a famous European squad. In fact, Marin has long effectively copied the idea of Earl Tilly. However, before he considered that even the smallest Spanish phnx, there were more than a thousand people. In the emperor''s army, it is qualified tomand more than a thousand people - even if it is an infantry, the minimum requirement must be a noble. Marlin is currently only a trainee knight, not a sealed knight, not a nobleman. Therefore, before he did not think about his own team, but intend to use a noble identity first. Because, at present, German mercenaries have just emerged, and all officers must be nobles. Civilians in the army, up to the ranks of nonmissioned officers, that is, between the officers and the soldiers. The mercenaries before the emperor actually relied on some local aristocrats to gather for him. More precisely, the emperor''s current military reliance is the Swabian League (the princes of the Swabian region, including the Wrttemberg, etc.). That is to say, the current generals of the emperor''s army are mainly the aristocrats of the Swabian family. As for the military officers from other regions, only a small number of officers. This is also a no-brainer. At the beginning, the former emperor Frederick he fought with Hungary. As a result, even the old nest Austria lost most of it and lost Vienna. So, at that time, not many people were willing to support the ipetent Habsburg family. When Maximilian I took over as the emperor, at the beginning of the throne, few great aristocrats supported him. Even many electors and their supporters want to restore the emperor system and break the Habsburg family''s monopoly on the throne. The Swabian League, in the most difficult moment of Maximilian I, stood firmly on the side of Maximilian I. Even the first establishment of the German mercenary by Maximilian I was also a nobleman of the Swabian family, who strongly supported and responded first. For example, Frederick II, the Earl of Hohenzollern in the Swabian League, was the most responsive to Maximilian I. Eventer, this guy became the best friend of the emperor, and Maximilian I also trusted him and gave him the power of the government. Now, the count is the suprememander of the army controlled by the Habsburg family. The mercenaries in other ces have not yet developed. After entering the 16th century, mercenaries from other parts of Germany will develop. But in any case, in Germany, mercenaries are still a new group, and it has not yet formed a fixed habit. In other words, at this moment, Marin can lead the trend, not follow the trend. Because the trend has not yet formed. Although, ording to the unspoken rules of ancient Europe, the officers should be nobles. However, although Marin is not a nobleman, he is also a descendant of the nobility. Therefore, reluctance is also considered a "self" of the nobility. Pulling up a team by yourself, and being the lowest level of infantry, there is still no one who is embarrassed. If you are a serf and want to pull the team yourself, you will not be recognized by the aristocracy. After negotiating with his two clever points, Kohler and Schwartz, Marin decided to recruit the young people who were unsessful in the name of the official knight. Of course, it is recruited among the best. The reason why I lied to be a formal knight, it is to win the trust of others. In ancient Europe, the prestige of the nobility was high, although there was no shortage of scum. The nobility recruited the army, and everyone must feel that it is doing business. It should be to protect the country. If any civilian is going to pull up the team, it may be officially considered to be a team of robbers, and the lords might send troops directly to destroy them. To this end, Marin yed the Hoffman family''s crest - a shield, a knight with a ck cross g. In medieval Europe, there is no national g, but each noble family has its own emblem. Only the aristocratic family will have an emblem representing the family identity. A n like the Hoffman family means that this is a knight family. And those royal families, the family emblem will often be crowned with a crown. In fact, as a wandering knight who was driven out of the family, Marin should not be allowed to y the family n. Because, from the moment he was driven out of the house, he should start another house and no longer belong to the Hoffmann Manor on the Ruhr River. But now, in order toe up with persuasiveness, borrowing the family emblem is fine. Moreover, he is indeed the family. Even if the old Hoffman and Adler knew it, they would not say anything. Besides, he only intends to lie to the civilians who came from the bottom of the society, did not deceive the nobility, and did not have to bear legal responsibility. ... Next, Marin yed the name of the Hoffman family picking knight, and began to flick the luckless, but the strength is actually very good to be eliminated. To this end, Marin personally selected in the contest. Because as long as the 100th person, Marin can pick one. The standard chosen by Marin is different from that of the average person. First of all, he naturally wants to be a strong person. However, power is not the only standard. For example, those who failed, Marin''s request for martial arts is not the most important. What Marin most valued was the spiritual performance of those who lost in thepetition. For example, an indomitable fighting spirit... Marlin knows that on the battlefield, not good to only have martial arts. Psychological tolerance and courage are also very important. Poor psychological quality, it is easy to copse when encountering a disadvantage. But the quality of the psychological quality is difficult to judge. In general, for a winner, you can''t see the quality of his mentality. It depends on the quality of a person''s psychological quality, mainly when the person fails. Only when people encounter failures can they show their fragile and unbearable side. Those who are not willing to fail and those who face the failure are psychologically qualified. For the military, there is a kind of unyielding strength in failure, which is the most difficult quality. If you look at it with a colored eye, you can also think that such a person is brave. Of course, while bravely fighting, it also maintains discipline and obedience. This is the best soldier. Otherwise, it is not a soldier but a robber who is not convinced of discipline and bravery. ... For a few days, Marin picked more than 200 young people who were unwilling after the failure. Moreover, these people have a spirit of going forward in the duel, not afraid of injury. Then, Marin asked Kohler a few, and asked them to talk at the small house they rented. Marin told these people that after the second batch of funds of the emperor was in ce, it would definitely expand again. After all, the French have 60,000 troops. If the emperor wants to fight against the French, at least tens of thousands of people are needed. It is a pity that these people who have failed in the application will go home now. Marin, in the name of the Hoffman family, intends to set up a mercenary group by himself, staying near Vienna, and concentrate on training. After the emperor began to recruit troops in the second batch, he applied in the name of a whole to improve the chances of being selected. "Mr. Hoffman, why should we listen to you?" the unruly young man questioned. Marin was not angry, but said with a smile: "Because I was born into a noble family, I learned the way of militarymand!" "This..." No one immediately responded. We must know that these people who have applied for the spearmen are basically poor people, and there is basically no culture, let alone themand and war. In front of this group of people, Marin can enjoy his own cultural level, and the other side can''t refute. "So what about this sry?" "I am not an emperor, how can I have so much money..." "Then you still recruit us? Don''t give money and want to direct us?" "I don''t have the money to pay the sry, but before the emperor''s second recruitment, I can provide you with food for free. Presumably everyone is born in a civilian family and have is no money, staying in Vienna for a long time, eating is also a big expense, so I can pay it on your behalf instead of you paying for your meals." ... "Well, just do what you said. You train us with the militarymand method that the nobles know." In the end, 80 people sumbed. The remaining one hundred and dozens of people are either unruly, do not listen to themand, or do not look at the small and young Marin, and refuse to give in. As a result, Marin eventually recruited 80 good young people and officially formed the "Hoffmann Mercenary Corps" the mercenary powerhouse in the future. Chapter 25: The Sandals "Artifact" Chapter 25: The Sandals "Artifact" After the establishment of the mercenary group, Marin first went to Vienna to report. This is also normal. Although this is a messy medieval period, it is nothing to carry a weapon by yourself or a few people. But if you want to carry a weapon with eighty people, you will definitely be annihted as a robber without reporting. Officials in Vienna also apparently knew that the emperor would definitely expand the army in the future. Therefore, he did not reject Marin. However, after he issued a certificate to Marin, he asked Marin to ept the supervision of the local sheriff in the ce where he was stationed, and he must not rob the local people. Otherwise, it will be regarded as banditry, leading to the annihtion of the army. In order to prove the legitimacy of the mercenary group, Marin paid a huge sum of 1 mark and a 5 mark bribe, and obtained a documentary certificate issued by Vienna to prove the legitimacy of its mercenary group. Then, Marin officially yed the g - Hoffmann Mercenary. After obtaining legal status, Marin began preparations for training. The first is the choice of location. It is impossible for Vienna. It is a national capital. It does not say that there are many rules here. Just because of the high price, it was first ruled out by Marin. He saved himself to support 80 strong men. If he was in Vienna with high prices, he had to go bankrupt. At the beginning, he chose the Vienna Woods in the west of Vienna and the northern foothills of the Alps. This forest is veryrge, with thousands of square kilometers, rtively quiet, suitable for military camps. However, when Marin was ready to camp, he was driven away by the defender. It turns out that the Vienna Forest is the hunting ground of the Habsburg royal family. It belongs to the royal garden. The ordinary people are not allowed to enter and approach. In particr, Marin and his small army, and it is even closer. Because they are afraid that Marin will assassinate the royal family members who are hunting here. In desperation, Marin continued to go west with everyone and came to a small town called Robach. To the south is the Alps and there are forests nearby. In addition to low prices, Marin also considered hunting in the mountains, getting some meat, and at the same time reducing the cost of living. Not only that, but after entering Italy, it is sure to climb the Alps. Moreover, there are many mountains on the Italian penins, Marin brings everyone here, and there is also the meaning of exercising the ability to climb the mountains. In the long march, Marin was depressed and found that many people''s shoes were worn out because of walking. However, they are not willing to buy a new shoe. Why? It turns out that European shoes, in this era, are mainly leather shoes and wooden shoes. The sole of the leather shoe is made of multipleyers of cowhide or pigskin, and the body is also leather. This kind of shoes feels good and is very strong. But the problem is that leather is expensive. A pair of leather shoes, the price is up to 3 shillings. Ordinary people''s sry is only 2 Fini. In other words, a pair of leather shoes, it takes 18 days of ordinary people''s work. As for the wooden shoes, these shoes are much cheaper, but in some cases they are not practical. Wooden shoes, walking the ins is good, once you take the rugged stone mountain road, the soles break in minutes. Of the 80 people recruited by Marin, 50 were wearing rtively cheap wooden shoes. But this kind of shoes, on the way to Marlin with them on the road, because some mountain roads have been taken, so that the shoes of more than 20 people have broken. As usual, they should buy new shoes. However, thismunity ising to the poor ghosts who are eager to eat and eat. Where can I buy new shoes? At this time, Marin suddenly remembered the magical skills of the old man who studied in the countryside many years ago, when he was in the countryside, heaving shoes. Straw shoes are one of the ultimate inventions of ancient Chinese people. It looks unremarkable, but it is very important. Ancient Chinese people, although richer than ancient Europeans, but shoes, are also more expensive products. For example, with a multiyered cloth bottom shoes, many ordinary people can do it themselves, but the shoes are ordinary people, and they are decent shoes. Only when you are away from home or visiting rtives, you need to be decent. Only put on the shoes of the "thousandth floor". But when you work in the field, you wear shoes or rafts, it is simply looking for abuse. Because, when working, the feet often work hard. If it is a raft, it is easy to break. And the shoes, can not stand the toss. Therefore, the wise Chinese ancestors thought of a good way - weaving shoes with grass. The sandals are breathable, lightweight, soft, non-slip, and extremely low cost. Because the grass shoes is also affordable to the poor, and can be reced frequently. For example, the Red Army took a 25,000-mile long march. If you wear shoes, you don''t know how many pairs of shoes you break when you run. That cost is simply uneptable. The grass shoes are different. You can make sandals on the spot by pulling the tough grass from the roadside. Moreover, the grass shoes have a special advantage, not only because they are worn out, but can be reced at any time. Moreover, the sandals are not slippery, which can avoid the idental fall of the mountain when the mountain road is taken, causing unnecessary death and injury. The wooden shoes are the least suitable for walking the mountain. As for leather shoes, it is too luxurious to use to walk the mountain. The practical use of sandals makes it an important position in the history of China. For example, the famous Liu Bei in the Three Kingdoms was a woven straw shoes seller and maker. What makes Marin strange is that there seems to be no straw weaving technology in Europe. Many serfs are too poor to buy wooden shoes. Even if you buy a rtively cheap wooden shoes, you can wear them when you go out to visit friends or go to church. And usuallybor is mostly barefoot. It''s fine to walk barefoot in the field. It''s okay to walk on the Roman Avenue. If you want to take the mountain road, you will definitely not be able to. Walking barefoot is afraid of slipping, and I am afraid that the stone will poke. But wearing wooden shoes and walking the mountain road is easy to break the bottom, wearing leather shoes is too luxurious. Marin''s 80 poor men, except 10 people are wearing leather shoes. The other 70 people, 50 people are wearing wooden shoes. As for the remaining 20 people, it is simply walking barefoot. For this, Marin really can''t stand it. So, after arriving in a vige and setting up a tent, Marin did not hurry to train, but let everyone get a lot of grass stems and began to teach them to make straw shoes... "Mallin, can grass be used for shoes?" A group of European countrymen are very surprised. However, they saw with their own eyes that under the skillful weaving of Marin, the grass stems were first smashed into fine straw ropes, which were then braided into soles and shoes... This scene makes everyone feel amazing and everyone is amazed. After trying on the marlin-woven sandals, everyone felt veryfortable. Marlin woven sandals, which belong to the winter version, are thick and cold-proof. At the moment it is winter, wearing thick sandals, can effectively resist the cold. Moreover, even thick sandals are more breathable. It''s warm and breathable, and it feels great to wear. But what made Marin depressed was that he taught 86 men (including his 6 followers) to make straw shoes. Can teach for two days, and finally learned, only 8 people, including Kohler... As for the eight people who are so "given", or because these seven people (except Kohler) used to be tailor apprentices or shoemakers, they were dismissed because of poor talent. But even so, their level of weaving is enough to make straw shoes. In desperation, Marin arranged the eight men to make straw shoes for everyone''s needs. After training, there must be a cross-country run. High-intensity training, too much wear on the shoes, only enough sand shoes to spare, can survive. In the past, when Marin watched the war movie, one or two pairs of spare sandals were hung on the backpack of our army. The liberation shoes were created only after liberation. Before the liberation, millions of our army, all of them were wearing grass shoes to fight. To this end, Marin announced that the eight "technicians" who would make straw shoes, eat more meals when eating, can eat more than others, and meat is also preferred to them. And Marin''s mercenary group, everyone has reced the lightweight andfortable, and low-cost sandals. Even those who wear leather shoes have changed into sandals. Because the shoes are precious, if they wear out in training, they will lose more. The sandals are really cheap, even if they are worn out, they don''t feel bad. It can be said that for the army with a weak family, cheap and practical sandals are definitely a rare "artifact". Chapter 26: Training people and wanting to vomit blood Chapter 26: Training people and wanting to vomit blood After everyone put on the sandals, Marin finally nned to start formal training. For training, Marin spent a few days writing a training program. Marlin, a former life, did not have a military, the only military-rted experience, or half-month military training when he first went to college. Of course, as a historical and military enthusiast, Marin often visits the forum to discuss the origins of the modern army - the modern European army. After consulting a lot of information and having had many debates withizens, Marin''s European military history has also risen. Do not say anything else, the Spanish phnx must know. Others, such as the Morris Square, Gustav Line, and Napoleon''s artillery tactics, are a little bit savvy. If possible, Marin would like to use Napoleon''s tactics. But that is unrealistic. You must know that European artillery is still in the era of bronze guns. Equipped with a bronze cannon, the cost is very high. Because, at present, the price of silver and copper in Europe is around 1 to 15, and the price of copper is too high. A silk-like leader like Marin can''t afford a small copper cannon, let alone a hundred guns like Napoleon. Moreover, let alone Napoleon''s artillery tactics, even Gustav''s lineup, he has no conditions to engage. Because, Gustav line array, using arge number of Musketeers. At the moment, the musket has not been invented yet. Even the arquebus has just been invented for decades and is still a rare thing. It''s really difficult to get a few rows of Musketeers. Moreover, in the 15th century Europe, the iron-smelting technology was very bad, and it was difficult to create a light and powerful musket. Because the steel technology is not enough, if the barrel is too thin, it is easy to blow. Even in the 16th century, the Spanish phnx began to rise, and the Spaniards used the Musket rifle, which weighed 20 pounds. In addition to the fact that the Musket''srge guns are so powerful, their bulky barrels are not easily blown up, which is also an important reason. As far as the German region is concerned, although hunters have begun to use arquebus to hunt, in order to prevent bombing, they are afraid to fill up too much gunpowder, resulting in loss of power. In other words, Marin can''t find a few qualified arquebuses now. It is also a dream to build a line of firearms. Therefore, Marin thought about it. Since there is no condition, I will train the spears first. The spears are very demanding for discipline and courage. In terms of courage, Marin is not worried. The people he recruited were all a bunch of goods that dared to change their money. Just for discipline, he is a bit worried. So, he used the training in the university military training to start training these 80 rookies. They said that they were dumping goods, but Marlin had despised their adjectives before. However, after the actual start of the training, Marin felt that they were praised for selling goods. It is a real and reasonable adjective to say that they are stupid goods. "All have it, look to the left!" Marin shouted. However, the situation afterwards made Marin very mad, and a "left to the right" led to chaos. Someone looked to the left and someone looked to the right. Then, the people in the team began to "deeply look at each other". Those who are not confident, seeing the opposite direction of the people on the side, immediately change direction. But the sad reminder is that many people have begun to clearly see the right direction, but under the misguided people around them, turn their heads to the right... What is even more tragic is the steering training. When Marin screamed "turn left", it was also a mess. Someone turned to the left, someone turned to the right, and the scene was noisy. Someone saw that the opposite person turned to the opposite direction, so he turned back 180 degrees, very funny. "Rookies, are you stupid, do you want to be left or right?" Marin was angry, but everyone looked at him with a nk look. Marin was also defeated, turning left and right to the right password, and his ssmates had not made a few mistakes. In order to pick up this group of goods here, the state is full? But Marin didn''t want to think about it himself. His former ssmates were all college students with high IQ. Not to mention college students, they are junior high school students, high school students, and cultural people who have beenpulsory. In the physical education ss, elementary school began to teach a simple direction. Can this gang of fools do it in the Middle Ages? They are basically illiterate, no one can teach them to distinguish between left and right. They are uncultured and they can only work like ves. The nobles used them as animals that walked on two feet and did not look at them. Therefore, these brains have not been developed, and they can distinguish between them. It is definitely a gift of talent. After training for three days, there are still many people who can''t tell. Even if Marin used the gangster corporal punishment, it still didn''t have much effect. Marin was anxious to vomit blood. Seeing that the emperor was not far from recruiting troops for the second time, if he didn''t train well, he would have no chance at all. Finally, one day, when Marin was blowing the birch whistle, he saw a bastard who rushed to gather. It was probably too hasty, and the right foot didn''t even have time to wear the shoes, so he ran to gather. "Wear a shoe..." Marlin began to meditate, as if he had seen this situation. "Right, the British ''Red Coat Army'' is not just using a shoe to help the recruits to distinguish between the right and left!" Marlin excited. In the past, he was on the forum, and it seems to have been mentioned. In the 19th century, the quality of British soldiers was also very bad. When I was just training, how many new recruits couldn''t tell. In order to distinguish the recruits, some peopleter thought of a way to let the recruits take off their right foot shoes and only let the left foot wear shoes. In this way, when training, turn left and shout "shoes", and turn right and shout "foot". As a result, the recruits quickly separated. After that, slowly rece the passwords for "shoes" and "foot" with left and right. In fact, until the early 19th century, the literacy rate of the British was very low. Basically, the recruits who are forced to recruit are illiterate. Those who can read literacy, as long as they perform well, can be regarded as officers and nonmissioned officers. People who are uneducated tend to be slow to listen to passwords, and it is difficult to distinguish them immediately. In other words, the British recruits in the first half of the 19th century, and the medieval novice mercenaries, are of simr quality. Sure enough, after letting everyone take off a shoe, the situation is a lot better. After all, whether or not to wear shoes, as long as it is not dementia, can still be distinguished. But there is also a problem with this, that is, the winter is a bit cold, and the bare feet are very ufortable. To this end, Marin took everyone to a sheltered valley andid a lot of hay on the ground to prevent everyone from freezing their feet. Moreover, everyone''s right foot is not barefoot, Marin asked them to wear double socks. Not only that, but the left and right training is generally trained when the temperature is high during the day. At other times, I still wear shoes to train. For example, when it is cold in the morning and evening, everyone is training to run to exercise. In this way, in a few days, the idiots finally cleared all the left and right. After distinguishing between the left and right, Marin tried to use the "left" and "right" instead of the "shoes" and "foot" passwords, and formally started a simple queue such as training, turning left, turning right. After that, Marin took time out every day to make Schwartz better, and how to use the spear. Originally, Schwartz was to teach you a lot of spear fighting skills and simple tactics. However, Marin only asked everyone to train three simple actions: "parry", "pick" and "stab". "Young master, why is this?" Schwartz puzzled. "In the army, please call me the head." Marin looked serious. "Well, head, why is this?" "Schwartz, what tactics do you say, can these guys understand?" "This..." Schwartz thought about it, or shook his head. "So, with their brains, we can''t remember so many tricks. We should teach them the most basic three routines. Moreover, fight against battles, not individual martial arts." Marin has seen many posts and articles. of. He knows that for those low-level soldiers who are not smart, they will not be tooplicated. After all, they are not soldiers who have beenpulsory for nine years in the future. Therefore, teaching them the most basic and simple and practical actions is the best choice. In order to cultivate the brave thoughts of the soldiers, Marin brainwashed the soldiers every day. Every day, when training, Marlin will shout: "The narrow road meets -" "--The brave wins! The brave wins!" The soldiers will scream in unison, and whoever does not shout is a whip. In this way, in daily training, Marin used the phrase "the narrow road meets the brave" in theter generations of soldiers as the slogan and purpose of the "Hoffmann Mercenary Corps". Of course, it is the slogan tranted into German. Chapter 27: Recruiting one batch of archers Chapter 27: Recruiting one batch of archers For this pure spear array, Marin is very dissatisfied. Because, in the face of the line of firearms, the spear array has be a live target. However, for now, it is very difficult to find a group of musketeers in the German region. Not to mention the danger of using a musket and the price of gunpowder. When he entered the forest to hunt, Marin thought - can you rece the gunmen in the Spanish square with archers first? You know, the trump card in the French army is the Swiss spearman. The Swiss spearman is a pure melee unit with no long-range strike capability. More critically, the Swiss spearmen are basically poor people, and most people have no money to buy expensive tes to protect the bows and arrows. For this era, bows and arrows may have lost their effect on the French knights wearing te armor, but for those Swiss spears in strange costumes, they are not equipped with armor. Moreover, the infantry wearing a te also can not walk. Thinking of this, Marin summoned all the mercenaries and asked: "Are you among those who are good at archery?" Everyone, look at me, I look at you, no one responds. But a mercenary raised his hand and called: "report!" "speak!" "Headmaster, I don''t shoot arrows, but I know people who shoot arrows!" "where is it?" "Beyond the city of Vienna, many people from the hunter also came to apply for infantry." "hunter are applying for infantry?" "Yes, some people don''t know the news. I don''t know if the empire is a spearman, but I think I will ept the archers. Others are directly nning to change jobs." "Very good, thank you for the news, add a meat dish tonight tonight." Marin said with satisfaction, and told the head of the ss Tara (one of Marin''s attendants, more culinary talent, Marin teaches He gave him a handful of dishes, and he added a braised venison to the guy who provided the message. Afterwards, Marin took Kohler and Sauer and rode back to the point of recruitment outside the city of Vienna, and began to explore. Then, Marin simply raised the g and publicly recruited the archers. But at this time, the recruitment of infantry has ended, and only a small number of people have stayed here. Many hunters, after seeing that the empire did not recruit archers, actually went home. Marin tried hard to recruit eight archers near the recruiting point in the west of Vienna. Then he rushed to the east of the city and the south of the city, and spent all his time trying to recruit people. In the end, Marin only recruited 20 archers. As ast resort, Marin could only take the 20 people back to the station in the town they are staying. In fact, more than 20 people will shoot arrows outside Vienna. However, most people do not believe Marin as a hairy child. Only these 20 people are more likely to flicker, believe Marin, willing to go with him. After returning to the station, Marin first arranged for the 20 people toy sandals and arranged for these people to take a bath to change clothes (in the mercenary group, Marin forced everyone to take a bath to wash clothes). After that, Marin set up another team to let Sauer train the people in a ready-made way. First of all, of course, let them take off their right foot shoes and teach them to distinguish between them. Then, it is physical training and shooting training. These hunters are all with their own bows and arrows. Because the principle of mercenary this year is that the equipmentes with it. What surprised Marin was that with these hunters, the mercenary group needed meat, and they didn''t have to go out in person. As long as you bring a few hunters into the mountains and cooperate with each other, you can bring enough meat to the mercenary group. It can not only improve food for everyone, but also save a lot of money. As for the local tax official, if the ordinary hunter is in doubt, he will be ckmailed. However, the Marin 100 is stationed here, and they are recognized by the empire. The local sheriffs and tax officials are afraid to put one. Not to mention that there is no aristocrat in this town, only a few Gentleman (the status is equivalent to a knight) But there is no fighting power. Even the average baron, facing the mercenary group of 100 people, dare not say anything. Because, this year''s mercenary popr robbery, and rogue gangs are no different. Now, people in the town of Robach are praying that the "Hoffmann Mercenary Corps" will not go to the town to rob, where can they offend the mercenary group? Fortunately, Marin pays great attention to military discipline. It is strictly forbidden for mercenaries to do things like stealing chickens and dogs. Otherwise, militaryw will be issued. Of course, Marin may promise, after hitting Italy, they can do some robbery if he allows. You must know that in this year, you are willing to be a mercenary. In addition to eating and drinking, you have to make a fortune. Because it ismon for mercenaries to rob. Moreover, in the Middle Ages, agriculture in the Italian region was the most developed. This also makes the economy of the Italian region generally better than the German region. Not only that, the Italians are good at doing business, and there are many wealthy businessmen there. Going to Italy to fight, many people have been waiting for a long time. Because, there are a lot of Italian rich people waiting for them to rob. Marin knows that being willing to be a mercenary is not a good thing. They are not kings. If they force their thoughts of robbery, they may be betrayed. Therefore, Marin also promised to agree to their robbery in Italy. But he also demanded that robbery can be, not allowed to kill and hurt people. In addition, it is not allowed to oppress the poor, nor to re the food of ordinary people. Because if you rob the food of the poor, they may starve to death. They are mercenaries, not demons. Because the 100 people who went to Marin were basically newbies, not the veterans who used to be mercenaries, the conscience was not annihted. Therefore, they also agreed with Marin''s request. Besides, if you want food, you can get enough of the nobles. If it is to grab the food of civilians, it is not necessary. Moreover, if there is more food, there is no way to take it all away. In the days that followed, the archer''s training progress gradually caught up with the spear. So Marin began to try to mix the spearman and the archer and began to try to change the formation. Chapter 28: Remnant Chapter 28: Remnant The discipline required by Marin is very strict and basically reaches the level of the modern army. But this also made many mercenaries dissatisfied, but Marin told them that if they didn''t work hard, they might not be able to pass the emperor''s selection. If you can''t pass the election of the emperor, you can''t get a sry, and you can''t go to Italy to make a fortune. Thinking of the beautiful prospects of robbery in the rich Italy, these people have endured. They have heard of the legends of some half-truths of mercenary predecessors. For example, a mercenary, when a city in Italy captured a certain city, rushed into the home of a wealthy Italian merchant, grabbed a lot of property, and took all the riches. It is all gold coin. Marin also yed the general imagination of rumors, mming them and making up a lot of legends in the mercenary world. Legend has it that a certain team has captured the mercenary group in a big Italian city. Everyone has be a rich man, taking a big beauty and embarking on the peak of life. These fake news, the neers who have never seen the world heard it and now want blood. In fact, they are not judged by the true and false of the news. After all, this year is the Middle Ages, and the information is extremely luded. What Marin said was true and false, they could not prove it. Therefore, they were all stunned by Marin, and then they were forced to ept Marin''s ill-treatment. It took only 20 days for the battle formation and steering training. After that, Marin''s "devil" n to wake them in the middle of the night and engage in "emergency gatherings". A whistle in the middle of the night, representing the enemy''s night attack. All personnel must wear clothes in 5 minutes, take good weapons, and gather in front of the barracks. Moreover, no one can be exempted in this process, except for the officer who blew the whistle. Otherwise, the militaryw will serve. The reason for this is because the soldiers are trained to deal with enemy night attacks. In the middle of the night, the military camp is the most weak. It is very terrible, in many cases, there will be small-scale militaryunches of night raids, which will lead to serious chaos and even copse of the army. The truth is actually very simple - in the middle of the night, everyone can''t see the situation in the distance. Once they are attacked, everyone doesn''t know how many enemies there are, and they don''t even know who the enemy is and in which direction. Once you are flustered, fear will spread. Once the fear spreads, it may cause the copse of the army. Then, no matter how many enemy troops there are, the soldiers will simply flee and even trample on each other. Therefore, Marin asked that even if it was attacked by the night, it is absolutely forbidden to make a loud voice. Everyone is silent, it is easy to calm down. Moreover, everyone did not say anything, and it was easy for the officers to voice themand. Once the battle formation is formed, the army will stabilize and counterattack. However, this makes the mercenaries really unable to stand it. Often, they slept soundly, and then the whistle suddenly blow. They heard the whistle, had to get up from the warm bed and quickly dressed, and then picked up the weapon to join the barracks. If it is slow, it is a fight. As mercenaries who are not afraid of death, they are full of grievances, but every time Marin finishes the disobedient guy, he immediately tells them about the richness of Italy and the prospect of good robbery. Then, everyone falls into greed and forgets their dissatisfaction. In this regard, Schwartz, determined to be an officer, is admirable. Secretly, Schwartz began to learn and imitate everything Marin do. He found that although Marin was not tall and strong, even martial arts was not as good as himself. But for the intelligence - Schwartz is not as good as Marin In the case of the night, Marin also made adjustments. ording to the practice of medieval Europeans, the so-called night is to arrange several sentinels to stand at the entrance of the big camp, usually four hours and one round. Such a mechanism, Marin knows deeply that it is full of loopholes. Do not say anything else, many of the war films that I have seen in previous lives, there will be a few people with particrly good skills, sneaking at the night squad going to sleep, to kill the sentinel with a dagger. Then the entire military camp was destroyed. In modern times, in addition to the bright whistle at the door, there are usually several hidden whistlees in the vicinity of the camp gate. The reason why the whistle was set up was that the whistle was use by people when it is toote to wake everyone. To this end, Marin selected several soldiers, ambushing in the tent near the camp gate, in the case of no lights, only to leave the gap to observe, it is also a four-hour change. In this regard, the soldiers naturallyined, and Schwartz, with reverence, tried to memorize these means with small books. If there are no diaries and ballpoint pens right now, maybe Schwartz will write down all this on the spot. After all, what you use now is a quill pen. You have to put it in the ink bottle to suck a few words. ... When the formation was trained until everyone could keep the formation moving forward, Marin finally began to train the specific battle formation. Originally, the formation chosen by Marin was the Spanish phnx this is the most suitable condition at the moment. However, the number of people in his hand is too small topletely form a square. Marlin thought to go, decided to put these 100 people, still in ordance with the Spanish phnx, but not theplete square matrix, but only train the front two or three rows to form an array. 20 archers, Marin did not divide them into rows. Because the archer has no filling time, if it is not aimed at killing, but only "barrage strike", the archer can quickly shoot a single arrow in one breath. Of course, most people will have a period of disengagement afterwards. But at rest, you can continue. Because the bow and arrow fired fast, Marin put 20 archers first in the middle of the first row. The spacing between the archers is about 30 cm. Unlike a rifle shooter, you can''t rely too close. Because the fire rope of the rifle shooter is tied to the arm. If they are too close to each other, their own fire ropes may be burned to the side of the gunpowder bag, which is easy to cause a big safety ident. Therefore, the interval between the soldiers of the Spanish phnx is generally 1 meter. The archers are not in that danger and can stand closer to each other. As long as you don''t squeeze each other, keep a certain gap. After testing, it was found that the power of 20 archers shooting together was very good. Of course, because of the limited number of people, it is impossible to form the effect of "arrows like rain." However, the opponents who deal with hundreds of opponents can definitely cause no small damage. However, after grouping confrontation, Marin also found a problem - if the enemy rushed to the front, the archers were quite fragile, basically only the massacre by the other spear. To this end, Marin left to think, and then thought of a way - he arranged two rows of spearmen in front of the archers. When fighting, the two rows of spearmen in front of the archers sit to avoid obscuring the archers'' line of sight. When the archerpleted the shooting and fired 30 arrows , themander give an order and the spearman in front of the archer stand up again, growing a spear wall and blocking the enemy''s possible assault. In this way, the enemy''s idea of using the spearmen to kill the archers in close proximity will be lost. Moreover, the archer who hides behind the spearman, if the strength is restored, can also take a few steps back, facing forward 45 degrees, using bows and arrows to shoot, from the top against the enemy''s spear array. After Marlin''s research, Marin arranged 80 spears in two rows of 40 people each, behind in the middle 20 people. The archer is responsible for shooting the arrows before the enemy rushes up, but if the opposing army is too fast, it is too close to the battle. The officer will promptly order the archers to stop shooting, and the 40 spearmen in front of the archers will stand up under themand, the first row of spearmen will raise the spears, and the second row of spears will Put the spear on the shoulders of the first row and defend against the enemy''s attack. Then, the archer step back a few steps, estimated the position of the enemy army, and put arrows at the front, attacking the enemy army and causing damage. The longer the front row ofnces, the more the archers can bring more damage. If it is a long time, the enemy will definitely be overwhelmed by casualties, or it will be defeated or copsed. Of course, the premise is that the front row of spearmen must withstand the impact of the enemy, not torn open the gap. To this end, Marin hired a cksmith in the town to create 40 engineering squads shovel for him to dig trenches in front of the battlefield to block the impact of the enemy, especially the cavalry. In order to block the possible attack of the enemy cavalry, Marin''s trenches excavated in front of the array, generally divided into two, the two trenches are only 2 meters apart. If the enemy crosses the first trench, it will appear in the 2 meter wide zone. In this area, it is within the attack range of the front row of spearmen. Whether it is an enemy war horse or an infantryman, just crossing the first trench, it is definitely not stable. At this time, the front spearman stabbed the spear, and the opponent could not resist. Moreover, in order to guard against the enemy''s shelling, the soil excavated by the trenches will be piled up into a rectangr mound behind the two trenches. Once the enemy first used the shelling, everyone squatted on the ground, hiding behind the mound and guarding against shelling. The artillery of this year was all yed with solid bullets, and most of the infantry guns were used for t shooting. As long as you lie in the mound, you will basically not be hit by shells. Moreover, on the mound in front of the battle, Marin also learned from the English and inserted a picket to block the enemy''s impact. Even if there is no time to dig trenches, Marin''s front line will quickly insert the pickets to block the impact of the enemy, especially the impact of enemy cavalry. Of course, this is just a remnant. Because there are not enough people, Marin can only arrange two rows of spearmen. In fact, such a thickness is insufficient. Because, in the real cruel battle, the first two rows of spearmen are easily break, and need more rows of spearmen to supplement. But the problem is that Marin is currently in no hands. Therefore, he can only get the remnant, and when the sample is taken, look at the officer in charge of recruiting. Moreover, the main thing is his absolute control over the team, as well as the team''s strict discipline and efficient execution ofmand. In general, it''s just a matter of getting a look at it. It''s not necessarily awesome on the battlefield. It''s a great way to show off. Chapter 29: The oath Chapter 29: The oath Although it is only a remnant, Marin must y with flowers. Otherwise, it is difficult to be seen by his background. In order to make himself fancy, Marin changed his name from Marin Hoffman to Marin von Hoffman. Because, at this time in Europe, it is very important for the birth. And "von" is only found in the name of the German aristocracy, and at least it is a hereditary aristocracy. The general knight family will not add the word "von" to the name. Only the hereditary baron family began to add the word "von" to the name. But there are also a small number of knights who arrogantly add the word "von" to their names. The so-called "Von" is actually the meaning of his own source, just like the Chinese said, "I am from Wang Wang, Boling Cui, and Daixi Li". In general, the surnames after Von are all aristocratic titles, family names, or ce names, indicating their origins. For example, "von Hohenzollern" indicates that you are from the Hohenzollern family. And "Fon Neumann" is from the Neumann family. There are also ces that indicate ce names. For example, when William II was still a prince, he was called "William von Hohenzollern" (the middle part was omitted). When he became the King of Prussia, he changed to "William von Prussia". After the German emperor, he was changed to "William von Deutsch". Marin called himself "Marin von Hoffman", which is obviously belong to the Hoffman family. Because Hoffman Estate is not hereditary. However, no one in the empire has done this. Moreover, there is no ID card inquiry in this era, and information exchange is not smooth. I am special to add a "Von" in the name, you don''t trust me? Have you the ability to check it? Moreover, if he does not add the word "Von" to his name, it is estimated that the officials responsible for recruiting troops will not necessarily pay attention to him. Because, at this time in Europe, everyone habitually believes that only the nobles are qualified to be officers. This rulested until the 19th century. Wellington, the British star, once became an officer by aristocratic status and spent money to buy a colonel. In addition to taking a little thought on the name, Marin also spent a little time on the squad. In addition to the previous tactical training and formation training, Marin also practiced a good looking line array steering. Specifically, if the enemy did not face the front line of his own line, he would return to the side. What should I do at this time? Marin let the second middle of the second row of spearmen as the axis, and the entire team, "want to go to the right to see", with two as a reference, began to turn clockwise or counterclockwise. The outermost step is a little bigger, the inner circumference is smaller, and the synchronous steering is achieved. Finally, the entire formation is neatly turned at a faster speed. In fact, in the battlefield, there is more than one line array, often a lot of line arrays, distributed in a fan shape or other shapes. The general army wing will also be equipped with a special line array to deal with. Therefore, there is no need to turn the front line against the enemy. But Marin''s intention was not to fight, but to attract big eyes. Therefore, he yed so much and the performance was more than practical. When you really fight, who is in the mood to use this kind of performance-oriented turn? Simple and practical is the right thing. In addition, Marin also got another more practical variant - the hollow square array. This assumes that the line array of this side is surrounded - especially if it is surrounded by cavalry, it is definitely a death to continue to maintain the line array. At this point, the cavalry is facing the square, the first row squats, and the second row ofnces on the shoulders of the first row ofncers. The archers, in the middle of the hollow square, pass through the gaps and shoot those who surround the square. At this time, the hollow square is like a hedgehog, and it protects itself well. If it is strong, it is absolutely fatal. Moreover, the archers in the middle of the hollow square array can choose which side to attack the enemy forces ording to the situation. As long as you enter within 100 meters, it is within the impact of the archers. Speaking of these two changes, in fact, the requirements are quite high. But the 100 mercenaries who had been abused by Marin for more than a month were already numb, and people became somewhat mechanical. Therefore, they actuallypleted two changes. Of course, it can only bepleted without the interference of foreign enemies. If you encounter a real enemy, you can see God''s will if you can finish it. Of course, it is also because they have fewer people. In total, there are only 100 people, and the change is of course simple. If you switch to 1000 people, it is not that easy. However, even 1000 people can do it as long as they train home. After solving the problem of name fraud and the problem of change, Marin began to consider the problem of dressing again. In front of his 100 mercenaries, the one he wears is called a variety. Although not as furious as real mercenaries, they have begun to learn the odd customs of real mercenaries.To be honest, Marin would like to customize a beautiful uniform for each of the two. Because the dress is neat, it can also make a deep impression. No matter, now the clothes are too expensive, Marin himself is too poor. Therefore, he had to give up this idea. In the end, Marin thought about it and thought of a very economical way - to get a white cloth (like gambeson) for everyone, cut it, and sew it into a white vest that saves cloth. This kind of vest is cheaper because it is cheaper to use, and it costs less than 8 Fini and add somme defense. Then, Marin found ink again, and in front of each white vest, painted a ck cross. Originally, Marin wanted to paint the Iron Cross used by the Third Reich. But the iron cross is a bit cumbersome to draw, and it''s hard to be uniform. Later, in order to save trouble, Marin directly referred to the square red cross that was the easiest to draw in theter generations of hospitals, and painted a square ck cross. When he saw the 100th person, lined up in a neat queue, each of them had a white vest with a square ck cross on the chest, and Marin wanted tough. Because, he feels that the 100 people in front of him are very simr to the medical workers who are temporarily prepared by the hospital. However, this seems to be more tidy than before. At least, this is like an army, not a bunch of people. After that, Marin began to ponder other tricks. In order to be rich and wealthy. Anyway, how can he do it? Marin learned that the emperor Maximilian I was proud. For example, in 1490, he let the first empire mercenaries collectively swear allegiance to him. In fact, most of the mercenaries are for money. Who really wants to sell your life to a poor emperor? Not much money. However, Maximilian I loved this formalism and everyone could do nothing. Moreover, in the Middle Ages, the oath of allegiance is indeed a little bit binding, for those who keep promises. "Since you like this tune, then brother will y out!" Marin thought. Then, he began to recall the oaths he had seen in previous lives, such as the oath of the group, the oath of the party, and so on. But he finally found that the most numb and irritating, is the oath of a version of the Third Reich SS on the Inte to swear allegiance to Hitler. The oath is like this: "I am a life-long glory for being a brave and loyal SS soldier. Everyrade is my brother and sister, regardless of origin, status, For the head of the swearing loyalty! The will of the head of state is above everything else! The order of the head of state, Higher than all truths andws! Hey, Hitler! " This oath is said to have been made by the third empire super-tter Himmler, it''s very impressive (mainly the first two sentences). Marin thought about it and changed the oath to be: "I am a life-long glory for being a brave and loyal Holy Roman Empire. Everyrade is my brother and sister, regardless of origin, status, For the emperor to swear allegiance! The will of the emperor is above all else! The order of the emperor, (this sentence is said by the officer, the original version is said by Himmler, naturally Marin said here) Higher than all truths andws! (military collective shouts) Oh, holy Rome! (continue to shout)" When Marin released such a big move, everyone in the ce was full of blood. Culturally literate people, including Schwartz, have been deeply infected and screamed with everyone. "God, the pattern of the they are truly fanatical like when l hear them, it is no wonder that the Germans in World War II dare to challenge the world, the feelings are all bloody!" Marin thought without words. However, on the surface, he also screamed with the soldiers. Acting, who won''t? Anyway, Marin felt that he must act like a super loyal die-hard fan. At that time, the emperor would send him gold, preferably 24K pure gold. Then, I can take it for myself. To this end, Marin practiced a long time expression, and strived to transfer all his loyalty and fanaticism to his face, so that people can see it at a nce. If the people ofter generations see Marin''s expression at the moment, he will surely say a wordsnake disease, you think you are Liang Yifeng, the expression is so ecstasy. Chapter 30: This is a telescope Chapter 30: This is a telescope During a cross-country training, Marin was there to detect the terrain, but found that the distance seen by the human eye was limited, and it was impossible to see the distance. So Marin remembered the telescope. The telescope was invented at the beginning of the 17th century. There are still more than one hundred years from now. Marin had to find a way to create an "invention". Of course, as an advanced technology and a strategically advanced technology, Marin is not willing to let others know the existence of the telescope. So he went to the optical shop in the town of Robach, looking for the craftsmen in the store, and polished a number of circr concave lenses of the same size. Then he rode to another town, found the local optical shop, and let the sses craftsmen in the store polish a batch of convex lenses (magnifying sses) of simr specifications. Then he went to Vienna to find a craftsman who was good at making wooden crafts and built a batch of wooden barrels for him. The front and rear ends of the barrel are detachable spiral holders that hold the polished lenses. Of course, in order to hide the lens, there is a length of wood barrel at the front of the deck, so that the ss inside can not be seen. If you don''t pay attention, when Marin looks at the distance with a telescope, others think that Marin is observing something through a wooden tube. However, what makes Marin depressed is that the quality of the ss in this era does not seem to work. The general ss is green. This is because the iron ions in the ss are not removed, so the transparency of the ss is not so good. The earlier optical ss, lead ss, appeared to be in the UK in the 17th century. Therefore, Marin can be sure that the telescope of this era will not look too far. Because the rity of the ss is not enough. Sure enough, a few dayster, after Marin got the goods, he assembled the telescope himself, and he could pump a long length of wood barrel to adjust the focal length. However, no matter how Marin adjusts, the distance of the telescope is no more than 5 kilometers. Farther away, it began to blur. Even in a ce of 5 kilometers, it can only be distinguished, and it cannot be seen clearly. Of course, this is used to detect enemy situations, which is much stronger than the naked eye. After assembling the two telescopes, Marin bought two wooden boxes and locked the telescope. The keys were only owned by him and could not be opened by others. Later, in order to cultivate Schwartz (in fact, Marin decided to bezy and let Schwartz do his daily work instead of himself), Marin organized several group confrontations. The confrontation was mainly carried out in the mountains, and Marin also took out the tactics of ambushing the mountainsmonly used in the East. However, he did not dare to use the trick of smashing stones down the mountain, because this would kill people. Schwartz took the man with a hard time, carefully carried out a long journey, and then quietly touched the camp in Marin. What he didn''t know was that at the height of the camp, Marin had already used a telescope, and he had clearly understood his deployment and marching direction 5 km away, and made corresponding adjustments. When the 50 people of Schwartz touched the camp nearby, they directly faced the traps and encirclements under Malin order... Others didn''t understand it, but Kohler, who was not on the sidelines, seemed to understand somethingit seems that Marin could make the corresponding subordinates, and it was rted to the two cylinders he locked in the box. However, as a servant, it is not good to be inquiring. Then, Schwartz increasingly worshiped Marin. After several exercises, Marin seemed to notice that Kohler noticed the cylinder in his hand. So, he felt that the cylinder in his hand seemed too conspicuous. As a result, he once again found artisans, customized smaller lenses and smaller, less obscure cylinders, and assembled small telescopes again. This kind of telescope is very small, and Marin can cover most of the two hands, but it can also reach the observation distance of 5 kilometers. When Marin stood up high and looked at the telescope, others saw Marin''s hands in front of him. Thought that his hand is used to block the sun... In fact, his two hands hold a small cylinder... In fact, the telescope is the most useful for scouts. Marin can watch the enemy line before the battle, but it is impossible to go out for investigation often (there are also general personally investigating, but the end is generally not good. For example, Li Zicheng personally went out to investigate and was armed to KO by an unknownndlord. Washington personally investigated It was almost mmed by Colonel Ferguson...). Therefore, he wanted toe and decide to develop the attendant Sauer into a scout. The reason why Sauer was chosen is because the Sauer family are their own serfs and are more reliable than outsiders. Moreover, Sauer''s character is very calm and his mind is not bad. From the point of his rmendation of Schwartz, Sauer is also a bit wise. At least, he will look at people. Moreover, Sauer''s vision is also good. In addition, when hunting, Sauer also often served as a investigative task, and there is some experience. He cane back to report the position without rming the deer or wild boar, proving that he is suitable for investigation. Moreover, in this era, scouts often have to be close to reconnaissance, which is very dangerous. If you are not careful, you will be found and chased by enemy soldiers. After you have a telescope, the scouts don''t need to get close to the camp. Just a few kilometers away, find a high point and take out the telescope. In an age when telescopes are not popr, even people with the best vision should be close to a kilometer to get some important data. Ordinary people should be close to a few hundred meters to see clearly. Therefore, people of this era, even if they do not investigate, will not exceed 1 km away. Therefore, as the first person to use telescopes to detect, in general, Sauer''s safety can still be guaranteed. Later, Marin and Sauer exchanged in private. Marin tested the loyalty of Sauer and found it not bad. Then, he made Sauer swear that he would never allow anyone to disclose any news of the telescope. Moreover, every time Sauer went out to investigate, he coulde to him to collect the telescope. Usually, the telescope used by Sauer is to be locked into Marin''s box. Not only that, Marin also asked that in front of others, Sauer should not use telescopes to avoid being seen by people. Sauer didn''t care at first, but when he got the telescope, he was really shocked. The first time he used a telescope, he was almost scared from the telescope. "This... this is amazing!" Sauer was shocked. "Well, Sauer, remember, never disclose the secret of a telescope to anyone! Include your loved ones!" "Yes, Master!" "And, don''t drink too much alcohol in the future. If you are drunk, it''s easy to talk about it." "Yes!" "Okay, go!" In the next few days, Marin arranged several investigation tasks for Sauer and taught him how to conceal himself and gave him a colorful investigation costume. After training, Sauerpleted the task better than once. In fact, the difficulty of this kind of task is also very low. I will peek at the telescope a few kilometers away. Who will not do such a thing. The key point is to choose the right location to avoid being discovered by the other party. Moreover, investigation also requires patience. Fortunately, Sauer is a very patient person. If you are as tempered as Kahn, you will not have so much patience to count the number of each other, the number of animals and the details of the horsesing in and out. Of course, this involves knowledge of reasoning calculus, and Sauer certainly does not have that level. What Sauer can do now is to estimate the number of opponents through the house/tent, and to infer how many pots the other person has by the number of smoke raised during cooking, so as to simply infer the number of people eating... These are the basic principles, and the Westerners in this era prefer to be hard-hitting. At this time, they will not think of any tricks to reduce the number of enemies. This kind of estimation is still rtively urate. In addition, Marin also stressed that Sauer should strengthen the observation and estimation of the enemy''s food storage location. When the Europeans were in the Middle Ages, they would not think of ways to stabilize the hearts of the people by disguising the sand. Therefore, investigating the other''s food reserves is also conducive to estimating the other''s military heart (the grain is sufficient for the military to be stable), and even convenient for the party to destroy the other''s grain. Chapter 31: Reapply Chapter 31: Reapply At the end of February 1495, news came from Vienna that the emperor finally decided to expand again. At this time, King Charles VIII had led the 60,000 coalitions of France and Savoy to the Kingdom of Naples, and in the middle of the road, the other Italian city-states were pushed by them. Even the Papal State was crushed by Charles VIII. Charles VIII took the army and triumphantly entered Rome, and forced the Pope to crown him as the King of Naples. Charles VIII swayed the terrible strength of his army, and the countries of the Italian region felt fear. Thus, under the leadership of the most powerful Venice and the most prestigious Papal States among the states, the Italian countries decided to establish a "sacred alliance" to jointly fight against the French who coveted Italian territory. The Holy Roman Empire, as a deadly enemy of the power and the French, is naturally invited. It is important to know that the Principality of Burgundy was huge, except for the current Burgundy (Franche Conte region), the Burgundy Principality (theter Burgundy region of France), and the Nethend region. . But after the Bold Charle''s death, the French took advantage of therge internal Burgundy Principality (Burgundy) while carrying the internal chaos of Burgundy, making Maximilian I, who inherits the father''s inheritance, Only the smaller areas of Burgundy (Franchet) and the Nethends. Therefore, Maximilian I and the French have hatred of robbing the territory. Therefore, Maximilian I will actively prepare for the war without the sacred alliance. Of course, he will also pretend that he does not want to mix Italian affairs. In fact, it is good for him to pose with the Vian. As we all know, in the current Europe, the Republic of Venice is estimated to be the country with the best financial position. Although Venice is small, the business is extremely developed. This year, the Ottoman Empire has just begun to rise and has not yetpeted with Venice for the Mediterranean hegemony. The new route is still open, and the Portuguese have not yet arrived in India, and have yet to challenge Venice''s maritime trade status. Therefore, Venice is still in a strong stage. Strong Venice with more than 3,000 paddle boats and 36,000 sailors. Although the total poption of Venice is less than 200,000. However, the Vian has money. In this era, rich people can hire a lot of mercenaries to fight for you. Therefore, the rich Venice has great potential for war. The country of Venice is so small, but the financial situation is excellent. A year''s fiscal revenue, up to 2 million Ducat gold coins. In the same period of France, only about 1.2 million. However, Venice is just a small city-state with a poption of less than 200,000. France is a big European country with a poption of 15 million... Of course, in this era, the Nethends has not yet emerged, and Spain and Portugal are still on the road. Therefore, no country in Europe can financiallypete with Venice. Although France''s fiscal revenue can''t keep up with Venice, it is stronger than Britain and better than the Holy Roman Empire. Why? Because France established the permanent taxation right at the time of Charles VII, it was permanently taxed nationwide (however, this would exclude those vassals'' seals, so this is not a universal taxation system). This made France''s financial situation among the best in Europe. Otherwise, the French could not move tens of thousands of troops into Italy. The United Kingdom is also okay, Henry VII also began to imitate France for centralization, but has not implemented a fixed tax system like France. Therefore, the British finances are far less than France, but there are also 120,000 pounds per year, equivalent to 480,000 Ducat. The Holy Roman Empire, looking very big, but the emperor has no permanent taxation rights, can only be taxed in Austria and Burgundy. Among them, the taxation in Burgundy is still very difficult. Therefore, the wealthy Holy Roman Empire, the financial level, is now slightly better than the United Kingdom that has not stabilized, much worse than France. If it was not during the war, the emperor could ask the imperial parliament for help. If the war was taxed in the whole empire, the Holy Roman Empire would have no strength and French hegemony. Therefore, in this period of Europe, in terms of financial resources, Venice is the well-deserved boss. The Holy Roman Empire is more awkward. Therefore, the emperor faced the Venice and also raised his support. He wanted Venice to help out some military expenses... Venice is naturally rich, and they can also hire mercenaries from all states of Italy. However, Italian mercenaries do not have Germans ways. Because the Italians admire business, they are busy doing business. Or, intoxicated with literature and art, or busy with picking up girls. The German region is still more martial. The Swiss Union, which is rich in mercenaries, is also considered to be in the German region. Therefore, thebat effectiveness of the Empire army is higher than that of Italian mercenaries. Therefore, Venice will think about pulling the goods. Otherwise, if Italian mercenaries where really strong, Venice would had long dominated Europe. For the emperor''s intentions, the Vian messenger is naturally clear. However, the Vians did not care too much. Because,pared to the less golds, they are even more afraid of France with money and strength. Therefore, the messenger promised that as long as the Empire assembled the army and went to Italy, Venice would provide partial subsidies to satisfy the emperor. The reason why this is done is that the emperor is afraid of taking the money and not working. When the emperor gathers the army and enters Italy, he will not fight. It happened that the tax on the Burgundy side also arrived. Although the Imperial Parliament has not rxed, the money of Burgundy can make the emperor much better. Anyway, in Italy, Venice promised some money. If you win, there will be a war bonus. The emperor with money naturally shakes up. Then, the second batch of recruiting notices were also sent to various ces. The second round of recruitment, officially started... After getting the news, Marin quickly pulled out the camp and put the supplies on the cart. And all the soldiers, all walked, went to Vienna. After Marin''s abuse for more than a month, these mercenaries have no pressure on the march. You know, every day, Marin will force them to carry Marin''s "design" backpack, holding a spear and arming off-road for 5 kilometers. Start, juste 5 kilometers a morning. In theter period, it is already 5 kilometers in the morning and evening. You know, there is no car in this year, and the infantry march must be on its own. Even horses, it is very expensive. Moreover, horses eat more than people. If it is not in a hurry, the general officer will not let the soldiers ride horses. Unless it is a cavalry. Therefore, the infantry marched, it waspletely dependent. Fortunately, this age is medieval, and these poor mercenaries are also used to walking. Wherever they go, if they are not particrly far away, they basically walk on their own. It''s normal to walk a few dozen miles a day. Unlike modern people, sitting in the car, let him walk a 5 km is not expected to be happy. Under Marin''s high-intensity training, everyone now feels no pressure for long-distance marching. Each of them, carrying a linen backpack with carry-on items, holding a spear, lined up neatly, and silently walked on the road to Vienna, no one talked andughed. Because, before, they also talked andughed when they marched, and then they were suppressed by the whip stick... So everyone formed the habit of quietly marching. Moreover, they are used to listening to Marin''s order. This one-month training has made this an instinctive reaction for everyone... Marin took everyone all the way to march, spent a day, marching 50 kilometers, and finally arrived outside the city of Vienna. Then, Marin found that everyone was a little tired. After all, the longest march before was only 20 kilometers. 50 kilometers, although we can run, everyone is tired. In this era, the average infantry team can travel 30 kilometers a day, even if it is not bad. Marlin led the team for 50 kilometers a day, which made everyone a little tired. But he knows that this is not the limit. You must know that the Red Army is more perverted than this. However, everyone ran so far the first time, not too used to it. You know, Marin gives physical training to these people, but it is very abnormal. In order to save physical fitness and show a better state in the selection of tomorrow, Marin let everyone camp in the city, recharge their batteries, and prepare for tomorrow''s selection. The Sauer riding horse, because of the low energy consumption, was sent to investigate the infantry recruiting site. Of course, he is walking to inquire about the news. After all, he is not tired, because he was riding a horse, but Carl is tired. Chapter 32: Do it again, I like to listen Chapter 32: Do it again, I like to listen In the evening, when everyone was camping, Sauer returned, and brought back a news that made Marin shocked. At 10 am tomorrow, the emperor will be visiting the south gate to inspect the situation. Marlin was excited. The emperor, although a poor emperor, could not give you money, but he can give you identity with a word. Moreover, if it is recruited by the emperor, it can actually give you money, although it is only a low sry. Early the next morning, Marin set off for the whole team and went outside the south gate of Vienna to observe the emperor. However, because the emperor is going to patrol. When arriving outside the South Gate, Marin even seized the legal evidence of the Hoffmann Mercenary Corps and their weapons were temporarily seized. Because, unlike those scattered soldiers, Marin is a group of hundreds of people. If they continue to hold weapons, they may be able to assassinate the emperor. Not only that, the Vienna garrison also mobilized 50 fully armed knight to monitor the Hoffman mercenary group and guard the emperor. In this regard, Marin does not matter, anyway, he did not want to assassinate the emperor, but to please the emperor. He let all members of the Hoffmann Mercenary Corps line up neatly on the side of the boulevard. And beside him, there are 50 cavalry. At this time, it is already around 9 o''clock in the morning. The "handset" that Marin carried and was almost the same as the rm clock also told him that it was 9 am. Speaking of it, this year, the pocket watch is really pit. Ma Lin was so excited to buy a pocket watch, but he bought a "pocket watch" that was almost the same as the rm clock that he used to wake up when he was a child. Although the spring has been applied, it is limited by the technical conditions and cannot be made very small at present. It is said that some skilled craftsmen can make the "candle clock" smaller. But obviously, there are no such craftsmen in Austria. It seems that powerful craftsmen are in Nuremberg and Cologne. As for the post-production world of Switzend, this clock watch industry has not yet developed. It seems that after the Christian Calvinist founder Calvin banned wearing jewelry in Switzend, Swiss talents pondered how to make watches into beautifully worn essories. Then, there was a famous Swiss watch. However, that is a matter of decades. Marin chose a better location, next to the avenue on the edge of the Recruitment Square outside the South Gate of Vienna. The emperor entered the Recruitment Square and must pass through here. Such a good location, of course, many people want to take up. However, Marin had 100 ps of thugs in his hands, and those squadrons were brave enough to provoke and provoke. However, it is precisely because they upy such a good position, causing doubts from the recruiting officers. Therefore, the recruiting department ced 50 cavalry here to protect the safety of the emperor on the one hand, and to monitor the Marin group on the other hand. At 10 o''clock in the morning, the emperor''s travel team appeared outside the South Gate. The emperor came by a horse-drawn carriage. However, the carriages around him were all German Knights, all wearing armor. You just want to assassinate the emperor, you have to go through the steel walls around you. When the emperor arrived at the square, the square was boiling. Thousands of people present were all shaken up. Many people began to yell and want to attract the attention of the emperor: "Long live the emperor!" "Long live the Holy Roman Empire!" "I am Jol!" "I am Hansen!" "I..." ... When the emperor''s team passed near Marin, Marin suddenly raised his right hand forward and performed an ancient Roman military ceremony simr to the Nazi military service (the Nazi military rites learned from the ancient Roman military service). Then he shouted: "Hey, holy Rome!" (Artim''s note: God please kill me) As soon as I saw the head move, there were more than 100 younger brothers wearing white vests on the side. The rest stretched out their right hand and performed the ancient Roman military salute. "Hey, holy Rome!" The movement of the Hoffmann Mercenary Corps, frightened the 50 cavalry on the side of the big jump, they have drawn out their sword. Even the knights guarded by the emperor, they also pulled out the knight sword and wanted to protect the Emperor. But they soon discovered that it was only a team of white vests on the roadside who bowed down to the emperor. So, they are relieved.However, the movements and sounds of Marin''s more than 100 people are really eye-catching. Even the emperor Maximilian I in the carriage, curiously through the window of the carriage, looked at the more than 100 stations on the roadside that were straight and still marching. "Good military capacity, which army is this? Looks very sharp!" Maximilian I asked Frederick II, the Earl of Hohenzollern, who was on the same side with him. The Count of Frederick certainly didn''t know, so he shrugged: "Who knows, I have never seen it, and has never heard of it." ... After a while, the emperor came to the table in the middle of the square and boarded it, and made a few words of speech. Later, the Earl of Hohenzollern announced that the selection had officially begun (it was the special emperor to start the selection today). Then the whole square was turbulent. Everyone has to queue up as required. Marlin saw: "Rely, we are a little far from the queue..." He thought about it and decided to cut the queue... and it was the whole queue... Then he waved his hand and began to direct the team to go to the queue. However, they are queued in neat rows, often arrogant. "Step by step, 1 - 1 - 121, 1 - 1 - 121..." Then, all members of the Hoffmann Mercenary Corps took a neat step and walked straight ahead from the side. Marin had amand to die at the beginning - without his orders, not to stop, in front of the knife and the sea will continue to move forward. Then, under Marlin''s 105 men, under themand of Marin, stepping on the extremely neat pace of the outsiders, arrogantly rushing to the front of the crowd waiting in line. "Where is this guy? So I don''t know the rules?" Earl Hohenzollern was somewhat unhappy and nned to send someone to drive Marin. But the emperor seemed interested in them and stopped the count. Those who have been lining up well, naturally are not willing to be squeezed away. However, Marin''s 100th person, like not seeing them, looked ahead, still moving forward and kicking forward. In the end, they chose to give in under the powerful momentum of Marin, the 100th person. After entering the team, Marin shouted: "Standing!" Then, to the order, the 100th man suddenly stopped neatly. Then Marin shouted again: "turn right!" All members of the Hoffmann Mercenary Corps, neatly turned to the right, facing forward, with no expression on their faces and no confusing look. "This... discipline is very strict!" "If you are disciplined, you won''t be in the queue, or the whole team..." Count Frederick is very speechless. Do you use a neat queue to cut the queue to show that your team is disciplined? Disciplined, are you still in the queue? Earl Hohenzollen didn''t want to say anything at this time. "Right, Frederick, this team ising to apply? Why is such a strong team not directly contacting you, but running to participate in the selection?" "Maybe, their leader can''t get in touch with me..." Frederick is also very uncertain. Although he was a bit angry with the team''s unruly rules, he also had to admit that, from a disciplined point of view, this small team is definitely top-notch. At least, it is stronger than most German troops. The emperor and the count did not expect that Marin had not yet tossed. After he grabbed the registration position of others, he did not immediately register, but began to show. He raised his hand again and performed a Roman military ceremony, facing the emperor''s high tform, and shouted: "All members of the Hoffman Mercenary Corps, who died for the Emperor. May my great Holy Roman Empire attack and be invincible! Hey, Holy Rome!" Then, under themand of 105 people, with the conditioned reflexes, they all stretched out their right hands, and they performed a Roman military ceremony and shouted: "Hey, holy Rome!" "Hey, holy Rome!" Then, Marin, regardless of the fact that the recruiters had not recruited themselves, began to pledge allegiance to the emperor. I saw him facing the high tform where the emperor was, raised his right hand and began to swear: "I am a lifelong glory for being a brave and loyal Holy Roman Empire warrior..." Afterwards, all members of the Hoffmann Mercenary Corps were in a general condition, raising their right hands in a brush, palms forward, and swearing in unison: "I am a life-long glory for being a brave and loyal Holy Roman Empire. Everyrade is my brother and sister, regardless of origin, status, For the emperor to swear allegiance! The will of the emperor is above all else! " Marlin quickly picked up: "The order of the emperor -" "Beyond all truth andw! Oh, holy Rome!" the soldiers shouted in unison. ... For a time, the people in the square were all stunned, and also stunned where is this group of emperors fans? On the high tform, Emperor Maximilian I first stunned for a while, then suddenly excited: "It''s too good, the emperor''s order is higher than all the truths andws... I''m so happy, I''m so happy!" Which emperor didn''t want to say a word? Count Frederick, although he despised Maring, this group of people should not be forced to p their faces, but as the emperor''s favorite, he could not dismantle the emperor''s station. So he had to reconcile. Suddenly, the emperor came to the wind with a sentence: "Freat, tell them that this oath is very much like listening, let them swear again, ept their allegiance!" "Do it again?" "Yes! Again!" "Don''t you check it out?" "Use it? Look at their queue, and the style of the team, you know that this is a strong army!" "Okay!" As the emperor''s favorite, Frederick understands that Marin is a group of people who are right. His Majesty the Emperor seems to be very fond of this set, and he likes this oath. Then, Marlin led 105 men (except for Kohler who looked at materials and weapons), and his face was not red-hearted. He once again swears to the emperor in front of tens of thousands of people. The most exaggerated thing is that Marin looked at the emperor''s eyes, full of fanaticism, and lived off a super loyal supporter who dared to die for the emperor. Most of the onlookers were shocked, and the big princes and the Earl of Frederick werementing in their hearts: "This kid is so good, the skill of ttering is not under the us!" Chapter 33: Officially becoming a knight Chapter 33: Officially bing a knight This oath is good. After the army swore allegiance, use this." After the cool, Maximilian I told the Earl of Terri. "This... not so good..." Count Frederick felt that the oath was too nauseating. Moreover, the phrase "The Emperor''s Order, Above All Truths and Laws" will certainly provoke the imperial parliament''s gangsters to be unhappy. You know, the gang of imperial parliament is the spokesperson of the so-called "empirew." Above thew, it is not to put the Imperial Parliament in the eyes. However, since the emperor is happy, it is so embarrassing. Anyway, the rtionship between the emperor and the imperial council is not good. Moreover, the sry of the emperor''s army is not the burden of the Imperial Parliament. Only when the war is expanded will the Imperial Parliament increase the war tax. With the emperor happy, Marin''s application was simple and passed directly. Although many people are not fair, what can you do? Go against the emperor? Then, with a happy mood, the emperor summoned the so-called "young talent" Marin... Marin really was also a acting school girl meeting her idol. After searching for it, when he boarded the high tform, Marin immediately changed his face. Then, Marin''s pilgrimage, full of admiration, half a squat in front of Maximilian I, to kiss the emperor''s boots - this is the courtesy of the nobles who met the pope. Of course, the knight''s ceremonial ceremonies sometimes appear in this scene, indicating the knight''s surrender and obedience to the lord. Maximilian I was a little bit stunned, and the kiss was the highest courtesy of Christ in the world. This little knight wearing a te armor is so religious? And the side of Hohenzollern, Frederick, secretly pouted - this is really shameless, super shameless, more shameless than this old man. "Get up, my subjects, what is your name?" "Marker''s trainee knight Marin von Hoffman pays tribute to His Majesty the Emperor!" After Marlin stood up, he immediately took his right hand and performed an ancient Roman military ceremony. "this is..." "This is the military ritual of ancient Rome. Since we are the sacred Roman Empire, it is a good fit to carry out this military service." Marin said loudly. In fact, the Holy Roman Empire is neither sacred nor Roman. However, the title of "Roman Emperor" was not self-styled by the Holy Roman Empire, but was given by the Pope of the year. Therefore, from the legal point of view, it is not wrong. "Well, it''s good... yes, young knight, are you still a trainee?" The emperor reacted, such a good talent, is it a trainee knight? Is Count Earl''s eyes good? "This is the case. Your Majesty, the 17-year-old, has not had time to go to the Count of Mark to be sealed. I heard that the Emperor''s troops recruited troops, and the subject hurriedly rushed to Vienna. Later, many people in Vienna did not catch up. So I recruited troops, and simply converted 100 people with more than a month of training..." Marin pretended to be embarrassed. "It''s only 17 years old, no wonder it''s not officially sealed." Maximilian I believed that Marin was the eldest son of the Hoffman family. In fact, Marin was the second son, and there was no qualification to see Earl Mark. "What? You said that you have only trained for 100 people under your hand for more than a month?" Frederick, the Earl of Hohenzollern, was screaming. Originally, Frederick thought that this team was brought from the family by Marin. It should be trained for a long time, otherwise the action would not be so uniform. Unexpectedly, it was only after training for more than a month. Therefore, he was somewhat shocked by Marin''s training ability. "More than a month?" Maximilian I was also a little shocked. He is an emperor who does understand military affairs. Know the difficulty of training. Just let the low-lying soldiers get rid of the left and right, it is estimated that there will be a month, let alone other training. Only the noble children of higher quality are more likely to train. And the aristocratic children, in this year is impossible to be a normal infantry. Therefore, Marin''s ability to train is suddenly more prominent. "This is the case. Your Majesty, I who was born in the knight family, trained martial arts from a young age and learned certain military knowledge. Moreover, I also studied with a great sage who traveled the world. He taught the methods of training." "Oh I got it." "So, how did you make these lowly civilians so obedient in just one month?" Earl Hohenzollern was curious. As a great aristocrat, Frederick II, the Earl of Hohenzollern, looked down on the civilians who were illiterate. He felt that it was quite difficult for those stupid civilians to figure out the various instructions. However, Marin did not want to tell the secret to the Earl of Hohenzollern, but that is his own housekeeping skills. Therefore, he can only obfuscate: "It''s nothing more than a whip and a stick. If you don''tplete the prescribed action, don''t give food to him!" Marlin began to mislead the count. But Frederick really believed. Because the aristocrats now train civilian troops, it is indeed doing this. In his view, Marin is nothing more than a means of a little more, so it works faster. Or, it happens that the people recruited by Marin are more talented. And Emperor Maximilian I suddenly became full of smile: "Knight Marin, you said that you are still a trainee knight, then, how is your martial arts? Are you willing to die for we?" Marin nced, but quickly reacted: "Your Majesty, I have practiced martial arts since childhood. At present, in addition to height and strength, it needs to grow a little more. Others have no problem. The emperor''s will is Marin''s pursuit!" After that, a Roman military ritual was formed again. "Very good, so sad. Marin Knight, we are now officially enshrining you as the royal knight,manding the infantry, are you willing?" Maximilian I said seriously. The reason why Maximilian I was so easy to enshrine Marin was that he had his deliberation, not a casual reward. As a result, he did appreciate fans like Marin. Secondly, it is also done for other aristocrats in the empire - see, for the sake of him, he will not treat him badly... This is somewhat simr to the show of "buy the horse bones", put it into modern times, it is estimated that many people will see through, But in this era, it is still very effective. And Marin, it became the "horse bone" that was bought by the thousand gold. Moreover, Marin''s pledge of ttering is very much in line with the taste of Maximilian I. Although Maximilian I was strong, he was very good. This oath was simply tailored for Maximilian I, and the Emperor was extremely satisfied and nned to promote it. Marlin is the official knight, except for the "golden horses to buy horse bones" to others to see, but also the award of Marin to make such a "good" oath. Marin made a stunned spirit. After reacting, he quickly bent down and thanked him. At the same time, he gave the g bearer Gand a look. Gand was not stupid, and he quickly sent Marin''s rectangr knight g. The banner has a dovetail split at the end, which means it is a trainee knight. The emperor''s attendant also intentionally took out the scissors and cut off the split of the Marin Knight''s g, representing Marin officially upgrading from the trainee knight to the official knight. Then, ording to the routine, Marin swears allegiance to the emperor. The emperor announced the grant of Marin''s cloak, armor and spurs. Of course, there is no scene. Afterwards, Marin will follow the pce to go to the set. At this time, Marin was also a great surprise. This is not, still not fighting, just by wooing the emperor, it was sealed as a knight. If you have a few battles... Marin is afraid to think about it... "It''s no wonder that everyone in the future is so fond of taking the lead and ttering. If you don''t have to do anything, you can get a reward and promotion..." Marin realized. And he looked at the emperor''s gaze, and it was even more zing. The emperor was a cow. With a word, he specially adjusted rank from trainee to official knight. You must know that the whole German, the trainee knight is at least tens of thousands or even more than 100,000. But in the end, there are very few who can be official knight. Marlin, on martial arts, can only be regarded as normal, and it is almost impossible to pass the normal knightpetition and test. However, relying on a shocking and ttering show, he seeded in crossing the gap that many people could not ovee in their lifetime. Marin felt that he was not watching the emperor, but was watching a knight''s book. The emperor, who feels good about himself and has a strong vanity, automatically understands Maring''s radiant eyes as his admiration for himself, like the sinuous Danube water, which is endless. Chapter 34: The raging spear infantry Chapter 34: The raging spear infantry After all, Maximilian I was not an idiot. He was also a very powerful member of the Habsburg family (again, the rest of the Habsburg royal family was not very good), so after he calmed down, he wanted to test One test Marlin. "Young man, how is your mercenary group fighting?" "A proper, tactical training of the mercenary group is specifically for killing Swiss mercenaries!" Marin said confidently. "Really?" Maximilian I got a boost. You know, Swiss mercenaries are the main force in the French army. The Swiss spearmen, not only good at defending the impact of the knight, but also able tounch attacks, can be called the top strength of Europe in this era. Moreover, the emperor himself, and the Swiss mercenaries are also enemies. His father-inw, "Charle the Bold", died in the hands of Swiss mercenaries. The vast territory of the Principality of Burgundy fell into the hands of the French because of the help of the Swiss. Even the Eagleburg, the birthce of the Habsburg family, has fallen into the hands of the Swiss. In fact, the Swiss spearmen from the battle of Nancy, across Europe for decades, until therge-scale use of firearms, the German martial arts soldiers who studied the Spanish phnx to step on the foot (specificmander, for the German mercenary Father, George Frentzberg. In other words, the Swiss spearmen, the melee is very sharp, but afraid of long-range strikes. In particr, the Musket rifle of the Spanish phnx is full of power, even if the Swiss wear the te armor. Marin''s temporary n, although using a bow and arrow instead of a more powerful musket. However, most Swiss spearmen are basically a group of poor ghosts, and they can''t afford expensive armor. (Artim''s note: If you don''t understand, Swiss Merc. at that time liked to wear gambeson, not mail for better maneuvrability) Therefore, the bow and arrow array faces the Swiss spearmen wearing gambeson, and the lethality is not great but okay. When the Swiss spearmen were shot out, it was painful to think of it, and it was not necessary to spend the blood to equip the breastte. At that time, Marin will rece them with the big guns and crush his enemy, see them die before him. (Artim''s note: And hear thementation of their women) In order to verify whether Marin is telling the truth, Earl Hohenzollen decided toe to abat exercise to see if Marin is blowing leather. So Marin went to the recruiting department and took 80 long sticks and took back his 20 hunting bows. "Bows and arrows... Isn''t this thing going to be eliminated? You can''t shoot through the te..." Count said. In Europe, because of the appearance of the te, the bow and arrow killing ability is greatly reduced. Therefore, the bows and arrows are gradually being ignored. There are also battles between low civilians, and bows and arrows are still popr. Because the low-ranking civilian soldiers are not given proper equipment and armor, and the protection of bows and arrows is low. For the nobility and the knights, the threat of bows and arrows is limited. "The Earl, our archer, is not shooting the French Knights of the te, but shooting Swiss mercenaries." Marin reminded. "How?" The emperor was also very curious. "Your Majesty, most of the Swiss mercenaries are poor mountain people. Do they have the money to buy a te?" The emperor and the count shook his head. "That is, these poor ghost Swiss, since they have no money to buy a te, can they withstand the blows of bows and arrows?" The emperor and the count shook his head again. "So, the job is to say that this formation is specifically to restrain Swiss mercenaries." The mercenaries under Marin picked up the sticks as spears, while the arrows of the bows and arrows used the arrows without arrows in the cart. These headless arrows are used by Marin to train these guys in order to avoid casualties during training. Even for safety, these arrows with no head arrows are covered with rags to reduce the impact of shooting. When the two sides arrayed, Count Frederick frowned: "Knight Marin, why is your formation so thin?" Marlin''s formation, including the archers, is only three rows.Therefore, Count Frederick is naturally dissatisfied. "The Earl of the Earl, this knight is also wanting to get it thicker, but unfortunately the money is not enough. You know, this is more than a month, it is hard to be self-sufficient to feed this bunch of balls." Marin said silently. Because of therge amount of training, although Marin took people to hunt, he shared some meat pressure. However, this group of two goods, every day in the meal, still consumes as much as the Marin 4 mark, a full 640 Finney, an average of 6.4 Finney per person per day. At this time, the civilians in the empire earned only 2 Finneys a day. In other words, this group of rice bowls consumes and consumes more than three times a day, which is more than three times the ie of ordinary people. Thinking that Marin was born in a family of knights, it was really not easy to support the 100 mercenary. The emperor and the count did not say anything. In order to show fairness, Count Frederick also sent 100 mercenary spearmen to form the Swiss square, which is simr in thickness to Marin. But before the two sides yed against each other, Marin asked to postpone an hour. Then, the emperor and the count, surprised to see - Marinmanded his men, took out 40 shovel (the emperor and the count did not know this thing), began to dig trenches in front of the array. The emperor and the count came to the front and asked Marin: "Knight Marin, are you digging?" "Yeah, Your Majesty, Earl, the ditch can hinder the enemy''s charge. Whether it is a knight or an infantry, the charge will be blocked." Then, the emperor and the count, in front of Marin''s battlefield, had two trenches separated by just 2 meters. The trench is not deep, but it is wider. It can be expected that after the enemy rushed up, it was impossible to jump over the two wide trenches at once. Then they saw that Marin wasmanding his men, and on the edge of the trench near the battlefield, they were filled with wooden pickets that nted forward. "This is... the way the Englishman confronts the French knight?" Maximilian I had a more eye-catching look. It was a way of seeing that the English Longbows blocked the French Knights. The difference is that the British wooden picket pile is directly inserted in front of the ground. Marin''s wooden tip pile is inserted in the trench. The enemy wants to charge, not only to jump over the ditch, but also to avoid the picket on the ditch, which greatly increases the difficulty. Sure enough, before the exercise began, the German spearmen, led by a Swiss mercenary officer, looked at the two trenches and the tipped piles in the distance, full of embarrassment. At the beginning of the exercise, the teams on both sides were separated by 100 meters. ording to Marin''s request, they are the defensive side, and the opposite 100 spearmen are the offensive side. Their weapons are also wooden sticks without spearheads. When the Swiss officers ordered the attack, the well-trained German spearmen, lined up in a neat team, began to move slowly and forced the Hoffmann mercenary group. After entering the distance of 80 meters, it is estimated that the archer has lethality and has a better hit rate. Under the order of Marin, the 20 archers have shot their arrows. "Ah...ah...ah..." Although there are no arrow head, the arrow head is covered with rags, it is still very painful to shoot on people. In particr, the German spearmen, like the Swiss spearmen, wore very fancy gambeson and could not resist the arrows in the legs and head. If the bow and arrow fall to the body, unless it is in a the gambeson armor, the soldier is judged to be "dead" or "injured" and have to withdraw from the battle. At the distance of 80 meters, the archer''s hit rate is not high, and everyone does not feel embarrassed. At a distance of 70 to 80 meters, the German spears lost only five people. However, after entering within 60 meters, the " casualties" began to increase. Because, this distance, no need to urately shoot to "point kill". At a distance of about 60 meters, a round of arrows fell, and the German spear lost 9 people at once. This is because the merc used the halberd to identally block some of the "arrows." After all, so many halberd, there is also a little defensive area. After entering 50 meters, it is simply giving you head to the butcher. At a distance of 40 to 50 meters, the archers of the Hoffmann Mercenary Corps shot a total of two rounds, and the result was 20 people "killed". When the German spear enters 10 meters, there are only 40 people left in 100. In other words, 60 people were killed in the middle of the road or "out of the battle due to injury". Moreover, many people are not "sentenced" to casualties, but are really injured. After all, the arrow are also hard objects. Under the powerful kic energy, even if the arrow is wrapped in rags, it is very painful to the person, and it isparable to the stone. Some helpless were directly injured by the arrow. "This...the archers are so powerful?" Maximilian I and Frederick Earl were both amazed. The knights wore Gothic te armors and despised the bows. However, the infantry cannot ignore the threat of bows and arrows. Although the Count of Frederickmanded the spearman, it was also poked with the opposite spearman, and did not encounter the archer. Therefore, he has never seen such a strong bow and arrow killing spree. In fact, in this era, apart from the wretched Britain, where there are arge number of archers. In other countries, there are actually no archers on arge scale. Because the archer''s training is as time consuming as the knight. With that leisure time, it is better to train a group of knights. Therefore, there are fewer countries that engage in archers. After all with the te, the protection from the arrows has been greatly improved. Therefore, no one is willing to train the archers inrge numbers. Originally, in the early days of the Anglo-French War, because of the outstanding performance of the English Longbows, many countries imitated the formation of the bow and arrow units. But after the defeat of the English, everyone did not learn, and the temporarily formed bow and arrow units were also disbanded. Forty surviving spearmen, under the leadership of a Swiss officer who survived because of his chest te, began to attack the front line of the Hoffmann Mercenary. However, they rushed to the front, and they were a little dumbfounded. Two wide trenches blocked them. I don''t feel embarrassed in the distance, I really feel the trouble when I really attack. The trenches that Marin dug were not deep, only 40 cm deep, but 2 meters wide. Two 2 m wide trenches, plus a distance of 2 meters between the trenches. In the 6 meters in front of the Hoffman Mercenary Corps, it is "abnormal ground." If you want to rush, you must first go down the first ditch and then climb up. However, both spears (long sticks) are 6 meters in length. The person on his own side, just after climbing the second trench and standing on the 2 meter wide ground between the two trenches, stood still and the "spears" on the other side came over... The warriors of this party have gone to block and open the opposite spear, but the person on their own has just climbed a ditch and has not stood still, and the other spearman has long been waiting for work, how to confront each other? Therefore, there have been a lot of reductions. Well, when the Swiss officers took the remaining 30 people to stabilize on the 2m wide ground, the Hoffmann Mercenary Regiment took a two-step step back and did not give the stable German spears a chance to sumb to each other. . Then, the archer who took a break for a while, once again began to "snap" the opponent in the front row of people who deliberately let go. The German spearman, for the wooden tip piles in the ground, is also very ipetent. Go to the picket, and the opposite spear will definitely take you off. Not only that, but if you want to pull the picket pile, you have to get to the second ditch. You are in the ditch, and the opposite is just the next to you, shoot you. If you don''t remove the picket, you can''t move on. The Swiss officer who responded, hurriedly took the team and went to the left. However, he has only 20 people left in his hands. He is on the left, but the number of the two sides is already seriously different. At this time, Marin directly waved, all members of the Hoffmann Mercenary Corps quickly turned the team, with a nice formation change, facing the remaining 20 German halberdier. Then, everyone keeps the formation and embraces the other people''s remnants. Finally, only 10 people on Marin''s side are killed because the martial arts can''t match the veterans, and they are caught by the other wooden stick. "It''s a massacre!" the emperor eximed. "Yes, soldiers who don''t wear te armor are really hard to resist the bow and arrow. But if it''s rushing to the front, the archers are not used." "Oh, Frederick, haven''t you seen it? Your spearman can''t kill the archer. Because they can stand two rows of spearmen in front of them." "That''s also true, but, in the real battle, the strength is far more than that. There are only two rows of spearmen in front, which is far from enough to protect the archers." "Marin also said that he has no money, so he only recruited such a person. If there are enough people, I think he will definitely not put such a person in front?" "Maybe." "The defensive tactics of the two ditches are also very good, it is difficult to make a breakthrough. Even if the knight charge, it is extremely difficult to break through." "This is true, but you can go around the nk. It was like the Swiss did at the end." "Well, that''s right. But let''s ask knight Marin first, see how he responds to the enemy''s nking!" Chapter 35: Proxy Square leader Chapter 35: Proxy Square leader Marlin is actually somewhat dissatisfied with this exercise. As for what is dissatisfied with it? Mainly the group of archers. In fact, the archer''s killing is great. Even if there is no arrow head, the simple arrow body can hurt people within 50 meters. However, his gangsters and archers were scared by the emperor''s prestige. During the exercise, they left their hands and did not dare to hurt the emperor''s mercenaries. Therefore, when killing within 50 meters, everyone did not dare to pull the bowstring to the end, lest they "temporary workers" hurt those "official workers". Otherwise, when the other 100 people rushed to 10 meters before, there are absolutely no more than 40 people, and at most 20 people will be lucky. In this regard, Marin decided to collectively punish the archers afterwards. But the emperor suddenly called, he had to deal with the emperor first. "Congrattions, knight Marin, your military talent make we stunned." "Thank you for yourpliment!" Marin began to think modestly, but suddenly remembered that this is Europe, not China, and does not need modesty. So he changed his mouth. "You are indeed very talented, knight Marin, your defense line between the two trenches is really difficult to break. I want to ask is, if youmand aplete square, the enemy will wrap around the nks from the beginning, avoiding you. What do you do with the trenches and the pickets?" Earl Frederick asked seriously. "Prince, if Imand aplete square, if my square is alone against the enemy, I will dig all the trenches in all four directions, and no one can rush in. If my square is not Fighting the enemy alone, my nk, there will definitely be friendly protection, don''t worry about that." "This is also the case, this kind of defense, the enemy is really difficult to break through. But what if the enemy has artillery?" "Your Majesty?" The count understands the emperor. "Yes, how can the human body resist the shells? If my army is alone against the enemy, when the enemy fires, I will let everyone kneel and avoid the shelling. When the enemy infantryes up, continue to fight. Because when the enemy artillery is fired, the enemy infantry will not charge, so as not to identally injure its own allies." "If your phnx is with the friendly army?" "That would have to listen to the leadermand. After all, the battlefield still has to watch the leader move." Marin looked at Count Frederick, knowing that he was afraid that he would not listen to themand, so he simply said that he loves to listen. Sure enough, Count Frederick was very satisfied after listening to the nod. "However, Marin Knight, your phnx seems to have only defensive functions, no offensive function?" asked Emperor Maximilian I. Maximilian I knew the military very well. He saw that he dug the trench and blocked both the enemy and himself. If you give up the trench, the defensive ability will be greatly reduced. "Yes, Your Majesty, for now, this phnx does not have any sharp offensive means. The specific method, I am thinking about it..." Marin said honestly. "You are honest!" The emperor smiled. "How can a lie be before the emperor?" Marin said seriously, and made the emperor''s heart dark. Western emperors and kings are not the same as the East. The Eastern rituals are strict, and the lowest-level aristocrats like Marin speak in the East and the emperor. They don''t have the qualifications to stand up, and they can''t even look directly at the emperor''s face. Because the Eastern Emperor is in power and is in charge of the life and death of the world. In the West, the emperor and the king are only the biggest lords. Even because the taxw is not perfect, once the war is over, the emperor and the king even ask the lower aristocrats to raise taxes to help them through the difficulties. Therefore, in Europe, the emperor is not so high in front of the lower aristocrats. Of course, in the presence of serfs and civilians, the emperor and the king must be high. The existence of the aristocratic parliament made it impossible for the emperor to offend the aristocratic ss. Otherwise, want to increase taxes to deal with the war? Everyone voted against you to stop you. Moreover, in the Middle Ages, most ordinary people were illiterate. The emperor wants to hire an official and must rely on the noble ss with the highest literacy rate. In the East, although the literacy rate is not high, the emperor can choose to choose talents from the civilians who study. Therefore, the Eastern emperor can suppress the nobility as he pleases, andunch a noon dagger with a little resistance. The Western emperor must rely on the aristocratic ss, otherwise the state can''t do it. The Holy Roman Emperor was actually a hard-working emperor. It sounds like the emperor''s name is rtively high, standing above the king. But in fact, the Holy Roman Emperor, like Zhou Tianzi of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, did not have the power. But better than Zhou Tianzi, the Holy Roman Emperor had at least his own rtivelyrge direct territory like Austria. And Maximilian I, through marriage, took control of the Principality of Burgundy, which is no less than Austria. Therefore, the difference between the Holy Roman Emperor and Zhou Tianzi is that the emperor itself is also a powerful lord who can participate in hegemony. In fact, the authority of the Holy Roman Emperor is far worse than the French King. After all, France began with Charles VII, with a regr tax, making the King''s money bag much stronger than the Emperor. Moreover, after several generations of kings'' efforts, the French kings regained the privileges and strengthened it''s centralization. If there wasn''t a strong enemy like the United Kingdom in the north of France, and a strong country like Spain in the southwest, it is possible that France has the conditions to eat into the princes of the Holy Roman Empire. Later, in the 17th century, France also eroded the territory of the Holy Roman Empire, that is, Alsace and Lorraine. After the "Thirty Years War", the French took advantage of the weakness of the Empire, cutting away the rich Alsace, and Lorraine, thergest iron ore mine in Europe. It is precisely because of this that it has caused the grievances of Germany and France for hundreds of years. Of course, Maximilian I is also the only Emperor in Europe in this era. As far as reputation is concerned, the emperor is obviously higher than the French king. In France, there is a traditional enemy in the north, the British ind and in the south Spain, and I have not yet tossed it, and I am going to Italy. Therefore, although France''s financial situation is very good, it is difficult to achieve what it is to be achieved by being gang up. ... Maximilian I found himself admiring this little knight who was "loyal" to himself, but his heart was somewhat tangled. why? This has to mention some of the habits of Europeans in this era. In medieval Europe - even in the 18th century, the officers in the army were generally aristocrats, and there was basically no possibility of civilians serving as officers. Of course, those "civilians" who are born in aristocratic families are excluded. Those nobles who were born in aristocratic families but could not inherit the title have a very special title in Germany - Edler (Junker in Prussia). Strictly speaking, Marin is an Edler. By convention, the highestmander of the Imperial Army is generally the Duke or the title of the Earl. Themanders of the following regiments and phnxes are generally barons (the empire has no viscount level, only the Nethend and Lombardy regions have the title of deputy count, which can be used as a viscount). Maximilian I believes that Marin is capable ofmanding a square. However, Marin''s identity is too low, it is a young man who has just been promoted to the official knight. The knight, in the Imperial Army, generally serve as apany (about 250 people) and a team (usually about 25 people). What''s more, Marlin is not a veteran knight, just a new knight. Moreover, Marin''s team did perform well in the exercise, but the emperor did not dare to guarantee that Marin''s mercenary group could guarantee such a sharpness in the real war. After all, the real war must face the test of death. Excellent performance in training and exercises, may be a mess after the actual war. Maximilian I can''t lift Marin to the Baron, but he also needs to consider the feelings of other nobles. And appointing a knight as the leader of the party, it does break the tradition. But the emperor thought twice and decided to give it a try. Because he is engaged in a mercenary system in the empire, it is against the tradition. Therefore, he does not mind to vite it once again. Of course, he can''t do too much. In the end, the emperor appointed Marin as the acting leader, responsible for a infantry phnx of more than 1,000 people. As for the source of the soldiers, they are directly selected from the recruitment site. The reason for adding a "Proxy Square Leader" in front is to avoid angering the veterans. If Marin''s ability is strong enough to perform well in the next battle, the emperor will reward him, he can be promoted as a baron, and will be appointed as the official leader. However, if Marin''s performance is not good, the emperor canpletely remove the position of Marin''smander and reduce it to thepany''s captain. Of course, the premise is that Marin was still alive. Chapter 36: Personnel Arrangement Chapter 36: Personnel Arrangement After bing the proxy leader, Marlin was very excited. The number of people in a phnx is over a thousand, and it ister, equivalent to a group. In other words, Marin became the middle-ranking officer equivalent to the head of the team. Prior to this, Marin was just a poor wandering knight without inheritance. We must know that ording to the level algorithm ofter generations of China, the head of the group is equal to the county magistrate. This made Marlin, who had never been a squad leader in the past, excited. But he soon knew that there was no free lunch in the world. Soon, the Emperor and the Earl of Hohenzollern both brought sand to his square. Marin''s phnx isposed of fourpanies, each with a team of 250 to 300. And even the captain, not civilians can be. Under Marin, there is no knight suitable for this level. Therefore, the emperor sent two knights from Austria, who were directly affiliated to the Habsburg family, very kindly, indicating that they would serve aspanymanders. At the same time, the Count of Hohenzollern, Frederick II, also sent a knight from his count to serve as thepanymander. In other words, thepanymander of the fourpany, the emperor and the count will have to go three, leaving only one to Marin himself. In fact, doing so is already a face for Marin. If you don''t give face, the four captains'' positions will not be left to Marin. The emperor, in order to express his support, allowed Marin to use the penalty if thepany leader did not listen to the order. Of course, if you want to dismiss or execute, you must negotiate with the Habsburg family. In fact, the emperor and the count are not trying to control this small square. Instead, the two amnestys are interested in how Marin has trained a group of people in a more than a month. They sent people to actually "stole the teachings." You must know that in the empire, there are many people in the empire. If Marin''s training method is known, you can immediately pull out tens of thousands of people and train like the 100 people of Marin''s men. Who canpete with the Empire? Marin thought for a night and seemed to figure out the truth. Therefore, he decided to leave a hand for a while. Since the Spanish phnx has been taken out, there is no need to hide it. As for discipline training, look at it. Anyway, people of this age are less concerned about the requirements of discipline. They are more concerned with personal martial arts, simr to the ancient Chinese. After all, the benefits of strict discipline have to be seen on the battlefield. The personal bravery can be seen whenparing. As for the number of captains that the emperor left for Marin himself, Marin thought about it and decided to hand it to Schwartz. Schwartz is a descendant of aristocrats with surnames. Although it is not a nobleman, it is also known as Edler with a surname. Unlike serfs who only names have no surnames. Moreover, Schwartz himself has a good martial arts, and in his own training, he learned riding and horse fighting. Now, Schwartz''s horse fighting ability is no longer under Marin. Said that he is a knight, basically no one doubts. Because the Cavaliers are not blowing out of their own. The knight must first have a good martial arts. The civilians want to wear the knight. In addition, the most important thing is that Schwartz is a literate person. As a descendant of the knight, although Schwartz did not have a horse, he did not have a horse battle, but he also epted the family''s cultural education from an early age. Even the basic theoretical education of some simple militarymanders was epted. And this is something that Marin does not have. To this end, Marin dered that Schwartz is a knight apprentice recruited by himself and belongs to the trainee knight. Then, Marin personally saved the money, bought a set of half-old te armor, and equipped Schwartz. As for the horses, Schwartz is still riding the horse. Anyway, Marin is letting him be the captain of the infantry. It is not to let him go to be a cavalry. The problem of horses is not noticeable. Marin and Schwartz in secret made the servant and master ceremony and changed to apprenticeship. At the same time, Schwartz swore allegiance to Marin and signed the contract (Marin as a modern man, does not believe that the swearing of the mouth, but more trust in contracts and contracts). After arranging his identity for Schwartz, Marin announced that hispany''s first team leader, Schwarz Lange. Then, Marin sessively appointed Bowen Gardner, Hite Basque and Piaget sent by the emperor to be the captains of the second, third and fourthpany. As for the following captains (25 yers per squad, all bats totaling more than 40 squads), Marin is also a crony, and selected 25 outstanding guys from the previous 100. In addition to the 10 captains belong to the firstpany of Schwartz. The remaining 15 people were noisy in otherpanies. Basically, the other threepany leaders can only appoint half of the captains. This method can not only ensure that the other threepanies do not deviate from their own control, but also enable these experienced "old people" to "help" (torture) the newly formedpany toplete the training. After all, these 25 people are already familiar with the "Marvin training method". In addition, with the square array, it is necessary to select the standard bearer. The standard-bearer is very important on the battlefield. Otherwise, there will be no saying in the ancient times that "the cricket will capture the g." Marin originally intended to make Kahn the g bearer, but Kahn himself was not happy. He said that it is still a messy stick that makes it easy. Take a g that can''t beat people, he will feel itchy. In desperation, Marin had to choose the honest and strong attendant Gand to serve as the g bearer. Marin''s several attendants, Schwartz became thepany''s captain, Sauer became a scout, Tara became the squad leader, and Kahn had to fight, and Gand had nothing to do. Moreover, although Gand is not in good condition, it is honest and reliable. Moreover, this little guy is also courageous. And, in the previous training, Gand has been the g bearer. Therefore, let him be the standard bearer, it is just right. As for the second man, Kahn, Marin thought about it and decided to stay with him as a bodyguard. This man has a strong ability to fight, and the mace is so hot that Schwartz can''t afford it. Specifically, he can be made into a kind of bodyguard like the Dian Wei of Cao Cao. As for the quartermasters of the phnx, it is natural that Kohler has the job. For others, mathematics is not good. However, my mathematics has reached a very high level, but I personally went to ount, and some of them fell. Afterpleting the personnel arrangement, Marin went to the recruitment site and personally selected the soldiers. Of course, as a younger generation, those veteran Imperial officers must choose a warrior before him. In desperation, Marin had to follow the previous method to select those brave young people who were "honest and sturdy", not afraid of injury, and not easily admit defeat. Marin first selected 800 people, and then he nned to pick the archers. But what made him depressed was that many archers were happy and came back after thest time, and there were not many hunters to apply this time. Even if he is a regr leader, he is a formal official, and he only recruits 80 archers in total. Count the original 20 people. In other words, Marin''s hand is only has 100 archers. He is also helpless, even if he goes to the Earl of Hohenzollern, it is useless. Because there are not many archers in the German region. The hunters who shoot so badly can fully support their own family and there is no need to be a soldier. There are not many young people who apply for shooting. After all, they were disappointedst time, and is no longering this time. The emperor, no longer because of the division of Marin, the archer of the district, will once again make an order. Therefore, Marin can only make use of the 100 archers first. Then, Marin went to the contest, and selected more than 200 people, and added the number of squares to 1,100. After the number of people was added, Marin summoned fourpany leaders to divide the soldiers together. Starting from the firstpany of Schwarz, severalpany captains went to pick soldiers. Of course, Schwartz naturally took advantage of the pick and pick because of the first pick. The other three, although unhappy, are nominally subordinate and cannot be said. As for the 100 archers, a bow and arrow brigade was set up separately, and the best hunter named Kovacs served as the captain, also known as the chief of the sergeant. The reason for this arrangement is that there are very few nobles who are skilled in archery. Only those hunters are proficient in this. After the team was built, Marin applied to the emperor''s quartermaster for a batch of white cloth, all made into a vest, and painted a square ck cross. In this way, the ck cross white vest became the biggest feature of Marin''s square. Marin''s phnx waster called the "ck Cross Array". After the recruitment of all the second batch of mercenaries, all the phnxes, lined up, and held a grand oath of allegiance at the South Gate Square in Vienna. Everyone used the oath that Marin had made before the Emperor''s ttering, and in the presence of the emperor,pleted the oath of allegiance. After the ceremony, Marin arrived in the mountainous area of the south of Vienna in ordance with the arrangement and trained. Only after the emperor and other countries negotiated, they all marched into Italy. Chapter 37: Establishment of the Holy Alliance Chapter 37: Establishment of the Holy Alliance Upon arriving in the mountains to the south of Vienna, Marin immediately sent people to cut trees and build tents. Then Marin began to promote grass shoes in the entire phnx. When they heard that the hay can weave the city shoes, all the neers who just joined the "ck Cross Square" are very curious. Whenfortable and lightweight sandals are put on, many people feel good, except for the three knights. After all, people are born to the knights of the big forces, some are wearing leather shoes, naturally do not wear sandals with those civilians. After the sandals are made, it is naturally a formation training. Marin did not hide the private, directly divided the entire phnx into four groups (the archers were additionally grouped) ording to the weaving of fourpanies, and conducted queue training. The first requirement for formation training is to let the soldiers distinguish between left and right. Then, the recruits were surprised to find that the veterans asked them to take off their right foot shoes... "Shoes!" The squad leaders shouted, and the recruits stepped out their left foot. "Foot!" The recruits mmed back into their left foot and stretched out their right foot... Repeatedly, it took only 3 days for a short time, and everyone had a deep understanding of the left and right. Of course, Marin asked the captains to gradually use "left" and "right" instead of "shoes" and "foot". For a while, it still needs to be mixed. The knight by the emperor and the count was loyal. When the recruitspletely separated the left and right, the report on the quick training methods of the left and right was sent to the emperor and the count. "This Marin, still very clever, even thought of such a strange idea, it seems that the effect is quite good..." Maximilian I was very interested. So he printed this method in a booklet and distributed it to the officers who came from the Habsburg family territory. And the Count of Hohenzollern is also very impressed: "I didn''t expect such a small change, so that the group of stupid people like pigs can be separated so quickly? The general officer can''t necessarily make a month." In this middle age, where the cultural level is generally low. It is not easy to make it easy for the people to distinguish between them. In fact, distinguishing between this issue seems to be a minor problem. The outbreak of war can be full of suddenness. If a group of recruits is recruited, it will be a waste of time for the month to distinguish between the two, and it will greatly dy the aircraft. You know, during the Napoleonic Wars, when the French army mobilized troops, the average training time was only about two weeks, and they would be dragged onto the battlefield. If you spend a month on the left and right, then the day lily is already cold. Since the team was mixed spies, Marin did not intend to expose his knowledge. Therefore, he gave up the agitation speech and flicker that he made every day when he started training the 100 people, but instead changed to a stick to drive. Anyway, he is now an imperial military officer, and there is nothing wrong with ying new recruits. Unlike the original, he only temporarily summoned 100 people. Those who are dissatisfied and can leave at any time can only squat. And these empire recruits, even if they are paralyzed, these people generally do not leave. Under the demonstration and help of the 100 veterans trained before Marin, these recruits have made rapid progress. After all, the power of role models is endless. Before Marin, he did not practice his own soldiers. The days he trained the 100 veterans were called hardships. At this moment, Schwartz and the 25 captains are all skilled in training. Moreover, the requirements for Marin training have also decreased. Before that, the 100 people had two 5km trails running every day. Now, these recruits only need one 5km per day. Therefore, the three knights sent by the emperor and the Earl, what they saw, were the old men of Marin, who were beating new recruits and abusing new recruits. Moreover, even if the recruits want to resist, Marin is not afraid. His 100 veterans, but more than these novices. Under Marin''s training, These veterans, the fights are all quickly formed, and initially learned the "cheats" of the group after the division. If the recruits are troublesome, they will not make trouble together, and the most part will be dissatisfied. And these people can''t turn over the waves. In this way, Marin spent the entire March, watching the old men beating new recruits. But Tara and his leading ss gave the soldiers a lot of surprises. Even the food that Marin couldn''t stand was very good in the recruits, including the three knights. Tara, their cooking is very exaggerated, directly using the engineering shovel to stir-fry, seeing Marin got straight headache. Fortunately, Tara, under the strict requirements of Marin, washed the engineers before cooking. Moreover, the engineers shovel that is used for the horse manure are absolutely not allowed to use the cooking. And Marin, in order to make everyone convinced, also eat big pot dishes with everyone. And, every morning, Marin trains the formation with everyone. Only 5km off-road in the afternoon, he will bezy. Every day during the day, these new recruits are tossed to death. In the middle of the night, they are also not easy. Once the birch whistle sounds, they must quietly re-arrange the formation at the door of the barracks as quickly as possible. Therefore, everyone isining. However, the veterans who have long been ustomed to Marin abuse are ustomed to it. Even when they undressed, they only took off their coats, and some simply did not take off. Once they heard the whistle, they put on their shoes, put on their coats and vests, and put them together with a spear. What makes Marin strange is that night blindness seems to be rare in Europe. But when ites to European recipes, Marin is relieved. Europeans eat more meat and often drink milk and eat cheese. These are all rich in vitamin A. Therefore, Europeans who suffer from night blindness, even less. Therefore, in the middle of the night emergency collection, there is not much problem. The information of Marin training was constantly sent to the desk of the emperor and the count. The two big men''sments on Marin were -- a brutal officer who likes to abuse soldiers. However, it is very brainy and can invent a way to quickly identify the left and right direction... In addition, Marin''s "invented" sandals attracted great interest from the emperor. Because the emperor found that sandals are very economical. For a poor emperor like him, saving money is absolutely attractive to him. The Earl of Hohenzollern is a pure officer, not so sensitive to the role of sandals. When the new recruits were abused on Marin, the Italian side also exploded. On the Apennine penins, the Frenchman, who directly upies one of Italy''s five major powers (the Papal States, the Vian Republic, Florence, the Duchy of Mn, and the Kingdom of Naples), did not encounter much resistance. The French''s crushing posture scared the Italian states. The Italian power ruler headed by Venice, the Papal States and the Principality of Mn. You know, Florence and Naples are both one of Italy''s top five powers. Unexpectedly, these two Italian powers were conquered by the French. Moreover, to the shame of the Pope, the French army entered Rome, intimidating the Pope to crown Charles VIII as the King of Naples. Obviously, this is a forced force, not the will of the Pope. Throughout Italy, only the two powers of Venice and Mn were not attacked by the French. In fact, this is also because the French have a clear goal, go straight south, and ignore the Principality of Mn and the Republic of Venice. In order to prevent the French from destroying themselves, the Venice, the Papal States and the Principality of Mn formed a self-protection alliance on March 31, 1495, the "Holy Alliance." At the same time as the alliance, the three countries also sent messengers to invite the traditional enemy of the French, the Holy Roman Empire and Spain to join the alliance. In fact, whether it is the Holy Roman Empire or Spain, it is very dissatisfied and very worried about the French annexing the Kingdom of Naples and controlling Florence. France itself is very strong. If Italy is the most affluent and rich region in Europe (Italian agriculture andmerce, now ranked first in Europe), the Holy Roman Empire and Spain will face being shackled by France. Dilemma. To this end, both the Holy Roman Empire and Spain responded positively. However, because of theck of money, the god of the poor king of the gods, Maximilian I, was half-pushing. You can see that the French have sessfully controlled Naples, no casualties, Maximilian I also put down the restraint, and soon with Spain, joined the "sacred" against the French invasion of Italy alliance". In April, the Holy Roman Empire brought together 1,000 heavy cavalry and 10,000 infantry, including Marin''s "ck Cross phnx", and began to cross the Alpes Mountains, to Venice, Italy, and meet the Vian. Venice, the Principality of Mn and the Papal States also began recruiting local Italian mercenaries and some Swiss mercenaries. The governor of Spain, Ferdinand II (King of Aragon, the husband of Queen Isabe of Castile), also began recruiting troops in the country. Spain is the least prepared in several countries because they are the farthest from Italy. Moreover, Spain is divided into two countries - Aragon and Casti. The Aragonese kingdom, which is close to Italy, is very active in blending into the Italian war. Because the King of Aragon, Ferdinand II, is more far-sighted and knows that he cannot sit and watch the French strong. However, the nobles of the Kingdom of Castile are more opposed to tearing their faces with France. They are worried that if the intervention fails, the war will be burned to the border between the West and France. However, Ferdinand II insisted that with so many countries, the failure of the French is affirmative and there will be no more ability to fight back.Moreover, not only the five countries participating in the League, but also the other Italian states, seeing the strength of the "Sacred Alliance", and seeing the wind and the rudder, joined them and expressed their willingness to send troops to participate in the war. It seems that the situation is very good. Marlin, who is familiar with history, can''t help but see this patchwork of coalition forces... Chapter 38: Problems are showing Chapter 38: Problems are showing ording to the history Marin knows, the coalition forces will spend a long time gathering the army. It was not until the French went north that the initial gathering of more than 30,000 troops. Originally, the leader of this coalition should be the highest-ranking Emperor Maximilian I (the Pope is not a secr monarch, and it is impossible to lead the troops personally). However, the sad reminder of Maximilian I was trapped in Vienna (the imperial city, one of the points of the Imperial Parliament), and quarreled with the guys in the Imperial Parliament. When the French team left north, the emperor was still quarreling in Vienna. Even because the emperor did not arrive, the tens of thousands of troops of the Empire did not specifically participate in the Battle of Fornovovo, which was intercepted by the French army. At the same time, the Spanish army led by Gonzalo de Crdoba, in Sicily, peeked at the Neapolitan border, but did not dare tond in Naples, and the French were hard. So, in fact, the Battle of Fornovovo was actually yed by the Italian coalition forces. The name of themander of the battle is the Marquis of Mandova, Gonzaga. However, the Marquis of Gonzaga had insufficient prestige and was mediocre and could notmand the coalition forces smoothly. Therefore, the coalition forces rushed to intercept the French army in the absence of directmand. There are few French soldiers, and they are not willing to die against the coalition forces, and they can''t afford to join in. As a result, the French lost a lot of spoils robbed in Italy and rushed to the French territory. In this way, the two sides actually yed a simr match. King Charles VIII sessfully withdrawn. Afterwards, both sides dered that they had won. However, no one has enough evidence to exin. In fact, the real situation is that the French broke through the defense line of the coalition and fled back to the country, but lost all the heavy infanty and looted property. The coalition interception failed, but it seized a lot of supplies. In particr, when Charles VIII deliberately sprinkled their plundered treasure on the road, the coalition cavalry were busy rushing to grab property, and they would not chase the Frenchman at all. Moreover, Marin once heard of a saying that syphilis seems to have erupted in Naples during this war. The reason why Charles VIII fled back to France, in fact, arge part of the reason is to avoid this rampant syphilis. At the same time, the Neapolitans also lead guerri warfare against the French army under the leadership of the King of Fernando of Naples, consuming the power of the French army. Under multiple strikes, and the sacred alliance threatened to cut off the alliance of the French returning troops, Charles VIII ordered to return to the north with the main force in panic. Moreover, the main force of the withdrawal was mainly 8000 French Knights. The reason why the Chavaliers were on the road is because the horses are not very good at sea. For example, infantry can return by French boat. However, cavalry is more difficult. First of all, a boat is going to upy the position of several people. Moreover, horses need a lot of grain. Plus the horses have sea sickness. Therefore, loading 8,000 horses is very difficult and difficult. Because, at this time in Europe, there has not been designed a ship that specializes in the shipment of horses (there are many separatepartments of the ship, and Zheng He has a special boat for the horses in the Western Seas). Horses can''t be put together for a long time. When the horse owner is present, the horses are often obedient. But if the owner leaves, it is hard to say. The character of the war horse is often much more intense than the work horse. If the two horses are put together, if the master is not there, they will easily fight each other. For example, biting each other with their mouth and kicking the hooves together can easily cause horse injuries. And if the stallion (not castrated) and the maree together, it will waste physical strength to do that shameful thing. Therefore, between the war horses, it is best not to put them together to avoid the two animals. Because of this, those who are squatting are usually only one horse in eachpartment. If you want to ship the horses, the ship must first be modified to make a barrier like in the stable to avoid contact between the horses. If a group of horses are put on the deck, and overnight, there will be some horses injured in the mutual shackles. If it is a few hundred horses, Charles VIII may ship to the country on a partial shipment. But 8,000 horses are not well ced. Therefore, he simply returned to France with 8,000 heavy cavalry. In fact, the 8000 heavy cavalry does not only have 8,000 horses. In addition, they usually have another horse to ride the road. The war horses usually ride on the charge before the war, and will not be used to hurry the armor, avoiding the horses in the war without physical strength. In this way, Charles VIII''s cavalry had at least 16,000 horses. Therefore, he had to return home bynd. Otherwise, there are not as many ships to ship. At the same time, the powerful Vian Navy, which has bypassed the Apennine penins, appeared on the route from Naples to France and began to block the route. If you are taking the sea, it is impossible for Charles VIII to be sank by the Vian Navy. Therefore, from a safety point of view, it is better to take thend. ... At the end of April, the 11,000-strong army of the Holy Roman Empire, under the personal leadership of the Emperor, came to Venice and met with Venice representative. Of course, the emperor also has the meaning of letting Venice help buy a part of the upkeep. In addition, Venice also gathered 10,000 mercenaries; the nobles of the Italian states also brought 4,000 heavy armored infantry; while the Duchy of Mn sent a total of 6,000 light cavalry (not The regr cavalry of the rushing array) cooperates. Under the joint efforts of several parties, the number of coalition forces has exceeded 30,000. In addition, the Spanish army also arrived in Sicily on the sea to Naples, with thousands of people. This group of people is enough to deter the French army of Naples, so that the French must split arge number of forces to guard the Spaniards. As for the Papal State, although a number of mercenaries were recruited, the Papal State bordered Naples. Therefore, the army recruited by the Papal State had to defend severalrge cities such as Rome to prevent the French from breaking in and looting. You know, the French people killed along the way, do not know how many towns have been looted, it is simply scraping three feet. Before, Charles VIII did not rob Rome, it is because he needs the Pope to appoint him as the king of Naples. Now, the Papal State has publicly stood on the opposite side of France. If you are not careful, the French army will break through Rome ande to do a robbery. The Pope of Rome and the bishops, are mostly a very rich local tyrant. If they were robbed by France, then you can just cry? Therefore, the army of the Papal State could not participate in the League, they were directly used to defend Rome. From all of the nation who participated in the League of Nations, the highest status, naturally is Maximilian I who is the emperor. As the highest-ranking and military-minded professionals, everyone unanimously elected Maximilian I as themander of the coalition, responsible for intercepting and even destroying the French army. In addition to the emperor as the help of: the Marquis of Mandova, Gonzaga and themander of Venice, Nikolo Pitti, served as the deputy of the emperor. In fact, this appointment is a bad thing. It is precisely because of this mon" word that the two people coordinated difficulties in the Battle of Fornov, and dyed the fighters to some extent. The Emperor, after the sess of the League, and got the position of themander of the coalition, he even ran back to the country, and quarreled with the princes of the domestic imperial parliament to ask for money. Until now, the princes of the empire are still quarreling over whether or not to participate in the Italian war. The emperor wanted to raise taxes, and the door did not. If the Imperial Parliament approves the tax increase early, the emperor may have gathered 20,000 troops to go to Italy to fight for a one-time disability. However, it is almost impossible for the empire parliament to unite when they are not at home. Usually, for a little bit of trivial things, you can also argue for a few days. At the same time, they are also afraid that Maximilian I will take this opportunity to grow himself a stong army. Although Maximilian I was capable, but he is limited by the power of the emperor, he also had no way to order or impose his will to the dukes and counts in the territory. As for Marin and the 11,000-strong imperial army, it was thrown into Venice, and was temporarily led by the emperor''s deputy, Earl Alfred, a member of the Habsburg family from Styria, Austria. However, Marin, who has been mixed in the imperial system for more than a month, heard that the Earl of Alfred was mediocre tactian and courageous man. However, because he was born in the Habsburg family in the Styrian region of Austria, he was more loyal to the emperor, so he was entrusted to the army tomand power. As for the emperor''s most reliant Earl Hohenzollen, Frederick II, he would stay in the country,mand the army, and guard against Hungarians. After all, when the Habsburg family''s nest was taken over by the Hungarians, it was the scar in the heart of the Habsburgs. Even if he sent troops to Italy, Maximilian I did not dare to give up the vignce against the Hungarians. In the days that followed, Count Alfred took the Empire army in Venice and waited for the return of the emperor. As for Marin, he took his square and practiced basic skills and was ready to fight. Chapter 39: Night Battle Training Chapter 39: Night Battle Training Marin is an ambitious person. Unlike the Earl Alfred, in order to achieve ambition, Marin must have outstanding performance in the war. Therefore, from the time of arriving in Italy, Marin began to n various matters. In fact, Marin knows the course of the war in the original history, and can also propose some targeted programs. However, Marin did not do anything and did not show himself in front of themander. Because he was afraid of his own intervention, which led to changes in the war process. In that case, his prophetic senses have lost their effect. Therefore, Marin has never said anything, just to see the princes of the League will have a heated discussion and quarrel. Seeing this group of princes, Marin suddenly remembered the plot of the princes and warlord against Dong Zhuo. The scene in front of him and the Coalition against Dong Zhuo are simr. The same multi-channel "tycoon" gathers, the same arrogance, the same anti-Dong (French) failure... Even Charles VIII and Dong Zhuo are running safely and directly. The road is the same. Every time he opened an officer''s meeting, Marin, as the lowest-level party leader who attended the meeting, sat in the corner and traveled the world without saying anything. And the Earl Alfred did not know what was going on, and he did not have the same desires. Even if the Vian and the Mandovars were forced to work there, they sat silently on the side to "make soy sauce". Marin seems to think that he is in the Mn fashion show, a group of Italians are squatting in the show and their Italian, Marin can''t understand. Marin only knows German, English, Latin and Frisian (very close to English, taught by Mrs. Mary). For Italian, it is seven miles. Don''t look at Latin and Italian from Italy. However, the two belong to two dialects withrge differences and different times, and it is difficult tomunicate with each other. Therefore, Marin can only silently watch the group of Italians using Italian dialects to force the bragging, just like thest time watching Hong Kong people use Cantonese in the film, he can''t understand it. Marin didn''t bother to listen to Italy''s bragging, but recalled the only general battle of the coalition and the French army - the specific plot of the Battle of Fornov. Marin remembers that during the war, the French had 8,000 French heavy cavalry and 4,000 Swiss spearmen. However, when Charles VIII marched in the past, he lost all the heavy artillery, but he was reluctant to leave the treasures of gold and silver. Charles VIII is not a normal person. When he discovered that the French army was stopped by thirty or fifty thousand coalition forces, in order to prevent the enemy from relying on the quantitative advantage, he refused to be stopped so he ordered to leave the gold and silver treasures in the road to France. When the light cavalry of the 6,000 coalition forces saw the gold and silver treasures on the ground, they refused to go to the French army, but they went down to pick gold and silver treasures. Then, the coalition attack n failed, and the French army also escaped their doom. The problem of gold and silver treasures, Marin does not care. He is a mercenary, in order to earn a title, not for money. Besides, if you want to make money, is he a modern man afraid of no idea? Therefore, Marin secretly decided that he must make great efforts in this battle, so that he can change the his rank with the emperor. ording to memory, in the battle, the Swiss blocked the impact of the Vian infantry, while the light cavalry of Mn was busy picking the treasure. However, Charles VIII was not willing topete with the coalition forces. So, on the night of July 6, he left the 4000 Swiss Spearman, and he stayed upte, with 8000 French heavy cavalry escaping overnight. Moreover, Marin recalled that it seemed that there had been heavy rain that afternoon, and the road was definitely not good. If Charles VIII wants to run around the clock, he must not take the path. Because his heavy cavalry is not suitable for taking the path. Then, Marin can be sure that that night, Charles VIII''s heavy cavalry group must have escaped along the road. At night, everyone could not see clearly. Marin estimated in his heart whether he could fish in this battle and even stop the French cavalry group. After repeated spection, Marin felt that he seemed to be able to take the opportunity to stop the French cavalry group. At the moment, Marin also has 1100 soldiers in his hand. Although he is iparable with the French 8000 cavalry, he can''t attack it. However, it is still barely able to do so by obeying the intersection and blocking the pace of the French withdrawal. The most important thing is that the French lost all the artillery. Without the artillery, the cavalry could not break through the spear. In addition, he will also arrange double gullies and pointed wooden posts, which canpletely block the French army. Of course, it is impossible for the 1,100 people who want to destroy the French army. Therefore, while blocking the French army, he still has to ask the coalition for help. If the coalition forces can send troops to attack before and after, the French will not fail. To this end, when Marin was training, he began to train for night battles, and targetedly added a lot of subjects against heavy cavalry such as the heavy cavalry with full of te armor, and it is difficult to kill them with a spear. If the French heavy cavalry gives up the horse, it is a bit of a hassle for the spear. Therefore, Marin thought about it and selected 100 Hercules like in the phnx. Under the leadership of Kahn, he formed the "Warhammer Team." The te is thicker and afraid of the hammer. After all, the shocking force of the hammer mming down canpletely stun and smash the heavy armor. If you reach your head, you can even smash it. To this end, Marin acquired a batch of cksmith hammers, reced them with long wooden handles, and let the "Warhammers" begin training. In addition, Marin also selected a group of well-meaning people for the situation that was not clear at night, so that they could simte the sounds of thousands of horses and used to scare the French. It is indeed to block 8,000 French "man of iron" with 1,100 people. If the French people know their own details, they will not kill themselves. Therefore, in other directions, it is also a good idea to pretend to be a thousand horses and scare the French. A few days ago, Marin personally hosted the night battle training. But a few dayster, Marin handed the night training to Schwartz. He himself, with Sauer and Kahn himself, went to Fornov, to conduct field trips and depict local topographic maps. Then, Marin returned to the Vian station with a thick stack of parchment. On these parchments, all of the topographic maps of Fornovo, which Marin personally portrayed, all draw contour lines. In the days that followed, Marin trained horses every night, sleeping in the morning during the day, studying maps in the afternoon, thinking aboutbat ns. What the unfortunate Charles VIII didn''t know was that he hadn''t evacuated from Naples yet, and someone in Venice was counting on him. Moreover, the calction is the most basic 8000 heavy cavalry in France. You know, these heavy cavalry are armed by the French maind, not the Swiss mercenaries who "who give money to those who give money." If the heavy cavalry is damaged, France will definitely be badly hurt. Chapter 40: Charles VIII Northward Withdrawal Chapter 40: Charles VIII Northward Withdrawal In Naples, Italy, King Charles VIII was very upset and even desperate. why? Since the French army entered Italy, it has been very smooth. Basically, the Italian army that resisted the French army saw the French army and fled. Therefore, the French army from Lombardy to Naples, almost lost nobody. Only after entering Naples, several people who lost the siege of the city lost a lot of people. Other battles are basically the Italians themselves running away. However, after entering Naples, the French army was infected with a strange and terrible disease - syphilis. This extremely powerful infectious disease is mainly spread through indiscriminatemunication. ording to a study by scientists inter generations in 2011, syphilis was brought back from the Americas by Columbus two years ago. At that time, Columbus brought back a group of Indian female ves from the Caribbean inds of central America, and these female ves were infected with syphilis. Later, some Spaniards infected with this group of female ves and contracted syphilis. The ind of Sicily on the edge of the Kingdom of Naples is also the territory of Spain. As a result, some Spanish sailer brought syphilis to Sicily, and then passed through the Sicilian prostitutes to the neighboring Neapolitans and then into the Kingdom of Naples. After the French army upied the Kingdom of Naples, tens of thousands of young men, there must be a group of coquettish guys, ran to the brothels in Naples. Then they got it. In this era, mercenaries especially like to drink and fuck. Then, with these Neapolitan prostitutes as means to release themselves, many French soldier have contracted this serious disease. As a result, many French soldiers and Savoy soldiers, who have been contaminated, began to grow pustule shaped like a plum, the skin began to fester... and then, they died. Because the patients with this disease died too badly, causing serious panic in the French army. What is even more tragic is that the French do not know how the disease came from. Because the syphilis raged, the morale of the French army fell to the lowest point. At the same time, Charles VIII learned that Venice, the Papal States, the Principality of Mn, the Holy Roman Empire, Spain and some small states of Italy formed an anti-French alliance. Not only that, but the mighty Vian Navy also dispatched a fleet to bypass the southern tip of the Apennine penins and began to block the sea route from Naples to Marseille, France. This made Charles VIII realize that if he stayed in Naples longer, he might be trapped here. Others are trapped here, but he can''t. He is the King of France. If he is not in the country for a long time, it will easily lead to domestic issue (aka: coup, rebellion...). Moreover, it is said that the British have also begun to harass the Brittany region in northwestern France. Therefore, Charles VIII decided to return to the country to stabilize the situation. To this end, he was in the army, picking the soldiers who did not get syphilis, and returned to the country with him. Fortunately for Charles VIII, his tens of thousands of troops of the heavy cavalry of the French knight, probably because of the rtive restraint of life (Artim''s note: the author is referring to the knight''s code), so most people did not get syphilis. Most of the soldiers who contracted syphilis were the hired mercenaries, especially the mercenaries of Savoy Piedmont, Italy. These bastards are the most horny, so the rate is very high. By May, the 23,000 troops of the Savoy''s Principality had basically copsed, leaving only a few thousand people who were broken, but they alsopletely lost their fighting spirit. Many people, because of fear, have quietly fled the army and returned to their hometowns. As for the French army, it was fine. Charles VIII selected 8,000 skilled French knights and 4,000 Swiss mercenaries and began to go north. He nned to return to the country before the anti-French alliance reacted. First, to maintain domestic stability, and second, so he can escape the terrible syphilis. At the same time, in order to control the upied kingdom of Naples, Charles VIII left the unfortunate Gilbert de Montpencire as the governor of Naples, leading the remaining troops to continue to upy Naples. This lord waster unlucky and seemed to have died because of syphilis. Then, the French army of Naples copsed and the French were expelled from Italy. Charles VIII''s northward withdrawal is a runaway behavior simr to running. Therefore, the morale of the French army is rtively low. And because of the severe shortage of supplies, and the 8,000 heavy cavalry carrying as many as 16,000 horses (each heavy cavalry have a war horse and a saddle horse), the demand for grain is enormous. And because the maritime transport route was cut off by the Vian Navy, the French did not have enough supply. Therefore, Charles VIII had to order and send troops to grab food along the way. Otherwise, the French army would not be able to continue. In fact, the 12,000 French soldiers selected by Charles VIII are not all healthy. Some people have been infected with syphilis, but during the incubation period in Naples. So, I didn''t see it at the time. But on the way to the north, these guys also appeared to **** local women in the process of grabbing food. Then, syphilis marched along the French army and spread out... At this time, the people of all parts of Italy were very angry with the brutality of the French army and organized the resistance of the people. Therefore, when the French army went all the way north, they suffered a lot of resistance. In order to obtain enough supplies, the French army often needs to besiege those small cities. However, the fierce resistance of the people, although ultimately failed, but it has greatly dyed the pace of the French army north, making the French army march very slowly. While passing through the Papal State, the Pope was angry and savage, knowing that the French would rob, and had already transferred all the main materials to several defensive cities such as Rome, forcing the French to be in the pope''s hand and having to find those small towns that were remote. When the French retreated to the north, the anti-French coalition forces were arguing. Of course, the Italians''s quarrels are not like the Empire Parliament. The quarrel between the Emperor and Imperial Parliaments is a fierce battle for the distribution of power and a joint restriction of the emperors strength by the major princes. The Italian quarrel is often for the sake of some trivial things, making peopleugh. On the way to the south march, Marin also saw the temptation of Italian mercenaries. Often, on the way to the march, I saw a beautiful girl, many Italian mercenaries left the team without permission, ran to the girl to pick up, and ignored the military discipline. When encountering some wineries, these bandit-like Italian mercenaries will also break into the door and grab the wine of the host family. Then, on the march, you will see Italian mercenaries with many wine bottles tied to them. Therefore, speaking of it, the anti-French coalition forces at this time are no faster than the French. The French were dyed because ofck of food, and the Italians slowed down because of the temptation. Moreover, because the coalition''s nominal leader Maximilian I was absent, the Marquis of Mandova and the Vian general seemed to bepeting for themand of the coalition forces, causing the army to be divided. The Earl Alfred seemed to be very dissatisfied with the Italians'' temptation. Therefore, the army of the Holy Roman Empire did not go with the Italian, but went on their way. However, in order to wait for the emperor to return, the army also deliberately slowed down, even more than the Italian army. Marlin seemed to understand that for the Battle of Fornovo, the Italian State were forced to fight with the coalition forces, and there was no such thing as the Imperial army. Because the two armies are not at all together. The two armies are divided into two groups. The Italian squadron headed by Italy, Italy, such as Venice, Mandowa and Mn, has a total of about 20,000 people. On the other hand, the army that was temporarily led by Earl Alfred, including the 11,000 people of the empire, and the army of several small Italian states that are closer to the empire, a total of 15,000. Therefore, the history book also said that the Holy Alliance army totaled 35,000 people. But in fact, the 15,000 army of the Empire did not participate in the Battle of Fornovovo. The battle waspletely ridiculed by Italy. Therefore, it is not surprising that there is such a situation. Marin did not interfere with the marching line of the Imperial Army. At this time, it was only in early June. It will take about a month for Italian army to confront the French. If he intervened, it would be impossible for the Italians and the French to meet. At that time, his "prophetic foresight" will lose its effect. Chapter 41: Seeking Individual Action Chapter 41: Seeking Individual Action The influence of the Vians in Italy is really strong. Every day, new information is uploaded from the Italian Apennine penins. A lot of intelligence was sent by businessmen from all over Italy. In Italy, Venice is thergest merchant country. Even in other city-states, many businessmen have to pick up goods from Vian merchants. So, in addition to being close to the Venice rival Genoa (which is also harmonious?), most Italian businessmen have a rtionship with Venice and are happy to provide news for Venice. Every morning, Marin, as a party leader, barely qualified to go to the war counsil to listen to intelligence. French intelligence ising every day. Like Marin''s memory, the French entered the army at a slow pace. The strange thing is that in June has entered the early summer, ording to the characteristics of the Mediterranean climate in Italy, the summer should be dry and hot. However, these days, the Italian region is raining and seems to have entered the rainy season. When it rains, the road bes muddy. Therefore, whether it is the French army or the anti-French coalition forces, the speed of marching has been affected. The Apennines are only 1,000 kilometers long, and the city of Naples is not at the southern end of the penins. It is about the northernmost tip of the penins, but six or seven hundred kilometers. If you follow the speed of the 50-kilometer daily march of Marin''s "ck Cross Square", the French army can finish in this distance for up to ten days. However, the French army all the way to the north, while also taking care of the robbery of the Italian farms along the way, by the way, looking for those Italian peasant women well you know what happen. Therefore, the march of the French army is not fast. It can be expected that they will arrive near Parma in early July, as in history. Seeing that the French did not go to the north because of their own crossing, Marin sighed. Then, he paid more attention to the interception of the French army. Although it is said that even if the French army is eliminated this time, it will not have much impact on France''s national strength. However, if this war defeated the French army, it could greatly reduce the morale of the French. Be aware that in war, especially in this era when cold weapons dominated, morale is very important forbat. An army with high morale canpletely press the number of people who are more than themselves, but the morale is low. On the contrary, morale is low and people are dangerous. In the original history, Charles VIII did not take up too much mistake in the Battle of Fornov, but this war proved that even if the French army was in the middle of the withdrawal from the North, it would still be able to take care of itself (the casualty ratio of the French and Italian coalition forces in the war was 1:2). Therefore, the French were naturally very confident, and then invaded Italy many times. Of course, all of the above are virtual. What Marin really wants is to make a name for himself by damaging the French army. Then, relying on the war and the emperor for a higher title. After all, the offical knight''s title is too low, and it can''t be hereditary. Every generation needs the lord to re-enclose. The baron or the sealed knight is hereditary, so they don''t have to go to the fight every time, it is like tossing a coin; you win or you lose in this context you live or you die. However, what makes Marin depressed is that the people sent by the Empire and the 4,000 Italian small state army attached to the army, under the leadership of the unseen Count Alfred, are actually behind Italy. ording to Count Alfred, he was waiting for the emperor toe and lead the group. But Marin had long known that the emperor would never return in a short time. You know, the emperor''s current situation is very bad. In the Holy Roman Empire, only the minority of the Swabian League and the Duke of Saxony supported him, while the other powerful princes and their younger brothers fought to jointly block the Habsburg family and prevent Habsburg. The family is too strong to weaken and deprive them of their autonomy. At present, the dukes and counties of the Empire are basically equivalent to the emperors in their own territories. But if the Habsburgs are strong, and they have to take back some of their rights, they will certainly not be happy. You know, this is a precedent. It was simr to the French kingdom before, and it was a sub-sealing of rights. However, after the efforts of previous generations of French kings, France has gradually embarked on the road of centralization. And Maximilian I, who envied the authority of the French king, had the intention to do so. This, the princes in the Empire are very worried, they are not willing to be deprived of their authority. Therefore, they worked hard to give Maximilian I a handicap and avoid the Habsburg family being too strong. Maximilian I was prepared to oppose the French invasion of Italy very early, but the Dukes, turned a blind eye to France''s invasion of Italy. After all, the aggression is not the Empire. Although some of the states of Italy used to belong to the Empire. Butter, the Holt Roman Empire focused on the affairs of the German region, and with the agreement with the Pope, he had already asked the affairs of the Italian region. For the threat of the French, the Dukes and the Earls were more worried about the threat of the Habsburgs. Therefore, it is too difficult for Maximilian I to ask them for help. The emperor did note, and Earl Alfred seemed unwilling to move. After all, the count is clear in his heart, and he can''t do it. But on the loyalty, Count Alfred is nothing to say. Therefore, the count was very honestly carrying the army behind the main force of the coalition, waiting for the emperor to lead them. However, the count can wait, Marlin can''t wait. He also counted on this battle to be able to mix a battle. If you can''t even participate in the battle, then Italy is white. Therefore, he must find a way to participate in the battle. However, it is not realistic to convince Count Alfred to lead the army to Parma and the coalition. The count himself did not like the Italians, and he wanted to wait for the emperor to return with loyalty. Regardless of how the Marquis of Mantova urged him, he refused to continue south. In fact, the Marquis of Mantova and the Vians hoped that the army of the Empire would go to the army of France. Because the Italians themselves know that the German army is more powerful than the Italian army. Therefore, they invited the count to bring the soldiers down south. However, the Italians are not the coalition leaders, and the Earl Alfred actually looks down on the Italians. Therefore, the army is still far from the Italian coalition forces. Marin left to think, decided to take the initiative to "assisted" the Italian coalition. However, how to tell the count is a big problem. After many inquiries, Marin learned that Count Alfred had no ambitions and was not very good. However, for money, there are some preferences. In desperation, Marin decided to temporarily put down the principle and do a few votes to rob the evil, so that it would be enough to bribe the count''s money. ording to the quoted Earl''s attendant, I want to buy the Earl, which is estimated to be more than 1000 Ducat (Venice gold coins). In order to make up the money, Marin selected a group of people in the army who were obedient to himself. About 100 people, led by Sauer, all covered in ck cloth, staying upte, and doing a few votes at the stationed Venice border. Robbery. Soon, Marin won 1,000 gold coins and 5,000 silver coins. Marin gave 1000 Dukat gold coins to Count Alfred and took the initiative to request the support of the Italian coalition. The Earl of Alfred was greedy for money, and he was taken care of by the Italians for help. He sent a square to "reinforce". So the count agreed with Marin''s request and issued a document requesting Marin to lead the "ck Cross phnx" to the south to reinforce the Italians and ept the dispatch of the Marquis of Mantova. At this time, it was already June 20, and the outbreak of the Battle of Fornovovo was very soon. After Marin got the order, he immediately went south. However, Marin did not intend to go to the Italian coalition, but wanted to act alone. Therefore, his march is also hidden, not taking the Roman Avenue, but taking a more remote road. And these roads, before Sauer explored. Marin believes that if he rushes to the Italian coalition with his documents, there will be no good fruit to eat. Because, the Italians who are afraid of death, may be arranged to use this square as a cannon fodder, to the first line. Moreover, once the leader of the army of Marquis of Mantova ept, then he is involuntarily under hismand. Because once you are under themand of the Marquis of Mantova, you can''t act without authorization. Otherwise, it is a vition of the military regtions, and the troops will be sent without authorization. If they are serious, they will be executed. If they are light, they will be killed by the sticks. However, he was "ordered to help" the Italians, but before his phnx arrived at the Italian camp, he was free. Because he is themander of this phnx. The only trouble was the three "spys" of the Emperor and the Earl of Hohenzollern. They may be dissatisfied with their failure to be ordered, and even confess their secrets afterwards. But Marin didn''t care about their whistle, because even if the three were whispered, they had to wait until after the war. In the military, they can be dissatisfied, but they dare not resist. Otherwise, Marin has the full power to do them. Even if they can''t kill them, they can be temporarily imprisoned. Moreover, the three people are not good at their ownpany. Because, Marin also mixed his own "spys" in theirpany. The three knights who were sent to be the captains of thepany all had their own followers. The 10 squads under theirmand, each with 5, are naturally their own attendants. The remaining five are all assigned by Marin. The knight''s attendants naturally follow the knight, but the captains assigned by Marin will also follow Marin. Usually, when it''s okay, Marin also openly invites the captains who are being mixed into the other three knights to drink and eat meat. In this regard, the three knights have no way. Because Marin used the invitation to invite the old brothers to gather together, can you still block? Moreover, Marin is willing to let them control the half of the soldiers, it is already the face of the emperor and the count. Chapter 42: Preparation Chapter 42: Preparation By June 30, 1495, Marin finally led the square and rushed to the vicinity of Parma. However, Marin did not lead the square to the Italian coalition station and converged with the Italians, but hid in the hilly mountains on the west bank of the Tagus River, the tributary of the Po River (thergest river in Italy). Then, he sent people to the nearby towns and urgently ordered 500 engineer''s shovel. The reason why he had to order 500 engineer''s shovel is to dig trenches. Marin is going to contain the 8000 French knights who escaped from the French army. If the Frenchman is on the t ground, the Frenchman will be quite eager toe up. Therefore, it is very important to not allow the French cavalry to rush. And blocking the French cavalry charge, horse trap, and pointed wooden stake is a good choice. When the heavy cavalry charge, it is not the same as when the infantry charge: when the heavy cavalry really makes charge, as long as there are enough people, even a "spear wall" formation can be broken. In contast in face of traps, any horseman must be forced to slow down or even stop the charge. When the cavalry speed is reduced, then the impact is gone. At this time, if you still want to continue the attack, you are definitely making a death wish. Ditches and pointed stakes need not be mentioned, these are the means used in hunting and battle in Europe. However, Marin''s two trenches are more cumbersome than the current ditch in Europe. The trapping pit is actually a trap for the hunter. A pit is dug on the ground and covered with grass. This simple trap, to the infantry, it is easy to see. But for the cavalry is different. They are rushing from afar and have no time to observe the ground. Even if the trap is rudimentary, to the enemy cavalry when they discover the trap that mean it is toote. When it was identified, the horseman couldn''t stop his ride and could only watch the trap killing his horse. Then, people turned their heads. As for the camouged trap, then let alone talk about it, the Chinese people know that it is deadly. There are two types of camouge trap - dead and live. The so-called dead camouged trap is toy two wooden stakes on the ground, and the wooden are connected by ropes. The horse is rushing over you, and the hoof was caught by the rope trap, then the man is basicaly stunned on the ground or dead. However, this kind of trap means the death of the horse (this kind of trap usually break the front hooves of the horse, so it will not be able to walk ever again, that''s why it is considered dead), and it''s a one use only type of trap. If the rider is good and the horses are obedient, it is possible to avoid the death of the horse. The live type of camouged trap is controlled by soldiers. When the enemy cavalry rush over, the soldiers on the sides suddenly pull a cord and it lift a wall of pointy stake. The horses and the knights are normally toote to react, and it be a human/horse shish-kebab. It stands to reason that it is better to use live camouged trap. However, the live one also has its own shorings - if the enemy soldiers are in the wrong direction, it will be troublesome. In an ambush soldier may itself be exposed to the enemy''s butcher''s knife. The people Marin had were few and could not withstand the loss of personnel, so he decided to use the dead trap strategy. After all, the dead trap is simple and low-cost. Although, the death of the horse is easy to be avoided by the enemy, and they even can make the horse jump directly over it. However, if Marin uses abination of multiple traps. Just in front is the dead trap then if will use it again. Often, even if you drive the horse to skip the first trap, it will just fall into the second or third trap. Besides, Marin is nning to ambush the French cavalry in the middle of the night. Even if it is dead trap, the French cavalry will have a hard time to find. In the next few days, Marin sent a message to Sauer as he explored the terrain. After all, in history the french went northwest, there is more than one road, and Marin was not sure which one was Charles VIII going to take. Because, first of all, he did not know where the French battalion was. Charles VIII fled, certainly starting from the French army camp, taking the most convenient road, and avoiding the direction of the coalition forces to avoid interception. Therefore, in order to judge the direction of the French army''s retreat, we must first know the French army station, and then we must also know the coalition station. Finally, ording to these circumstances, the French army escape route can be judged. However, even if he knew the location of the French army camp, Marin did not dare to prepare an ambush for it. Because, before the escape, the French will definitely explore the way. The French had cavalry and they can send a scout to bepletely unstressed. Therefore, in order to sessfully ambush the French, it is necessary to avoid the investigation of the French cavalry. However, it is necessary to ensure that the ambush is right. If the Frenchman ran away from an other road, he could not catch up with this small square. Because the other party is a cavalry, and they are on foot. So, in the past few days, Marin ordered all members to practice digging trenches and trapping horses, while it is happening, Sauer''s riding out to explore the terrain and roads. In the end, Marin determined that there were two major roads in the northwest direction of Fornov. One is the smooth road on the ins. However, this road is to turn north to the east after crossing the Tarot River. The French take this road and it is not a shortcut. Moreover, there is the possibility of being caught up by the coalition forces. Because the coalition forces seem to be on the riverside, as long as they go north, they can stick to this road. The other way is to cross the hilly area and go straight to the northwest. After crossing the hilly area, you can reach the banks of the Po River. Then, along the Po River, you can travel to Asti, the important town of the Piedmont region under the Savoy. And Asti, also the most advanced military fort and assembly area after the French army entered Italy. As soon as you arrive in Asti, the French army is basically safe. Moreover, Charles VIII will not stick to Asti. As long as he left, and if the coalition forces attacked Asti, he wouldn''t be there anymore. The roads in this hilly area have many slopes and low hills on either side of the road. In Marin''s view, this road is best suited to ambush. Moreover, if the French army marches during the day, it may be difficult to set up an ambush. After all, Charles VIII is not an ipetent general, he will certainly send reconnaissance cavalry to explore the road. However, after the Battle of Fornov, Charles VIII was running overnight. Marching in the middle of the night, as long as Marin''s men did not ignite torches and did not make a sound, it was difficult for the French scouts to find the ambush in the middle of the night. But now the question is, how to get the French army go this mountain road instead of taking the t road... To this end, Marin raked his brain. "Young master, are you unwell?" Kohler came over attentively and gave Marin a bread. "Oh, no, I just worry, how to let the enemy follow one of my ideas, and take one of the roads instead of the other." Marlin took the bread and said while biting on it. "This way... Master, if you broke the other road, isn''t it good? If the road is not good, the enemy can just walk the way you want them to go?" Kohler said with a sigh. "Destroy the road? Oh, it''s a way!" Marin ps his head. Then, Marin began to summon the men, and nned to dig the t road. Just in time, Marin had 500 engineer shovels in his hand. Two people can take turns to use it. However, Sauer told Marin that the coalition might arrive in Fornovovo through this road. If Marin digs this road, the coalition may not be able to reach Fornov, which Marin expected. Marin thought about it and decided to give up the road for the time being. Because he did not want to destroy the road because of his own, affecting the progress of the Battle of Fornov. However, he decided that during the day after the war between the two sides, he would bring people and quietlye to this road, dig the road, and make the river to block the French army''s way forward. Then, go to the ambush spot on the other road and wait for the French toe over at night. Chapter 43: The Battle Start Chapter 43: The Battle Start For several days, Marin arranged Schwartz to lead his soldiers to practice digging and mid-night ambush training in the hills on the west bank of the Tarot River. Marin and Sauer, who are riding horses, each carrying a telescope, went quietly to investigate near Fornov. Because of the possession of the telescope, Marin and Sauer do not need to be close to do the investigation. They only need to stand on the high slope of the hill and use telescopes to investigate. Moreover, in order to facilitate the investigation, Marin and Sauer did not wear te armor, each carrying only a light sword, a gambeson and a telescope. In the early morning of July 6, Marin arranged for the square to continue to rest, recharge their batteries, and rode with Sauer on the side to continue investigation. The weather was good in the morning and the road was dry. After waiting for a while, Marin finally waited for the French army on the south shore of the Tarot River, and the Italian coalition on the south shore. "Great, they finally came!" Marlin was very excited. He endured for a long time, did not dare to interfere with the Italian military affairs, he is afraid that the Battle of Fornov can not happen. Today, the two sides are still ying in Fornov, proving that his "prophetic vision" is useful and exciting. "Young Master, how did you know they are going to fight here?" Sauer was surprised. Because, he has a feeling that Marin seems to know that the two sides want to "y" here. In fact, Sauer is right, Marin really knows that the two sides will fight here. The problem is that Marin is afraid of this little butterfly effect will affect the battle. Fortunately, this battle was carried out as scheduled. It was determined that the two sides were fighting here as scheduled, and Marin could not wait. He left Sauer to continue to observe on the high slopes of the Western shore, and he himself nned to return to camp. As for how to prepare? Of course, I am going to dig up the road along the river shore of the river. The French army fled in the night and night, if it was to take the road in this in area, Marin could not stop the French. Because, this road, in addition to the Tarot River, there are farnd. You broke the road and the Frenchman can step on the field. Therefore, Marin''s n was to directly dig the river shore of the Tarot River, flood the road, and the nearby farnd. In this way, the French cavalry will not be able to take this road, or they will be trapped in the mud. The heavy cavalry is already heavy, and if the horses hooves are caught in the mud, it is difficult to get rid of it, and it is very dangerous. As for the time of excavation, Marin is tentatively scheduled for afternoon. Because, ording to the record, there will be a heavy rain in the afternoon. At that time, the soil will be soft and easy to excavate. At the moment, the soil is very hard and it is veryborious to dig up. After returning to the camp, Marin took a break and asked Schwartz to call him at noon. After all, he wants to bring people to ambush the French in the middle of the night, have to rest, otherwise, dozing off in the middle of the night will affect the battle. As for the poor Sauer, he will need to continue to observe the battle between the French and Italian coalition forces. At the same time, before the break, Marin arranged a group of people to go to the northwest facing mountain roads in advance and arrange ambushes. This mountain road is not a mountain road, it can only be regarded as a road in the hilly area. On both sides of the road, there are many hills, which are very suitable for ambush on both sides. Marlin saw many war films in the past, and the ancients liked to throw stones and fireballs (not the magic one you uncultured fool, and don''t think l didn''t see you thinking about it. Sorry for this little crisis. The fireball we are talking about is a big ball of hay and branches and oils you enme) rolling down the hill. However, it is necessary to have a heavy rain in the afternoon and throwing a wet fireball is stupid. Because the firewood is hard to ignite when it is wet. Therefore, Marin directly intends to use the stone. To this end, the team sent out was responsible for collecting small and medium-sized stones in the entire hilly area, and transporting the unicycles carrying goods to the high slopes on both sides of the ambushed mountain road. Of course, the team leader Kohler is not stupid. He did not let the 100 soldiers take all the hard work to move the stones, but sent the 100 soldiers to the nearby vige to grab 1,000 Italian farmers to help collect and carry the stones. In this way, Kohlerpleted Marin''s instructions with a minimum of strength. When it was noon, Marin woke up and Kohler came back to report andpleted the task of moving the stone. "So fast, Kohler, you aren''t trying to fool me?" "Who can, young master? I sent these 100 people and went to the nearby vige to catch the 1000 Italian peasants. How can the soldiers do this so fast?" "You... why didn''t I think of it..." "Young master, you are thinking about big things, the small one is the most convenient for me to do." Kohler ttered. "Stop boot licking. Wait, are the farmers still there?" Marin suddenly thought, since it is possible to use Italian peasants to move stones, why not let them help to dig the road. If he let his 1,100 men go to dig the road in the afternoon for a long time, in the evening, who has the strength to fight the French? "I am preparing to dismiss them..." "Don''t dismiss them, Kohler, you give some food to this group of farmers, because there is still work for them in the afternoon." "Yes, young master!" Kohler quickly sent people to retain the group of Italian farmers and distributed some inferior ck bread. In the afternoon, it really began to rain. Sauer came back to report once, the two sides are currently dispatching troops, but they have not yet yed, and it is estimated that they will start ying in the afternoon. Marin fixed his mind and knew that things were not out of control. Then, after the rainstorm, when the rain was small, when the two sides were about to contact, he sent people to the peasant, with the engineer shovel and some soldiers began to dig the river embankment on the road so that is not visible to the coalition forces. At the beginning, those local farmers were reluctant to dig up the river embankment. Because, when the riverbank is excavated, some of them who live near the river bank, and the fields of the manor are also going to be inundated. But under the pressure of the soldier''s spears, they had to obey Marin''s arrangement and began to excavate the river embankment. When the Vian infantry crossed the Tarot River and confronted the Swiss mercenaries of the French army on the South Bank, Marin took the Italian peasants to dig the river bank of the Tarot River. When the Swiss mercenaries repelled the Vian infantry, Marin finally dug the river embankment. Then, because of the heavy rain, the Tarot River water, which washed up the riverside avenue, rushed directly into the riverside field. After the river flooded the riverside and the nearby fields, Marin did not stop, but took the soldiers against the peasants and went to the ambushing ces in the hilly areas to dig the pits. Since there is abor force that does not need money, he is reluctant to let the soldiers under him work diligently. Then, the poor Italian peasants continued to be escorted to the mountain road, arrived at the ambush, began to dig trenches and horse trap, and arranged a simple dead trap under themand of an Italian-speaking soldier. Marin chose to set up a ce, about a dozen kilometers away from the battlefield, and both sides of the road are hilly mountains. The French must go through the mountain roads. Moreover, this distance is also outside the detection distance of French scouts without telescopes. When Marinmanded the Italian peasants to dig the trenches and trapped horses, it was already seven or eight in the evening, and the sky was already dark. At this time, Sauer came to the news. In the French army camp, the French cavalry had just finished their dinner and fed the horses. It seems that they are ready to go. Chapter 44: Ambush 1 Chapter 44: Ambush 1 The Battle of Fornovo is not a battle, but it is actually a farce. Because neither side is fighting for life. The only fierce battle was when the Vian infantry crossed the river to attack the Swiss square. In that battle took more than an hour. Of course, this battle has seen a lot of casualties, the Swiss had more than 1,000 casualties, and the Italians had more than 2,000 casualties. Counting the runaway, the Italian lost a total of 5,000 people. But the miraculous thing is that the Mandova and Mn light cavalry who are responsible for nking the French army, went in disarray to take the gold and silver treasure the French had left on the road. This is also a strategy of Charles VIII, he knows that the coalition has thousands of light cavalry. In a face-to-face confrontation, he was naturally not afraid, but he was worried that the Italian cavalry would dy them. So, in order to get out as soon as possible, he gritted his teeth and sprinkled all the gold and silver, treasures that he had been reluctant to throw, on the roads on both sides of the French line. I have to say that Charles VIII''s strategy was very sessful. You know, most of the soldiers in this era are mercenaries, and they are fighting for money. Charles VIII gave up the money and it really attracted the Italian cavalry. Then, the 6000 Italian cavalry also forgot that they wereing to fight with the French, and went straight to pick the treasures. At the same time, Charles VIII had no intention of fighting, and quickly took people out of the battlefield, and went back to camp, leaving only the Swiss against the Vian. After that, the Swiss also withdrew from the French army camp. The remaining 5000 infantry in Venice (except for the 2,000 people killed and 3,000 people were scattered by the Swiss) did not dare to catch up with the Swiss, but retreated. In the French army camp, the French and Swiss residences are separate. The Swiss camp is on the northeast side and faces the coalition. The French knights are stationed on the southwest side, separated from the Swiss camp. After returning to the camp, Charles VIII had already made ns to run and the clock was ticking. Therefore, he directly began to rest on the horse. The scouts are responsible for finding bridges and boats across the river. In fact, this road was originally the route of the French army took before. Therefore, the French scouts did not go too far into the two north roads to investigate, and did not find Marin''s ambush. Moreover, the weather is too bad, and the scouts cannot see too far. After a few kilometers of investigation, the French Scouts confirmed that there was no problem. Moreover, the coalition battalion was also monitored by the French army scouts, confirming that the coalition forces were going to eat and drink after returning to the camp, and were ready to rest. At about 9 o''clock in the evening, Charles VIII, ording to the report of the French scouts, confirmed that the Italians in the coalition camp were basically sleeping, and they began to assemble all the French knights and prepare to run. At this time, the French army scouts just collected enough wooden boats and built a pontoon that crossed the small Tarot River to facilitate the French knights crossing the river. Then, at 10 o''clock in the evening, the French army began to cross the river at some point in the western part of the Tarot River, far from the coalition camp. At this time, the Swiss were still in the dark that they were abandoned by Charles VIII. Around 12 o''clock in the middle of the night, all the knights and horses of the French army crossed the Tarot River. Then, under themand of Charles VIII, began to march along the riverside avenue, marching in the direction of the north east. But after 10 kilometers, I arrived at the ce where Marin dug the river bank. "What happened? Why did we stop?" asked Charles VIII in the middle of the team. "Your majesty, the river embankment seems to have been smashed by heavy rain. Now, the roads and farnd are flooded by the river. The cavalry will have a difficulty to pass..." "What should I do? Can we only go back?" Charles VIII said helplessly. "Your Majesty, this subject remembers that there is another way to Asti, and that road is more distance than this road." A scout officer rmended. "Oh, is there such a way? Whyst time we didn''t take that road?" "It is because, it is a mountain road, and people and horses passed without problems, but the artillery cannot take it. When we camest time, there were too many canon to carry, and it was not suitable for that road. " Indeed, when the French army came to Italyst year, it brought a hundred and dozens of artillery pieces. Walking the mountain road is indeed awkward. But at this time, the French army had already lost the artillery. Even the carriages carrying the treasures were thrown out because the treasures were not carried. Riding through the less steep mountain roads of the hills can still be done. After all, the horse is a four-legged animal, not a carriage that requires big roads. In the case of a mountain road with a small slope, the horse can pass. The the ins were flooded, but the knight could not easily pass. Because the flooded roads and farnd will be very soft. The French knight wearing a heavy armor has an amazing total weight. After the flood, the horseshoe is easy to get into the quagmire and it is difficult to get out. Moreover, Charles VIII was worried about being found by the coalition forces and came to surround him. Therefore, in order to hurry, Charles VIII decisively ordered, turned back, took the legendary mountain road, and went into the trap of Marin. In fact, Charles VIII is cautious and innocent. Because, at night, French scouts can''t look far. Even if he walked into the ambush circle, he could not see the ambush as long as he did not fall into the trap and the ditch. At the same time, the Frenchman repeatedly confirmed that the Italians did not send out people and troops because they sent a lot of scouts to investigate the Italian battalion. Therefore, as smart as Charles VIII is, he did not expect that someone would wait for him early. When the Frenchman turned around, Marin taught French to his men: "Brothers, wait for us to ambush the French people who fled. They have many people, and it is difficult for us to win. But in the middle of the night, the French can''t see clearly, we can scare them." "Come, everyone said to me, ''rendez vous et vous serez pargn'' " "rendez vous et vous serez pargn (French)..." The soldiers were a little aggressive, and at the same time, they were a little nervous. But Marin flicked them, saying that the army was defeated and morale was low. Otherwise, if the men are told that they are facing 8000 unscathed French heavy cavalry, they may not have the courage to fight. However, they are ambushing on the high slopes on both sides of the road, and the French cavalry can not be washed up on the high slope, and they are not worried. Moreover, even if the French find that they are few people, they will not stop, and they will attack the high slopes on both sides. Because the French are running away, he is most afraid of rming the Italian coalition. As long as they withstand a few waves of attacks, the French will not continue to storm and waste time. Marin have no intention topletely eliminate the French army. His n was to inflict heavy blows on the French army. At the same time, using the night to scare the French. If you can kill or confuse Charles VIII, then you won the battle. Because it was at night, it was difficult for the French to observe and learn how many people Marin had. As long as Marin puts the momentum out, he can keep the French army. "Le roi (Charles VIII) a t tue/is !" Marin taught everyone to scream. "Ah?" Some French-speaking soldiers do not understand. Isn''t this a lie? And Marin, what is required is the effect of lie. In the middle of the night, the Frenchman was attacked and he was sure to panic. On his own side, in French, yelling "Charle VIII is dead" will definitely cause great confusion to the French army. And Charles VIII, there is no megaphone to do self-justification. 8000 French army, there will always be people who are scared by this fake news.(Artim''s note: It''s a fake new that I am an idiot and work to create a Third World War. Words from President T.) This trick was learned from the Battle of Surabaya. The Qin Dynasty''s 800,000-strong army, because of being deceived by Zhu Xuh because he shouted "Qin Jun defeated" after the battle, and then the former Qin group of soldiers are muscle-brain, so they really thought that he was defeated, and everybody started to retreat and escape. As a result, 800,000 Qin army, inexplicably lost to tens of thousands of Eastern Jin army. Marin intends to wait for the French to enter the ambush circle, then take a round of stones and shoot a few rounds of arrows. Then, he sent someone to scream "Charlie VIII is dead!" in French. At the same time, he sent people to make noise and make noise. Even if Charles VIII wants to call out to prove that he is alive, he will be covered by noise. Then, it''s hard for the French to think in the chaos. Chapter 45: Ambush 2 Chapter 45: Ambush 2 On the night of September 6, after a heavy rain during the day, the sky seemed to be much cleaner. Although there are still some clouds, it is already very thin. Plus the moon is hanging in the sky. Therefore, there is still a little visibility, although very low. The French army was running, fearing to rm the Italian coalition and the Swiss who did not know that they had been abandoned. Therefore, the French did not ignite torches. Because the torch is too conspicuous at night, you can see it at kilometers away. If the 8000 French cavalry is holding a torch, anyone can look at the movement of the French army. In the middle of the night, the horse could not run because it could not see well. If the enemy troops use the infantry and run, they might catch up, they may not be slower than the cavalry. If you are attacked by the enemy, you can''t escape. Under the night, the cavalry was not as powerful as the pikemen. Moreover, Charles VIII arbitrarily abandoned Swiss mercenaries. At that time, Swiss mercenaries may not be willing to help them run. Therefore, the order of Charles VIII is that at least you must leave Fornovo surrounding and when they could not see any of the lights of Fornovo, then you can light up the torch. Before this, the French army could only rely on the faint starlight and the faint moonlight that was blocked by dark clouds. This mountain road, because some ces have arge slope, it is not suitable for carriage, only horses and pedestrians. Therefore, the road is harsh, there are still a lot of grass and stone on the road, and it has not beenpletely leveled. Marin was teaching everyone how to scare the French, suddenly Sauer rushed back and said to Marin: "Sir, the French are here!" Marin was shocked and he began to get nervous in his heart. But in order not to affect everyone, it is easy to say: "French ising, soldiers, remember, after the battle starts, you must catch Charles VIII! Whoever catches Charles VIII live, I reward him with 10,000 gold coins!" "10,000 gold coins..." A lot of mercenary saliva for the money as a soldier could not help but flow out. Under the spur of the Marin prize, many people have forgotten the tension, and only the money is left in their eyes. When the Frenchman got closer and closer, Marin let everyone climb to the hillsides on both sides. As for the mountain, there are only the gullies, wooden pickets, trapped horses and squats that are blocking the French side. In fact, Marin originally intended to bring people directly in the array below, forcibly blocking the French army. Doing that, although there is a good chance to block the French. However, under the circumstance of the French, they are desperate and could be death soldiers driven by desperation. Because they have no choice but to go this way. However, the 1,100 people under Marin are all neers who have never fought a battle. Let them fight their first battle against the 8000 French Knights who are desperate, the requirements are too high. If you lose, you die here. Marin had some regrets. He did not find a weak opponent to practice and see blood. Because, only veterans who have practiced and seen blood have dared to fight. The recruits who fight for the first time will not dare to fight the enemy with superior training, equipment and experience. They will not have that confidence. Moreover, Marin had talked with the Swiss military officers before, knowing that Swiss mercenaries know how to fight knights, spearmen... The reason why he used the long halberd was to hook the knight who wore the te armor and put them down. If you only use a spear to resist the charge of the te armored knight, the casualties are sure to be big. The Swiss often use the long halberd to knock down the knight, then slowly poke with a spear end, or use a hammer and other weapons to kill or knock down the fallen knight. However, Marin had only a spearman in his hand, no long halberd, and the bow and arrow can not hurt the te-knight, and Marin had no gun. Really a straight te armored Knight''s charge, the square is easy to be broken. Therefore, Marin had no choice but to ambush the French on two high slopes. Even if the ambush be problematic, the French can hardly rush to the high slopes on both sides. Even if the French knights stepped down, because of the heavy te armor and the weapons, it is difficult to climb the high slope. Even if you climb the high slope, it is easy to be pushed down by the spear. But if you take off the te armor, climb uphill and be easily killed by a spear. Therefore, as long as it upies a high slope, it is in an invincible position. Although the French are not unlikely to break Marin''s defense, it will take a long, long time. The problem is that Charles VIII is running away and there is no time to entangle with Marin. Therefore, Charles VIII''s attention should be to clear the traps on the road, rather than desperately fight Marin''s men. Marin''s mission was to cause a lot of damage to the French before the French cleared the trap on the road. At the same time, try to create chaos for the French army. When Marin thought about how to deal with it, Kohler suddenly came together: "Young Master, I want to ask for a errand." "Say!" "I want to go back to the group of Italian farmers!" "What?" "Let them pretend to be reinforcements!" "This... It''s a good idea!" Marin responded, creating momentum, and working better with a living person. "Where did the group of farmers go?" "I just let Tara take people to the nearby viges for the night, and I will recover them." "If they are not happy?" "Nothing serious, they are just some timid farmers, if the young master gave me 20 people, I promise to bring them all back." "Good, organize the thousand Italian farmers as soon as possible. You take them to the back of the French, and they will be more ignited, and the formation will be a little thin. It looks like thousands of people. Then, when you are close to here, Let them yell together ''catch Charles VIII alive'' and scare the French." A reminder by Kohler, Marin also thought of a way. "What if the French sent people to fight? This group of farmers can beat the French." Kohler was worried. "Be reassured, you gather the team, bring enough torches to make each person takes two. When the team reaches a certain distance, stop, don''t make a noise. Wait until I find signs of breaking the defense of the French. After that,you immediately bring the the torch to ignition and start to make noise." "Young master, but I am worried that the French will send a broken army to stop me..." "You are stupid? The troops that are broken are intercepted by us. Because if they are going to fight with you, we can break their way." "Yes..." "And, I will send people to the back of the French army to smash some big stones and block the road they are marching on. The French are escaping and may concentrate on cleaning up the stones in front, and may not be careful to clean up the back." "I am relieved of this, Master, I will go!" "Well, I will give you 50 people, so that you can hold the farmer." "Thank you, Master!" Kohler took 50 soldiers to Tara and the vige where the Italian farmers were. Tara itself carries 10 people, plus 50 people from Kohler, the total number is 60, which is enough to force the 1000 farmer. However, Kohler needs to hurry and make time to make a torch. Marin asked, and each person had to take two torches to scare the French as much as possible. Then, let the 2000 torches go loose, go out of the battle of thousands of troops, and confuse the French. Chapter 46: Ambush 3 Chapter 46: Ambush 3 When the French returned along the main road to the mountain road, when they passed near Fornovo, they slowed down specifically, trying not to make loud noises, and avoiding the Italians in the Italian coalition camp on the river. At the same time, Charles VIII regrouped with several French knights who had been in the vicinity of the coalition camp: "What is the movement of the Italians?" asked Charles VIII. "Answering his Majesty, there is no movement." Several French knights have been near the Italian camp and found nothing unusual. Peace of mind, Charles VIII, with confidence, took his men and embarked on the slope of the mountain road. The mountain road is wide enough to make walk 10 French knights side by side. The slope problem is not a big deal for the horses. The French knights, in order not to disturb the Italians, sealed the mouth and hoof of each horse with a cloth strip to prevent them from making noises. Then, everyone walked silently on the mountain road and rushed northwest. However, because there is no ignited torch, visibility is limited and their speed is not fast. They arrived at Marin''s ambush point around midnight. When they got here, the French began to rx. Because there are already more than ten kilometers from the coalition camp, they don''t have to guard against the Italians. As a result, the French knights began to talk andugh. Even Charles VIII, together with several nobles, discussed how to arrange the country after returning to Paris. In general, if not for the syphilis, France had still made a very profitable gain this time. After all, the big kingdom of Naples was taken down. You know, Sicily and the Kingdom of Naples, in this era, are the most developed regions in Europe. Volcanic ash is an important natural fertilizer in Italy. Europeans do not know how to use manure, but in the Roman era, Italians knew how to use volcanic ash as fertilizer. Therefore, the southern part of Italy, in the Middle Ages, has always been a rich region of Europe. Especially in Sicily, it is called "Golden Basin" by Europeans. Of course, Sicily was robbed by the Spaniards, and the French grabbed Naples, which is a little worse than Sicily. It is also very good. However, just as they rxed, they did not know that they had entered the ambush circle. The 10 French knights who took the lead did not notice that there were many traps on this low valley avenue. So, they were all overwhelmed by the dead horse trap. For a time, the French people turned their horses, and the knights behind the front row, some of them couldn''t stop the car for a while, and the seven or eight rows of knights all mmed together. Many horses and knights fell to the ground. Aware that the Frenchman in front of the French army was already trapped, Marin no longer hesitated and shouted: "attack!" The voice just fell, and the rows of stones on both sides of the mountain began to fall down. "what..." "Hey..." For a time, many horses were caught and the horse were crushed by stones. Some of the French knights on horseback have also been mmed by the stone. At the same time, the 100 archers under Marin''s knees also fired. For a time, the arrows were raining. "what..." "Hey..." It is also a lot of French knights and horses, but in general, the most unfortunate were those horses. Because there is no armor on the horse, it is impossible to be protected from the arrows. For a time, the French were in chaos. "Enemy! Enemy!" French officers began to yell and demanded that the Knight defend. But how to defend? Because the blows are all falling from the sky... And Charles VIII, also surrounded by a lot of knights, looked horrified: "What happened? What happened?" The Frenchman fled, but the preparations were made, and the Italians did not move. The whole process was monitored by French scouts and they should not appear here. "Is it Germans?" a guard guessed. "I think so too, it seems that 15,000 people in the Germans did not participate in the previous battle..." Another French aristocratic interface. The French also know that Count Alfred led the 15,000 army behind and did not participate in the battle. It is precisely because of this that Charles VIII was anxious to flee. If he was trapped by the 35,000 army, he wanted to escapete. The Germans are not the Italians, the Germans are well armed, and the folks have many excellent mercenaries. If it is entangled by the German army, and with the help of the Italian, the French are already few, and certainly can''t afford it. Therefore, Charles VIII was very ruthless to choose to run, just did not want to entangle with the Italians, and be wasting time. Unexpectedly, they just left the military camp and nned to run, but here they were blocked. In the middle of the night, everyone can''t see clearly, I don''t know how many enemies there are. Thus, 8000 French knights, under the attack of more than 1,000 German mercenaries, were scared. Moreover, the other side is on both sides of the high ground, the French knights simply could not go. Charles VIII first panicked for a while, but quickly calmed down. Because, panic is not useful at all, it will only make you die. He calmlymanded the French to take defensive formation and leaned together to put the horses that were killed and bruised on the outermost side to block the stones that fell on the hillsides. "Count, you bring people to the left side of the hill!" Charles VIII ordered. "Your Majesty, our horses can''t go up!" the Count of Toulouse, was bitter. "Stupid, who let you ride a mountain? You take 1,000 people, you have to climb a mountain, you must upy amanding height, at least, let''s throw stones on the hillside near our army!" "Yes, Your Majesty!" ir quickly took the lead, carrying a 1000-te knight, wearing a full set of armor, carrying a two-handed sword, began to climb the left side of the slope. Coincidentally, he chose the location of the storm, which is the ce where Marin ambushed. "This bunch of idiots, let them climb!" "Adult, what if they climb up?" "First slow down the stone, leave some stones, and the archer continues to shoot the French." "Also, pick me up!" "Yes!" Soon, the hillsides on both sides rang out "Surrender and live (French)!" and "Charle VIII is dead (French)!" The Earl, who was leading the mountaineering, was shocked. He quickly stopped climbing, rode the horse, and returned to the battlefield to see the situation of Charles VIII. "You stupid, why are youing back?" Charles VIII was furious. "This vassal is worried about the safety of His Majesty!" the Earl was loyal. "Stupid, that is what the enemy is doing!" "Oh..." the Count pulled his head and went back to organize the climb. But after such a trouble, ir''s desperate momentum was gone. Even the French army, because it is too long. This part of the people close to Charles VIII naturally knows that the King is okay. People who can fall behind, I don''t know. So, in the second half of the French army, many people began to panic. The Earl, who was responsible for climbing themanding heights, just took someone to climb the top part, but saw Marin''s wretched smile. "Oh, now, you climb short, it''s not enough to pick it up..." (Artim''s note: I don''t understand what he is meaning to say) Under amand, the stone that had been built up for a long time was smashed to the head of the Frenchman who was on the slope. The French knights themselves wore thick te armor, and when the stone fell down, where can they withstand it? Therefore, they have fallen down and followed the dumplings. However, this hillside is tens of meters high, which is equivalent to a dozen floors. Is it good to fall? Therefore, most of the French knights in the middle of the game, fell down, ether dead or wounded . As for the Earl, his luck is good.Because, when he fell, there was a fat knight below ying the meat pad. Then, when he fell down, he was blocked by a few unlucky ones in the middle, slowing down the speed of falling. So, when he finally fell to the ground, he magically did not fall, just broke his left leg. "Oh, it hurts Lord..." Soon, the unfortunate Count was carried to the face of Charles VIII. "It''s a waste!" Charles VIII snorted angrily. However, he could not do anything about the shameless stone throwing behavior of the mountain people. So he turned his head and told the Earl of Tours: "Mathieu, you take someone to explore and see how many German troops there are." In Charles VIII''s view, since the other side is set, the army blocked in front is certainly quite a lot. But soon, Mathieu, who led the team to explore the road, reported: "Your Majesty, there seems to be no enemy in front, but there are a lot of traps, a lot of pits, and it is impossible to ride through with horses." "It turned out to be like this. I thought that many people stopped the road..." Charles VIII was also a bit stunned. Chapter 47: Charles VIII flee (Unedited) Chapter 47: Charles VIII flee (Unedited) "How is this? The enemy does not want to stop us?" Charles VIII is somewhat puzzled. "Maybe, there are not many other people. Or, they dare not fight hard with the powerful French knight?" "Maybe..." Charles VIII paused thinking and began to observe both sides... After observing for a while, he also discovered that the enemy does not seem to be a lot... "Matthews, the enemy seems to have only two or three thousand people..." Charles VIII spected. In fact, he still overestimated the number of people under Marin. After all, ording tomon sense, there are no two or three thousand people, and they dare not provoke 8000 French knights. "That''s good, sire, let''s eliminate this gang," said Earl Matthews excitedly. "Idiot, where do we have enough time? You don''t want to think about it. If they open the game here, can they not inform the Italians? If the Italian reinforcements arrive, we can''t run away! And, God knows that more than 10,000 Germans Where is the man!" Charles VIII does not want to fight hard. If the Italians came over, it would be hard to get rid of it. What surprised him even more is, where is the main force of the Germans? "Then, squat, what do we do next?" "Matthews, you take the 2000 Knight, dismount, and open up a safe passage in front! Remember, at any cost!" Charles VIII said with a bite. He does not want to be captured. If he is surrounded by enemy forces, he will certainly not escape the captured misfortune. Imagine if he was captured and where did his face rest? In the future, who is going to say who is going on? Besides, after being captured, being humiliated is certain. Maybe he will be forced to be imprisoned for a year or two like King Richard I, and then have to pay a huge ransom (Richard I paid a ransom of 150,000 marks to the Emperor Henry VI), and he was forced to be forced before leaving. Loyalty to an emperor (Richard I was forced to swear allegiance to Henry VI)... All of this was unbearable for Charles VIII, so he decided that he had to run away anyway. Even if you dispose of the army, you will not hesitate. After all, the army is gone and can be recruited again. If he is gone, then the fun is big. Matthews also felt the determination of Charles VIII, so he took the 2000 French brawny, armed with two-handed swords, and smashed the stones from time to time, and began to cut off those dead horses. At the same time, use the two-handed sword as a shovel and start digging the soil to fill the pit... However, how can the two-handed swordpare with the engineer? That efficiency, the old nose is far away... So, Matthews is very slow and slow... An hourter, Charles VIII was a little impatient, and he recruited Earl of Tours: "Matthews, how are you?" "Your squat, the speed is a bit slow, and the two-handed sword fills the pit too slowly..." "Then don''t think about getting the whole road done, first specializing in a narrow passage." Charles VIII didn''t want to wait any longer. In his opinion, the enemy on the hillside must have informed the Italian battalion. If it is waiting for an hour or two, maybe the Italians wille over and he can''t wait. After receiving the order, Matthews changed the way and began to dig only one passage that could only pass through a horse. In this way, the speed is indeed a lot faster... Marin looked at it above, so it doesn''t work. So he started to make noise: "The reinforcements areing, the reinforcements areing, we have to catch Charles VIII and cut him into pieces!" This sentence is also French. Many of his men have worked in France and will speak French at any time. After Marin shouted, the bottom of the stick also followed the noise. Charles VIII was shocked by a big jump - Nima, this mob, to hack the king? Do you know that Europe is not allowed to kill the nobility? However, if you identally kill yourself on the battlefield, it is not illegal. The rule in Europe is that it is not allowed to kill the aristocrats who surrendered, but did not say that they are not allowed to kill the aristocrats in the battle. Can surrender, Charles VIII will not choose. Because that is too insulting... Matthews took the 2000 French knight and yed with his life to fill the pile. Even if he was killed by 300 people, he would not stop. Marin has already seen that the Frenchman is eager to escape. So he waved his hand and recruited Kahn: "Kahn, you bring people to move more big stones!" Marin decided to use arge stone to block the narrow passage that the French dug out... Speaking of it, because the French people are wearing thick te armor, the bow and arrow effect is also general, but it shoots a lot of armor without armor. When Marin saw this, he simply let the archer slow down the firing rate. Through the telescope, he observed that the French were stoned to death, but only five or six hundred people. In addition, before the climb was smashed down and fell, the French people were only seven or eight hundred people. Like a small stone to the French knight, the most painful, or injured, can not die. Seeing this, Marin simply let the archers stop and let them go to move the medium-sized stones. Medium stone can kill people and move. Unlike big stones, you can only push it down, you can''t throw it down, and the people in the middle are purely looking for luck. The kind of stone that can scare and kill the enemy, at least the size of the brick. Marin''s general defense against the French knight''s tortoise shell was also tangled with a toothache. He finally knew that he used arge firearm instead of a bow and arrow for the Spanish square. The bow and arrow hit the infantry without the te armor effect, used to shoot the board knight, no effect at all. Just now the archers shot so many arrows, causing the number of casualties of the French army, no more than 100 people, far less than the stone''s lethality. Marin can be sure that if he is on the ins, his team with no practical experience can''t stop the French knight''s impact at any cost. Fortunately, he sent people to ambush on the mountain, and it is difficult for the French to climb the mountain. After a while, after Matthews lost 800 knights, he finally opened a wide-ranging passage in a dense trap... "Your Majesty, Chen finally opened a passage!" "Are you sure there are no traps in front?" "Yes, the vassal sent someone to check it out!" "Okay, rush over!" "Yes!" Then the hordes of French troops gathered and rushed to the very narrow passage. However, the passage can only amodate one person and one horse, so the efficiency is surprisingly low... After an hour, only 1,500 French knights were passed, including Charles VIII and Earl Matthews, and other confidants of Charles VIII... But at this time, the team led by Kahn moved a lot of big stones and piled up on the hillside... At the same time, Marin released three fireworks that he made himself: "Bang" "Bang" "Bang" "What is that?" Earl Matthews looked up curiously at the sky. "Not good, that is the enemy is calling for reinforcements!" Charles VIII changed his face. Kohler, a few miles away from the south, saw the signal and immediately ordered: "The two torches are put on, and one person takes two, spread out, but keep the formation. Brother, you arrange them to stand!" These torches are all the wooden sticks that Kohler is in the vige. The simple torches that were tied to the rags that were soaked in grease could not be burned for a long time, but they did not need to burn for too long. When everyone''s torches were ignited and stood up, Kohler began to order: "Several of you who speak Italian, tell these Italian farmers to scream in Italian, ''Catch Charles VIII, destroy the French!''" Then, 1000 Italian farmers, with a sparse formation, shouted and slowly walked to the ambush... "Your Majesty, not good, the enemy reinforcements came to the south, fearing that there are thousands of people!" The scouts who stayed behind the South Hall quickly ran to the front to report. "What? Who is it?" "It seems to be an Italian, and across the distance, I hear them shouting ''Destroy the Frenchman'', and... grab you down..." "What..." Charles VIII''s face was blue. But the thing that made him even bigger is still behind. At this time, Kahn and other strong men carrying the big stones in ce began to push the stones down the mountain, the direction of is the narrow path that the French open the passage... Hundreds ofrge stones roared down and blocked the path that the French cavalry passed... At this time, the French cavalry through this passage was less than 2,000. The unlucky broken leg, Freire, happened to be stuck in the valley... "What to do?" Matthews was a little panicked. The French thought that the main force of the Italians had arrived. If they were surrounded, they could not escape. Charles VIII gnawed his teeth for a while, then he sent someone to climb the stone and told Count Fryer who had broken his left leg: "When you leave, you take the people behind the temple and block the Italians. If you can''t resist it... you can surrender... You will spend money to redeem yours..." Earl of Freire stunned, and he knew that he was abandoned by His Majesty... Although Charles VIII promised to redeem him, a captured aristocrat would be a joke in the aristocratic circle... Looking at the dusty Charles VIII and about 2000 French knights, Count Fryer''s confidence copsed. With the pain from the left leg, he has lost confidence in resistance... and, Charles VIII also allowed him to surrender... Under his chaoticmand, the Frenchmen who stayed in the valley were even more chaotic... The escaping Charles VIII, in order to lightly go into battle, ordered the men to take off the te armor and squat the horses of the horses, just to be able to run easily... ording to the instructions of the guide, go further to the north and enter the in area. At that time, he can not walk the road, and he is not worried about being ambushed again. On the ins, infantry can hardly ambush the cavalry. In particr, the French took off the te armor and the stables. It was a light-loaded battle. It was not a problem to escape one or two hundred miles in one breath... Chapter 48: I made a fortune! Chapter 48: I made a fortune! After discovering that Charles VIII had escaped, Marin began to get upset, but soon he realized that the Frenchman moral had copsed. The king took the lead to escape, the rest of the people, and confidence to continue fighting? So Marin began to speak under themand of knowing French: "Knights of France, your king, has taken the lead to run away shamefully. Do you still need to fight for such a coward? Don''t die deadly." "We guarantee the preferential treatment of prisoners. As long as you surrender, we will not kill anyone. The nobles will also receive preferential treatment." Marin quickly used the strategy of theter period to attack the heart. "In addition, to the injured knight, we will also arrange for treatment. Do not dy the treatment time, will die, will be disabled." ......... Hearing here, the Count of Flers, who led the remnants of the French Knights, changed his face. Because he is also worried that he will be disabled. When a timid baron came to suggest a surrender, Flers quickly went downhill and agreed to surrender. But there are also some stubborn people who are unwilling to surrender. They couldn''t charge on horseback, so they simply dismounted and climbed over the stones that had fallen. Then, these people threw away their armor and weapons and ran away with bare hands. "Great...Sire...we French surrendered." Marin is stillmanding, but the French sent messengers and expressed their willingness to surrender. "Is this surrender?" Marlin groaned, but then became overjoyed. "Quick, go and ept their surrender. Notify the opposite side, to Schwartz and and let him prepare the groundwork." "In addition, you tell the French to leave the weapons and the horses aside, and for those who obey, they will be assured of preferential treatment!" The Frenchman took off their armor and weapon and Marin quicklymanded the men to go down the mountain and surrounded the remaining 4,000 French people to prevent them from seeing the fact that there were only a thousand people on their side. In addition, Marin also sent people to tie these knights. These people are all knights who know martial arts. If they resist, it is very difficult to get it. Therefore, first tied up is the best choice. Then, Schwartz took hispany and quickly concentrated the horses in the valley. Because of the use of the stone and the arrow, the horses in the valley suffered heavy losses. Just a horse was killed and 2000 injured. The light horse, the loss is even worse, with up to 4,000 deaths and injuries. After the inventory, Marin was pleasantly surprised to find that there were 2,000 intact horses and 3,600 horses in the valley who ran during the ambush. "Ah, hahahaha, I did it!" Marinughed. You know, a war horse is worth at least 100 Ducat gold coins. 2000 horses, equivalent to 200,000 Ducat gold coins. A gold coin contains about 3.5 grams of gold, 200,000 gold coins, and almost 700,000 grams. ording to the lowest price of 200 grams per gram inter generations, at least more than 100 million soft sister coins... How can this not make, Sir Knight Marin, excited? In addition, those who are riding horses, there are also good horses of ordinary race who are only a little worse than the war horses. The minimum is also worth 20 gold coins. 3,600 horses can also be worth more than 70,000 gold coins. All in all, Marin is rich, and it is a big fortune! He is still not happy here, and Schwartz also returns: "What? We obtained 6,000 sets of tes armors?" Marlin almost fainted. You know, this age, a set of ordinary knights armor cost 50 florin gold coins, equivalent to 50 Ducat. And those rich aristocrats have te armor, made better, and the price is higher, at least 100 Ducat. 6000 sets of French te armor, at least 500 pieces are high-end armor worn by wealthy nobles, which is of great value. In short, Marin made a fortune. At this time, the French army officers, have taken off the te armor, and are now wearing linen or silk clothes, and unarmed. At this time, they can''t turn over the waves. Just right, the sky is bright. It was early in the summer, and it was not until 5 o''clock, and the day began to light up. When Earl of Flore saw that the "German army" who captured them had only two or three thousand people (he mistook the Italian farmer as a German mercenary), he felt a bit ashamed. Marin is good for these captives, especially the aristocratic prisoners. Because, he learned that the Middle Ages had the habit of redeeming the captured nobles. In general, an earl, still rich French count, ransom at least 50,000 gold coins. Therefore, Marin called the Count of Flers to talk. Earl of Flers was injured in the left leg. Marin personally told his men to use two wooden stick to the Count of Flers. Then, the viscounts and barons who followed Flers'' capture were also treated with courtesy. Not Marin respects them, but they are all gold coins! But when it was just dawn, Marin suddenly thought of something and told Kohler: "Fast, hide these horses and armor, and hide them in the valley hidden before us!" Kohler is somewhat puzzled, Marin exined: "The Italian, after dawn, is likely to send people here to see, seeing us so many spoils, will they not be blinded by greed?" Kohler understood it immediately. Then, with 100 of his most reliable men, he directed the Italian farmer and transported 2000 horses and te armors to secret locations. Halfway, Kohler also picked up 2000 sets of te armor and horses that Charles VIII took off when he ran away. Marin was not at ease, and the Italians had not found the situation here, and they quickly sent people back to Kohler. He simply took the captives and the whole army went straight north. You know, he only got 1,100 people, and he got such a big fortune. If it is known to the more than 10,000 Italians, it will definitely be not end well. Therefore, in order to avoid being robbed by allies, he went straight to the army. As for the more than 1,000 Italian farmers, he was also forced to help him transport the spoils. At the same time, weapons were also issued to them to hire mercenaries. After all, the 2,000-person man is also considered a "big army" in Italy. In addition to the tens of thousands of people in the coalition, there are basically a few thousand people in Italy who dare to do something about his "huge" team. At least, there is no armies on Marin''s North withdrawal route. Chapter 49: Temporary "Expanding the Army" Chapter 49: Temporary "Expanding the Army" To prevent being robbed by an enemy or an ally, Marin had a headache. You know, his team of 1100 people, with thousands of horses and thousands of armors, many can be blinded by greed. This is not even the ransom of 4,000 French knights. Kohler calcted it and felt that these 4,000 prisoners could be exchanged for at least 2 million Ducat gold coins. Knights are not cheaper than horses, and war horses are easy to train. It takes more than ten years to cultivate a knight, and the investment is huge. Therefore, a knight''s ransom requires at least 500 gold coins. 4000 knights, at least 2 million gold coins, this is still not considered the "price" of those nobles. "I drop a little boy, 2 million gold coins!" Marin had only money in his eyes! "But, Master, if you take all these captives back, your emperor will certainly not give you that much money. Because the emperor itself is very poor!" Kohler said. "What?" Marin was angry. However, he was right to think about it, the emperor could not give him that much money. Because he originally fought for the emperor, the loot should be given to the emperor. However, if he wanted to get the title, he had to take a lot of prisoners. Especially the captives of the nobles. After thinking about it for a long time, Marin decided topromise. Because what he needed most was the title. As for those horse armors, Marin decided to keep some of them in private use. However, this wealth is too huge, he is not confident to protect it. So he decided to expand the army "Expand?" Schwartz didn''t quite understand. "It''s only temporary. I can''t afford too many troops. I want to recruit some soldiers and horses, in fact, it''s to scare others, so as not to be robbed by others." Now Schwartz understands that it was bluffing. "How much will we expand?" "3000 people ... Schwartz, you take someone to the Italian vige to catch the people and say hello to them. When they arrive in Venice, let theme back, and by the way, ''borrow'' some food from the peasant." The so-called "borrowing of food" actually means robbing food. Marin originally had only 1,100 people to solve the ration problem. But now with 4,000 more prisoners and 1,000 Italians, the food supply is far from enough. Fortunately, in the valley before, before leaving, some butcher-born mercenaries skinned and butchered the horses that were killed and wounded and took them to the road. Otherwise, food is definitely not enough. However, these horse meats are easily damaged in summer. In desperation, Marin sent troops to rob several towns near Piacenza and grabbed a lot of salt to preserve the horse meat. Ten dayster, Marin''s team has expanded to more than 8,000 people, which is extremely spectacr. Schwartz did catch 3,000 Italians to make up for it. However, that night the people rioted and ran away 1,000 people. As a result, Marin only had 3,000 Italians, including the previous 1,000. Marin stopped in a remote area in the Duchy of Mn for a few days. By the way, the 3,000 Italians were simply trained. At least, let them learn to distinguish left and right, and march in formation. Moreover, Marin also made a simple ck cross and white vest for them. Uninformed people looked at it, thinking that these 3,000 people were also soldiers. At least, they look neatly. As for the weapons of this group of people, Marin directly sent a wooden stick with a sharpened wooden point head, brushed it with paint grabbed, and looked like a metal spearhead, which was actually wooden. Then, Marin swayed with 4,000 "arms", holding 4,000 French prisoners, and walked all the way to the Coalition camp in Venice. At the same time, the Italian coalition was pursuing the remaining 3,000 Swiss mercenaries. Unfortunately, the Italians were afraid of being beaten by the Swiss, so they only dared to shoot the Swiss from a distance and not dare tounch an attack. Moreover, they did not know where the 8,000 French knights had gone. Last night they heard some fighting, but they did not dare to send troops in the middle of the night, because they have never experienced fighting in the middle of the night. Not to mention them, even the 3,000 Swiss mercenaries did not dare to send troops in the middle of the night. Only Marin''s men, after training, dare to fight at night. The Swiss retreated on the Roman avenue by the river and did not follow that mountain road. When they retreated, Marin''s previously dug the embankment, the water almost flowed, and a lot of water soaked into the fields. The Swiss mountain people are very wild and are not afraid of going to the water. They took off their shoes directly and walked barefooted across the flooded road. The Italian coalition is not as hardworking as the Swiss. The Duke of Mantova first collected farmers and blocked the embankment. When the water receded the next day, the coalition forces passed through this lot. Then, continue hanging behind the Swiss. After Marin brought his army into Venice, he originally nned to do business with the Italians. Initially, he nned to send someone to contact the Italian Coalition. After all, if he brought people into the Empire army station, the disposal of those captives would not belong to him. However, he was afraid that the Italians would eat them. Therefore, instead of sending people to find coalition forces, he directly sent people to Venice, to find the Vian Republican government, and negotiate with them. "What? You say a Holy Roman Empire officer captured 1,000 French knights?" The Governor of Venice was stunned. Then, he convened the merchants of the Vian Republic urgently to negotiate. "What does this guy mean? Why tell us the news?" Someone was puzzled. "It''s still a question? Want to exchange them for money with us..." The nobleman in business said the words of Marin''s motive. "Ransom money?" "Yes, a knight''s ransom must be at least 500 Ducat. This guy is here to do business with us..." "Then why didn''t he go with the French himself?" "Stupid, Antonio. He is just a middle-ranking officer of the Holy Roman Empire army. He looks like a legionnaire (Marin bragging). The captives in his hands must be handed over to the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire." "What Maximilian I? It''s a poor beggar of emperor. When the captive arrived in his hands, what will happened to the ransom and that officer?" Said the Vian parliament. "Hahaha ..." Everyoneughed, and they remembered that the Holy Roman Emperor is poor. Chapter 50: Private Transaction Chapter 50: Private Transaction "So, why do we buy captives? What good is it for Venice?" A member of the parliament asked doubtfully. "Good question, this is what I want to ask." "I think I know how to answer." said the governor of Venice, Agostino Barbarigo, slowly. "Wish to hear from the Governor." "Venice is rich, everyone knows." "Hahaha." Everyone presentughed heartily. "But weck prestige and prestige. Many people, many forces, treat us as fat sheep." The crowd was a little silent, and Agostino''s words were indeed very reasonable. "So, I n to buy a group of French prisoners of war with this greedymander of the Empire and dere to the outside that they were captured by Venice and the Empire. "How to ensure that no secrets are leaked? The regimentalmander can control his men, but he cannot control the French. When they return, they will reveal the matter." "This is a problem. I personally went to the west to talk to themander of the legion." The next day, the governor of Venice, Agustino Barbarigo, quietly took 50 guard knights to the Marin station. "Mr. Governor, are you worried about being exposed? This is simple. I will tell those French people that the army I lead is half Vian." "Can you do this?" Agostino Barbarigo was a little hesitant. "No problem, wrap it on me. By that time, I will have 1,000 men who participated in that battle go back to you, and they are all Italian." "Really?" Agustino Barbarigo was a little surprised. "Of course!" Marin was talking about the group of Italian farmers near Fornovo, which were the first to be recovered. They did join the war, though to frighten the French. And the French did treat them as reinforcements. Until now, Count Fryer thought they were Italian reinforcements ... Solving this headache, Agustino Barbarigo quickly talked to Marin with interest. Marin had 2,000 captives outside. Another 2,000 people were hidden in another station by him. Moreover, the Vian business is not losing money. Because Marin wants cash. Vian wants fame. Moreover, the Vian who got this captive can also recover the ransom with the French, so it is not a loss. At most, the food expenses of some captives are borne, butpared with fame, this money is drizzle. After negotiations, Agostino Barbarigo and Marin reached a captive agreement of 500 gold coins. But Governor Agustino Barbarigo asked for more. "Captain Marin, please tell me the truth, how many captives do you have?" "Uh... 4000 ..." "Then why are you willing to sell only 1,000 people? Don''t you know that your poor ghost emperor won''t give you a few dors? Captive into him, do you still want to have your ransom?" Agostino. Barbarigo was a little angry. "Uh, actually, I want to change the title with His Majesty. I am not even a baron now." "This ..." Agustino Barbarigo was also speechless. As emperor, Maximilian I had the most advantage over others in that he could be awarded a title. In this regard, as the governor of the Republic of Venice, Agustino Barbarigo''s horse-racing could not keep up with Maximilian I. Although there are nobles in the Vian Republic, they are all titles that have been passed down for a long time. The Republic now generally no longer grants new titles. "Well, you sell me 1,000 more people. I don''t want nobles, but ordinary knights." "But that''s a total of 1 million gold coins, Lord Governor! Do you have that much cash?" "Hum, Captain Marin, don''t look down on Venice''s financial resources. Venice, not bad money!" Agustino Barbarigo''s face on that shoehorn was full of pride as if he was carrying his hand Uncle Benshan led by. "Uh... deal!" Marin also sacked out for 1 million gold coins ... "By the way, Governor, I still have a group of outstanding French horses and te armors ..." "How much?" Governor Agustino Barbarigo turned back abruptly, his eyes fixed on Marin. He almost forgot that Marin captured the French knights, and everyone had warhorses, armor, and weapons. The Republic of Venice is an ambitious country, plus they are not bad at money. So they are ambitious too. The French invasion of Naples showed them the weakness of the Italian nations. So, they are also a little bit tempted. Otherwise, there will not be a Cambrai League war 13 yearster. That war was because Venice wanted to expand, and as a result, it caused a rebound in the states and caused Venice, which just wanted to expand, to be beaten by the masses. Venice is not short of money, sailor or infantry. But they seriouslycked cavalry, because after all, Venice was a country born on the water, and it always attached importance to the sea. But if you want to participate innd hegemony, you must have arge number of cavalry. Otherwise, infantry alone is difficult to say. Today, Marin says he has arge number of war horses and armor, and Agustino Barbarigo is immediately tempted. "Give me, I want them all!" Agustino Barbarigo''s eyes were red. "Master, I cannot give you all, otherwise, I will not be able to exin to His Majesty." Otherwise, his reputation in the Empire will immediately fall to hatred. In that case, Marin may not be able to mix in Germany. "Okay, I want half!" "Master, war horses and armors are also expensive!" Marin reminded kindly. "How many warhorses and armors do you have?" "2000 warhorses, 6000 te armor." "This ..." Agostino Barbarigo took a breath and was frightened. He was frightened. Warhorses are not the same as horses. Cavalier warhorses have much better load capacity than warriors of irregr light cavalry. Not to mention, just a full set of te armor weighs 50 pounds, plus horse armor, it weighs about 100 pounds. Therefore, the cavalry''s load-carrying capacity is much better than that of the light cavalry. At least, it is hundreds of pounds more than the cavalry''s steed in terms of weight. "1000 war horses, 3,000 sets of armor." Gritted his teeth, Agustino Barbarigo decided to give a handful of blood. "The price..." "Marin, I can''t give you too much price. Those captives, the French will pay. And these war horses and armor, I don''t know the opinions of the congressmen. So, I propose that the warhorses are sold 100 Ducat, A set of te 50 Ducat. " The price offered by Agostino Barbarigo is not high, it is probably the reserve price. Because heavy horses used by knights generally have more than this price. But, as he said, he wasn''t sure if these armors would fall into his hands. After the talks, Agustino Barbarigo went immediately and rushed back through Venice''s developed post road to Venice City to discuss the business with thewmakers. "What? So many warhorses and armors? Come on, Lord Governor, this will make Venice''sbat power soar!" An army general shouted excitedly. With these warhorses and armors, Venice will have an additional "tank unit" with full armor, which can directly strike the enemy formation on the battlefield. Except for the Swiss Spear Formation, withstand the charge of thousands of heavily armored knights. "So many armors, or, Governor, we robbed him?" A congressman suggested. "I''m afraid it''s not right. They have 4,000 troops and strong troops. They can defeat 8,000 French heavy cavalry. Can we beat them? And, if things are revealed, we and the Holy Roman Empire will turn against each other." No one can beat 4,000 Swiss mercenaries. And Marin is also "4000 people", can beat the 8000 French Cavaliers, and it is very difficult to mess with. Also, the Empire had tens of thousands of troops in Venice. Once the German army is enraged, Venice may be looted. Therefore, the Vian cannot afford to gamble. "Well, then promise, but the price of war horses and armors will be down." Then Agostino Barbarigo rushed back and bargained with Marin. In the end, Marin sold 2,000 ordinary captives to Venice at a discount of 1 million ducats. Also, 1,000 war horses with horse armor were sold at a discount of 100,000 ducats. Horse armor''s money was also included, and Marin was a bit of a loss. But Marin was also anxious to "sell stolen goods" and couldn''t control that much. The te armor was sold to Venice for 50 ducats for a price of 150,000 ducat gold coins. In this way, Marin instantly earned 1.25 million ducats, but he immediately remembered the three spy nted by his emperor and earl in his army. In order to keep the secrets, Marin had lost his mind to the three. Anyway, it is a war period, and a few people can report to death but considering their 15 men, if all of them are eliminated, it will rm the emperor and the count of. As for the others, they are basically illiterate serfs, and they are not very clear about the significance of Marin''s series of actions. Also, they are also used to obeying Marin''s orders, so they are not worried about their mouths. Only the three knights and their attendants were a bit difficult to handle. Agustino Barbarigo knew Marin''s concerns, andughed, saying that it was not a problem at all ... "What should I do?" Marin had a headache. "It''s easy, we pay money in Venice, give the three of them arge sum of money, as a sealing fee." "Very nice." That night, Agustino Barbarigo went out and gave the three of them a 30,000 gold coin each. So the three of them knelt. As for their followers, the master was on his knees, and the followers were not yet on their knees? You know, the three knights, their family territories, earn up to two or three thousand ducats a year, or they are still in a good harvest year. 30,000 Ducat, enough for their estate ie for more than ten years. Therefore, the three of them signed a confidentiality agreement, took an oath on the Bible, and received more than 10 years of benefits over the output of their estate. As for the poor beggar of emperor, can he give so much money? Even now, the emperor owes part of their sry ... Moreover, Marin knew how to do things properly, leaving half of the booty for the emperor, enough to exin. This is where their confidence lies ... However, Marin had a headache about how to take away so many coins. Because, 1.25 million gold coins, more than 4 tons of weight alone. If people learn that he is carrying more than 4 tons of gold on the road, it is estimated that many people wille and rob him ... In the end, Marin decided to trust the Vian business reputation, as long as 500,000 gold coins in cash. The remaining 750,000 gold coins were temporarily stored in a bank in Venice, and the bills were issued, and they would be collectedter. Then, Marin took out 100,000 gold coins and distributed them to 1,100 brothers. An average of eighty or ny gold coins were distributed to each of them. This group of guys were very happy. You know, the second group of men who picked up gold coins in Mantova and Mn, each picked up an average of twenty or thirty gold coins, which is far worse than them ... As for the Italian farmers who were arrested to fill the facade, they did not receive such good treatment. After all, it is a "temporary worker" and there is no rted "welfare" treatment. Chapter 51: The Shocked Emperor Chapter 51: The Shocked Emperor Marin is not a stingy person. He heard that everyone only got more than 80 gold coins per person (the officer got more), and he felt sorry for everyone. As a result, he once again took out 30,000 gold coins and distributed them, so that everyone could get 100 gold coins. The reason why this money goes down is also to appease the army. After all, the fact that this group of people followed them and captured 4,000 people is clear to everyone. Although, Marin could make up lies to fool them. However, if you give benefit to everyone is satisfied, maybe someone will think more. Once someone is unhappy and walks with news that is not good for Marin, it''s over. Therefore, take out some of the money, they will be immersed in joy and have no energy to think wildly. After all, this group of mercenaries, most of whom came from serf families, rarely saw gold coins before. But Marin was also worried that this group of guys would get away if they got the money. So he had to do ideological work for everyone and tell them not to run around. Because it is dangerous for a person to carry 100 gold coins on the road, and it is easy to be robbed. At the same time, Marin promised to return to the country after the war and agree to leave with those who wanted to leave. The group of soldiers were not sure where the missing captives and horses went, nor how much they sold. And the educated military officers who can roughly estimate the value were "bought". Therefore, no one is in trouble. This is also because they have no culture and do not know how to calcte. Otherwise, if we know that Marin received a huge sum of 1.25 million gold coins, this group of people may be "paid". As for how the money came, Marin had already thought about it and said that it was a trophy that was obtained by the way when the French were captured. Even Marin insisted that the Vian cooperate with them toplete the ambush against the French. Although, it seems that everyone did not see the presence of the Vian army. But Marin said so, and the other fourpany captains also said so, so the soldiers believed with confusion. In their opinion, the Vian was out of their sight and cooperated with everyone toplete the ambush. In the days that followed, Marin used these two lies to brainwash everyone. The lie was told 100 times, and everyone believed it, let alone Marin said dozens of times every day. Even Marin himself almost believed the lies he had made up and was brainwashed by himself. However, something unpleasant happened in the middle. For example, the knights sent by the emperors and the count did not seem to like profit of 30,000 gold coins. They found Marin privately and asked for more benefits. Marin was also worried that they said they had missed it, but Marin had a mind when dealing with the Vian before. For example, whenmunicating with these three guys in private, Marin lied that the captives and weapon armor were sold at low prices. In this regard, the three have no doubt. Because stolen goods are usually sold at very low prices. However, they did not know, because the "goods" were so significant that the Vians were desperate to obtain them, and they did not lower the price too much. Therefore, the three people''s valuation of "goods" only looked like three or four hundred thousand gold coins. Because, this is also the tradition of selling looted goods. Moreover, they are only a little cultural martial arts. They can''t understand the strategic value of this batch of goods. In order to appease the three, Marin "gritted his teeth" and added 10,000 gold to each person. So all three were satisfied. After all, the three of them won a total of 120,000 gold coins. Combining their own estimates of the "total value" of 300,000 to 400,000 gold coins, they also think that Marin is more generous. Because Marin has taken out 130,000 gold coins evenly. Counting the 120,000 gold coins they received, Marin himself, they estimate that they can only get tens of thousands of gold coins, up to no more than 100,000. But Marin was the highest officer in the operation, and they could not ask for more if they were assigned "this point". As a result, the hidden dangers in the army were eliminated after the "second division of the loot". After sharing the stolen goods, Marin intends to rush back to the station of the Imperial Army. He took a huge team of 6,000 people and slowly moved towards the Count Alfred. At the same time, after hearing about the outbreak of war in Italy, Emperor Maximilian I hurriedly rushed to Italy. Maximilian I was a visionary. He knew very well that if France were to be strong, then the Holy Roman Empire, as a neighbor, would surely be the next target of the French. Especially the Principality of Burgundy under his control will inevitably be the target of the French. Therefore, his idea is to unite the Italians andpletely defeat the French army, and it is best to seize Charles VIII. In this way, the arrogance of the French can be eliminated, and the French can be weakened. For example, Charles VIII can be exchanged for arge amount of ransom. It can even be exchanged for the Principality of Burgundy taken by the French. In addition, the kingdom of Naples had better be taken from the French. If you get it, it''s perfect ... Maximilian I hurried on the road, while Marin arrived. In short, the strategic goal of Maximilian I was to drive the French out of Italy and weaken France as much as possible. Soon after he arrived at the count Alfred camp, Marin''s army also returned to the camp. "Halt!" The guard in charge of the army saw five or six thousand peopleing to the imperial army camp, and was shocked. He hurriedly shouted and warned the inside of the camp. And Maximilian I thought that the French came to attack, probably knowing that he was here. But as the team approached, everyone was relieved. Because Marin''s people are too distinctive; they all wear ck cross white vests. "No, there are more than 1,000 people in the ck Cross Square. Why are there three or four thousand people wearing ck cross vests in this group?" Count Alfred standing on the tower and observing was a little confused. "Then be on guard first, and ask questions when you are near." When the team arrived at the camp, Marin stepped forward and spoke to Count Alfred on the high wall: "Sire, I''m back! Is his Majesty the Emperor there? This vassal salute His Majesty the Emperor!" Marin quickly dismounted, took off his helmet, and bowed to Maximilian I. "Sire Marin, what is going on? Why are there so many people behind you?" Count Alfred asked cautiously. "This is very simple. I temporarily hired 1,000 mercenaries in Italy, and then took them with about 2,000 Vian soldiers to ambush the French king''s army and captured 2,000 French captives ..." "What? Didn''t it mean that the coalition had a draw with the French army in the battle of Fornovo?" Emperor Maximilian I asked in confusion. He was informed that the French were repelled at the battle of Fornovo. But the emperor knew better, the Italians had 2,000 killed or injured, and 1,000 French were killed or injured. Obviously, the Italians are bragging. They are at best a draw with the French. "Oh, that''s true, but after we merged a Vian army, south of Piacenza, we ambushed the retreating French army, seized 2000 French knight captives, but unfortunately let Charles VIII run." Marin''s tone was full of pity. But that tone made Maximilian I take a breath. Charles VIII was apanied by 8,000 French knights. He knew that this was quite a difficult battle, at least the emperor asked himself that he couldn''t do it. However, the knight in front of him was so talkative. However, the captives they held, the thousands of war horses, and the te armor on a row of carts showed that this was true. Because Marin''s origin is very clear. This poor knight cannot have so many warhorses and armors. Even in the case of looting by Italian civilian soldiers, they can only grab money, not war horses and armors. The emperor then ordered Marin in. As for the others, the emperor was cautious and asked them to camp temporarily outside the camp. "Hurry up and talk about what''s going on?" So Marin talked about that ambush. The other plots are fine, but Marin added something. For example, he encountered Venice''s 2000 troops on his way south. Theirmander Pasiano (a real person who also came to the Empire camp with the team) seemed to admire Marin, went on the road with him, and cooperated with Marin toplete that beautiful ambush-- This is the Governor of Venice, in order to respect Marin''s merit, specifically acknowledged that Marin was headed ... "What? 4,000 French knights were captured, but what about the other 2,000?" The emperor stood up in excitement. This is absolutely a big thing. Captives of 4,000 French knights can only be achieved by tens of thousands of troops. In Marin''s mouth, they only used a few thousand people. "Take it away by the Vian, we said before the war, the trophies were evenly divided ..." Marin said innocently. "Why are there so many of you?" "Oh, that was a temporary call. In addition, 1,000 people were lent to me by the Vians, who were under themand of the Pasiano Regiment. After the captives returned, the Pasiano Regiment had to take them How about returning to Venice ... "Marin and Agostino Barbarigo discussed it. Pasiano will represent Venice and bring back the 1,000 Italian farmers trained in the queue. Let them pretend to be heroes and avoid That the lies were broken down. "How about thebat effectiveness of these Italian soldiers?" The emperor was also a little tempted, thinking that those Italians were very powerful, otherwise how to defeat the French. "Your Majesty, the fighting power of the Italians cannot keep up with the Germans." "Did you not defeat the 8000 Cavaliers of the French?" "Your Majesty, it was an ambush! It was a night attack! The French were anxious to escape. We ambushed halfway and smashed them down with stones, killing a lot of French people. Otherwise, if it was on t ground, maybe I would have been killed ... " "Is this ... OK?" "Yes, this is the Eastern tactics taught by my teacher!" Einstein came out again. "Orient? That great empire?" "Yes, the ancient military tactics of that mighty Eastern Empire." "So powerful?" Maximilian I was very tempted. "Your Majesty, in fact, it is not too powerful. The main reason is that the timing is too coincidental. The French ran away in the middle of the night and happened to hit the ambush circle. After all, it''s hard to detect an ambush. " "This is also." Maximilian I was not someone who did not understand the military. He knew that the French army who ran away in the middle of the night before being caught by the little knight in front of him and hitting a beautiful ambush. On another asion, the French will never be so unlucky. "But how did you know that the French would run away from you?" Maximilian I was not a fool and felt the problem. "Uh ... Actually ... I''m not sure. I just felt that the French would not fight. So we justid an ambush. I thought the French would retreat the next day. I didn''t expect toe at midnight. But the French were more hasty, and were obviously frightened by the ambush of our army, so they were defeated. "In order to describe reasonably, Marin specifically pointed out that this was a coincidence. Otherwise, he couldn''t exin how he knew the French would run away in the middle of the night. "This ... Marin Knight ... your luck ... good ..." Maximilian I opened his mouth wide, trying to say something, but didn''t know what to say. As for Marin''s early prediction that the French had fled in the middle of the night, Maximilian I did not believe it. Because Marin happened to be ambushed to the French, which made it more reasonable. "His Majesty, the harvest of this minister has grown up. Among the 2,000 captives, there are one Earl of France, six Barons, and 200 chevaliers. The others are territory-less knights, but they are also French royal knights ..." Marin didn''t want the emperor to struggle with this question that he couldn''t answer, so he started to shift the topic. "Count ... did you catch the count?" The emperor was stunned directly. Chapter 52: Baron of Texel Chapter 52: Baron of Texel "Yeah, this unlucky count was left behind by Charles VIII, and then surrounded by us and the Vian. When he saw that the situation had gone, he surrendered ..." "That''s really good luck ..." You know, an earl is enough to be the leader of an army. The head leader of the Empire was Frederick II, Count Hohenzollern. But this unlucky man in France was captured by a 17-year-old hairy knight. Presumably, he will not face anyone in the future ... "Your Majesty, what are you talking about? The captain of the empire is only 17 years old?" After meeting with the emperor, Earl of Toulouse, he heard the news that made him very faceless ... "Yes, the Marin Knight is a 17-year-old young man. And, he is just a Phnxmander." Maximilian I said proudly. "What? The knight ... the long formation ... impossible. The army that besieged us must have more than one square formation. There must be thousands of people ... there must be a legion ..." Fryer did not want to admit that he was defeated by a square formation. There are 5,000 people under hismand. The 5000 knight was defeated by an infantry formation. He could go to a belt and hang himself. Not only him, but even his captives who have been captured together will never admit it. Otherwise, they won''t have toe out and mix upter. "He is indeed a Phnx, but he defeated you not only by using a Phnx, but also by the Vian army, a total of more than 4,000 people. Otherwise, there are not so many people." The emperor was honest, and would not disdain or lie. But he didn''t know that the news he knew was a lie in itself. "So it is ..." Count Fryer felt better when he heard the Emperor say so. ... Fryer was sent away, and Marin came to the emperor to discuss the disposal of the spoils ... "How many spoils are there?" The emperor asked. "There are 1,000 war horses, 3,000 sets of te armor, and 3,000 two-handed swords and several oaknces ..." Marin reported. In fact, there are 3,600 very good horses, hidden by Marin. "This ... so much?" The emperor stuttered after hearing it. Although he had anticipated it, he was a little stammered when he heard that there were so many loot. "of course..." "Then do you hide it?" The emperor suddenly swept over with sharp eyes. "Well, some horses have been hidden, and the rest of the horses have been turned in. Your Majesty, isn''t it also necessary for this knight to make money?" Marin said naturally. During this year, mercenaries began to rise. The biggest characteristic of mercenaries is greed. Maximilian I, from the beginning of using mercenaries, has long been mentally prepared to let mercenaries greet some of his belongings. Of course, he absolutely does not tolerate greed for important military supplies. "Do you dare to swear that you haven''t kept a warhorse in private?" "This knight swears in the name of God that he did not hide a warhorse. Otherwise, he will fall into hell after death!" In fact, he did not have a private horse. Because, instead of hiding another 1,000 war horses, he sold them directly to the Vian ... The emperor didn''t care about pulling the horse because it had no military value. And Marin said he hid "some" and he didn''t feel it intuitively. If he knew that Marin had 3,600 horses, he might have turned his face. "What''s your n?" The emperor asked Marin. "His Majesty, as far as this knight knows. These captives can at least exchange one million Italian Ducat gold coins with the French. And the war horse is said to be worth at least one hundred gold coins. And the armor set is worth dozens gold..." "Stop, what do you want to say?" "What the minister wants to say is that these captives and spoils are too high in value ... I wonder what title your Majesty is going to seal me?" "Title?" Maximilian I was also taken aback by Marin''s sudden turn. "Of course, the capture of the 4,000 knights by the French is absolutely a great disgrace. And there''s the honor of your Majesty has earned. These captive equipment is estimated to be worth millions of gold coins. I can buy arge earl seal directly. This knight dedicated all of them to His Majesty, and you see ... " "Oh ..." Maximilian Iughed. He wasn''t afraid of what he wanted, but he didn''t want it. As needed, he can use conditions to win over and control them. "what do you want?" "Knighthood, hereditary knighthood, and territory!" "So what kind of knighthood do you think, and where are the territories divided?" Just as Marin said, he did indeed deserve so much credit that he was indeed eligible for title andnd. Therefore, the emperor cannot be stingy. Otherwise, no one will y for him. Why is the Swabian League loyal to the Emperor? In fact, they also wanted to improve the title and gain more territories through the emperor. For example, the Wrttemberg kingdom, because of its strong support for the emperor, its lord Earlhard V, Earl of Wurttemberg, was promoted to the Duke of Wurttemberg by the emperor during the stay of the Emperor on Worms on July 4. Called Eberhard I. Therefore, the emperor did not mind mentioning the title to his men. However, the emperor was reluctant to want territory ... "Nedend is a great ce ..." said Marin. Anyway, he didn''t expect the Emperor to agree on any conditions, but waited for a bargain. The western emperor has less authority than the eastern emperor. Privately, Marin can still raise conditions without worrying about being beheaded by the Wumen Gate. "Don''t dream anymore, that''s what I value most ..." "But I like the sea ..." Marin said innocently. In fact, Marin really wanted to participate in the great voyage. The Dutch region was an important area in the era of great sailing, and bothmerce and shipping were well developed. "Count, don''t even think about it, the deputy (viscount) is also a bit tall ..." "Why? Isn''t the minister''s merit enough? There are still trophies worth a few hundred thousand ducats ..." Marin was a little excited. He is willing to turn in these trophies, not the title of the map? The count did not recognize us, neither did the viscount, good or bad ... "Knight Marin, calm down first. Have you ever thought about your identity? You are only 17 years old, or a homeless knight from a little knight family. Although you have made a great deal of this battle. But you have thought No? Are you a knight now, or was you temporarily promoted before the war? If you now make you an earl, what do you want other nobles to think? " "And you only caught one earl. You can''t. You arrest an earl, and I''ll seal you earl? If you seize Charles VIII, I will earlize (don''t know if it''s English) you. " Marlin rolled his eyes, you, I want to catch Charles VIII, but I don''t have enough hands. And Maximilian I also made sense. If Marin fought a victory, he was immediately named Earl from knight. If he won a few more battles, would he not be king? is it possible? And this is Marin''s first fight. If Marin fought the emperor for a few more battles, how could the emperor seal him? Marin calmed down, he knew that he thought too simple. The reason why Count Tilly was named Earl was that he yed for the Holy Roman Empire for many years, fighting against Turkey, and against Protestant princes, and many of them yed beautiful battles such as the "Battle of the Mountains". Wallenstein was named Duke because it appeared to the emperor as a savior when the emperor was about to die. The emperor could only rely on Wallenstein at that time, so he could only use the high position of the Duke to draw the only Wallenstein that he could rely on. But now, Maximilian I did not reach the end of the end, and he himself only helped the emperor win one battle. Although the result is brilliant, it is not enough to be Earl at once. "If you don''t seal me count, I feels too bad. You know, before the Teutonic Knights bought the Principality of Estonia from Denmark, it only cost 19,000 Cologne (1 Cologne = 2.67 Ducat gold coins, and 19,000 Cologne is equivalent to 50,000 Ducat . But considering that the Cologne Mark silver content in 1346 is sufficient, it is twice the current silver content, so it is equivalent to the current 100,000 ducats) ... " "Ha, you''re right, young people. The Teutonic Knights did buy the Principality of Estonia for only 19,000 Cologne. But have you thought about it? The Teutonic Knights are themselves a powerful country, they have enough Status and identity to buy territory and protect territory. " "And you, the Marin Knight, even if you have so much money, do you have the corresponding title and identity to rule such arge territory? Without identity, other nobles can openly annex your territory. So, the title itself is very Valuable existence ... And, Marin Knight, you are holding the sries paid by the puppet. These spoils should belong to most of them ... " "Okay ... then, Your Majesty, what title do you count for, and where do you keep me?" Marin said discouragedly. Marin admitted that he thought too simple. Inter generations, he did sales and sold a house with amission of no more than five thousandths. If he sells a 5 million house, thepany will give him 5 million, then the boss earns nothing. Before, as a traveler, he regarded himself as a stalk too much, always felt that he and the emperor''s Status is an equal trade rtionship. Until now, Marin remembered that he was just a wage earner under the emperor ... "I think so, let''s make you a baron first. Since you like the sea so much. So how about I keep you here?" Maximilian I took out a map of sheepskin and pointed to the side of the Nethends An ind ... "Texel?" Marin recognized it at a nce. Marin had studied the Nethends and knew that the Dutch province of the Nethends had a Texel ind. This ind, known as "the epitome of the Nethends", is a beautiful tourist area. Moreover, Marin had a rich second-generation friend in hisst life, and he took his sister to travel to this ind. Then, he showed the photos on Weibo, and wrote a detailed introduction to show off to Marin and others. Therefore, Marin also paid attention to this ind in his previous life. "You know this ce?" Maximilian I was a little surprised. After all, Texel Ind is just a backcountry in the Nethends. At most, fishery is booming there. Right now, great voyages are only emerging in Spain and Portugal. As for the Nethends, the wind of the great voyage has not yet reached there. Therefore, the seaside sites are not given much attention. "Well, I''ve seen the map of the Nethends. I was still thinking about where the Her Majesty would seal me ..." "Haha, then I will call you Baron Texel!" The emperor was very happy. This business was extremely cost-effective. He got more than a million gold coins, but he only needed to pay an unobserved ind. "Do you need to pay taxes?" "You want to evade taxes?" "Your Majesty, the minister gave you more than one million gold coins, and you still want me to pay taxes? This broken ind, I know it will take hundreds of years or even thousands of years to pay the tax of one million gold coins!" stand up. "Okay, duty-free, self-government, head office!" Maximilian I really didn''t pay much attention to such a remote ind. God knew that the ind had 100 gold coins in taxes every year. Even if Marin is exempt from tax, he doesn''t think anything. In addition, he took the benefits of millions of gold coins, more than his one-year financial ie, and was very happy, so he did not care about the tedious details with Marin. Besides, the entire Nethends, which is now the nders (Northern Belgium), has a developed wool industry and is the most economically developed region in the Nethends. It is also one of the most important sources of taxation for the emperor. The maritime trade in the Nethends has not yet arisen. It will not begin until the Portuguese chooses to sell Indian spices in Antwerp in 1500. In other words, except for the nders region, which is more developed in the Nethends, it is not conspicuous ... It was because of this idea that the emperorter regretted it. Because at that time, Texel had be an extremely prosperous ind, which made the emperor jealous. However, the emperor could not get a Finney tax from Texel. Just because Marin specifically asked the emperor to indicate "permanent tax exemption" on the appointment ... Then, Marin was sealed by the emperor as Baron Texel, and the ind of Texel was granted tax-exempt baron status. The Imperial Parliament did not respond to this. Because the emperor sealed off his family territory in the Nethends and did not harm the interests of other nobles in the empire. Although the local council in the Nethends was dissatisfied, the emperor''s size was not a treasurend such as The Hague and Amsterdam, but an ind. After expressing their dissatisfaction with the emperor, they said nothing. After all, it seems to everyone that Texel is nothing new, just a slightlyrger ind. On this ind, there is only a small deserted castle in Denborg. In the rest, there are only a few viges, and most of them are fishing viges. Chapter 53: Leave Chapter 53: Leave Before leaving Italy, Marin Pacole brought a group of cronies to deal with therge numbers of horses. He even had a thick face and asked the Emperor for 30 war horses. To this end, Marin pledged to bring at least 30 cavalry to the Emperor next time. Of course, among the warhorses he asked for, there were 20 excellent stallions without castration and 10 excellent mares. European warhorses are not the same as Eastern war horses. Oriental war horses, in order to calm down the war horse''s temper, and will not be misunderstood because of "Pick-up", so the stallions are basically castrated. In Europe, whether the stallions castrated depends on the wishes of the knights. Only those stallions that are too grumpy will be castrated. There are also some knights, influenced by Eastern habits, who choose to castrate their male warhorses. For example, the 1,000 French war horses that Marin dedicated to the emperor had more than 300 stallions without castration. Strictly speaking, uncastrated stallions and castrated stallions have their characteristics. Stallions without castration tend to be irritable, brave and explosive, but difficult to control. The so-called strong horses are mainly those stallions that have not been castrated. And castrated stallions, because they have no desire or desire, often have a much better temper, and they are almost the same as mares. Moreover, the horses have good endurance. Although the explosive power is not as good as the stallion without castration, the endurance is strengthened. They no longer have desire to breed, so eating, drinking and running have be the most important things in their lives. Marin feels that it makes sense that Eastern warhorses can''tpare to Europe inter generations. The Orientals castrated excellent stallions and became warhorses, leaving only bad horses for breeding, which would inevitably lead to a decline in horse quality. Because this is not in line with the principle of eugenics. Fortunately, the Mongolian horse in the east has strong vitality and arge base, so it is not extinct. But its overall quality has not improved. For European warhorses, many knights are reluctant to castrate stallions, resulting in many excellent horses that can be used for breeding. Therefore, European horses are getting taller and taller. This is like, Yao Ming''s children must be very tall, and Pan Changjiang''s children must not be the same. In ancient China, stallions like "Yao Ming" were castrated, while stallions like "Pan Changjiang" were kept. Therefore, Mongolian horses are not always tall and may even degenerate. Because the tall horses were castrated, and they could not leave powerful offspring ... Marin salivated and asked the emperor for a batch of war horses. Originally, the emperor refused. However, considering that these warhorses were originally seized by Marin, and Marin promised to take part in the cavalry next time. So he painfully asked Marin to pick 30 horses, but it was far from the 100 horses Marin expected. "What a stingy emperor!" Marin was dissatisfied. But this is also his own problem, who told him not to leave some good horses first? Into Maximilian I''s pocket, do you want to take it out again? Think too much. Originally, the emperor felt that thend given to Marin was too barren, and he wanted to reward some wealth. But Marin asked for a horse, and the Emperor directly took those 30 horses as an extra reward. As for the property that was originally intended to be rewarded, it is gone. If Marin knew this, she would jump up with anger. Because, to obtain these warhorses, he also promised to contribute 30 heavy cavalry to the emperor in the next war. And if you ept the emperor''s gift of equal value, you don''t need to agree to this condition at all. On Kohler''s side, only 3,600 horses were sold and only 1,600 were sold. Because of the war, Italy lost a lot this time, and many rich men were robbed by the soldiers and turned into poor people. Therefore, there are not many horses that can afford it. The Vian, because eating too many war horses and armor, caused some difficulties in capital turnover. Besides, when they bought a warhorse, what else would they do? Which region is not selling horses? So, Marin had 2,000 horses in his hands. "Wipe, there are 2,000 horses left, are you kidding me?" Marin was a little surprised. He didn''t want to open the racecourse. Every horse is a king of stomachs. 2000 horses can make people poor. Well, that''s not right. It seems that Marin can currently afford these horses. "No way, Italy was severely damaged by the war, many rich men went bankrupt, or went elsewhere to avoid the war." "Then we have these horses? Horses consume a lot of feed..." "Master, you have territory now, or else, we specialize in training horses?" "Warhorse cultivation?" "Yes, there are frequent wars and the demand for war horses is great. We can breed war horses and sell them to those nobles!" "Cultivating warhorses ... is a good idea, and we also took the lead in obtaining a warhorse blood certification." Marin grinned. He nned to introduce some excellent horses such as Arabian horses and cultivate some excellent horse breeds. "Koller, hire someone who knows horse training, help select it, finds out the castrated stallions, and then return to the country to sell them. Those less strong uncastrated stallions are also sold. As for the mother Horses, which are particrly bad for sale, stay a little better. "Marin was determined to cultivate the steeds. The quality of these French horses is very good, they are almost reaching the level of war horses, but only a little worse. Such horses can be used for breeding, and there is a great chance of breeding war horses. After selection, Kohler left 200 uncastrated stallions and 800 mares. In this way, there will be an average of four "wife" per stallion. "Hey, I hope you don''t lose your kidneys ..." Marin looked at the stallions. After returning to the German region, Kohler, with a group of cronies, sold another 1,000 horses along the way and sessively sold them. However, after returning to the Empire, the emperor also nned to demobilize most of the army because there was no fighting. As for Marin''s side, the emperor originally intended to keep it. However, Marin was anxious to run the territory and was unwilling to stay in Vienna. "Baron Marin, you have to think about it, it''s easier to raise your position by following your uncle." "Your Majesty, is there any battle to fight now, and can I stay in Vienna for a long time? It is better to build my baron domain when I have time. However, once His Majesty is going to fight, I promise to bring his army to serve His Majesty." Marin was anxious to build territory, but he did not give up the opportunity to promote the title. Baron is always a low rank, without an earl, Marin is embarrassed to say hello to others, and he has to pay tribute when he meets the high aristocracy. He can now tremble in front of the Cavaliers, which is nothing. Besides, Marin also found that he had never mixed officialdom in hisst life, and dealt with people with some innocence. Rather than trying to y with the ck-bellied masters, it is better to go to your territory and be the lord. "Okay, then you go back first, you have toe when there is war!" "This baron swears by the knight''s honor that he wille to serve His Majesty. But, His Majesty, if you have done a great job, don''t forget to mention my title." "You can rest assured, if you make a great contribution, I will not treat you badly!" Maximilian I was not stupid, Ma Linli made a great effort to make him more than one million gold coins, almost turned over. He can''t wait for Marin to do such a great job several times. For a poor ghost emperor like him, money is more important than face. But when Marin returned to the station outside Vienna, he felt bad immediately. It turns out that many of my men are moring for home. Since Marin distributed 100 gold coins to each of them, many people are satisfied. Because this is enough for them to go back to their homes to build a house, buy a field and marry a daughter-inw. For them, earning 100 gold coins is already at the peak of their lives. You know, the average German earns only 2 Finneys a day (many poor people earn only 1 Finney a day). In one year, it is 730 Finneys, which is equivalent to 3 pounds or 12 ducat gold coins. And 100 gold coins, equivalent to their sry for more than 8 years, is a huge sum. Coupled with the sry paid by the emperor before and some small benefits of private fishing in Italy, it was enough for them to return to their hometowns. Therefore, many soldiers began to want to leave. Marin also had some regrets. It is no wonder thatter Frederick the Great did not allow Prussian soldiers to rob. It turned out that the goods were afraid that the soldiers would run away after they grabbed the money. But it''s toote to say anything now. Since others want to leave, Marin is not reluctant. After all, there is no war now, and raising them is not easy. Besides, people''s hearts are scattered, and the team is not good to take. It is better to let those who want to leave to leave, and then find another opportunity to rebuild the team. Of course, this time, it also taught Marin a lesson-that is, don''t give your mercenaries any money! Because if those mercenaries get enough money, they may run away. However, Marin was thinking about it-mercenaries would not do it, regardless of how much money they gave to the mercenaries. However, you can''t divide the money immediately, because many mercenaries may run away when they get the money. Therefore, the best way is for Marin to temporarily "help" the mercenaries to keep the money they have received, just like the time deposits ofter generations. If the service period is less than a few years, no cash will be given to prevent mercenaries from getting money to run away prematurely. As for Bowen Gardner, Heit Basker and Jason Chers and their men, from the emperor knights, were transferred back. Because Marin''s team was obviously about to be abolished by the Empire. And those three were close rtives of the emperor and the count, and they couldn''t be dismissed together, right? So they were transferred back to the headquarters. Moreover, they also learned a lot here in Marin, and when they went back, they expected them to train. Then, after statistics, Marin sadly found that the original 1,100 men had "cracked" and ran away as many as 700 people. In the hands of Marin, only 400 men were left. "Good brother, talk about morale!" Marin patted the breasts of those brothers who were willing to stay with him, very moved. What Marin didn''t know was that only half of the 400 people left were truly Marin''s loyal and faithful. The other half were unwilling to go home because of their identity. They were the sons of serfs and had a low status. The original serf owners had driven them away because they could not afford them, but they had not given up their very to make them civilians. If they now go home with 100 gold coins, they may be snatched by the serf owner. Because, ording to thew, the children of serfs are also considered the property of the serf owners. The property is not the property of the owner? If these serf''s children return home personally with 100 gold coins, there is a great risk of being plundered by the original serf owner and stays in Marin''s army, but no serf owner has the courage to grab it. As for those who returned to their hometowns, most of them were civilians or were serfs, but after being driven out of the manor by the serf owners, they have already obtained the civilians'' recognition of legal documents. They were not worried about being plundered by the serf owners, so they rushed home to live a good life. In other words, there are only 200 people who are dead to Marin here. Of these, 70 were from the earliest recruits from Marin. But Marin didn''t know, thinking that these 400 people were all his diehards. "Brothers, if you want, you can take your family to Texel Ind. I arrange for someone to build a house for you, and even to introduce you to your wife." "Haha, really, Lord Baron, are you really responsible for helping us find our wife?" Asked one of his brave men who was frustrated in appearance. "I said so I will do it!" Marin mmed his breasts. "Long live Marin! We are going to marry beautiful women!" Then, a group of brothers fry pans. This group of people, from a poor background, but notcking courage and courage, are all good soldiers. Moreover, after this incident, Marin found their loyalty. Therefore, Marin nned to take them back to his territory and train them well. To this end, Marin remembered Germany during World War I and World War II. At that time, Hitler relied on the elite of the 100,000 National Defense Forces left after World War I and quickly rebuilt a huge army based on them. In the previous 100,000 National Defense Forces, everyone has be a grass-roots officer, fighting with a group of recruits, apanied by a mustache to single out the world. Marin intends to train these 400 people into excellent officers. In this way, the next time the emperor summons him again, he can quickly pull up a team based on these 400 men and charge him. Chapter 54: Syphilis Report Chapter 54: Syphilis Report Marin was sad when he sent away the 700 brothers who fought alongside him. After all, they fought together for seven or eight months. But before he could recall the past, he was summoned by the emperor urgently. "Good afternoon, Your Majesty!" In the Royal Pce in Vienna, Marin met Maximilian I again. "Baron Marin, I have a tricky thing to ask you." "Please say!" "Some of these French prisoners had strange symptoms! Nauseous abscesses began to develop on them." "Syphilis!" Marin eximed. When in Italy, Marin was so excited that he forgot all about it because he had obtained a huge amount of spoils. "Syphilis?" The emperor had never heard of it, so he was a little confused. "Your Majesty, this is what this baron heard. The malignant disease called ''syphilis'' originated in the West Indies, where Columbus discovered." "Columbus? I know, he said that he found the westward route to India." Columbus discovered the New World in 1492, and now three years have passed, and Maximilian I knew the news. "In fact, what Columbus discovered was not India at all, but an area where wild people live." "Are you sure?" Maximilian I was a little skeptical. Because Western Europeans have never been to real India. "My teacher, I''ve been to real India!" "Oh, is it? What does real India look like?" "The so-called ''India'' discovered by Columbus has people with yellow skin. There are two main types of people in real India. One is a white West Asian who is simr to an Arab, and the other is ck. Race ... " "Where did Columbus go?" "A barren continent to the west has a low level of civilization. Also, this terrible syphilis came from the West Indies." "Howe?" "ording to my teacher, it was about a sailor from Columbus who had a rtionship with a local indigenous woman in the West Indies and contracted this disease. Then, you know, the sailor was a Spaniard and went to Sicily, Then had a rtionship with the local prostitute, and then was taken by the client to Naples, which was close to Sicily, and passed to the Naples prostitutes, and then spread in Naples ... " "It happened that the French had invaded Naples, and the French soldiers couldn''t control themselves and went to visit the prostitutes who were infected, and this evil was spread inside the French army. It is said that this time the French went to tens of thousands, only More than 10,000 people have returned intact, but 4,000 have been captured by us ... " "So powerful?" Maximilian I took a breath. What a terrible and terrifying disease that has destroyed tens of thousands of troops! "ording to what I discovered in Italy, there were tens of thousands of people who died in the French army because of this disease, but it caused an unparalleled panic and the morale of the French army was depressed. Otherwise, Charles VIII would not He led the army to flee north, and was picked up by the minister. It is important to know that even during the escape, the French army suffered a big loss for the Italian coalition. " Maximilian I nodded, he knew the information. The French army who ran hurriedly still killed 2,000 Italians, and the Italians only caused 1,000 casualties to the French army. "We have to thank this evil. Otherwise, the French will not retreat so easily and may fight with us to the end. You need to know what the Italian army is. Without the full support of the Imperial Parliament, we cannot fight the full French army. " "However, this disease is extremely prone to spread. Please pay attention to it." "What? Very serious?" "Yes, as long as there is a rtionship between this disease, there is a great chance that it will be transmitted. Your Majesty, think about it; if a person who came back from Italy contracted this disease. He then went to Vienna to find a prostitute and transmitted the disease to the prostitute. Later, the soldiers in Vienna also went to find this prostitute, and they all became infected... " Before he could finish, Maximilian I was frightened. If the Vienna army is heavily infected with syphilis, the Hungarians can take Austria again without any effort. "What can we do?" "There is no way but to keep soldiers abstinent for a while. Otherwise, if the Vienna army contracted this evil and lost itsbat effectiveness, it would not be able to resist the Hungarian invasion." "I''m afraid the soldiers will rebound." Maximilian I was worried. "It doesn''t matter, Your Majesty, as long as you tell them the consequences of this evil and announce the tragic situation of the French in Naples, they will know how to choose. Life is important or pleasure is important?" "Well, you''re right. But dozens of 2000 prisoners seem to have contracted this disease. What should be good? If they die, they won''t receive a ransom." As soon as Maximilian I spoke, he exposed his inhuman nature. He was not worried about the safety of the French, but he was not worried about getting ransom. "How old have those people been?" "It was just a short while ago." It seems to be in the incubation period before, just broke out. "That''s okay, l may have a way to suppress this evil temporarily, but it cannot be eradicated. However, it is still okay to stick to the ransom." "That''s good, that''s good!" Maximilian I opened his eyes. It is enough to get the ransom. As for the future, he cares about those French who die? So Marin proposed a very primitive treatment method-topical mercury and sulfur. This is just a way to treat skin diseases. Among them, mercury is still very toxic. However, only for external use, as long as the amount is controlled, it is also possible. Although this method cannot be cured, it can greatly reduce the onset of syphilis and suppress syphilis to a certain extent. Some mild patients may even be cured. Later, Maximilian I decisively found a hot spring with a strong sulfur odor, and let those dozens of French people go down to soak up the bacteria. In addition, let them apply some mercury to their affected area. In order to prevent the outbreak of syphilis in the Holy Roman Empire, Maximilian I issued a scripture introducing the source of syphilis, using the formal term "syphilis" to define the disease, and strictly prohibiting any prostituteing from Italy and France, otherwise she will be executed. At the same time, those who go to Italy and France are not allowed to go to prostitution. Because, ording to Marin''s spection, syphilis has inevitably spread in Italy and France. Unless everyone is abstinent, this stubborn disease cannot be eradicated. Chapter 55: Good propaganda Chapter 55: Good propaganda Considering that many princes may not take the emperor into their eyes, it is basically impossible to execute the emperor''s order. At the suggestion of Marin, Maximilian I also wrote to the Pope, allowing the pope to advocate abstinence throughout Europe for a period of time. Because the infection of syphilis is spread by messing around. If everyone abstinence, there will be no channel for transmission of syphilis. With this matter resolved, Maximilian I also admired Marin. This little guy, about the same age as Prince Philip, not only helped him defeat the impable Frenchman in Italy, gave him loot worth more than one million gold coins, but also helped him to suppress a gue (syphilis) outbreak. After thinking about it, Maximilian I decided to conduct an extensive publicity throughout the empire. Along with the syphilis ban, promote Marin''s "advanced deeds." Marin was originally only a young man who was not even a knight. After fighting for his emperor, only a few monthster, he was named a baron with independent territory because of his martial arts. Such stories are absolutely very inspirational in this era. This matter is also equivalent to tell everyone in disguisee on, serve for the emperor, the benefits are great! The great aristocrats in the Shen Luo Empire who broke the soil, except for the Swabian Alliance and Albrecht, the Duke of Saxony (not the Saxon Elector, but the brother of the Saxon Elector), basically everyone Stand on the opposite side of the emperor. Therefore, the emperor needed an emerging force to break this situation. The birth of Marin turned the emperor into a propaganda spot. Maximilian I was the wisest of the Habsburgs. Many people think that Charles V is the most capable monarch of the Habsburgs, but in fact, when Charles V took office, he controlled Spain, arge money bag with arge amount of American gold and silver, and of course he was full of confidence. You know, in Europe at that time, mercenaries were the mainstream. Whoever had the money could do things. Charles V, sitting on therge gold mine of the Spanish colonial empire, naturally had enough money to hire enough troops to hang out across Europe. Moreover, at that time, the Spanish Faction was just as popr. And Spain''s gold and silver, and Spain''srge square were not created by Charles V, but existed. Even Charles V''s session to the Spanish throne was due to Maximilian I letting his son Philip marry "mad girl" Juana. Therefore, Charles V''s ability is not good toment on. But Maximilian I was different. When he ascended the throne, the Habsburgs were in a storm. His father, Frederick III, fought with Hungary and lost half of Austria. And his father-inw, Charlie, ran away with France ... So he took over the second mess between Austria and Burgundy. Under such circumstances, Maximilian I decisively abandoned the ancient military system mobilized by Caiyi and switched to the new mercenary system, which made the Habsburg family cost 15,000 without spending much. The powerful infantry and 1500 knights also consolidated the imperial power of the Habsburgs. Therefore, Maximilian I was the most important founder of the Hapsburg family to monopolize the imperial power of the Holy Roman Empire for 300 years. Charles V can only be counted as the third generation of the emperor. As a more capable monarch, Maximilian I''s vision is not bad. He could see Marin''s superior ability, so he was rtively kind to Marin. Before that, Marin bargained with him and did not think he was hesitant, and he was willing to talk to him. If another knight dared to drag so much with Maximilian I, it would have been beaten out by Austrian royal knights. Of course, the inspirational story of Marin''s sess under his Majesty, the Emperor feels that it can certainly inspire those young and promising young people toe to work for the Emperor. So Maximilian I resolutely, Established Marin as a positive model and promoted it ... It turns out that the emperor''s vision is very good. What people love most is the inspirational stories of these young heroes. The story of Marin relying on 4,000 men and defeating 8,000 well-equipped French knights soon became known in the Principality of Austria and began to spread in the Burgundy region, and then spread throughout the Holy Roman Empire. The anti-emperor nobles could not stop the spread of Marin''s legend in the empire. Because they have no reason to stop the spread and spread of the deeds of young heroes like Marin. But they knew that this matter was good for the emperor ... Sure enough, after propaganda, many young people in Austria and in Swabian region regarded Marin as their idol. In this era, there aren''t many stars and young people don''t know who to worship. As for the emperors and dukes, they were too high and too far away from young people. Marin is not the same. He is also a young man, even a 17-year-old boy, or a boy from a low-level knight family, very "grounded". In Marin''s sess stories, they seem to see their future ... After hearing about Marin''s inspirational story, many young homeless knights in Austria gave up the idea of serving the nobles and went directly to Vienna to find Maximilian I ... In their opinion, they are also homeless knight. Marin, a 17-year-old child, can seed. Why can''t I? Even if it is not as good as Marin, it is possible to mix up the official title of Imperial Knight. Because most of the wandering knights are trainee knights, they are not really knights and the real knight needs to be seized by the great aristocracy. Only a knight who has been sealed off can be considered a true nobleman. The trainee knight can only be regarded as an elite warrior, not a nobleman. In a short time, the emperor recruited 500 wandering knights from all over Austria toe to Vienna to make the emperor happy. You know, before the Spanish formations appeared, the musket was not a military standard weapon, the knight have not been suppressed by the muskets and gradually withdrew from the stage of history. Therefore, in this era, the knights are still more popr. Maximilian I was able to recruit 500 more knights, which was a bumper harvest. Because, although there are many knights in the Holy Roman Empire, there are more big nobles. Regardless of the emperor and duke, there are many knights who serve the count, viscount, and baron. The emperor himself, because of his poor financial situation, caused many knights to be unwilling to serve his poor ghost emperor, which made him very depressed. Now, inspired by Marin''s inspirational story, many young knights are hot and willing to loyal to the emperor. Not only those wandering knights but also many young people with poor livelihoods also thought of being a soldier to eat food. In particr, Marin''s men, the young men who returned home with hundreds of gold coins. They went to Italy, bought a house and bought a field when they got home, married a beautiful daughter-inw, and reached the pinnacle of life. This is a living advertisement. As a result, many poor young people are also eager to go to Vienna to join the emperor. They also want to make a lot of money and embark on the peak of life like their predecessors. Chapter 56: Finally home again Chapter 56: Finally home again Marin originally wanted to leave Vienna early and go home. However, the emperor left Marin for propaganda and cooperated with the emperor in "activities" and became "models." Whenever foreign envoys and representatives of the Principality and Bosnia came to Vienna, the emperor would bring them with Marin. The emperor would then "kindly" introduce Marin, the "empire young hero," to the guests. And Marin, at this time, had to stand up and bow to pay tribute, with a smirk on his face, and by the way, put a few pulling POSE for the guests to watch ... Then, everyone will watch Marin like a monkey andment from time to time. Many people have questioned Marin''s merit because Marin is too thin. In the eyes of some aristocrats advocating force, Marin who defeated 8,000 French knights must be a muscr man at least 2 meters tall. Who knows, after seeing Marin himself, I knew that the other party was just a boy who was 1.75 meters tall (longer) and slightly thin. Then, the emperor would tell his guests about Marin''s flicker. And Marin stood side by side and cooperated with the emperor''s speech. Marin was allowed to leave Vienna with his men for a month as a "model" without pay. With a look of sorrow, Marin came to the men''s residence in the west of the city and ordered everyone to leave. "Boss, how are you?" Schwartz asked running strangely as he came over. The title of "Boss" is because Marin has watched more Hong Kong films in his previous life and feels that he is very imposing. Moreover, he didn''t like the title of "Sire", so he just let Schwartz and others call him the boss privately. As for the attendants such as Kahn and Kohler, they continued to be called masters. "Nothing, my boss is exhausted these days, and I pose with the emperor every day, just like a puppet ..." Marin said angrily. "Boss, don''t be content. You can stay with the emperor. The whole empire doesn''t know how many people envy you ..." Schwartz rolled his eyes. If the emperor was willing to take him out to show off, he would have liked it. Really more than people, angry. However, who is the boss of Marin? As for why they were able to ambush the French, he couldn''t figure it out until now. Of course, if he wants to understand, there is a ghost. Who knows, Marin is a rider? Marin''s number one dog, Kohler soon came over to report the situation-the extra horses in his hand were shot in Austria. Austria is the richest region in Germany. Although there are far fewer wealthy people than Venice, they are definitely stronger than the northern noble territories. Because Austria is also a prosperous region with developed agriculture. There is also a great demand for horses in developed regions. Therefore, Kohler in Austria, lowered some prices, it is easy to sell the extra 1,000 horses. Then, Kohler had 200 stallions and 800 mares left, and 30 war horses recovered from the emperor with Marin, a total of 1,030. When Marin apanied the emperor on the "show", Schwartz and others also taught these 400 men and learned to ride horses. When I hurried back from Italy to Austria, we had to walk along with each other because we had to work with therge troops. Now that Marin has taken everyone out of the army, he can naturally ride on horseback. In addition, 400 people have 1,030 horses, and everyone can change their horses and ride on horses, and they can speed up the road. "Brothers, it''s time to go! When I get to my territory, I will give everyone somend so that your family can be a self-cultivator. And, if there is no wife, I will give you a way! "Thank you, boss, thank you!" Everyone cheered. Those who came out as mercenaries had poor family conditions. Many people, simply some estates, the serf owners thought that they were overpopted and rushed out. Many people are from serfdom families, and have nond at all. They went back and had nothing to rely on, so they might as well follow Marin. At least Marin is now a baron, Can afford them. Most of those who left the team before were self-cultivated farmers, and their identities were rtively free. Unlike many people left behind, many are still serf children. If they went back, the serf-owners would be happy and continue to enve them. Probably, that 100 gold coin will also be stolen. And with Marin mixed, He is proposing to lift them up, let them be free people, can they not be happy? Free people in Europe are rampant. If you don''t see him, many revolutions in France were initiated by the group of free citizens in Paris? Who''s heard of the serf revolution? Although there are, it is not a climate at all. Because serfs became ustomed to ves andcked the desire and confidence to fight. The free people, by themselves, are very confident. As long as there are many people, they dare to confront the monarch. Later, Marin found someone to write for them (this group is basically illiterate), helped them write homework, and told their families to prepare for immigration. If it''s okay, when Marin settles on Texel, he will send someone to pick them up. If there is a problem, such as the original serf owner who did not let people go, Marin will go through official channels and even pay a littlepensation to get the families of the soldiers. The reason why Marin did not let these soldiers go home to pick up people is that on the one hand, he was afraid that they would never return; on the other hand, Kohler still had more than 300,000 gold coins in his hands to escort. If a man runs out and the armyes to grab money, he cannot resist. Besides, Marin still does not know what is happening on Texel. It would be bad if you hurriedly picked people up and had nowhere to settle. Of course, when Marin propagandized, he naturally used thest reason. Moreover, this reason is very reasonable. After unifying everyone''s thinking, Marin took everyone, two horses or three horses, and hurried to the Hoffman Manor on the Ruhr. ... On the way, Marin and a man from an Italian chamber ofmerce previouslymissioned in Venice merged in Cologne. Marin seized a total of 7,000 sets of te armor on this trip to Italy (Charle VIII took off the te armor for thest 2000 knights to escape) and 5000 sets of horse armor (not counting the 2000 war horses seized Body). In the end, he handed in only 6,000 te armors (including those for the Vian) and 4,000 horse armors. The remaining 1,000 te armor and 1,000 horse armors weremissioned by a reputable Italian Chamber of Commerce to send them to Cologne. As for why this is because the te armor and horse armor are huge, these are all corrupted by Marin and cannot be seen by the emperor. The gold coins, because of their small size, are enough to hold a bullock cart, but they are not so conspicuous and can be carried with them. Besides, he was assured to escorted the armor to others, and he was not assured to entrust hundreds of thousands of gold coins to others. What if the escorted person is greedy for those gold coins? After paying a small sum of money, Marin led the crowd and took the te armor and horse armor of several carts and marched towards Bochum ... The transmission of messages in the Middle Ages was rtivelygging. Marin''s heroic deeds are currently only widely circted in Austria, Swabian and Burgundy. In other areas, the aristocracy did not help propaganda, so the news passed slower than the three areas mentioned above. When Marin was in Austria, he met some fans on the march. But outside Austria, with the exception of those soldiers guarding the city nervouslying to question, the others simply ignored the Marin group. When it came to the Rhine and Ruhr, most people didn''t know what Marin was doing, only if he was a passerby. This leaves Marin, who has received much attention in Austria, a bit lost. Of course, this is not bad. At least, he was no longer worried about people watching while he was marching. When in Austria, many people saw the ck cross and white vests worn by their teams, and they knew that they were the "ck Cross Regiment" who defeated the French king, and then there were onlookers that affected everyone on their way ... So much so that when Marin arrived, he simply asked everyone to take off the ck cross vest, so as not to be surrounded by monkeys ... But to the north of Germany, his fame had not yet passed on. So, they put on ck cross white vests again ... After arriving in Bochum, the old Hoffman and Adler, who had received the letter in advance, had already taken 10 attendants with them, waiting at the crossroads ... Marin went home this time, quite different from thest time he went home. Thest time Marin returned home after failing to apply, the old Hoffman could still take him down. However, this time back, Marin has be an imperial baron and a baron with a dominion. His status is very different from that of the trainee knight. Even the old Hoffman had to take Marin seriously. Europe, unlike the East during the same period, emphasized filial piety. In medieval Europe, knighthood was everything. Even as Marin''s father, the old Hoffman must respect Marin who has been promoted to baron. Because Marin is higher than him. Of course, as a father, the old Hoffman didn''t have to salute Marin, but he couldn''t scold Marin as a baron at will. When Marin showed up with 400 people and thousands of horses near the intersection, Marin''s brother Adler showed strong envy. Chapter 57: Mascot Chapter 57: Mascot In an instant, it was November 1495. Historically, Hungary and Austria had to fight one another. However, because Marin presented 1,000 war horses and 3,000 te armor. In addition, because of Marin''s hero story, Austria''s military strength has increased a lot. The empire''s glorious record of defeating the French in Italy made the Hungarians afraid to do anything with Austria. Then, a conflict that should have happened was wiped out. Probably, this is the change that Marin fanned butterfly wings. The Austrians were also unable to attack Hungary because of insufficient financial resources. Although Austria captured 2000 French captives, it was worth a lot of ransom. But the ransom, the emperor is still waiting for the French toe to negotiate. The King of France, Charles VIII, had just returned to his country at this time and was shocked. First, he had to exin the failure to the domestic nobility. Otherwise, even the king has no good fruit to eat. Of course, France is a country with concentrated royal power, and its royal prestige is rtively high. If the emperor dares to fight such a big defeat, chances are that the emperors will want to abolish the emperor, and choose another ... When Charles VIII sends someone to Vienna to negotiate a ransom and pay the ransom, it is estimated that it will take several months. Therefore, the emperor currently does not have enough financial resources to support the offensive operations against the Hungarians. As a result, there was a rare calm between Austria and Hungary. At the Huffman estate in Bochum, "Young Hero" Marin felt very hard at the moment. He originally nned to rush to Texel early, but was left by the old Huffman. Why did the old Huffman keep him? Take him out to show off ... In order to show himself as the son of the baron, the old Huffman often banquets and invites his old friends to eat and drink. By the way, pull Marin out as a model and show it off ... The old Huffman is an old knight in Markbo, and the friends he knows are naturally also knights. The so-called "things are grouped together, people are grouped", and the old Huffman friends are generally knights from the nearby knights. He could not climb the baron and higher nobles, and he did not despise the civilians. So, those who meet the old Huffman are the Cavaliers. Of course, there are some children of the Cavaliers family, the ones without the title, are old Huffman''s young friends. The old Huffman had a brother called Juler. However, when he was an adult, he was kicked out of the house by Old Huffman''s dad. Later, I heard that Jules went to the Teutonic Knights in Pnd as a Teutonic Knight. However, the Teutonic Knights and the Mack Kingdoms were far apart. The old Huffman hadn''t heard of his brother for two decades, nor did he know whether it was life or death. On Madame Mary''s side, her rtives died almost because of the East Frisian rebellion. Therefore, there are no rtives. The old Huffman couple, only a cousin of the old Huffman, the Knights of Renel. So, the old Huffman first invited his cousin Lenel, asked him to eat and drink, and showed his baron son by the way ... The Renell Knights lived north of Markborough, while the old Huffman was south of Markborough (Markborough has territory south of the Ruhr River). Transportation was inconvenient in the Middle Ages, so the cousins didn''te and go often. Only the event of marriage and funeral will invite each other. Renell didn''t know about Marin''s title as a baron. When Marin wore a baron robe made of Wari silk, he brought a newly designed family crest, a white shield with a square ck cross (this Like the coat of arms of the Patriarchate of Cologne, but the ck cross of the Patriarchate of Cologne is thin and elongated, while the ck cross of Marin is square, the same shape as the Red Cross of the Red Cross). Renell didn''t know it, thinking Marin was ying cosy, so he teased: "Little Marlin, why are you wearing this costume? You want to be a baron? But you have to be a knight first!" Renell knows that the old Huffman knight cor must be the sessor of Adler , Marin, 17, has to leave home to look for opportunities after turning 18. "Council Lenel, this is my own robe, the emperor rewarded it!" Marin said depressedly. Obviously his own robe and badge, but this cousin was used as the costume of the act ... "Ha ha ha ha, little Marin, you sing this y very well, and I will reward you with a one-handed sword." Renell obviously made Marin amused. "Haha, Lenel, don''t you know now? Our family, Marin, took part in the Italian war and defeated the French with his troops. So, he was really baroned by the emperor!" Lao Huffmanughed happily. "Cousin, are you kidding me too? Do your family like acting?" "Hey, do you see that camp west of the manor?" Old Huffman knew Lenel was unbelieving and decided to show him some "dry goods" ... "What''s wrong?" Renell followed the old Huffman curiously to the camp of 400 men under Marine ... Seeing the old Huffman and Marining over, the 400 men who were still resting and eating stood up, raised their right hands, and performed a Roman military salute: "Hi Lord Baron!" Marin also held back a hand gesture: "Have a break, soldiers! Don''t worry about us, we juste to see, you can continue to eat." "Yes, sir!" Lieutenant General Schwartz replied immediately. Although, in private, everyone calls Marin the boss, in front of people, they still need to be called "adults." Renell looked at the neatly moving 400 soldiers, and his mouth grew up in surprise: "Cousin, are you going to rebel? Gather so many soldiers ..." "Lenel, I told you everything. This is Marin''s men. These people are all apanying him to the Italian battlefield. They are all meritorious soldiers." "Really?" "Crap, when did I lie?" Old Huffman was a little unhappy. Lenel Knight thought for a while that his cousin had always been an old-fashioned man, and he had never lied to anyone ... Then, his tiger''s body trembled, and then trembled ... "Little Marlin, you ... you ... are you really a baron?" "Is there a fake?" Marin said helplessly. Then, Lenel began to surround Marin, looking up and down, looking left and right ... as if watching a panda, as if looking at a mascot ... With that look, Marin was very ufortable ... The old Huffman, with his head raised, hummed proudly ... ... More than this time, after Lenel''s departure, the old Huffman invited many knights who had made good with him. Even some knights who just nodded were invited. The purpose is to show off ... Then, sadly Marin had toe out again and again to act as a mascot, giving the muscled German knights a strong crowd. Even more tragic is that sometimes these guys will pinch Marin and feel what it is like to pinch the baron ... Chapter 58: The Desolate Castle Chapter 58: The Deste Castle After a month of "mascot", the old Huffman also had few friends of the same grade to show off. So he agreed to leave Marin. Marin ran away quickly, took his men and horses, hurried to the horse, and went to the Nethends ... The speed of riding is obviously notparable to walking, and Marin and others are equipped with a single horse and two horses. So, three dayster, Marin and his army arrived at the small seaside port of Den Helder, opposite the ind of Texel. Den Helder is only 4 kilometers away from the fishing vige of Tholencher, the southernmost port of Texel. However, Den Helder is not yet a port city, but arger fishing vige with a small fishing port. If they are carrying people, the small fishing boats in these fishing viges can easily transport everyone to the other side. However, Marin brought 1030 horses and severalrge carriages, and the small fishing boat could not be loaded. As a result, Marin had to send someone on horseback to nearby important seaport Amsterdam and hired severalrge ships. In this way, after waiting for four or five days, Marin was on a big ship hired by Amsterdam andnded in the fishing vige of Tholencher. Afternding, Marin sent a local viger to find a local dialect businessman (businessmen are not easy this year, they have to learn to speak many dialects), and helped to dere loudly that he was the new Texel The fact that the baron was the lord of the lord, and issued a sheepskin instrument and seal issued by the emperor. Facing Marin''s 400 warriors like wolf, what other ideas do the vigers have? So they swore allegiance to Marin and stated that they were willing to pay taxes. Considering the end of 1495, the fish flood in the North Sea will begin next spring. So Marin demanded that taxes be levied next spring. Then, Marin continued to lead people northward and arrived at the administrative center of Texel Ind-Den Burg ... What disappointed Marin was that he didn''t see the majestic castle in his imagination, but instead saw a deste castle ... Yes, the deste castle ... This castle is very small andpletely iparable with the photos of European castles that Marin saw on previous Weibo. Of course, the castles that are tourist attractions are either the king''s or the duke''s. Denborg, strictly counted, was just a pce of the Earl of the Nethends. Therefore, the size of this castle is like two or three vis. At best, it''s a luxurious country house. It''s just that there are more tall and solid walls than the vi. Around the castle, a church and several houses were scattered sparsely. It seems that Denborg is just a small town with a small poption. When Marin brought his army into the town, he caused great panic. People fled home, closed the door, and watched Marin''s troops through the crack of the door. In medieval Europe, it was normal for an army to pass through a small town and grab it. Even killing individuals and robbing them aremonce. Therefore, the townspeople are also very afraid that they will be robbed or even killed ... Marin ignored these townspeople, but went directly to the church, greeted several local priests, and by the way, asked about the situation on the ind. The principal of the Den Burg Church is an assistant bishop responsible for preaching and religious rituals throughout the ind. In fact, Texel Ind is embarrassing. The area is not small but the poption is small. If you send a regional bishop, it will be a little overkill. It is not appropriate to send the priest (priest) to take charge of the religion in this area. Therefore, the Archbishop of Utrecht simply arranged an uneptable auxiliary bishop (lower than the assistant bishop, who has the right to inherit the regional bishop, and the auxiliary bishop does not) to manage the hundreds of worshippers on the ind ... Yes, there are only a few hundred people on the ind ... ording to Bishop Dalyan, currently the poption on Texel is sparse. The reason for this, Mainly because of inconvenience. These days, there are no nes or ferries. Therefore, it is very inconvenient to travel between Texel Ind and the maind. The inhabitants of the ind want to go to the maind, they must take a fisherman''s fishing boat. However, fishing boats do not often go to the maind. Generally, fishermen will sell fishing boats before they sell salted fish or buy them. The farmers and herdsmen on the ind can only take a boat. Usually, because of the inconvenience of transportation, the prices on the ind are much more expensive than on thend, except for the sea fish, rye andmb produced on the ind ... Therefore, although many people emigrated to the ind, most of themter moved away ... Right now, there is only one town in the entire Texel Ind-Denborg, with 200 townspeople. Outside the town, there are the three viges of De Waal, De Koch and De Coxdorp, and the two small fishing viges of Tholencher and Odeshilde. The total poption is only over 800 people. The cultivatednd on the ind disappointed Marin, only 1,000 Ugram. In addition, many grasnds are used for sheep. Not to say that there are only 1,000 Eugrams on the ind that can be cultivated for farnd. Instead, the ind has fewer people and can only nt such arge area ofnd. If there are more acres, thebor force is simply not enough. Even because of insufficientbor, only half of the 1000 Ugramnd on the ind is cultivated each year, and the other half is left fallow and abandoned. Moreover, the 200 Ugram fields on the ind belong to the church''s property on the ind. The remaining 800 Eugrams belong to three families-the Colin family, the Mahir family, and the Roni family. However, these three families also have a lot ofnd onnd. They don''t really care about the farnd on Texel. Because the affairs on the ind, because of the inconvenience of traffic, are too cumbersome to manage. "Bishop Dalian, are these three families willing to sell their fields?" Marin thought about it and decided to buy thend that the three families didn''t value. As a lord, if there is no field, it bes a joke. "You are already a lord, of course you can do this. And, you can buy from these three families at a reserve price. Because, in name, you are the owner of this ind!" Bishop Dalyan suggested kindly. For the ind of Texel to be an independent baron leader, Bishop Dalyan is very wee. why? Because a baron used this ind as a territory, he would definitely take good care of it, and even recruit exiles to open up wastnd together. At that time, there are more people on the ind, and his assistant bishop can be promoted to be a true regional bishop. Moreover, with more people, there are more "tithing" in the church. In the Middle Ages of Europe, the church had the privilege of collecting tithes from the people. This privilege, until modern times, still remains. However, in Protestant countries, this tax waster epted by the government. Following the advice of Bishop Dalyan, Marin decided to pay fornd ownership in three agricultural viges and several ranches on the ind. ording to the estimate of Assistant Cardinal Dalian, the total value of thend of three agricultural viges and several ranches on the ind is only 10,000 gold coins. This is a piece of cake for local tycoon Marin. Then, Marin took 400 men to the deste old castle-Denborg ... I saw the old castle covered with dust, and only the town''s sheriff often sent people to clean the lower facade. As for the interior of the castle, it has always been locked. The thickness of the dust inside is a pit ... And many of the wooden furniture in the castle fell apart. Obviously, they were corrupted ... "Mom, Kohler, tomorrow you''ll find someone to clean the castle again. Remember, let everyone wear a mask, it''s so ugly, it''s really ufortable ..." Because the castle was too dirty, Marin had to order his men to camp near the castle and live in a tent for a few days. As for Marin himself, at the invitation of Bishop Dalyan, he lived in the church room ... Chapter 59: Adobe House Chapter 59: Adobe House Early the next morning, Kohler was nearby, and many residents were called in, ordering them to help clean the castle. In the Middle Ages of agricultural society, most people were idle in the winter. Especially the farmers who cultivate thend, there is nothing to do in winter. Marin sent Kohler to several nearby viges, called in 200 farmers, helped clear the castle, and cleaned and cleaned the streets. As forpensation, there is no such thing. Because in medieval Europe, it was an obligation to help the lord during the leisure time. Kohler, the dog leg, bullied the serf, showing nothing but the nature of an evil ve. However, Marin was embarrassed, and provided Kohler with a free lunch after Kohler rejected his suggestion of paying wages. The ghosts knew what the serfs thought. Marin just provided them with a free lunch, and they were very cheering and grateful to Marin. It turned out that in the eyes of medieval European serfs,bor was worthless. The food is extremely precious. In a serf family of three people, if Marin solved the problem of eating for a man, their family would have one mouth less to eat that day, and it would be the most mouthful. The saved food can fully feed his wife and children. This is the simple and depressing logic of medieval serfs ... Marin never expected that there was such a tragedy in the world. Just providing a lunch will make them happy. Feeling softened, he asked Kohler to give the working serfs, in addition to providing a piece of dark bread at noon every day, and allowing them to take home a half piece of bread when they returned home at night. This decision cheered the serfs again, only to feel that they had met the best lord in the world. Marin was very speechless-what else could the other lords do? While the serfs were working, Marin had to do something else. First, he sent Kohler to Amsterdam to buy a new batch of furniture and other supplies. Because many of the wooden furniture in the castle have been corroded and need to be reced with new ones. Schwartz, however, was sent to three viges to tell the owners of their estates that they would buy theirnd. In fact, as an autonomous lord, Marin owns thend rights on the ind. In the case of civiliannd, the lord even has the right to take it directly. But the owners of the three Zhuangzis are all noblemen who live onnd, so they are not easy to use. However, it is possible to forcibly redeem it at a rtively low price. You can give money, but it''s pretty good. Because, although the three Zhuangzi masters are nobles, they are only jazz (and knights are equal), and they are not hereditary nobles. Marlin gave the floor price, already counted for face. You know, the viges on the ind were not officially closed by the three, but boughtter. Instead of formalnd closure, local lords have the right to forcibly buy. The owners of the three viges live near Den Helder. They were onnd, and there was another manor. For Chuang Tzu on the ind of Texel, they also felt a bit of chicken ribs, tasteless, it is a pity to abandon. Now that the new lord Marin is willing to acquire, they are also a burden. The farms on the ind are remote because no one wants to manage them. Therefore, the management of the three Zhuangzis is very chaotic and the output is not high. Even because "the emperor is far away from the sky", corruption on the ind''s affairs has also urred, resulting in a rtively low output for the owner on the estate. Marin sent Schwartz to negotiate with them, and Schwartz, in order to put pressure on the representatives of the other party, took 400 fully armed brothers to run to the sidelines, terrifying the three representatives. Then, Schwartz used 15,000 gold coins to buy all the farnd and ranch belonging to the three houses on the ind, including the "organizational rtionship" of the serfs. This price is definitely the reserve price. But Marin did not reason with them, and overwhelmed them, and they could not help it. After all, this ind is now the site of Marin. In this way, the entire Texel Ind, except for the 200 Ugramnd owned by the church, cannot be moved, and other cultivatednd, pasture and wastnd, It all belongs to Marin. As for the fishermen in the two fishing ports, their taxes, in addition to the tithe of the church, do not need to go to Den Helder to pay them. They are directly given to Marin. In fact, the so-called tax they handed in is dried salted fish, and some fresh fish can be paid. It depends on Marin''s requirements ... Kohler soon returned, and he brought home hundreds of pieces of furniture. At the same time, a group of masons and building materials were brought back. First, the walls of the castle, Marin, had stered the bricyers. In this way, the white walls looked bright. Marin then asked them to rebuild the sewers and toilets, and began building septic tanks. In this way, there will never be an odor in the castle. Then, on the grasnd north of the castle, Marin built a row of stables to house 1,030 horses in his hand and a few cows. In the end, Marin mobilized the folks and gave his soldiers 400 soldiers to build a batch of adobe houses with mud ... This adobe house is still on the side of his former home in Marin. Uncle Elder Zhou lives in the vige. At the beginning, Uncle Zhou''s adobe house was renovated. Marin went to help and saw how everyone built adobe houses. The construction of the adobe house is very simple, that is, the soil, which can be obtained everywhere, is put into the thatch, straw, etc., which are used as "bones", and stirred, simr to the feel of reinforced concrete. Those thatch are the "bones". Then, everyone stood up with two pieces of wood, sandwiched on both sides, and filled it with thatched mud, which waspacted. After the soil in the splint is almost dry, remove the splint. In this way, a thick earthen wall waspleted. After the building waspleted, the fire was raised and the walls dried up. In addition, this kind of soil is mixed with thatched bones, which is quite strong. At least, the wind and rain are absolutely fine. In addition, the adobe house is lived. In the era without air conditioning, it was quite warm in winter and cool in summer ... The soldiers started to abandon this kind of soil-built house, but Marin let them live in and try for a few days, but they fell in love with this low-cost, fast-built house. In fact, Marin can''t use this trick. It''s December and it''s winter. Living in a tent is quite cold, and how to build a stone house popr in Europe and repair a house for 400 people? Moreover, Texel Ind does not produce stones, so you have to buy it off the ind and ship it back ... How troublesome? Also, time is tight ... Therefore, Marin simply asked the serfs to help and build the legendary adobe house together. The cost is low, the construction speed is fast, and thefort is good ... Then, ording to Oriental habits, Marin built Chinese-style stoves and erected simple chimneys ... But what makes Marin speechless is that Europe currently seems to be unpopr with chimneys. At least, it was not popr in ordinary people''s homes in the Middle Ages ... It is said that the chimney was introduced into Europe from the East by Jewish merchants, Egyptians, and Syrians around 800 AD. Although hundreds of years have passed, chimneys have not fully spread in Europe. Because the biggest function of the chimney is to exhaust smoke. Only very noble and rich families pay attention to smoking. As for the poor people''s homes, no chimneys still lit a fire, so they would be suffocated by the smoke ... Many poor homes, in order to prevent smoke, directly set up semi-open kitchens. In this way, when the bread is fired, the smoke directly spreads out ... Marin organized everyone to build 400 three-bedroom, one-cooker adobe houses without spending any money. Even the beds were mmed directly into the ground and then roasted and dried with a fire. Moreover, each bed is actually a soil bun. On the outside, there is a cooker chamber where fuel can be ced. Fireces are currently popr in Europe (in fact, they are also popr in wealthy people, and chimneys are mainly equipped for fireces), but there is a problem with fireces, which are burning inside the house. If it is burning wood, it is okay, if it is burning coal, it is easy to cause gas poisoning. The oriental earthen owl introduced by Marin is an artifact of wintering. The people of Gazi in Northeast China can resist low temperatures of tens of degrees below zero by relying on soil hoe. And put fuel such as coal in the outside with open windows, and do not worry about gas poisoning in the soil room. However, in the Nethends, the minimum temperature is only a few degrees below zero, which is still because of the "Little Ice Age". It is simply wasteful to use soil. The only problem is that there are no trees on the ind and there is no wood. This also led to theck of firewood avable on the ind. Therefore, the residents of the ind generally burn hay for cooking and heating. At the same time, I will also go back to Den Helder to buy some firewood. Of course, those who buy firewood onnd are generally rich forces like the church. After all, there is a firece in the church and priests, you can''t burn hay in the firece, right? No more grades, it is still more regr to burn wood ... "Should I get some coal from the coal mine at home to use as fuel?" Marinto thought with his chin. Huffman Estate has not only small coal reserves, but also good coal quality. However, in the Middle Ages, the use of coal was very narrow. This has also led to poor sales of coal. The biggest and only client of Manor Coal was Marlin''s deal before. However, the Wiggins Chamber of Commerce also has limited purchases from the Huffman Coal Mine. On average, the Wiggins Chamber of Commerce buys only 100 charlotons of coal from the Huffman Coal Mine every day. And one Charteron coal, profit is only 1 shilling more. On average, the Huffman Estate earns about 2,800 marks from the coal mine each year. Marin bought coal from his own coal mine, which not only solved his own fuel shortage problem, but also considered his family cheap. The question is, how to transport coal from Huffman Estate to Texel ... Marin himself had no boat and no sailor. It is obviously wise to transport coal from Huffman Estate to Texel. Because the cost of water transportation is low, there are fewer tax cards (this is a very important reason), and the volume of freight isrge. Loading coal, the coal carrier can go west along the Ruhr River and into the Rhine. Then, reach the estuary via the Rhine, and head north along the west coast of the Nethends to Texel Ind. In order to get this set down, not only a boat and skilled sailors, but also a pilot who is familiar with the route and knows how to avoid tax cards. All of these, Marin didn''t ... So, Marin decided to find someone to cooperate ... Chapter 60: Christmas Chapter 60: Christmas In a blink of an eye, Marin had been on Texel for more than twenty days. And it was Christmas in 1495, and it came ... When leaving Huffman Manor before, Marin promised his cheap parents that he would go home for Christmas and New Year. So, on the morning of December 23, Marin had to prepare to go home. Of course, Texel matters too. Therefore, Marin left Schwartz to manage the group of skin monkeys, and asked Kohler to allocate funds to buy a few beef cattle on the maind, kill the cattle and make beef, and feed the group of rice buckets. After all, this group of guys can''t be with their families for Christmas and New Year, so they must beforted. As for sending someone to pick up their family, it will have to wait until after the new year. Then Marin took Kahn, Kohler, Sauer, and Gand, each with three horses, and hurried to Huffman''s estate. One horse and three horses are not covered, they are all high-quality horses made in France, and their endurance is very good. Five men, Marin and Kahn, each rode a warhorse and two armoured horses. To save weight, Marin and his followers wore only two-thirds of their breasttes and iron helmets. In addition, it is equipped with a cavalry rapier. In this way, the horse can bear much lighter weight. Only Kahn, the second goods, the suspected cavalry rapier was not easy, and brought his beloved mace ... The five hurry up and finally rushed back to Huffman Manor on the morning of the 25th. Unfortunately, he was scolded as soon as he returned: "You bear boy,e back sote, why didn''t youe back yesterday? You missed the Mass on Christmas Eve!" The old Huffman reprimanded dissatisfied. "Ah, aren''t you busy? I have to worry about many things on the ind. The castle has a few inches of dust inside and the furniture inside is rotten. I''m busy and I send someone to buy furniture in Amsterdam. Spending money and effort is exhausting. "Marin was unwilling to be trained, so he changed the subject. "Brother, is your castle pretty?" Annie asked, leaning out her head. "Well, it''s okay. Now I have cleaned it thoroughly and brushed the lime. It looks refreshing." "Stone structure or brick?" Asked Old Huffman, distracted. "The structure of pure stone, after all, was once the earl''s pce, although it is notrge, but very strong." "Yes, if it is a brick structure, it will probably copse in hundreds of years." "Well, the child must be tired when hees back from the horse. Go to a hot bath and rest for a long time." Now, everyone in the Huffman family is in love with bathing. Even the serfs in the manor fell in love with taking a hot bath. However, they couldn''t affordrge oak barrels and could not build a special bathroom. Mrs. Mary thought for a while, and she built six special small single bathrooms, each with arge oak barrel, which is open to everyone. In addition, a boiling water room was set up to supply arge amount of hot water. As for the fuel for hot water, it is naturally the excess coal produced by Huffman Estate. This thing ispletely worthless at Huffman Estate. Moreover, after being persuaded by Marin, the whole family now no longer drinks raw water, but only boiled well water, and their health is guaranteed. After taking a bath, Marin went back to his room and fell asleep for a long time. As for Kahn and Kohler, Adler arranged the amodation after taking a shower. In the afternoon, Marin woke up hungry. It was three o''clock in the afternoon, and Marin hurried to find food. So he went into the kitchen, opened the cab, and found a piece of ck bread that was more advanced and stunned. But eating bread alone is thirsty. So he called his servant to help warm a jug of milk. People in the Middle Ages were very unhygienic, and they drank cold milk, and they weren''t afraid of making stomach sick. Marin is a modern man and dares not take responsibility for his health. So he decisively chose to drink hot milk. After eating and drinking, Marin ran to the living room and spoke with the Huffmans. Adler began to humbly ask Marin to lead his soldiers to fight. Marin nced at Adler: "Brother, What do you learn to lead soldiers to fight? Is it not good to be your coal boss? Eat and drink, feel free! " "Isn''t it thinking about building a career ..." Adler said embarrassedly. "But do n''t war, it ''s not fun, it ''s dead. Your brother and I ca n''t be forced, after all, I ''m going to be kicked out when I ''m 18 years old, so I ''m gambling to fight. To go to war? " "But don''t youe back and earn a baron''s title?" Adler said indignantly. "Come on, boss, I was lucky. I met French people who were in a hurry to withdraw from the country. They didn''t want to fight at all. If they wanted to work hard, my life might be in Italy. Do you think the war is so beautiful?" Marin said angrily. Of course, what he said is also inurate. He knew that the French had no intention of fighting, and was busy running away before he had the courage to ambush the French. In fact, Marin was also afraid of death. Therefore, he chose to ambush the French army on the hillside and did not stop the French in the mountains. If he fights with the French in the mountains, Marin has a 50% certainty that he can support the arrival of the Italian coalition. Then, Charles VIII could not run away. However, if he did that, Marin could not guarantee that he would die. After all, in order to find a way to survive, the French will not hit the line of defense. Even if he finally wins, Marin himself may die. Even if he does not die, the 1100 people in his hand do not know how many can survive. Moreover, at that time, he did not dare to guarantee whether the group of recruits who had not seen blood would have the courage to fight the French army to the end. Therefore, he chose the safest method of ambush on the hillside. Even Marin didn''t expect the French to surrender 4,000. Originally, he only intended to capture a few hundred people who had fallen behind. Even the captives of hundreds of French knights can be counted as great credits. Because, the Italian coalition 20,000 people also killed 1,000 French infantry. In the end, he did not expect that he had captured so many French. Also, arge number of war horses. With so many spoils, even Marin was afraid. Therefore, he fled decisively, afraid of being eaten by the Italian coalition. In retrospect, Marin was also a little scared. The fact that the French sent someone to forcibly climb the mountain and use their lives to open a blood path was still in his mind. If he chose to block directly, he might be killed by the desperate Frenchman. After Marin''s remarks, the atmosphere suddenly felt a little stuffy. Because war is indeed not an easy topic. Fortunately, two little brothers and three sisters, Annie, came out to create an atmosphere: "Brother Marin, brother Marin, I want presents, Christmas presents! You didn''te back yesterday, and I didn''t put Christmas presents in my socks in the morning, we are very unhappy!" "Yes, very unhappy!" San Xiao nodded desperately, making everyone amused. "Oh, Christmas gifts ..." Marin was a little embarrassed. He just wanted toe back for the holiday, but never thought of preparing gifts for his brothers and sisters ... Kohler helped him bring back a bag of gold coins, but even with money, he couldn''t buy anything on Christmas Day. Because, at Christmas, those shops are closed. Everyone is on holiday. Who is doing business? "Ahem, Simon, Albert, Annie, do you like gold coins?" "Gold coins? Which one is worth the Fanny Silver coins that Mom gave?" Annie asked, sucking her fingers, crooking her head. "Khan ... Of course gold is worth it, a gold coin is worth 60 Finneys!" "Wow, a lot of money, brother, I want gold coins! I want gold coins!" "Yes, a lot, a lot!" Simon and Albert also assisted. "Well, this is from your brother." Marin took a handful of gold coins from his arms and distributed them to his brothers and sisters. The local tyrant''s rush, even Adler was very envious. You know, although Adler is the heir of the manor. However, the heirs are still waiting for inheritance and are still unmarried. Now, Adler still receives "pocket money" from Mrs. Mary, 4 Finnies a day, just enough to buy wine and drink. However, Marin certainly won''t give Adler gold coins anymore. Only his brother asked his brother for a gift. In the evening, in the Huffman''s restaurant, Mrs. Mary personally made a table for a "big meal". However, this "big meal" made Marin frown. why? It turned out that Mrs. Mary boiled and ate the apples, but took the cabbages raw ... This ... This is a typical medieval European practice ... However, it is estimated that the apples and cabbages can be obtained in the winter. "Mom, haven''t I taught you how to cook Chinese food? Why is it so bad?" Marin said dissatisfied, and his brothers and sisters nodded to assist. "Today is Christmas, a traditional European festival. Traditional festivals, of course, use traditional methods!" Madam Mary said seriously. "Okay ... okay ..." Marin dropped his cooked apple with a fork in his mouth and put his mouth down. Looking at the table, only the dish of roasted suckling pig is considered normal. However, roast suckling pigs were taken up by younger siblings. Marin was embarrassed to grab it with the children, so he could only eat the boiled apples and raw cabbage in depression, so he didn''t touch them ... Chapter 61: Coal Deal Chapter 61: Coal Deal The next morning, Marin and Old Huffman talked about buying coal from a coal mine at home. In this regard, the old Huffman naturally has no objection. But in terms of price, the two sides have differences. It''s not that the old Huffman thought Marin was offering a low price, but that it was too high. The old Huffman felt that since his son wanted it, naturally he would not think of making money. Therefore, he proposed that 1 Charteron coal to 1 shilling''s operating cost fee can be. However, Marin is not bad at money and wants to help the family, so he proposed a market price of 2 shillings per Charteron. The father and the son scrambled, and in the end, it was Mrs. Mary who made the decision-ording to thepromise between the father and the son, 1.5 shillings per Charteron. In this way, the family earns some money, and Marin can save a lot of money. "Marlin, what do you want coal for?" Madam Mary asked curiously. Right now, firewood is popr in Europe, but not coal. In particr, firewood is popr in European fireces. Those who burn coal, it ''s easy to poison people at home ... Only in special industries such as metallurgy, coal is used inrge quantities. Thinking of gas poisoning, Marin immediately reminded his family: "Dad, mom, remember not to burn coal in a closed room!" "Why?" Madam Mary asked curiously. "My teacher said that coal burned in a tightly closed room, and it was easy to produce toxic gases, causing people to suffocate and die ..." "What? Is that so?" Everyone was scared. Speaking of which, the Huffman Manor now cooks and has switched to coal burning. Even Mrs. Mary has ns to rece wood with coal as a fuel for indoor fireces. Now, Marin said that Mrs. Mary was scared. "It''s true that brothers and sisters are still young. Don''t burn coal in their room to avoid idents." "Uh ---" Mrs. Mary nodded quickly, there was nothing more important than the safety of the child. "By the way, Marin, can you find a solution to the problem of pulverized coal?" "Pulverized coal?" Marin didn''t understand. "It''s just pulverized coal!" "Is this a problem?" "Of course, now everyone burns lumpy coal. Powdered coal, because it is always burned out, is not wee and cannot be sold. People at the Wiggins Chamber of Commerce only need lumpy coal ..." Marin wanted tough when he heard the old Huffman''sin. In fact, powdered coal burns morepletely than lump coal and has arger contact surface with air. But a key point is the way people in this age burned fire. For example,ter generations of coal will blow coal powder into the furnace. Therefore, the pulverized coal is burnedpletely and the calorific value is very high. However, people in this era burned coal with a shovel. With a shovel, the pulverized coal was thrown into the hearth, which easily covered the coal that was originally burning. If the pulverized coal covers the previously burning coal, it is easy to iste the air and cause the burning coal to extinguish. The coal block is different. There is arge gap between the coal block and the coal block. Therefore, there is arge gap between the shovel shovel and the previously burned coal and the newly added coal. Therefore, there is no fear that coal will go out. Therefore, the ancients preferred coal nuggets rather than coal powder. Even in modern times, pulverized coal requires professional blowers to blow into the furnace to make full use of pulverized coal. In the folk, themon people still used coal. However, many of the coal mined in coal mines are pulverized coal. So everyone came up with a way to process pulverized coal into blocks. Thus, briquettes were born. Briquettes are spherical coal lumps made by mixing pulverized coal with water and yellow mud. In this way, pulverized coal bes lump coal and can be easily burned again. Of course, there is a more advanced way-honeb coal ... Briquettebustion, because the contact surface is not enough, thebustion utilization rate is low, and thebustion is notplete. The emergence of honeb coal, The efficiency of coalbustion has been greatly improved. There are more than a dozen holes in a piece of honeb. The walls of these holes are the contact surfaces of coal and air. Honeb coal has greatly improved thebustion efficiency, and has also increased the degree of coalbustion. Because briquettes often burn ipletely, resulting in wasted fuel. Marin thinks that the honeb coal thing is easy to use. However, there is no need to promote honeb. This thing is for home use. Selling honeb coal cannot be much more expensive than briquettes. Now that he is a local tyrant, there is no need to pursue burning efficiency, and it is nothing to waste. Therefore, Marin directly asked the old Huffman to use the ancient "coal shaking" method he saw in his previous life to process the coal powder into briquettes and sell them. As for how to shake the briquettes, this is easy. Marin personally showed the workers the technique of "shaking briquettes". Just mix the coal powder, water and yellow mud together and stir into a paste. Then, cut into pieces, shake them in a wooden sieve, shake them into a ping-pong ball, and then dry them. Then the briquettes are ready. The technique of making briquettes is simple. As long as enough people are sent, they can produce briquettes. Although it is not as efficient as subsequent generations of machine suppression, it is also considered waste utilization. At least, pulverized coal, which ounts for less than half of the coal mine''s output, is not used. In fact, the Huffman coal mine is not particrly troublesome about the problem of pulverized coal. Because the Wiggins Chamber of Commerce needs a limited amount of coal. This has also led to Huffman coal mines not rushing to deal with those pulverized coal. However, as the amount of coal digging in coal mines is increasing, the amount of pulverized coal piled up by no one is increasing, and it is almost a hill. Therefore, out of the idea of dealing with these obstructing pulverized coals, the old Huffman consulted Marin. Unexpectedly, Marin really had a way. But in fact, Marin, a better honeb technology, has not revealed it. However, Marin found it difficult to make honeb. UC Reading Because the 12 holes of honeb coal must be consistent. Otherwise, the holes of the upper and lower honeb coals cannot be aligned. In this way,bustion is affected. Aligning the 12 holes was difficult in this era. Unless, ites out of a mold. However, in this era there was no machine to press the honeb coal, and it could only be pressed one by one manually by using a mold. For newly manufactured molds, the perforations may not be aligned with the perforations of another mold, and cannot reach a uniform standard. Therefore, Marin, who is troublesome, simply released the briquette technology with high versatility first, which can be considered as a problem for the family. In fact, briquette technology is really not a technology. If Europeans have been using coal for a long time, it should be easy to think of. However, Europeans have not been using coal for long. Even now, the European steel industry still uses charcoal inrge quantities. There are few coal applications and short time, so few people study how to apply coal powder ... Moreover, after listening to the report from the prospector at the mine, Marin threw money again and bought the 2000 acre hilly area next to Huffman Estate. ording to the prospector, the coal mine at Huffman Manor is actually a branch of therge coal mine underground in the hilly area above. Marin is a local tyrant now. Since the main vein of the coal mine knows where, can he let it go? So, when the money hits it, the hills are at hand. It''s not expensive, only two thousand gold coins, on average one acre requires one gold coin. Because the hills can''t ntnd, the grass doesn''t grow well, and it''s not worth it at all. And the officials of the lord, did not know that this hill is buried withrge coal mines ... Besides, the Huffman family sells coal and pays taxes ... Chapter 62: At Home Chapter 62: At Home "Father, brother!" Marin came to the junction and was surprised to see the old Huffman and Adler who hade to meet him. But he reacted quickly and dismissed and greeted the old Huffman and Adler. The old Huffman clucked "um", but actually blossomed. He was an unlovable knight in Mark''s country. He gave birth to a son and became the baron of the empire, whom the emperor proimed. How can he not be proud? But before his son had so many hands, he had to hold back a little. Adler on the side was relieved. In the past, he was the boss who could inherit the family business. Moreover, because of his martial arts, he will definitely pass the assessment of Earl Mark in a few years and be a knight of the country. Therefore, his identity is naturally superior to Marin, who has no inheritance. Although, he was good to Marin before. But now Marin has be the baron of the empire, separated from the party, and has be the number one in the empire. So he inevitably thinks a bit. For example, how to get along with Marin in the future ... Want to salute to Marin ... The old Huffman and Mrs. Mary certainly did not have to salute Marin. Although Europe does not promote filial piety, there are basic moral principles. But Adler and Marin are peers, and they have no parenting grace. If Marin cares, it would not be impossible for Adler to salute him. You know, there is no such thing as a "brother-inw" in Europe. Brothers arepletely independent individuals and are the most intimate. Seeing Marin still treating him the same, Adler breathed a long sigh of relief. Overtaken by his underage brother, Adler must be ufortable. However, he is not stupid. Marin is developed, can he not pull him in the future? After the two sides joined together, the father and son hurried back happily. Halfway, Adler asked: "Marin, what''s in your carts? It looks heavy." Adler pointed to the carts loaded with te armor and horse armor. "Well, it''s all the te armor and horse armor I captured from the French knight ..." Marin replied indifferently. "So, is it true that you defeated the King of France?" Adler had read Marin''s letter before, otherwise he would not know Marin was going home. However, he was skeptical whether Marin defeated the French king. After all, it was the king of France, the first knight power in Europe, and he also brought 8,000 martial arts knights. However, Marin told him that therge vehicles were equipped with seized armor, which made him believe. Because the Huffman Manor currently has three knights, the old Huffman, Adler, and Marin. Marin also does not need to buy a fewrge car armors, and generally Marin cannot afford it. "Then I still need to ask, can I get the seeds of Lao Tzu?" Old Huffman gave Adler a hard look. Does Adler doubt Marin''s martial arts? Adler was a little hesitant, but he was not convinced and thought to himself: "Aren''t I your kind? Haven''t you mixed up the title of Knight for me?" Of course, he didn''t dare to say it. Speaking of it, it will surely lead to an explosion in the old Huffman. The old Huffman might not have sealed the Baron''s Marin, but he was still pressureless ... When the massive "ck Cross Mercenary Regiment" 400 and arge number of horses drove into the Huffman estate, the entire estate boiled. Mrs. Mary personally stood outside the gate of the manor with three young children and a group of peasant women and weed the return of her son and husband. Seeing the loving Mrs. Mary, out of this physical instinct, Marin jumped off the horse in a hurry and rushed to Mrs. Mary ... "Mom, I''m so d to see you again!" It seemed that Marin couldn''t help saying this rehearsal thousands of times. It seems that the original owner of this body is very attached to his mother. No wonder, The original owner of this body was just a 17-year-old boy. The old Huffman was also a "tyrant", often beating him, so the original owner was naturally close to Mrs. Mary. "It''s such an adult, and the baron has been sealed, still so coquettish!" Madam Mary hugged her son and me. But that tone, meaning no me, was very proud. Especially when ites to the word "baron", Madame Mary raised her head high ... "Well, don''t be sensational, go ahead. The banquet in the manor has already been set up. Take everyone to dinner!" Old Huffman said in a rare manner. Before changing, maybe he would give Marin a kick directly, suspecting his mother-inw. "Yes, Dad, is the food at home enough? I brought 400 brothers back this time. There are 1030 horses and they all need to be fed." "Food is absolutely enough! But Marin, why are there so many horses? I don''t have enough horse feed." Old Huffman was frightened by the number of horses brought back by Marin. "Yeah, yeah, Marin, why did you bring so many horses back? Don''t you have to hand over the war horses you have seized to the emperor?" Adler was also curious. Although he is mean, he is not stupid. He knew that war horses were in Europe, but that was a valuable strategic material, more important than armor. Because not all horses can be war horses. The war horse must be the proud horse. "Adler, haven''t you seen these horses basically without armor? Only 30 are war horses!" "The other thousands are horses?" "Of course, that was a horse for the French heavy cavalry, and although it was not as good as a war horse, it was better than an ordinary horse." "The emperor asked you to bring so many horses back? Most of them were confiscated?" Old Huffman was also surprised. "Don''t mention, Dad, the emperor is really stingy. I gave him 2,000 French captives, each of whom was worth at least 500 gold ransoms. In addition, I gave him 970 French war horses, 3000 sets of te armor, 2000 A set of horse armor and 3,000 two-handed swords. As a result, Your Majesty only rewarded me with a baron title and an ind as a baron leader, really stingy! " "You''re content, the baron is still young? Your father and I are just knights. You know, you can go from a civilian to a baron, and it''s not too much to step into the sky in one step. Although the cost is great, it''s worth it. Descendants and descendants are also barons! Moreover, it is not normal for your army to receive the emperor''s sry. It is not normal for him to receiverge amounts of spoils? "Although Hoffman was not very smart, he also had a wealth of life experience. He knew that Marin''s future was never the same. Bing a hereditary baron, his children and grandsons don''t have to wait for the Grand Lord to give it away again. Just like Adler, he will go to Markburg at the age of twenty-four and ept the assessment and selection of the Court of the Marquess. After passing the assessment, they can be given the title of knight. "What ind? It''s Italian or North?" Mrs. Mary interjected. She knew that in the territories controlled by Emperor Maximilian I, Austria and the Nethends depended on the sea. However, the Austrian estuary is small and there are not many big inds. "On the North Sea, Texel Ind at the northern tip of the Dutch province of the Nethends." "Texel ... seems to be the westernmost ind of the Frisian Inds, right? It seems quite big ..." Mrs. Mary was born in East Frisian and was familiar with the Frisian Inds. "Yes, it should be thergest ind in the Frisian Inds. Thend above is about 162 square kilometers ... Well, you don''t know what is a square kilometer? In conversion, it is almost 20,000 Eugram (40,000) Acre) ... " "What? 20,000 Yougram? That''s not 40 times the size of Huffman?" Adler''s eyes widened in surprise. "Crap, otherwise why is he a baron?" Old Huffman nced at Adler, yelling. "I ca n''t say that. I know the situation on the ind. There are 20,000 Eugrams. But the coastal beaches, because of the tide problem, have high salinity and have little value for remation. In addition, there are some mountains on the ind. Yau, it is estimated that there must be thousands of Eugrams in the 20,000 Eugrams, which cannot be exploited. "Mrs. Mary grew up by the sea and was rtively familiar with those inds. However, her family is in East Friend, and she is not familiar with the ind of Texel near West Friend. "In addition, I can actually recruit some fishermen. You know, it ''s an ind, and the North Sea is a famous fishing ground. I canpletely recruit fishermen to fish, and then charge them more than half of their catch as a tax." Marin added . "That''s not bad, otherwise, you will have our fish in the future?" Adler said happily. "Woolen, there is a two-day journey (horseback) from Texel to Bochum. Sending the fish back has long stink. What can be sent back can only be dried salted fish. But, my Master, do you like stinky salted fish? "Marin gave Adler a scornful look. "That''s right ..." Adler was distressed. In fact, admired by Mrs. Mary, Adler also likes to eat fish. Although he was stuck by a fishbonest time, it did not prevent him from eating fish. "Brother Adler is stupid, we won''t run to Brother Marin''s castle to eat something fresh?" Little Roanne, on the side, couldn''t help but anxious for the boss''s IQ. "Yes, Annie is still smart. Let''s go to Marin''s new house for fish!" Adler also responded. "Brother Marin, do you really have a castle?" Simon, the third brother, looked at Marin with wide eyes and asked. "This seems to have a castle. However, it was a holiday castle built by the Earl of the Nethends more than a hundred years ago. It should not be big. And, it is said to have been deserted for decades ..." The news, Maximilian I told his. The Nethends was annexed by the bold Duke of Burgundy, Charlie, and is now in the hands of the Habsburgs. "That''s the castle too! Unlike our house, there are only a few tile houses!" Simon said enviously. In the medieval people''s conception, the nobility was associated with the castle. Without a castle, I am embarrassed to tell my own aristocracy. The average knight family cannot build a castle at all. Even many poor barons couldn''t build castles. Marin can get a castle, even though it is an old castle, it is enough. After all, the castle was built of stone, and some are still standing for hundreds of years. "So what? Simon and you can live in my castle if you''re happy. But you have to wait until I renovate the castle to make sure I can live there." "Really? Brother Marin, how wonderful you are!" Simon and Albert both jumped up happily. "Brother Malin is bad, and you don''t invite me to live in your castle!" Little Roly Anne was unhappy ... "Okay, okay, I''m officially inviting the beautiful and lovely Miss Anne to the humble castle!" Marin bowed gracefully and made little Annie giggle. "Well, don''t talk about it, let''s go to the yard to have dinner! In order to receive your men, I killed several pigs and made braised pork ..." The old Huffman was also a little stunned. Last time Marin was at home, Mrs. Mary was taught to cook Chinese food. This time, to entertain Marin''s men, it was the stewed pork cooked in a cauldron made by Mrs. Mary herself. This dish, for both the predator Huffman and Adler, is a tiresome one. In fact, because of theck of spices, the stewed pork made by Mrs. Mary was simply castrated. But even so, it was much better than medieval Europeans. Just looking at the "good money" noblemen of the old Huffman and Adler, you know the lethality of this dish. The mercenaries seated in the yard cheered when they saw pots of braised pork. You know, in Marin''s army, they only serve this good dish when they are happy or when Marin is happy. So, when a pile of braised pork came up, these guys knew that they had a mouthful ... Chapter 63: Ill Handle The Briquettes! Chapter 63: Ill Handle The Briquettes! For the next few days, aside from New Years Day, for the rest of the time, Old Hoffman had rounded up the serfs in the manor to rock briquettes together. The serfs had nothing to do in Winter anyways, since Old Hoffman paid their sries, they naturally and joyously joined the rocking team, as they rocked and rocked to Grandmas As such, after New Years Day, Hoffmans manor had a huge stockpile of briquettes However, when the transport ship from Wiggins Merchant Association arrived, Old Hoffman started promoting the briquettes, he was rejected The reason behind their rejection was in and simple, at first, when they heard Old Hoffmans rmendation, they asked what was in the briquettes. When the Wiggins representative heard the briquettes contained a certain amount of yellow mud, they decisively rejected Old Hoffman. Because they believed that the briquettes had yellow mud mixed in, and contained unknown amounts of impurities. Thats why the briquettes could not be considered high-quality coal. And at this period of the year, coal was already a hard thing to sell. Now that youve mixed mud into your coal, who would even want it? Thats why Wiggins Merchant Association refused to purchas the briquettes, and only purchased the pure lumps of coal Old Hoffman could do nothing about that. After all, what you do or do not own was your problem, and whether to or not to purchase was the buyers question. Currently, Marin was coincidentally at home and had not left. So, he interrupted: Father, please give me all the briquettes! Wha? Ill Handle The Briquettes! But, they already said that the quality of these briquettes werent up to par of high-quality coal Old Hoffman was a bit hesitant, he did not wish to swindle his son. Its fine, Im just going to use them as fuel to keep myself warm, theres no need to waste high quality stuff. Besides, we didnt mix in too much mud in our briquettes, so their quality is still quite good. Also, 1.5 shillings per Chaldron really isnt that expensive. You have a point Old Hoffman was a typical and old-fashioned Germanen, he scorned the disgraceful idea of selling shoddy wares. Furthermore, to be the supplier of his son, that was more impossible. Marin also took out the briquettes, cing them into the furnace of their own manors cksmith shop, he discovered there wasnt much difference. Of course, he might just be unable to spot the difference. At the very least, from the looks of things, there really wasnt arge difference between briquettes and lumps of coal. ording to Old Hoffmans statement, the coalmines production of coal lumps and coal powder were at a ratio of 2 to 1. In other words, the coalmine produces 50 chaldrons of coal powder each day. Meanwhile, thebor pay for manpower in ind Deutsches Reich was really low, so hiring people to rock coal powder into briquettes was also qute simple, and had a really low cost. The thing Marin was considering was what am I going to do with so many briquettes? 50 chaldrons of briquettes was almost equivalent to 75 tonnes of coal. Also, that was from only one days production. After a year, that would be a whooping 27 thousand tonnes. Marin by himself, had absolutely no way of using up all of that. Thats why, Marin must figure out a way to deal with that 27 thousand tonnes of coal. Or, he could also attempt to sell it outside The overall price for coal was quite cheap, and were notparable to firewood which was all the rage now. As a matter of fact, in the current economy, a chaldron of coal was only sold for 4-6 shillings. While firewood of the same quality would be sold at prices of around 8 shillings. Thats because, after thebustion of coal, it would produce an unpleasant smell (mostly from the sulphuric substances contained in the coal). But there were no simr condition after burning firewood. Besides, the forests were really dense in the European continent, with firewood avable, what would they use coal for? Also, when coal is burning, they dont have sparks which can leap up high, unlike what happens when firewood was burning. Cause of that, ancient people believed that coal wasnt as useful as firewood But in reality, the heat generated by coal was much greater than firewood. Under normal circumstances, the heat generated from smokeless coal was two to three times that of firewood. Even if the briquettes were mixed with mud, and would notpletelybust, the heat value was still twice that of firewood, that was without a question. In a nutshell, burning briquettes was definitely a lossless trade. What could so many briquettes be used for, Marin was still momentarily without a n. However, briquettes are still fuel in the end, and they have their uses. Besides, the coal ash afterbustion of a briquette could be used for paving cinder roads. That way they wouldnt have to worry about mud puddles when it starts to rain. Besides, when watching news from Marins previous life, it seems that the coal ashes could be used to make concrete or even bricks, or even rece gravel, and act as the aggregate for mixing with concrete. Anyways, there wont be ack of use for briquettes The only problem was, by using up coal in such arge amount, the air quality would definitely not improve Another thing that poses a huge problem to him was, how he should transport the briquettes to Texel Ind. One must know, besides money, Marin only hadmand over those 400 airheaded soldiers. He did not own any ships, let alone talents like sailors and navigators. Thats why, how he should transport the briquettes to Texel was a predicament However, Marin had already thought up a n beforehand, to cooperate with someone else. For example, hiring someones ship for transportation. But, Marin was worrying about another problem. Which was, someone elses ship ultimately belongs to someone else. When they were unupied, they could help you transport the coal. But when they were busy, nobody would be shipping your coal. Thats why developing his own transport fleet, was still something that was very necessary. However, first things first, Marin was without a ship or manpower, so he had no option other than to cooperate with someone else. Luckily, the representative of Wiggins Merchant Association was still here Then, Marin and the representative of Wiggins reached a consensus, to rent arge (one that was consideredrge for ind rivers) ind river transport galley, which would be responsible of shipping briquettes onto Texel. These galleys could hold up to 100 chaldrons of coal, and within ind rivers, they were considered goliaths. Marin had specifically rented an idle galley from Wiggins Merchant Association for transporting briquettes, also, Marlin had arranged for Kohler to be the escort of their first briquette shipment Actually, Marins real intention was to poach this boat, as well as the captain and sailors of the boat Its not like Marin couldnt afford his own boat if he really wanted to. But to train skillful sailors, that took a lot of time. Maybe, itd take several years just to train experienced sailors. While qualified captains were even harder to find Marin was reluctant to wait, thats why he intends to poach talents from others. Coincidentally, rumor has it that the trading vessels from Wiggins Merchant Association didnt have a high departure rate, which means that there would always be some vessels that had a hard time obtaining shipment opportunities. The cause of these circumstances, aside from the recession in European economy, there was also the factor of nepotism to consider. For example, those with good rtionships with the executives naturally obtained more missions, and naturally obtained higher pay. While those with a less than satisfactory rtionship with their superiors would have a hard time getting missions, and the crew would be living in difficult conditions. The reason why Marin specifically asked for an idle ship, was because he intended to poach the ship, as well as its crew altogether Only by establishing his own transport fleet, the transportation of briquettes shall be delivered on time as promised, without any hassles As for Kohler, his purpose was to befriend the crew of the ship, figuring out ways to win over the members, making things easier for him to use his for poaching Chapter 64: Let Us Boil Salt! Chapter 64: Let Us Boil Salt! After rushing back to Texel, Marin started surveying his territory. This was after the New Year of 1496, the first time Marin had done aplete inspection tour of hisnd. When he arrived at t Horntje which could see the opposite coast across the ocean, Marin was surprised to know that that there were merchants, who were currently hauling off a gunny sack of British salt, and intend to sell them across the ind. What, arent we on a coastal ind? Why are we importing salt from Britain? Marin asked with confusion. Schwartz had spent some time here, so he did know the answer to the circumstances, and answered: Boss, because the Britons have enough firewood, they can boil salt at arge scale. While the lond areas (Nethend area)cked firewood, thats why nobodys boiling salt. As such, almost all of the salt for lond areas were imported from Britain. Oh, is that so? Marin cocked his brow, as if figuring out something important. Then, Marin called the salt merchant over, and asked him about the rted matters. The salt merchant was Jewish, and faced against a Lord, he dared not hide anything. In this day and age, Jewish people had no position of power in Europe, especially young Jewish merchants, they frequently get bullied or robbed by local Lords. Thats why, he dared not enrage Marin. My lord, my salt stocks were all purchased from Amsterdam, the cost is 4.5 shillings per quart (British salt were sold in bulk at 4 shillings per quart), after transporting to Texel, well be selling them at 6 shillings per quart 6 shillings per quart that expensive? Marin was quite shocked, they were already living by the coast. Lord, you may not know, but because were by the coast, its considered a good price. If we were further ind, every quart of salt could probably be sold for seven or eight shillings! Then wouldnt boiling salt be very profitable? Profitable? My lord, were in a lond region, and we already have a shortage on firewood, we cant boil salt on arge scale! Rumor has it, the Britons have plenty of firewood, thats why they boil a lot of salt Marin chuckled, he was in the know, the reason why the Britons are selling salt at such a cheap price, was actually because they had arge stockpile of coal for boiling salt, they werent even boiling them with firewood. The coastal area of the Northern Sea saw a lot of wind and rain, and the temperatures werent that high, so attempting to evaporate brine was difficult. You could put the brine under the sun for many days, but an unforeseen rain would waste all your previous efforts. For example in China, the four major salterns were more or less in areas with low rainfall or seasonal rainfall, which allowed them better control over making baysalt. As for the Northwestern European continent, they had a temperate marine climate, withrge rainfalls, low temperatures, it would be no less of a miracle if they could make bay salts here. The Northern European coastal area however, was actually suitable for making bay salts. Because of the Mediterranean climate, Summer was dry and hot, the perfect condition for making bay salts. However, the Europeans still had no idea how to make bay salts, even the Ming Dynasty had to wait until the Late Ming era, when Xu Guangqi started poprizing the method of making bay salts. Of course, it was likely that there were areas in the Ming Dynasty which had the technology for making bay salts, however they havent been poprized, so boiling salt was still the mainstream method. Thats why, in a temperate and rainy climate like Northwestern Europe, boiling salt was the most optimal choice Wait a minute boiling salt The Britons are using coal, so why dont I use briquettes? An epiphany hit Marin, he finally grasped that important piece of information Briquettes salt boiling Hahahaha Marin started guffawing happily. Schwartz stood at the side, and was extremely confused Boss, what are youughing at? Schwartz, Ive found a way to be rich! What way? Schwartz was only interested in military matters, and was still inexperienced in everything else. Well be boiling salt! Boiling salt? Boss, you know the situation of our ind, we dont have any firewood, how are we gonna do that? Are you daft, did you forget what my family business is? Hoffmans manor? Thats right, were Coal Tycoons who own a coal mine Youre thinking of using the coal from the manor to boil salt? Youre not aplete fool, Ive already arranged for Kohler to contact the ship, the next shipment of coal would probably arrive in two days. Oh right, Schwartz, well have to go pick out a location for boiling the salt. Yes Boss! Then, Marin led Schwartz and co., and started patrolling the perimeter of Texels, as they tasted the seawater The reason why they were tasting the seawater, was because Marin was attempting to gauge the saltiness of the seawater around the ind. Since they will be boiling salt, they would have to consider using seawater with the highest salt content. This way, they could also save on fuel. Marin had once heard this saying in his previous life boiling salt, for every load of salt, 400 catties of firewood was expended. Meanwhile, the heat value of coal was twice to thrice that of firewood, hence, to boil one load of salt, the most they would require was 200 catties of briquettes. A load of salt was about 120 catties, which would equate to 4.7 quarts. However, how much does 200 catties of briquettes cost? One chaldron (1.5 tonnes) was less than 4 shillings. After conversion, 200 catties of coal, was at most 3.2 pfennigs (pennies). But, 4.7 quarts of salt, assuming they sell for 4 shillings per quart, we could get 18.8 shillings, which converts to 225.6 pennies Of course, the manpower requirement for boiling salt was also great, so he couldnt just consider the cost of the fuel. Even if that was the case, by using briquettes as the fuel source, the cost of one load of salt would not exceed 10 pennies. And he was making assumptions with the maximum cost, by a more moderate estimate, the cost would be 6 pennies at most. After making the calctions, by using briquettes for salt boiling, the returns would be as gargantuan amount of twenty to thirty times Holy fuck, this is extremely profitable! Just by selling salt alone, the Britons would have been able to be rich. Rumor has it, the reason why the Hanseatic merchants established a trading post in Britain, was to sell British wool over to the nders. At the same time, selling cheap British salt, towards lond countries and the Baltic sea. Amongst them, the salt prices in the Baltic Sea area was extremely expensive. Thats because the Baltic Sea contained the ocean with the worlds lowest salt content. Because there was a high influx of freshwater from the surrounding region, with a low temperature on top of that, there was a low rate of evaporation, which also meant that the salt content was quite low in the Baltic Sea. Even if they wanted to boil salt, that would be an extremely wasteful process. Thats why, the salt prices over there were robbery prices. Over there, at the peak of salt prices for the ind area, a pound of salt was exchanged for a goat, which was about 10 shillings per. Meanwhile, for the coastal regions of the Baltic Sea, though not that exaggerated, but whenever Britain shipped salt over, each quart of salt could be sold above 10 shillings, without any trouble. Marin had gone through much, and had tasted a good amount of seawater, and finally he was certain, the seawater from the Western Coast, was saltier than the Eastern Coast. As such, salt boiling should be performed on the Western Coast. Besides, the people were more active on the Eastern Coast, resulting in pollution of the sea. Sometimes he could also spot trash floating on the sea. The waters around the area arent suitable for boiling salt. On the Western Coast, it was windy, rarely any human activity, rtively cleaner waters, and with a high salt content, it was really suitable for boiling salt. However, if they boiled salt upwind, then the ces downwind would experience air pollution. Thats because, the ck smoke that get released during thebustion of briquettes, would go along the Northwestern wind, and ot towards the Southeast. Marin originally intended to set up the salt boiling headquarters around De Koog, which was around the Western Coast, but directly downwind of De Koog was the Den Burg where Marin was staying at. As someone who pays attention to his health, Marin ultimately cancelled his idea. In fact, the Northwestern corner of Texel was the most suitable spot for boiling salt. The salt content was highest, and the ocean surface was very clean. However, there was also a major problem. And that was the coastal line between the Western Coast and the Northeastern coast, because of the tide, it frequently reveals the shore. Which also made Texels t Horntje of the South and Oudeschild of the Southwest to be suitable for ports. Because the coal which was shipping through the Rhine River would without a doubt be unloaded at t Horntje. Thats why, Marin needed to consider the logistics of moving the coal from t Horntje to the salt boiling location. After many considerations, Marin finally decided to ce the salt boiling location, to be at the Western beach located Northwest of t Horntje. That location was close to the ce where the coal shipment from t Horntje gets unloaded, and was also suitable for transporting. Meanwhile, even if the smoke started dispersing under the whims of the Northeastern wind, theyll only gue the citizens of t Horntje, and would not harm Den Burg, where he, Lord Baron Marin was living at Alright, that is a wonderful decision Chapter 65: Firewood-saving Stove Chapter 65: Firewood-saving Stove Four kilometers West of t Horntje, over a small hill there was a narrow beach. The sands on this beach was very fine, if they were in the modern day, it would absolutely be a hotspot for beuatiful women in swimsuits toy dead as they basked in the sunshine. Of course, they were in the middle ages now, and everyone wore robes. Forget beautiful women, not even guys dared to undress to such a degree andy down on the beach. Otherwise, the priests of the church would definitely redeem soemone crazy like you, and it wasnt guaranteed that they would tie you to the stake and perform some human barbeque Not far East of this beach, there was a small freshwaterke called Horspolders, and it could supply freshwater needed for daily life. Building a salt-boiling facility wasnt that easy to aplish. First, they needed to find a suitable location, which must be by the coast, the seawater must be sufficiently salty, it should be clean and not be polluted. Secondly, they needed to recruit enough manpower. Normally, a giant salt pot requires at least two or threeborers to watch over. One was in charge of adding fuel, one to watch the pot. While thest person was in charge of transporting the fuel. By the time the salt-boiling process ends, they must extract the salt out of the pot and package them. Meanwhile, a salt-boiling facility mustnt have only one pot, so they would require rows of salt-boiling pots. Hence, they would also require lots of manpower. Not only that, the transportation of fuel and salt also required lots of manpower. For example, Marin intends to establish this salt-boiling center around Horspolders, he must first build enough salt-boiling stoves. Secondly,he must also build houses for the salt-boiling workers, to make their lives easier. Finally, from the t Horntje port to the salt-boiling facility, he had to pave a road across, to make it easier to transport briquettes. Although there was only about four kilometers between t Horntje to the salt-boiling facility, but the Western half of this road needed to go through a hilly area, which increased the difficulty for construction. Besides that, Marin also had to send someone to arge city tomission arge bulk of huge iron pots and bricks, for the construction of the stoves and houses. As for the houses, Marin pondered for a moment, and decided to continue using Adobe houses. Adobe houses have a low cost of construction, and were quitefortable. They were quick to build as well. But for the stoves being constructed to boil salt, Marin intended to use arge amount of bricks and lime powder. Because he intends to utilize fuel-efficient mud stoves (AKA firewood-saving stoves), and the chimneys for these fuel-efficient mud stoves required the use of bricks. In his previous life, Marins hometown was in the boonies, and his vige had once promoted the use of fuel-efficient mud stoves for a time. As for fuel-efficient mud stoves, the concept was quite simple, it was to increase the thickness of the stove walls, so that when the fuel was burning inside, the energy doesnt get transmitted to the surroundings. One must know, a normal mud stove only had ayer or two of bricks surrounding it, and it was not thick enough. When fuel was burning within, the temperatures of the walls would also increase, and the energy would be transmitted to the surroundings across the stove walls, and the final result would be no different than a heater. However, if they increased the thickness of the stove walls, the heat energy within the stove would not be easily conducted across the walls. This way, the fuel efficiency of these efficient mud stoves have greatly increased. Also, the chimney for these fuel-efficient mud stoves needed to be tall. Because, tall chimneys would have an easier time achieving the Siphon effect, by sucking away smoke and gas from within the stove, and at the same time, intaking air from the inlet automatically, which aided in burning. Based on the words of the technician who was promoting the firewood-saving stove, whenpared against the traditional mud stoves, they would save one third to half of the fuel, while the burning time could be saved by a quarter to one third. Thats why the firewood-saving stove was extremely powerful. By using this technology for salt-boiling, Marin can also be considered as strictly managing his costs, and would be a model example for entrepreneurial management. For the construction of this salt-boiling facility, Marin had decided to perform mass recruiting. Because there was a direck of manpower on the ind, and they also had their own jobs to fill. Thats why if Marin wanted to obtain more manpower, he would have to do that ind. At the end of the 15th century, Europe had recovered for over a hundred years, because of the ck gue in the 14th century, the poption that had massively decreased had basically recovered. Originally, many manors were short on manpower. But after a hundred years, after the repoption efforts of several generations, many manors started showing surplus in manpower. For example, the number of acres of fields in a certain manor was fixed, and the number of serfs that the local lord would hire would urately reflect their need. However, in a serfs household, they might not have just one boy. Thats why, aside from a few professions that required arge amount of manpower, the Lords were disinclined to raise so many surplus of men. Because, most of the serfs sons couldnt even inherit their fathers position as a serf. These people must either seek another newly-established manor to act as a serf, or they would beborers in cities. Even so, there were still many who had trouble finding a job. As such, most of these people end up as beggars or vagrants. For the bold ones and strong ones, some end up joining mercenaries, while others became bandits The reason why Germanic mercanaries could develop, aside from the martial traditions of the Germanic peoples, there was also arge surplus of serf sons who couldnt get jobs. What Marin wanted now was to visit manors with a surplus of people, in order to recruit a batch of honest and hardworking serfs to boil salt. Of course, they must first help Marin construct the salt-boiling facility, as well as pave the road towards st Horntje For that, Marin went on another trip, towards Deutsche Germany. He did not recruit anybody in Hond. Because, the people from Hond had a dialect that was too different from the other regions of Deutsche Germany. Marin spoke German, Latin, and Frisiannguages, but he couldnt speak Dutch. Thats why, whenever Marin had tomunicate with people of Hond, he felt very exhausted, and he needed a trantor everytime. From the looks of it, Hond and Frisian were both Western Germanguages, and were unable tomunicate with the majority of German dialects. This was also the major reason behind why Hond wanted to detach from Deutsche Germany and be independent. For example, the Westphalia region where Marins family was located at, although there was a difference in dialect, but if they spoke slower, they could stillmunicate with the Saxons and Austrians. But against the Dutch of Hond, the Deustche people who spoke Germanic could only find themselves at a loss. For the sake of convenience, Marin headed straight for his hometown in Ruhr, to recruit those excess manpower in the other manors. Under Old Hoffmans help, Marin very quickly recruited 500 serfs, which would follow him back to Texel for salt-boiling Marin, is your salt-boiling method reliable? Madam Mary asked out of worry. Of course, the Britons had made a lot of money with this! When he whispered the profit they could make from boiling salt to Madam Mary, her mouth hung agape out of shock. But, if boiling salt was that profitable, why dont other people do it? Mother, not everybody could easily purchase such arge amount of coal. The Nethend region are short on firewood, if they wanted to burn firewood, they would have to import it from elsewhere, and thats not as convenient as us having ships to transport coal. Besides, across the entirety of Western Europe, only the Ruhr river area between Germany and Britain produced coal. The Britons have already made a fortune from selling salt boiled with coal, and we have yet to exploit the coal in the Ruhr region. As for me, Ill be the first German to make a fortune out of boiling salt with coal! Marin was absolutely correct, although boiling salt using coal was extremely profitable. But, the ces that produce coal was already few and far in betwen. In Western Europe, it seems that only the Rurh area and the Northern area of Ennd produced coal inrge amounts. Even if the other regions wanted to emte him, they first needed to own coal. Besides, because of the underdeveloped technology (mostly because of the suppression by the Vatican), most people still didnt know that the heat content of coal was much higher than firewood. Marin, my child, youre so smart! But theres something that you have to consider! What is it? Where are you selling it! Son, you can produce arge amount of salt, but you need to have the means to sell them, only then would you obtain money! Then Mother, do you have any suggestions? Try doing business with the merchants of the Hanseatic League, those Hanseatic merchants have a lot of priveleges within the empire. If you work with them, youll be able to sell in bulk. Otherwise, it would be hard for you to clear your stock of salt. Besides, you aboslutely mustnt make enemies with the Hanseatic merchants. If you be their enemy, they will cklist your salt sales! Madam Mary was really knowledgeable, she knew that within the empire, the Hanseatic merchants owned the ce. She was worried that Marin being young and ambitious, would get into conflict with the Hanseatic merchants. As a matter of fact, Madam Marys matrilineal grandma was from a family of merchants. Back then, because her grandmas family had once offended the Hanseatic merchants, in the end, they were suppressed so hard that they had to pack up their stuff, and were at the brink of being bankrupt. If it werent for the help of the Bloch Family, Madam Marys grandfather would have taken his own life because of bankruptcy. Precisely because of that, Madam Marys grandfather, at the moment when the Bloch Family faced imminent doom, he took in Madam Marys father at great risk, and also marrying his daughter to him. Thats why, Madam Mary did not wish for Marin to repeat the past. One must know, the Hanseatic League was extremely influential, they held trading privileges of many cities within the territory of the Holy Roman Empire, they pay less taxes than others, and were offered many conveniences than others. Although other countries like Britain and Denmark had started topete with the Hanseatic League, but in the short-term, the Hanseatic League will not face a decline. The true decline of the Hanseatic League will only start when the Dutch merchants start to make a name for themselves. But at this point, Hond was still not tapped yet, and Antwerp had yet to be developed. Thats why, in this day and age, the Hanseatic League is still a beast. At the very least, in the Deutsche Germanic region, they were unstoppable. I understand Mother, I will be careful in dealing with them! Marin answered solemnly. Then, Marin once again visited Wiggins Merchant Association in Cologne, and hired their ships, to transport 500 serfs towards Texel Chapter 66: Cooperation Chapter 66: Cooperation Within the city of Cologne, Marin once again met Manager Rheydt from before. Good day Lord Baron, is there anything that we can help you with today? Wiggins Merchant Association was a member of the Hanseatic League, Cologne was also an extremely important trading center for the Hanseatic League. Thats why, the people are better updated with current affairs than the County of Mark. As such, news of Marin being knighted had been ryed here. As the General Manager of Wiggins Merchant Associations, it was only natural that Rheydt knew of Marins identity. However, this young man who had bribed him some time ago had transformed so suddenly, and became a Baron of the empire, as well as his heroic deeds being spread across the Empires territory, Rheydt could only express his disbelief. Im here to hire a boat, Ive heard that Wiggins Merchant Association has a lot of idle transport vessels? Marin went straight to to the point, as Germanic people were unused to exchanging pleasantries. Thats right, the economy isnt doing so great, with wars happening everywhere in Europe, its already starting to affect our Leagues businesses. The wars are happening over at Italy, what does that have to do with you guys? Marin was a bit confused. Lord Baron, across Europe, Italy isnt the only one fighting a war. For example, our Hanseatic League also have some conflicts with Denmark. In Britain, because of the War of Roses, it has started to affect our business. Besides, amongst the high nobility in the North of Deutsche Germany, they have constant friction with each other. Anyways, the mes of war are starting to sprout in Euope Marin was silent, in Germany that was being torn asunder, nobility attacking and annexing each other wasnt a rare urrence here. Of course, nobody would offend the Hanseatic League lightly. Because, whoever dared to make war with the Hanseatic League, the Hanseatic League would boycottmercial activities in that noblesnds. Besides, many members of the nobility were in bad economic shape, and needed to obtain loans from the Hanseatic League. The region around Deutsche Germany was also considered in turmoil, because Maximillian the First from the House of Habsburg wanted to rise in power, but the nobility of Deutsche Germany were strongly suppressing the rise of the House of Habsburg, even going as far as nning to strip the House of Habsburg of their right to obtain the seat of the emperor, returning to the times of Feudalism. However, the nobles of Deutsche Germany had their powers separated, and werent that united. Maximillian the First who had risen to power with the strength of mercenaries originally had the strength to eliminate these nobles. Unfortunately, the ambitious Maximillian the First was faced with two strong opponents, Hungary and France, which prevented him from splitting his attention. Because of that, Deutsche Germany could remain in rtive peace, otherwise, the mes of war would have swept across thend. The reason I came this time, is that I hope your Merchant Association could help me transport my serfs with your transport vessels Lord Baronsndsck people? Thats right, though Texel isnt small, we have too few people, theres only 800 people there. Thats why I have recruited 500 serf families, and will be bringing them to develop Texel. Lord Baron is quite the visionary, to manage so many people, thatll require arge amount of funds. The meaning behind Rheydts words was quite subtle, but he was actually doubting Marins ability to pay. He was also worried that after the Wiggins Merchant Association had finished transporting people for Marin, he would go back on his word of paying, or just dy paying on the debt, until the end of times. Theres no need to worry, Ive made a good fortune while in Italy Hehe Rheydt immediately understood. From his assumption, Marin had probably robbed and stolen a good amount of belongings from Italy. In truth, Marin did not rob themon folk, all he did was rob some wealthy merchants. The main source of his wealth mostly came from the loot and ves sold to Vians. Alright, lets sign the contract, the upfront payment would be thirty percent. Rheydt was a merchant, so he ced the most importance on contracts. Mhm, no problem. Oh right, Manager Rheydt, I wanted to ask, does your Hanseatic League do business in salt? Business in salt? Rheydt was stunned for a moment, but came to his senses immediately. We do have a salt business, but not on arge scale. The majority of the salt from our merchant associationes from the salt mines in Lneburg. However, the salt mines in Lneburg are held by the Salt Moguls, so we cant really get a piece of that. Every year, were only able to purchase a few thousand quarts of mineral salt from the Lneburg Salt-mines. Also, those salts are really bitter, and doesnt really taste well. In conclusion, the trading of salt is within the business of Wiggins Merchant Association, but because we dont have a supplier, we could never get it to speed. Have you never thought about importing seasalt from Britain? Seasalt? Thats actually a good idea. But the Britons have a tight hold on the sales of seasalt, Wiggins Merchant Association do not have any contacts within Britain, so we could never manage to get our hands on their salt. Rheydt spoke honestly. What if I can supply you with arge amount of seasalt? Lord, you have seasalt? Rheydt asked in surprise. But after thinking for a moment, wasnt Texel a coastal ind? Whats so surprising that they could make seasalt? However, wasnt the Nethends severelycking in fuel? Otherwise, they wouldnt have imported salt from Britain which was across the coast. Not at the moment, but we will have some soon. Based on my knowledge, the Nethends have a shortage of firewood What do you think our Hoffmans manor does? Marin asked a rhetorical question. Selling coal Oh, I get it know, the reason why you hired a ship was to transport coal over to boil salt! Rheydt suddenly realized. Mhm, as long as you understand. In that case, are you interested in acting as proxy for our Texels seasalt business? From what Ive heard, youre only in charge of selling coal in Cologne, dont you want to add a salt-selling business to your portfolio? Uhm I have to seek permission from my brother-inw Rheydt answered carefully. Ill privately give you three pennies asmission for each quart of salt sold! Deal! Rheydt immediately stood up. This bastard really was greedy, hearing that he would get amission, he agreed immediately. After all, the business wasnt his, but themission would be. As the brother-inw of Wiggins Merchant Associations Boss, he still had quite the influence within the Association. The Boss of the Merchant Association resides in Hamburg, the major businesses were also in Hamburg, as for the businesses in Cologne, Rheydt had the final say. Very quickly, Marin and Rheydt signed an agreement, Wiggins Merchant Association would purchase the seasalt from Texel in bulk at 3 shillings 6 pennies per quart. At this price, it wasnt considered too high, because the prices of salt was much greater ind Deutsche Germany than by the coast, reaching prices of five-six shillings per quart, sometimes even higher (mainly based on how far the location was from the source of salt). Then, the duo signed another secret agreement, stating that for every quart of salt, Rheydt would only have to pay Marin 3 shillings and 3 pennies. As for the extra 3 pennies, they would only naturally enter Rheydts pockets As for the supplying amount, Marin had yet to confirm. Because that would require actually producing it to know how much they could produce. However, neither Marin nor Rheydt had to worry about means of sales. Because the Wiggins Merchant Association were in many circles and had many contacts within the Rhine River area, and would have no problem selling their stocks. As for salt, it was an extremely demanded supply during the Middle Ages. Because there were no fridges or refridgeration methods in the Middle Ages. As such, most meat relied on salting and pickling in order to preserve them. On the other hand, themon folk also had a daily high demand for salt. So there was no need to worry over selling the salt. Especially when it was seasalt at a greater quality than Lneburgs saltmines Chapter 67: Producing Fine Salt A Thousand Quarts Daily Chapter 67: Producing Fine Salt A Thousand Quarts Daily Bringing along the 500 families of serfs back to Texel, Marin immediately led everyone as they started construction. Firstly, they started building adobe houses for the 500 families, as their residence. Then, amongst the 500 families of serfs, 700 malebor were gathered up to help with paving the roads. As for the salt-boiling center at the coast, Marin had specifically hired several professional bricyers from Cologne and made them help building the fuel-efficient stove. Also, Marin had sent out the ship towards the continent to bring lots of bricks back. It wasnt actually a hard undertaking in building the fuel-efficient stove, the only troublesome thing wasying the chimney stack. Themonfolk would have no troubleying the walls of a stove, but nobody besides professional bricyers could properly build a chimney stack. If there was a mistake, it would be easy for the chimney stack to fall. Thats why Marin had taken the time to hire bricyers to build the fuel-efficient stoves for salt-boiling. The professionals were true to their name, the several bricyerspleted their tasks wonderfully, and finishedying the 20 chimney stacks for the fuel-efficient stoves. While at Kohler had also picked up the 20 huge metal pans they had ordered from Amsterdam. Because there were many ces that needed infrastructure on the ind, Marin decided to just keep the 8 bricyers he had borrowed from Rheydt. Also, he sent someone to inform Rheydt, and took in the families of these 8 men. As they had formed a beneficial pact of profit, Rheydt did not hesitate, and immediately agreed to Marins request. After spending one months time, the coastal salt-boiling center was finally done constructing. The road from t Horntje to the salt-boiling center had also been smoothly paved by the 700 strong men. Also, during their spare time, they had also dug out a trench in the beach where the salt-boiling center was at, so that the sea-water would flow in, which makes it easier for everyone to obtain seawater. On the other hand, Marin ordered them to dig another trench for pouring out brinewater After the road was done paving, the briquettes that were unloaded at t Horntje were transported towards the salt-boiling center without stop. As for the salt-boiling center, it was named Salttown by Marin When all 20 pots were running at full capacity, and after many repetitions, everyone had finally determined, the daily production of seasalt to be 1000 quarts Besides, the salt-boiling method was utilizing a new technology that Marin had suggested, so the product they obtained was fine salt with extremely good taste Actually, it wasnt even considered advanced technology. The main thing was, as the salt-boiling process reaches the final stage, there would be a small portion of seawater remaining, not allowing the seawater to evaporatepletely, instead, they should dump the seawater out. In that portion of the seawater, it actually contained other salts such as magnesium chloride and potassium chloride which were much more soluble than edible salt. The difference between magnesium chloride and edible salt was, it was extremely bitter, while potassium salt has an astringent taste. If they hadpletely evaporated the seawater, the salt left behind would be coarse salt, and among that, would contain impurities such as magnesium salt and potassium salt, which would cause the coarse salt to have a slightly bitter and astringent taste. While the saltwater that was poured away, wasmonly referred to as bitterns. By pouring out the bitterns, the salt that they obtained barely passed the threshold to be called as refined salt. In refined salt, though it still contains magnesium salt and what not, but the impurities were at a very low amount. While the bitterness of the refined salt would also be really nd, bing difficult to identify. Compared with the refined salt which had been chemically processed in the modern world, the differences in taste was already quite small. In the middle ages, the Britons know how to boil salt, but they do not know how to get ride of the bitterns. Thats why, their salt could only be considered as coarse salt. As for the mineral salts from the salt mines of Lneburg, they were much more bitter, and it was rare to find high-quality refined salt without any bitterness. In reality, the secret behind removing the bittern was found during the process when people were basking the salt under the sun. They unintentionally scooped some of the salt from under the bittern and tasting it, realizing that there was no bitterness, they started keeping the bittern and only extracted the refined salt which had a good taste. In this age of salt-boiling, people were more used to boiling the saltwaterpletely, and obtain the coarse salt remaining at the bottom of their pots. Normally, nobody would pour out the bittern as it was boiling, nor did they know they should remove the bittern The refined salt produced under Marins guidance, it had a taste that overshadowed the overwhelming majority of the salt that was currently circting in Europe. After Rheydt tasted it, he immediately judged it as a upper-tier refined salt, and he believed that only the nobility was worthy of consuming these fine salt Rheydt wasnt certain of the reason why, he just assumed it was the good quality of seawater around Texel. What he didnt know, was that Marin just added a procedure to pour out the bittern. And it was with that simple step which had caused the taste of the salt to improve by leaps and bounds. After the refined salt being produced by Salttown had their bitterns removed, Marin ordered them to add some freshwater, to dilute the magnesium ions and other impurities, then pour it away This way, the bittern remains would be less Then, he heated the remaining salt, topletely evaporate water from it. Next, he made someone grab a copper hammer, and smash the salt grains. This way, the refined salt that was produced by Salttown quite resembled the powdered white salt that could be seen in modern day refined salts These white powdered-form salt, across the entirety Europe in the Middle Ages, was absolutely one with superior quality, no wonder Rheydt gave it an extremely high rating. To the point that because of its high quality, Rheydt asserted to raise their buying price to 4 shillings, of course, his 3 pennies of profit would not be affected After calcting the cost, each day, these 20 salt-boiling pots which used the fuel-efficient stoves, only consumed 15 chaldrons of briquettes. Which also means, the daily supply of 50 chaldron of briquettes they receive from Hoffmans manor wasnt even used up, and they only managed to use less than one third of it. In reality, Marin could expand the production of the salts. However, Marin believed that since everything was just starting, they needed to test the markets reaction, so there was no need to make too much at once. Otherwise, if they had too much of a surplus, it would be troublesome if they couldnt sell it away. As for the 20 salt-boiling pots, including thebor used for transporting the coal, the total manpower needed was less than 100 people. As such, there were still untapped potential from 600 abled-bodied men The 500 families of serfs which Marin had brought onto the ind, their total poption reached 3100 men. Just the abled-bodied men alone reached a number of 700. From the looks of it, salt-boiling only required 100 men, so Marin decided to just bring the remaining 600, to start cultivating the barrennd around Den Burg Currently, it was already early March of the early Spring period. With perfect timing, the Spring plowing was just about to start. Meanwhile, Marin owned a 1000 horses, which could be used for developing thend. However, these draught horsescked plows. As such, Marin sent Kohler to the nearby city, to hire a bunch of skilled cksmiths to reside in Den Burg. At the same time, he had also purchased a good amount of iron ingots, wood, as well as other forging equipment Once this batch of cksmiths arrived on the ind, Marin immediately arranged for them to work together with the carpenters, to build a batch of bend plows, as well as other iron-madebor tools. Then, these farming tools were distributed amongst the serfs. As for the serfs from the three native farms were arranged to take care of the originally 800 morgens of cultivablend. Under Marins orders, all the human feces and horse manure on the entire ind were poured into the fields. This brought about a wide protest from the serfs, they felt that by doing this, Marin was basically dirtying the fields, and would make the food that grow out of it really disgusting. But Marin did not have the time to spare listening to their protests, so under the suppression of 400 soldiers, the serfs could only do as bidded. Otherwise, the enraged serfs would definitely had given Marin a heavy beating. However, Marin owned a castle, and with 400 soldiers who had seen war, these serfs who were honest to a fault could only do as they told, even if they find it disgusting. While arranging the serfs to tend the fields, Marin also made Kohler and Scholl to bring their men, and based on the addresses their soldiers had given them, visiting each household to pick up the mens family. The reason why Kohler was sent, was because Kohler was Marins most diplomatic underling, and really knew how to do things. For example, the families who were being chained down by the local lord and disinclined to release them, Kohler had the persuasion skills to negotiate with them. To the point that he could negotiate prices, and buy their freedom with money. Because of that, this was something only Kohler was suitable for, Scholl was barely qualified, but Schwartz and the others were unsuitable. Marin would also have no problem going himself, but he was a Lord now, and there were many matters in hisnd that needed his attention, and he was too busy. Besides, if he had to deal with this himself, to receive the family of a soldier, that would be too demeaning of his stature. If it was the family of a general under hismand, then it wouldnt have been a problem if he went to receive them in person. But his number one General, Schwartzs family had settled down in Hoffmans manor some time ago. Thats why, he didnt need to go personally to win the hearts of his men. And those airheaded soldiers have yet to shown enough value for him to act personally Once Kohler left, Marin started calcting the cost by himself. He discovered, the 1000 quarts of refined salt Salttown produces daily, had an actual market value of 3 shillings 9 pennies per quart. Deducting the price of briquettes and the cost of transportation, as well as thebour costs, which adds up to 9 pennies. On average, for every quartz of refined salt, his profits reached a high price of 3 shillings. 1000 quarts, that meant 3000 shillings of pure profit. And 3000 shillings was 150 pound sterlings (or 225 markkas), which can be convered into 600 ducats That was only a days profits! Marin was fainting, 600 gold coins a day, there were 365 days a year, even after deducting the holidays such as Christmas or New Years, there would still be 350 workdays (there werent any weekend breaks here, the most that happened were workbreaks due to major holidays.) In that case, wouldnt he be able to earn 210 thousand gold coins in a year? Marin was so excited that he started shaking, like the neighbouring old guy who just had a stroke Chapter 68: Field Distribution Chapter 68: Field Distribution Outside Den Burg, the Spring Ploughing was being executed at arge scale. By utilizing the bend plows and the 1000 draft horses that Marin already owned, the development speed of the fields was quite quick. During the times the fields were being plowed and sown, Marin had cultivated 2200 morgens of new farnd, as well as fertilizing with manure and sowing down rye seeds. Of course, in order to feed the horses, 200 morgens of thatnd would be nted with oats. Because horses ate a lot of oats (Note: At this point in time, Europe had no soybeans which were better for feeding the horses). One must know, that was a whopping 1030 horses. During this period of time, just to purchase oats had costed Marin a lot of money. The good thing was Marin was wealthy enough, so he didnt end up bankrupt. If it was some other small Manor-owner, the feed for 1000 horses would definitely bankrupt them. Under Kohlers leadership, there was a constant stream of soldiers kin arriving. The adobe houses were quite functional, and wouldnt have problems housing a family. One must know, most serfs in current Europe were living in straw-bale houses that would get blown away when the wind picks up, or start leaking when it rains. The poor people could not afford bricks, neither could they afford wood. In reality, most houses of the poor people were basically propped up with firewood and dried straws, then covering the outside with some mud. Those dpidated houses were much much worsepared to the standard Adobe houses Marin had constructed. However, the adobe houses seemed really ordinary, and was very earthy, and it was obviously a ce where only poor people lived. Only after painting the exterior with some lime, did it look better. But what Marin was thinking, besides the adobe houses being more practical, there was also the consideration of cheap costs and quick construction. If it was a standard and official brickid house, he had to send someone ind to purchase bricks, hire a bunch of masons, which was a waste of both time and money. As for Marin himself, who lived in the castle, he actually didnt find itfortable at all. The castle was different from the manor, the manor had great natural lighting, the windows were all opened up, with plenty of ss around. As for the castle, due to concerns of security, the windows were really small, akin to lookout holes and shooting slits. Thats why, the lighting within the castle was very dim, which made things really gloomy. In some ces of the castle interior, they needed to have a light or light up a torch in the middle of the day, otherwise they would have trouble seeing. Luckily, within the main building at the center of the castle, the room on the third floor facing north had good lighting, and the window could be opened quite widely. But what made Marin wonder was, the ss window seemed really odd Why did it seem odd? It turns out, although the windowpanes of the window were without a doubt ss, but, from the looks of it, it doesnt seem that uniform. Because, the windowpanes were pieced together by smaller pieces of ss. Each piece of ss was roughly several palms wide. After asking about it, it turns out that in this day and age, ssware were all blown out by the ssblowers. And the ssblowers were unable to produce ss tes with arge surface area A thought suddenly entered Marins head, Rolling Method was a technique used to producerge and wide ss tes however, he did not have any ideas of making ss at the moment, neither did he know anybody in that field, that thought was just a brief revtion Marin had once promised that he was going divide the farnd to the soldiers under hismand. As such, one morning after the Spring Ploughing had ended, Marin ordered Schwartz to gather the soldiers Brothers, before, I had promised to distributend to all of you. Now that the Spring Ploughing has ended, it is also time for me to deliver my promise! Once hearing that, the soldiers underneath hismand stared fervently. However, due to strict discipline and habit, they did not make much noise. However, all of you must also know this, we do not have muchnd on this ind, even I, the baron, had spent a lot of money to purchase 800 morgens of farnd. Including the new farnd we had just developed, the total onlyes up to 3000 morgens After some consideration, I have decided to distribute 2000 morgens of farnd to all of you, after averaging it down, each family would gain 5 morgens, do you have anyints about that? Marin asked. Once the soldiers received the At Easemand, and could answer him, they all shook their heads, to express theirck ofints. Are you joking? Marin only had a total of 3000 morgens ofnd, and he was offering them 2000 morgens of it, what could they say about that? In this day and age, the nobles who were willing to share the loot with their soldiers were already considered the nice ones. Let alone Marin, who had just split two-thirds of hisnd to share it among his soldiers, what more could they ask of him? This was in the middle ages, not like the modern age, it was considered a grace whenever nobles would share things with theirmonfolk counterparts, as that wasnt something they were supposed to have. 5 morgens, roughly 10 acres each, woulde up to about 60 mou ofnd. After careful calction, that was not a small area ofnd. They cant be ambitious about thend, but it would have no problem feeding a family of people. One must know, Marin had promised publicly, that those 5 morgens ofnd were privately owned by the soldiers families. Also, whenever the soldiers are mustered, they were exempted from all taxes. Of course, they still needed to pay their own tithes to the church. Even after their retirement Marin would only tax them 10% of what they produced. Which also meant that the remaining 80% of profits belonged to themselves. This waspletely unimaginable in current Europe. One must know, Europe in the current times tax serfs and homesteaders really heavily. Forget serfs, whose majority of profits get taken away by their local lords, only left with basic rations and few supplies. Even homesteaders needed to paynd-taxes which went for at least 40% (Refer to German Peasants war). That wasnt all, the Lords (non-serf owners) would sometimes apportion exorbitant taxes, fishing and hunting needed to pay taxes, which were both taxed heavily. Thats why, the hunters in the middle ages actually werent that well off. Previously when Marin had been hunting in the ck Forest, that was actually considered poaching. However, since they were on horses, they came and went without a trace, by the time the local Lord heard about their arrival and came chasing for their taxes, they were already long gone. Besides, the several underlings that Marin had brought with him screamed knight however they looked. A small-time Lord would not offend someone like that easily. If they back a wandering knight into a corner, someone would definitely get hurt. And those small-time Lords were also people that preyed on the weak and feared the strong. 60 acres ofnd, if one acre produced 150 catty of rye, that would be 9000 catty of rye, which would weigh about 10,000 pounds. Keeping 80%, that would be 8000 pounds of rye. 8000 pounds of rye! How many people could that feed? In one whole day, a family of a few people could only consume several pounds of rye, right? Assuming each family had five members, even if all five of them were all big burly men withrge appetites, the maximum one person could consume was 2 pounds of rye, right? In reality, that was nearly impossible, because the rye bread that poor people made contained many different weird things. For example, wild vegetables, wild grass, some even mix dirt and sawdust Thats why, the average family would be more than sufficient with a few pounds of rye to make bread, as they would mix in other stuff within. There was 365 days in a year, and that would only be several hundred pounds of rye consumption. What about the eight-nine thousand pounds of rye, how much could they make selling it? Those burly soldiers started spreading their fingers out and counting, then, they ended up happier the longer they counted. As if they had just seen the infinitely bright future ahead of them. Its too early to be happy soldiers. That 5 morgens ofnd only belongs to you if you continue to serve me with all your being. If, any of you flee on the battlefield, know that I will be confiscating yournd Hearing that, everyones heart tightened. If they really wanted thatnd, then they cannot run away in wars. However, wasnt the reason why they came selling their lives, was to make their families lives better? If theirnd gets confiscated, how would their family survive? Boss, what if I die in battle? What happens to mynd? A soldier asked. If you fall in battle, or get crippled in a war you are fighting for me, then thisnd would belong to your family forever. Also, they would be exempt from Lordship taxes for 20 years. Once 20 years has passed, they would continue paying the 10% of farnd tax, they wont pay anything more, neither will there be misceneous taxes. As for the Churchs tithe, that is not within my jurisdiction. However, if you fall in battle, and your family is temporarily unable to pay the tithes, I will help them pay it Those are very good conditions Many people were moved. In reality, those who step into the world of mercenaries had long prepared themselves to charge into their deaths, so they were not afraid of it. Their only fear was, after their death, nobody would look after their families. With Marins promise, that had obviously settled their worries. Boss, I have a question A soldier raised his hand. Speak I dont actually care if I die, just just Just what? Speak your mind! Just that I havent gotten meself a wife, and I dont have any children. The young men spoke with a blushing face. Hahahaha Everyone startedughing. However, what that soldier said was good. Back when Marin was selecting his soldiers, he had chosen poor, young men who had not married, or were unable to afford to marry, so everyone was actually ina a simr situation That wont be a problem, since I did promise to help you guys find wives. How about this, wait until Ive finished my current tasks, then Ill think about ways to help you guys find wives Oh yeah! Long live the Boss! Stop wasting breath, nowe on up, its time to draw lots for yournd! Marin pulled out a box, inside it were all coded letters, which represented thend that was being marked Chapter 69: Basic Officer Training Program Chapter 69: Basic Officer Training Program After the lots were drawn, everybody left with cheerful moods. While Marins right-hand man, General Schwartz walked over with a worried face: Young master, if youve splitted two-thirds of yournd with the soldiers, what are you going to do? Privately, Schwartz always called Marin as young master, while calling him Boss in the military. Its fine Schwartz, Im assuming you dont know this yet? The salt-boiling operations we own is producing 1000 quarts of refined salt every day! Marin revealed. Schwartz had been spending the days in Den Burg, and was in charge of training the soldiers as well as preparing defenses. Thats why he wasnt well informed about what was going on within Salttown, only knowing that they were boiling salt over there. 1000 quarts? Every day? Schwartz was shook. He knew how high the prices for salt was, and with how much salt they were producing, how much profit would that be Thats right, now I have 600 gold coins of profit every day, you tell me, do I have to be concerned about the fields? Marin spoke with confidence. That does make sense, but young master, you dont have to share so much farnd with them. Honestly, 2 morgens per family would have been enough. 2 morgens were about 4 acres, roughly 24 fields, and would be more than enough for a family to be self-sufficient. Of course, based on the current production of Europe, that would only be barely self sufficient. Aside from that, they wont be having any surplus. If there was a bottomless eater like Kahn in the family, it certainly wouldnt be enough Its okay, dont worry about that. These soldiers, I want them to put their lives on the line for me, if I dont give them enough benefits, would they risk death to serve me? But, if youre giving 5 morgens ofnd for every soldier that join you, we wont have enoughnd on the ind! Schwartz, I did not promise Ill givend to the new recruits who will be joining us in the future Your meaning? These 400 people, Im intending to train them into officers at the level of a squad leader. As for the grunt soldiers, we could always recruit more in the future 400 squad leaders? Are you intending to raise an army ten thousand strong? Schwartz was shook once again. A squad was made up of 25 members, and 400 squads came up to ten thousand people! An army ten thousand strong, no average Duke would be able to muster that. Because, there simply was insufficient money The nobles of the middle ages, because of howcking farming was, territorial productions were limited. On top of their own luxurious lifestyle, this caused the financial situation of most nobles to be really terrible. Those who were able to muster an army ten thousand strong were basically very wealthy dukes, or even kings. Of course, some would also fill the ranks with serfs. But the serfs did not go through any training, and theirbat ability was extremely miserable, as they would scatter the instant a trained unit charged through them. Nowadays, between wars of nobles, it was already a popr method have an army consisting of knights, mercenaries and soldiers. As such, even heavy cavalry who were previously squires could be hired. If they filled the ranks with serfs as meatshields, they would definitely get run down, on top of being an extreme waste of rations. What about it? Our salt-boiling base of operations could churn out 210 thousand gold coins each year, do you think I cant afford an army 10 thousand strong? Schwartz thought about it for a moment, that really was enough money to afford an army thatrge. However, a Baron Lord owning an army ten thousand strong, no matter how you look at it, it feels strange. Unless, the young master wants to expand his territory Schwartz immediately felt refreshed Young Master intends to expand his territory, he definitely wouldnt becent in living on this ind. If he wanted to expand, Schwartz pondered, he believed the greatest possibility was Eastern France. Because, that ce was the location where Madam Marys family originally controlled. However, if the young master could retake Eastern France under Madam Marys name, then Madam Marys first heir in session, should be Young Master Adler Schwartz was a bit confused Alright, Schwartz, I have an important mission for you right now! I await your orders young master! I want you to do your best to train those bastards into qualified squad leaders, can you do it? Train them into squad leaders? How should I train them into squad leaders? Schwartz was very familiar in training soldiers, but training squad leaders, how was that supposed to be done? Thats easy, just make them take turns acting as the squad leader in their own squads, isnt that it? That simple? That simple! Then how are we going to train their troop-training skills? Those 400 men of ours are already veterans, they dont need more training. This way, their troop-training skills cant be raised Thats easy, dont we have almost a thousand young men on the ind? When its ck season, just round up all the young men on the ind, and make the soldiers train their formation and discipline. We could even go as far as gathering the kids and teach them how to stay in formation, allowing them to gain some experience. But, we mustnt break anything when training the kids Were not teaching them how to fight? Why are we teaching them how to fight? If we taught them how to fight, what if one day theye to dislike me, and rebel against me, what would I do then? Marin was a bit angry. Teaching the serfs to stay in formation and discipline, was just to make them more obedient, making it easier tomand them. To train them to fight, what if one day these peasants started a rebellion? Then he would definitely get KOed Alright, I understand, young master! As he finished speaking, Schwartz hurried away, he was going to aplish the task young master had handed him, to train these buffoons into qualified squad leaders The reason why he said to train the soldiers to qualified squad leaders, but notpany captains or even toon leaders, the reason was simple Because amongst these soldiers, everyone besides Schwartz was illiterate. The understanding of an illiterate person was limited, and they werent good at thinking. Turning them into squad leaders was the limit. Usually, all they needed to do was fulfill the verbalmands their superiors gave them to a tee. But thepany captains and even the toonmanders were different, not only did they have to read written orders and execute said orders, they also had to make minor changes to theirmanding toons orpanies based on the war situation. As such, if the wings of the army was breached, when thepany captains and toonmanders notice a breach in the wings, they had tomand their underlings to make the proper response, while not going against orders given by the general or someone superior. Responses such as that, was something greatly difficult to aplish for squad leaders who were illiterate. Because they were not used to thinking. Marin wanted to expand his army, so he definitely needed to recruit wandering knights who came from knightly houses in the future, to train them intopany captains. As for toonmanders, that was really important, not only did they have to be educated and intelligent, they must be as trustworthy as Schwartz. Even if they werent trustworthy, their family members must move onto his territory, to act as hostages. Marins reputation, under the Emperors decree, had started to spread throughout the Holy Roman Empire. Presumably, there definitely would be some of his fans seeking his audience and joining him in the future because of his fame. When that timees, Marin intends to choose several knights, and train them to be hispany captains and toonmanders. As for Schwartz, he would be trained to be his Legion Commander. By the time Marin told Schwartz his intentions, Marin was so excited that he started shaking a Legionmander! That was a bigshot who was able tomand at least 6000 men (a roman legion). Normally, only a Count could shoulder that responsibility. When Schwartz voiced his confusion, Marin told him matter of factly if his title was insufficient, he could just act as the Acting Legion Commander But young master, Im still but a squire Schwartz said helplessly. Squire, not even a noble,pared to the lowest requirement of acting as a Legionmander a Baron, he was extremely extremelycking Oh right, I almost forgot. How about this, as the Baron of an independent Barony, it seems like I have the right to knight Knights of the Land. How about this, when we have time, Ill invite my family and your family onto the ind, then Ill host an allegiance ceremony as I name you my knight Thank you young master, thank you young master Schwartz was so grateful that he immediately went down on one knee, intending to swear his allegiance then and there One must know, a named knight and a squire, was the difference between a noble and amoner. And that difference, was the distance between the skies and the earth. Being named as a knight was no different that bing a noble! How could Schwartz not be delighted Dont swear your allegiance now, we have yet to prepare for the ceremony Hehe Schwartz stood up, andughed awkwardly. Since I will be naming you as my knight, I definitely need to give you a manor. My fief has a smallnd, so I wont be able to give you arge manor right now. How about this, after some time, Ill get the serfs to cultivate 100 morgens ofnd to act as your Manor, you wontin about how small it is, will you? How could I, thats already amazing, young master, your father only has 100 morgens of farnd. How could Schwartz be greedy for more? Being able to obtain the status of nobility was already a huge gain for him. Dontpare with the old man, he has a coal mine under his grasp. However, we werent that rich before the coal mine was developed Being able to gain the status of a knight is already the greatest reward I can get, young master, I wont be picky. Hehe, let me tell you this, you arent losing out on much. After utilizing farming technology from the East, the rye harvest for a mou ofnd would be 200 pounds at the very least Young master, whats a mou ofnd? How big is it? Schwartz naturally didnt know the unit of measurement mou Cough cough one mou ofnd is equal to one-twelfth of a morgens Huh? One morgen is 12 mou ofnd, then wouldnt a morgen produce 2400 pounds of rye? That many? Schwartz was shook yet again. That production rate was definitely a quarter higher than Europes production (during harvest season) No less, only more! Then am I going to be rich? Yeah, you are but stop daydreaming, go and train those bastards! Yes, young master! As he finished, Schwartz went out to work with a revitalized spirit, swearing to train those soldiers into hell and back Chapter 70: Supporting Fishery Development Chapter 70: Supporting Fishery Development At the end of April, 1496, the farming activity on Texel was basically stopped, as Spring Ploughing was basically over, there was only sparsend being developed. Even thoughnd was being developed, it wasnt nting season yet. As such, development of newnd wasnt such a priority task. After establishing salt-boiling and reforming agriculture, Marin intended to visit the two ports, t Horntje and Oudeschild for surveying, to see how goes the development of the fisheries. Marin was someone who ces emphasis on fisheries, but thats not to say that he ces much importance on fishery productions. Instead, Marin valued the young fishermen who would grow from the fisheries activities as these people were the best sailors-to-be. As a sailor, not only do they have to know how to manipte the sails, they must also adapt to long term life on the sea. Aboard a ship out to sea, the sailors normally wouldnt be onnd for several months at a time. If they were just normal people who were used to life onnd, they wouldnt have been able to take it. Only those fishermen who go out to sea to catch fish every day would be able to adapt to life on the sea, and not get sick that easily during long trips. From the looks of it, the Age of Marine Discovery had already started, if Marin said he wasnt interested in sharing a slice of that cake, that would be a definite lie. Spain and Portugal have yet to be a superpower, of he joins the fray, he could also be one of the rising talents. One must know, conquering a new continent and spearheading the Indian Straits werent difficult tasks. When the Spaniards conquered Mexicos Aztec Empire, they only used less than 1000 men. Meanwhile, when Pizarro conquered Peru, they only used 180 men Maybe Marin doesnt have the same luck as Pizarro meeting an ipetent Incan Emperor, but mobilizing up to a thousand people was a piece of cake for Marin. Besides, Marin had done his research, the reason why Corts and Pizarro was able to seed, guns and knights yed arge part in it. ted knights were swept into the trash can by European guns. But in front of bumpkins like the Native Americans of America, they were still extremely useful. The Incans have never seen horses before, so they did not know what were knights. While the Aztecs dug their own grave, and had myths about White Deities. On top of the knights and guns traumatizing the Native Americans. Thats why, conquering those uncivilized Native Americans was an easy and jolly task. The main thing was, the people of the current time period did not know how deep the roots of the Native Americans went. Corts attacking the Aztec Empire was purely out of greed and aggression, which had unexpectedly seeded. While Pizarro was a gambler who risked his life, yet winning the gamble in the end Marin did not need to gamble, he knew the weaknesses of the Native Americans. When the timees, all he needed to do was send out a group of knights, overpowering the Native Americans would be an easy task. One must know, Pizarro had overwhelmed the several thousand troops of the Incan Emperor with several dozen ted cavalry. Obviously, the Incans were terrified by the cavalry, and wasnt truly not being a match Thats why, Marin was not short on information, and he knew that many opportunitiesid in front of his eyes. But first, he needed a ship, and trained, loyal sailors. Although Marin could hire sailors from other countries, but he did not intend to do so. Because, hiring foreign sailors would increase the risk of leaking secrets. If the other major powers heard that he managed to conquer a wealthy country by just sending out several hundred men, wouldnt they start sending their armies out and steal his business? Thats why, in the early days of colonization, its best to use sailors and soldiers that were trustworthy. At ater stage, when he was strong enough and did not need to fear other countries coveting him, then hiring foreign sailors would be no problem. As for trustworthy sailors, were there anybody more reliable than the fishermen who were living under his rule? Their families were making ends meet under his rule, so who dared to betray him easily? If they dared, their families would be hanged With a heart concerned over the source of sailors, Marin led his underlings to intimately ask the fishermen of the two fishing viges at t Horntje and Oudeschild The two fishing viges were quite small, each vige housed a hundred and some people. With both vigesbined, there were only about 200. While the young fishermen with potential did not exceed 30 people What made Marin excited was, the majority of these fishermen were Frisians. There are a lot of Frisians living on the coast of Hond, with the majority of them being in the fishing business. In both viges, more than half of the fishermen were Frisians. Frisians all spoke Frisian, which Marin also knew. Thats why,municating with the fishermen was much easier thanmunicating with the native townspeople and farmers of the ind. Marin couldnt understand thenguage the Dutch were speaking on the ind, so he had to constantly bring a priest with him as a trantor. All priests knew how to speak German and Latin, otherwise, even if Marin wanted to speak with the local Dutch people, it wouldve not been possible. Using his fluent Frisian which he learnt from Madam Mary (which was quite simr the English, of course, this was Middle-Ages English, and not moedrn English), Marin started an intimate discussion with the fishermen Ben (random Frisian fisherman), do you find fishing to be hard? Marin kindly patted the shoulder of a young bald-headed fisherman who resembled Arjen Robben. Ben, who was only 20 years old, but had a bald head spoke embarrassedly: Yes my Lord, fishing is very hard, but we cant not fish, well starve Then how much fish do you harvest each time? After each trip to sea, we return and sort them, maybe few hundred pounds of fish Sort? We keep edible fish, and throw away the inedible ones not all fish can be eaten, some have poison Marin nodded his head, like pufferfish, an example of something that was poisonous. There are also other fishes, maybe no poison, but taste really bad, nobody would buy those Oh right, then why do you only get a few hundred pounds after your ships go out to sea? Based on my understanding, one cast of your fish, excluding the inedible ones that were sorted out, should have at least one-two hundred pounds? Do you only cast yours twice or thrice a day? Hehe, my Lord, its not that we cant fish more, nor is it because we dont want to fish. Instead Instead what? Tell me We dont have enough salt! Young Ben touched his balding head, he sighed Salt? Speaking of salt, Marin startedughing. However, he suddenly remembered something, all of the salt that was produced by the salt boiling facility, he had basically sold everything to Wiggins Merchant Association, and kept a portion for his own use and for the military. From the looks of it, he had forgotten to save some for the inhabitants of the ind thinking that, Marinughed awkwardly Yes, salt! Lord Baron, salt is so expensive, one quart of salt costs us 5-6 shillings. All of us fishermen are dirt poor, how much salt could we buy? Even if we caught a lot of fish, it would be useless. Because without enough salt to preserve them, the excess fish would rot and be foul Selling salted fish should be profitable right? Why not use the money you made to buy more salt? due to the fasting of the Catholic Church, Europeans were forbidden from eating meat most of the time. Thats why salted fish were important food sources during fasting periods. Lord Baron, the profit of salted fish is really nothing. The prices of salted fish might be high, but thats only because the price of salt is high, which makes it expensive to salt fish. Adding the costs of transporting salted fish, thats why, selling salted fish wouldnt even earn much money. But if the prices of salt could go down by a shilling or two, it is still possible for us to make some profit. Which also means, if the salt prices are lowered to 4 shillings, your profit margins would increase a lot? Yes, if the prices of salt go down to 4 shillings, all the fishermen would live better days! How about this, Ive just established a salt-boiling facility, Ill have them increase production, then well sell seasalt at a price of 4 shillings per quart to you in the future, then you should be able to live much better lives, yes? Of course, thank you my lord! However, the benefits wont be seen so easily in a short time. Because we dont have much money to buy salt. Bald-headed Ben spoke honestly. Thats fine, I shall lend the salt to you, after youve sold your salted fish, you can return the appropriate amount of money! Thank you my lord! Ben quickly bent forward to give his thanks. Dont thank me too early, oh right, are there any problems regarding fishing boats? Yes, my lord, most poor fishermen couldnt afford fishing boats. Even if we could, like our family, we could only use small boats, and fish in the shallow seas without strong winds like the Wadden Sea.If we had arger boat, we could go fishing in the Northern Seas Great Fishing Grounds. In that ce, each time arge boat goes there, they would return with an entire hold of fish An entire hold? Marin was also looking forward to that Yes, there are much more fish in the Northern Fishing Grounds, much much more than the Wadden Sea, but the winds are much stronger, so we need arge boat Alright, I can set up some funds, and lend it to you. You can band up with other families to buy a medium-sized fishing boat, and go fishing in the seas! Whats so good about few hundred pounds of fish? Since youre going fishing, each time you go to sea, you should return with a full hold! That is too gracious of you, thank you my lord! Ben and the other Frisian fishermen started giving their thanks. Youre wee! Marin answered with humility, what he was thinking was selling you guys salt for 4 shillings per quarter, that wont be a losing deal for me, and the profit margin was quiterge. Besides, without supporting the development of the fishermen, where would he find his sailor reserves? Chapter 71: Building A Lighthouse Chapter 71: Building A Lighthouse Standing at a vantage point by the coast of t Horntjes fishing vige, looking at the busy Marsdiep at the South, Marin suddenly felt that building a trading port at t Horntje would be a good choice. Lord Baron, the Marsdiep south of us is the main water channel the Amsterdam merchant ships travel through introduced Auxiliary Bishop Darian of Texel, who had apanied him on his surveying. The Amsterdam merchant ships mainly travel through here into sea? Ive seen the maps, I remember the space between Western Frisian inds to be much bigger than the space between Texel and Den Helder. Wouldnt a wider channel be more suited for going out to sea? Marin asked with puzzlement. Lord Baron, theres something you dont know. Although the distance between inds is wider than Marsdiep. But by passing through those channels, they must first go through a very shallow sea territory the Wadden Sea is very shallow, and there are many beaches near the sea. If they dont navigate with a specific route,rge vessels with a deeper draft would get stranded easily on Wadden Seas shoreline. If they went through Marsdiep, then they wont get beached so easily, as the depth of the waters here are deeper than most of the area in Wadden Sea. So thats how it is, in that case, Marsdiep is still the main route for Amsterdam merchant ships to enter the sea? More precisely, its the only way forrge Amsterdam merchant ships to enter the sea. For smaller trading vessels that have a shallow draft, like the small-sized fishing boats, they can still navigate through the Wadden Sea easily. How are the boat sizes assessed? If the boat is bigger than the Columbus of Italys gship The Santa Maria from Western Spain, theyre considered a big-sized boat, I guess Coadjutor Bishop Dorian spoke with uncertainty. The Middle Ages did not have wordings such as tonnage, so they could only seek out references. Dorian had once visited an old friend in the religious circles of Western Spain, and coincidentally saw the gship when Columbus was departing. Meanwhile, Columbus feat of discovering India make him famous, thats why Dorian used that as aparison. The Santa Maria? Thats something with a hundred and several dozens of tonnage Marin had actually not heard any of Columbus specific deeds in this lifetime. But he did know of it from his previous one. Anyways, ships that arerger than The Santa Maria would get beached in the Wadden Sea easily. Ships smaller than it would have no problem in the Wadden Sea. Dorian said. He had resided on Texel for many years, and was already approaching 50 years old, naturally he was well-informed. Marin nodded, indicating that he understood. The Santa Maria had a draft of 1.98 meters, and wasntparable to future sailboats which had drafts that easily went several meters deep. Which also means, the safe threshold for draft depths in the Wadden Sea was about 2 meters give or take. Of course, that was under the circumstance without anybody surveying the course. If the shallow shores could be determined by surveying, and setting up buoys and lighthouses, and choosing the proper route, evenrge ships could take that route. Bishop Dorian, why arent any lighthouses around this area? Marin asked strangely. Lord Baron, usually only therger ports would build a lighthouse Why? Only therger ports have a high turnover of boats, only then would they need lighthouses. Like t Horntje or Den Helder right across the sea, were just small fishing viges, do we even need to build lighthouses? That we dont, but dont Amsterdammers need it? Sir, the Amsterdammers do not have the authority to meddle in thends here. Only the local Lord can decide whether or not to construct a lighthouse. Besides, the construction cost for a lighthouse is high, same goes for the maintenance cost. Every night, a bonfire must be lit, and that costs a lot of firewood Lighthouses needed to have lots of sparks and embers, in order to generate enough light. The embers of the firewood jumps high, and was bright enough, so it was just the right thing for the job. While coal had little to no embers, with the majority of them being inconspicuous blue mes, which isnt that suited for burning in the lighthouses. What about the gains? If a lighthouse was built on t Horntje, certainly many ships would choose to dock here. However, Lord Baron, t Horntje is just a fishing wharf. To be amercial port, we have to construct several piers which extend into the sea. Having spent a lot of time by the coast, Dorian was also quite experienced. That makes sense, how much does it cost to build a lighthouse? What about the docks? Marin honestly did not have any experience in regards to that. Building a 10 story tall, stone-based lighthouse would cost approximately 800 gold coins. In the future, the cost of fuel nightly would probably be 10 gold coins as for the docks, three stone-based piers would more or less cost a thousand gold coins. The main cost is importing stone from offshore, as well as the sry to hire stonemasons and brickmasons That costs only two thousand gold coins? Thats quite cheap Marin curled his lips, indicating that this was no pressure. Uh Auxiliary Bishop Dorian also stopped speaking, what else could he say in front of a tycoon Marin surveyed the area for a while, and realized that t Horntje was certainly an optimal shelter from wind and rain, the water had sufficient depth, and it faced the Southeast, so it doesnt get threated by the Northwestern Winds so easily. Thats why, Marin had decided the n to construct a lighthouse and port on the spot. The lighthouse shall be constructed to the south of t Horntje, on the tip of the hills which extended into the ocean. Under the guidance of the lighthouse, the ships would be able to safely enter t Horntje port even at night. At the same time, the lighthouse could also serve as a directional indicator for ships navigating through Marsdiep. However, his Financial Administrator Kohler was currently busy searching for the families of the 400 soldiers, so he was currently unavable for the task. As for Schwartz, that guy is a true-to-standard Officer, and knows nothing about Civil Administration. As for Marin himself, he did not have the spare time to personally oversee the construction of the lighthouse and port Marin suddenly had a feeling that it was about time for him to go recruit more talents The original government officials who were on the ind, had basically left after Marin had taken control of thend. Because, those people, especially the educated ones, were vassals of other nobles, so it was impossible for them to work for Marin. As for the remaining local government officials, theyll be fine acting as vige heads, but for specific tasks, an educated person was needed. First of all, the so-called local officials, were all illiterate. In reality, they were just apanying subordinates of the officials who were sent from ind, and were only in charge of running errands. In The Middle Ages, only the children of Nobles, Clergymen and the Affluent had the opportunity of receiving education. The attendant of nobles, solely because of their job requirements, also had the opportunity of being educated. As for themonfolk, the majority of families were in terrible financial shape, even figuring out their next meal was a problem, how would they get the option of sending their children to school? Thats why, even if one was searching for candidates, they can only be chosen between sons of nobility or sons of the wealthy. As for clergymen, they are subordinates of the Pope, and they cannot secrize, so it was impossible for them to offer their services to a secr Lord. Forced by the circumstances, Marin was starting to ponder whether or not he should promotepulsory education on the ind? However, amongst those under hismand, only Schwartz had received any education, Kohler could also recognize a few wrods. But if he really wanted to find someone suited for teaching, there really was none. While he himself could be a teacher, that would be too much of a waste for his talents. Besides, he still had wars to fight and territories to develop in the future, there were plenty of things to do, so he did not have much time for teaching Chapter 72: Wide-spread Reputation Chapter 72: Wide-spread Reputation The dissemination of information was very slow in the Middle Ages, because this was an underdeveloped period where your feet is your vehicle, messages were given through shouting. getting warm is dependent on shivering. Several months has passed since Marin has made his outstanding reputation in Italys battlefield, did it spread to the Northern parts of the Holy Roman Empire. Currently, Marin had finally be the number one celebrity within the Empire The Nobles of the North within the Holy Roman Empire were basically the Opposition of the Crown. These Nobles, naturally would not cooperate with the Emperors propaganda. Because, advertising Marin was the same as advertising the many benefits of serving the Crown. And if they had done that, it was no different than pushing the young and brave warriors into the Emperors embrace. Just as what the Emperors Ambassador stationed in Vienna saw, many Austrians and Swabian young men emted Marin, and gathered to join the the Emperors army, or attempting to join. And that was something the local feudal lords who opposed the Emperor wished to avoid. Thats why, even if these Lords did not openly oppose the act of advertising Marin, they still pulled a lot of strings behind the shadows to sabotage that. As such, only after several months did Marins reputation spread across the entire Holy Roman Empire, which had incited a passionate rage What an impressive knight, he had rued so many war exploits at the age of 17 years old, and he was even bestowed the title of a Baron! Some young knight-errants immediately idolized Marin. Because Marins backstory was too simr to theirs, and was really down to earth, which made it easy to resonate with them. Marins exploits were also extremely inspirational. For those young knight-errants with tough-luck, hope was abysmal. But Marins exploits had given them a frame of reference why dont I imitate Marin? What they dont know was, the reason behind why Marin was able to achieve such dashing results, was based on him being a transmigrator. When he defeated the French, he clearly utilized the strong advantage of information asymmetry, and bullied the fleeing Charles VIII. If it was a head-on sh, how could Marins 1100 greenhornspare with French knights who had trained their martial prowess for dozens of years? However, that was unimportant, people always like to ignore their own shorings, cing more emphasis on their own strengths. Sometimes even thinking up unwarranted strengths for themselves when there was none (this is what makes narcissists). Thats why, nobody cared that Marin won his victory with trickery. Also, when the Emperor was spreading the propaganda, he did not specifically mention that Marin won because of an ambush, instead, he said the two armies encountered each other coincidentally. As such, all the young men had this feeling if I serve the Crown, even if I wasnt as lucky as Marin to be a Baron, it would still be possible to aim for the title of the Empires knight And that, was precisely what the cunning Maximillian the First wished to see. Within the Holy Roman Empire, the House of Habsburg only had a good amount of prestige in Austria (as they had just taken over Burgundy, they did not hold much influence), but in other ces, due to the malicious anti-propaganda, their reputation wasnt too great. As such, warriors of Deutsche Germany who were willing to serve the Crown were quitecking. Marin was born in the County of Mark, though John II the Count of Mark did not oppose the Emperor, but he definitely wasnt friends with the Emperor. Because, the Emperor had been devoted to emting the French since always, intending to impose amon tax, to fund the needs of the Central Empire. However, Maximillian the Firsts idea was opposed by nearly all the independent Rulers. Because if the Emperor imposed amon tax throughout the Empire, that was equivalent to touching their money bag. Besides, once the financial power of the Emperor improves, and he gained enough might, and had the intention to wipe out them nobles, what should they do? Marin was born in a non-Empire controlled region, and was quite the unlucky knight-errant. A character like that was really representative. Because, within the Empire borders, there are countless Knight Families. And usually a Knight Family would never give birth to one sole heir. Thats why there are plenty of knight-errants. And under the anti-propaganda of these feudal lords, many knight-errants had never even thought about serving the crown. Because, under the private rumormongering of these feudal lords, the Emperor was described as a really greedy and selfish bastard. Rumor has it that you wouldnt get paid serving the Crown, because the Emperor was really poor (that wasnt entirely untrue though). Besides, the Emperor was unwilling to bestow noble titles to people who were in his service Thats why, many knight-errants born in the domains of the feudal lords would rather be unemployed and wander thends, doing the asional contract, than to serve that greedy and selfish Emperor. However, Marins emergence had suddenly overturned the malicious propaganda of the feudal lords, which made many knight-errants realize that there was a promising future if they served the Crown. These knight-errants, the moment they first heard of Marins, they most likely did not believe it, because Marins exploits were too legendary. However, many knight-errants near the County of Mark simply rode their horses and rushed to Hoffmans manor in Bochum, to verify the validity of those stories from Old Hoffman. Old Hoffman as the newly promoted Lord Barons Father, naturally sworn that everything spoken were real, even using God and the honor of knights to vow that he would take responsibility for every word he spoke Then, many knight-errants were informed that the news they had heard was entirely true, and had been verified. Next, the verified news started spreading within the Holy Empire borders. Everybody finally believed that the Emperor was not lying As such, Marin became famous, while the young knight-errants became excited. Then, plenty of young knights confident that they were not inferior to Marin, with dreams in mind, urgently rushed to Vienna, begging for the Emperor to take them in The Emperor was clearly painfully happy, he was currently preupied with obtaining ransom from the French, how would he have the spare effort to humor these young people? Besides, if he doesnt get the ransom money, he would have no money to keep so many people fed. On top of that, this current period was a temporary ceasefire, so there was no demand to recruit anybody. Thats why, among the many knight-errants gathered in Vienna, only a small portion of exceptionally outstanding ones were taken in by the Emperor. As for the remaining majority, could do nothing but linger in Vienna Meanwhile, a good amount of knight-errants who had been on the road for too long, were used to the chivalric way of robbery, which caused the public security of Vienna to plummet. But the Emperor dared not suppress the behaviors of these knight-errants, because if he used violence to dismiss these knight-errants, it would likely cause the reputation he had built while spreading Marins exploits to plummet once again. Because, these suppressed knight-errants would definitely speak bad about him after returning home. And the knights in the Middle Ages basically held the power of discourse amongst the lower ss, and were usually highly credible Thats why, Maximillian the First could only attempt to soothe those irritable knight-errants, making empty promises in an attempt to send them home But on the other hand, having so many knight-errants visiting to swear their services to him, the Emperor could only be secretly delighted Thats why the Emperor was currently painfully happy As for Marin the superstar who was being strongly promoted by the Emperor, had also turned into a superidol who was equivalent to Andy Lau in the eyes of the Empires young people. Chapter 73: Trade Sanctions Chapter 73: Trade Sanctions Paris, France, Charles VIII was throwing a tantrum within the royal pce. Because Marins amazing exploits, had already spread to France from the Holy Roman Empire. Different to the reaction of citizens of the Holy Roman Empire, the Holy Romanian citizens felt glory and pride because they were the winners. While France, as the losing side, felt really pissed off. Especially Charles VIII who had personallymanded the 8000 French knights and was defeated, had be the butt of the joke. The French people did not dare to publicly mock him, but the Germans, Spaniards, British and Italians cared not. As such, Charles VIII was now the joke of the entire European continent. The specific reason why Charles VIII felt so much humiliation was, the person who had defeated him wasnt some well-known battlefieldmander, instead, it was a 17 year old boy who was leading an army for the first time If he had lost to a veteranmander, Charles VIII couldve came up with an excuse. But losing to a 17 year old boy, Charles VIII was basically ashamed Although the French were defeated in an ambush. However, no matter what, he shouldnt have lost to a 17 year old boy Thats why, it was currently taboo for Charles VIII to hear people speak about what happened in Italy. Whoever dared speak it, it would enrage him and cause him to draw his sword. To be honest in his heart, the moment he had heard Marin was bestowed the Baron of Texel, North of Hond, Charles VIII couldnt wait to send troops over to Texel, to capture Marin all the way to Paris, and apply all kinds of cruel torture on him. However, Europe was different from Asia. Kings of Asia, if they felt their reputation disgraced, they could easily send out their subordinates to openly hunt the person who had disgraced their lord. But Europeans during the Middle Ages, were extremely attentive to their aristocratic demeanor. In Europe, everyone had formed a conventional agreement without a good justification, they were forbidden from harming fellow nobles. If on the battlefield, a certain noble surrendered, they must be treated hospitably, and wait for the enemy to pay for the ransom The reason why this tacit agreement exists, was actually because the nobles of Europe were worried that they might be taken captive on the battlefield someday, and would face brutality. Thats why, normally they did not dare brach that rule. Because, if someone who broke that rule as well as their family members, get taken captive on the battlefield, the enemy could also not care about their aristocratic demeanor and eliminate you. If Marin was still a squire, and not a member of Aristocratic society, Charles VIII could absolutely publicly dispatch troops to capture and kill him. Because the aristocratic demeanor does not apply to themonfolk. However, Marin was already a Baron of the Empire after being bestowed by the Holy Roman Empire, and he had joined the Aristocratic society. If Charles VIII had sent people to attack Marin, it was equivalent to breaking the rules. Besides, Marin had defeated the French army on the battlefield, though there was the advantage of an ambush, they had still fought the French army with des and spears. If, Charles VIII was defeated by Marin on the battlefield, but he used an extremely despicable way to murder Marin, then, he would probably be faced with the scorn and disdain of Europes nobles. And coincidentally, Charles VIII was someone who valued his reputation, someone who wanted to conquer Europe. As a conqueror, the first thing was to have a pristine reputation, and not carry out anything that would draw the scorn of other nobles. To be more specific, it means to not break the rules. The King of Britain, Richard III, in order to usurp the throne, had imprisoned his own two nephews and in them. To prevent other people from finding evidence, he had ordered the brutal act for these two young princes to be nailed into the wall. Although he did not leave behind any evidence. But because he was the greatest culprit of his nephews murder, he was despised by the entire Europe. To the point that because Richard III had broken the rule, it caused his subordinates to no longer obey him. When Henry VII raised the gs of rebellion, many noble Warlords of the House of York, quickly defected and supported Henry VII, betraying Richard III. Charles VIII really wanted to send troops to kill Marin, but, he didnt wish to break the rules, which would cause him to be betrayed by everyone what happened to Richard III wasnt that long ago However, Charles VIII really couldnt take this lying down, and couldnt stand Marin having a peaceful life. Under the rmendation of his inept advisor, Charles VIII had decided to use another way to punish Marin After some thought, Charles VIII ordered No French merchant, and foreign merchants who intend to do business within French borders, shall have any trading rtionship with the Baron of Texel. Anybody who disobeyed, and confirmed to be true, shall be exiled out of France, and forbidden to return. A sanction like that, wasnt too cruel, but it was really quite a lethal move. Because, France was the most important wine-production area in Europe. In the Middle Ages, the average European does not like drinking water. Regardless if they were noble ormonfolk, they all liked to drink either wine or ale. Only peasants who were at the extreme bottom of the social hierarchy would drink water, and unboiled one at that. Meanwhile, the wine produced from Southwest France was cheap and high quality, and had always been one of the bestseller of Europe. Many countries, including Frances nemesis, Britain, all wanted to import wine from France, and in huge quantities. However, if those merchants still want to import wine from France, they must draw a line with Marin And such a move was truly a ruthless one. From his informants, Charles VIII understood that Texel was currently building a lighthouse and port, it was evident that they intended to develop marine trade. And his actions was to break Marins momentum at making money However, the moment Marin heard Charles VIIIs trade sanctions, he let out a huge breath of relief Charles VIII as the King of France, how mighty was the strength behind him? If he was as shameless as Richard III, to send a huge army to besiege Texel, he really couldnt handle that. The reason why Marin relocated his 400 subordinates to Texel, was actually a precaution against the Frenchs desire for revenge. After all, Texel was at sea, if France sent out their fleet to besiege Texel, Marin could only resist from his shelter. Besides, because Marin was in the Emperors faction, he was naturally not in line with the traditional feudal lords. If he was besieged by the French, no neighbouring lord woulde to his aid. Probably even Nethends which were under the Emperors name would be unwilling to save him. Because the local lords of Nethend was still resistant against the Emperor (before this, Maximillian the First had been put under house arrest by the Nethend nobles, and it was Frederick III who sent troops to rescue him). Thats why, in this period of time, Marin was actually quite afraid However, the moment Charles VIII announced his trade sanctions, Marin let out a huge breath of relief. Because, if Charles VIII was dealing with him with this way, then that basically means that he wouldnt send an army to deal with him. Although a trade sanction such as that was a huge blow to Marin. But thats still way better than someoneing after his life. Besides, Marins main trading partner Wiggins Merchant Association did not have much ties with France. Besides, the trading between the two parties were carried out very low key, so outsiders did not know much. Thats why, Charles VIIIs trade sanction only had limited damage. Because, the French sanctions at the most, would only affect the Nethend merchants of the nders region they have a lot of mercantile ties with France, as well as the Britain, Spaniards and Italians. Meanwhile among the three countries Britain, Spain, Italy, Spain itself was an extremely important wine producer. Thats why the effects on Spain by this trading sanction wasnt that huge. Italy also had their own wine production lines. Only Britain, because of frequent rains,ck the needed sun and warmth for the growth of grapes, which forced them to import great quantites of wine from foreignnds. And the major wine import source for Britain, was the Bordeaux region As for the Holy Roman Empire, only a small portion of the merchants would be affected. Because the Holy Roman Empire shared a long border with France, plenty of people had tight merchantile contracts with France But there were also plenty of merchants, more than half who had nothing to do with the French. Especially the Hanseatic League which had dominated the trade of Northern and Northwestern Europe, they werent that close with France. What Marin was thinking, was to establish good rtions with the Hanseatic League, and make a fortune through that route. As such, the trade sanctions from the French might cause many potential customers to draw the line with Marin, but that would not stop Marins uprising. THe most it could do, was put a hamper on how much money he would make, and it wasnt a disastrous blow. The other main reason was Germanic people loved ale more, not wine. So even if the wine production within Deutsche Germany was low, it was sufficient for consumption. Because in Deutsche Germany. the ones who drink wine are usually the nobles and clergymen. Because there was ack in demand, even if the production of wine was low in Deutsche Germany, it was sufficient for consumption, as such, the Germanic region did not importrge amounts of wine from France. As such, with so many people looking unfavourably at Marin, Marin still continues to go on his own, and was fully supporting the development of Texel. However, in order to not enrage Charles VIII, or humiliate him to the point of sending troops to kill Marin, he had decided to appear subservient, so that Charles VIII would feel better Treating this as him imitating Goujians Great Revival, as a transmigrator from modern times, Marin did not believe that his face was worth more than his life as such, Marin sent a messenger to deliver his apology letter, and emphasizing the great dangers of syphilis and ways of treatment. The reason why Marin did this, aside from giving Charles VIII an out, he also wished for France to suppress the spread of syphilis. Because, if syphilis started spreading through France, it would easily spread around to neighbouring countries, which would cause a pandemic in Europe (which was exactly what happened in the original timeline). Charles VIII did not ept Marins apology, but he did start paying attention to the syphilis Marin had mentioned. Because syphilis was the precise reason why the French fled Italy. To be more precise, without the endemic of syphilis, Charles VIII wouldnt have needed to flee North, let alone being defeated by Marin Besides, Marins action of apology also made Charles VIII feel a bit better, which had caused his urgent desire to y Marin to be washed away. Of course, that just means that Charles VIII wouldnt publicly send out troops to kill Marin. But if they meet each other on the battlefield, Charles VIII would definitely not be stingy with the bounty, and would make the French army to y Marin. Besides, this also doensnt rule out that Charles VIII would not send assassins to kill Marin. However, those two dangerous scenarios werent without their solutions, as long as he paid attention, he was still in rtive safety. On must know, the assassins of this day and age still used daggers and crossbows, so those were much easier to be on guard against. Even at the start of the 17th century, when the French King Henry IV was assassinated, someone had stabbed him with a sharp dagger. As for firearms, the currently popr matchlocks were extremely unsuited for assassination. Because the ignited safety fuse would be easily discovered by soldiers. Only when flintlocks are discovered, would there be any assassinations with flintlock pistols. The good thing was, flintlock guns were at small caliber, and was extremely inurate, so they werent great weapons anyways. To be precise, only rifles with extremely high uracy would be the best weapon for assassination. Which also means, even if Marin encountered an assassin, if he had done his best to stay on guard, he would still be able to avoid it However, the possibility of Charles VIII sending someone to assassinate Marin wasnt that high. Because he was the King of France, to send someone to kill a small time Baron like Marin, he would probably get mocked by the entire European continent, which would shame him even more than the defeat in battle. Only by sending someone to defeat Marin or even y Marin in the battlefield, would that be able to wash away his shame. Chapter 74: Recruiting Frisian Fishermen Chapter 74: Recruiting Frisian Fishermen Because he was coveting the huge profits of the Great Voyage, Marin absolutely did not wish to miss the recently emerged Age of Discovery. However, he had also witnessed that within in domain, there were only 200 fishermen, and only 30 of them were young adults. To join in the Great Voyage, he couldnt manage to gather a boat of sailors. One must know, a small ship like Columbus gship The Santa Maria, even it had 39 sailors on board. Besides, it was also improbably for Marin to draft all of the young adult fishermen as sailors. Otherwise, the old and weak fishermen would have to go hungry. Because the main fishing force were these young adults. Marin had thought about it long and hard, he finally decided he had to recruit the Frisian fishermen, to solidify his territory, and increase the sailor reserves Marin went to look for information, and discovered that over the years, the nobles were exploiting the fishermen really heavily. Normally, the coastal lords would demand the fishermen to surrender more than 40% of their total fishing harvest. Amongst that, a portion would be live fish. While the rest would be salted fish. But thats where the problem was, in this day and age, salted fish requires a lot of salt for preservation. The fishermen were already quite poor, and now they had to use their own money to purchase expensive salt in order to fulfill the salted fish quota to their lords. Calcting everything, the cost of what they had to surrender to their lords, reached up to 60% of what they had fished. Including the 10% fishing harvest they had to submit to the church. Thats why, only about 30% remained for the fishermens harvest, thats why they were leading very difficult lives. If Marin wanted to recruit the fishermen, he definitely needs to loosen the regtions, otherwise it would not attract anybody. As such, Marin thought long and hard, and decided to only receive 30% of what the fishermen harvested. Furthermore, they could im reimbursement for the salt required to procure salted fish from the 30% fishing harvest This way, the fishermen would only need to submit 40% of their harvests, even after including the churchs tithe, which was half of what they used to submit. Naturally, the lives of the fishermen would improve a lot. Besides, as a tycoon himself, Marin had decided to establish his own bank, which would exclusively target the fishermen, providing them with low interest loans, encouraging the fishermen to gather their funds in order to purchaserger fishing ships. For example, a ship like Columbus gship Santa Maria which had a hundred and some tonnage, that was absolutely more than enough to fish in the Northern sea. In reality, the coast of the Northern sea had plenty of fishermen he could recruit. For example, there were plenty of Dutch fishermen avable for hire in the Nethend region. However, there was also a major problem. Those Dutch fishermen, were in service to the Nethend region under the Emperors reign. Recruiting those Dutch fishermen was equivalent to poaching from the Emperor. Marin needed the support of the Emperor, so he must not worsen rtions with the Emperor. Meanwhile, the Frisian fishermen were different, the Frisians were mainly located in the Lordship of Frisia (including modern Friend and Groningen of Hond), as well as East Frisia where Madam Mary was born. Those two factions were not powerful ones. Besides, although the Frisians were considered Western Germanic people, they were excluded from mainstream Germanic society. Which also means, both Germans and Honders were actually really discriminating towards Frisians. In modern Germany, there were still many jokes passed down which mocked the idiocy of Frisians. Besides, no matter if it was the Lordship of Frisia or East Frisia, neither were acknowledged by the Empire. These two countries were both treated as insubordinate barbaric factions by the Empire In Marins previous life, he had read the History of Europe, and knew that around year 1500, Maximillian the First would gift away the Lordship of Frisia to Albert III, Duke of Saxony, for the Duke of Saxonys help in 1492 in suppressing the Nethend-nders rebellion. As for East Frisia, around the year 1515, the Emperor had sent a coalition of 24 lords to conquer it, but was defeated (the army of East Frisia was quite strong) Which also means that, both Lordship of Frisia and East Frisia were small countries and were discriminated by everybody in Europe. So Marin recruiting Frisians would not pose too big of a problem. The Lordship of Frisia which was directly across Texel, wasnt a unified, centralized country, instead, it was an alliance formed by many noble territories. A country like this, even if Marin had displeased them, it would be difficult for them to make the decision for military revenge. Because, if they wished to start a war, they would first argue for a long time during their noble council meetings. By the time they were done arguing, their enemies would have finished their preparations a long time ago Besides, the fighting strength of the Lordship of Frisia were iparable to East Frisia. Although its area was about twice the size of East Frisia. But their military power were decentralized, belonging to several noble factions, without a unified chain ofmand. Once Duke of Saxony, Albert III received permission from the Emperor, it did not take much effort to conquer the Lordship of Frisia. However, the army sent to attack East Frisia suffered a defeat. Thats why, Marin was not afraid of being enemies with the Lordship of Frisia. Besides, in no more than a few years, this Lordship would be decimated by the Duke of Saxony. What Marin needed to do, was to recruit a sufficient number of Friend fishermen before the Duke of Saxony conquers the Lordship of Frisia, in order to prepare for his own Great Voyage or, before the Duke of Saxony had finished his preparations, to act beforehand and take control of this small country Marin believed that it would be best if shes urred. This way, Marin would have a casus belli to attack the Lordship of Frisia As such, Marin secretly dispatched some men to the coastal fishing viges of the Lordship of Frisia, to do some promotion, to mobilize the fishermen of Friend to relocate to Texel. As for the conditions, naturally it was a huge decrease in taxes paid, as well as loans for them to purchaserger ships However, no matter how great the conditions Marin had offered were, the German subordinates whom Marin had sent could never receive the trust of the Friend fishermen. Marin thought for a moment, and with promise of great treatment, he hired the 20 Frisian fishermen on the ind, to convince the coastal fishermen of the Lordship of Frisia. As expected, with these people doing the convincing, the results were much better. A great amount of Frisian fishermen believed them, and with their entire families in tow, they navigated their boats towards Texel. Marin weed the Frisian fishermen warmly, and arranged for people to help them build cheap but pragmatic Adobe houses. Later, he helped reform the fishing ports of t Horntje and Oudeschild, so that more fishing boats could dock. Afterwards, Marin once again hired the newly-transferred Frisian fishermen who were more glib-tongued, and made them return in order to convince more people. These people were native citizens of the Lordship of Frisia, so sending them back for convicing, would have a much better effect than sending the Frisian fishermen from Texel. As such, a greater amomunt of Frisian fishermen were convinced, with their families in tow, navigated their ships over Chapter 75: Frundsberg, Father of Mercenaries Chapter 75: Frundsberg, Father of Mercenaries After Marin became the superstar of the Empire, a lot of people joined the ranks of Maximillian the First, while there were also a lot of people who specifically rushed to Texel, in order to visit the young superstar Marin. As such, a lot of young knight-errants had made their way towards Honds Den Helder from ind Deutsche Germany, and boarded boats towards Texel to visit Marin. Marin just happened to want to recruit talented people, so he had been patiently aodating these young men. In reality, each meeting was equivalent to a job interview for Marins visiters. These guests were majority young people who had not obtained the title of a knight. They had travelled from far and wide, actually because they wanted to obtain insider information, so that they would be able to obtain the official knight title smoothly. In order to recruit the talents, Marin acted courteously, and enthusiastically received these squires from everywhere, and invited them to visit his own 400 elite underlings. However, what made Marin depressed was, each of these people were extremely hungry for knowledge. But when Marin offered them to join him, all of them basically politely refused. It turns out, all of them were dissatisfied with Marins small territory, which means no room for improvement. All of these conceited young men believed they werentcking in any waypared to Marin. If Marin could be a Baron, why couldnt they? Thats why, all of the offers Marin has extended, basically none of those squires epted, which made Marin extremely depressed. In reality, Marin also had his ways of keeping them here. Which was basically knighting them as official knights of his Barony. However, Marin was reluctant to do that. Because, knighting someone wasnt something that could be done willy-nilly. The reason why Schwartz could be knighted, aside from his abilities and loyalty, was that he had made contributions to the war effort in Italy, which was also the main reason. One must know, Schwartz was Marins adjutant in Italy. Besides, the daily military training were all under the direct supervision of Schwartz. As for Marin himself, his only job was to guide Schwartz. If Schwartz was officially knighted, the 400 soldiers wouldnt have any qualms with it. However, if Marin suddenly knighted a bunch of outsiders, these 400 soldiers might not buy it. Thats why, Marin could not easily promist and knight those young squires who came to visit him, all he could do was paint an amazing future for them. After all, defining rewards and punishment was the necessary quality for a qualifiedmander. However, all of these squires who came from knight Families, they had all received education and were not stupid. It was true that they idolized Marin, however, if they served under Marin, the most they could get was be knighted officially. Meanwhile, knights were not inherited titles. All of these ambitious young men longed to became like Marin, to became a Baron whose title could be inherited. Thats why, they were not fooled by Marin, and after receiving knowledge on how to train the troops, they had all decided to leave. These squires from noble families werent that easy to fool. While the young men frommonfolk were much easier to handle. Among the young men who came to visit Marin, aside from those squires, there were a lot ofmonfolk from wealthy families as the poorer folk had no money to pay for a trip to Texel. After Marin failed to recruit those squires, he turned his attention towards themonfolk. Since thesemonfolk were from wealthy families, most of them had received some form of education, and were quite cultured. And Marin deeply needed cultured people to help him in managing Texel. As such, Marin started to butter up these culturedmonfolk After several rounds of convincing and swaying, a portion of the culturedmoners remained as expected. Also because of that, Marin finally had a Mayor to manage Den Burg a 28 year oldmoner called Heiner Lehmann. Heiner Lehmanns ancestors were also from a family of knights, otherwise they wouldnt have had a surname. However, his family was a branch of the main one, after several generations, they had given up on martial traditions, and turned towards business. Thats why, Heiner was actually considered a merchant-folk. However, he had attended University in Cologne, and studiedw. From the looks of it, he had just graduated from Law at the University of Cologne, he wasnt in a hurry to find a job, instead, he came to travel in order to broaden his horizons. How could Marin let go of a talent such as him? A university student in the Middle Ages, that was definitely an existence even rarer than pandas! Marin immediately made his decision and nmaed Heiner as the Mayor of Den Burg, as well as the Justice of Texels court. As such, Texel weed the first official civil servant after Marins reign. Heiner himself was extremely delighted. Because, as a man frommon roots, even though he had attended university. However, if he went to get a job, he definitely would onlynd one as awyer. As for judges of the court, only those with noble roots may take those positions. Although awyer was considered a well-off job, but that wasnt somethingparable to an official position. As such, Heiner was immediately bought and swore under Marin, to assist Marin in processing the management duties of Texel. Afterwarsd, Marin had continued recruiting several other cultured young men withmon-roots, who were given the positions of Mayors to t Horntje and Oudeschild, as well as Salttown. Just as Marin was currently over the moon from recruiting several cultured young men into his faction, a sentry came reporting yet another young squire was visiting him After several failures in recruiting, Marin was nowpletely uninterested in recruiting those shrewd squires. But, when Marin was told of the young mans name, his eyes immediately widened because, the sentry had told Marin the name of the young man who was visiting him, was George Frundsberg. Who was George Frundsberg? Thats a badass figure who was praised as the Father of Germanic Mercenaries! Marin had read about the rted history books about Germanic mercenaries, he knew about Geoge Frundsberg, he was the most important general of the mercenaries under Maximillian the Firsts army in the original timeline, who was also the greatest participant in the Italian war, as well as the terminator of the Legendary Swiss mercenaries. However, it seems like Frundsberg only started appearing during the Swabian war in 1499. As such, he was still an unknown squire, and was still baesd in the Swabian region, being a soldier under who knows which lord. As for this great person, Marin had decided to do his best to rope him in. Even if he couldnt recruit him, he would have to establish friendly rtions. Because, Frundsberg in the fuutre would be Maximillian the Firsts first-inmand As such, Marin was immediately at full attention, and with the highest specifications of receiving a noble, he invited George Frundsberg inside Chapter 76: Recruiting A Legend Chapter 76: Recruiting A Legend George Frundsberg was currently based in Swabia, and along with his knighted father, were members of the heavy cavalry of the Swabian League Army. The difference was, his father was officially knighted, and was acting as a squad leader. He on the other hand, because he was just a squire, he was just the average heavy cavalry member. When the Italian war erupted, the army George Frundsberg was in had the responsibility to defend against the Hungarians, so they did not head towards Italy. Thats why George Frundsberg did not obtain the opportunity to join the battle. Originally, George Frundsberg wasnt that ambitious of a person. His greatest ambition was just to be an officially knighted Knight. But Marins emergence from nowhere had strongly shook George Frundsberg. They were both squires, but Marin was even younger. However, with his stack of war contributions, the 17 year old Marin had basically shot up thedder from a squire to anded Baron. This made George Frundsberg feel extremely dejected, he was already 22 years old (his age in 1495), but he actually couldntpare to a 17 year old young man However, he wasnt an arrogant person. George Frundsberg also knew it very clearly, he could be considered a qualified member of the heavy cavalry now, so his ability to charge into battle was without a question. However, if were talking about hismanding skills, he really was studying blind here. Even his father was just an insignificant heavy cavalry squad leader, he didnt have any experiencemanding an army in a great number. As for those higher-rankedmanders, all of them were high and mighty nobles, so they wouldnt even waste time to give pointers to a young squire such as he. Coincidentally, he had a fellow squire from the same hometown who had joined the Italian war, as well as having met Marin. Based on what his fellow squire said, the newly promoted Baron Marin was a young man with an extremely nice temper. As such, George Frundsberg had the idea to visit Marin Oriignally, in the year 1496, Austria was supposed to be in conflict with Hungary. However, because of Marins apearance, it had caused the name of Maximillian the First to travel far and wide, which deterred the Hungarians. Thats why the Hungarians did not move recklessly. As for Maximillian the First, because of financial matters (mainly because the ransom money were not received yet), he had no money to fight with Hungary. Thats why the year 1496 became rather peaceful. While George Frundsberg realized that there wouldnt be any uing battles for the time being, he requested his father to grant him leave, and made the decision to travel to Texel and make Marin a visit. If he had the chance, he really wanted to ask for advice. Old Frundsberg naturally wished for his own son to be a promising man, and his son was currently going ot visit the most promising young man in the entire Empire, in order to be more promising himself, so why would he object? As such, Old Frundsberg obtained leave for his son without a hitch, and allowed his son to do what he needed With perturbed emotions, George Frundsberg and two horses made way towards Texels Den Burg from Swabia. and requested to meet Marin. During the Middle Ages in Europe, the social hierarchy was extremely strict, it was basically impossible formoners to visit nobles without a reason. Only squires who were nobles-to-be had the requirement to request an audience with a Baron like Marin. Besides, whether or not to see him was up to Marins mood. Unless it was a visit from an official knight, who was also a noble, would Marin have to treat him with courtesy. For a squire like Frundsberg, whether or not he could meet Marin was still up to fate. As for Marin, because he had previously failed to recruit all those knight-errants, he originally intended to not meet anyone. However, after hearing the name, he immediately sprung to his feet and decided to meet him immediately, and with the best of treatment When Marin personally walked out of the castle gates, and enthusiastically invited George Frundsberg inside, George Frundsberg was incredibly dumfounded whats going on? This person is a Baron, so why was he this passionate towards an insignificant baron like me? Under usual circumstances, a Baron like Marin onoly needed to wait inside the castle for Frundsberg to enter his audience, and there was absolutely no need to go out himself Of course he didnt know that Marin had his eyes set on him. Before he walked out, Marin had already decided, since Frundsberg was going to be the Emperors first-inmand, why not recruit him beforehand. After all, he was considered a member of the Emperors faction, so it was more than likely that he would continue to fight wars for the Emperor. In that case, what if Frundsberg recruited this Legendary General over, and fight wars for the Emperor under his name. In that case, he himself didnt need to personally risk his life to fight for the Emperor. While Frundsberg leading the army to fight for the Emperor, it wouldnt affect him getting his name out, it would also help rue contributions for Marin. To be more precise, Frundsberg would be leading his army to fight wars for the Emperor, and as the direct superior of Frundsberg, the credit would definitely not escape him. Just likest time when Marin made a huge contribution, even Count Alfred received arge reward (rumor has it that he was given and, while Count Alfred previously was an unded Count Ptine). But at the same time, if Frundsberg had made a great contribution, based on the Emperors personality of admiring talents, he would not give up roping him in. High positions and generous sry would definitely not becking for Frundsberg. In the original timeline, because Frundsberg had performed extremely well in the Swabian war, he was noticed by Maximillian the First. When Frundsberg participated in the Swabian war, he was just a squire, and only an official at the level of a squad leader. But after gaining the favor of Maximillian the First, he was first given the noble title of a Knight in the year 1504, then he was also given the territory of Mindelheim as for what title was unknown, as after Frundsbergs grandson died, their family was heirless. However, with the noble title of King of Mindelheim passed on to modern times. With pure assumption, his peerage should be no lower than a Count Which also means, Marin, this guy already had the evil n for this Legendary General Frundsberg, to start working for the Emperor in his own name Based on this n, whenever Frundsberg obtained vicotries, he would have to split it with Marin, because Marin was his direct superior Currently, Frundsberg still had a dumbfounded look on his face, although he was several years older than Marin on the surface, but mentally sigh, lets not talk about that Marin had only used one-tenth of Uncle Benshans skills, and managed to fool young Frundsberg so hard that he couldnt figure out his directions Hey George, is it fine for me to call you that? Marin passionately led Frundsberg by the arm into his seat. People of the Middle Ages arent homosexual, homosexuality only arised after people migrated to the new continent and there were ack of women. Thats why, even if Marin acted so passionately, it wouldnt terrify the youngd Of course of course, Lord Baron being able to call this insignificant one would be my greatest honor! Hehe, since the moment I saw you, I knew you were special. Not knowing why, I have the feeling that you would be an amazing general in the future Marin started using his silver tongue. No no Lord Baron is too kind Young Frundsberg was starting to be embarassed. Especially beingplimented to the face by his idol. Like a certain fanatic in modern times, after meeting Andy Lau and wasplimented by him you would be more popr than me No no no, Im honestly thinking highly of you. I Its like this, George, Ive recently been thinking of a new, but stronger infantry phnx Stronger than the phnx you used in Italy to defeat the King of France? Frundsberg spoke with a worshipping expression. Frundsberg knew about Marins phnx, it was a spear array with 100 archers, thats what his fellow hometowner told him. Much stronger than that one, that previous phnx was specifically used to defeat the Swiss spearmen, and could only be on the defense against knights, not being able to attack (the te armor of knights were really hard to pierce with spears) In reality, what Marin was thinking of was the Tercio, the Spanish used arquebuses, so those could naturally pierce through ted-armor knights. That impressive? Frundsbergs eyes shone. Of course, the only reason I managed to have such an overwhelming victory against the French knights was because it was an ambush. But once this phnx is formed, we can face the French army head-on and beat them so hard they go home crying for their parents Thats amazing The current Frundsberg was nowhere near the wise and courageous Leader of Mercenaries in the future. This guy was clearly a young fanatic Im not just boasting, the moment we grasp this phnx, our Empire could overpower France without a problem Marin really wasnt boasting, not long after the appearance of the Tercio, it was coincidentally the rule of Charles V, with the finance of Spain and the brave mercenaries of the Holy Roman Empire and the Tercio, they really steamrolled over the French. If it wasnt because of the war against Deutsche Germany religions and peasant uprisings, which had over exhausted the strength of the Holy Roman Empire, the French would probably suffer a more intense beating. Overpowering the French Frundsberg couldnt hlpe but imagine that in his mind, then he realized that was quite the difficult thing to do. Yes, overpower the French! I currently need talented people to train my troops, and need people to act as my adjutants, at the same time, we could research these amazing phnxes together. George, are you willing to join my army to aid me? Join Lords army? Frundsberg was stunned, my idol is recruiting me? What should I do? Thats right, I intend to form a new phnx, I have a feeling that youd be quite suitable to be the toonmander toonmander That was a role only Barons and official Knights were qualified to take, my idol really thinks highly of me. Thats right! But but I still have to return to Swabia to finish my service Frundsberg remembered that he was still in service. What service? Arent you just an average heavy cavalry member? Yeah Then whats keeping you there? Come join me, Ill let you act as an officer! But I cant leave the army so easily Its alright, Ill write a letter for you, telling your former lord that I am taking you in as my apprentice, and you would be staying here! Would that work? Actually, what Frundsberg wanted to say was, if I joined you, would I really be able to obtain the title of an official knight? Because, if he and his father continued working with their former Lord, it was a matter of time hell receive the official title of knight. Marin could more or less guess Frundsbergs thoughts, he was really clear that Frundsbergs former lord doesnt favor him, and thisd barely managed to obtain the title of knight after meeting Maximillian the First. Definitely! You help me train the new phnx. By the time his Majesty starts the next war, I will definitely lead the troops to serve his Majesty. If you help me train the soldiers, youll definitely be the toonmander when the timees. So that you would have more opportunities to show yourself in front of his Majesty. But if you return and keep being a heavy cavalry member or whatever, with so many other cavalry units, do you have a lot of opportunities to present yourself? If you follow me andmand the phnx, when you rue some contributions, you wont have to fear theck of opportunities to be knighted, or even a Baron? Marin tempted. That Frundsberg pondered, that was true. In front of Maximillian the First, a toonmander or a heavy cavalry member, which one would receive Maximillian the Firsts favor? There really wasnt a choice. In the end, Frundsberg decided: I am willing to serve milord, as for my previous army Leave that to me! Ill handle whatever is needed with your lord. Oh right, you must also write a letter home, pen it for your father and ask him not to worry. Yes, milord! Frundsbergs character changed really quickly, and swore his service really quickly. As such, the man people called Father of Mercenaries, had been fooled onto Marins pirate ship without any doubt Chapter 77: Preparing the Tercio Chapter 77: Preparing the Tercio After recruiting a legend like Frundsberg, of course Marin was happy. Because to have the Father of Mercenaries as his own muscleman, it was an extremely prideful thing regardless. With the existence of Frundsberg, Marin started actually testing the true Tercio. When he was training the infantry phnx, Marin felt like there was a great w in it. The greatest problem was, that they could do nothing against te armor. For example, in the ambush of Fornovo, Marin helplessly realized that the thousands of French knights in ted armor died mostly because of being crushed by rocks, or were pushed down the mountain with spears and fell to their deaths. As for the ones who were stabbed to death by spears, or shot by arrows, the total doesnt exceed 50. Which also means, that the previous infantry phnx was only suited to knock down those fancy-dressed Swiss mercenaries. When faced against the French knights who liked wearing te armor, they were actually helpless. Of course, if the French knights were charging the phnx on warhorses, that would be another matter. If I cant stab the knights who are fully covered like a tincan to death, you think I cant stab the warhorses to death? One must know, horse barding and human te armor was different. Inparison, the coverage of horse barding was much worse than te armor, as it was only pped onto the horses back and head. On its legs, there were no armor. Because the horses needed to run, if it was fully covered in armor, then it wouldnt be able to gallop. Besides, horse barding was mainly made withmer armor, specifically for it to be convenient for running. te armor was too restrictive of movement. Once putting that on, a person would start moving like a robot. If a horse started wearing te armor, then it would also be unable to run. As for spears, against themer armor covering the horses, it was still lethal and could prate through. Even if it couldnt pierce through the barding, they could also lower the position to stab the legs or stomach of the horse not covered by the armor. Thats why, having heavy knight units on horses to charge through this phnx was actually really detrimental However, its not to say that knights had no solutions for the spear array. If the knights abandoned their horses and walked, and charged through the spear array just like that, they would have a great time. Because if both sides have a stabbing contest, the average mercenary wasnt wearing any armor at all, while the knights were in te armor. One side would be afraid of blows, and would die with one blow, while the other was covered in te armor, and wasnt afraid of stabs, so if they had a stabbing contest, isnt the result easy to see? As for the archers in Marins original phnx, they were also quite helpless when facing against knights in full te armor. When arrows hit the te armors made from iron tes, they couldnt prate it, at the most leaving behind deep marks. Even if they manage to hit a joint, that would only injure the enemy, and was not at all lethal After some thought, the best way to deal with knights in te armor walking on-foot, the best way was still to use firearms naturally, not the small kind, instead they should use the big kind In the early days, the reason why the Tercio was so strong, was because they used Spanish muskets inrge quantities. That was a type of heavy arquebus, reaching a weight of 10 kilograms, which was twice heavier than the arquebuses. ordingly, its caliber was much greater, and the bullet was heavier, reaching 50 grams. Once a 50 gram lead ball was fired out of the arquebus, it would travel at subsonic speed at several hundred meeters per second, once it impacts the knight wearing te armor, aside from a strong amount of kic energy, there would also be a strong shockwave. Under the impact of such a strong force, the knights either fall off their horses and get injured, or just die outright. Even if it hits the horses body, it wouldnt be fine. If it enters the body, arge lead ball weighing 50 grams, the injury it would cause as well as the rolling effect of the ball hehe they could start preparing for their funeral immediately, as there was no way to save them Besides, at the end of the 15th century and start of the 16th century, due to the underdeveloped smelting technology, only heavy firearms like the Spanish musket could ensure that the barrel wouldnt blow up. If they made it smaller and thinner, like the pistols of Ming, which weighed about 5 catty, before they kill the enemies, they wouldve killed themselves first Precisely because the Tercio utilized muskets in great quantities, which made the phnx not only great in meleebat, but also having a strong ranged attack, especially against te armor knights, who cared if they were on horseback or on-foot. Thats why, the Spaniards managed to rampage through the European continent for more than a century with that phnx, which also forced knights in te armor off the worldstage. Afterwards, Johann Tserrs von Tilly, the Count of Tilly, also relied on the Tercio, and managed to fight his way up from a nobody to a Count, until he encountered the more badass Gustavus Adolphus. During the entirety of 16th century, the Tercio was the most badass phnx of Europe until the emergence of Maurice, who reformed the Spanish tercio and gave birth to the Maurice phnx In a nutshell, the Tercio, would be an impossible challenge for the current armies of Europe. They could give the French knights a run for their money as well as bully the Swiss spearmen. In truth, before the Italian war has broke out, Marin had wanted to establish the tercio. However, he was short on time and did not have time to seek out suitable firearms, neither did he have sufficient funds to purchase firearms and ammunition. Thats why, he could only rece them with archers for the time being. But the Italian war had made him realize that the enemies would not act as he wanted, to arrange suitable enemies for him. The archers could do nothing against the knights in te amror, all they could do was damage the unarmored infantry. But the enemies wouldnt send unarmored infantry to their deaths without doing anything, they might even just send out te armor knights who cant be taken down with arrows. Thats why, owning firearms would be the better choice. Besides, gunners were much easier to train, after a week or two of training, they could be dragged into the battlefield. While an archer would have to be trained for dozens of years Of course, Marin himself actually wasnt that fond of the Tercio. He personally liked Gustavus Adolphus phnx even better. However, since he was fighting for the Emperor, Marin was unwilling to show his strongest formation. Even by pulling out the tercio, it would already be more than enough to stomp on the French knights and Swiss spearmen. As for Frundsberg, he was themander of Tercio in Marins eyes. When the Emperor requires, hell have thisd lead the Tercio, and have a fight to the death with the enemies. With Frundsbergs talents, and the technological advancement of the Tercio, he would have no problem rampaging throughout Western Europe. As for the next enemy of Maximillian the First, theyre mainly the Swiss (Swabian war), French (Italian war) and Hungarians. The Tercio was absolutely more than sufficient. As for the chain ofmand for the phnx, the basic officers, Marin intends to pick them amongst his 400 underlings, regardless if it was thepany captain or squad leader. The families of these men have been relocated onto Texel, so they must share his responsibility. In that case, the formation of the new army would definitely still remain within his hands. As for Frundsberg, Marin had feeled him out, it appears like he was purely a martial officer, and his ability for political warfare was average, it should be difficult for him to escape his grasp. After all, the reason Marin recruited Frundsberg was to have him work under the Emperor in his stead, so he couldnt find someone rebellious. Marin did not care much about other things, all he cared was his own utility in Maximillian the Firsts eyes. If Frundsberg usurped his army and joined the Emperor directly, then his own importance would go down. And he was already on bad terms with the Old Nobles. If he loses the Emperors support now, he would have a difficult time navigating out of this. With Frundsbergs addition, Marin had finally decided to form the Tercio. As for theck of men, Marin was not concerned. Because after the sess of the Italian war, many young men of Deutsche Germany were willing to be a mercenary. Aside from that, it seems that the authentic Tercio had prepared Maximillian Armor for the upper bodies of the frontline soldiers, as well as Spanish-styled helmets, in order to increase their odds of survival. As such, Marin had decided to also outfit his soldiers with body armor and helmets, to increase the soldiers survivability. In order to arm them with armor, Marin had decided to send people to the Southern parts of Deutsche Germany, to recruit proficient armorsmiths, to produce amor and helmets specifically for the soldiers. Lastly, the ssic weapon of the Tercio muskets. Those things were currently under the sole possession of the Spanish, and have not been put through actualbat. Marin decided send someone to Spain, have them recruit Spanish artisans who were experts at making muskets, to have them make firearms for him, and supply the needs of the army Chapter 78: Establishing Saltpeter Men Chapter 78: Establishing Saltpeter Men Since they were going to use firearms in great quantities, there was another item gunpowder, which they also needed to prepare. Because, in every battle, the gunners would use up arge amount of gunpowder. Based on the traditional tercios formation, the ratio of spearmen to gunners were 3:1. Which also means in a phnx of 1200 men, gunners would represent one quarter of that, which was 300 men. Based on the information he had read in his past life, Marin knew that in each battle, each gunner would use up an average of 1 pound of lead balls, and less than 1 pound of gunpowder. With the Britishs data based on the British flintlock Brown Bess, one pound of lead could be made into 15 shots of buck and balls, which was about 30grams per. As for the gunpowder, they used 3/4 of an ounce, which was about 21 grams. Which also means that in each battle, the musketeers would at most fire 15 shots, and then it would enter the bay phase Of course, this was based on the tactics of the British Red Coats, in this day and age, bays have yet to be discovered. When the enemies approach, the musketeers would usually use their one-handed sabres or shortspears to battle their enemies. However, the Spanish musket was different than the Brown Bess flintlock. The bullets for the muskets weighed as much as 50 grams, and the propent used reached 35 grams. Thats why it uses up more explosives. The greater the usage, the more gunpowder they needed to consume. And sadly, there arent any saltpeter mines in Europe, while India and the Middle East which producesrge quantities of saltpeter ore had their trading routes blocked by Turkey. Thats why the Europeans could only seek saltpeter from cesspits. Not only was it found in small amounts, even its gathering was difficult. From the looks of it, Europe has yet topletely march into the age of firearms, so their requirement for explosives wasnt that high. By the time Europe enters the age of death sentence by firing squads, their consumption of explosives would be extremely frightening. If it wasnt because the British had opened up saltpeter trade with India, who knows whether or not the British would have so much gunpowder to fuel their cannonfire. In order to gather enough saltpeter for use in war, the King of Ennd, Charles I, that dumbass who was decapitated, had specifically sent out saltpeter men, and within the borders of Ennd, bareg into the homes of themonfolk, to dig up all the saltpeter within the toilets and stables, to extract nitrite. In order to obtain sufficient amounts of nitrite, Charles I had also ordered all toilets and stables within the country are barred from paving the floor with bs or wooden nks, to prevent them from affecting the collection of saltpeter What Charles I did may seem crazy, but it was actually borne out of helplessness. If there was enough saltpeter ore, did he have to do that? By the time Ennd managed to establish a strong foothold in India, and was able to obtain a steady source of cheap Indian saltpeter ore inrge amounts, did Ennd remove saltpeter men. Marin on the other hand, was just starting to form the Tercio, but he already needed arge amount of saltpeter ore in order to mix gunpowder. Meanwhile, saltpeter ore in the entirety of Europe, was not only expensive, but extremely scarce. Because there wasnt a high demand for it, so nobody had been producing it. Hoffmans Manor had once done research into nitrite, but after his coalmine was up and running, the gathering of nitrite was more or less useless. Old Hoffman immediately redirected his workers in charge of gathering saltpeter to help those in the coalmines In order to reduce the cost of gunpowder, Marin had decided to establish saltpeter men on Texel. At the same time, in order to obtain saltpeter, Marin emted Charles I and ordered that all toilets and stables within the ind are barred from paving the floor with bs or wooden nks, to prevent them from affecting the collection of saltpeter Marin made a rough estimate, there was originally 800 people living on the ind, then about 400 (Marin and the soldiers) came, including the families of the soldiers, which reached 1500 people; then because of the salt-boiling business, they recruited 3000 more people; next the recruited 600 and more Frisian fishermen Which also means that the ind was popted by a whopping 6000 people, including 1000 and more horses and cows, there was a total of 7000 organisms producing excrements everyday. Which also means that the production of saltpeter was quite considerable Of course, things wouldnt go that smoothly. Saltpeter men was an extremely dirty job, absolutely nobody with noblebirth or cultured background would like to take the job. So, Marin was forced to pick people from themoners, and paid them at a high wage. After training, roughly 20 saltpeter men started patrolling the ind everyday. The toilets of every house must be unconditionally opened for the saltpeter men At the same time, Marin had also poached two artisans who knew how to extract nitrite from ind, and making them in charge of extracting nitrite from the saltpeter which were gathered by the saltpeter men. Afterwards, mixing them together with nt matter and ash, to further process into potassium nitrate which could be used for the production of gunpowder Every day, each saltpeter man would be pushing wheelbarrows and knock on the doors of houses one after the other, and with themand g given by Marin in hand, ordering the citizens to bring them to their bathrooms for the feces. As to this order from their Lord Baron, all of the citizens of the ind find it extraordinarily weird. However, Nobles knew how to party so they couldnt do anything about it. After all, the only noble on this ind was just Marin. As for the knight, Schwartz, he was just an attache of Marins. Thats why, on Texel ind, Marins word wasw and nobody would object. Marin had once read a webnovel, so he knew that after feces and urinee into contact with the soil, it would need roughly two dozen days for it to be saltpeter. As for the 6000 citizens on the ind, only the toilets of the native 800 and so were very old, so there was a very thickyer of saltpeter. As for the new arrivals, although the saltpeter was being produced from their feces, but it wasnt at sufficient amounts, but it was still in progress. After all, there was so many people. What made Marin angry was, a lot of the fishermen living by the sea actually tossed their feces into the ocean, that was basically such a serious waste, and such a crime, as well as contaminating the ocean As such, Marin ordered for a public toilet to be constructed downwind of the fishing viges. All of the fishermen families must not dump their feces into the ocean with legitimate reason. Of course, same goes when they go fishing into the ocean. And just like that, Marin hadpleted his entire supply chain of saltpeter on the ind just like that. The saltpeter of the ind, at the start of their service, had stripped all the saltpeter from the toilets of the original 800 natives. Afterwards, Marin ordered them to mobilize once a month to gather all the saltpeter. This is because the generation period for saltpeter takes about 20 or so days. Of course, Marins words didnt mean everything on the ind. For example, there were several churches on the ind, which had bs in their toilets. Against the church, Marin didnt dare send people to demolish their toilet bs. Because Marin was not capable of offending the Church just yet. However, Marin had also thought about another way. For example, he could dig up a pit from a ce away from the church. Then, he can send people into the church, using wheelbarrows to wheel the feces from the church toilets away and into the pits, and wait for the saltpeter to form News of Marin establishing saltpeter men on Texel ind was quickly spread out by the merchants doing trade there. And that news was mostly used as jokes during meals. But there were shrewd merchants who came over to Texel and requested to purchase the saltpeter. But Marin knew that in the future wars, he might not even have enough saltpeter for himself, so how would he sell them? Chapter 79: Season of Harvest Chapter 79: Season of Harvest Autumn, the 3200 and some morgens of rye were ripe for harvest. Leaving aside the 200 morgens ofnd belonging to the Church, the 1000 morgens ofnd under Marin and the 2000 morgens under his underlings had all used the bending plow for ploughing, and the fields were all fertilized with manure. Not only that, when he had nothing to do, Marin also urged the serfs to enter the fields to pull out weeds, preventing them from endangering the growth of rye. Also, the rye on Texel was nted with the hole sowing method, and not the Broadcast seeding methodmonly used by the European farmers of the Middle Ages. Broadcast seeing was truly convenient, but the distribution of seeds were uneven, and was a superficial sowing method. Because the seeds spread through human hands would sometimes cluster together, and sometimes miss spots. If the seeds cluster together, when the seedlings start growing, they wouldpete for nutrients, in the end, the seedlings which were clustered together would not grow well at all. Well the ces without any seeds will easily result in a waste. Hole seeding was different, during sowing, they were already arranged in an array, leaving behind suitable space for the seeds. Before the sowing, Marin directed the serfs to perform salt water seed selection, and choose the better seeds. At the same time, because hole seeding sown the seeds deeper than broadcast seeding, it was more conducive for seed germination Thats why, not only was the effects of this seeding method great, the yield was also good. After the harvest started, Marin specifically sent Kohler to supervise things, and count their yield. As the bundles of wheat straw with their ears were transported to the threshing floor, the serfs split up their manpower and started separating the grains. Everyone divided theirbor clearly, the women used iron sickles to cut down the wheat with their stalks, andid down in the fields. As for the men, a portion of them went into the field, and with crude straw ropes, bundled the wheat stalks together. Then the ones withrger strength were in charge of carrying the bundles of wheat onto the roadside. By the road, a line of horse wagons were waiting there. Some of the men were in charge of tossing the bundled wheat onto the wagons. Then, the wagons would transport the bundled wheat to the threshing floor. At the threshing floor, the wheat with their stalks were thrown down and piled properly. Then, another group of people would start by removing the stalks, with one hand on the stalk and hit the ears of the wheat on rocks, so that the wheat grains and their shell would separate from the stalk. After the separation, because there wererge amounts of chaff mixed within. The farmers started using wooden tools to turn them over. In ripe ears, the chaff and the grains werent firmly fitting. With the involvement of outside forces, and squeezing against each other, the grains were quickly separated from the chaff. Afterwards, the farmers used their tools to scatter the mixture of grains and chaff from high up, against the wind. As the grains had higher density and weighed more, when they were scattered, they would fall straight to the ground, and not deviate far fromnding. As for the chaff, which had low density, with the blow of the wind, they would start flying downwind, and would deviate far from the origin. After repeating this several times, the chaff would gradually be separated from the mixture, leaving mostly grains behind Of course, this wasnt the end. After separating the grains and chaff, the grains needed to be spread on the threshing floor and exposed to the sun, until the grains arepletely dry After a month of busy work, the wheatfields on the ind were finally done harvesting. At the same time, the 200 morgens of soybeans under Marin were basically harvested. After Kohler and co.s calction, the 2800 morgens of ryefields under Marin and his underlings had an average yueld of 3000 pounds per morgen, which converts to about 250 pounds per mu 250 pounds, which was about 227 catty, for Marin who was already used to a yield of thousands of catty per mu in modern times, this was a very low yield. But for Europeans in the Middle Ages, this was an amazingly high yield Because in this day and age, the yield of rye per mu was about 150 pounds. The ces with yield above 200 pounds were only found in Italy which had fertilends As such, the entire ind was in an uproar Come on? The yield is only 3000 pounds per morgen, you call this a harvest? Marin was quite speechless. In modern times, one mu was able to yield that amount, let alone 12 mu ofnd? However, when Marins underlings heard what he said, they were even more speechless Young Master, you must not know much about agriculture. In our Deutd, if the yield could reach 1800 pounds of rye per morgen, then thats already considered a good harvest. Now that the yield reached 3000 pounds, which was more than two-thirds higher than that, how could we not be happy? Kohler said speechlessly. The people around them were all in agreement with what Kohler said, and nodded their heads furiously. Tsk, you guys are this happy with such a small achievement? Really good for nothings. My teacher had told me that in the East, 300 pounds per mu was a verymon happening. Marin had no love to their data, and felt nothing over it. In modern times, whenever their rye fields had a yield of under 1000 pounds per mu, his father and mother would feel like it was bad luck. Thats why, his standards was really high. Alright Boss, your teacher is amazing, so are you Schwartz who was standing nearby had a speechless expression. As for Frundsberg the newly recruited, he had been acting like a spartan for quite some time. His family was a Knight Family, which had their own small farmablends, which was roughly several hundred morgens. Towards the high yield of rye on the ind, he was extremely shocked. As for the other underlings under Marin, they were already used to Marin creating miracles, so they were quite immune to this. Only Frundsberg, who was experiencing the Miracles of Marin for the first time, had a hard time speaking due to sheer shock. Schwartz seemed to have noticed Frundsbergs shock, so he pped Frundsberg on the shoulder, and spoke in a meaningful voice: Alrightd, dont be so surprised. Our Boss just loves to create miracles. Ive been following after him for quite some time now, and the miracles I have witnessed was more than what I had ever seen in the past 20 something years of my life The yield of oats on the other side was also dissatisfactory for Marin. Because the yield of oats was only a measly 120 pounds, which was 108 catty per mu. However, the oat grass of oatwheats were also great fodder. Although the harvest of seeds were a bit low, but it wasnt uneptable. Besides, the yield of oats in the modern times were no more than three-four hundred catty, which was about the same as soybeans. 200 morgens, which was about 2400 mu, 120 pounds per mu, the total yield reached 288 thousand pounds. Currently, the price of wheats in Europe was very expensive, reaching 3 pfennigs per pound, which was basically the daily sry of an artisan. There were important usages for oats, as the horses needed it as feed frequently. There were more than a thousand horses on Texel, so oat consumption was naturally high. As for Marin, he had never considered making money using oats, instead he would be using it to feed the horses. To the point that because the yield of 288 thousand pounds of oats was too much, Marin intended to increase the poption of horses, and cultivate more warhorses. As for these horses, they did not let Marins hopes down. In the Spring, many stallions had sumbed to the enticing of the mares, and performed acts of original sin in the green pastures. When it was Autumn, the bellies of many mares were already bulging Marin had counted, there were roughly 200 and some mares that are foaling, in the start of the uing year, there would be about 200 and some foals being born. Marin was quite delighted, he already decided to hire high-leveled horse breeders, to cultivate these young foals since young, and hope that there would be a good amount of warhorses which wille from them Under the strong suggestion of his underlings, Marin organized a grand harvest feast. All of his underlings, as well as the serfs would be celebrating this harvest. One must know, the 800 morgens of rye under Marins name yielded 2.4 million pounds of rye. As for the other soldiers, each family had about 5 morgens of wheatfield, which also yielded 15 thousand pounds of rye on average. 15 thousand pounds of rye, which was about 15 pfennigs, which was about 93.75 markkas, or 250 gold coins. That might not amount to much for a tycoon like Marin, but for the destitute mercenaries, that was an enormous sum. One must know, those who were selling their lives to be soldiers only had a daily sry of 2 pfennigs, and after one entire year, their yearly sry would amount to only 12 gold coins. 250 gold coins, even if there was only a profit of 150 gold coins, for them, it was already an extremelyrge sum Of course, thesends were more or less the fiefs for the 400 soldiers. As such, Marin did not need to pay them their sries separately. As such, these 400 soldiers were simr to the Fubing of Tang Dynasty, granted their ownnds, they would provide their own weapons and horses, and apany their superior into battle Forget the normal mercenaries, even Schwartz and Frundsberg were envious of this. Marin had already promised to grant Schwartz 100 morgens ofnd, besides, the serfs had already developed thend, now they were waiting for uing Spring to start sowing. As for Frundsberg, Marin had also promised him 50 morgens ofnd. One must know, 5 morgens of ryefields was enough to provide each mercenarys family with 250 gold coins (although the profits was only 150 gold coins, because they needed to deduct the costs, daily spendings and taxes like the Tithe), 100 morgens ofnd, wasnt that basically a sry of 5000 gold coins a year. 50 morgens, that was still 2500 gold coins One must know, a warhorse only costs 100 gold coins Schwartz and Frundsberg both could already imagine how their hands would go numb from counting their gold coins Oh right, Schwartz, George (Frundsberg), both of you must remember this, do not reveal our advanced technology in agriculture to others. Otherwise, if everyone learned it, everyone would have high yield, then the prices of wheat would drop, and we wont have so much ie then But Boss, what about my familys manor? Frundsberg asked. Leave that aside for now, thend you have on this ind is more than enough for you to be rich. If you perform well, Ill grant you another 50 morgens ofnd, it all depends on how well you do Boss, what should we do if an outsider spied our agriculture techniques? Theres a lot of foreign merchants on the ind. Besides, we arent able to control the church on the ind Schwartz asked worriedly. We dont have to worry about the church, what do those clergymen know about farming? Besides, they would not entertain the thought of going to the fields, they would only stay in their churches, things like farming are all done by the serfs, and that doesnt have anything to do with the clergymen. As for the foreign merchants Marin pondered for a moment, then spoke: How about this, in the future, the farmers whoe from outside the ind are only permitted to stay at Port t Horntje for trade, and without authorization, are not allowed to enter the the Ind interior. t Horntje was a port in itself, and there are no fields around it, so they wont be able to figure out anything Good idea, Ill have that done immediately As the Warden of the Ind, Schwartz knew what to do In reality, Marin himself also knew that the use of manure and Chinese farming tools werent exactly advanced technology, and would be easily copied. The Vians also managed to protect the secrets of ss mirrors very well, but still had their secrets stolen from the French, so Marin did not believe they would keep this secret for too long. However, it would still be beneficial if they could keep the secret for longer, at the very least, it would earn more money for everyone, and help improve their familys financial situation. Chapter 80: Winter Wheat Chapter 80: Winter Wheat The days after the Harvest, how to sell off the excess foodstuff was also an important matter for the ind. Excluding the 200 morgens of rye from the church, the 2800 morgens of ryefields owned by Marin and his underlings (another 200 morgens was used to nt oatwheat), yielded a total of 8.4 million pounds of rye. However, there was only a poption of 6000 on the ind, even if the average yearly consumption per capita was 500 pounds of rye, they would only need 3 million pounds, and there was still an excess of 5.4 million pounds. Marin thought about it for a moment, he decided to set aside 5 million pounds and sell that. Each pound of rye was worth 1 pfennig, 5 million pounds was worth 5 million pfennigs, after conversion, that was about 83 thousand gold ducats and more. Originally, Marin intended to sell that to the Wiggins Merchant Association. However, Kohler who had experience roaming the country and had broad knowledge told Marin that the price of foodstuffs in Europe was very unbnced. Kohler had once heard a Jewish merchant say, the price of foodstuff in Europe was the cheapest in Eastern Europe. Lviv of Pnd (now belonging to Ukraine), because the ck soil (chernozem) producedrge quantities of foodstuff, the price of rye was just 0.5 pfennigs per pound; while in Deutd it was 1 pfennigs per pound; in the Ennd area, it was 1.5 pfennigs (penny) per pound; France areas were simr to Deutd; but Spain at the same time had a high price for wheats. Rumor has it, the price of rye around Barcelona reached prices as high as 2 pfennigs per pound, while the price of wheat reached an even higher price of 10 pfennigs per pound. The Italy area was originally a major producer of crops. But due to war and conflict over the past two years, the prices of food had also soared, and wasparable with Spain Which also means, if they ship these rye to Spain, they would gain much more profits. Although that was the n, but Marin was starting to feel depressed. Because he did not own a ship for long voyages To ship the rye towards Spain, it would take a very far naval route. Not only must they be careful of the Antics waves, they must also be wary of pirate attacks. This period of time, the seas were not peaceful. Taking the naval route had a high risk of being targeted by pirates. Unless your ship was an armed merchantman. However, Marin currently only owned a few small ships, so there was no way they could travel far Due to the circumstances, Marin endured the pain, and decided to sell the wheat to Ennd as usual. Ennd was quite close to Texel, being only several hundred kilometers away. Although Marin did not own arge boat, but he could hire trading vessels of arger size to ship the wheat to Ennd and sell it. The prices of food in Ennd was rtively high, the retail price of rye was 1.5 pennies per pound Even their wholesale prices was 1.2 pennies per pound. If this was sold in Deutd, the most they could get was a wholesale price of 0.8 pfennigs per pound. Transporting them over to Ennd, they would obtain another half of the price. Of course, due to the trade sanctions of France towards Texel, Marin was forced to ship the foodstuff towards Ennd without using the name of Texel. As such, Marin specifically sent Kohler to bribe several young, destitute Jewish merchants, so they would represent and establish the North Sea Merchant Association in Amsterdam. Then, under the guise of the North Sea Merchant Association, they hired sea vessels and shipped the rye for sale towards Ennd. Although they were levied by the Britons with import tariffs of 6 pennies per pound, butpared to the difference in wheat prices between Ennd and Deutd, it really was nothing. Besides, the currency of Ennd was quite strong, and was about the same as the strongest imperial currency distributed by the Holy Roman Empire. Unlike the Princes of Northern Deutd, which churned out shoddy coins. For example, the imperial pfennigs had a simr silver content as the English pennies, which made up of about half. While pfennigs distributed by ces like Trier and Cologne only had a silver content of less than 25%, almost bing copper coins Because Ennd had a unified government, and the coinage belonged to the Royal Family, also that the Royal Family of Ennd was not as shameless as the Royal Family of France, so thats why the coins that they minted were quite consistent in value. As such, the economy of Ennd has always been stable. Trading with Ennd was also a good solution. And regardless if they were Britons or French, nobody had realized that this supposed North Sea Merchant Association was actually owned by Marin. Thats why, the trade sanctions set by the French could be considered a missed effort It was hard to me them, Marin had lived through the great economic surge of China in modern times, so towards something like finding loopholes, though he was not proficient at it, he was still leaps and bounds ahead of the people in the Middle Ages. The trade sanctions of the French, with a simple trick of Marin giving the Texel products a disguise, the French were fooled by it In this day and age, there werent spies in the European countries, asmunication and transportation was extremely inconvenient. If Marin did something over here, even if he did it loud and aboveboard, it would still take a long time for France to hear wind about it. Let alone that Marin had carried this out quietly, if the French wanted to get to the bottom of things, who knows how many years it would take them. After taking care of the remaining rye on the ind, Marin was pondering his future arrangements. Currently, aside from the original 3200 morgens of farnd on the ind, Marin had already arranged for the serfs to develop another 3200 morgens of farnd. And this batch of farnd, aside from granting 100 morgens to Schwartz and 50 morgens to Frundsberg. The remaining 3050 morgens was farnd belonged to Marin himself. In order to develop the farnd, Marin mobilized the serfs to fill and level arge swamnd, and after digging up many aqueducts, did he gain this much farnd. In reality, there was much more arablend on the ind. However, Marincked manpower, as he only had serfs in the thousands. In this day and age, agriculture was purely manpower, and there were no mahcines. Thats why, without sufficient manpower, it doesnt matter how muchnd there was. Meanwhile, Texel itself was only 20 000 morgensrge, including the beach and dunes, as well as grasnd, being able to develop 6400 morgens of farnd was basically hitting the limit. Because the freshwater on the ind was only sufficient to irrigate so muchnd. Sea inds were different than ind, ind, as long as there was a river present, there would be an endless source of freshwater, so they could develop thend as much as they wanted, and utilize every inch ofnd. As for inds, the freshwater system was separated from ind, and it was independent. Although Texel was notcking in freshwater, it was still not an endless supply. Being able to irrigate 6400 morgens of farnd was the limit. And it was already impossible to develop more. Otherwise, Marin definitely would have developed more than half of the avablend on Texel into farnd. Based on the habits of Europeans, they were already ustomed to the farrow technique. During the Winter season, Europeans in the Middle Ages normally would not nt any crops. Because they wanted to let the soil rest and recover. In reality, this was only because the Europeans did not know how to use fertilizers, which was why they needed to leave the soil to regain its fertility. It was different for the Chinese, in the Southern region of China, they usually nt crops in two season each year. Aside from the paddy in the Northernmost region which can be nted two to three times per year, the remaining area (mostly the Central Southern part), rotated paddy and wheat. They nt winter wheat during the Autumn, and harvesting wheat during the start of Spring. Then, sow paddy, and harvest that during the Autumn. Because the Chinese had known how to use manure (nitrogen fertilizer) and nt ash (potash fertilizer), thats why even if the soil was endlessly used, they still managed to obtain high yields every year. Thats why, when other people had decided to leave the soil to the grass, Marin decided to nt winter wheat Europe in the Middle Ages, the farmers were used to only one nting season every year. Normally they nt in the Spring, and harvest during the Autumn. There were also winter wheat strains, but when Marin heard about the growth period of the winter wheat, he desperately wanted to curse Because, the winter wheat in Europes Middle Ages was still nted at the end of Autumn, without a doubt, but its growth cycle was really infuriating. Because, the winter wheat in this period of Europe, although also nted in October and November, but the harvest period had to wait until July/August of the next year While Marin clearly remembered that in his previous life, the winter Wheat was clearly harvested during May. After the harvest, they could fertilize the soil with some amount of manure, and there was still sufficient time to nt paddies. Then, during October, the paddies would be ripe for harvest However, the terribly infuriating European winter wheat actually needed to grow for two more monthspared to modern times, which was the end of Spring and start of Summer, so there wouldnt be enough time to nt anything else. By the time the winter wheat was harvested, the farnd had to be left alone for a few more months, awaiting the next sowing of winter wheat, resulting in a serious waste of farnd. However, thinking back to why the Europeans were still carrying outrge-scale fallows, that amount of wastage wasnt that odd Wheat was different than rye, in Europe, the price of wheat far surpasses that of rye. In Deutd, the price of one pound of rye was only 1 pfennigs. While for a pound of wheat, it would be as high as 5 pfennigs. The difference in prices was as much as 5 folds. In the future, this difference would only increase, and reach 7 folds. Wheat was different than rye, rye was much easier to take care of, and they could be treated rougher during sowing, they also did not have a high requirement for water. As for wheat, they were much more delicate than rye, the amount of irrigation they needed also surpasses that of rye. The Europeans during the Middle Ages were more crude in their farming, normally they would just till thends with a plow, sprinkle rye seeds, water the fields and go home. Then, they sit and wait, waiting for harvest time The farming techniques Marin had promoted for nting rye, hole seeding, deep ploughing, weeding and fertilizing, were actually techniques used for delicate wheat. This time, the serfs were more ustomed to the procedure. As such, when they were nting 500 morgens of winter wheat, it was smooth sailing for them. The only thing was, because they were using native breeds of Europe Middle ages, the next time they harvest the wheat would have to be the uing July/August, which was really a scam However, considering the expensive price of wheat, even if they wasted one farming season, the price of wheat which was 5 times higher than rye was more than sufficient for Marin to earn way more. But Marin was unsatisfied with just that, if they had winter wheat with a slightly faster growth cycle, Marin could still be able to nt soybeans after that. In this case, not only would Marin receive arge amount of soybean oil, he would also be able to provide better fodder than oats for the horses. Also, soybeans could fix nitrogen, which would increase the fertility of the soil. Using soil which had previously been nted with soybeans, and nting winter wheat afterwards, the soil would appear much more fertile However, even if he wanted to obtain winter wheat strains with slower growth cycles, Europe naturally had none, neither did Marin learn about agricultural technology, so he did not know how to breed excellent wheat strains. Thats why, he could only consider going to the Ming Dynasty of China in order to purchase winter wheat strains with faster growth cycles, as well as the versatile soybeans Thats why, the great voyage was still a great necessity. Besides, Marin suddenly remembered that winter wheat required to be fertilized with potash. Potash fertilizers could help winter wheat endure the cold, as well as increasing the yield. In Germany, there was a rich reserve of potassium salt, at one time, Germany was still the greatest exporter of potash fertilizer. Like the Harz Mountainrange, there were severalrge potassium salt deposits there. Marin was starting to make calctions in his mind, whether or not he should send someone to purchase the mining rights for those potassium salt deposits, to act as his potash fertilizer reserves. After all, relying solely on nt ash as potash fertilizer, the potash content was too low Chapter 81: Scraps from Fileting Fish Chapter 81: Scraps from Fileting Fish When talking about potash fertilizer, as a countryside kid, Marin naturally thought about phosphate fertilizer. When fertilizing crops, normally all three types of nitrogen, phosphate and potash fertilizers were needed. The manure by the Ancient Chinese as fertilizer, was actually nitrogen fertilizer. Because manure contained nitrogen. However, only nitrogen fertilizer by itself was insufficient. The Europeans do not use fertilizer, thats why the yield of their wheat was only slightly over a hundred catty per mu. After the Chinese people used manure, the yield per mu reached over 200 catty. Later, aside from manure, the Chinese also sprinkled wood ash into the fields. Wood ash contains potassium, so it was barely considered a type of lesser potash fertilizer. After using those two natural fertilizers, the wheat yield of the Chinese people could reach 300 catty per mu. As for the paddy fields of Jiangnan, due to therge system of trenches, there were a lot of fish and shrimp within. And these fish and shrimp contained high amounts of phosphorus within them. After they die, the phosphorus content will seep into the ground. And the effects of this was quite simr to the phosphate fertilizer in modern times. Thats why, certain paddy fields in Jiangnan which had fertilized with manure, wood ash and high phosphate content, had a very high yield per mu, reaching 500 to 600 catty. Because in these fields, they contained all three elements of nitrogen, phosphate and potassium Of course, the ancient people did not understand the theory of fertilizers, and did not know that dead fish and shrimp would fertilize the soil. As such, there had been the saying that thends of Jiangnan were fertiile, while those in the North were barren. Actually, that wasnt even the case. It had been proven that in modern times, as long as all three types of fertilizers were used, the Northern and Southern fields would have the same production yield. On Texel, Marin was promoting the use of manure, as well as promoting the use of potash. Hwoever, the nt resources on Texel wasnt as abundant than ind. Because the potassium content of wood ash was very limited, thats why Marin deployed some men to the Harz Mountains to purchase bitter salt ores (potassium salt ore), and use the salt directly as potash fertilizer. However, this phosphate fertilizer was a bit difficult to get ones hands on. Because Moro which was a major producer of phosphate fertilizer, was not something Marin could mess with. Even the other location which was a major producer of phosphate fertilizers, Western Sahara, was also under the control of the Morans. Marin had once read other transmigration novels, and know that around Laayoune, Western Sahara, there was an extremelyrge phosphate mine with reserves of up to 2 billion tonnes, and wasnt far away from the coast. However, that was currently under the control of the Morans. Moro wasnt a strong country, but neither was it weak. Them mustering up an army of 10 thousand or 20 thousand Arabian cavalry was definitely not a problem. Thats why, if he wanted to seize the phosphate mine, he would have to first go past the scimitars of the Morans. As for trading with the Morans to purchase phosphate ore, that would be possible a hundred years from now, but absolutely not currently Because after the 17th century, the Roman Curia has declined, and they no longer hold much influence, so everybody could trade with heretics without a problem. However, this was still the end of the 15th century, and the influence of the Curia was still very strong. If it were strong countries like Spain or Portugal, they probably could disregard the Curia. But for Marins Texel, they didnt dare to oppose the Curia. To do trade with heretics, especially with the nemesis of Christians, it would easily cause the Curia to brand them as heretics. The Curia might not fight that well, but currently the Curia was able to muster lots of people. If he entered the cklist of the Curia, Marin could do nothing but wait for a group beating. Thats why, before the Reformation in Europe and Religious Wars ur, Marin would definitely not dare to oppose the Roman Curia before then. As for defeating Moro, that wasnt possible for the time being. Thats why, Marin needed to think another solution for the problem of phosphate fertilizers He recalled that when he learned Chemistry in high school, Marin had heard his Chemistry teacher mention that the bones and scales of fish were rich in phosphate. Even the meat and organs of fish had a decent amount of phosphate. Which also means that fishbones, fish scales and fish organs could be used as crude phosphate fertilizer? Marin sat on his desk as he pondered. Arriving at that conclusion, Marin brought along several servants, and went to the two fishing ports t Horntje and Oudeschild by horse, to perform field research. As expected, whenever the fishing boats return to port, andrge amounts of saltwater fish were unloaded, the fishermen started filetting the fishes Large amounts of scales were removed and tossed to the grund. Large amounts of fish organs were discarded, some even tossed into the sea And every time after finishing their meal, many of the fishermen families would leave behind lots of fishbones, which were treated like trash and thrown away Damnit! Thats too wasteful! Marin who was doing a field investigation couldnt help but feel pain in his heart. Young Master, whats wrong? Scholl the attendant asked. These are all quality phosphate fertilizer! Theyre thrown away just like that! Phosphate fertilizer? What the hecks that? Scholls mind was filled with questions. You wouldnt understand even if I told you Marin shook his head. The next day, Marin decreed, all fishermen in the tworge fishing ports, the scraps from filleting fish (aside from fish guts which contained toxic cyanide), as well as fish bones after eating fish, must all be gathered and handed in. If anybody throw them away by privately, they will be fined As for the gathered scraps such as fishscales, fish organs and fishbones, Marin intended to organize some people to dry them under the sun, then crush them and process them into natural fertilizer like wood ash. Or, he could just toss them into the cesspits, to ferment along with excrements and wood ash into manure. Although the phosphate content from filleting scraps was nowhere near phosphate fertilizers. However, it would still provide an effect simr to wood ash. Also, due to Marins strong support, currently in the tworge fishing ports of t Horntje and Oudeschild, counting onlyrge fishing boats with discement tonnage over 100 tonnes, there were already more than twenty. Everyday, the amount of scraps produced by the fishing ports from filleting fish reached several dozen tonnes and more. As for these scraps, no matter what happens the phosphate content would be at about 1%. Although it was iparable to specialized phosphate fertilizer, but if the quantity was greater, it would still function as phosphate fertilizer. Manure (nitrogen fertilizer), potash fertilizer (potassium salt) and phosphate fertilizer (fish scraps) were all in one ce, forget reaching the standards of modern times with yields of thousand catty per mu, at the very least, it would be simr to the paddy fields like Jiangnan during the Ming Dynasty, reaching yields of 500-600 catty per mu Which also means, the fishing scraps which were originally thrown away as trash by the fishermen, had been put into use by Marin as primitive and natural phosphate fertilizer Chapter 82: Officially Forming the Phalanx Chapter 82: Officially Forming the Phnx Time has advanced to the end of Autumn, the gunsmiths and armorsmiths who Marin was looking forward to, had been recruited from Spain and Southern Deutd, respectively. In order to recruit these smiths, Marin had gone through a lot of trouble. Because Marin was extremelycking in talented people under hismand. Also, none of his underlings understood Spanish. As such, without any choice, Marin could only request assitance from the Jewish merchants who had traveled across Europe. The sad thing was, the Jewish merchants were doing okay in the other countries, but it was a tragedy for them in Spain. Because, in 1492, Spain (including the Kingdom of Aragon and Kingdom of Castile) under the reign of the King and Queen, started their oppression towards the Jewish people. Jews within the borders of Spain, excluding the small minority which changed their faith to Catholicism, the remaining majority were all exiled from the borders, their wealth were all confiscated and robbed frm them. Thats why, even the resourceful Jewish merchants were unable to travel to anti-semitic Spain, in order to help Marin hire smiths who knew how to build muskets and other firearms. However, luckily, a Jewish merchant had an idea he would personally request an acquainted Italian merchant to go on business to Spain, and hire the gunsmiths in their stead. Like that, after paying double the sry, Marin had finally obtained 20 Spanish smiths who were proficient in crafting arquebuses lik muskets. While the recruitment of the armorsmiths were much easier, because the armorsmiths all hailed from Southern Deutd region. Marin simply hired several eloquent merchants, and had them hire 30 armorsmiths from regions like Augsburg and Nuremberg. In truth, Marin did notck any armor, there was still 1000 sets of te armor looted from the French in his possession. However, full-te armor was truly too heavy, and was only suitable for heavy cavalry. But what Marin wanted to do, was form the Tercio, which prioritized the infantry. Thats why, even if they removed and wore just the breastte of the full-te armor, it would still be too bulky. Aside from that, the bulkiness was the least problematic. The main thing was, the waist of the full-te armor was basically restricted by the armor itself, and doesnt help in turning or mobility. The reason why Marin recruited these armorsmiths was to have them make steel helmets and breasttes. Aside from that, they also needed to make linked chain belts. As the breastte worn by infantrymen, naturally it would be a three-quarter brastte with two tes at the front and back. However, a breastte like that doesnt defend the waist. If the enemys spearmen start stabbing at their waists, then that would be too bad. Thats why Marin thought about it, and decided to outfit the soldiers with linked chain belts which do not affect their mobility, but still providing some defense. After the smiths have arrived, Marin quickly importedrge amounts of iron ingots, iron chains (for use in linked chain belts), which were used to smith muskets and the three types of infantry armor steel helmets, three-quarter breasttes and linked chain belts. Of course, the production of spears and sapper shovels did notg behind. After putting in long periods of work, by the end of November, the smiths have produced 200 muskets and arge quantity of infantry armor. With equipment ready, recruiting soldiers for the Tercio was immediately raised to the top of schedule Marin remembered that the earliest batch of German mercenaries seemed to have hailed from Alsace, Wrttemberg, Baden and Austrias Tyrol region. The farmers of Alsace, the mountainfolk of Wrttemberg, were the main force of the Landsknechts in its early days. Alsace was located at the border region of the Holy Roman Empire and France, thend there was fertile. However, there was too many people and too fewnd. Thats why, there was a rich excess ofbor force. For example, the serfs who were chased away by their manor owners. As for the Wrttemberg region, the majority of thend was mountaind, there were lots of mountainfolk, which made them swift and fierce folk. That was quite simr with the Swedish region. Swedish mercenaries were basically made up of Swedish mountainfolk. The mountainfolk who lived in the mountains had great stamina because they frequent the mountain paths. And since they lived off the mountain, they would frequently go hunting in the mountains, so there might be times when they would have to battle with beasts. Also, because the mountain region was quite poor, they would sometimes have to endure hunger, so their willpowers were quite strong. Thats why, their survival skills and fighting skills would usually surpass the farmers living on the ins regions. For example, the brave Danyang soldiers in the Three Kingdoms era, all hailed from Danyang province which was nothing but mountainranges. As for Kahn and Kohler, they both hailed from the borders of the ck Forest in the Kingdom of Wrttemberg. Marin has taken into ount that the Austrias Tyrol region was the private domain of the House of Habsburg, and the people living there would usually be loyal to the House of Habsburg. Thats why, Marin first and foremost removed the Tyrol region from his recruitment list. As such, Marins choices were only left with the Alsace region and BadenWrttemberg region. After careful consideration, Marin had decided to recruit half of the men he needed from each region. Amongst that, the one who would be going to the BadenWrttemberg region for recruiting, naturally would be Kohler. Kahn would lead a troop of soldiers as escort, to protect Kohler as well as leading the new recruits back to Texel. As for the one going to Alsace, it would be Schwartz. He would be in charge of recruiting bankrupt farmers and serfs in the Alsace region, The farmers of Alsace may not beparable in fighting power to the brave mountainfolk of Wrttemberg, but they were good at listening to orders. However, these soldiers who came from a serf background might listen to orders, but they stillcked courage. Thats why, Marin needed themonly brave mountainfolk of Wrttemberg, to lead these Alsace farmers. The bravery of the mountainfolk might spur the Alsace farmers on to be more courageous. While the discipline of the Alsace farmers would infect the overly free mountainfolk. It could also be said that the two parties would affect each other. What Marin wanted to achieve, was to mix the two poptions together, so that they would affect each other, and direct them to develop in a good way. As for the Father of Germanic Mercenaries, Frundsberg, Marin did not arrange for him to participate in the recruitment. In Deutd, recruiting soldiers was an important skill. If someone was able to recruitrge amounts of mercenaries in a short amount of time, then this person would definitely be eyecatching. Because in this era where mercenaries ran rampant. Whoever possesses more mercenaries, whoever would possess higher status. Obviously, Schwartz and the Kahn brothers were the trusted aides of Marin. So naturally they would be prioritized to train their recruitment ability. As for Frundsberg, he was a hired bruiser which Marin had decided to gift to the Emperor, and not Marins trusted aide. As such, an important skill such as recruiting soldiers in the era of mercenaries wasnt something Marin wished to train him in. Also, because Marin was poaching many Frisians, and recruited plenty of Frisian fishermen, Marin was worried that the Lordship of Frisia woulde looking for trouble. As such, Marin also needed Frundsberg to lead 300 defenders, to stay and guard Denburg, in precaution against the possible attack from the Lordship of Frisia. At the same time, Marin had promised Frundsberg, that themander for the first Phnx of Texel, shall be held by Frundsberg. This made the young Frundsberg extremely excited, and he was extremely grateful towards Marin. And the small matter of not allowing him to recruit soldiers, Frundsberg immediately put that down. Before Schwartz and the Kahn brothers departed, Marin had specifically urged them to not recruit the unemployed people in the city, no matter what. Because the unemployed in the cities weremonly thugs, stern folk who feared the strong and preyed on the weak. It would be fine if they fought in a winning battle, but if the battle was tough, they would easily flee the battle. As for the serfs and mountainfolk, though they might not have seen much, they were more sincere and obedient. These were simple folk, and were not as sly as cityfolk, making them easier to be swayed. And for these people, if they were trained and swayed properly, they would definitely be a strong military force Chapter 83: Coastal Defense Artillery Chapter 83: Coastal Defense Artillery Marins worries had turned into reality, through the information the merchants had brought him, he was informed that the Lordship of Frisia was extremely discontent about Marins rampant act of recruiting the Frisian fishermen. As for these Frisian fishermen, originally, arge majority of their fishing harvest would have to be surrendered to the Lords of Frisia. However, when Marin recruited them over, it was equivalent to robbing the profits of the Frisian nobles. Thats why, in the Groningen Summit between the Lordship of Frisia, they were currently discussing whether or not to teach Marin a lesson To kill Marin, was not something the Frisian nobles dared to do, as that would be breaking the rules, as well as offend the Emperor, which would provide a casus belli for the Emperor to annex them. However, sending troops to attack Texel, loot and ransack the ce while recapturing the Frisian fishermen who were recruited over, was absolutely problemless, neither would anybody speak foul of them. Because it was Marin who first stole away the Frisian fishermen. Naturally, Marin would not act like a sitting duck, as such, he intended to increase the defense of Texel Although Texel was an ind, it was a bit special. Because this ind couldnt bended from all sides. The main thing was, two-thirds of the coast around Texel were all very shallow ocean areas. Whenever the tide ebbs, two-thirds of the shallow ocean region would turn into beaches filled with mud. When the tide rises, itll turn back into a shallow sea. If people attempt tond through these areas, the ships would easily be stranded. Smaller vessels were fine, but therger ones absolutely must not approach the coast from these areas, otherwise they would definitely run aground. Throughout the entirety of Texel, only Marsdiep at the Southern region, which was connected to the Southeastern region of Oudeschild, had waters which were deep enough, and was suitable forrger vessels to dock, as well as disembark. Thats why, to guard against attacks from the Lordship of Frisia, all they needed to do was ce defenses on the Southern and Southeastern regions of the ind coasts. Amongst them, the bulk of the defenses should be ced by t Horntje and Oudeschild, and their neighbouring coasts. And the best way to defend against the attacking vessels of the Lordship of Frisia, based on the most effective way in current times, was probably to build artillery batteries. Heavy cannons could be ced on artillery batteries, and exchange fire with iing hostile warships. Also, artillery batteries are usually built by stone, and was good at withstanding cannonballs. But the same could not be said for warships, the warships of the current times, all the way until the mid 19th-century, were all built from wood. So their durability against metal cannonballs were very limited. Wooden warships exchanging fire with artillery cannons in a stone fort, it was obvious which would lose. Besides, the coastal artillery cannons could be built very heavy and veryrge, maximizing the firepower. While the cannons on the wooden ships would usually have many limitations, and cannot be built too heavily. Otherwise, if arge cannon was installed on a small ship, with the recoil from the cannon, it might actually capsize the ship. As such, Marin immediately made his decision, to construct artillery batteries at t Horntje and Oudeschild, in preparation against the possible attacks from the Lordship of Frisia. Texel currently did not have the ability to construct cannons, neither did they have the required smiths. It was currently the end of the 15th century, cannonsmiths were still the cream of the crop of European talents. Even in those strong countries, a smith who knew how to make cannons was amongst their elite. Marin could easily recruit gunsmiths, but it would be difficult to recruit cannonsmiths. As such, he could only purchase cannons. For that, Marin sent out his men, and hired the Jewish merchants to have them seek out information of cannons After some information gathering, Marin was informed that the cannon-smithing ability of the Holy Roman Empire was quite average, they could only build small bronze cannons, for use innd warfare. This was because the Holy Roman Empire was a country mainly based ind. Also, in the southern parts of the Empire, the ces near the Alps, cannons must be easy to carry, as well as capable of scaling the Alps. Thats why, the cannons cant be built toorge. While the cannons required for the artillery batteries must be heavy cannons. Thats why, the cannons within the Holy Roman Empire obviously did not match with the required description. Other than that, France was also a country which ced lots of importance in making cannons, their cannon-making techniques were not bad. However, because Marin had made Charles VIII turn into an embarassment. It was basically impossible for them to purchase cannons from the French. As such, Marin could only turn his gaze towards other countries Ennd, Portugal and Spain However, the people sent over there did not return with good news. The men sent over to Spain and Portugal returned news saying that the most popr cannons were bronze breech-loading swivel guns which was what the people of Ming Dynasty called Frankish cannons. These cannons only had a range of 2000 feet, and was unsuitable to be used as coastal defense artillery. Even as cannons for warships, the firepower was consideredcking. However, because the world was just entering the Age of Exploration, Europeans did not value cannon firepower that much. Thats why, these bronze swivel guns being popr was also within reason. The development of European cannons was around the 16th century, due to necessity for naval warfare, heavy cannons like the muzzle-loading culverins were invented. Also, bronze swivel guns werent capable to be made withrge calibers. Because there was a major w in bronze it bes malleable when heated. The bronze guns with smaller calibers were fine, but it was different for therger ones. The guns withrge calibers have high pressure. When the barrel gets heated, the barrel walls turn soft. Although bronze wouldnt be as soft as pure copper after heating, it still would be soft. Thats fine for small caliber cannons, but becauserge caliber cannons have high pressure, so it would easily cause the barrel walls to contort when it was fired after overheating. If that happens, then that cannon would be scrapped. As such, bronze swivel guns cant be made toorge, and only medium-sized ones can be made. If one wants heavy cannons, then the only option was iron-cast artillery cannons. Also, the cost of making iron cannons was much much lower than making a bronze one. After all, before the development of copper mines in Falun, Sweden, and the Dutch obtaining Japanese copper, the price of copper in Europe was still very expensive. To userge amounts of copper to make an artillery cannon, the price of one would definitely be exorbitant. Marin was originally very disappointed, but there came good news frm Ennd The personnel sent to purchase cannons from Ennd had been split into several parties. The first few parties did not bring back any good news. But the ones sent to Sussex County brought home good news. Sussex County was a coastal area Southeast of Ennd, and had always been the developed area of Ennd, as well as the heart of iron smelting in Ennd. Since Dijon, France had discovered iron smelting in the mid 15th century, this technique had slowly been spreading outwards, and a dozen years ago, reached Weald of Sussex County, located across the shore of France. As such, with the cannonsmiths of Sussex County, they attempted to make cannons out of iron-cast. Because the cost of iron-cast was much cheaper than copper. After a dozen years of experimenting, the cannonsmiths of Sussex County had managed to craft culverin cannons out of iron. ording to the description of his underlings, the iron cannon prototypes were considered 12 pound cannons. Originally, the old cannonsmith, Johnson wanted to make 18 pound culverin cannons. However, with the ironsmithing technologies in this day and age When old Johnson wanted to make 18 pound calibers, because of the quality of the steel, the cannons keep misfiring. Because of that, Old Johnsons nephew was heavily injured from the explosion and became crippled. Without any choice, Old Johnson had to reduce the caliber without reducing the overall weight of theanon, as such the iron-cast cannon was a 12-pounder ss. In order to research and develop this front-loading heavy iron cannon, Old Johnson had basically used up all his wealth. For the time being, he had only achieved preliminary progress. Old Johnsons goal was to upgrade the iron cannons into 18 pound heavy cannons. Then, with his unmatched skill, to receive his reward from the king 18 pound culverin cannon could it be this is the legendary culverin cannon? Marin was astonished. He remembered, a century and sometimeter, the first batch of culverin cannons the Portugese sold to the Ming Dynasty, appeared to have been 18 pound culverin cannons salvaged from a sunk British ship. As for this old cannonsmith called Johnson, it was very likely that he was one of the earliest developers of the culverin cannon. Thats a talent, we must not let him escape our grasp! As such, Marin ordered his men to go to Weald in Sussex County, Ennd, and recruit Old Johnson and his family over to Texel, to make cannons for Marin. Marins underlings have already scouted information ahead of time, because there was still the aftermath frm the War of the Roses in Ennd, Henry VII was still having headaches to clean up the remaining opposition within his borders. Thats why, he wasnt paying attention to cannonsmithing. As for Old Johnson, he wasnt one of the imperial cannonsmiths within the army, and was just a civilian cannonsmith, only having assisting the official smiths in making cannons. Also, the iron cannons made by Old Johnson werent finalized and mass produced, so it was not rmended to the king, let alone being epted or valued. As such, Old Johnson was still not considered a cannonsmith at the level of a national treasure. Thats why recruiting Old Johnson wasnt anything difficult, at the very least they wouldnt be stopped from the English officers. Marin had specifically sent out Mayor Haider Lermann of Denburg to lead the party, to head towards Weald of Sussex County, and secretly recruit Old Johnson and family. And after offering the young adults of Old Johnsons family a high daily wage of 1 sterling (the daily wage of the average smith was 3 pennies), Johnsons entire cannonsmithing family had uprooted and moved to Texels Denburg as a whole, and started making cannons for Marin. As for Old Johnsons problem of the cannons misfiring, Marin actually had a solution for that. The reason why the iron-cast cannons misfired was no other than the iron they used contained high amounts of impurities, for example, sulphur and phosphorus, which caused the barrel itself to be brittle. Also, raw iron contained high amounts of carbon, although it was strong, itcked in tenacity, and wasnt suited for making cannons. The suitable steel for making cannons, were actually wrought iron and mid-low carbon steel. As for how to smelt iron, Marin may not be a professional, but he had already learned plenty of theoretical knowledge from other transmigration novels. For example, he knew that the most important secret why the early iron cannons made by the Britons did not misfire easily, was because they used reverbatory furnaces to perform secondary refining on molten steel. A reverbatory furnace, was basically a rtively sealed furnace (including the air inlet and outlet). After adding raw iron and scrap iron into the furnace, because the heat energy was trapped in an enclosed space, it could not be dispersed, after reaching the top of the furnace and furnace walls, it was reflected back and focused onto the melting iron. After several hours of refining, and adding gging agents (the most crude gging agent was quicklime, which can be used for clearing sulphur and phosphorus). Then, after cleaning the g (because of the difference in density, the g would float on the surface of the molten metal, fishing it out would be fine), wrought iron or steel (need to control carbon content) would be obtained. As for the renowned open hearth furnace, it was just adding a regenerator chamber within the reverbatory furnace. The British Empire hadpletely mastered the technique of reverbatory furnace refining in the 18th century, this also allowed the Britons to craft well-made iron cannons which do not misfire easily. While the French did not understand this technique, and until the early 19th century, their ship cannons still misfire easily. Until the mid-19th century, France and the other European countries had started to catch wind of the reverbatory furnace refining technique. But closely after that, the open-hearth furnace had appeared, and humanity had entered the era of refining steel using open-hearth furnaces. As for cannons, they have also entered the era of forged cannons from cast cannons. (A forge cannon was made by cing a steel pir under arge hydraulic press of several thousand or even ten-thousand tonnes, and with high-pressure cold forging, to make the inner structure extremelypact and solid. Then, with the forged steel pir, a high strength drill would be used to drill holes into it, and one would obtain a cannon barrel with extremely solid and durable walls. As for cannons made frm casting, because the atomic structure of the cannon was more sparse, the chamber pressure it could withstand would be much lower than forged cannons of the same mass. Thats why, the casting cannons of the early days usually would have thick cannon barrels. Andpared to the forged cannons of modern times had barrels which were much slimmer.) Marin wasnt someone who studied steel, but he did read a good amount of rted technology articles. He himself didnt know how to do it, but he could still direct others to do it. For example, the structure for this reverbatory furnace was very simple. He could totally supervise his smiths to make one, then create high quality wrought iron and steel. Then, using wrought iron or mid-low carbon steel cannons, it would undoubtedly be much ter than the iron-cast cannons with plenty of impurities, as well as not misfiring easily. Of course, the reverbatory furnace refining technique, was an advanced technology that only appeared in the 18th century, so Marin couldnt reveal it easily. Thats why, he needed to consider if he wanted to have his serfs which were limited in freedom to perform this task. Because the serfs are unable to leave their residences without valid reason, so there were no circumstances they would leak this technology. To the point that the life and death of a serfs family was entirely in the hands of their Lords, so the risk and cost of betrayal was extremely high. As for smiths like Old Johnson who were recruited, their identities were more free. If other people paid him a higher price, he would probably be unable to withstand the temptation and leak the technology. Also, before Old Johnson had arrived in Texel, he had already signed an agreement with Haider Lermann, stipting that Texel must not restrict their personal freedom. To that, even Marin must obey that contract. Otherwise, he would be unable to recruit more smiths. Of course, all of that was for the future. The most important thing for Marin right now, was for the Johnson family to craft more 12 pound cast iron cannons for him as coastal defenses. Currently, 3-pounders, 4-pounders and 6-pounder cannons were popr in Europe, and those exceeding 10 pounds were considered heavy cannons. If Marin used 12-pound cannons on his coastal artillery batteries, it would definitely be enough to suppress the warships of the Lordship of Frisia. Because based on their intel, onboard the few warships the Lordship of Frisia owned, thergest caliber cannon they had were 6-pounders, and was absolutely not a match for 12 pounders. The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!