novelsmap Chapter 11 Hopeless Loyalty
Chapter 11 Hopeless Loyalty
It was almost late at night, but Snow Lion Castle was brightly lit, and the number of sentry posts on the streets and outside of Neverwinter City doubled compared to usual.Under the curfew, although the residents of the capital put out the candles in their homes, the tense situation outside made it difficult to sleep.They curled up in thick or thin quilts, listening to the movement outside the house with their ears pricked up.
The forward messenger attached to the ear of Karlan, who had not slept for two nights, and quickly reported the situation to him.Karlan got up immediately, walked out of the meeting room with his subordinates who were also waiting in battle, and walked quickly to the outer gate of Snow Lion Castle following the metal sound of the heels of the soldiers on both sides clashing as they saluted.
Standing at the gate of Snow Lion Castle, they heard the sound of the heavy south gate opening from a distance.Immediately there was a dense sound of horseshoes - all the people waiting at the scene were Baiwan people who had experienced battles, and they could easily hear that besides the brisk and powerful horses, there was also a car full of people or things that made the sound. carriage.The wheels are dragged by horses across the cobblestone streets, and the sound of squeezing and friction between wooden and metal parts makes the riders and viewers a little uneasy.
The unpretentious carriage and the escorting cavalry squad stopped in front of Snow Lion Castle.The coachman was dressed as an ordinary farmer, but after stopping the car, he quickly jumped out of his seat and performed the Baiwan army's audience salute in front of Karlan.Karlan quickly raised his hand, and he stepped aside. The castle servants who had been waiting behind him immediately brought him water and bread.
Karlan stepped forward quickly and stretched out his hand to open the door curtain of the carriage.The family of five behind the door curtain was dressed in civilian clothes, but their skin was white and smooth after careful maintenance, but they looked haggard and desolate due to panic and running around for days.A middle-aged man who looks gentle and gentle, but with a weak expression is sitting in front, subconsciously protecting his wife and children behind him: his wife looks nervous, her face is pale, and a few strands of messy blond hair are scattered outside the dark brown headscarf. She was holding the three children tightly in her arms with her thin arms.The three children were still young, with fluffy golden curly hair and confused immature faces, it was not easy to tell whether they were boys or girls at first glance.
The man cleared his throat so that his voice would not tremble: "Are you Karlan, the lord of the White Bay Territory?"
Karlan nodded, took two steps back and knelt down on one knee, his head drooping slightly, and his right hand clenched into a fist on his chest. "Yes, Your Majesty the Emperor." He said respectfully.
He must admit that he was disappointed when he saw this "noble man" with the title of emperor but no real power; The heir to the blood, Karlan had no choice.
"I will use my life and the entire Baiwan Territory to defend the royal bloodline," Karlan lowered his eyes, and the other side of his pious words was the inability to oppose almost the entire empire. "Whatever the cost."
The anti-royal alliance army has a large number of people and a rapid offensive. It obviously has an overwhelming advantage in the central plain; but when it approaches the northern foothills and the western part of Chen Bing Baiwan, it encounters insurmountable problems: neutrality to avoid war, temporary closure of the border The Juhu Territory happened to occupy the widest of the several main roads leading to the Baiwan Territory, and the remaining western passes were either dangerous in terrain, easy to defend and difficult to attack, or muddy and difficult to move.The battering rams and crossbows are difficult to transport in the large battering rams and crossbows, and the enemy's top-down stone and arrow attacks are very efficient, with limited tactics. The width, the unfamiliar geographical environment, the bad weather, and the solid stone city defenses forced them to camp outside the mountains.
From this point of view, it is not an easy task to defeat the Baiwan collar who is almost all soldiers in a short period of time.
But the troubled emperor didn't seem to think so.
Karlan placed them in the heavily guarded Snow Lion Fort.In fact, he understands better than anyone else that this is probably the last line of defense of the royal family: as long as it lasts for a few more months, winter will come, and winter is often the most reliable natural barrier for Baiwan collar; [-]. When the food in the south cannot be transported to the north, how long can they last after winter?Whenever he thinks of these cruel realities, Karlan is thankful for his natural hair color-outsiders will not see which gray hairs are born due to anxiety and exhaustion.
"Let's surrender." In the high-level military meeting of the Baiwan leadership, the emperor who was in the upper seat said suddenly.Not loud, but enough for everyone present to hear.In fact, he lacks the toughness and indisputability of being an emperor, but is more like an illegitimate son of a nobleman who is well-clothed but accustomed to being wronged.This may have something to do with him living in the deep palace for a long time but staying away from power, knowing that he can only be manipulated by others.To a desperate and troubled emperor, a crown is as worthless as straw discarded by the roadside.
The generals and ministers present at the meeting, whether they belonged to the hardliners or the compromisers, were speechless for a while.They looked at each other, and finally set their sights on Karlan.
Karlan didn't seem to hear the emperor's words.He put down the emergency reports from various grain stations in his hand, and turned to the grain requisition officer with an anxious expression: "Reduce the expenditure of the reserve army, as a special case in wartime—except for the front-line troops." He turned his gaze to the sitting opposite foreign secretary. "No letter from Juhu leader?"
After getting a negative answer, Karlan nodded, and said to himself: "It's better this way. I don't think they will make a move. This means openly opposing the Allies." He talked to several ministers for a few more times. After a few words, he looked at the emperor who didn't even intend to pretend to be arrogant, and the tone of the question was not only unbelievable, but also somewhat disappointed and unwilling: "Your Majesty, what did you just say?"
The emperor sighed.He cleared his throat and looked at Karlan almost sadly: "I said——we can consider surrendering. We have no chance of winning if this continues. Compromising now may save my child's life." After that, he said like It was finally getting rid of the predicament that had been entangled for a long time, and a forced smile appeared on his face.
Karlan stared blankly at the emperor: "Are you really planning to do this?"
"Yes." The emperor did not take back his words.
In this way, Karlan could not continue to comfort himself with the excuse of "I heard it wrong" - the emperor's words were serious.What's more tragic, even Karlan couldn't deny that what the other party said was true. He knew the end of going against the current situation and continuing to resist, but between interests and loyalty, the Snow Lion family and the Baiwan collar had chosen more than once. the latter.
Even if the object of loyalty regards this stupid insistence as a laughing stock, Karlan will habitually swallow this unintentional ridicule out of loyal instinct, so as to write a sad final chapter for himself.
At that moment, Karlan felt as if all his strength had been sucked out. His face turned pale and his body was cold. He could almost hear the sound of blood rushing in his head. It can barely support the body that seems to be unconscious and stiff.
Karlan frowned, his bloodless lips moved, and his voice trembled: "You should understand that they will never stop here. I hope you will not regret this decision, Your Majesty the Emperor." He stared fixedly The emperor's eyes seemed to look into the palace that had already collapsed deep in his heart.The latter was startled by his eyes, and felt horrified. He almost forgot that although Karlan was his savior, he was his loyal subject before that.
A few days later, when the soldiers who got up early and patrolled the forward camp of the Anti-Royal Alliance Army saw the white flag rising slowly on the opposite tower, they could hardly believe their eyes.
This is the first time that Baiwan collar lowered its noble head to outsiders in several centuries.