Your Mightiness

England is singing and dancing in peace, but abroad it is full of wars.

Britain and France, two Western European countries facing each other across the sea and having a relationship of marriage for more than 300 years, are currently engaged in an unprecedented, bloody and cruel "breakup" war.This war, which has laid hidden dangers since the time of King Richard the Lionheart and Philip II the Noble King, is now being fought vigorously by the successors of the two countries hundreds of years later. A hundred years is enough to vent all the dissatisfaction with the other party in the past.

In fact, Britain and France have indeed fought for a century, as long as 116 years.

This is how the term "Hundred Years' War" came about.

However, in this parallel time and space of the Middle Ages, the protracted and time-consuming war between Britain and France will probably not drag on for so long again.

Today, when the war has only started more than ten years ago, England, represented by the Black Prince, seems to have seen the dawn of victory.

Of course, this dawn has a large part of luck in it.At that time, the Black Prince led only 1800 Knights of the Garter, and marched triumphantly all the way, starting from Bordeaux, crossing the Garonne River, one of the five major rivers in France, and sweeping into the middle of France.Straight to the capital Paris.

Well, "straight to Paris" is just another exaggeration from the English tabloids.

黑太子当时的情况其实不算太好。他率军千里跋涉,只为了与英格兰在法兰西北部唯一的军事据点加莱港口的军队汇合。但是黑太子不知道的是,因为痢疾，当时据点里拥有的9千人的军队,只剩下了4千1百多人。加上黑太子的嘉德骑士团，也不过5千9百人。

And what about France, which is fighting at home?There are 3 of them, exactly six times the size of the Black Prince's army.

To make matters worse, the English soldiers, including the Black Prince, hesitated to cut off the supply line, and hadn't had a serious meal for four or five days.The weather is not beautiful, it is very bad sleet.Facing the unfamiliar foreign land and the muddy road conditions, almost all English soldiers have fallen into boundless despair. Many people say that even God cannot save this terrible situation.

Worst of all, the distance between the British and French armies was less than half a mile, which is about the distance of a wheat field.

Here are the French aristocrats who have enough wine to drink wine as water, and there are the miserable English army that even the black prince, the coach, has no food to eat.

August, who was far away in China, would never have imagined that a nagging father who could write family letters and spend money, in fact, most of the writing relies on imagination.

For the real situation, it is most appropriate to quote the description of a later historian: [For a few days, I could only spend the night in the wasteland, running around like a wild dog, feeding on the nuts and wild strawberries I picked up, and drinking the muddy water on the ground. muddy water.Now you are cold and hungry, it is a pain to stand, hopelessness and mud like a heavy coat make you unable to think, preferring to die in the battle before you. ] (Quoted from Du Niang’s description of the Hundred Years’ War between Britain and France by foreign scholars).

"Can we really win?" The deputy had been so anxious that he hadn't closed his eyes for three whole days. When he spoke, he didn't even know whether he was asking the black prince beside him or asking himself.

The black prince had already lost his glamorous side, he spit out the spittle full of earthy smell and snow water, and said firmly: "Of course I will win, I have to go back to see my baby! Didn't I tell you Is it? He invited me to go hunting deer together before, how could I break his promise? There is a sentence in those nagging oriental books that my baby loves to read, I hope you can remember-"

Everyone stopped what they were doing at the same time, and turned their heads in unison to look at the bearded black prince who looked like a bandit. He was no longer the handsome war god they were familiar with, but he was still the eternal belief in their hearts. .

……

At this time in England, no one knew how difficult the situation of the Black Prince was.

The aristocrats, who were drunk and dreaming all day long, were accompanying the inhuman king who was tortured by illness, and they traveled from London to Kent, which is only 90 miles away from London, in a gorgeous tram in one day.

In the Middle Ages, which had not been replaced by the machines of the industrial revolution, Kent was known as the "Back Garden of England", with mountains and rivers and a beautiful environment.August, who was still riding in a carriage with Raphael, looked at the pastoral scenery passing by outside the car window, and couldn't help recalling the time when the savior of Harry Potter arrived at the Hogwarts Express for the first time to go to school. description of the scenery.

Large tracts of wheat fields, winding creeks, and green hills like Dai.

Kent is the most southeastern county in England. In other words, the county is next to the sea and separated from France by the Strait of Calais. This is where the modern British-French undersea tunnel starts.The two countries are so close, as if standing in Kent, you can see the port of Calais on the land of France.

Of course, this is only limited to August's personal imagination.

"Father's last letter said that he was going to the port of Calais to fight the army?" August's memory has always been a mysterious setting, which can be good or bad.For example, when facing study, August's memory will become a mess, learning today, forgetting tomorrow; but for the family letters that are thicker every time, August can even punctuate The symbols are not left behind and deeply recorded in my mind.

"Yes, according to the speed of the letter, maybe he is at the port of Calais right now." Raphael said.

August couldn't help but waved his hand in the direction of the strait stupidly. He knew that his father would definitely not see it, but he just wanted to do it.

Raphael hugged the slender boy distressedly, and couldn't help but give him a hug so tight that it seemed as if he was going to merge into one.

"Have you thought about your father?" August asked abruptly in Raphael's arms.

August has only had one father, the Black Prince, in his two lifetimes, and he gets together less often and leaves more. Since he recovered his memory, he has never seen the real Black Prince, and he can only feel the heavy father's love from letters one after another. like.

William II's bad father had a great impact on the character composition of his two sons, but Richard II became worse, while the Black Prince became better.Richard II couldn't even believe his own daughter, but the Black Prince was trying to love his son as much as his dead wife.

"To be honest, I have thought about it." Raphael wanted to say arrogantly, why would I want to be a bastard who sold me?But in the end he still decided to tell the truth. When he didn't know what his father had done, he had been full of expectations for him. He felt that he was as tall as a mountain, as generous as the sea, and as omnipotent as a god.Of course, soon, Raphael's illusions about his father were shattered, "I even sometimes feel that it might be good if William II is my biological father."

At least he didn't have to have any expectations of the term father from the beginning.

Unfortunately, reality is so fucked up.

Richard II had a father who almost condoned his lover to kill him; Raphael was not bad either, he had a shameless father who prostituted himself for glory and said "I gave you everything now".

To be honest, from Raphael's point of view, there is really nothing wrong with Richard II becoming what he is now, but the growth of the Black Prince is incredible.Just like the savior and the Dark Lord in August's favorite fairy tale about wizards, they have similar childhood backgrounds, but they chose two completely different lives in opposite directions.

Raphael could understand the Dark Lord, but he couldn't understand the Savior, and he didn't want to.

"I'm sorry." August grabbed Raphael's neckline tightly, full of dependence on the young man in front of him, and contradictoryly wanted to be the other's dependence.

"Why do you apologize?" Raphael asked August strangely, "It's not that you arranged for me such a bad father."

"I shouldn't bring up this topic." August's life in this life is really good, and he thinks he shouldn't be so hypocritical.What if I can't see my father?At least he knew his father loved him.

"No, I'm very happy to discuss this with you." Raphael has already passed the age of becoming vulnerable when mentioning his father. On the contrary, he can use everything in his past, he said to August, "except you And the Queen Mother, I have no one else. That means you are my only one, do you understand?"

"You are also my only one," August said immediately, he looked up at him, only Raphael and nothing else in a pair of blue eyes, "you are my only best friend, no one can compare superior."

Raphael's expression didn't change, he knew it would be the answer, he couldn't tell whether it was disappointment or loss.

The county seat of Kent is called Maidstone, and it is also the destination of the king's party this time.The Earl of Kent's castle is located on the outskirts of Maidstone City. The castle is very large, luxurious and retro. In order to welcome the king's stay, a lot of effort has been put into it.

Before entering Kent County, the Earl of Kent brought his son to greet the king's team in person.

August's Duke's carriage was very conspicuous, he couldn't casually look at the Earl of Kent, but he was full of irresistible curiosity about his half-brother.

John was assigned the important task of observing the Earl of Kent. When he came back to report after watching the man, he tactfully said to August: "Are you sure he is really your brother?"

Instead of a father or something?

Joan was forced to get married at the age of 12, so the age of having children is naturally very early. The Earl of Kent is her second son, and the age can be imagined.August is Joan's old man. When the black prince almost thought that it was impossible for him and Joan to have children, they had the unexpected joy of August.

Therefore, it is not wrong to say that the brothers are more like father and son. Even the son of the Earl of Kent is one year older than August.

"Is anyone else here?" August couldn't help asking.

"Only your other sister." Joan's youngest daughter.The eldest daughter who inherited the title of countess passed away last year, and the position of countess was inherited by the younger daughter.August lost her when he just found out that he had a sister. It is hard to tell what it feels like, because it is said that the other party is the most stubborn person who opposes the existence of August.

Joan and her ex-husband gave birth to two sons and two daughters, and the other son was sent to the leprosy hospital. No one could tell what happened there.

Anyway, now only the Earl of Kent, who is disliked by August, is still active in the upper class. His youngest daughter is widowed and quiet like a flower.

After arriving at the earl's castle, the king's family naturally lived in the best room in the castle.

As a duke, August's room is inferior, but it's not bad.

It's just that August chose not to live there.

"I have my own manor in Kent." August had already expressed it to Richard II before coming.

If the manor hadn't been lived in for many years, August would be very happy to invite the king's family to live in his manor.August is not deliberately fighting the Earl of Kent, but he feels that after the other party clearly expresses his dislike for him, there is really no need for him to stay in the other party's house with a thick skin.

……

"—Put it to death and live!"

At the juncture of despair, the black prince uttered a soul cry to his soldiers: "Can despair keep you from losing the battle? No!

"Can despair keep you from being captured? No!

"I'm not afraid of being captured, because I'm the black prince. The current king of France is my cousin, and the king of England is my younger brother. Those rich guys in France wish they could catch me and blackmail England. They wouldn't touch me, and would even wish they could treat me with champagne and good food.

"But what do you have?! After you are captured, there will be no ransom, only your hands and feet will be cut off, and you will return to England in the most embarrassing posture, dragging down those family members who are looking forward to your return home!

"It's all up to you whether to fight with all your strength, or to realize what I said!

"You either die or you win, it's that simple!"

The English army was cornered, to their disadvantage as well as to their advantage, for they had nothing to lose.On the contrary, the French army's pride and arrogance bred even more arrogance because of its certainty of victory. Almost everyone was immersed in the delusion of being able to capture the Black Prince alive.

The former king of England has brought too much shame to France, and they must make the black prince return with interest!

The armies of the two countries took up battle on the open plain next to the once unknown small village of Al Kujin. France divided the 3-strong army into three fronts. There are heavy infantry between the cavalry, the second line is full of heavy infantry, and the third line is nearly 6 cavalry and most of them are young nobles who are on the battlefield for the first time.The nobles firmly believed that before their turn to play, England would definitely be defeated by the French army, and they only needed to celebrate.

But it happened that the troops of the two sides were seriously unequal in strength, and they confronted each other for nearly four hours on the blunt plain.

In the end, it was the English who moved first, and the arrow rain of the archers frantically threw them at the French after advancing to the range as if they didn't want money.The muddy land conditions not only pitted the English army, but also killed the French heavy cavalry.The French cavalry, known as the executioners of the battlefield, all fell into the mud after the snow melted, and behind them there were stake traps set up in advance by England waiting for them.

The invincible cavalry was dragged down in this way, and in the Middle Ages, which paid attention to formation, the chaos of the cavalry directly led to a series of chain reactions, just like the bewilderment of the second-line infantry.

The English army became more and more courageous, displaying the spirit of taking advantage of your illness to kill you, and rushed forward screaming and killing.

The Black Prince told August afterwards that the biggest reason they could win was that those people in France really wanted to capture the Black Prince alive in exchange for a ransom. This is the basic routine of medieval warfare. They rarely kill people because they are more You want a ransom, but the Black Prince has already made it clear that if the other party is not dead, what is waiting for you is the loss of your bow-bending and archery fingers, which are the eating skills they rely on for survival, and must not be lost.

So in the end, England ushered in a typical military case of winning more with less on the British and French battlefields that has been praised for thousands of years, while France had to face a shame of war that would be remembered forever.

The most absurd thing is not that they were defeated by fewer, but that the third-line noble children have already run away without a trace when they still have most of their vitality.

Yes, run away.

Even more ridiculous than the Italian army on the battlefield of World War II.

Of course, the Black Prince would not let go of this opportunity. He ordered to take advantage of the victory to pursue, not only won the war, but also got enough noble hostages for him to exchange for ransom.

"It's more than enough to use these sons of bitches to get a duke title." The deputy said happily.

In fact, the Black Prince has owned the title of duke in the French territory from the very beginning, which also makes him very uncomfortable. He feels that he is qualified to inherit the French throne, and he is not willing to be a subordinate of his cousin with doubtful status.

"Duke is enough?" Another knight sneered, "Unless the throne is given!"

The Black Prince didn't speak, but he had already written a treaty to be negotiated with France after winning the war - to amend the law of succession to the French throne, and the name of his only son, Auguste, would appear on the first heir .Otherwise, talk about it!

……

August's manor in Kent was naturally left for him by his mother, Joan, and it was also the place where Joan grew up.The manor occupies a small area, but there are many infrastructures suitable for children to play.

According to the housekeeper of this manor, this is not only the place where Joan grew up, but also the place where Joan's brothers and sisters grew up together. In Joan's vision for the future, she also hopes that her children can be happy. live here.Unfortunately, this wish did not come true in the end.The relationship between Joan and her deceased husband's four children is very tense. They seem to dislike August, and they don't like their brothers and sisters either.

Logically speaking, when the father died and the mother remarried, the four children should be more united. Unfortunately... as the eldest daughter, the Countess did not make a good start. In order to get as much inheritance as possible, she lived the life of her beautiful countess and ignored her younger siblings.

The second son was a little bit better, but after getting married, under the instigation of his mean wife, he also changed his mind.

"It's a pity for the third young master..." said the manor housekeeper. He is Joan's confidant who manages the Kent manor for August, but also cares about the lives of Joan's other four children.

"I heard he had leprosy?"

The manor housekeeper's expression was unnatural for a moment, and finally he could only nod his head, and said vaguely: "No one thought that such a terrible thing would happen to the third young master."

Before the Black Death caused the largest population loss in Europe, leprosy was the most terrible infectious disease in Europe.The spread is extremely wide, so European countries have set up special leprosy hospitals all over the country, which is also the background location of many European strange stories and horror stories.

To be honest, the treatment of leprosy patients in the Middle Ages was indeed very bad. They had no freedom and were tortured by scientific experiments. Many people even felt that this was God's punishment for sinners.

One of the regulations that made August feel that lepers have no human rights is that when lepers walk around, they must hang a bell that makes a special noise, a bit like the sound of a rattle, and the purpose is to scare other people. To the apocalypse, like a dog bell, they are not allowed to appear in front of normal people.

"Has anyone visited him?" August didn't know his third brother's attitude towards him, but he knew how he felt about his third brother at this moment—a bit pitiful.

"No one can be allowed." To be exposed to infectious diseases, even if you do not have infectious diseases, will be viewed with colored glasses.

"You don't either?"

"Yes, neither do I." The manor housekeeper was banned by the Earl of Kent. If he wanted to continue to take care of the third young master's daughter, he was not allowed to go to such a "horrible" place.

"He has a daughter?"

"Yes, Madam died in childbirth, leaving only the young lady. But please rest assured, Your Excellency, I never let the young lady set foot in the manor, I raised him outside."

The manor is now owned by August, even if he has never set foot here for many years, it is not just a casual person who can come here.

This is the Black Prince's strict defense against the Earl of Kent's encroachment on his son's legal property.

Before Joan died, she gave her children a choice, whether they want a title or money.She is not the kind of character who is determined to leave all her property to one child and let other children drink the northwest wind.She didn't take any of her deceased husband's property, but divided it into three, and gave it to the other three children who did not inherit the title of her late husband; The son of the Earl of Kent.

Most of August's property is in other counties, and Joan only left him this manor in Kent.The Black Prince felt that he was obliged to hold on to this only thought for his son, not to be engulfed by other greedy half-brothers.

Don't doubt, if there is no deterrence from the black prince, the other children will definitely be able to do it.

In fact, before Auguste knew it, the Earl of Kent and the others had made countless fuss over the manor, and it was for this purpose that the manor housekeeper raised the only daughter of the third young master.I hope that the little girl will open the gap first, and then gobble it up step by step, and still be confident-August does not lack this.

If it weren't for the manor housekeeper's vigilance and refusing to give up an inch, August would probably be facing a manor that has changed hands by now.

The author has something to say: Note: The battlefield in this article is a combination of the Battle of Poitiers and the Battle of Alcuquin during the Hundred Years' War between Britain and France.The description is adapted from all kinds of miscellaneous reference books I read, and there are also some Duniang Encyclopedias.above.

Another note: I forgot to mention in the previous chapter that the historical persona of Joan, the mother, is Joan of Kent, the wife of the black prince in real history. .As for the whereabouts of the four children in the article, it is the author's own nonsense. There is no relevant record in history. Note 3: There are wars between several European countries, and the number of people is not particularly large. It's incomparable to have an army of one hundred thousand at every turn.For them, a few thousand people is enough to form a war.