monarch

On the afternoon of the second day after the atrocity known as the "Spanish Rampage," a travel-stained messenger burst through the gates of the Doge's Palace in Brussels on horseback, his body grotesque from his long hours on horseback. He was so stiff that even the servants in the front yard supported his arms and helped him off the horse.

The urgent dispatch from Antwerp was sent to the office of the female governor, and three minutes later, news came from the office that the adviser was summoned.And when the advisers of the female governor arrived at the palace, the news of the complete destruction of Antwerp had spread like wildfire in Brussels.

Judging from the current situation, the looting and destruction encountered by the "Pearl of the Netherlands" can only be compared with atrocities such as Alaric burning the city of Rome or the Latins sacking Constantinople.According to the news sent by the courier, the entire city has been reduced to a sea of ​​flames, all large commercial and administrative buildings have been damaged to varying degrees, and the upper class of the entire city has been wiped out, and ordinary people have been wiped out. The casualties were heavy.

Even the dullest person can now clearly realize that the situation in the Netherlands has passed a certain point of no return.If before the destruction of Antwerp there was any possibility of a reconciliation between the Spanish crown and the confederacy of the Dutch nobility, after that day, the slight possibility disappeared completely.The war was doomed to cost one side total kneeling, and it was unlikely that any further attempts at peace would be made by either side until the end of the ropes.

In the conference hall of the Governor's Palace, the urgent express mail sent from Antwerp was circulated several times by the advisers and ministers at the conference table. The contents are horrifying.The bulletins contained detailed descriptions of the atrocities committed in the cities by irrational soldiers, descriptions that would send chills down even the most level-headed statesman.

Of the seventeen provinces of the Netherlands, the seven provinces in the north are now under the control of the League of Dutch Nobles.Protestants have an absolute advantage in these seven provinces, and the degree of dislike for Spanish rule in these provinces is also higher.And the ten provinces in the south, that is, the Belgian provinces of the Roman Empire thousands of years ago, have always been one of the wealthiest places in Europe. Although the Catholic Church here has also been severely impacted by the Reformation Movement, it still maintains Its dominance, Spain's rule here is also much stronger than in the north.

The garrison in Antwerp carried out indiscriminate plunder and massacres of Catholics and Protestants in the city. Whether it was a Catholic church or a Protestant church in the city, the Spanish army did not have the slightest psychological burden to destroy it.Such crazy behavior can no longer be explained by religious reasons. For the Dutch, there can only be one explanation for such atrocities: the Spanish army has regarded the people of the Netherlands as their enemies.

At the meeting, Baron de Matisse, the adviser to the female governor, strongly demanded that the local garrison be severely punished. The first measure that needs to be taken is to arrest all senior officers of the First Army.In his view, only the heads of those culprits can calm down the revenge emotions that will arise in the Southern Netherlands because of this incident. If this emotion is not handled well, it will "shake the rule of the Governor's Palace of the Netherlands foundation".

The female governor of the Netherlands responded to her chief adviser with a sad and helpless look. The successive bad news these days has made her exhausted. It is said that the female governor has submitted her resignation to His Majesty the King of Madrid, but No reply has been received so far, and it is clear that no one is capable or willing to accept this hot potato.

"You know very well." The female governor has just recovered from a cold, so her voice is very hoarse, as if it was made when sawing wood with a saw, "I have no right to do this, I only control Ni The civil power in Teresa, the commander of the garrison in the Netherlands is the Duke of Alva, who is responsible only to His Majesty."

"I can write to His Majesty to make my suggestions, but we all know it's too late." The female governor coughed twice, and she looked at the captain of the city defense sitting on the other side of the table, "The news has already arrived in the city. It spread out, didn't it?"

The captain of the city defense wrinkled his face, "I'm about to report this to you, ma'am. The news that Antwerp was looted and slaughtered had already spread in the city this evening. According to my According to the news sent by the spies, after hearing the news, many citizens...behaved very irrationally. Crowds. I think we have reason to start preparing for the dramatic changes in the situation. It is said that at some intersections, citizens have begun to build barricades. It is very likely that we will face a huge riot.”

"Are you and your people confident of maintaining order in Brussels?" the Viceroy asked, but the expression on her face clearly showed that she already knew the answer to this question.

Just as the female governor expected, the captain of the city defense reluctantly shook his head, "Although I don't want to admit it, ma'am, the fact is that we are extremely short of resources. I only have 20 people under my command, and what we are facing is a A city full of hostility. There are a full 20 people in this city. After today’s news, these 500 people are our enemies. My [-] people can only temporarily maintain the safety near the Governor’s Palace, but once that If a wave rushes here, then my people are completely powerless to stop them from rushing into this palace."

The female governor trembled nervously on the chair, and she tightly grasped the armrest of the chair with her hands, "Then, do you have any good suggestions for the troublesome situation we are facing today?" The voice contained Unconcealable fear.

"If you want to ask me, madam, I suggest that you..."

"No, no, don't say it here." Baron de Mathis interrupted the captain of the city defense uneasily, "I think you should tell your highness your suggestion alone. The fewer people who know about these things, the better, after all Everyone knows that there are more holes in the Government House than there are on the sieve."

"Okay, okay." The female governor stood up, "Mr. Captain, please come with me, let's go to my prayer room and talk." She waved to Baron de Matisse, "And You, Monsieur Baron, come too."

Under the eyes of everyone with different meanings, the three people walked out of the meeting room. They walked through the entire Governor's Palace, came to the area where the female governor usually lives, and entered the prayer room of His Highness.

The female governor walked to the shrine on the inner side of the room, bowed her head towards the statue of the Virgin inside, and made a sign of the cross on her chest, "No matter what plan you have, sir, you can say it now, I hope the Holy Mother blesses you. plan to be successful.”

"If I am in the position of His Highness..." the captain of the city defense carefully chose his words, "I will leave this city for a while and take a small trip to the west."

"Going on a trip?" the female governor asked, "Then where is the destination of the trip?"

"I think His Highness should go to Tournai, where the Cathedral of Our Lady is very famous. You can go there to pray for His Majesty's health and the peace of the country." The captain of the city defense said.

"It's also because the headquarters of the Duke of Alva is located there." Baron de Matisse added, "There are 15 Spanish troops there, and His Highness will be very safe there. You can also take this opportunity to talk to The Duke of Alva said that if the situation in the southern Netherlands collapses completely, then his army of [-] will be in a dilemma, and he will definitely not sit idly by in this situation."

"Leave the capital of the Netherlands to these rebels?" The female governor sounded quite dissatisfied.

"With all due respect, Your Highness, this city already belongs to them, you can't save this city, you can only save yourself."

"Maybe you are right." The female governor began to hesitate, "but how do you plan to evacuate all government employees and loyalists? It will take several days to collect enough horses and vehicles, but You just said that a riot is imminent!"

"Maybe... we don't need to evacuate everyone." Baron de Matisse smiled.

The female governor shivered in surprise, "What do you mean by that?"

"Your Highness, as you just said, we don't have enough resources for all the people who want to leave, and the mob in the city won't give us enough time... If we insist on taking them with us, we will scare the snake away , At that time, if you want to leave, I'm afraid it will not be so easy. Since those people are destined to be unable to leave, then you might as well let them act as a cover for you, and it can be regarded as using up their last use value."

"Is that what you mean too?" The female governor glanced at the captain of the city defense.

"As Baron de Matisse said, the best way to ensure your safety is for me to escort you away quietly. We only need a carriage, you, Mr. Mrs. Caballero is in the carriage, and I will drive, and one of my most loyal subordinates will sit beside me. No one will think that you are a passenger in this carriage. If we go now, we will Get out of the city before the mob blocks it, and by this time tomorrow you will be at Tournai's army, safe among your friends."

"What about those who remain in the city? My faithful advisers, the officials who have served Spain, and their families. What will happen to these people? What will happen to them?"

"I suggest you not to delve into this issue. In the final analysis, protecting your safety is our most important goal." The captain of the city defense muttered.

"There is another point, Your Highness." Baron de Matisse moved closer to the female governor, and the captain of the city defense turned his back to them knowingly, "The Dutch people outside are very angry, you can't deny it, our The army owes them a blood debt, and this blood debt must be paid with blood... If they satisfy their desire for revenge in tomorrow's riot, and are satisfied with the heads of these people we left in the city, then we It keeps the possibility of cooling down the situation. If we can't save these people, at least we can let them die more meaningfully."

The female governor seemed to be finally convinced, "Then what time do we leave?"

"Now, Your Highness, it is now!" said the captain of the city defense. "I will let the carriage wait at the exit of the garden. In 10 minutes, you, Mrs. de Caballero and Mr. Baron can go down there along the secret ladder."

"Leave now?" The female governor opened her mouth wide, "Does it have to be like this?"

"It must be so, Your Highness, time is our friend, or rather, our only friend."

The female governor hesitated for a moment, and finally nodded. The vigorous city defense captain immediately turned and went out to find a confidant waiting in the corridor to arrange the corresponding matters.

Five minutes later, the captain of the city defense went downstairs to the entrance of the garden that he had mentioned to the governor. Carrying a gray and black package.

A four-wheeled carriage was already waiting there. The carriage was a common stage coach used for travel. It did not have any family coat of arms painted on it, nor did it have the usual decorations on luxurious carriages.The cart was pulled by a brown German horse, quite large in size, but obviously aged, and at first glance it looked like the kind of middle- and low-grade horses used by posting stations to send travelers.No one would think that the female governor of the Netherlands, the illegitimate daughter of Emperor Charles V, sat in the compartment of this carriage.

The officer who was receiving orders in the corridor was sitting on the coachman's seat. Like the captain of the city defense, he had put on the coarse cloth clothes commonly worn by the lower classes, and he was still smoking a pipe. Seeing the captain of the city defense appearing, he moved quickly. position, leaving half of the seat for the captain.

The captain of the city defense untied the tie of the package, and took out four pistols loaded with gunpowder and lead bullets, and two sharp swords out of their sheaths.He fastened two pistols to his waist and a sharp sword on the seat behind him.

He sat down on his seat, handed the remaining two pistols and a sword to the officer beside him, and the other officer also placed the three weapons in the same manner.

A few minutes later, Baron de Matisse appeared at the exit, holding the Viceroy's arm, and Madame de Caballero followed them.None of the three carried any bulky luggage. The only thing that the Habsburgs in power in the Netherlands brought out from this building that symbolized Spanish rule was a Mrs. de Caballero holding a A jewelry box made of Brazilian fragrant wood, filled with priceless gems and pearls.

"Please get in the car, Your Highness, please get in the car quickly!" the captain of the city defense urged.

The three quickly squeezed into the carriage, and Baron de Matisse, who walked last, closed the door from inside the carriage.

"Please put down the curtains." The captain of the city defense said to the carriage, the curtains were immediately lowered, and now it is difficult for anyone to see the true identity of the passengers in the carriage.

The captain of the city defense let go of the rein, and lashed the horse's butt with a whip, and the horse began to run forward reluctantly.

The carriage drove out through a small corner door in the corner of the palace garden, and a bright lantern hung on the carriage, illuminating the deserted road ahead.

Although no one was seen on the road, looking out from the gap in the curtains, the signs of a storm are already very obvious. Two calf-deep trenches have been dug on both sides of the road, and many paving stones on the road have disappeared. Every so often, the wheels bounce up and down due to those new potholes on the ground.The signboards of the shops on the side of the road have also been removed. There is no doubt that these planks and paving stones will become barricades at various crossroads to hinder the march of the army when the next day dawns.

It didn't take long for the carriage to reach the city gate of Niwono. From here, you can go straight to the boulevard leading to Tournai.

Here, the passengers encountered the first trouble they encountered during their trip tonight: a few men dressed in rags were holding torches and guarding the intersection. The firelight illuminated their hideous and ugly faces. To the passengers, these people look like a bunch of bandits, which in fact may be what they really are.In such a wave sweeping across the kingdom, there have always been people who want to fish in troubled waters since ancient times.

"Stop, who is it?" The group of people saw the approaching carriage and shouted at the carriage.

"It's a stagecoach to Mons," replied the captain of the city defense.

"Stop the car and open the door!" The leader grabbed the bridle of the shaft horse, "No carriage can pass until we find out who is sitting in the car! Pull over the car, or we will and disembowel your horses."

One of the man's companions stepped forward and stretched out his hand to pull the car door open.

The captain of the city defense gave his subordinates a wink. He swung the whip in his hand vigorously and slapped the horse hard. The leader knocked down to the ground, and the lantern he was holding fell to the ground and rolled around a few times, and soon went out.

At the same time, there was a gunshot like a heavy hammer knocking from the captain's side, and his subordinates shot the unlucky ghost who had put his hand in front of the car door handle. He fell to the ground and remained motionless.

The reins were completely let go, the horse galloped wildly, and the wheels jerked violently, apparently running over someone.

The carriage rushed out of the city gate, then drove onto the boulevard leading to Tournai, and galloped westward.