monarch

At a distance of about ten nautical miles, the rolling hills of the Cornwall coastline appeared to be nothing more than a thin dark arc dividing the light blue sky from the deep blue sea.

In the telescope of Admiral Doria, the scenery on the shore is much clearer than that seen by the naked eye. The undulations of those hills are very similar to those in Italy, like gentle waves on the sea, and they are not the same as the usual distribution of farmland and grapes. Unlike northern Italy, England's hills are covered with dense forests and grasslands. Now it's late spring and early summer, and the entire coastline is covered with a green blanket.

There are dotted houses dotted along the coastline, which seem to be the huts of local fishermen. It is noon now, but there is no trace of cooking smoke in the village. Presumably, all the residents here have been evacuated to the inland.

This small fishing village on the south coast of the Cornwall Peninsula is located at the entrance to the west of the English Channel. Here, the width of the channel is about 110 miles. From here to the east, the width of the channel narrows continuously, like a tightened horn. Between Dover and Calais, only 21 miles remain.

On June [-], the Spanish fleet set sail from the safe haven of Ireland. After excluding a small fleet and damaged ships left in the area, there were about [-] ships left in the entire fleet. Three days later, the On June [-], the fleet finally entered the entrance of the strait.

"The direction of the wind seems to have changed again." The admiral looked up at the flag flying on the mast. The flag was now pointing to the southwest, indicating that the wind had turned to the northeast.

"I thought it would take three days to cross the strait, but now it seems that it will be delayed to five days." The Marquis of Santa Cruz, who was standing aside, sighed, and his eyes turned to the densely packed ships on the sea. More than 2 sailors are scrambling because of the change of wind direction, trying to maintain the formation of the fleet, like a group of ants in an ant nest.The wind god breathed lightly, and the creatures on the ground were about to run around and toil. He sighed in his heart, maybe the outcome of the war depends on this small change of wind direction!

"I just hope God will help us to get to Antwerp as soon as possible." Admiral Doria looked more like a tired old servant than a military commander, doing decades of clerical work at a cramped desk. , now the only hope is to retire as soon as possible.It is a miracle that this mosaic-like fleet has been brought to the coast of England. The admiral is not a genius like his uncle. This voyage has exhausted his energy. The Marquis of Santa Cruz feels that It seemed that he only wanted to be freed from the shackles of this duty, and he didn't even care about the outcome of the war anymore.

"If you are willing to reconsider, the plan to directly invade Portsmouth Naval Port seems to be more active than sailing directly to Antwerp." The Marquis of Santa Cruz hesitated for a moment, but still couldn't resist the urge to express his opinion .

The plan of directly invading Portsmouth Harbor was put forward by the ambitious staff officers of several fleets. According to their plan, the Spanish fleet would pass through the narrow channel connecting Portsmouth Harbor to the open sea and sail directly into Britain. People's nest, destroyed the British fleet in the harbor.There is no doubt that there are huge risks in this plan. The hydrological conditions at the entrance of the coast and the port are very complicated, and they have to face the onslaught of the British port guards. However, once successful, the benefits will be huge—in the narrow port area Fighting will make up for the Spanish's artillery disadvantage to the greatest extent, and at the same time facilitate the hand-to-hand and boarding battles that the Spaniards are good at.

Unsurprisingly, as soon as this plan was proposed, it was immediately rejected by Admiral Doreia, who was unwilling to make any extravagances. The admiral even divided up half of the fleet to block the British at the port, while the rest of the fleet rushed to Antwerp to carry the Buddha. The Landers Corps is unwilling to consider such a compromise plan.His reason is that it is not clear whether the British fleet is in the port. At the same time, the Spanish fleet lacks knowledge of the local hydrological conditions and lacks experience in operating near enemy ports.But anyone with a discerning eye can see that the admiral is just unwilling to carry out any action that he regards as "asking for trouble". Since the king gave him the order to go to Antwerp, then the fleet should go to Antwerp. The problem is not within the scope of his consideration.

Sure enough, upon hearing the words of the Marquis of Santa Cruz, the corners of Admiral Doria's mouth and eyes suddenly drooped, and his whole face instantly collapsed.

"His Majesty's order is to go to Antwerp and join the Duke of Alva." He repeated dryly what he had said no less than twenty times to different people.

The Marquis of Santa Cruz was a little embarrassed by the blunt tone of the other party. He put his hand to his mouth, coughed lightly, covered his mouth with his hand, and turned his head inadvertently to look in another direction.

An awkward silence fell on the podium, until it was broken by a sharp whistle from the lookout post.

"Enemy fleet at twelve o'clock!" yelled the lookout like a cuckoo, and the sound cut through the waves and the rustling of the ships, and everyone on deck heard it Clearly.

……

When the Spanish fleet departed from Ireland, they were spotted by the scout ship "Golden Hart" wandering off the southern coast of Ireland.The ship returned at top speed to the nearest naval port on the British Isles, and beacons were lit all over the south coast, announcing the imminence of an invasion.

According to the king's order, the command of the fleet was handed over to Sir John Hawkins, who was only 26 years old. His reputation can even be compared with the famous pirate king Hayreddin Barbarossa. King Philip also offered a sky-high price of [-] florins for his head.

The fleet, which had already been ready for battle, immediately sailed away from the naval port, and took up positions in the strait to meet the Spanish fleet.Light fast sailing ships used for communication shuttle back and forth between the fleet and the naval port, and on the avenue from the naval port to Hampton Court Palace, a post station is set up every ten miles to ensure that the express delivery from the fleet is delivered within a day. within the hands of His Majesty.But after all, the fighter plane is fleeting, and the fleet is floating on the sea. Her actions are determined by the commander of the fleet. The king who lives in Hampton Palace can only wait for the news instead of remotely controlling the fleet.

On the morning of June [-]th, King Edward VI got up very early.

The king sat up slowly, dismissed the servant who had come to wait on him to change, put on a nightgown, and walked barefoot to the window.In the garden outside the window, the mist has gradually dissipated, and the golden light of the rising sun dances on the scales of the marble pool. Amidst the golden light, a few swans woke up from their dreams and stretched out their heads from under their wings. , sleepily pecking at the light and shadow on the water.

The last dispatch from the Admiralty had arrived last night. The Spanish fleet had been detected at the entrance of the strait, and the British fleet was sailing to meet the Spaniards at the entrance of the strait.Calculating based on the time, if the battle has not started yet, then the fleets of the two countries will start to exchange fire in the next few hours.

The king leaned against the glass window. The cold glass was hard and cold. Although it was summer, it was quite cool outside in the early morning.There was no shadow of a single person in the garden, and the entire Hampton Court Palace was still a dream. Even war would not change the work and rest habits of the people in this palace.

He walked back to the bed and tugged hard on the bell rope hanging from the bed post.

"Go send a letter to Master Robert and ask him if he would like to go out for a ride." The king ordered the servant who entered the room in response, "After that, you will come back and serve me to wash and change my clothes."

The servant led away, and after a few minutes, he came back to report.

"Master Robert will wait for His Majesty downstairs in half an hour," he relayed.

The king nodded, and a party of servants entered the room, carrying the king's toiletries and a riding outfit in their hands.

Edward is like a doll that can be manipulated by others, let them wait for him to wash up, and then put on a dark blue riding suit. There is not much lace and jewelry decoration on this riding suit, only on the left and right sides A black pearl is hung on the neckline respectively.

The king went down a small, little-traveled staircase, meeting no one, and when he came out through the entrance to the garden, Robert had already led two horses, and was there waiting for him. up.

"I chose Perius for you on my own initiative." Robert gently stroked the mane of the sorrel Arabian horse prepared for the king. "I guess you are going to have a good run."

"And you chose the trumpeter." The king looked at the bay red horse that Robert had prepared for himself, "the two horses are as good as each other."

"I also want to take a good breath of the morning air. It is said that it is good for the body." Robert stretched out an arm, and the king was not polite, and climbed onto the horse with his arm.

When Robert also got on the horse, the king lightly pinched the horse's belly with his legs, and Perius immediately started trotting, and the horse's hooves stepped on the gravel road, making a crisp and rhythmic "da da" sound.

After entering the forest garden, the king let the horse under his crotch run at a fast pace. He took a big breath of the cool forest air mixed with resin aroma that poured into his lungs. Whenever he encountered obstacles, he would steer Jump over on the horse.The sound of the air flow whizzed by his ears, and judging from the sound of the horse's hooves coming from behind, Robert was not thrown off by him, and he still followed closely behind, about a horse's distance away from him.

The two stopped on a meadow in the forest, and the two horses were panting heavily, beads of sweat streaming down their backs and dripping into the dense grass.

The king jumped down from his horse, patted the horse's neck, and Perius ran to a small stream at the edge of the grass, bowed his head and began to drink.

"Feeling better now?" Robert dismissed his horse in a similar manner.

"Perhaps." The king shrugged his shoulders and took Robert's hand. At the same time, he lowered his head to look at the dewdrops hanging on the tips of the grass blades. If you look closely with the optical mirror, you will find that there are countless tiny lives floating in every drop of dew.Every drop of dew forms a world by itself, and the world in which human beings live is just a dewdrop in the universe.

"What are you thinking about?" Robert looked at the king curiously, and gently stroked the king's hand with his fingers. The skin on that pale hand was as smooth as silk. Who would have thought that such a This hand turned out to be a hand that was born to rule.

"I am thinking of Alexander the Great," said the king softly. "He was only my age when he won the battles of Granicus, Issus, and Gaugamela."

"What do you think he was thinking on the morning of the Battle of Gaugamela?" Edward looked up, and Robert saw his reflection appear in the blue eyeballs, "In the wilderness on the north bank of the Tigris River Among them, breathing the cold air with the smell of dust, the sand sliced ​​across his face like knives."

He went on to describe: "From the hill where he is located overlooking the entire battlefield, you can have a panoramic view of the endless flat wasteland below. This terrain is suitable for the action of the Persian chariots. In the distant Persian camp, Countless smoke is rising, that's when they are making breakfast. Those colorful banners form a dense jungle. In that huge camp, countless soldiers from all ethnic groups in Europe and Asia are fighting for the "Once of Kings" Allegiance to King Darius III."

"Those Persian cavalrymen in golden armor were feeding oats mixed with wine to their war horses, and Kardak infantrymen were wiping the tips of their spears again and again. Countless chariots were equipped, and their wheels were mounted scythe to smash the leg bones of anyone who stands in their way."

"Do you think he will be afraid at that time? Will he be afraid?" The king held Robert's hand tighter. "Perhaps on the contrary, he felt his blood rushing. Those chariots, cavalry, infantry, and the breeze In the eyes of the young emperor, the war elephants are just a mirage in the desert."

"And that's the truth. On that night, this mighty army disappeared and turned into yellow sand in the desert. The mighty Persian Empire was also buried forever by these yellow sands." Robert looked at the king. "I don't know what he was thinking that morning, but I'm sure some day in the future a historian, or a king, will guess that on this morning, King Edward What do you think?"

"It's a good thing they won't know." The king laughed out loud, "otherwise they would understand that the rulers recorded in the history books, whether they are mediocre or great, are nothing more than mortals after all."

"We have achieved everything that mortals can do." Robert took Edward into his arms, "If fate does not deliberately play tricks on us, then we will also get the ending we want." He kissed the king lightly "Fate let me have you, no matter what price it wants from me as compensation, I will not speak ill of it."

"I've always wanted to ask, when on earth did you confirm... your feelings for me." The king pulled Robert, and the two of them sat together on the damp grass, "When we were young? later?"

"I don't know either." Robert looked towards the river, where the two horses were rubbing each other's necks affectionately, "Maybe I was just loyal and friendly to you at the beginning, but later on, the friendship became tainted. something else..." His face was slightly flushed, "When you became the king, I realized that I couldn't imagine the scene of you holding other people's hands and walking into the church... just imagining Driven me crazy."

"Do you remember when I was poisoned?" asked the king.

"I remember." Robert's voice became low.

"At that time I had a dream... a very long dream," the king recalled the scene he saw in the dream, the red and white roses covering the sky, rushing towards him like a tsunami Come, he could hardly breathe in the dream, "I feel that I may be trapped in that dream forever, maybe it is the past life, maybe it is the next life, I don't know...until I heard your voice , Like a sharp sword, the curtain of Oneiroi was torn apart abruptly."

"I didn't go back to the previous life, nor did I go to the next life, but stayed in this world." The king hugged Robert's neck, "Because there is you in this world."

He took the initiative to kiss the other party's lips. Compared with Robert's kiss, this kiss seemed cautious, but it carried the unquestionable authority of a king.

"If fate wants to take away the crown on my head in return, then take it." After the kiss, the king said out of breath, "I am willing to exchange a hundred of the most noble crowns for the one just now. a kiss."

The corners of Robert's mouth turned up slightly, and he took the king into his arms again, this time the kiss didn't stop until both of them couldn't breathe.

"Then I'll give you another one." Robert laughed.

The two leaned on each other and sat on the grass, watching the sun rise slowly from the east. The sunlight passed through the dense forest and was cut into golden ribbons by the razor blades composed of tall oak trees.

……

From the position of the flagship St. Martin where Admiral Doria is located, the British fleet looks like a long wall of oak, blocking the only way for the Spanish fleet.The entire British fleet stretched for nearly ten miles from north to south, forming a huge crescent, which seemed to encircle the entire Spanish fleet of the Hedgehog Group.

"They have the upper hand." Admiral Doria murmured, and the Marquis of Santa Cruz noticed that the old admiral's wrist was shaking imperceptibly—another ominous sign!There was a cloud in his heart.

"We're almost within range of their artillery," the Marquis of Santa Cruz reminded.

As if to prove the words of the Marquis, a plume of white smoke rose from the bow of a British warship, and after about half a minute, a huge drop of water emerged from the water two or three nautical miles ahead of the Spanish fleet. out.

"Then, the time has finally come." Admiral Doria sighed, "This will be the moment to decide who will get the Sea God's crown."

"Your uncle defeated Hayreddin Barbarossa, the pirate king of Turkey, and you can also defeat John Hawkins, the pirate king of England." The Marquis of Santa Cruz encouraged, "Spain defeated the Protestants, defeated the Turks, defeated the Beyond the Moors and the French, there is no enemy we cannot defeat, whether by land or sea!"

Admiral Dorea nodded, as if he had put on a mask. His face swept away the depression just now, and put on the mask that people once put on the face of the great Andrea Dorea. The look of determination that I saw.

"The fleet is ready for battle!" He ordered loudly to the signal officer on the deck.