Chapter 744: The so-called holy war in the autumn of 1489 AD
The Moorish village is filled with the smell of death. Judging from the burned orchards outside the village and the damaged water canal at the entrance of the village, this should have been a quite prosperous village at one time. At least in the territory of the Kingdom of Castile
There are not many villages in the country that can build canals.
"Praise the Lord! The Moors in the south of the peninsula are really a people who are good at working!"
The old knight Lorenzuo rode his horse and looked around the looted village, but did not see any living creatures. He looked at the entire row of stone houses in the village and the side wood of the houses with great interest.
There are chicken coops surrounded by fences, as well as a vaguely large barn. As an old Venetian knight who owns a manor and has run it himself, he knows very well how much wealth such a village can create every year!
"Tsk! What a waste it is to let the fanatical and rude Castilians conquer such a rich land and kill these Moorish farmers who are good at business! They will only turn the orchards and farms that create wealth into pieces.
poor pasture, and then play with their 'beautiful' goats."
The old knight Laurent raised the corner of his mouth, looked at the entire dead village, and said mockingly.
"Of course, Castile is a devout and warlike Crusader kingdom after all. Although they are very poor and their annual income is not as good as that of tiny Granada, they burn, kill and loot, and all of them are good hands.
Before they can raise sheep and horses on the farm, they must completely clear the land and turn the obedient Moorish farmers into slaves, or crucify and burn them!"
"Haha! A poor Castilian man who is so poor that he hugs a sheep and prays hard!"
Hearing the ridicule of the old knight Lorenzo, more than a dozen Venetian cavalry responded together and laughed happily. Everyone came here as crusaders, fighting for the Lord in these ravines, it was really
They were bleeding and sweating. But King Fernando of Aragon didn't even have enough supplies, so they had to spend money to buy them on the black market in the camp.
Fortunately, the leader of the team was the young knight Giovanni Tran, whose family was powerful and wealthy. Otherwise, everyone might have been like those shabby knights of the peninsula, borrowing Jewish loans guaranteed by the church, and then going crazy with poverty.
With red eyes, he looked for Moors everywhere to kill him.
Everyone burst into laughter, but only the young knight Giovanni frowned. He felt that although the knights of Castile were poorer, their beliefs were very firm, even fanatical and fearless!
If a small group of Castilian knights were to fight against the same number of Venetian knights, even if the Venetian side had better armor, they might not be able to defeat them. Now that all parties are comrades in the Holy War, each has its own agenda.
Is it really okay to have thoughts and discord in secret?
"Ahem! Giovanni, I remember that there was a military market selling Moorish slaves next to the camp outside Barcelona."
The old knight Laurent turned his head to the left, glanced at the young knight's expression, and then changed the subject with a smile.
"Praise the Lord! You will inherit the big business in the future. The Tran family has many large estates on the Italian peninsula. When you return to the Barcelona camp, you can take advantage of the low price and buy a few more skilled people.
Moorish serfs or craftsmen. In Venice, the hiring price for such skilled workers can be very high!... Of course, young Moorish female slaves have a special taste. They may be born as noblewomen, so you can buy a few more...
"
"Uh...buy a few Moorish female slaves? From noble families?..."
Thinking of the Moorish woman's exquisite appearance, the young Giovanni licked his lips and was indeed a little moved. He hesitated for a moment, looked at the old knight's smiling expression, and lowered his voice.
"Isn't this not good? If my father knew..."
"What are you afraid of? Your respected great-grandfather, Governor Nicolo Tran, encountered the fall of Constantinople when he was in his fifties. He was greatly heartbroken and regretted it for a long time. He even spent a lot of money to get the money from the Ottomans.
In his hands, he 'saved' a group of young Byzantine ladies..."
The old knight Laurent Zuo smiled, like an old fox who is good at teaching.
"You are also rescuing! But you are rescuing ordinary knights who sell slaves. When this holy war is over and there is no more looting, the many holy war knights who are in debt will be impoverished, bankrupt and homeless.
Huh? So, even if it’s for the sake of the Lord, I should buy it!”
"You have seen this along the way. The so-called noble holy war in the south of the peninsula, isn't it just that the church and the nobles paid for it, the knights and the militia sent people, and then they all went to rob the rich Moors? In the end, they robbed each other,
Those who rob a lot will become famous, while those who rob not much will be in debt. And in the end, the money will change hands and fall into the pockets of the church? The Jews who lend money are just a glove.
If you lose it, you will lose it..."
"...Lord, I'm looking for a well! After running for so long, the horse needs water!..."
Hearing the words of the old knight, the young knight Giovanni sweated on his forehead and hurriedly rode away. He knew that what the other party said was true. He also knew that Venice was also behind the loans to the devout Jihad knights.
The great nobles, even their own family.
The holy war knights fought with blood and blood, burned and looted, but in the end, the majority would still fall into the hands of the church and the nobles. But he didn't want to think too much about this kind of thing. If he thought too much, he was afraid that his faith would be shaken.
"Hey! You have such a firm belief, but you are still too young!"
Looking at the back of Giovanni riding his horse, the old knight Lorenzo shook his head. He sighed lowly, feeling a little melancholy.
"Old Sylvester asked me to take you to the peninsula to participate in the Holy War. It's not just to get you some qualifications and reputation! You know, as the heir of the Tran family, you always have to hold the position of Venetian Councilor
, got in touch with the inside story of the Republic, and made secret deals with the Roman Church, Jewish merchants, Ottomans, Arabs, Tatars in Crimea, and even the Moors in the southern continent!..."
"You will have to deal with so many complicated people in the future. How can you become a devout and brave believer like an ordinary knight?...You know, this era has changed. It is no longer the same as the Crusades.
That’s it!..."
"...Well, it doesn't matter, it's still a long time! Anyway, this is how we get here..."
The old knight Loren was pacing his horse, following the young knight Giovanni from a distance, while his mind wandered far away, thinking of his youth. It wasn't until Giovanni stopped by a well and uttered an angry curse that his expression changed.
As soon as he changed his mind, he rushed on horseback.
"Giovanni, what's wrong?"
"Vaffanculo! Damn it! Damn it! Bah! These poor knights who kill indiscriminately!"
Giovanni was furious and cursed a few times before pointing to the dark well.
"Cazzo! Damn it! This well is dirty and can't be used!"
