The Crusaders in Europe continued to expand, and another grand expedition was about to begin. However, in the Holy Land, a far-reaching drastic change occurred.
After obtaining naval help from the Italian states, Godfrey raided the Islamic ports along the coast of Palestine and successfully took control of this area that was extremely critical to his country.
This is of great significance to the Crusader countries. Now it can be said that the ports along the entire Near East coast are controlled by Christians. The Fatimid Navy, which originally posed a great threat to Christian sea routes, has also lost these operational bases.
They were forced to reduce their movements and the sea routes became smoother.
Now that the coastal towns have been basically massacred, and then Eastern Christians and Catholics have settled in these towns, what Jerusalem wants to do is simple. They must ensure the loyalty of the residents of the coastal towns, and there is nothing better than removing the pagans and replacing them with
Your own people can guarantee your loyalty even more.
But compared to these towns, the number of immigrant Christians is still too small after all, but the nobles in Jerusalem are not worried. They know that a huge Crusade is brewing in Europe. When the hundreds of thousands of people arrive, these
Towns can also be filled.
The Italian states contributed a lot in the battle to siege coastal towns. It was precisely because they cut off the sea supplies of these port towns that Jerusalem's army was able to successfully capture the city.
The hard work of these Italian commercial republics is second only to the Crusaders, because they also gain the most benefits from them. The trade routes in the Eastern Mediterranean are now controlled by them, and there is really too much money to be earned from them.
.
But just when things were looking up, bad news soon came: Godfrey, the Guardian of the Holy Sepulchre, was seriously ill.
The long-term expedition and the pressure on him seriously damaged Godfrey's health. It can be said that when he swept the coast of Palestine, he was already holding on for a while. After completing the attack on the coastal cities, this breath was relieved. Therefore,
He fell ill.
Godfrey, who fell ill, was quickly sent to Jerusalem. After getting enough rest, Godfrey's spirit improved a lot, but overall he was still ugly. However, the dying Godfrey still did not forget to deal with government affairs.
It is a pity that even with the doctors recruited by the Crusaders from all over, Godfrey's symptoms continued to worsen, making people more and more worried. Many people continued to pray, hoping that the Guardian of the Holy Sepulcher could survive.
Godfrey's serious illness also made some people eager to take action. The current Bishop of Jerusalem, Dambert, took advantage of Godfrey's serious illness to begin to expand his power. This aroused strong dissatisfaction among many people, but because the king was still seriously ill,
and his status as the papal envoy, so everyone has nothing to do about it.
And because Godfrey has been sick, gradually, the situation in Jerusalem becomes more and more strange. The strange thing is that the current calm is, and after the calm, what comes is often a storm.
"If you ask me, let's just kill that old bastard Dembert and put the blame on those pagan assassins. That's it. Anyway, so many people hate him. I guess people will shout loudly when this guy dies.
He shouted, then spit on his corpse."
In the mansion in the Rose settlement, Volorida suggested without hesitation, her words full of dissatisfaction with Dembert.
The so-called Ross settlement is actually Godfrey's reward for helping Ross. However, this area actually only has three small streets. However, considering that there are not many Ross people moving to the Holy Land, and this future is mainly to receive Ross pilgrims
, which is completely enough.
The Russians were very fast. After the military operations in the Holy Land came to an end, they began to transform the area assigned to them. The original low-rise houses were knocked down, and then the Russians built buildings that were more in line with Europe.
The architecture of human concepts.
The two leaders of the Ross Crusaders directly regarded this place as the base of their activities. Only in this place could they find some atmosphere of their hometown. The decoration and furniture were all in Ross style.
The place where they are now is the noble mansions in this residential area. The future plan of these mansions is to receive the pilgrim nobles from Ross. And now the most expensive people in the entire Holy Land are these two Rurik princes.
"Volorida, don't talk nonsense after drinking." Vasiliko didn't say anything more, just shut up Volorida, "You should really pay attention to your mouth, and worry about when trouble will come out of it."
"What? I'm just stating a fact, and the trouble comes from my mouth. And Vasiliko, don't pretend to be mature all day long like you have experienced an accident. You are younger than me. Also.
Have you forgotten that we are relatives? I can't say anything more to you."
"It's best to start cultivating this kind of thing every day. Otherwise, when you wake up, it will be useless to regret it."
Vasiliko said with deep emotion that this was the experience he had accumulated over so many years in the south. It was this that prevented him from being involved in any political turmoil during his time working in the Eastern Empire - but the more important thing was Vasily
Ke likes silence and doesn't want to talk much at all.
"As for Dambert... this guy has great ambitions. If Godfrey gets better, he will definitely be the first to be dealt with. Others will also be hurt. The forces in the Holy Land are complicated at the moment.
No one likes a guy who wants to dominate."
Vasiliko commented coldly that in his opinion, Dambert was looking for death and would be punished sooner or later.
"But it's hard to say what's going on with Godfrey right now, otherwise the situation in Jerusalem wouldn't be so weird... Vasiliko, if you say you're going to wait for him for real - whose side will we be on then?"
"We certainly cannot let the Catholic Church control Jerusalem. This would be very detrimental to everyone. Even if we don't care about the greedy Dambert, I can't imagine what it would be like if a group of ambitious priests controlled Jerusalem. The balance we finally reached now will be destroyed.
destroy."
Vasiliko's meaning is obvious. If necessary, they will never side with the Catholic Church. If Jerusalem really becomes a theocratic country, this will be too detrimental to them.
While the two were chatting about the future of the Holy Land, there was a sudden knock on the door, which made them immediately stop talking and look at the door. Who would come to visit them at this point?
"Master Volorida, Master Vasilko, there are two people here who insist on seeing inside."
Weinege's voice came, and his tone was hinting at something, and the two of them understood it.
"come in."
As the door opened, two people wrapped in black robes immediately flashed in, while Wenig bowed and backed out. This person seemed to know very well that what was coming next was something he should not hear.
.
Until this moment, the two of them realized who the two men in black were who flashed in.
"Master Warner? And Master Peter? Why are you here at this time?"
The two people who came in were none other than Godfrey's trusted knight Warner, and the other was the leader of the Crusaders, War Brother Peter, both of whom were high-ranking figures in Jerusalem.
These two people arrived on such a dark night. No matter why they came, their behavior alone was very suspicious.
Vasiliko was not as confused as his brother. On the contrary, he made a gesture of "the boots finally hit the ground" and said to the two men who took off their hoods that these two people came to him at this time.
Silico knew subconsciously why they came.
"Yes, Lord Godfrey has passed away."
Warner didn't hesitate much and directly told the news that could shock the whole of Jerusalem.
"Did the news come out?"
Vasilko continued to ask, which was crucial for him to judge what should be done next.
"No, but it can't be hidden for long. Dembert will receive the news soon. Master Volorida and Master Vasiliko, we need the power of both of you! We need all the available troops in Jerusalem now!
"
Warner stated his request very simply, and there was not much to hide. Vasiliko had obviously realized why they came, so it would be better to be more direct.
Although Warner has a lot of troops, it is not much of an advantage compared to Dembert, and he still lacks people with enough prestige to stand up. The two leaders of the Ross Crusaders in front of him are obviously enough.
"Wait, you want a coup?" Volorida finally came to terms with the current situation, "What do you want to do? Kill Dambert?"
"It is not impossible to kill Dambert. The existence of this person is destroying the unity of Jerusalem. I really hope that this person will die."
The war monk said coldly, his tone full of murderous intent towards Dembert. He has not liked that greedy guy for a long time. His existence is to destroy everyone's career, "We only need to explain that all this is an accident."
Come here, we can prove that everything was done by pagan assassins."
"Whether or not we kill this guy is secondary. Let's talk about your plan, Master Warner. What do you need us to do?"
Vasiliko did not agree directly, but since he said so, the subtext was naturally that he agreed, and the next thing that needed to be discussed was the details of the plan.
The stone in Warner's heart finally fell. He remembered that Lord Godfrey said before his death that the Russians could be trusted. He had doubted this, and now the Russians behaved exactly as he said.
The reason for Godfrey's judgment is very simple, because among the many forces in the Holy Land, the Russians have the simplest attitude. They only need the Crusader countries as a transit point for their goods, and have no need for eastern territory.
For them, it is impossible to accept the ascendancy of the Catholic Church, because it is obviously easier for secular rulers to reach a consensus with Rus than for the church.
"First, control the Tower of David, then the military camp..."
Warner introduced their plan, which may be said to be simple or difficult. The key point is the Tower of David. As long as you control this place, you can say you control Jerusalem.
But the key is to control this place, which can be said to be the most difficult place. This place is now controlled by Dembert's Pisa sergeant - this is the biggest product of the recent activities of the Bishop of Jerusalem, but it is also because of this behavior that led to
He became a target of public criticism.
"That means we have to fight Christians."
Volorida reluctantly said that this was not why he came to the Holy Land.
"As long as we are fast enough, we can try not to bleed as much, or even have no casualties at all." Peter continued Volorida's words, "Dambert's people have not yet received the news of Lord Godfrey's death.
So as long as we move fast enough, those guys won't be able to react."
"Then what else can you say? Let us get started." Vasiliko defined the conversation, "We will gather our soldiers, Warner and Lord Peter, and leave the rest to you.
"
Everyone immediately took action in a hurry, and the Ross soldiers were quickly summoned. They did not ask what the task they were going to do now, and they did not need to ask. For these people, obeying orders was everything.
In the dark night, many soldiers rushed towards the Tower of David holding torches high. The silver light of their armor flashed under the torches. The movement of the army shocked many civilians, but most people immediately closed their doors and windows after seeing this scene.
Yan Shi, the army was operating on the streets in the middle of the night, which meant something was about to happen.
They soon arrived in front of the fortress guarding Jerusalem. To everyone's delight, the Pisa sergeants who were guarding were very lax. Even when there was such a big movement, these people were still dozing off.
So Vasiliko's team rushed straight into the Tower of David. They quickly controlled the sleepy-eyed Pisa sergeants, without any casualties during the process, and then kicked out the garrison commander's room.
"Warner? What are you doing?"
The Pisa commander who had just put on his chain mail with the help of the woman next to him said in surprise that he had just heard the noise and got up, and then urged the prostitute he had found to quickly help him put on the armor.
"Jerusalem is now in a state of emergency. The Tower of David must be controlled by the king's soldiers, so Sonny, do you want me to take you to the dungeon or beat you up and then go to more dungeons?"
Warner's tone was very suggestive, and Zai also let the opponent understand that he had no chance.
"Okay, okay, send me down here. Remember to get a single room for me, and send this bitch here too. Damn it, you guys can really ruin my good deeds."
The people of Pisa also understood the current situation. He was originally a mercenary leader, and his loyalty was just that, so he asked for the prison treatment as a bachelor. Anyway, no matter who wins in the end, they will come out.
Warner also nodded in agreement. To be honest, this made him feel relieved. What followed was joy that came to his heart. He finally won - although it was temporary.
However, the Pisa captain did not expect that he originally thought he would have to stay in the dungeon for a long time, but ended up getting out very quickly.