Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War

"What's the matter? Tell me."

Orville didn't say anything, but glanced at the guests around him. They immediately left enough private space for the two of them to have a quiet and private conversation.

"It's a little inappropriate to talk about these things at my age, but it's time to say it, otherwise it will be too late. It's about your stepmother Judith. She should be 23 years old this year, right?"

"That's right, four years older than me and a little younger than you." Alfred probably had an idea in his mind.

"I'll be frank. I want to arrange a marriage for her, so I propose to you."

In Orville's view, Judith's main identity is not the widow of the former king of Wessex, but an orthodox member of the former Frankish royal family, with the blood of the Merovingian royal family flowing in her body.

From a political perspective, this identity can be used as a big deal. After all, the current Carolingian royal family of the Franks was not legitimately granted the throne, and the Merovingian family still has some influence in the Frankish Kingdom, but it is suppressed by the thriving Carolingian family.

Alfred is not someone who does not understand politics, and he can probably imagine this result, so he was mentally prepared for Orville's proposal.

"Of course I have no objection, but can you let me know who will marry Judith?"

"My candidate is Belisarius, my most respected general. He is less than 30 years old and has already become the commander of a legion. He is also a promising person in the Roman Empire. His character, ability and personality are impeccable. He should be worthy of Judith."

Orville also spent a lot of money this time, pushing out his most trusted right-hand man. He valued Belisarius more than Stilicho. On the one hand, Belisarius's ability was indeed stronger. On the other hand, Belisarius was from the Flavius ​​family. Finally, Orville's personal values ​​were more in line with Belisarius's. He regarded Belisarius as his friend.

He estimated that only such a person could satisfy the appetite of the Wessex people. The status of the man and the woman could be regarded as a good match, and they could tie Alfred to their chariot.

He believed that the British province was not a fertile land and was not attractive enough to the Romans. Instead of clearing out all the local ruling layers, it would be better to reach cooperation with the locals, just as the Romans did in history.

The partner he chose for himself was Alfred, the Alfred the Great in history, King Alfred, and a wise ruler in British history.

[Alfred Wessex - a calm and noble ruler]

Diplomacy: 18

Military: 24

Management: 21

Strategy: 15

Knowledge: 24

In various aspects, Alfred's ability is not bad, and his moral level is quite good. He also has a deep foundation in the local area - considering his personality, ability, and power, Orville couldn't find a more suitable person than him.

Like what various people did in history, the simplest and most direct way to pull others onto their chariot is marriage. With the consent of Belisarius himself, Orville arranged this marriage.

In the eyes of the Romans today, this marriage is a bit hard for Belisarius. After all, with his status and future in the Roman Empire, he could have married a noble woman with good education, status and appearance. But now he married a barbarian princess. The status of the two is not equal in the eyes of the Romans.

Orwell himself thinks it is not bad, because Judith can educate Alfred, and Alfred's own character is also noble in the eyes of the system, which means that she has no big problems overall, and such a person is not easy to find.

Then again, no matter what, it is more suitable and decent than Belisarius's wife in history. You must know that Belisarius' wife in history was fearless to cuckold this honest general, and she did not fulfill her wife's responsibilities from beginning to end, so that Procopius, who was with Belisarius, could not help but repeatedly ridicule Belisarius for being stupid and slow.

Now that Belisarius has found a wife with no problem in moral integrity, it can be regarded as a little regret in Orwell's heart.

The perspective turned to Alfred. He was also a little surprised when he heard this. He didn't expect Orville to think so highly of him and Judith.

He knew how good Orville was to Belisarius, and he also knew that Belisarius was very good in all aspects. Choosing this person revealed an attitude: although Orville wanted the blood of the Merovingian royal family, he would not do anything to kill the donkey after it had done its work, so that Alfred could rest assured.

But while excited, Alfred was also a little disappointed in his heart - Orville himself was not married in name. Even if he knew it was impossible, people could not help but look forward to it. In that case, the status of the Wessex royal family would be completely stabilized.

After calming down, Alfred said: "I think there is no problem, but I still need to ask Judith's opinion on this matter. After all, she is my mother, and I can't be too presumptuous. I promise you that there should be no surprises."

"That's fine, so be it. I will pay for the wedding later and combine our customs to do this."

Orville nodded with satisfaction and drank the wine in the glass again.

——

Alfred was right. Judith herself agreed to the marriage and was not in a hurry, so the time was chosen to be more than a month later. By then, Tia should come from Gaul Province. She was more important than Orville.

Although the wedding was held in a place like the British Province, it was also a political marriage in various senses, but Orville still tried to make the wedding more grand and decent, and took the initiative to bear all the expenses, which was also a little compensation to Belisarius.

Belisarius did not directly raise any opinions, but it was obvious that he was more serious and responsible in doing things. He basically went out early and came back late every day to deal with things. He was not dissatisfied with Orville's arrangement.

During this waiting period, Jeanna Dacre returned from Ireland, accompanied by hundreds of Irish warriors, and the leader was still Cu Chulainn.

After arriving in Britain, Orville did not interfere with Jeanna's freedom and agreed that she could move freely. She was also busy in the past few months, trying to ease the fragile and delicate relationship between the Germans, Romans and Celts, acting as a goodwill ambassador.

She did a good job, thanks to which Orville's army did not have any serious conflicts with the Welsh and Irish Celts, but now Orville was more curious about why Cu Chulainn had followed.