Eagle Byzantium

Then David circled twice in front of the sand table and said to his mentor, "But it's too early to give in now. He sent three thousand soldiers to reinforce Trabizon by sea and told Gabuas not to panic too much. Gawain also It is impossible to launch a decisive offensive in two directions that are not adjacent to each other at the same time. I have analyzed his previous conquests and found that in most cases, he concentrated his forces on one side. But I determined that Gawain's main attack direction this time was. It should be me!"

After speaking, David pressed his finger on the location of the Haddadi Kingdom on the sand table, and said solemnly, "If Gawain wants to come and fight me, there are about three ways - the first is to follow Erzurum Kapitun The mountain road, that is, the old trade road from Trabzon to Taulis, goes straight over the western part of the Lesser Caucasus Mountains. Pass, breaking into the Mukovali River area in the southern part of the kingdom, forcing me to fight with him near the royal capital; the second line, starting from the Sasun area he newly occupied, going north along the Alsonas River, passing through the famous The city of Manzikert then passed through Ark Mountain and entered the Kingdom of Haddadi and Shirfan. After receiving the help of the Allied Servant Army, he fought a decisive battle with me on the border of the Greater Armenia Plateau, namely the Black Lake (now Lake Sevan in Armenia); third, since he has taken control of the Greater Armenia and Iberia Military Districts (previously the Byzantine Empire was in Chacha) A shape set between Erdia and Armenia The many important castles in the long and narrow military zone in the north may also use the old roads between these castles to attack the city of Kars, which is not far away from the city of Ani and is in the center of the roads. As long as he captures this place, he can both Go north to Tbilisi, or go east to support his ally Haddadi."

After listening to the king’s analysis, Holy Oak mentor George Youyou judged, “Although the first road can pass the caravan, it is too rugged and is not conducive to the march of the army. The second road passes through the Kirat Pasha Kingdom. In the north, Gawain may be afraid of being attacked and losing his equipment and baggage, so I think. Your third path is exactly in line with Gawain's temperament and the current situation. I have analyzed the battles he commanded in the past in detail. This gentleman always likes to concentrate his strength on one side or one wing, and then fully deploy his military power to destroy the opponent. So in comparison. , Kars City is the most likely direction for Gawain to attack.”

The king also nodded, and then placed his palm slightly on the sand table and scratched it a few inches, "Now Kars is still in our hands. The person stationed at it is the Ani general Mahadzeri, and told him to be ready at any time. The alarm beacon and I will gather the East and West Georgia Office. Some of the main troops deployed 20,000 troops and quickly attacked the junction of Haddadi and Shirfan. They first defeated the two lackeys of Gawain, cut off one of his wings, and then waited for a decisive battle with him when he arrived. The initiative cannot always be in Gawain's hands, and I have to fight for it."

When the dispute between the builder David and his mentor was settled, a royal messenger came in and handed the king a token, which he said was sent from the female Caesar of Tarsus, representing her previous love for David. Replies to letters.

David, who was at the reading desk, frowned and turned around with thick black eyebrows, "I heard that men and women from the Komnenos family would poison their gifts and clothes."

So the messenger immediately knelt down, carefully cut open the box outside the token with the knife he wore, and then slowly lifted a few pieces of clothing from it.

David could see it very clearly. It was a round-necked Roman-style "Stona" waisted long dress with a large ruffle-shaped hem, which appeared in the king's eyes like a sail or a flag.

Shaking and stunned, David couldn't help but take two steps forward, and then he could judge with his naked eyes: According to rumors, Caesar of Tarsus was a woman as petite as a warbler, and this long dress was definitely not her size.

In addition to this stoner, there is also a small square cloak of fine wool across the shoulders, with gorgeous tassels and pendants on the edge, and a bell that jingles lively, and a hat with a veil on the back.

The messenger brought out a short bra, and a leather strap.

"This should be used to support the chest." The thoughtful messenger explained.

"I know..." Although David still maintained a kind smile, his teeth were chattering.

The last thing that was proposed was a pair of lace-up women's shoes.

There was tissue paper tied to it, and David, the builder, untied it. Inside were the beautiful and neat Greek words written by Anna:

"Brother, although the decisive battle has not yet begun, I thoughtfully sent you a set of beautiful women's clothes in advance for the time when you surrender to my husband in the future. Because Gawain's soldiers are far better than the hastily assembled Alans under your command. , Iberian barbarians want Brave, Gawain's equipment is far more advanced than that of your country in a remote area. I heard that 80% of the people in your country can't even read the simple words on the church's creed. Of course, the most important thing is that my husband is better than you. He was also a great Roman warrior who attacked He has defeated the Normans, Saracens, and Seljuks, and has also defeated all kinds of people in the empire who dare to be enemies with him. It is completely understandable that you live in the mountains and have no knowledge, so I sent it to you. Women’s clothing is both a well-intentioned mockery and Laughter, this is also a sincere proposal. If you give this dress to your current wife, dress her up with a fresh allure, go out with you to surrender to my husband's expeditionary army, and serve wine, sing and dance to my husband on your behalf. , that would be the best choice.

Otherwise, my husband's army will appear in Kars and make you swallow the bitter wine of failure.

As the carcass of the stag is torn apart, the lion sits atop it and roars. "

The last sentence was Anna's paraphrase of a poem from Homer's epic poem to warn the builder David, but at the beginning of the letter she used the Frankish slang "brother" to address him in a contemptuous and insulting way, which made David furious again. He crumpled the letter and turned to his mentor and said, "Gather the whole army and march to Roy City immediately. I will defeat the coalition forces of Shirvan and Hadadi there first!"

A month later, on the river plain outside Roy City, the Shirvan-Haddadi coalition forces, under the "Golden Sun" flag, refused to fight the builder David. The musketeers at the front, wrapped in the traditional Kurdish red and yellow turbans, fired fiercely in turns. Huge smoke sprayed, gathered, and floated in front of their gun muzzles, and the smoke became more and more, almost blocking the entire rear view.

Under the military flag, the two princes sat on the saddles somewhat uneasily, holding the whips, "Let the cavalry on both wings be on guard, and the archers and spearmen in the rear will replace them on the first front line." As a result, there were beast-like howling and horse hooves exploding, and in the huge smoke from the muskets, countless figures of Cuman and Alan cavalry from the Kingdom of Georgia rushed over, the feathers tied on their left shoulders fluttered violently, and they held sharp light spears and scimitars in their hands. The brims of their helmets, faces, and even the heads of their horses were tied with curtains to block the smoke and dust. Just now, they were lying on the saddles, taking advantage of the "cover" of the smoke shot by Sylvan and Hadadi musketeers, and suddenly launched a fierce raid.