Eagle Byzantium

Then, on an abandoned high embankment near the sea, the camps of various troops were separated by a warning distance and surrounded it:

Lapsiomatus, Grand Duke of Cyprus of the Roman Empire, Stephen Gawain Russell, Grand Duke of the Roman Empire, Tatisius, General of the Roman Empire's Asiatic March, Sven, Prince of the Kingdom of Denmark, General Osen, the owner of Lampron Castle, and Taprunzi, an Armenian nobleman, who represented Prince Reuben of Armenia to join the pilgrim armed forces.

This group of people, with their own positions, took to the various passages of the high embankment with well-armored guards, with flags and horses deployed on all sides, and large patches of reeds swayed in the early spring wind below. The sunset dyed the entire surface of the estuary like a red carpet, with the black blurred silhouettes of the moored ships.

"During the siege, I will use the fleet to fully guarantee the supply and transportation of all teams." Lapsiomates smiled and nodded. The old fox said it in a high-sounding way, but in fact he wanted to avoid the cruel land siege, only let Cyprus do logistics, and get a share of the sale of materials. Safety and preservation are the first priority.

But then, Taitius handed a token and a sealed document to Lapsiomates, and said publicly in front of everyone, "Don't forget your position, Grand Duke. According to the order signed by His Majesty the Emperor here, you are now subordinate to my combat sequence. Even the title of Grand Duke, or the Prince of Armenia or Denmark, has nothing to do with you."

Lapsiomates was immediately flattered and raised his hands to take the things. Gawain touched his chin beside him, looking at this scene, thinking that the Cyprus fleet must not be used by me now.

"Well said, now we should discuss the ownership of the command. Since the Grand Duke has been under the command of His Excellency the Imperial Marching General, I, Taprunzi, also represent the will of Prince Reuben, the King of the Mountains. I declare that the Armenian troops will only obey the orders of the Pilgrim Adhmar, the High Priest." Taprunzi, who was standing over there, immediately pulled out the scepter from his belt and said so.

Then General Osen and Prince Sven immediately said that they would follow His Excellency the Grand Duke to fight.

After saying this, the people who were discussing fell silent, very embarrassed. Although most of them held official titles in the Roman Empire, there was no doubt that this huge army fought on its own, and there was only the rustling of the setting sun and the whistling of the reeds around.

So, a group of lords and generals came to the high embankment specifically to talk nonsense and argue?

A cough came. Everyone turned their eyes to the one who sent it out—Gawain, with his hands on his hips, his brown hair fluttering in the wind, and the giant Dim Goliath holding a long-handled hexagonal hammer, standing behind him, and then he said something that shocked everyone:

"In the next siege, I am willing to serve as the deputy of the general commander of the Asian march, the army of Seleucia and Cilicia. I will also accept the command of the general commander and even His Majesty Constantinople."

Then he raised the silver horse-head scepter, pointed at Prince Sven and said, "I ask the Danish soldiers to do the same, because you are in the imperial palace. You have also received the emperor's warm hospitality and sworn an oath of obedience, is that right?"

Prince Sven nodded.

The next target, Gawain's horse head, as if with a neigh, quickly turned to Taprunzi who had not yet reacted, "Now is the time for Prince Reuben's team to choose. If you refuse to obey the imperial command, all our passages from the Syrian Gate to the Port of Saint Simon. You have no right to use the supplies."

"Too insulting!" Taprunzi was so angry that his beard trembled. As if it was burned by fire, his shoulders shrugged, "I have said that Prince Reuben's army obeys the Roman priest."

"I am also the priest." Gawain took back the scepter and tapped his shoulder armor.

"This is completely different!"

"If you think it is different, then don't go through the Syrian Gate, continue to cross the mountains from Marash to Malatya City, and then take Edessa to Antioch to join your master, the Normans." The sound of the scepter hitting the Grand Duke's shoulder armor became more and more urgent, representing Gawain's impatient mood.

"In that case..."

"Write an oath of allegiance to His Majesty and the Grand Marshal, and it will be automatically lifted after the victory of the siege of Antioch. Otherwise, if the marching orders are not in place, it is easy to be attacked and suffer heavy losses in the chaotic country of Antioch." Then Gawain waved his hand, and Andeodat, the acting lord and herald of the city of Sicistra who also came to participate in the war, immediately walked out with the prepared documents, "From now on, I propose to establish a new 'Imperial Expedition Privy Council' with His Excellency the Grand Marshal, and do not accept the leadership of the Pilgrims' Marching Cardinal Council."

Around The generals looked at each other in bewilderment. Then Gawain's reason was actually very reasonable. "Although I was baptized by the Catholic Church, the army of Lord Titius and General Oson are believers of the Orthodox Church, and many Armenians among them are believers of the Apostolic Church. For the sake of fairness and faith, it is very necessary to set up a separate expeditionary privy council. In addition, the actions of the pilgrims are all carried out under the command of His Majesty the Emperor in Constantinople, so the Empire's own strategic plans should also be discussed and implemented by a separate authority, right?" After saying that, Gawain turned his eyes to Titius.

"I don't have any big objections to the Grand Duke's plan." Titius, who covered his face with a cloak, still had a calm tone.

Lapsiomatus stood there, feeling the armor and jacket sticking to his body, and felt very hot, because he didn't know what medicine the Grand Duke was selling; and Taprunzi, on the other side, was shocked and angry, and kept protesting loudly.

A correct version in 1619 Book Bar!

"If that's the case, please withdraw your troops to the north of the Feramis River and officially declare that you are an enemy of the great Romanian Empire. After solving Antioch, I will visit Prince Reuben's Vanca City." Gawain turned around and made a loud gesture of "inviting Taprunzi to leave" to Taprunzi.

Finally, the others compromised and surrendered. Gawain proudly declared that "all gatherings should be aimed at solving clear goals. If they are divided and arguing, it will definitely be detrimental to future operations." He received the "unanimous approval" of the representatives of each camp: the Imperial Expedition Privy Council was established, which had the power in principle to control the subordinates, material transfers, and rewards and punishments of soldiers and officers in the expedition. The chief and vice-chairmen were Taitishius and Gawain, respectively. The two stamped their own seals on the signature, and noted the text "We are the loyal servants of the Roman emperor". Then Oson, Taprunzi and others also signed it willingly or unwillingly.

After returning to the camp, Diogenes, who learned about the situation of the high embankment meeting, shouted angrily, "This is Gawain's trick. What is that trick called? Financing, equity investment?" (To be continued ~^~)