The Rise of the European Emperor

In March, Europe with higher latitudes actually just thawed. The real busiest spring farming season in Europe is actually April. But you plowed the land with a plow a month earlier, and it didn't matter if you turned up the soil. After all, if the soil is turned up, it will not fill it back by itself.

The real sowing will be in April. It's just that Marin felt a pity. Because, the farmers under his command are sowing seeds by hand, which is not efficient at all. If you have a columbine cart, you can sow hundreds of acres in a day. Unlike now, a farmer bends down to sow on demand, and can only sow a few acres a day, which is very inefficient.

It's just that the columbine car is something from northern China. If you want it, you have to go to Huaxia, which is now Daming. Moreover, columbine carts are suitable for sowing in dry land, especially for large fields. They are very suitable for the needs of growing wheat in Europe, and are also very suitable for the vast land of North America.

In history, Europeans learned of the existence of columbine carts after doing business with Ming Dynasty. But it is a pity that the Portuguese in Macau, the southern part of China they came into contact with, planted paddy fields and practiced the rice transplanting system. Columbine carts are not suitable for paddy fields, so the Portuguese naturally couldn't see the real thing. Then, the Europeans could only invent the planter on the basis of imagination. However, the earliest seed drill invented by Europeans in 1566 was very inefficient and completely inferior to the columbine cart. Moreover, it was not the Portuguese who invented the seed drill, but the Italians who got the news from the Portuguese. Moreover, it was the missionaries sent by the Holy See to Macau who brought back the news of the drill.

Marin didn't have the time to invent, wouldn't it be better to just get a sample to imitate? Although Da Vinci also has the strength to invent the seed drill. However, using Da Vinci in this way is a bit wasteful. However, it is possible to get the columbine back and let Da Vinci improve it.

...

When the whole of Europe began to be busy with spring plowing, Kahn and his party were lurking in the mountains at the junction of the plains near Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, constantly exploring the local terrain.

Kahn brought 50 soldiers of the Spike Commando, but when they first arrived in this mountainous area, everyone did not wear French plate armor, but first wore ordinary leather armor, and went over the mountains and ridges to "step on the spot"...

This small valley called Gobridge was the final chosen location. It is very close to Edinburgh, only about 20 kilometers away. Under normal circumstances, if Edinburgh sent cavalry to rescue, it would take more than an hour to reach the battlefield.

But the problem is, there are no mobile phones these days, how can Edinburgh know that Gobridge Valley needs support? What's more, the last time James IV led a large army to go south, all the main cavalry was taken to England, and they were either killed or captured.

In other words, the 50 Scottish knights that James IV could bring back this time are the only remaining cavalry in the Kingdom of Scotland. Even if Edinburgh learned that there was an assassination in Gobridge Valley, it would not be able to call in cavalry support. And if the infantry came to support, they would have to run for several hours. A few hours is enough for Kahn and the others to kill James IV several times...

After Kahn arrived, according to Marin's instructions, he did not just prepare for the attack. Instead, with the help of the elite of Coster and Maric's "Robin Hood Thief Group", he began to inspect the local terrain and look for the path in the mountains. Prepare for retreat.

Although Scotland's elite were defeated in the war, they stayed in England. However, there are still thousands of infantry in the country. Kahn only brought 50 people, and if he was surrounded by thousands of Scottish infantry, it would be difficult to escape. In particular, even if Kahn could get out, he couldn't show up at will. Because, once he is recognized, the murder of James IV by Marin will be exposed to the world. This was an unbearable consequence for Marin, so after committing the crime, Kahn had to run away with his men as soon as possible.

While escaping in the mountains, familiarity with the local terrain and roads is a must. Therefore, Kahn spent most of his time looking for escape routes. As for killing James IV? Is that the problem?

And Coster and Maric, who came with their confidantes, are studying how to dig a horse pit on the main road of Gobridge Valley...

Because it is a traffic artery,

Both Coster and Maric could not dig the horse trap ahead of time. Because there are quite a lot of people passing by this road during the day. Therefore, the people of Coster and Maric could only enter the valley at night, inspect the terrain, and pound the ground with a small shovel to find a suitable point for excavation.

However, the roads in the Gobridge Valley are mainly stone, and it is difficult to dig out horse traps. For this reason, the men of Coster and Maric had to adopt a stupid method-they dug the stones on the ground in the northern section of the road in Gobridge Valley every midnight. Then, fill with soil instead. The reason for this is that on the day of the ambush, the horse trap can be dug smoothly in the northern section of the road. If the ground is rocky, it is difficult to dig a hole...

In addition, for this one-kilometer-long valley main road, in order to achieve the purpose of ambush, not only must a horse pit be dug in the northern section, but also preparations must be made to cut off the enemy's retreat in the southern section. Otherwise, it would be bad if James IV retreated southward under the cover of the Scottish knights. Kahn and his Spikes struck out on foot, while James IV, with his fifty Scottish knights, must have been on horseback. If he successfully retreated from the south on horseback, Kahn would not be able to catch up even if he wanted to.

Fortunately, this method is not difficult. Because, at the southern end of the Gobridge Valley, the slopes are high on both sides. In this way, the people of Coster and Maric can pile up stones on the high hillside. Once James IV's team entered the valley, their men pushed down the piled stone wall, allowing the stones to block the gap in the south, cutting off the retreat of James IV and others...

Originally, this method could also be used at the northern end of the valley. However, the slopes at the northern end of the valley are too low. If the stone wall has been piled up in advance, it can be seen at a glance. Therefore, we can only dig a horse pit. Moreover, Kahn was also in ambush in the north. When he rushed into the valley with 50 Spike commando soldiers, he blocked the northern exit by himself, so he didn't worry about the enemy running away.

While Kahn, Coster, and Maric were preparing for the ambush in Gobridge Valley, Edward was on the London side, and the preparations were not left behind.

First, Edward and James IV had a see-saw negotiation. Originally, if the two parties were sincere, they could reach an agreement to release him at the beginning of the year. But because Edward wanted to kill James IV and Marin's entrustment, Edward deliberately made excuses and delayed time.

For example, Edward once proposed that Princess Margaret, the daughter of Henry VII, the wife of James IV, come to London to exchange James IV...

The intention was that Edward wanted to kill Princess Margaret. After all, Princess Margaret is the only surviving child of Henry VII. If it falls into the hands of someone with a heart, it will be a bargaining chip that can be used to compete with Edward for the throne. Therefore, Edward wanted Princess Margaret to die.

However, where is James IV willing? That's my real wife. As the king of a country, if he sent his wife to die, how would he have the face to come out? Although he didn't have any feelings for Queen Margaret, she was his wife after all, and she couldn't just give it to the enemy to kill.

Moreover, James IV has another idea-that is, to use Queen Margaret's status as an English princess to make a fuss in the future, and to participate in the battle for the English throne in the future.

Although it is said that Scotland's national strength is far inferior to that of England. But Scotland has an ally in France! If France is willing to help, Scotland may not be unable to beat England.

In addition, James IV has already thought about it-in the future, after France recovers from the previous defeat, he will invite the French army to land on the coast of Scotland. Then, troops were sent south from Scotland to attack England. In this way, the danger of the French facing England's powerful navy was avoided.

The English navy is indeed powerful, but the sea areas they can control are the English Channel and the southwestern part of the North Sea. If the French army boarded a ship, circled the North Sea in a big circle, and landed from Edinburgh, the British navy, no matter how powerful it was, might not be able to stop it. If the powerful French army goes ashore, it will be difficult for the British army to resist...

After defeating England, he will be able to seize the throne of England in the name of Henry VII's son-in-law. When the time comes, he will unify the island of Great Britain...

James IV thought very well, but unfortunately, he may not have the opportunity to realize this grand goal...