bookandnovel Chapter 716: Widespread application of Holy Light?
Chapter 716: Widespread application of Holy Light?
Chapter 716: Widespread application of Holy Light?
The grand banquet was held in the open air.
The urban middle class, mainly Jewish merchants, sent horse-drawn carriages loaded with meat and grain, forming a queue hundreds of meters long.
Bards from all sides sang songs praising the Crusaders.
Coptic monks shuttled between the banquets, wandering among the Crusader nobles, offering them wine produced on the estates of their own monasteries, trying to win their support.
St. Mark's Basilica in Egypt has always been the undisputed center of Coptic Christianity, which is why the church has remained well-repaired over the years instead of being as old and dilapidated as Damietta.
But the family knows their own business. Since the Venetians stole the remains of St. Mark, the sacredness of this cathedral has greatly declined.
You know, many pilgrims come here to pay homage to the holy relics, and these people are also an important source of financial support for the operation of St. Mark's Basilica.
The less funds there are, the more difficult it is to come up with money to maintain the monastery and give alms to the poor. The more this happens, the fewer believers there will be and the weaker the influence will be.
Therefore, these Coptic monks were actually very worried that Losa would abolish their status and even order them to vacate the church and give it to the envoy sent by the Pope.
“Your Excellency, you don’t have to worry that I will let Bishop Sebastian take over St. Mark’s Basilica. As I said before, we are not robbers, but Christian brothers who have come to liberate the Copts.”
Losa said helplessly as he looked at the Coptic bishop who was putting on a flattering smile and seemed to be hesitant to speak several times beside him.
"I plan to requisition a Zoroastrian temple as Bishop Sebastian's cathedral in Alexandria. I'll need you to take care of this matter."
The Coptic bishop, who received Losa's promise, immediately agreed.
"Your Majesty Lothar."
Philip II came over with a glass of wine: "This glass is for God and for your great cause."
"Thank you, Your Majesty Philip."
Losa responded with a smile.
Philip asked again, "Your Majesty Lothar, my army has crossed the Strait of Messina. If all goes well, we will reach the Holy Land in about 20 days. I plan to march north to attack the remnants of Saladin. What do you think?"
Lothar smiled and said, "Your Majesty is ambitious and admirable. If we can recover the lost Patriarchate of Antioch, it will be a great feat no less than the recovery of Alexandria this time."
Philip probed, "Your Majesty Lothar, you are not going to send troops?"
Lothar pretended to be embarrassed. "I'm afraid not. Although the Saracens' rule in Egypt is on the verge of collapse, it will take at least a month to wipe out the enemy and retake the entire territory of Egypt. And your Majesty must have guessed that even if Egypt is unified, it will be very laborious to establish effective rule in this land. I was just a small vassal before, and I was exhausted from supplying this war. I really can't support your Majesty's northern expedition."
Philip also looked regretful: "That's such a pity."
Watching Philip leave, Lothar couldn't help but sneer in his heart. Philip's plan was good. If Philip really recaptured Antioch on his own, his reputation would probably catch up to his own in no time.
Instead of being like now, where one’s own scenery blocks out even one’s shadow.
But it didn't matter. Lothar didn't care about these false reputations. Instead, he was worried about whether Philip could defeat the remnants of Saladin. You know, in history, Philip arrived in the Holy Land before Richard, but the results he achieved were nothing special compared to Richard.
Although the time and space are different and Philip possesses considerable power, he is still the same person. Lothar feels that the result will not change much. It is impossible for a cunning fox to defeat a lion on the battlefield, even if he is already old.
The banquet lasted until late at night before gradually dispersing. Arriving at the Governor's Palace in Alexandria, Losa simply washed up and began to count the gains he had made during the day, which he had not had time to take a close look at.
The three Knights' Barracks are a reward for the Crusader Kings milestone, and they are really good stuff.
You know, the knights in the giant ship yesterday cannot be generalized with those in this world.
They are similar to the tough guys who dropped from the sky in the Battle of Constantinople. I just don't know if the people in this world can master the method of using the Holy Light.
Jeanne had also tried to teach some of the best soldiers in the army, but so far, none of them had been effective.
Even in the world of battleships yesterday, not every member of the Knights Templar could use the Holy Light, at least Hans, who was an apprentice knight at the time, could not do it.
Lothar was looking forward to this and planned to set up these military camps in Alexandria tomorrow.
In the future, he planned to establish a dual capital system in his kingdom, with Alexandria and Cairo becoming the centers of his rule.
The former is an important bridge connecting with Europe, but it is far away from the center of Egypt.
In addition to the milestones, there are the benefits of obtaining a kingdom-level title.
"Ah."
Prajna, who was writing the song of winter and summer, was a little surprised: "What are you laughing at?"
Lothar raised his finger and showed the ring with a huge gem on it: "I am laughing at the storage ring that is a must-have for time travelers. I will not get it until I can kill gods."
These two royal artifacts were not blessed by heaven and failed to obtain the "excellent" guarantee. Their effects are limited, but they are still practical.
Gathering all three of the king's exclusive treasures will also give you a set effect that can slightly enhance the special effects of each treasure.
It is conceivable that when he took out the Spear of Destiny enshrined in St. Mark's Basilica, the power of the first shot would be absolutely earth-shattering.
"What are your plans next?"
"Not yet. I've been very busy lately. It's time to take a good rest."
Lothar's tone was relaxed. Now that he had the crown on his head, his strength was at the top of the known world.
He also had an E2 item in his hand that could greatly increase the strength of his followers, and the sense of urgency in his heart was completely relieved.
As for recovering the remaining territory of Egypt, he did not plan to go into battle personally. Hans, Jeanne, and his "right-hand men" were all excellent generals who could stand on their own.
"By the way, I have to go see Nina. Do you want to come with me?"
Prajna shook her head, made the bed, and said with a smile, "No, I'll wait here for you to come back."
Lothar smiled and replied, "I'll do it as soon as possible."
Walk out of the room and down the hallway.
By the lake in the courtyard, I met Lavinia again.
She was holding a half-written code, and her eyes lit up when she saw Lothar: "Lothar, I was just looking for you, what do you think of this code I compiled?"
"It looks good. But Nia, you have to know that this will be the kingdom's first written law. It is not only related to people's livelihood, but also to the norms used to constrain vassals and clergy."
Lothar took a quick look at the code and frowned slightly.
This matter is undoubtedly of vital importance. It is what distinguishes a new country from an old, decayed one.
For example, commercial taxes have always been Losa's most relied upon source of revenue - referring to the current situation in Europe, a bridge or a highway may be the fief of a noble, and checkpoints will be set up there to collect customs duties.
Under such circumstances, business simply cannot flourish.
In his plan, local vassals could pay less or even no vassal tax, which could be used to form the lord's private army and maintain local rule, but local tariffs must not be set.
However, this matter is actually easy to implement. After all, his status has been determined, and the vassals in various places will all be die-hard loyalists in the future. However, even those loyalists need guidance, otherwise loyalty alone may not necessarily get things done.
After the system job change, all you get is loyalty. Those who should be greedy are still greedy, and those who should be cruel are still cruel.
Lavinia was slightly startled; this was something she had not considered.
"We can discuss this in detail later. We can ask Coors to come along. He's more skilled in this area. I plan to go see Nina first. I've been busy these days, and I don't know how her injury has healed."