Drawing Cards in the Middle Ages to Rise in Ranks

"Retreat well; just say that my troops are unaccustomed to the terrain and unable to undertake the main offensive task."

Leopold sneered.

The plan of doing the work without exerting effort was not his idea, but it represented the resentment felt by many Germanic Crusaders.

After all, the handling by the three giants of the military council was quite unfair. Initially, there was a discriminatory allocation of supplies, then it became the distribution of combat tasks, with all the demanding tasks with little return given to the Germanic Crusaders.

Later, even their mounts, the horses, were requisitioned and prioritized for the Gaul Crusaders.

Many Gaul Knights would humiliate them by saying their riding skills were poor, only suitable for being on foot like peasants during combat.

Leopold could understand the actions of the military council; he would also prioritize his own loyal followers.

After all, resources were not abundant, and the County of Tripoli wasn’t as rich as Egypt, struggling to supply the high number of seventy thousand troops, which continued to grow daily.

If treated fairly, it would please no one, and even one’s own supporters might turn against them, resulting in complete alienation.

But understanding doesn’t mean accepting; Leopold had long been resentful of the exclusion by the Tripartite Alliance upon arriving at the Holy Land.

Near the stocks at the Crusader Camp.

Three Germanic commanders, responsible for the defense on the night when Saracen reinforcements broke through, were bound in them.

This punishment, meant to humiliate the offenders, would bind their hands and necks, forcing them to stoop, exposed to the elements, insect bites, standing in the stock for the entire day, or even several days.

The physical suffering was secondary; the most significant was the insult to their honor.

Some drunken Gaul Knights, after dinner, came to the stocks and mocked them.

"If it weren’t for these three cowards, we’d already be sleeping in the castle at Holmes!"

"These scoundrels who disgraced the name of the Crusaders, to me, the three gentlemen of the military council are too lenient; they should all be hanged on the gallows."

"Three damned German pigs!"

But soon, German Crusaders came over and stood in front of these Gaul Knights.

"Ludwig is an honest, brave knight who has suffered unjust treatment; I won’t allow anyone to insult him anymore!"

"Nonsense, he drank on duty and let the Saracen reinforcements into Holmes. Such a great crime, the military council not sending him to the gallows was already kind enough."

"You lowly German, dare to speak to a noble this way?"

"Germans are not lowly, His Majesty Losa is also a German."

"Fool, do you truly believe that just because the noble originates from Germania, he’s a German? The Habsburg Family’s bloodline traces back to the Capet Dynasty, even Charlemagne the Great. He is a genuine Gaul noble!"

More people gathered on both sides; at this point, the key issue was no longer about right or wrong.

Both sides exchanged insults, shoved, and fought; if not for a sliver of reason remaining, a full-on brawl might have ensued.

Realizing the seriousness of the situation, officers from both sides quickly came over and used whips to separate these energetic young soldiers, but it was futile.

Feeling treated unfairly, the Germanic Crusaders sat around the stocks, both to protect their three comrades and to express their dissatisfaction.

"Saint Losa, ruler of Jerusalem and Egypt, protector of all overseas Germans, our supreme Monarch, please pray to God, the Holy Spirit on our behalf, with the Holy Spirit above, God bless humanity..."

No one knew when it started, but someone began singing aloud.

The melody was taken from Bohemia’s Saint Wenceslas hymn.

Some Gaul clergy tried to step in to stop it; after all, "Saint Sealer" should at least ascend to the Celestial Kingdom, canonizing a living person was simply preposterous.

But their sparse voices were quickly drowned out by the singing crowd, which grew larger and larger. Gathered were German soldiers, nobles, and even clergy.

Many Germanic clergy even claimed that "Losa is a second manifestation of the Lord incarnate," regarding him as having the same Person as Jesus Christ, the "Holy Son" in the Trinity theory.

This was the kind of statement that, once proposed in Europe, could cause a huge uproar, yet in the Holy Land, it received considerable recognition among the Crusaders.

This was also a popular belief in the Holy Land nowadays, with many initially scornful Pilgrims gradually changing their views after witnessing the Divine Tree, Siegfried High Tower, and a series of Miracles like the riding of the Demon Dragon.

Far away on the Apennine Peninsula, His Holiness the Pope maintained a passive attitude toward such nonsense, as if his ears were deaf, never responding publicly.

But in fact, the Pope had always been highly vigilant against such heresy, for instance, the Purifiers’ sect which was prevalent in southern Gaul had barely emerged when Pope Alexander III declared them heretical, subjecting them to brutal suppression.

"Your Majesties, things have gotten big."

The military council convened once more with the Tripartite Alliance.

Raymond said with some headache: "Why are matters concerning the Germans always so troublesome? I really wish these guys would just leave my territory!"

Philip snorted: "Isn’t that exactly what we’re aiming for? But now it seems, if we want these Germans to leave, we must fight a Crusader civil war. Then Losa will descend with the lofty demeanor of an Arbiter, and what will our Tripartite Alliance have to fight against him with?"

Richard seemed to have come to his senses at this point, and he frowned: "Could this be Saladin’s poisonous strategy?"

Raymond’s expression stiffened, as Saladin’s old rival, he knew well this heretic Monarch’s ways: "It’s quite possible; intentionally stirring up conflict between the Germans and Gauls, then elevating Losa to the skies, forcing the three of us to confront him."

Philip frowned: "Even if that’s the case, what can we do? Reconcile with them? Bow to Losa?"

For the Eastern Expedition, he paid quite a price, and with Richard almost certainly unlikely to stay in the Holy Land, to end up with merely meaningless gains and have his reputation overshadowed by Losa would be a great loss.

Richard snorted coldly: "Ha, strategy is just a cheap trick; no matter how cunning Saladin is, the final winner won’t be him."

"But it might not be us either."

Philip rubbed his temples: "Should we take this opportunity to placate those Germans after all?"