Year 2515 of the Empire, on the evening of the disbandment of the Knight King's army, the capital of Brittany, the Knights of the Holy Grail's club, the "House of the Round Table".
As the name suggested, this was the club of the Holy Grail's branch in Colona. It provided food and lodging, as well as many entertainment facilities for the Knights of the Holy Grail to enjoy themselves here. Of course, the entry threshold was extremely high. If one was not a Knight of the Holy Grail, then one would have to at least receive a letter of recommendation from a Knight of the Holy Grail or be brought in by a Knight of the Holy Grail. The drinks, food, and entertainment inside were basically free.
Berchemund and François chose a seat by the window and sat down. The waiter served the drinks and food. François then signaled the waiter to leave. The two old dukes sat down and ate facing each other.
The two men had different opinions about the situation of their own army, but they did not care about the army's affairs. They chose to have a meal together when they were free.
Berchemund, the old duke, was good at giving out rewards, but it was a headache for him to arrange the specific amount of rewards, how to balance the distribution of the Bastogne knights and the serfs, and who to promote. The old duke had never been good at these things. He was only good at war, and he had a hard time with internal affairs and diplomacy.
It just so happened that Talleyrand came to visit with Laing's idea. The Knight King politely asked if Berchemund had a hard time in this area. Do you need us to arrange it for you?
Good, good, good! Berchemund was overjoyed. He immediately said that it would be great if they could arrange it for him. After reading through Talleyrand's list of promotion to freemen, knighthood, and the corresponding rewards, Berchemund agreed to everything except for the fact that he felt that Talleyrand was a little "grassroots". The problem of rewards was solved so easily, and he was relieved.
Berchemund also liked to appoint officials. However, he had a terrible eye in choosing people, and he did not know how to manage and control them. Every time he appointed an official, they would learn how to deceive their superiors and subordinates. They would constantly suck the serfs dry and deceive the knights and nobles. In the end, when Berchemund found out, he could only kill or replace them. If Talleyrand was not Laing's personal vassal, Berchemund almost wanted to hire Talleyrand to be his chief minister.
"Don't, Boxi. You can't control people like Talleyrand." François was still full of elegance and wisdom. He could tell what Berchemund was thinking. The father-in-law shook his head. "That High Elf is simply a synonym for deceit and hypocrisy. Other than my son-in-law, very few people can suppress him. This is because most of the time, you can't even detect his hints and deceit. He is simply the incarnation of Ranod. Only by reading him and understanding everything about him can his talents be truly used by others."
Ranod, one of the eight great gods of the Old World, the God of Deception and Theft. "He" was once a mortal, but "He" relied on successfully deceiving the Goddess of Mercy, Sariya, and deceiving her to drink her tears to become a god.
"It can't be? I think he's quite enthusiastic. " Berchemund complained. "At most, he's a little grassroots. He's more inclined towards commoners and serfs in the rewards, but considering his background, it's normal."
"Ah, My Lady, you've been fooled by that cripple!" Francois had no choice but to expose Lucien, "What do you mean by 'grassroots'? He's just trying to please His Majesty and make you feel at ease. Think about it. If his rewards are biased toward the knights and nobles, what will your first reaction be? Will you feel that he's colluding with the knights and nobles under your command? Then, are you still willing to trust him? Will the reward list he drafted be approved by you? "
"… Is that so?" Berchemund was stunned for a long time.
"So Talleyrand, this deceitful person, will constantly test you and give you hints. As long as you don't understand his hints and don't understand his subtext, he will deceive you and toy with you!" François sighed. "Only my son-in-law has enough standards and knows everything. Only then can he control terrifying talents like Talleyrand and Berliat."
"You, on the other hand, François. You're good at internal affairs. You can handle everything yourself." Berchemund grumbled, but the Red Dragon duke quickly focused on his pork, egg, and ham sandwich and started eating in big bites.
François and Berchemund were completely different existences. Laing's father-in-law had already drafted the reward list and specific candidates on the way. The rest was left to Jerrold, so Laing's father-in-law had nothing to do.
François also picked up his sandwich. It was his father-in-law's favorite grilled chicken sandwich and pineapple pie. He took two bites, thought for a moment, and put it down. "Boxi, do you have more information about the ten marshals?"
The news of the ten marshals made all the Brittany nobles' hearts itch. Most of the nobles were still discussing who would be conferred the title of marshal. This title undoubtedly represented the highest rank, the king's trust, and the ability to take charge of an area.
The title of marshal came from the Empire. In the earliest days of Charlemagne's reign, marshal meant "the person in charge of the royal stables" and was responsible for the management of the Emperor's war horses. During the reign of Sigismund the Conqueror, in order to deal with the Empire's wars on all sides, the position of marshal began to appear to ensure that the Emperor's attention was not focused on one area. After that, the position was fixed and symbolized the highest rank. The Empire and Kislöw both had marshal positions, such as Marshal Rick, Marshal Nur, Marshal Mildenheim, and many other marshals conferred by Kislöw.
Brittany also had the title of marshal, but it was not a permanent position. For example, in the history of Brittany, there was a famous admiral, Henry La Motte, who had defeated the King of Kings, the Eternal Emperor, and the Immortal King of the Brittany Desert at the famous Barbaric Point. The King of Kings, the Eternal Emperor, and the Immortal King (more than a hundred titles are omitted below and include but are not limited to the above) sent by Saitra. He killed the enemy's general, Amon Khetum, and was conferred the title of marshal.
By the way, this defeat caused Saitra to launch a revenge attack that lasted for two hundred years. It was only when the grave of Brittany's Marshal, Henry La Motte, was dug up and his ashes were personally cleaned by Saitra that the war ended.
Currently, Brittania only had one marshal, and that was Marshal Roland Marshall of the border guards at the border between Brittania and the Empire. As everyone knew, there was a dispute between Brittania and the Empire in Wester, and both sides had the right to claim it. Therefore, a large number of troops had been stationed at the border to guard against each other. Marshal Roland had once led a large number of border guards to build a large number of fortresses here, confronting the Empire's army in the swamps and forests, and seizing every opportunity to expand the territory of the Kingdom of Knights.
After Laing became the Knight King, he achieved a major breakthrough in diplomacy with the Empire. In principle, both sides decided to coexist peacefully and prosper together. They renegotiated the border and signed a treaty. Since then, there had been no more wars. Marshal Roland's border defense army was useless. Now, the border defense army was only left with a team of Knights and two Serf Infantry regiments to guard against possible invasions by the green-skinned Orc bandits.
While everyone was excited about the title of 'Ten Marshals', a few of the nobles were keenly aware that this might be the time when the political situation and power of the Knight Kingdom would be reshuffled.
For example, Laing's father-in-law, who was very sensitive in politics. François wiped his mouth and waited for Berchemund's reply.
"My information is similar to yours." "But I got the latest news from that witch in Karad. Doesn't she often go to the palace to attend the afternoon tea party organized by Queen Suria?" Berhemond said in a low voice. "But I got the latest news from that witch in Karad. Doesn't she often go to the palace to attend the afternoon tea party organized by Queen Suria? During the tea party, Katherine learned from Suria's maid, Sylvia, that His Majesty intends to make Madam Kiesler one of the top ten Brittany Marshals. He's also the only Marshal with foreign nationality. "
"Rokossovsky, it can only be him." Francois frowned after hearing this. His father-in-law slowly leaned back in his chair and fell into deep thought.
From the information that could be made public, the people who would definitely be conferred the title of Marshal were: Berchemund, François, Bodrick, Bertrand, Laun, Kalad, and Rokossovsky.
There were already seven people, and none of them were controversial, including Rokossovsky. Everyone admired this Marshal for guarding Örengrád and leading the Bagration operation, destroying and crushing the Norska Mountain Army like a storm, and even causing the Norska Supreme King, Aslin, to die outside Glowald Forest City.
Now that Rokossovsky had naturalized and joined Brittany, he was also preparing to marry a local Brittany noble singer, Eva Green, who was of noble lineage. Just like how Laing married Suria, this symbolized that he had already obtained the recognition of the knights and nobles.
He would be the first person in the history of the Old World to be conferred the title of Marshal by two countries at the same time.
Now there were only three places left, so in addition to these people, there were also the following people who were very competitive:
Marshal Roland Marshall of the Border Guard. As mentioned before, his personal strength was average, and his commanding ability was average, but he had the only Marshal title now, and he was very experienced. Before Laing came to Brittany, he was already the commander of an army.
Duke Gisoleiox, Hagan, this duke was not good at internal affairs and diplomacy, just like Berchemund. His advantage was his seniority and noble status, and he had also participated in many wars, but whether Laing valued his commanding ability was questionable.
Deputy Marshal of the Old Guard, Nicolás Davu, this famous old guard of the Holy Grail, fought bravely and tenaciously, and was also generally recognized by the knights and nobles, as well as Laing's trust. However, Davu had a fatal flaw, which was that he was too inexperienced, and he had joined the core circle too late. There was already a lot of controversy when he was directly promoted to Marshal, and if he was directly promoted to Marshal, there would definitely be a lot of controversy.
Duke Hubert of Carcassonne, this cold and abnormally self-disciplined duke, was also one of the candidates. He was strong, good at commanding, and was the Holy Grail, but Carcassonne had always been relatively isolated from the core circle of Brittany. Other than Egil's invasion, Duke Hubert had never fought with Laing again, nor did he participate in any great expedition.
Under Laing's command, the Scorching Sun Knight, Baron Biokari, Juan Carlos Sungazer, Count Deven, and the current Marquis of the Wretched Land, the Marshal of the Three Guards of the Wretched Land, Lucian, also had a certain degree of competitiveness. There was also the flag bearer, Baron Molovin, Armand. Of course, this flag bearer had been in Molovin Castle for a long time and did not speak much, so his presence was very weak.
In addition to these candidates, Casfern, Duke of Pallavon, Theodoric, Duke of Beurleon, and Gerrod, Francois's cousin, also had a chance.
"Now it seems that we will all be promoted to Marshal, without a doubt." François deliberated over his words. His father-in-law swallowed the grilled chicken in a few mouthfuls, thought about it, and probed, "But we will also be worthy of the title of Marshal, Boxi, do you think I'm right?"
"Yes …" The Red Dragon Duke nodded. Bohemond didn't care at all. "That's right. No one will be left out except us. Come, Francois, let's drink."
"Hey!" The father-in-law looked at Berchemund's "I can't teach you" expression and was so angry that his goatee trembled. He could only clink glasses.
After each drank a glass of wine, the father-in-law had no choice but to make things clear. "But we can't only think for ourselves, Boxi. What about the people under our command?"
Berchemund nodded. The Red Dragon Duke said meaningfully, "Currently, seven people have been confirmed. I, Bastogne, have already taken two. François, in the name of the ladies, I will not be greedy."
"What does this have to do with being greedy?" François's eyes lit up. His father-in-law understood. Berchemund knew this in his heart, so he decided to strike while the iron was hot. "We all know very well what the criteria for the Ten Marshals are. Is it bloodline? Or is it closeness? Then why doesn't His Majesty make one of his close subjects a Marshal? "
"What do you mean?" Berchemund was stunned. The old Duke did not understand what François meant.
"Ability! It's ability! " François could only speak more clearly. His father-in-law was really speechless at Berchemund's slowness in politics. "Laing only makes Marshals based on two things. One is ability and the other is seniority. Ability represents the future of leading an army and being independent in battle. Seniority represents loyalty and ability to convince the masses. Boxi, on this point, you have to fight for what you have to fight for. A Marshal is a military position that directly belongs to the Knight King. If you don't fight for it, why would His Majesty care about a coward? His Majesty likes people with performance, ability, and ambition. He is not afraid of not being able to control them. He can even control the vicious Berliat and the cunning Talleyrand. Do you think he can't handle these guys? "
"Then what do you mean?" Berchemund thought for a moment and felt that François made sense. "Davu? He's from Bastogne. "
"You have to fight for it! And we have to fight for it. " François nodded. "The Marshal position is a big cake. I'm sure that His Majesty will soon centralize power completely. We have to control more Marshals in order to have a better position in the future. I'll go see Suria tomorrow and see if Davu still has a chance. Davu's ability and loyalty are not a problem. I'm doing this for the country."
"Then I'll also visit the old families of Carona and the Grail Knights." Berchemund nodded slowly. The Duke thought for a minute before looking up. "So … Jerrold?"
"Jerrold is not good enough." The old man stroked his goatee and smiled. "I know he's not good enough. Think about it again, Boxi. Who is the one with the ability to lead an army outside, contribute to the country, and contribute to our friendship with the dwarves?"
"The Marshal of the Three Armies of the Wretched Land? Marquis Lucian? "Berchemund understood.
"He's already on his way back." François nodded. "Let's split up."
"Boxi, I'll use my connections and Suria's influence to recommend Davu."
"And you, use your family's connections and the influence of those noble bloodlines to recommend Lucian!"
"Let's split up!"
"Deal!"
The two crystal goblets collided, the wine splashing everywhere.
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