Chapter 154: Breakout (3)

This was not the end, but the prelude.

Apoler Castle alone was nine times the size of Amalric I, and the entire Apoler city was even more vast and terrifying, especially on such a night.

When the Christian delegation stepped into this city, they only felt it was majestic and solemn, unshakable. At this moment, they felt it was like a sandcastle piled up by a child on the beach, not only tottering as a whole, but also appearing gaps and collapses from time to time.

And those soldiers who came with shouts and curses from time to time were like the seawater that poured in through every crack. Of course, they were not all Saracens. There were also Turks, Kurds, or Nubians. They had different faiths, different skin colors, and different masters, but one thing was the same, that was to seize benefits for themselves as much as possible when this huge city fell into chaos.

At this time, if there was a new Sultan with a strong hand, immediately summoning those Emirs and Fatimids and ordering them to gather and control their subordinates, the situation might not be so bad. But facts proved that the collapse of this sandcastle was already irreversible.

Sometimes the teams that met the Christians on a narrow road were not necessarily those bandits taking advantage of the fire. They could be local residents organized to protect their homes, or soldiers summoned by credible "scholars" to guard the new Sultan.

If it was the former, they would indeed feel fear and then hatred toward Cesar and others who were obviously Christians, but as long as the Saracens beside them shouted that sentence when Muhammad first entered Mecca—"Stay at home and you will be safe." There were not many people who were determined to fight these knights with sharp blades and bright armor.

And if it was the latter, it was even simpler. Many of the "scholars" here had met with ministers. The ministers had listened to their complaints, and the scholars had also done some things for the ministers—some of them were even friends, often spending time together in libraries or hookah bars.

Ma Like didn't lie about this point. With them, it indeed resolved many unnecessary conflicts for these Christian knights, except for wasting a little time—because as long as someone recognized them, they would surely grab their robes and ask about the situation in Apoler Castle.

And the response of Ma Like and others was equally desperate. An elderly "scholar" stood under the horse, grabbed his robe tightly, with a look of grief on his face: "Then where should we go? Tell me, respectable Ma Like, you are so smart, you must be able to point out a path for us."

"All I can say is please be patient for now. I am going to find a wise master," Ma Like said: "If he truly fulfills what he promised, I will bring him back."

The Zengi dynasty was originally a traditionalist among the Saracens, which meant that they didn't think that only those with the Sultan's bloodline could become Sultan. As long as they had talent, courage, and pious faith, they were willing to serve him as Sultan.

Hearing this, the other party let out a bleak laugh, "I believe you, my lord," he let go of his hand: "May Allah protect you."

"May Allah protect us, protect Apoler, protect Syria."

Watching Ma Like and those Christian knights go away, the scholar was full of worries, but then he took a deep breath, turned to his students and sons, and said with a serious face, "People in this neighborhood, immediately return home and close the doors. No matter who comes, or says they are following the decree of the Sultan or the Grand Vizier, do not open them."

"... Is this really okay? If a new Sultan is born and asks us to pay a visit to him?" his eldest son asked suspiciously.

"New Sultan?" The scholar looked at the Apoler Castle where thick smoke and fire were rolling and rising, and the towering city walls on both sides of the south gate, and said coldly, "Wait until two heads are picked up there. Then we will talk about the new Sultan."

He naturally also saw those ministers fleeing in panic.

These ministers were all respectable people recognized by others. Even if the new Sultan was mediocre, or the princes were willing to sit down and peacefully divide the land left by their father like Sultan Nur ad-Din and his brothers, they would not leave easily. After all, like Ma Like, his family had been operating in Apoler for hundreds of years, and now he wanted nothing and fled the city alone. Couldn't that explain the problem?

Facts proved how accurate the scholar's prediction was. The next morning, two ferocious heads covered in blood were indeed hung on the city walls on both sides of the south tower. However, the eunuchs who hung the heads still carefully wiped their faces clean so that everyone could see clearly who the two dead were.

Some people had already let out exclamations. Those were actually the two adult princes.

The eldest prince and the second prince were like two hungry hyenas trapped in a small room, tearing and devouring each other's flesh and blood, but didn't notice the pair of hands hidden in the dark.

In front of Sultan Nur ad-Din, the First Lady was as docile as a flower that could be picked at will.

But after Nur ad-Din passed away, or even earlier, sharp poisonous thorns had already grown in the bottom of this lady's heart. She indeed didn't have her own son, but she had Nur ad-Din's third son, Salih. Compared to the eldest prince and the second prince who were already adults and full of ambition, the child Salih was naturally more in line with the First Lady's needs.

And she had been the only manager of the harem for decades. Most of the eunuchs and palace maids were long used to obeying her orders. They led the eldest prince and the second prince into the Throne Hall, using the situation to force their followers to shed their last drop of blood here.

The First Lady, like watching beasts fight, observed them through a dark hole as they fought crazily for their greed in front of the Sultan's throne—at the last moment, the eldest prince's scimitar crossed the second prince's neck, and the second prince's head fell to the ground. In his last remaining consciousness, besides his brother's excited laughter, it was the blade tip that suddenly appeared in the other party's chest.

No one knew when the eldest prince's personal guard defected. The second prince's head revealed a twisted smile, perhaps because his enemy also finally got retribution, or perhaps it was a mockery of the eldest prince and himself.

At first, they didn't put their youngest brother in their eyes. Although his birth mother was also born in a Fatimid family, the province where his father was located was very far from Apoler. And they started the riot, but it was only within a day. Even if he had an army, how could he make it in time?

Facts proved that those who had been preparing for this day were more than just them. The First Lady, who had always shown that she treated all children equally and was docile to the point of being wooden, was like thunder when she moved, clean and neat, leaving no hidden dangers.

When the eldest prince fell while holding his chest, he saw with fear that his mother and the second prince's mother had also been brought out.

The two women were forced to kneel in front of the First Lady, and then two eunuchs pulled their hair, let them raise their heads, and cut off those two white necks like killing chickens.

Blood flowed like a red carpet.

The First Lady turned and looked at the throne and took a deep breath. She turned and reached out to Salih, who was leaning in his mother's arms: "Come. New Sultan," she said, "come to me." Salih's mother hesitated, let go of her hands, and pushed Salih toward the First Lady.

The youngest prince walked over slowly and was hugged by the First Lady. And so she hugged him and sat on the Sultan's throne together. When Nur ad-Din was still alive, she had once gazed at this throne, wondering what it would feel like to sit on it.

Now she finally knew, but it was a pity that she hadn't had time to feel more before a eunuch ran over hurriedly and whispered something in her ear.

The First Lady immediately changed her face and looked at the eunuch leader, that is, the one who once served beside Nur ad-Din. He was captured by the Crusaders with his master. But in the subsequent negotiations, he was redeemed by the First Lady, so he was very loyal to her, and with him, Salih's legitimacy could be further confirmed.

The eunuch leader saw the First Lady's face change suddenly and immediately stepped forward, "There is no one in the prison," the First Lady said in a low voice.

"Were they killed, or..." the eunuch leader paused, "Did someone release them? Who was it?"

"Ma Like," the First Lady said, "he bribed those jailers and took everyone away."

"It was our negligence," the eunuch leader frowned. They left these people until the end just to show grace. After the eldest prince and the second prince did those things to them (there was no lack of their people intentionally pushing the waves).

When they were suffering and fearing the death that could come at any time, the First Lady would appear in front of them with Prince Salih, saving them from the dirty prison like an angel.

Let them bathe, drink grape juice, enjoy the service of palace maids, and then promise that they would be rewarded for the suffering they had endured before... did they still need to worry that they wouldn't serve the new Sultan and his regent wholeheartedly and exhaust their efforts in the days to come?

But Ma Like's behavior completely broke their plan. The First Lady felt puzzled: "Why did Ma Like do that?" But she immediately waved her hand. Anyway, things had already been done. At this time, there was no need to investigate the reason.

She looked at the eunuch leader: "Did Ma Like's family support him? Where did he find the army? Without an army, relying only on a few scholars, they couldn't leave Apoler completely."

These officials worked for the Sultan in the court of Apoler, neither generals in the army nor viceroys of a province. They lacked experience in fighting on horseback. Even if they had the Prophet's revelation, this was not something that could be achieved overnight.

"They left with those Christian knights," the eunuch said, and the second eunuch also returned to report. He was sent by the First Lady to deal with those Christians—but the decree they received was completely opposite.

The first eunuch received the decree: to give those desperate people a chance to get forgiveness and vitality; while the second eunuch received the decree to let those Christians die in Apoler without leaving one.

Before, the First Lady had sent a batch of outstanding slave girls through the second prince's hand. She knew that these Christians had all taken vows of chastity, just like their monks, and would not touch women, especially infidels.

But she didn't believe that these young and vigorous guys would still stick to their promises without any restraint and surveillance. She had long heard that some knights of the Order would also keep slave girls—for them, slave girls were not people, so they were not breaking their vows.

"When did they leave?" the First Lady asked sternly.

"Before..., we found two slaves. They said that when the disturbance happened in the King's Hall, Ma Like found them, and..." he glanced at the eunuch leader, seemingly not daring to continue—there was no need to hide it at this time. The First Lady waved her hand, and he continued.

The eunuch leader only then knew that the First Lady had poisoned Count Joscelin III of Edessa and his wife. He looked at the First Lady with an indescribable expression. Why did she do this? It was completely unnecessary. The struggle between the three princes would not involve this Christian.

Moreover, this Christian knight did perform the "cleansing" ceremony for their Sultan. According to the doctrine, if he were a Saracen, the First Lady would even regard him as a... son without blood relationship, and he would also be Salih's "brother" in the future.

Of course, since he was a Christian, none of this was possible, but at least... he shouldn't be treated as an enemy.

Moreover, that important oral agreement was not made by Ma Like behind everyone's back—he once sent a letter back to Apoler by pigeon, and then received an accurate reply from here. That is to say, the three wives and the princes had already promised this matter, wanting to regard this Christian as a benefactor.

However, the First Lady's reward was to poison his parents.

"I can't tell you the reason. I can only say I had to do it. Someone wanted them to never open their mouths, preferably before they saw any Christian," the First Lady said anxiously. The eunuch leader opened his mouth. He couldn't blame the First Lady. No matter what, they were the closest allies from now on, and the First Lady had also taken remedial measures.

This "remedy" was not to say that after causing such hatred, she wanted to eliminate this mistake, but to cut the weeds and dig up the roots.

The slave girls they sent before all carried fatal poison, which would be sprinkled into the knights' wine when they were happy. But they didn't expect that Cesar and Geoffrey didn't allow them to touch these knights at all, and the eldest prince's coup happened much earlier. Until Cesar and the others set off, they didn't find a chance to approach the knights.

"It's useless to say more now, my lady, you have to make a decision."

The eunuch leader was talking about those ministers, "Since they have betrayed the Sultan, whether it's Nur ad-Din or his son, there is no need to keep them," the First Lady said, "Let our soldiers pursue them and kill them in the desert outside Apoler."

(End of chapter)