Chapter 53: Celebration (Part II)

—A Byzantine official mentioned this in his private diary.

He said this was a typical Byzantine conspiracy. It was aimed at Princess Maria and her future barbarian husband.

This kind of conspiracy was common in the Byzantine court and could even be called crude, but it was enough to deal with these Franks who were simple, crude, and had no city government.

The person who carried out this conspiracy bribed several key figures in the princess's dowry team:

First, the official who managed and guarded these wild beasts.

They stuffed a mother bear that had lost its cub into the end of the team and opened most of the cages.

"This mother bear was the largest I have ever seen." This official wrote: "When it was on all fours, its eyes could still look at an ordinary man. When it stood up, it was twice as tall as him. Its fur was thick and bonded together by asphalt, tree gum, and bitumen, just like wearing a layer of thick armor. Ordinary weapons hacking at it had no effect at all. Arrows either bent and fell off or were stuck in it in vain."

Second, the slaves or maids around the princess.

The cub of this mother bear was beheaded and placed in the reliquary where the princess originally hid the hair of the Virgin Mary. This was undoubtedly an extremely blasphemous act. Their souls would inevitably be thrown into the lake of fire and burned for ten thousand years, but obviously, profit outweighed the punishment after death.

And when the princess's maid discovered that such a terrible filth had been put into the reliquary, whether intentionally or unintentionally, her first thought was actually to find a way to throw it away.

At this time, the change had already occurred. Dozens of wild beasts were released from the cages, including agile and strong leopards, tigers that could make people tremble all over just by roaring, and a dozen or so cunning and cruel wolves.

Without exception, they were hungry and full of hatred for humans.

"Reasonably speaking," the official continued to write: "They appeared in the parade just to show these animals that were about to appear in the hunt or the martial arts tournament.

According to convention, they should have been given herbs that would bring coma or paralysis, but these proposals were rejected by the official responsible for guarding the wild beasts. He said, if we let those Franks see the animals we brought looking weak and powerless, wouldn't they laugh at us for being cowardly?

As a result, not only did they not use the few herbs that could soothe the senses of these wild beasts, but they used some things to boost their spirits. So much so that as soon as the cage door opened, they were mentally excited and threw themselves into the slaughter.

"As far as I saw," he added cautiously: "Some wild beasts might have wanted to escape more, but people pushed and shoved each other, not realizing that they had blocked the escape route of the wild beasts, and they were also brutally bitten."

Third, the warriors in the princess's dowry team.

They should have been loyal to the princess and unconditionally obeyed all her orders, and could be considered a nail planted by Manuel I in the Holy City. But those warriors not only failed to form a dense and effective defensive network, but instead gave up a gap, and the mother bear drove straight in along this gap, rushing towards the princess's sedan chair.

"I am lucky." The official sighed: "I was just an ordinary little clerk at the time, excluded from the periphery of those dignitaries. When the mother bear killed a bloody path in the crowd, I was rolling and crawling into the crowd of onlookers. Hey, everyone, please don't laugh at me. I know this makes me look cowardly, but I still used this word, just to let you know the chaotic situation at the time.

If I had walked fast or ran upright like others, I would definitely have been regarded as an obstacle by the mother bear or pushed down by others, just like those unlucky guys.

When I looked back, some warriors not only didn't stop the mother bear, but even obstructed those who wanted to rescue, whether they were their colleagues or Amalric I's knights.

At this time, the princess and the sedan chair had already fallen to the ground.

This was originally a huge but exquisite wooden product. Under the impact, it immediately disintegrated into several pieces. The slender railings were broken, and the top cover of the sedan chair collapsed, entangled with the curtains, forming a deadly big cocoon.

A maid abandoned the princess and wanted to escape, but was caught up by the mother bear, who tore open her entire face with one claw. That scene really made me unforgettable, even decades later today—that face that looked like it had been cut in half would still linger in my nightmares.

Another maid was much more unfortunate.

She was very brave and tried to block in front of the princess, but the mother bear just patted her chest, and her chest collapsed. She didn't die for a while. When she fell, the mother bear was still angrily digging open her abdomen.

She was eaten by the bear while screaming—I know bears like to eat alive, but the mother bear was more for venting. It shook its head and threw some internal organs out, not chewing or swallowing slowly.

"Our princess is worthy of the name Komnenos. She didn't cry or run away," the official commented: "While the bear was eating the maid alive, she found a weapon from the ruins of the sedan chair, a double-edged sword inlaid with jewels, which might have been prepared for the groom.

But what's the use of this? Facing such an angry and powerful wild beast, even a knight who had perceived a saint might not dare to face it directly."

"I heard someone call to release the hunting dogs, but it was too late, just like those knights who galloped over. Their primary protection was their king, which is understandable, but I couldn't help but have a trace of complaint in my heart.

The only ones who arrived in time were two attendants. I say this,"

He changed to dark red paint here, indicating that he had written an important part: "Because they were not wearing chain mail under their fluttering cloaks and coats."

At the time, I thought these two children were brave but too stupid, but then I saw—one of them was wearing a small dark purple cloak, and the other's coat was also inlaid with purple edges.

I immediately remembered that in this team, I am afraid that only three people could wear dark purple silk clothes. One of them was of course the princess's husband Amalric I, and the other was our princess.

And the third one, besides our princess's future stepson, the heir to this holy kingdom, Prince Baldwin, who else could it be?

I thought the people around me would shout Prince Baldwin, but I didn't expect them to shout "Little Saint."

—The "Little Saint" here was capitalized.

I couldn't understand it, or rather, my mind had been completely seized by this ending that was destined to be tragic. My eyes stared at the scene without blinking—I had almost thought about how many tragic poems and magnificent pictures future generations would create for this scene.

In fact, Prince Baldwin was not like the barbarians we knew who never thought and only relied on force. He controlled the horse that originally wanted to run away or kneel down, and hard-headedly crashed it between the mother bear and the princess.

The mother bear's palm, which was enough to take the princess's life, fiercely patted the horse's belly. The horse hissed and immediately fell down with a mournful cry.

At this time, Prince Baldwin had already jumped down nimbly and guarded in front of the princess. He loudly called the name of his perceived saint "Saint George," and the spear condensed into shape beside him.

I thought I would see a lose-lose ending next. His spear could indeed pierce the mother bear, but a bear is not a human who will wither on the ground after being injured.

Their ability to endure pain is very strong. Anyone who has participated in bear hunting knows that even if the palm is bitten off and the belly is flowing, they can still kill a dozen hunting dogs and the people surrounding them in one breath.

The spear can pierce the mother bear, and the bear's paw will also pat on Prince Baldwin or the princess, causing them to lose their lives on the spot. But an even more unbelievable scene appeared.

The little attendant who came with Prince Baldwin appeared in front of the mother bear at some point. His whole body was filled with soft and bright white light, and ripples like ripples flashed, expanded, and solidified in the air.

Sorry, everyone, you watch me tell it, maybe you will feel that the whole process is very slow, but this really happened in an instant.

By the time I could understand what was happening, he had already put on a layer of bright white scales (every scale was clearly visible). He bent his left elbow and placed it in front of the mother bear's eyes. The mother bear bit it almost without thinking, and at the same time hit his shoulder blade with a heavy palm.

Everyone around me shouted in horror.

But God bless, he actually supported it. He had one foot in front and one foot behind, tightening his body like a bow and arrow. He sent his left arm into the mother bear's giant mouth, and didn't waver even when it bit and crunched, and the mother bear's heavy blow only made him shake his body slightly.

I don't know if he could take a second hit. But at this time, Prince Baldwin's spear had already been placed on his right shoulder. I saw a flash of white light, like thunder, and the spear was like a huge arrow shot out, piercing directly through the mother bear's head from the cheek socket. A moment later, or I don't know how long it had been, the mother bear's huge body fell down with a bang.

At this time, King Amalric I had already arrived on horseback, and the fighting around had also come to an end. Whether it was human and beast, or human and human, the rebels were captured in one fell swoop, and none could escape the pursuit of the knights carrying anger and shame.

Those bribed officials initially wanted to escape—if the princess had indeed been attacked by the mother bear and lost her life or was seriously injured, their plan might have succeeded. But as soon as the princess escaped from the peril, she immediately climbed the horse's reins of Amalric I and pointed out everyone who betrayed her with a voice that was trembling but still clear and sharp.

When these people were escorted over, they were still quibbling. They didn't even look at the princess, but only begged the King of Arasalu, saying upside down that the princess must have been mentally deranged because she was too frightened, so she said those things that wronged good people.

Just when I was hesitating whether to testify, I saw Amalric I ignore them at all. He turned to the princess and asked: "What do you want to do?"

The princess said: "Kill them all."

At that time, I couldn't help but shed a tear of sympathy for these high-ranking adults.

If the princess were still in the Byzantine court, she would not have such great power at all, or perhaps she would not have such great power in the future.

But now, she was both the most direct victim and the daughter of the Emperor who was betrayed, and the wife of the King. Amalric I saw the intentions of these people very clearly. He handed the decision-making power to the princess, perhaps just waiting for such a result.

The princess did not disappoint him either, giving an answer that made people satisfied.

These people were scared to the point of madness. They had thought of the worst ending, which might be being detained by Amalric I, thrown into a prison, and waiting for their families to pay the ransom, so that they could return to Byzantium and face Manuel I's anger.

But the King had already made a decision, "Save those red tapes," he said, "Even if it's laying a red carpet for my bride."

As soon as the King gave an order, his knights immediately took action.

The princess did not forget her two saviors, Prince Baldwin and his attendant.

They stood leaning against each other, looking very exhausted, almost at the end of their strength. Even if I had never perceived any saint, I knew that at their age, the price paid for confronting such a crazy wild beast must be quite large.

The princess reached out to them, and Prince Baldwin pulled his attendant to walk forward together. The princess was a little surprised, but still took them both into her arms.

After those arrogant guys were framed, they had long been scared to the point of peeing their pants, their knees were soft, and they could hardly stand up. There were also people who wanted to struggle crazily, but apart from getting more fists, it was useless.

The people around me opened their eyes wide (maybe I did too). For them, this was also a rare grand event.

So many masters, all dressed in silk, wearing gold and silver, and eating until they were fat, were now like roosters being carried by their wings, dragged by their arms to the road the princess was about to walk, one by one, ordered to kneel, and then beheaded.

Their blood sprayed far away, splashing and flowing on the ground, and sure enough, it paved a road like a red silk carpet.

Amalric I's attendant led a horse over—it was given up by Amalric I's first wife, the Countess of Jaffa. The princess nodded slightly to express her gratitude, and then turned onto the horse with the King's help.

The two of them could be said to be walking side by side towards the Castle of the Holy Cross, their horse hooves stepping over the uncongealed blood, leaving a series of crimson rose prints on the stone road.

I was also discovered and imprisoned like other Byzantines, but the time was very short. After all, the banquet to welcome the Byzantine princess was about to be held, and the princess's team had shrunk by a third. It was impossible to let the remaining two-thirds spend the entire wedding in prison. That embarrassment would be the princess's, not ours.

So, we, that is to say, those who were considered incapable of posing a threat by the King, were released first and scattered to fill two long tables.

I thought I would have no appetite, but in fact, I was hungry and felt that even if a cooked mother bear was served, I could eat it.

And before the wedding banquet began, the princess, who was sitting on the high platform side by side with King Amalric I, suddenly stood up.

She raised her cup and first blessed her husband, that he would be invincible in the future, invincible in attack, and would not be defeated by any conspiracy (I think she was pointing at something) and frustration.

Then she toasted us, wishing us all good health and everything going well. After we all stood up, she raised her cup for the third time and handed the gold cup in her hand to Prince Baldwin beside her.

She said she wanted to thank her stepson Baldwin, which might be the most wonderful gift she had received.

We all know that the prince has leprosy and may not live past thirty, but after a slight hesitation, the princess still wished him good health and a long life, and like his father, he could become a wise and brave king. This blessing well eased the tense atmosphere between us and those crusader knights.

I know that some of them even proposed to terminate the wedding. No matter how these officials were bribed and by whom they were bribed, such a thing happened. To put it harshly, it was an evil omen. Any unpleasant things that happen in the future may be attributed to this wedding.

I marvel at their loyalty to Prince Baldwin, or they love King Amalric I too much, so that they can turn a blind eye to such obvious defects in the prince.

Although I had heard before how Amalric I doted on this only son, he fought against two churches (the Luo Majiaohui and the Arasalu Church) for this child.

He should have also asked the Byzantine Emperor for help, but in the Orthodox Church, some people firmly believed that this marriage was evil because Prince Baldwin had leprosy, and the Byzantine Emperor's princess should not marry the father of a sinner.

The Patriarch of Arasalu condemned Amalric I, believing that for the sake of his son, he had brazenly abandoned his faith and gods. He was also a sinner and should be thrown into hell.

Some people in the Orthodox Church also thought so.

In the end, this marriage was confirmed. There may be another reason, that is, they all know that even if Prince Baldwin succeeds to the throne, he cannot maintain his rule for too long. He received a blessing, but the leprosy did not heal.

In the end, there were only two people who could take over the throne, the child of his sister Sibylla, or the child born to Amalric I by our princess. The former should be able to get the support of most of them.

As for the latter, they have been guarding against us. After all, debtors are afraid of creditors.

Here the official intentionally annotated the reason in small print. Although the beginning of the crusade came from the Byzantine Emperor asking the Luo Majiaohui for help, requesting the Franks, who were also Christians, to help them drive away the Saracens, the Crusaders looted the cities they passed through during the march to the Holy Land—most of which were Byzantine cities, which triggered many conflicts.

"The princess handed her gold cup to Prince Baldwin, which is publicly indicating that she will treat Baldwin as her son in the future, and part of the interests and rights in her hands will be transferred to him." This statement is of course gratifying, especially for King Amalric I. These things will eventually fall into his hands.

When writing here, there was a blank space on the diary representing thinking, and then the official absent-mindedly drew two little people holding hands on it.

"I stayed in Arasalu for a while afterwards.

I could often see Prince Baldwin and his little friends coming in and out. They were almost together anytime, anywhere. Except when sleeping, I also know that when the princess expressed her gratitude, Prince Baldwin even pulled him to his side and said without any avoidance that this was his brother.

Seeing this, the princess changed the gift she gave them from a gold plate, a matching gold dinner knife, gold fork, and gold spoon, and a silver plate, to two identical sets, giving them one set each without bias.

I heard someone saying indignantly that the prince's attendant was originally just a slave.

Hey!"

——

"That monk's prophecy is actually quite accurate." Baldwin said.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 54 =====