Tumeng: I am a national advisor in the Golden Family

Zhang Dingguan originally planned to send his own army to eliminate the most stubborn of these old Hungarian nobles.

At the same time, he tried to win over some of the more ambiguous factions and asked them to join the opposing camp and recognize the legitimate ruling status of the little king.

As for the remaining diehards, they firmly supported the bloodline of the former Hungarian royal family and wanted to overthrow the faction of Queen Maria and the little king. Zhang Dingguan had no good way to deal with them before.

It is a bit unrealistic to kill them all. There are such a large group of nobles, including their family members and servants, numbering tens of thousands of people.

Although the Mongolian army is bloodthirsty, killing these people would be detrimental to his brother's rule. It is easy to destroy your enemies, but it is difficult to make your enemies truly submit to you.

Zhang Dingguan had been worrying about how to deal with them, but now that the Pope has arrived, he has a solution.

These people can be sent to fight. Going to war is equivalent to winning glory for the country, dedicating yourself to the Lord, and becoming a Crusader. It is a very glorious thing in this land and can be said to bring honor to your family.

Therefore, before Pope Innocent IV came, Zhang Dingguan and Queen Maria had already agreed that in addition to having the Pope recognize the legitimate right of the young King Charles to rule, all these stubborn old nobles needed to be sent to the battlefield.

"If you are willing to receive the grace of God, accept the call of God, and accept God's guidance to go to the East to carry out the holy war, then of course it would be the best.

It's just that the Crusaders don't have any military pay. They are all devout believers. They need to prepare their own food, money, weapons and even horses and armor, and go to the battlefield at their own expense. "Pope Innocent IV smiled and said.

Once the Crusaders were formed, they were quite fanatical, but all the Crusaders, without exception, did not receive any military pay, even when they followed the king or emperor to fight.

So if you want to go to war, you can, but you need to provide everything yourself, whether it is food, weapons, armor, horses, etc.

If you want to recruit people to join my Crusade, I would welcome it very much, but I am only responsible for recruiting them. Please bring all other items by yourself.

Zhang Dingguan's mouth twitched when he heard this. Are you kidding me?
If you want to start a small-scale war, then this is fine. During the Western Zhou Dynasty in the Central Plains, there were also some nobles who relied on this primitive method to fight.

But you launched an expedition spanning thousands or even tens of thousands of miles, and you actually asked the Crusaders to provide all their own weapons and equipment, military funds, and food.

If this happened in the East, all the soldiers would have dared to rebel collectively. They really are the Crusaders! They are really fanatical!
"I will prepare some weapons, food, horses and armor for them to go to the East." Queen Maria smiled awkwardly and said.

This is a very normal thing in the eyes of Westerners. After all, you fight for God, you spread the gospel of the Lord for the great God, and go to the holy city for pilgrimage.

But to the Eastern generals, this was something absolutely incomprehensible. However, sending all these tens of thousands of nobles to the battlefield would be a huge expense!
There were probably less than 10,000 people who could actually fight, and the rest were all their relatives. Every time the Crusaders launched an expedition to the East, it was actually similar to the situation when the Mongol army launched an expedition to the West, in that they all went with their families.

They have to take care of the food, drink, defecation and urination of tens of thousands of people, and there are also ports in the Hungarian region.

This would be more convenient and save a lot of expenses. All we need to do is prepare a ship for them. And along the way, wherever the Crusaders pass, all Western lords who are Catholics will make free donations.

Then ask the ally the Eastern Roman Empire for help and escort these people safely to the battlefield.

"You have played a vital role in the Crusades. I am very happy to join forces with King John to launch this holy war." The Pope put down his glass and spoke.

Anyway, as long as he is allowed to publicize it verbally and recognize a legal status, there will be no problem.

But he has nothing when it comes to money, food, weapons, etc. I can only say that I support you spiritually.

"Your Holiness! I would like to know when your Crusaders can set out to the East to support my brothers in their battles?" Zhang Dingguan said with a smile.

Okay, okay, no problem! I'll be in charge of the military rations and weapons and equipment. Anyway, for these things, those old nobles in Hungary can just confiscate their lands, which should be enough.

Now that my people are in place, shouldn't the monarchs of your Western countries also send some people?
Once this trade route between the East and the West is opened, it will benefit both sides, and it will benefit you in the West even more. It would be a bit unreasonable if you did not send a single soldier.

“The Crusader States have quite a few troops in the area, and they can probably gather 20,000 of them, and these people can directly join the battle.

I am here in Europe, calling for the formation of a new crusade, if we want to form a crusade of more than 50,000 people.

Then it will take at least three years to mobilize 20,000 people, and one year, plus the cost of their journey, it will take at least one and a half years for my army to arrive. "Pope Innocent IV touched his chin and spoke.

"Your Holiness, it seems that your faith in the Lord is not strong enough! Your faith in God is not devout enough. You should start gathering the army as soon as you return.

Let them complete the mobilization within three months, then assemble and set out from the Mediterranean region by ship, and arrive at the designated battlefield in half a year. "Zhang Dingguan said.

Are you kidding me? If those Western European countries had really gone there a year and a half later, or even two years later, the Western Expedition would have been almost over.

It won’t take long to deal with these YSL countries. By that time, my brother’s war will be over and he won’t get any aid at all. Wouldn’t it be a waste of my work in the west?

And most importantly, I hope that these old Hungarian nobles will not come back from this war, completely and completely.

"No, I can only give an order to the local people, asking them to obey your brother's command, form a new crusade, and fight against those pagans together.

But it is obviously not enough to organize a crusade in half a year and then rush them to the battlefield. It will take at least a year. "Pope Innocent IV shook his head and said.

"Then send these Hungarians to the battlefield first. There are about 10,000 soldiers among them who can fight. After they get there, they can accept the command of the Crusader States." Zhang Dingguan said.

"That's possible. I can write a letter in the name of the Pope and have them carry it to the battlefield in the East. But Prince King John, are you sure they will really go to the battlefield in the East?
I also know your purpose and what you want to do. If no one is watching, these people will probably run away halfway." Pope Innocent IV said.

Many European monarchs had attempted to use this method to reduce the power of the nobles in their territories, forcing these nobles to bring their families with them on an expedition to the East in order to take back their lands.

Some of the more fanatical nobles would obey orders and bring their families with them to the east.

They fought for the holy war in their hearts, but some wise nobles would escape halfway and settle in other countries.

So generally speaking, to do this kind of thing, you have to find corrupt officials. At least there must be an army of the same level to watch over them, otherwise, these people will definitely escape halfway.

However, it is not easy to assemble an army that can watch over these people. This requires the formation of a large-scale crusaders. At least 20,000 regular crusaders are needed to watch over these people.

And even so, a large number of people will still escape, which is something that cannot be avoided.

"I will take care of this matter, Your Holiness. You just need to give your own orders, ordering them to launch the Crusade to the East, and then let the distant Crusader states obey my brother's orders. At the same time, I hope that a team of several thousand people can go there within half a year." Zhang Dingguan nodded and said.

Pope Innocent IV nodded and finally agreed to the condition.

Several thousand people could still be gathered within half a year. The following dinner was very pleasant. After the banquet ended that day, Pope Innocent IV moved into the largest church in the Hungarian royal city.

The local bishop respectfully gave up the church for the Pope to live in.

"Brother! Who do you plan to let watch them? We can't let Hungary send troops, right?" Zhang Dingshu asked.

"Don't worry! I have a foolproof plan. This time I will not use your Hungarian army. I will arrange a Mongolian army of 10,000 people to escort these people away, and then go to the western battlefield to join my brothers." Zhang Dingguan said.

It is better to rely on oneself than on others. After thinking about it, Zhang Dingguan decided to send 10,000 Mongolian cavalry to escort these Hungarian noble groups to the Crusader States in the East. (The Eastern Crusader States here are the Principality of Antioch and the branches of several major knight orders.

There are also some areas on that land. As for the specific place names, you only need to know them. They are near Jerusalem. In the 13th century, the Crusaders still had some strongholds in these areas.)
"Brother! Do you mean to divide the troops directly? But the Mongolian army is good at fighting on the grassland. If we take the water route, it will be extremely inconvenient to take a boat." Zhang Dingchuan said.

The Mongolian army is very powerful and has no problem keeping an eye on these old Hungarian nobles.

But water transportation was not the Mongolian army's strong point, as they could not carry too many horses.

Because horses can get seasick, and on a ship, they consume a lot of food; one horse eats as much as ten people.

Not to mention the casualties caused by acclimatization and various other problems. If 10,000 Mongolian cavalrymen were to sail to the designated battlefield, there would even be a large number of non-combat casualties.

"Let the soldiers hold on for a while! Otherwise, just take the infantry with you." Zhang Dingguan said.

"Children, I have an idea. There is no need to send out the Mongolian cavalry." Queen Maria rolled her eyes and spoke.

It is indeed not appropriate to let the Mongolian cavalry escort these old nobles. If the Mongolian cavalry travels by land, they will be very powerful and have extremely strong combat effectiveness, but if they travel by water, they really don't have much combat effectiveness.

“You can recruit a group of mercenaries. There are many mercenaries in Northern Europe. As long as you pay them, they will do anything.

Then we from Hungary will send another 3,000 elite cavalry to watch them. Although the Pope cannot gather tens of thousands of people in a short period of time, it will be no problem if he only gathers a force of 5,000 to 6,000 people.

We should be able to gather more than 10,000 people, and then send them to the battlefield." Queen Maria said.

There is no other way. No matter what, Hungary has to send some regular troops. Tens of thousands of people may not be enough, but three or four thousand people should be no problem.

"But Queen Maria, there is still one problem that cannot be solved, and that is the problem of escape. These people will run away." Zhang Dingguan said.

"If anyone dares to escape, as long as he dares to return to Hungarian soil, he will be a traitor and will have betrayed the faith of the Lord. At that time, we can legally execute him." Queen Maria said.

They can run away if they want! After they run away, they can only stay in other countries and be ordinary civilians!

Because if the people there knew that there were crusaders and they were deserters from the crusaders, they would face severe punishment, and if they dared to return to Hungary, there would be legal grounds to execute them.

If they choose to stay in other countries, it would be equivalent to automatically giving up all their noble titles and territories.

"It is still the case that those involved are confused, while those who are on the sidelines can see things more clearly! It is indeed as Queen Maria said, let these people leave!
If they want to run, they can do it at will. We just need to hire some mercenaries and ask the Pope to gather a group of people to escort them as soon as possible." Zhang Dingguan said.

In this case, there is no need to send the Mongolian army to monitor! If these people run back, the Queen of Hungary and the little king will have reasonable reasons to execute them.

The group quickly agreed on a battle plan. Hungary sent some people, hired some mercenaries from Northern Europe, and asked the Papal States to send some people to escort these old nobles to the battlefield as long as they left Hungary.

As long as they set out as crusaders, they could not return unless they returned victorious.

Otherwise, anyone who dares to withdraw troops would be rebelling against God.

In the cathedral on the other side, Pope Innocent IV was also sitting on a chair. Next to him stood the Grand Master of the Knights Templar, several masters of the knights, and several archbishops and bishops who were accompanying him.

"Your Holiness, if we really want to form a crusade, then if it's only 10,000 people, we can actually form one within half a year. Why do you refuse?" an archbishop asked in confusion.

"That's a good question. The pagans in the East are very strong. We have been fighting them for hundreds of years and have never gained any advantage.

This time, the Mongol army will help us fight. Logically, I should send a large army to support us, but why should I delay? Do you understand this? "Pope Innocent IV said meaningfully.

In previous Crusades, as long as the Pope issued a call, many European kings would respond, and it would not be a problem to gather an army in a short period of time. What's more, this time the Mongolian army was the main force.

It would even be okay for me, the Pope, to mobilize these European monarchs and ask them to provide some food, weapons and equipment to boost morale.

"Your Holiness, you probably want to gain more fruits of victory in the future, right?" asked the Grand Master of the Knights Templar with a smile.

“You are right. I have foreseen the disastrous defeat of these pagans in the East. The fighting power of the Mongolian army is so strong that it is beyond our imagination.

Moreover, in addition to the Mongolian army, the Daqian Empire will also send out Han troops, the combat effectiveness of these Han troops should not be underestimated.

Therefore, we must ensure that we have manpower and let the Mongols, Han Chinese, and those Eastern pagans fight to the death.

No matter which side wins, we will be the ones to clean up the mess. In three years, I will form a crusaders of 100,000 people.

After this Mongol invasion is over, I will take back the Holy City, establish a Crusader state on that land, and restore the glory of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. "Pope Innocent IV said.

Hearing this, several archbishops and members of the Knights Templar nodded. It turned out that the Pope had this idea, to wait until the two sides were both defeated or the winner was about to be decided, and then steal the fruits of victory.

If we talk about the distance of the expedition, then the Mongolian army and the Han army must have the longest distance. They had to occupy the land near Jerusalem and even Damascus, because it belonged to the Lord.

"We must be ready at any time to confront the Mongol army on its westward expedition. We must ensure that Egypt, Jerusalem, and Damascus are under our control, and other areas can be given to the Mongols.

If they agree, we can keep peace. If they don't agree, then only war awaits both of us. "Pope Innocent IV said.

Although I had a very pleasant conversation with Prince John today, he still kept in mind that it was impossible for me to give my full strength at the beginning of this war.

You Mongols and Han Chinese should go up and fight first! (End of this chapter)