Roger asked: "King Baldwin is back? Where is he?"

Pons said: "It's upstairs."

Roger said: "He should come back, as the king, and he is still running around.

"But why did he send Rugero to defend against the Damascus?

"As long as we defeat the Egyptians, the Damascus people will not dare to move."

Gillard said: "The king gave Rugero more than just defense against the Damascus people.

"He also asked that if the Turks of the Seljuk Empire launched an attack on Edessa at this time, Rugero needed to rescue him first."

Joselin added: "It can be said that now all the power in the four Christian territories is concentrated here, and the rear is extremely empty.

"Although there is no movement in the Seljuk Empire, the pressure that Earl Baldwin and Regent Prince Rugero need to bear is not much less than that of us, who are about to face the main force of Egypt."

Just as Roger and Pons, Gillard and Joselin were discussing the situation, the messenger shouted at the entrance of the hall:

"I would like to invite you to move to the church, and the Christmas Mass is about to begin."

Roger said in surprise: "Is it already Christmas? I forgot about the days of war."

He calculated and thought, wouldn't it be his birthday when he encountered a sandstorm?

Some of the nobles were humble to each other, while others rushed to leave the stone house.

Roger turned his head and asked, "Where did the church come from this place?"

Gillard pointed to the lyrest.

Roger saw a simple wooden cross on the top of the tower, crossing the gold edge by the sun shining in the west.

At this time, Roger heard someone calling him.

He searched left and right and saw Shana being blocked by soldiers who maintained order.

He saw Shana's anxious look on his face, as if there was something important but inconvenient to publicize that he had to talk to himself.

He saw Shana beside him, Odin, Woodward and Usman, all of whom were angry.

But at this time, Pons politely invited Roger to walk ahead of him.

Out of etiquette, Roger must be polite to the other party.

He thought that even if Shana had something to do, she would not be in a hurry to talk after the mass was finished.

He gestured to Shana with a little restless gesture.

After some humility, Roger and Pons walked into the original mosque and the current church.

Soon, the temporary renovation chapel was filled with noble people.

The nobleman with a low status was also stopped by the guards.

Roger was elected by the Jerusalem nobles led by Lawrence and stood in front.

They said flatteringly: "Your Excellency Roger, you are the first in your military achievements and deserve it."

Roger pretended to hold a white beard and looked at the old nobleman, asking the other party to stand in front.

He pretended to be polite and said, "Where is my newcomer, where can I stand at the forefront? It is better for the elderly to be in front of you."

The white-bearded noble waved his hands in panic: "No, no."

So Roger could only stand first "independence".

He turned his head proudly and looked around. All those who saw were nods and bows, except those familiar with Pons, Gillard, Joselin, and Lawrence.

But soon, he had to nod and bow.

The roll-in-chief shouted: "Your Majesty is here!"

Everyone scattered on both sides, squeezing each other and leaving a passage in the middle.

Roger saw a tall man with fair skin and beautiful dark brown hair and beard coming in at the door.

The man was dressed in a gorgeous manner, wearing a crown shaped like a thorny thorn, and a cloak painted with the cross of Jerusalem.

Roger knew that this man was a descendant of Charlemagne, a close genus of the French royal family, the youngest son of Eustas II, the Earl of Boulogne in France and the son of England, one of the leaders of the First Crusade, the first Earl of Edsar, the brother of Godfrey, the guardian of the Holy Sepulchre, and the first king of Jerusalem, Baldwin Boulogne.

Roger saw Baldwin walking forward with his head held high and his chest raised, and he let him go to the side and bowed his head to salute.

Baldwin walked to the altar, folded his hands together and saluted to the Passion Christ on the Cross.

At this time, a figure flashed out from the corner.

Maybe the man was there long ago, but there were too many people just now, and Roger didn't notice it.

Now Roger noticed it, but he widened his eyes and couldn't believe it.

That was Anurf, who was once the patriarch, driven away by Adelaide.

Anurf wore a gray monk's robe and held a cross scepter, with a solemn and humble face.

He said, "The Savior was born for us, and he is the Lord Christ. We will sing a new song to the Lord: the universal earth, and sing to the Lord."

So Christmas Mass began.

With the king here, Roger couldn't jump out and question Anurf's qualification to preside over the Christmas Mass.

He could only endure until the end of the mass and followed the nobles to leave the church.

He guessed that Shana probably wanted to tell him the news before.

After he wanted to go out, he asked Shana carefully what had happened.

However, the king's messenger stopped Roger, and he said politely but undeniable:

"His Majesty Roger, Earl of Sicily, please invite him."

Although Roger was in a bad mood, he thought that he could not get angry at the king.

He followed the messenger to the second floor of the stone house and waited for a while in the room arranged into the reception room.

Then King Baldwin walked in with his guards.

Roger bowed and saluted.

Baldwin reached out to hold Roger's arm.

Roger raised his head in surprise, and he saw Baldwin's eyes showing kindness and gentleness on his face.

Baldwin took Roger's hand, and he walked to the throne and sat down, and then ordered someone to bring a chair for Roger to sit.

Roger was humble.

Baldwin said in a gentle voice: "Why are you polite to me?

"I don't have a son, you are my beloved wife-the son of Adelaide.

"So, you are my son."

Roger lowered his eyes and acted obediently.

He had imagined many scenes of meeting Baldwin before, including being cold-eyed, being treated arrogantly, etc.

He also imagined many ways to deal with it.

But now it seems that nothing is needed.

At present, this beginning seems to be the most ideal.

Baldwin continued, “I let your mother leave Jerusalem, and I sent her to a safe place.”

Roger was very surprised. He thought, what does this mean?

Baldwin seemed to be able to feel Roger's surprise and doubt, and he said softly:

"I'm just afraid that you will misunderstand, so I asked you to listen to my explanation as soon as I learned that you were back."

Roger looked directly into Baldwin's eyes, and the other party's clear eyes were like sweet springs in an oasis.

Baldwin said emotionally: "I love Adelaide deeply.

“I love her too much for my life.

“I can’t accept it, and I can’t even think about the scene where she was captured or hurt by the Egyptians.

"I hope she can wait for the end of this war in a safe place."

Roger couldn't help asking, "Where did you send her?"

Baldwin said calmly: "I sent someone to send her to the Carac Castle built with her dowry, which is easy to defend but difficult to attack, and is very safe."

Roger has been to Carac Castle and he knows it is indeed safe.

But he felt that there was no need for this, he said:

"What is the need for my mother to leave if the Egyptians cannot defeat the city of Jerusalem?

"According to my plan...we just keep the trench outside Ashkiren...the Egyptians will be defeated by lack of supplies."

Baldwin looked at Roger's face quietly, listened carefully, without interrupting until Roger completely explained the plan.
To be continued...