Section 3: Digging Game

The Marenko Castle is a medium-sized castle. It has been renovated by many generations of Counts of Marenko and can accommodate hundreds of soldiers. However, the main lord's mansion and tower can only be used by noble nobles, while ordinary soldiers can only gather in open spaces and outside the castle to station. A few days later, when night fell, many stars appeared outside the Marenko Castle. These flames came to the Marenko Castle like a long dragon from the camp of the Novedes.

"Go and tell the nobles that an enemy is coming." The soldiers who saw this scene quickly informed the castle.

These days, the nobles have been staying in the castle and enjoying the food and wine prepared by the countess. The nobles who had nothing to do gradually became bored, so some aggressive nobles began to pick up their swords and compete in the hall for fun, while the Duke of Han Ruowei and the Countess were eating food while watching the nobles fight.

"Aha, this is so boring." Schwab yawned and looked at the nobles who were fighting in the hall. Although it was a little interesting at the beginning, the fights of these nobles were practical, without any extra tricks. They just chopped and chopped a few moves, and they didn't even notice them at all.

These were medieval entertainment activities, and there were not many cultural activities for the nobles of the upper class. Schwab thought it would be better for later generations, and there were cards, football and other sports activities. Alas, why didn't he teach these nobles to play cards? It should be very interesting. So Schwab asked the short man Rued, who was accompanying him to find Mark Paper, and then walked behind the Countess and said, "Can the Countess ask your servants to help me?"

"Of course." The Countess didn't know what Schwab had to do with many strange papers, but he still asked his servants to help Schwab, cut the Mark paper into fifty-four cards, and then asked the servants who knew how to draw to simply paint the patterns of plum blossoms, peach hearts and other patterns on the cards. Because people had not seen Arabic numerals at this time, they used Ruman classical numerals to represent them. Looking at the strange cards made by Schwab, the Countess asked, "Sir Schwab, what are you doing? How is it like a painting?"

"Countess, this is some kind of game. Do you want to join?" Schwab proudly picked up these large playing cards and said to the curious baby countess.

"Okay." The Countess, who was also increasingly bored, said happily.

"This is a Taoxinwu, this is a king, this game is called digging a pit..." Schwab patiently explained the rules of the game. The Countess opened her beautiful blue eyes and studied carefully, like a good student. Gradually, even the duke who was watching the competition was attracted and listened carefully.

"So, if these cards are connected together, only a bigger card can be suppressed, and whoever finishes first will win." After listening for a while, the Duke interjected when Schwab spoke.

"That's right, Lord Duke." Schwab nodded quickly and then continued to talk about how to dig a hole.

"This is such a fun game, let's try it out soon."

"Of course, there are a lot of people here, so come, Earl Baden, too." The duke was also interested and called Earl Baden beside him into the group.

“One four.”

“One six.”

"Eight, nine, ten, knight, earl, duke."

Soon, in the hall where the sound of weapons colliding and fighting sounded, the sound of the duke and others playing cards sounded. The nobles on the side also watched curiously, watching Schwab and others shouting with a bunch of cards.

"A Duke."

"Aha, my last one is the prince, which just suppresses your Duke. Oh, sorry, I don't respect you, Lord Duke." Earl Baden, who gradually played with the feeling, suppressed the Duke's card without saying a word. When he finished playing the card in his hand, he remembered his disrespect to the Duke.

"It's okay, my friend, I will win next time." The broad-minded Duke said indifferently, and then he devoted himself to the next game.

"This is really a fun game. Is there any such card?" The other nobles smiled happily. They quickly asked Schwab for cards, and Schwab generously asked someone to take some more Mark paper and then make cards.

"I took the Four of Hearts, Count Joseph, it's time for me to dig."

"It's so unlucky. If I take the card below this time, I will definitely win." The nobles quarreled with each other, and when they were happy, they asked the servants to serve ale, and the atmosphere in the hall immediately rose.

"Okay, I'll give my position to others." Schwab moved his shoulders. Schwab, who had played this game for a long time, was always winning. He soon felt that it was meaningless, so he gave it to these nobles who were playing for the first time and felt novel and fresh.

"Sir Schwab, do you want to go out for a walk?" The Countess also put down the card in her hand and stood up to accompany Schwab.

"Thank you, Countess." Schwab politely gave the Countess to one side, and then walked towards the castle courtyard. The moonlight shone on the courtyard with all kinds of flowers and plants, making the people who wandered there happily.

Although the battle with the Novedes was in place, the lively sound in the hall made the soldiers in the castle feel a little relieved. Soldiers without any status or culture could only judge the good or bad of the war situation through the attitude of the nobles. Since the nobles could have fun so happily, it means that the situation was not too bad.

"I want to thank you, Lord Schwab." The Countess pulled her thin wool shawl to block the cold wind blowing into the castle. Schwab didn't understand what the Countess was talking about, so he looked at her face in confusion.

"I didn't do anything. The Ruvids were able to withdraw because of your brother's rescue."

"No, I'm not just talking about this." The Countess said with a smile. Under the moonlight, the Countess's face emitted a charming silver glow. Schwab was a little confused. The Countess looked at the roses in the courtyard and continued, "Do you know? My husband was not injured."

"What's going on?" Schwab asked in confusion. Didn't the countess say that because Count Marenko was seriously injured, he could not come out to meet the Duke and others? Could she be lying? What's the inside story?

"My husband's marriage is a political marriage, which was the decision made by our family to consolidate this territory. For my family, I chose and accepted this marriage. Of course, my husband's status is worthy of having me. Only after getting married did I realize that my husband, in addition to participating in the Knights' Competition, was flirting with women. He never cared about the territory of Marenke and me. Every time he came back from the competition, he was not only asking me for money, but also beating me after being drunk." At this point, the Countess choked up, and there seemed to be a layer of mist in her beautiful blue eyes, Schwab could only listen quietly to the Countess's words.

"I feel very sympathy for you, Countess."

"Of course, sometimes things are not that bad. Gradually, I turned myself into a strong woman, but do you know, I am a woman after all. When the bloodthirsty Ruvids surrounded my castle, although I tried hard to hold on and lead the old and weak soldiers to guard this only home, deep in my heart I wanted to have a strong man to rely on, rather than a drunkard who locked himself in the tower to drink." The Countess gradually approached Schwab's side, and then placed her fair and slender hands on Schwab's shoulders. "Just like you, Sir Schwab. You ventured through the Ruvids camp and bravely guarded the Marenko Fort, protecting me and the people in the Marenko Fort. At that moment, I felt that I had found a support for my soul. Are you willing to know me further?"

"Thank you for your praise, noble Countess, this is what I should do." Schwab took a step back and avoided the countess's hand. For a married man, Schwab tried his best to avoid it.

"Master Schwab, you are such a strange person." The Countess smiled at the hiding Schwab. Scandals and entangled love between nobles are very common, and this is also a secret way for communication between the upper classes of the nobles. The reason why the Countess did not commit adultery was only due to the pride of ancient nobles like the Duke of Han Ruowei family. But if there were knights who looked up to him, the Countess would not let go easily.

At this time, at a window on the tower, a pair of eyes revealing jealousy were staring at Schwab and the Countess in the moonlit courtyard, but then the figure flashed by.

"The enemy is coming, the enemy is coming." A sudden sound rescued Schwab from this awkward situation. They hurried back to the hall. At this time, a soldier from outside the Marenko Castle stood in the hall. He panted and reported to the nobles in the hall that the people of the Oveid were marching here with torches outside the castle.

"So, the Ruvids attacked us in the darkness. This is really incredible. Are they crazy?"

"It's possible that those Ruvid people are always crazy, a pair of princes."

"One-on-three, I have no cards in my hand, haha, my sir, I won."

"Damn I lost eight more silver offices."
Chapter completed!