Chapter 646: Going Out Again

The streets of Constantinople, which had just ended, were crowded with people, from children to the elderly, waiting for the next person to appear.

Just when everyone was looking forward to it, cheers of "Coming! Coming!" came from the front, and the people suddenly became excited. Everyone was pushing and pushing. If there were not soldiers on the roadside to maintain order, I am afraid it would have caused quite a stir. of riots.

After a while. Troops of palace cavalry appeared in the middle of the road, and behind them, Peter appeared in front of everyone. Different from what he wore during the game, Peter was wearing armor, and his eyes were sharp, making him look energetic.

Alexander was at his side, and he was credited with supervising the country in the emperor's absence. He has successfully maintained peace in the Mediterranean, and his ability to govern has been fully recognized by the people.

"Long live your Majesty, long live the Empire!"

Peter looked around with a smile on his face and waved frequently to the cheering people on the roadside, but the horse under his crotch did not slow down at all, and soon the traveling team arrived at the pier.

Important ministers and parliamentarians from various departments had been waiting here for a long time. When they saw His Majesty the Emperor's arrival, they stepped forward to greet him in an orderly manner and bowed respectfully.

Peter turned over and dismounted, looked at the prime minister and other ministers who were approaching, and said seriously: "After I go to Jerusalem, I will ask you to assist the crown prince in the affairs of the empire!"

"Your Majesty, there is no need to worry. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has outstanding abilities, and we will definitely assist him with all our strength," Batista said.

"Your Majesty, we will do our best to ensure the logistics supply of the army. You can attack with confidence!" Mason also said immediately.

Peter nodded, and while smiling at the ministers who came forward to greet him, he slowly walked towards the trestle.

Peter looked at his son and said in a deep voice: "Take care of your mother and brothers and sisters. After I leave, the empire will be handed over to you. Do it well!"

Alexander took a deep breath and replied with an unprecedented seriousness: "Yes, father!"

Amid cheers and farewells, the emperor's ship slowly sailed away from the dock. The people at the dock excitedly waved and shouted at this unique warship in the kingdom.

"Your Majesty, it seems that the people are very enthusiastic about this war!" the Minister of Military Affairs said happily.

The huge fleet sailed out of the Golden Horn, crossed the Sea of ​​Marmara, passed many coastal islands, and entered Smyrna. This was the last stop in Asia Minor before they headed to Jerusalem, where the army would assemble.

Five days later, Peter said goodbye to the people who were seeing him off, and the fleet sailed southeast, passing through Crete. After replenishing enough water, it sailed straight south.

The next long sea voyage is slightly risky, but under the leadership of Romania over the years, it has become one of the most prosperous shipping routes between the Western Mediterranean, Cyrenaica, and Egypt.

The fleet arrived at the port of Ashkelon smoothly without any trouble.

During the Crusader period, Ashkelon was an important city due to its proximity to the coast and its location between the Crusader states and Egypt. After the Battle of Hattin in 1187, Saladin conquered the Crusader countries and captured Ashkelon. In 1191, during the Third Crusade, Saladin destroyed the city because of its potential strategic value to Christians.

When the ship slowly sailed into the port, the Egyptian people who came to greet him gave out deafening cheers. After he stepped onto the pier, the governor of Jerusalem and others immediately greeted him and bowed down to salute respectfully.

"You have worked hard during this period. I would like to express my gratitude for your contribution to the empire!" Peter looked around at the dense crowd of people outside and asked curiously: "Is this arranged by you?"

"We did not publicize it to the outside world, this was their spontaneous behavior." the governor explained.

"Oh!" Peter looked at the excited faces in the distance and asked with interest, "Are they from all over Jerusalem?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. Most of them come from this city and surrounding villages and towns."

After Rome recaptured Ashkelon, the local economy developed again. Many Romans settled there. At the same time there were some pilgrims in the city.

The Patriarch of Jerusalem also returned here with Peter. As the most popular bishop in the Middle East, he expressed his intention to go to the battlefield to bless the soldiers. This was true despite much persuasion.

There will not be too many troops this time. Excluding the logistics personnel, there will be no more than 100,000 that can fight. Natural factors account for a large part of this, and the size of the army should not be too large, otherwise it will fall into a disadvantage.

"Currently, Jerusalem has stored enough supplies for the army for three months, and there are also stores in Aleppo, Damascus, Antioch and other places. Sufficient supplies can be guaranteed for at least a year."

The governor explained the storage situation to the emperor and the arriving generals, and also talked about his inspections of the Arabian region in the past few years.

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"Observations in the past few years have found that except for some oases, it is impossible for Arabs to have a stable source of agriculture. Unless they are willing to drink camel milk and eat dates every day. They also need trade to obtain other commodities, and currently our country trades with them The blockade hit hard, which is why they attacked Mesopotamia.

If we occupy Mecca in the future, in addition to stationing troops in some cities, I am afraid we will also have to find ways to deal with military expenses and other expenses incurred by rule. Otherwise, if this continues, this place will become a bottomless pit. "

Peter looked at the governor with approval. It seemed that he knew a lot about Mecca. Then he said.

"I know the governor's idea for the empire, but the Arabs have never been a monolithic group. Since there are rebels, there must be tribes that support the empire. We just need to find them and give them the land to rule. But in return, we need them to provide troops and property during the war, and they can also own mansions and noble titles in Constantinople."

The nomadic tribes will never unite, which gives them an opportunity to find loopholes. Peter is confident that he can solve this problem in his lifetime, but it will only make the Arabs pay a blood tax.