Chapter 33: Tournai’s Ice and Fire
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Edward laughed heartily.
“To be frank, Countess, you need not worry about me. Your son-in-law is now the King of England and France.”
Joanna’s expression darkened, and she spoke bluntly.
“Stop pursuing the throne of France with such unrealistic ambitions. King Philip considers you an overreaching vassal and has refused to negotiate with you.
“It was I, together with many of your relatives, who persuaded him that if you withdrew from the war now and swore allegiance, he would spare you. You could still remain lord of Guienne and Ponthieu.”
Edward fell silent for a moment. Then he raised his head, a sly glint flashing in his eyes, and said to Joanna:
“Countess, you are quite right. In that case, might you tell me in detail about the French camp? If I am to meet King Philip, I ought to know something of his situation.”
At first, Joanna noticed nothing amiss and nodded. But after speaking with Edward for a few moments, she realized that he had no intention of negotiating at all. His inquiries about the French encampment were clearly intended for another purpose. She instantly flew into a rage.
“Edward, I came here on a night such as this, braving the treacherous journey and crossing the marshes, out of moral duty and responsibility.
“I came to persuade you to avoid war, not to let you make me part of your military strategy!”
Her face flushed crimson, and her eyes were filled with anger and disappointment.
Edward’s thoughts were wholly occupied with capturing Tournai and restoring his reputation. Convinced that the city was already on the verge of surrender, he could not take Joanna’s words to heart.
He was about to argue further when a sudden commotion erupted outside the tent. The soldiers’ cries of alarm grew louder and louder.
Edward had no time to concern himself with Joanna’s feelings. He hurried outside, only to see a guard rushing toward him, his face taut with anxiety.
“Your Majesty! News from Tournai—the reinforcements sent by King Philip have arrived! They have a thousand of the finest knights, along with enough provisions to keep the entire city alive until its people die of old age!”
Edward’s brows drew together, and a surge of fury and resentment rose within him.
So this was surely a trick devised by Tournai and France! That coward Philip dared not face him in battle. Let him rot behind that so-called natural barrier until the end of his days!
But Tournai…
Edward clenched his teeth. Resolve and determination hardened his gaze as he shouted his command:
“Deliver my royal decree. Let every man in the allied army attack the city at once!”
In that pitch-black hour, with darkness shrouding the earth, the raging wind howled like a demon.
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The clouds hung like massive slabs of lead, weighing heavily upon the horizon. They swallowed the light of the moon and stars, plunging the entire world into a suffocating darkness.
Yet the camps of the English and Flemish armies shone like scattered islands amid the endless night. Their points of torchlight swayed violently in the gale, as though they might be devoured by the darkness at any moment, yet they continued to flicker stubbornly, radiating an air of grim resolve and madness.
The soldiers’ silhouettes twisted grotesquely in the firelight, their bodies worn with exhaustion.
Their faces had been blackened by the smoke of war, but their eyes still glimmered with conflicting emotions: fear, fervor, and an bewildered uncertainty over the fate that awaited them.
Their bodies trembled faintly in the icy wind, yet they endured the cold and fatigue, gripping their weapons tightly as they waited for the order to attack.
A sharp horn blast tore across the night sky. The command to advance descended like a sentence of death.
The soldiers surged forward like a breaking tide, rushing toward Tournai’s northern wall.
Their footsteps thundered across the earth, shattering the silence of the night like the agonized groaning of the land itself.
“Charge! For the glory of England!”
King Edward brandished his sword and roared. His eyes burned with fervor and grim determination. Inspired by him, the soldiers let loose a series of furious cries and stormed toward the walls like raging waves.
On the southern wall, however, the situation was entirely different. The section assigned to the Netherlandish princes was sparsely lit by torches and appeared eerily deserted.
The soldiers stood there listlessly, discontent and helplessness written across their faces. Their weapons hung carelessly at their sides. From time to time, they lifted their heads to listen to the fierce battle at the northern gate, their eyes revealing a trace of disdain and relief.
“Why are we wasting our time here? That bastard Edward won’t even pay us our wages, and he still expects us to risk our lives for him?”
A Netherlandish soldier muttered under his breath, his voice thick with anger and helplessness.
“Exactly. We have no intention of dying for his ambitions.”
Another soldier echoed him, kicking at the mud beneath his feet in evident irritation.
The German princes were even more forthright. Most of them simply sat in their camp, no longer bothering to put on an act. They made no effort whatsoever to organize their troops.
Their faces were grim.
On the one hand, the Duke of Brabant, their leader, had become a prisoner of Tournai, filling them with unease and apprehension.
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“The duke is in their hands. We cannot act recklessly.”
Count of Hainaut furrowed his brow, deep concern visible in his eyes.
“But are we really going to sit here doing nothing? This is utterly humiliating!”
The Margrave of Jülich could not contain himself. His face was filled with anger and resentment.
“What else can we do? We cannot disregard the duke’s safety. Besides, this war has already become a farce. Edward is fighting only for his throne, yet he has dragged all of us into it.”
The Duke of Guelders shook his head helplessly, his eyes filled with disappointment.
Moreover, they were still outraged by the events of the previous day’s council in the camp.
That bastard van Artevelde had actually ambushed their noble German knights during the negotiations. Whenever they recalled the scene, they clenched their teeth in fury.
“That van Artevelde is nothing but a despicable wretch! We absolutely cannot let him off!”
Count of Hainaut waved his fist angrily, flames of rage burning in his eyes.
“When this war is over, I will make him answer for it!”
The Margrave of Jülich joined in, his hand tightening around the hilt of his sword until the force turned his knuckles white.
They sat in a circle, heatedly discussing the matter, their faces twisted with anger and their fists waving in the air as though van Artevelde stood before them.
At the same time, they knew that Tournai’s claims were entirely true. Those thousand heavily armed French cavalrymen had entered Tournai in full view of them.
And the great quantities of provisions delivered to the defenders had been taken openly from their own storehouses.
Tournai’s original defenses were already virtually impregnable, resembling a fortress that could scarcely be shaken.
Now, reinforced with fresh troops and supplies, the city had become even more formidable. Its soldiers’ morale had soared, its people were united against their common enemy, and the city’s war preparations had been brought to their absolute peak.
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