Chapter 78: Curfew
The scorching sun baked the earth. Viewed from a high vantage point, the long, narrow marching column resembled a cavalry spear, piercing through the entirety of Jerusalem.
On the viewing platforms, the noble families' servants, holding golden trays laden with silver goblets, were already presenting ice-cold, sweet wine to their masters. Some nobles' goblets were even inlaid with large rubies, flaunting their opulence.
Noblewomen ostentatiously discussed their newly acquired jewelry, casting disdainful, cold glances at the Saracen or Persian female slaves with their graceful figures. Maidservants trained in Eastern-style courts were far more beautiful and "skilled" at serving people than those in Western courts.
But a noblewoman was a noblewoman because of the dowry she could bring to her husband's family and the powerful political assistance she represented, not merely how beautiful her appearance was.
