The Cid did not leave the new government long unmolested. His approach was announced by the flames and smoke of burning villages, and by the headlong flight of thousands of peasants who came pouring into Valencia. That lovely city was soon surrounded by a wide belt of blackness and desolation. Everything indicative of the bounty of nature or the ingenuity and prosperity of man was ruthlessly swept away. The settlements for miles around the capital were given to the torch. The numerous mills which lined the banks of the Guadalaviar, the villas of the wealthy citizens and the nobles, the boats, magazines, and warehouses were reduced to ashes. The suburbs were stormed and taken. Then the Valencians, without prospect of relief, opened negotiations with the Cid. Their overtures were received with favor; the Almoravide garrison retired; the former monthly tribute was renewed; and the city once more recognized the authority of the Castilian adventurer. But the Almoravide Sultan was not willing to abandon without a struggle such a rich prize as the kingdom of Valencia. News soon reached the capital that a powerful force was on the march to reduce it. The domination of the hated Berber seemed preferable to the insatiable rapacity of an infidel suzerain. The inhabitants rebelled, and the adherents and officers of the Cid were driven away. The gates were then closed; the supreme authority was vested in Ibn-Tahir by the tumultuous voice of the people; and the latter awaited with anxiety the arrival of the Almoravides. The Cid, who during the sedition was domiciled in one of the suburban palaces of the kings of Valencia, while powerless to prevent the defection of the city, was still able to retard the approach of the enemy. He caused the bridges to be broken down, and the dikes having been cut, the country, which for leagues had recently presented the appearance of a garden, was now transformed into a lake. Only a narrow causeway was left through the waters, and this approach could be easily defended by a handful of determined men against a numerous army.