Rumours about the incident quickly spread through Silesia. Few were in doubt regarding Gelfrad Stercza’s motive, since everybody knew about Duke Jan’s affair with the knight’s wife Adèle, the gorgeous Burgundian. Everybody knew how ruthlessly Duke Jan had treated his lover at the close of the affair; everybody knew the death that Adèle had met owing to that treatment. And although no one, naturally, approved of or tried to justify Gelfrad’s deed, the matter was discussed at length and seriously by the knighthood in burgs and watchtowers, and efforts were made to convey information about the discussions to Ziębice. And although the infuriated Duke Jan demanded a cruel and painful execution for the assailant, he had to draw in his horns under the influence of the opinions. Not only his closest kinsmen the Haugwitzes, the Baruths and Rachenaus, but all the other powerful knightly families in Silesia stood up for Gelfrad. Gelfrad Stercza, it was declared, was a knight, and a knight from an old family, who acted blindly to challenge a stain on his honour, and it was known who was responsible for that stain. Duke Jan raged on, but his advisors quickly dissuaded him from a sadistic execution. A time when a Hussite invasion could be expected any moment, they declared, wasn’t a good moment to alienate the knighthood. Thus, only the even more resolute Bishop of Wrocław, Konrad, took the side of the resolute duke. The bishop rejected the argument about the defence of honour, turned the entire matter into a political issue, claimed that Gelfrad Stercza had acted from Hussite instigation and demanded for him a cruel death for high treason, witchcraft and heresy. Stercza, roared the bishop, had acted from similarly base motives as the brigand Chrzan, the murderer of the Cieszyn Duke Przemko, and thus ought to be burned with fire and his flesh torn with pincers like Chrzan. The Silesian knighthood, however, wouldn’t hear a word of it, dug their heels in and prevailed to such an extent that Gelfrad almost got away with it. He was only to be punished with exile, the Silesian knights refusing to contemplate a harsher punishment to the fury of Duke Jan and the bishop. Gelfrad Stercza would have escaped with his life had it not been for one minor fact. In court, the knight not only did not express remorse, but also declared that no banishment would stop him from further attempts on the life of the duke and that he wouldn’t rest until he had spilled his enemy’s blood. And refused to take back his words. The powerful men of Silesia no longer had any arguments against such a dictum. They washed their hands of it and Jan of Ziębice cheerfully sentenced the knight to death. By beheading.