Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War

Cleopatra didn't quite agree with Tia's view: "We once had these things you mentioned, but we gradually lost them after the sudden flashy life. Now you are the rulers of the land and sea. as Alexander gave us the wealth of half the world, Scipio, Lucius, Germanicus, Caesar, Pompey, and so on. Now you and Orville are making this country more and more land and wealth, how long can you sustain in front of these things? Antonis is already a good example, and there are already many in your country. It’s a moth.”

"This is exactly what I have been trying to avoid. Corruption is the ultimate enemy that defeats any opponent. I have to admit that some things cannot be avoided, but I will spend my whole life doing it. My father's mission is to transform the country Pulled back from the brink of civil war and fragmentation, my task will be to restore the simple morality that has been forgotten by the Romans, and then I believe you will see a new Rome.”

"Then I sincerely wish you success."

This was not a lie, Cleopatra did not have such great ambitions. She did not want Egypt to replace the Roman Empire as the hegemon of the Mediterranean, because she also knew that this was unrealistic.

At least compared to those barbarians or Parthians, at least the Romans have some common cultural concepts with them. Today's Greeks are unable to reproduce the feats of Alexander in the past, and even self-protection is a bit laborious──Greece mainland Facing the barbarians heading south, they needed help from the Romans. The remaining Diadochi dynasty was also exhausted by frequent peasant uprisings and powerful neighbors. Now the Romans and them had formed a very subtle symbiotic relationship, Toller Egypt provided food and a small part of finance, while the Romans provided them with a safe and stable environment. Like many other peoples, the Egyptians and Greeks enjoyed the shade under the big tree of Rome.

If I have to make an analogy, Tia is like a doctor who sees the potential risks of this big tree and now wants to treat the disease that has not worsened in this tree. They are like the squirrels or crows that live in this tree. , although good birds choose trees to live in, they may not benefit if the tree falls.

Tia didn't guess what Cleopatra was thinking, but she still happily accepted the other party's congratulations: "I hope so too. It's better to talk less about these serious topics about politics, let's That’s it. Besides, I have something else to ask you about my husband.”

After saying this, Cleopatra understood what the other party meant: "Of course, there are some things that I think I should communicate with you..."

………………

On the other hand, Orville must not have realized what the two people hundreds of kilometers away were talking about. He was still busy dealing with various matters in the capital.

He looked at the "soldiers" with sallow faces and numb expressions in front of him, and couldn't help but confirm with Trajan: "Is this the so-called army?"

Trajan said seriously: "I know you are confused, and I was almost the same at first, but these are indeed the standing armies of Ptolemaic Egypt. I personally pulled them out of the military camp."

"Is this still the case?"

"There are 60,000 to 70,000 troops in this country, about a quarter of which are composed of Egyptians, and one-sixth of the army is composed of dark-skinned Nubians from the south. They are a bit like inferior barbarian mercenaries. Soldiers can’t be counted on.”

Trajan couldn't help but accentuate his tone slightly when he spoke. He was also very dissatisfied with the current situation of the Egyptian army. Those armies composed of Greek immigrants could be regarded as colonization troops, and their combat effectiveness could barely be classified as soldiers. And this army composed of Egyptians In his opinion, an army composed of natives could not even be called an army.

Many people couldn't even understand the commander's instructions. The quality of the individual soldiers was quite poor and they couldn't even maintain a basic formation. In Trajan's opinion, these soldiers were not even comparable to the barbarian soldiers of the British Province. At any rate, those soldiers were in good physical condition. There is also recklessness, which is really useful when thrown out as a death squad or a ranger during a war.

The role of these people on the battlefield is infinitely close to zero. For the Romans who pursue the concept of elite soldiers, they would despise these people if they were thrown on the battlefield, occupying supplies, wasting the width of the front line, and possibly leading other armies on the front line to retreat. .

As for the more picky Trajan, he felt that these people were arranged to guard the grain. He was worried that these people would guard the food, let alone Orville, who was even more picky than Trajan. He felt that there was one more soldier. Just to have more mouths to eat, instead of raising a bunch of useless people, it is better to raise short, capable and high-quality troops. In fact, it is these people who determine victory or defeat on the battlefield. The remaining battle lines can be filled by alliance soldiers.

Orville also had a headache after hearing what the other party said - no need to test, you can tell from the confused mental state of these people that they are not useful. According to Orville's own idea, it is best to send them away and turn around. Raise a new mountain and recruit a new army.

But the actual situation does not allow him to do this. These people are all prime-age laborers. If they are thrown out of work and thrown into society, they will be a large group of unstable factors. A large group of unemployed soldiers flowed into Egypt, and theft, robbery, underworld and other phenomena will definitely increase. Orville seeks stability and security and does not want to see this situation.

In fact, the Ptolemaic royal family used them as the army for some reasons. They fed them so that they would not starve to death, but they had no intention of rebelling.

If they made a living within the military system, they would not use their crooked thoughts to rebel against the royal family and the nobles. At most, they would try to exploit the local people's wealth. This was not a big problem in their eyes, so things continued like this.

Now Orville had to find a way to deal with these soldiers who were too big to be eliminated, and arrange a way out for them to digest them slowly. After thinking about it, he made a preliminary decision.

"Take a few officers to help me screen. Those who are physically fit for the auxiliary army will stay in the army. I will prepare a general training plan for you. Train them as phalanx spearmen and archers. I will find a way to deal with weapons and equipment. You are responsible for training these people. I want to see the results later.

For the remaining people, some will be transferred to the new factory I am going to build. There must be many people who cannot be resettled. We will talk about it later. You do it this way first."

"Yes!" Trajan nodded, his eyes were a little excited. This was his first time to get the opportunity to train soldiers, and it also meant that he would have the opportunity to truly command an army in the future.