Crusader Kings: Prisoners of War

In the royal palace of Philippi, Architas II was talking to Orwell.

"In other words, you want to recruit people in my country as Roman auxiliary troops?" He looked at the young man in front of him with a complicated look.

Orwell nodded and admitted: "That's right, we will provide them with food and a small amount of military pay, and you don't have to worry about us being responsible for training. If you have no objection, I would like to give priority to recruiting people in the refugee camp."

From a rational point of view, Architas II had no need to refuse.

First of all, he was already on the same front with the Romans, and he would not benefit at all if the Romans lost the war.

Secondly, the food rations of refugees were a big problem. The price of food was very expensive now. The Romans did this to help themselves relieve the pressure to avoid a more serious famine.

Finally, these temporarily recruited Roman auxiliary troops would most likely be disbanded after the war. These people who had received the relief of the Romans and their families would become their precious supporters and consolidate the foundation of the kingdom.

At this time, Orville added another clause that could not be refused: "I have already agreed with the Governor of Egypt that he will sell us grain at a low price. I will persuade the naval fleet of Caesarea to help transport the grain. Without those merchants to make a profit, the price of grain is about 30% lower than the market price here. As long as you agree to let us recruit soldiers to suppress the rebels, these people will be used to deal with those rebels in the end."

The conditions were really tempting. In the end, Architas II nodded heavily: "Then it's up to you. I approve this matter."

For small countries, support from big countries is very tempting, but if you are not careful, you will be tied to that big country. This is the case with Parfi now.

In fact, this country is not much different from ordinary Roman provinces. The Romans can recruit soldiers, collect taxes, preside over trials and promulgate laws here. Rather than saying that Parfi is an independent country, it is better to say that it is a province with a certain degree of autonomy.

Maybe Architas II realized this situation, maybe he didn't, but the choice before him was that he could only go all the way with the Romans. If he left the Romans, the surging public opinion would engulf him.

Orville walked out of the palace refreshed and in a good mood.

Everything was true, except that he charged a "little" brokerage fee, and the Governor of Egypt and the fleet of Caesarea would also share some of the profits, but even so, the price of grain was still much cheaper.

Compared with two years ago, the local grain price doubled, and the price of Egyptian grain was particularly cheap, so there was profit anyway.

Compared with those pure speculators, he was still relatively human. He agreed with the king on a long-term unified price. After a few months, the grain price would soar again, and the king would not be unable to afford it.

Orville was sure that the price would rise, because after Vespa arrived in Egypt, he would requisition ships to transport soldiers' supplies, and there would be fewer caravans that could transport grain to Palphi, and the grain price would rise again.

He had sent people to Syria and Cyprus in the north to buy ships, and he wanted to make a fortune from this information gap. Many people knew about Vespa's uprising, but except for some people in the core decision-making layer, no one knew that they were going to cross the sea for an expedition. It is estimated that the public still thought that Vespa, who was famous for his prudence and stability, would play a sit-down war and wait for the other side to take the initiative.

It was just the right time to buy a ship. Vespa's confidants did not stop it, but just reported the matter to Vespa, even if it was tacitly allowing Orwell to operate.

——

What happened in the Holy City could not escape everyone's eyes. They all knew that the Holy City was in a civil war. In Orwell's view, there was also a very serious "humanitarian crisis" there. It was said that the number of civilians who died in the chaos had reached 20,000 to 30,000. This was a number that shocked the Romans. They fought hard for a whole year and only captured 30,000 people and killed more than 10,000 people. The Palphians caught up in just two months.

He asked people to write a notice neatly and posted it on the wall outside the refugee camp, and also asked people to go to the refugee camp to publicize it. He publicized how the three parties in the Holy City were not doing anything, how they burned, killed and looted, and that the Romans were more moral than them, giving them a chance to survive and ensuring their safety.

At the same time, he also released news that he wanted to recruit people. Each person was provided with four rations per day, and they fought against the Zealots, the Daggers and the Priests, and provided weapons, equipment and training.

He also guaranteed that anyone who participated in the auxiliary army could obtain land, and if they had military merits, they could obtain more land and even become a member of the nobility.

This was generous to others, but it was true. After this war, what Palfi lacked was people, not land. Those nobles were cleared out by the rebels for several rounds, and many seats were vacated. It was something that King Aquita would definitely do to add some fresh blood.

Whether it was for profit or hatred, the number of people who signed up was very enthusiastic. Orville was not the director of the refugee resettlement office, so it was impossible to accept all of them. He absorbed the two thousand people with the best quality and condition as members of the auxiliary army.

In fact, the maintenance cost of these two thousand people is not much different from that of the six hundred people. Orville only needs to pay for the family's rations and blank checks. Rations are different from military rations. Orville's conscience is not to the point of letting everyone eat wheat. The food in this place is not so abundant, and it will be mixed with barley and other grains, but they are all decent food. His conscience is not so lost as to mix sawdust in it. He has no control over how these people eat.

For these people, the weapons and equipment and training methods were the same as those of the guinea pigs before. Orville did not let them start training directly, but gave them a week to recover. He also took all the families of the auxiliary army out of the refugee camp and arranged them in a new camp, which had much better sanitary and safety conditions.

He did not forget the corresponding punishment measures. As long as they violated the military regulations three times or the circumstances were serious, they would be expelled and sent back to the refugee camp, with a caning package. The auxiliary army was not protected by many military regulations.

The recruits were trained in an orderly manner. Time soon came to mid-March. Neither side made any big moves. Before the spring war in Palfi began, new news came from Rome.

The Roman Emperor Otto committed suicide after his defeat, and he was replaced by Vitellius, the leader of the German Legion. This was news more than a month ago.

Although Otto had good political skills and won over the Guards and part of the Danube Legion to fight for him, his foundation was too weak, and he did not have enough military literacy and military talents, and was eventually defeated by the German Legion.

The German legions entered the city of Rome. Vitellius was not well regarded in history. To put it in more understandable terms, he was a Dong Zhuo-like figure, arrogant and licentious, indulged his subordinates, was rude and unruly, and had done such things as harming loyal people.