I will be crowned king

Under the unanimous recommendation of the Storm Division from top to bottom, the frustrated cavalry lieutenant had no time to think about it. The soldiers escorting him stuffed a broken suitcase into a broken suitcase and sent it to the port without even saying hello. A sloop.

Next stop, Red Hand Bay.

In order to ensure that he could arrive at Red Hand Bay "smoothly", in addition to the sailors borrowed from Colonel William Cecil, Anson also carefully prepared an emergency boat for him, plus a small box of brand-new church gold coins—— It was all saved by his frugality when he was in Carindia.

Although it is early spring, and there are still a few months before the busiest summer season for New World shipping routes, no one knows whether some educated pirates will understand the truth that "the early bird catches the worm" - Wan If Yizhen is hit, this box of gold coins can at least save his life.

Of course, if you really encounter a ruthless character who kills people and sells goods, you can only pray for the protection of the Order.

On the icy and rough sea in March, a seasick cavalry lieutenant tied himself to the mast and vomited and diarrhea along with the bumpy waves, successfully creating a "no strangers allowed" barrier on the deck.

As for the suitcase that was said to contain "all the necessities" and was held tightly in his arms, there was a Clovis flag, Anson's own personal seal, a brand new compass and a revolver loaded with bullets. gun.

The first two are for him to handle diplomatic affairs with Red Hand Bay, and the latter two are necessary for escaping in case he is not kidnapped but is in distress - Needless to say, the compass, the revolver can be used for hunting or shooting at passers-by. Please help.

Of course, if there is no prey and no passers-by willing to save him, it can at least be used, um...

A cavalry lieutenant with an uncertain future and a heavy responsibility is about to embark on a personal fantasy adventure.

As for why this important task must be given to him, apart from the very minor reason that Anson wanted to punish Lieutenant Jason for leaking the secret in private, the more important reason was that he had had a successful experience before.

In line with the principle of hard work for those who are capable, since it is a useful tool, people should make full use of it; of course everything will be fine if it succeeds, but if it fails, you can learn from experience and make it perfect.

What's more important is that the Storm Master is already short of manpower, and talents in all aspects are very scarce. This task is very important, and there is no chance for trial and error. In case of failure, the Storm Master who has let go of the cruel words will have to fight with a group of followers. Enemies who have never met face to face face off at each other's home court.

Although the colonial militia is mostly equal to the original army, and is only worthy of showing off its power in front of the unarmed old, weak, sick and disabled, but what if it happens?

Anson would never take such a pointless risk unless forced to do so.

At the same time, the commander-in-chief of the army and his officer corps, who were still staying in the headquarters conference room, were having a military meeting with a slightly strange atmosphere.

In the past, the military meetings of the Storm Division were basically a formality. The basic process was that Anson Bach gave the order, and the other officers only needed to "understand the spirit" and perform their respective tasks, without raising any opinions at all; meeting efficiency Very high and takes no more than thirty minutes from start to finish.

This model was executed very well during the Hantu War. At that time, except for the original "Storm Regiment", the rest of the Storm Division's troops were levied troops cobbled together from reinforcements from various places. There was absolutely no familiarity between the various units; The reason for joining is very simple - to make money.

Anson also proved with practical actions that he is professional in cost control, oak development and common prosperity.

Relying on the prestige established by the Battle of Eagle Point and Carindia's "reparations", the Storm Division officer corps acquiesced to Anson Bach's "dictatorship" - except for the specific implementation details, no one would question the (deputy) commander's decision. The decision was made by him from top to bottom.

But when the Storm Division changed from a levy corps to a standing army, although everyone still had a superior-subordinate relationship, they had changed from "entrepreneurial partners" to "company colleagues" on the staff. All actions depended on the highest authority of the superiors (the Army and the Privy Council). Instructions, it is impossible to create a new country with just one word of disagreement as it was during the Han Tu period.

Of course, if you give enough, it's not impossible...

Now Anson is preparing to invade Long Lake Town without any local instructions, and even wants to form an alliance with all the rebellious imperial colonies. Affected by inertia, the officer corps has not publicly raised any objections, but this does not mean that they really have no objections. Opinion.

On the contrary, the more this happens, the more it proves that their opinions are really big.

According to Carl Bain, except for himself and Fabian, everyone from the commanders of the infantry regiments to the sergeants of each company did not support Anson's invasion of Long Lake Town. The reasons were basically the same: they could not make money. , it’s not worth it even if you earn it, and you have to risk going to war with the empire in the new world and being held accountable by the local people.

What, why don't Karl and Fabian have a problem?

Of course they have opinions, and they are big opinions - but Carl is already highly tied to this bastard commander because of the matter of being forcibly promoted to major in Hantu, and he will have to take the blame for anything that happens, so it is already very simple. Lying flat.

The former Guards officer knew all about Anson's background and knew that this thorn in the side of the Royal Army was actually Archbishop Luther Franz's senior tool. If he dared to cause trouble, it proved that the Archbishop's tacit approval was behind it. of.

But all the two of them could do was to use both soft and hard tactics to help Anson stabilize the mood of the officer corps and make him make an offer that no one could refuse.

In a word, you have to make enough money, but you can't be held accountable by the locals afterwards - or it doesn't matter if you make enough money and be held accountable, but you can't throw away the hard-earned establishment anyway. This is the bottom line of the officer corps.

"...So I very much understand and sympathize with everyone's concerns."

Facing the eyes of everyone present, Anson naturally leaned on the chair and propped up the armrests with his elbows, looking confident and calm: "After all, I founded the Storm Division by myself, and I worked hard to prepare it. I earned it through hard work – it’s like my child, dear!”

Yes, Stormtrooper is your child, the child of you and Miss Sophia Franz... Carl Bain, who was sitting next to him, secretly rolled his eyes.

"The most important thing to me is to ensure its future and honor, which is also your future and honor." Anson, who seemed not to have seen this scene, continued to talk:

"So I'm sorry that I agreed to Red Hand Bay's request without consulting you, but I will never regret it - I repeat, I will never regret this matter, even if it happens again. I will still make the same choice.”

"Why?!"

Alexey, the commander of the 2nd Infantry Regiment, couldn't help but said, becoming the first one among everyone to jump out: "The order we received is to defend the Beluga Colony, not to open up new territories in the New World!"

"Because if we don't take action first, we have little chance to defend the colony." Anson shrugged:

"Everyone, we must face a very cruel reality, that is, compared with the mainland, the gap between Clovis and the Empire in the New World is even more obvious - the other party is three times our size, and its wealth and population are almost the same. Four to five times, and that’s after counting the two colonies, and it’s even more desperate if you count Beluga Harbor alone.”

"If we don't take action now, when the rebellion ends, the empire, which pays more and more attention to the colonies, will never let Beluga Port go. Based on the worst-case scenario, we'd better not expect the empire to send reinforcements in time."

This is also the main reason why most officers chose to acquiesce - the locals specially sent the Storm Division all the way from Hantu to Beluga Port, certainly not because they thought it was a suitable place for retirement.

Faced with the reality that the enemy is strong and we are weak, taking the initiative to attack and win over allies is always the best choice; since the Hantu Storm Division can recruit a bunch of rotten fish and shrimps and beat the Imperial Expeditionary Force to pieces, then The idea of ​​recreating a classic in the new world does not seem to be an incomprehensible idea.

But such a simple reason obviously cannot convince everyone, at least it cannot convince Lieutenant Colonel Norton Crossell: "The problem is, how do you prove that after the counter-insurgency is over, the empire will definitely target Beluga Port?"

Anson looked at the commander of the 3rd Infantry Regiment, who was about the same age as Lieutenant Colonel Fabian. He actually didn't have much impression of this officer who was usually very low-key and who was added with reinforcements after the Battle of Eagle Point City. , I only vaguely remembered that the little clerk mentioned that the other party’s surname was very rare, and it didn’t seem to be Clovis’ traditional surname.

"It's very simple. I don't have to prove anything." Anson said very simply:

"You are right. Maybe by the time the counter-rebellion is over, the empire has been severely weakened and is too busy suppressing the remnants of the rebellion to even bother to invade us. Maybe they will find it cheaper to continue trading with us and just plunder merchant ships at sea. It’s also more profitable…”

"But I will not ignore the possibility that the empire will also target the Clovis colony in order to divert conflicts - the most important thing is that the local war will sooner or later affect the relationship between the colonies in the New World. This is impossible Avoided."

"Even if we try our best to avoid war and passively defend, we cannot let the Empire ignore the fact that there is a fleet and 5,000 soldiers in Beluga Port. They will know it sooner or later."

"This is not the reason for us to take the initiative to provoke." Norton shook his head, not as easy to persuade as Alexei:

"Provocation of war and offensive defense are two different concepts - what's more, we are not recruiting corps now, but a standing army. Even if we can make a profit and will not be held accountable afterwards, a large part of the captured spoils must be turned over. !”

Yes, this is the main reason why the Storm Master can't get up and down.

When the troops were still being recruited, the Storm Division was in a predicament of not having enough to eat at any time, and the budget given by the investor (Sophia Franz) would be spent at any time; if Anson, the "project manager" could not lead It’s no joke that if everyone starts a few big money-making projects as soon as possible, everything will be exhausted.

But after going through a Hantu War, and having established an organization, farming in Beluga Port went smoothly... Even if the victory in Changhu Town was successful and the income was generated, according to the standards of the Wang Family Army for standing armies, the spoils of victory were basically the same. It is even more impossible to expect the mainland to hand over a newly occupied colony to the jurisdiction of the Storm Division.

"It's okay to hand it over, but the question is who to hand it over to?" Anson chuckled:

"In order to ensure the smooth implementation of the local 'taxation', the port of Beluga Port has begun to operate over capacity and strives to complete two-thirds of the performance before the first half of the year; according to the regulations of the Royal Army, the army cannot privately seize the spoils of war."

"But if the war spreads to Clovis territory, the local area has the right to seize part of the loot for compensation and reconstruction; even before the Privy Council pursues it, the local council even has the right to use this part as administrative revenue and expenses."

"Anyway, as long as the money is not in the hands of the army, it does not violate the regulations of the Royal Army; and if the money falls into the hands of the Beluga Port Council, then..."

Anson, with a mysterious expression, glanced at everyone's faces and spread his hands.

The conference room suddenly became quiet.

The officers who had been staring intently just now suddenly began to look at each other, as if they noticed something moving in each other's bodies.

"As for the jurisdiction of Long Lake Town - I have promised Red Hand Bay before the war started that Beluga Harbor will not annex Long Lake Town - as long as the other party is willing to 'change their past mistakes', the two sides can completely follow the alliance's wishes Get along with each other.”

Seeing everyone's expressions as if they understood but still didn't quite understand, Anson could only speak more clearly: "Customs union, free passage, population mobility, military jurisdiction... In short, since we are allies, anything can be done. Let’s talk; on the basis of ‘equality and mutual benefit’, what is there that cannot be discussed?”

"Since it is an ally, of course Chang Lake Town is not a colony of Clovis; if it is not a colony of Clovis, the mainland cannot send additional governors or others to manage it; since there is no local intervention, and everything can be discussed , can’t we… provide them with all help more freely and more equally?”

Now everyone finally understood... The officers uniformly leaned back slightly and made a sound of realization.

But so far, the core issue has not been resolved... After a brief period of astonishment, Norton finally asked the question that everyone wanted to know the most: "Did you get the consent of the locals for the invasion of Chang Lake Town? acquiescence?"

"Of course I have already asked the locals for instructions on such an important matter a long time ago." Anson replied very readily:

"Just before the representatives of the Red Hand Bay Council came to ask for help, I wrote a letter and sent it to Clovis City on the issue of whether offensive defense against the Empire and the indigenous peoples could be launched. It should be available as soon as April. There is an answer.”

"Of course it's best if the locals agree. If they don't agree... we can also shift all the responsibility for the entire war to Red Hand Bay. Beluga Port and the Storm Division just conducted a small-scale 'cross-border harassment' on the border."

This answer was obviously in line with the thoughts of the Storm Division cannon fodder, and they all nodded in agreement.

………………

Clovis City, Franz Residence.

Sofia Franz, who had just been crowned "Honorary Governor of Ice Dragon Fjord" by Carlos II and attended the investiture ceremony, escaped home from the banquet. Before she got off the carriage, she saw the little maid Angelica standing in front of the carriage. Waiting outside the house, her nervous little hands tightly clutched a letter that had just been sent.

Seeing the familiar seal of the White Whale Harbor Council on the letter, Sophia, who had been exhausted just now, immediately became energetic. She opened the door before the carriage stopped, and the corners of her mouth started to rise as she jumped up and down:

"Quickly open it and take a look. Is there any good news in Beluga Port that could make the headlines of our newspaper?"