Iron Powder and Spellcaster

Imperial calendar year 520, spring.

A light drizzle fell from the sky, making the spring feel chilly and bone-chilling.

A tall, thin, serious old man was riding away from Wuyou Palace alone. Although the tiredness in his eyes could hardly be concealed, the old man still straightened his waist.

He is about to leave for the Piedmont, where he will be fully responsible for quelling the rebellion, eliminating the rebels, and restoring the authority of the empire.

There he faced off against his former squire, disciple, and vassal, Ned of Tormes.

Only when people are awakened by the thick smoke will they think: What was that first little spark?

An insult? A slap in the face? A personal vendetta?

Those are no longer important. What is important is that the fire of rebellion has now become a prairie fire.

Not only is the entire Duchy of Forsland burning, even the autonomous cities in the Duchy of Veneta are about to take action.

This fire must be extinguished as soon as possible, otherwise the territory south of the Shade Mountains will be reduced to ashes.

But a problem stood before him: his regiment was stationed in the northern border of the empire, while the war-torn Piedmont was located at the southernmost tip of the empire's territory.

Shipping was almost strangled. The rebel galleys set out from the Tanirian Islands and frantically attacked the empire's sea lanes.

The emperor's fleet was completely wiped out in a decisive naval battle with Sultan Freiman two years ago, and has still not recovered.

His soldiers could only finally meet their enemy by stretching their legs across the empire and over the towering, shadowy mountains.

…

On January 12, 559 in the Imperial Calendar, the Jashka Brigade set out from Shuangqiao Military Camp. At that time, there were only a hundred or ten double carts in the team.

Six days later, the baggage train arrived at the border town of Matoupo. The number of large vehicles driving on the dirt road had exceeded 200.

Less than half of them belonged to the military's baggage trains, and the rest were traders, brokers, and speculators who joined the baggage trains along the way.

The distinction is very simple: the baggage trains all use double four-wheeled carriages; while the folk carts come in all kinds, including two-wheeled, four-wheeled, mule carts, donkey carts... and even slow-moving ox carts.

…

Logistics was defined by the Duke of Arléans as "the practical art of mobilizing and supplying troops."

The words "dispatch" and "supply" sound light and easy, but they are as difficult as heaven to do.

In order to move his troops from the northern frontier to the Gulf of Seine, the Duke of Arléans carefully planned a troop transport route, which later became known as the "Butcher's Road."

The Butcher's Road starts from Rock Castle, the northern fortress of the empire, passes through more than twenty important imperial towns along the way to ensure supplies, and finally crosses the Shade Mountains through the Wankush Pass and reaches the Gulf of Senas.

The Duke of Arléans sent craftsmen in advance to build camps, widen roads, build bridges along the way, and set up supply depots according to the daily marching distance.

The sound of military boots trampling on the muddy water, the clash of spears, and the tired soldiers marching in silence... Many old people still remember these vividly when talking about them.

Under normal circumstances, soldiers can travel 22 kilometers per day on the Butcher's Road, and in forced marches, they can travel 37 kilometers per day.

During the two conquests, the empire dispatched more than 100,000 soldiers to the south via the Butcher's Road, and there was no attrition due to supplies during the period.

Countless military supplies also supply the counter-rebellion army through this route.

However, the ultimate impact of the Butcher's Road was not on the military, but on people's livelihood.

Because it connects more than 20 major cities and has camps and supply points along the way, many merchants began to transport goods through this route.

The road known as "The Butcher" ended up bringing prosperity along its route, which is probably something its original planners never expected.

…

Although the soldiers of the Republic do not want to admit it today, in fact the tactics, organization, training and other systems of the Alliance army were all learned from "The Butcher" Arlean.

There is nothing to be ashamed of, and being able to learn from your enemies is a respectable skill.

For example, the current phalanx tactics are improved from the Butcher's phalanx of spears and halberds: musketeers are added to make up for the weak long-range firepower of the phalanx of spears and halberds, and a small number of elite sword and shield hands are retained to counter the clumsy super long spears.

In 520 AD, the Duke of Arlean led troops to quell the rebellion. At that time, the "Southern Rebels" were just a group of businessmen, craftsmen and farmers - a ragtag group.

Eight years later, when "Mad" Richard took charge of the expedition, the enemy the Mad King had to deal with was already a real army.

The logistics system of the Alliance army was naturally learned from Butcher, and it mainly learned two things:

First, supply supplies locally as much as possible;

Second, set up camps along the supply line.

At the same time, I learned a lesson: Don’t let idle people wait to follow the camp.

Like the war between the Plato Republic and the Herd tribes, the quartermaster would collect supplies from the Herds as much as possible, and the transportation from the rear to the war zone would be both the responsibility of the army and private individuals.

The military's baggage trains have limited transport capacity and try their best to only load guns, gunpowder and other materials that are difficult to replenish at the front.

For supplies such as flour, salt, and non-staple foods, quartermasters would be happy to purchase them from traders at high prices and pay for them with loot, and sometimes they would even "advance" land quotas.

Businessmen can often make a lot of money in just one visit. Even the land index can be easily resold.

Therefore, every time a military convoy sets out, there will be a large number of traders, brokers, and speculators traveling with it. They followed the baggage train not only because of herd mentality, but also in the hope of getting some protection.

…

"Listen! You are responsible for your own safety! You must bear all risks along the way!" Tomorrow, when we are about to cross the border river, Winters is preaching the policy to the people accompanying the team: "Any carriage that is not a baggage team is not allowed to enter the queue! We are walking in front, and you are following behind. If you can keep up, just follow. If you can't keep up, there's nothing you can do about it..."

The second lieutenant stood on a stone, talking until his mouth went dry. The people in front of me listened silently, and everyone understood these rules.

After a lot of unpleasant words, Winters put the good news to the end: "But Lieutenant Colonel Jessica allows you to enter the camp along the road to rest! It is strictly forbidden to enter the baggage camp while camping, and those who violate the order will be punished as spying on military intelligence!"

The mood of the crowd had some ups and downs. Few of the officers in charge of the baggage team liked these civilians who were trying to protect them. In most cases, for the sake of safety, they were strictly prohibited from staying in the camp overnight.

It is rare for an officer like Lieutenant Colonel Jessica to allow idlers to enter the camp.

…

Seeing Winters returning, Lieutenant Colonel Jessica asked casually: "Have you finished telling them?"

Winters nodded.

Because he had the experience of escorting the Wolf Town convoy to and from Gevaudan, Winters was relatively capable, so Lieutenant Colonel Jessica let him do all the dirty things.

"It's no use just talking. Those who dare to follow are either brave or greedy. Most of them are both. You have to deal with a few bastards who want to fish in troubled waters to shock them."

"Then why don't you just not let them enter the camp?" Winters asked.

"Let them enter the camp so we can better control them." Lieutenant Colonel Jessica replied: "Besides, it's not easy for them. Take care of them as much as possible."

…

The days are short in winter, so you must seize the time to march.

The sky had just begun to light up when the captain on duty rang the bell vigorously.

Balian was awake before the bell was rung, having bought goat's milk and eggs in town the night before.

When Winters put on his military uniform and opened the tent, Balian brought in warm goat's milk, bread and hard-boiled eggs.

Balian is now the ensign's orderly, and the Dussacs who originally shared the same tent with him have turned into cavalry. The ensign simply left the blacksmith beside him and became guards and orderlies.

The originally silent military camp came to life, and the militiamen crawled out of their tents tiredly, stretched out their waists, and began to get food.

The diligent people also cooked some hot soup to drink, while the lazy ones simply ate cold bread.

It has to be said that after Balian became an orderly, Winters's food conditions improved greatly. Bud and Andre also benefited, and they now have dinner with Winters every day.

The large group of men and horses are still busy, and Andre and his five cavalry are ready.

With gold bars sponsored by his friends, Lieutenant Cellini generously ordered a set of Palatine Hussars officer uniforms from the best tailor in Maplestone City.

Although he may sound like a "Japanese guy", Second Lieutenant Cellini likes the fancy hussar uniforms very much.

Winters and Bud were still wearing the Army Academy cadet uniforms, and Andre couldn't wait to change into the Plato military uniform.

"Cavalry, you may die that day." Lieutenant Cellini said this: "Isn't it a loss if you don't dress better?"

But he deliberately chose a red belt with blue piping - the colors of the Veneta military flag. It can be said that "I wear the military uniform of Plato, but my heart is still Veneta's heart."

Second Lieutenant Cellini, wearing a fancy jacket and tall leather hat, stood out among a group of militiamen, especially conspicuous.

After greeting the lieutenant colonel, he led his light cavalry to explore the road ahead.

As a strategic attacker, the Palatine army currently uses a fixed supply route, with fortified camps every ten kilometers or so along the way.

Ten kilometers is the daily distance traveled by the cart.

Soldiers can hike 20 to 30 kilometers a day, but a large vehicle can only travel 10 kilometers.

The body of a traditional four-wheeled farm carriage is extremely heavy. The front wheels are small, the rear wheels are large, and the turning radius is extremely large.

There's no differential, no suspension, and no bearings, so it's easy to break. A belt hanger can also be installed on a passenger carriage, but not on a cargo carriage.

Andre's duty is to detect the situation within these ten kilometers and notify the camp ahead to prepare for reception.

By the time the other militiamen had eaten, put away their tents, and were getting ready to go, it was already broad daylight.

Lieutenant Colonel Jessica didn't waste any time and directly ordered the departure.

After leaving Matoupo Town, the Jashka Brigade will cross the boundary river and enter the "no man's land". Everyone is inevitably a little nervous.

Second Lieutenant Montagne took the lead, and the double carts drove out of the military camp one after another. Lieutenant Bader ended up with a team of carpenters and several vacant carts.

Mapotou Town is a very prosperous town with a permanent population of hundreds of households. The baggage train passed through the center of the town, attracting many townspeople to stand on the roadside and watch the excitement.

Many of the men and women had smiles on their faces, and Winters on horseback and militiamen with weapons on their backs waved some kind of paper.

"What does this mean?" Winters slowed down his horse and asked the old man in the car: "Waving paper? Is this a local custom?"

Red opened the curtains and yawned, stroking the lion cub and saying with a smile: "How can there be such a bullshit custom? If you insist on saying so, it should be regarded as the custom of all Plato people."

…

The old mendicant monk rode in a specially designed carriage equipped with a belt suspension frame, so it was not bumpy at all. A charcoal stove was installed in the carriage, and felts were nailed to the walls. It was freezing cold outside the car at the moment, but it was warm and comfortable inside.

It is too luxurious for a mere centurion to have two chaplains. Now, Father Carman and Brother Rhett have officially become the chaplains of the Jashka Brigade.

I don't know where the old magic stick's ability comes from. No matter the civilians, cart drivers or the hawkers who are trying to protect him in the baggage train, they now treat him as a living saint.

Winters estimated that if the old man died one day, the believers in the motorcade would bleed like rivers to snatch his body.

But precisely because of this, everyone had no objection to the old monk monopolizing a carriage. The old magic stick was happy and comfortable, Winters wanted to hide the little lion, and the two hit it off.

…

"What do you mean?" Winters asked in confusion, "What are the customs of the Platoans? Why can't I understand them?"

"You don't understand?" Brother Rhett raised his eyebrows.

"don't know."

The old monk smiled and asked, "Do you know what they are waving?"

"What is it?"

"Their wielding is the secret that the Platuan people have been able to beat the shit out of the Hed tribes in the past thirty years."

"What do you mean by this?" Winters became more and more confused.

"Boy, those are bonds! War bonds!" The old monk's smile was meaningful: "Your military salary, your weapons, the gold coins burned in this war... all come from here. If you lose, then you will lose. Paper. But if you win, the waste paper will turn into land, slaves, and real money! Are they waving at you? They are expecting you to win the war!"

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