Iron Powder and Spellcasters

   Chapter 190

  [Note: The command received by the colonel contained the word "retreat". The order received by the centurion was only to withdraw the battalion, and the soldiers did not know anything. The "retreat" that Andre said was told by Jesska. ]

   The wounded have not been treated and the spoils of war have not yet been collected. The sudden order to pull out caught everyone by surprise.

   "Where's Lieutenant Colonel?" Winters hurried back to Bianli, but found Lieutenant Colonel Jesska not there.

"Winters, you're back." Mason's tense nerves finally relaxed, and he quickly explained: "Lieutenant Colonel and Andre went to the North Bridgehead, and he asked you to gather up the soldiers in the city and bring them back to the Great Hall. camp."

   Winters knew that there were many soldiers and wounded in the brigade at the North Bridgehead, and the lieutenant colonel was going to bring them back.

   "Where are our people?" Winters asked again.

  Mason pointed west in all directions: "Everywhere."

"This…"

   There is no way, we can only find it in a stupid way.

  Bianli city was full of soldiers, and the militiamen of the Jesska brigade were mixed in groups.

  Winters, Bud, and Mason split up, looking for one house and one street, but only half of them were found in Bian Li.

   "The others let them go back to camp on their own." Mason consulted with Winters, his voice hoarse: "I don't have time for a second look."

  Budd thought for a moment and came up with a compromise plan: "Someone must take charge of the situation on the other side of the camp. You two go back, and I will take a few people to stay in the city to continue looking."

   Winters nodded: "Be careful."

   After finally finding half of the militia, Winters found that the bigger problem was the inability to get out.

  Two infantry battalions were escorting the Hurds out of the city, and the heavy soldiers outside were driving dozens of carts into the city. There are three gates in the inner city, which are still blocked.

   Winters ordered to turn to the wall gap, which turned out to be more congested.

  Many soldiers who lost their organization did not receive the order to pull out the camp, and were still desperately crowding into the city, trying to grab something.

  No way, Winters led the people to the city gate again.

   happened to meet General Sackler coming with the gendarmerie.

  Sekler's solution to the problem was simple and rude. He asked the military police to read out the order repeatedly outside the city gate: "Only the south gate is allowed to enter! The north gate is only allowed to go out!

  Language alone is very limited. There are still soldiers with a fluke mentality and want to muddle through.

   Soon, their headless bodies were hung on the city walls.

   As the silt in the river was cleared, the city gate was immediately clear, and Winters was able to take people out of the city.

   Back at the camp of the siege city, people in the camp were running around and the horses were neighing.

  The scout cavalry was dispatched one by one, and the quick-handed soldiers were dismantling tents and loading vehicles.

   It was only then that Winters was convinced that it was real. Not only to withdraw, but to withdraw immediately.

   He was deeply disturbed by the pitiful amount of information he had.

As far as he knew, on the land that was divided into three pieces by the river around Bianli, there were 18 infantry brigades, 46 cavalry squadrons, more than 6,000 auxiliary soldiers and an unknown number of handymen, more than 20,000 people. .

  How to regroup the scattered troops? That alone was enough to give Sackler and Alpad a headache.

   Not to mention that the light cavalry chasing the Chihe Department may have already run to dozens of kilometers away.

   Only one thing reassured him a little: the chain of command of the Palatine army was not broken, and the soldiers still acted according to their orders. As long as it is clenched into a fist, the Platoons are still an invincible force.

   After passing through the noisy and chaotic camp, Winters finally returned to the camp of the Jaskar Brigade.

   He was surprised to find that compared to the big camp that looked like a boiling iron pot, the Jieska camp was as calm as a deep pool in a deep valley.

   Not only Winters, but Mason and all the militiamen were dumbfounded by the sight in front of them:

  Two rows of carriages were parked neatly in the open space, and the carriages were loaded with all the baggage of the Jesska brigade.

  Each sack, every box is securely tied with two ropes.

  There are no horses on the cart, because the draught horses are all in the stables and are enjoying the food safely.

The other soldiers in the    camp looked flustered, eager to put away all the household items at once.

  The wounded soldiers of the Jieska Brigade who stayed behind in the camp were still working, some were cleaning the hoofs of the horses, and some were still making face.

   There are also many people busy around a dozen simple earth ovens, as if they are baking something.

  If Winters' memory is not confused, when he moved with the army to North Bridgehead—that is, three days ago—there were no such ovens in the camp.

   Seeing his companions come back, the wounded soldiers left behind in the camp quickly brought out dry food and water.

   The militiamen who came back from Bianli happened to be tired and hungry, so they took over and devoured it.

  The mental outlook of the wounded soldiers was so good that Winters was surprised. He asked the wounded soldiers left behind in the camp: "Who built these ovens?"

   "The old sage asked us to take it." The wounded soldier in charge of the oven hurriedly replied: "The day you went to the camp in the north."

   Winters almost vomited blood, what old saint? It's clearly an old scumbag! I haven't seen each other for three days, and it seems that the fanaticism of these old **** stick fans has deepened.

   "What's baking?" Winters asked again.

   "Dry food. The old sage asked us to make wheat cakes first, then bake the wheat cakes into dry food and pack them into bags."

   Winters raised his eyebrows: "When did you start making dry food?"

   "The day before yesterday, the day you set out on the expedition."

   "The carriage? It was also what Brother Rhett wanted you to install?"

   "Yes." The wounded soldier nodded like a chicken pecking at the rice: "The old sage asked us to pack up and load the truck, yesterday."

   "Take me to see Brother Rhett."

  Beside the carriage, Winters found the old magician.

  The old man ate well, slept well, and licked his cat every day.

  Compared to the image of the clear-eyed monk on the almshouse when we first met, the old **** stick now looks a little rich.

   When the two met, the old **** stick was holding a small bucket of red paint in his left hand and a brush in his right hand, and was sketching on the back of the carriage.

   Seeing Winters coming, Brother Reid waved happily: "Boy, are you back?"

   "What are you doing?" Winters went to the old monk.

When    came closer, Winters could see what the old magician was writing:

  [Owned by the 5th Legion Jieska Brigade]

  [Stolen and hanged military law must be investigated]

Brother    said triumphantly: "I have marked the carriages. This way, there will be no lawsuits during the march, and there will be evidence for disputes."

   "Stealing and hanging? Military law must be investigated?"

   "Not bad, right?" The old man's face became more and more red: "Concise and powerful, the confrontation is neat. Don't think this slogan is short, I have been thinking about it for several days. One word is enough to shock the younger generation."

   "What's the use?" Winters sneered: "The big boss is illiterate."

  Brother Reid turned from a red face to an old face, and he drew a holy emblem behind [Theft and Hanging Military Law].

   The old man said angrily: "Is this the head office? I think who would dare to steal the church property!"

After   , Rhett walked to the next carriage and continued to brush the slogan.

   "I want to ask you a question." Winters stopped talking nonsense: "Please teach me sir."

   "Pretty serious." Brother Reid glanced at Winters: "Say."

   Winters licked his lips and asked, "You're preparing for the withdrawal, and it started three days ago, right?"

   "Almost." Reid didn't look back, and concentrated on drawing the holy emblem on the fence.

   "Why do you think we—no, it's Plato." Winters chased after him: "Why do you think that Plato is going to lose?"

   The old man sighed and threw the brush on the ground.

He turned around and looked into Winters' eyes: "Boy, you are wrong. Although I don't know anything about the military, I have never had any doubts about your ability to fight. For Plato's victory, I Never doubted either."

   "Then why do you prepare dry food and a carriage in advance?"

   "Because Yasin the White Lion has already won. Plato will win every battle in this war until he loses it."

"I don't know…"

   Brother Reid sighed again, walked to the nearby stone bench, and motioned Winters to follow.

The two sat on the stone bench, and the old monk coughed and explained: "The victory of the battle is difficult to make up for the defeat of the strategy. When the Paratus people slammed down the city, the white lion Yasin had already won. I I ask you, do you think the Hurds are willing to let the Platonics cut them to death with one knife at a time?"

   Winters would have liked to retort: ​​There are many historical precedents for the cannibalization strategy.

   But he also realized that: this does not mean that the party being nibbled has no desire to resist. What's more, Platu can no longer be considered as nibbling, but is tearing flesh from the Hurd tribes.

"The rabbits die and the foxes are sad, and things hurt others. Auxiliary cars are dependent on each other, lips are dead and teeth are cold." Brother Reid asked Winters again: "The Hurd people see the neighboring tribes being destroyed one by one, will they be afraid? Will they not hold grudges? Will they worry about their own fate?"

Reid pointed to the great wasteland and said: "A young and strong lion, everything on the grassland is its prey. But once it shows a slump, not only will it be driven out by the lioness, but even the hyenas on the grassland will dare to provoke it. It. There is no other reason, there is no other reason."

   "Potential? What do you mean..." Winters was confused.

"You kid, you have spoiled all my interest." The old man sighed heavily: "In words you can understand. In the past, the Hurd tribes went uphill, Plato went downhill, and the Hurds put the The Latu people were bruised and bruised. Thirty years ago, Ned Smith changed the course of the battle, and the Platos began to go uphill, the Heards began to go downhill, and the Paratus beat the Heards again."

The old man coughed again: "When going uphill, all contradictions, all mistakes, and all problems can be covered up by victory, and once going downhill, they will all erupt. This is why the Hurds only lost one battle and were beaten one after another. The reason for the thirty years. It is not the sudden increase of Pratu's national strength, but the rift accumulated by the Hurd tribes that was detonated by a defeat."

   "But... we defeated the Chihe Division?"

   "I'll ask another question." Brother Reid's eyes were burning: "If God can bleed, is God still God?"

  If God can bleed, is God still God?

   Winters chewed on the words.

Without waiting for Winters to answer, the old monk continued: "Plato is a lion, and the tribes of Heard are hyenas. The lion king can't beat a hundred hyenas, but he can chase a hundred hyenas and bite them, because the lion king has [Potential].

   For thirty years, the tribes of Hed have been waiting for an opportunity, a moment when a Palatine shows his downfall.

  If Platu can destroy the Chihe Department, the [allies] of the Chihe Department will be scattered, and no one will come to rescue.

  The front line of Paratus was fortified, and the rear was attacked into the homeland. Yasin the white lion has transformed Plato from an invincible **** to a man who bleeds.

  The hyenas have already smelled the blood, and the [allies] of Yasin the white lion will rush to join the feast. They no longer see themselves as prey, they see you as prey.

  You can defeat a tribe, two tribes, but when all the Heard tribes come to share the lion meat, you will be shattered. If your general is not stupid, he should withdraw his troops immediately after winning this battle. "

   Winters cleared his mind and asked back: "You mean that Yasin the white lion is deliberately trying to prove that Palatu is not invincible. Although we defeat the Chihe Department, we will be besieged by all the Hed tribes."

   "In terms of results, that's what it means."

   "Aren't the Hurd tribes scattered?" Winters couldn't accept it: "How can there be tribes helping the White Lion?"

   "Then I don't know!" Brother Reid patted Winters on the shoulder: "Boy, if you want to know how the Chihe tribe colluded with other tribes, then you have to ask Yasin himself."

   Winters had some indescribable taste: "Then you think the Paratus will surely lose?"

   "No! On the contrary!" Reid said heavily: "I think Plato will win the final victory."

   "Why?" Winters wondered.

  Reid said with emotion: "From my point of view, Palatu is still on the rise. Its people are brave and strong, and its ruler is not incompetent. With the support of the other four countries, a failure will not hurt your bones.

  Platu's strength is much stronger than that of Heard's clans, but failure can let the Platu people learn a lesson, and the next time they punch, they will be more ruthless, more accurate, and more powerful.

   In the past ten years, I have traveled all over the republics. It is not that the Palatu country is on the rise, but the entire alliance is thriving. Ned Smith leaves you with thirty years of peace, and the future of this league is limitless. "

   "Boy, your age is just right." Rhett looked at Winters with a smile on his wrinkled face: "Maybe you will experience a prosperous world completely."

   This time it was Winters' turn to sigh: "Prosperity? Let's talk about the civil war first."

The old man    replied, "What about civil war? Civil war is also a way to unify resources."

   The grievances between the province and Veneta are inextricably linked, and Winters and the old magician can't tell.

   He suddenly thought of something, raised his eyebrows and asked the old magician: "Since you think you will lose this battle, why don't you remind me, or remind Lieutenant Colonel Jesska, and remind General Sackler?"

  Reid gave Winters a sidelong glance and asked, "I said [chicken breast], do you understand?"

   "What do you mean?" Winters was at a loss.

   "Have you heard of a wise man named [Abundant Land]?"

  Winters shook his head again and again, but he couldn't think of any wise man named [Fertile Land].

   "[The Romance of the Three Nations] This book, have you heard of it?"

   This is even more outrageous, and Winters has never heard of it.

"Then I can't explain it to you anyway." Reid laughed and coughed: "Just treat me as a swashbuckling old scumbag and tell you a bunch of crazy things. These words are taken in front of the general, The general won't believe me either. It's that simple."

  …

   At the same time, at the Legion Headquarters, Arpad had a sullen face, and bad news was sent to his desk one by one.

  The twelve hussar squadrons chasing the remnants of the Chihe Department encountered nearly 10,000 enemies in the northwest.

  The enemy was cautious and did not take the initiative to attack the Palatine hussars, but continued to gather the remnants of the Chihe Department, and the number grew stronger.

   The twelve hussar squadrons consisted of only about 1,500 cavalry soldiers. Seeing that there was no opportunity, they left a few sentries and returned to the camp.

The information brought back by    stated that the barbarian chief who brought the enemy tonight was red-faced and tall. Judging from the appearance, it may be the chief chief of the Teltown Department, the fire roaster.

The arrival of the   fire roaster was not the worst thing for Arpad. After all, the Teltown Division had already participated in the war before, but their attention was on the bridgehead of the Jesska Division.

   The information that most disturbed Major General Arpad was the information sent overnight by Pratu’s informants and eyes and ears in Heard’s ministries.

The   east of the sea and the Suz are gathering forces, demanding that the small tribes attached to them [make the eldest son].

  Because of the delay on the road, Arpad judged that when he received the tip, the East of the Sea and the Suz were likely to have sent troops.

  Herd's three divisions are coming together.

   [The author would like to take a leave of absence, there will be no changes today and tomorrow (Saturday and Sunday). If I'm not in Night City these two days, I'm on my way to Night City. The update will resume next Monday, thank you all. ]

Thanks to book friend G·Longinus, Dongmen Wang Baoqiang, book friend 111220192513078, luochengxian, proudboy, single dog who loves to read, XAXAX, ZHAOYESH, book friend 20180830192648978, STONY, one sword seals the throat 2, mate Akaseti, 54th , pure white light, 92 sauce Mengmeng, windfirewate, Jiang Xue Diao Weng monthly pass, thank you all.

   Finally, I would like to thank the book lovers for reading, subscribing, liking, recommending tickets, monthly tickets and rewards. Thank you all.

   See you on Monday.

   (end of this chapter)