The Rise of the European Emperor

Remember [New] in a second! "How about we attack the Netherlands and force the Habsburgs to divide their forces?" At this time, an unnamed French general suggested.

Francois I shook his head immediately:

"No, sending troops requires a legitimate reason. The Habsburg family had an excuse to attack Switzerland, because Switzerland was originally a fiefdom of their family, and Bern was established by their family. We have to attack the Netherlands at this time. Just have a good excuse."

In fact, this is not absolute. If a strong country bullies a very weak vassal state, the reason is far-fetched. But the problem is that the Habsburg family belongs to the great powers, so they can't make excuses casually, and there are good reasons.

Earl Duert, who had fallen out of favor, thought about it and suggested:

"How about we send elite men to pretend to be bandits and attack the Netherlands?"

Francois I's eyes lit up, but John Lafite retorted:

"Master Duert, I'm afraid not. I heard that the ruler of the Netherlands, Duke Philip, is a heartless person. He doesn't even care about his own father. Would he care about the civilians of the Netherlands who were attacked by 'bandits'?"

"Moreover, if you pretend to be a bandit, you can't carry artillery and engineering equipment. After all, bandits can't have those things. But in this way, it will be impossible to break through the city of Ghent, and it will be difficult to threaten the safety of Duke Philip. In this way, the It cannot reach the point where Maximilian I is distracted. I have heard that Maximilian I is very determined this time and vowed to take Switzerland. It is difficult for him to divide his troops with ordinary means."

"Even, because of the large number of Austrian troops this time, even the grain and grass were escorted by a large army, and the small-scale team could not successfully attack the Austrian army that was escorting the grain and grass."

After hearing John Lafite's explanation, everyone fell silent. After a long time, Francois I sighed and said:

"That's it, send more elite warriors, put on Swiss clothes, and enter the city of Bern to participate in the defense. In addition, we are mentally prepared for the failure of the Swiss Resistance Army. Therefore, we need to send troops to Lausanne in Vaud. To protect French-speaking people as an excuse. Then, build forts and defense lines around the canton of Vaud in preparation for the retreat of the Swiss Resistance.”

Facing the menacing Austrian army, the French monarchs and ministers had no hope of defeating it. However, they would never watch Austria annex Vaud and Frim, two regions that did not belong to the Habsburg family. As for how the French army publicly sent troops to Vaud? Wouldn't it be enough to let the bishop of Lausanne in Vaud openly invite him? It is even possible to send troops first, and then force the bishop of Lausanne to reissue an "invitation letter"...

...

In addition to the French monarchs and ministers worrying about the situation in Switzerland, most of the German princes, that is, the princes of the anti-Habsburg faction, were also worried about the situation in Switzerland. But they have less excuse than France to get involved.

After all, nominally, they are still subordinates of His Majesty the Emperor.

They planned to secretly support the Swiss Resistance Army, but the emperor had already sent people to block the mountain roads in eastern and northern Switzerland. To the south is the Alps... So, they sent people to support Switzerland, and they had to detour through France first, which was very inefficient. However, they have no other choice but to take one step at a time.

...

In the North Sea country, when the eyes of the French and German princes were attracted by the Swiss war, Marin began to prepare frantically. In addition to transporting various materials to Murmansk and Petersburg in advance, "agent recruitment" in the southern mountains is also in full swing.

For this recruiting, none of the people sent by Beihai Kingdom made public appearances, but secretly hired locals to come forward and form various mercenary regiments. But because Poland and Lithuania have not yet been defeated, these agents have no reason to recruit people aggressively, so they can only slowly build up the framework of the mercenary group. As long as the backbone is in place, when the "bad news" comes, you can use these backbones as a basis to recruit people aggressively.

Only Shi Beier, the leader of the "straw sandal mercenary group" who had defected to Marin, would openly recruit soldiers because he was the leader of the mercenary group and he was a local. However, because there is no sufficient reason right now, that is, there is no suitable war, he cannot recruit troops on a large scale, and can only recruit troops on a small scale. As for the war in Switzerland, everyone knew in their hearts that the princes opposed the emperor, but they could not openly raise the banner of anti-emperor to recruit troops, they could only do it quietly.

Of course, although it is not possible to recruit soldiers publicly at the moment, it is possible to do some preparatory work. For example, I contacted many young and strong mountain people who wanted to go out in advance...

...

This is a method that Marin and his subordinates have discussed for a long time before coming up with a solution. The specifics are-although mercenaries cannot be recruited at the moment, they can contact each other first!

How to connect with feelings? Of course it's a banquet to eat and drink!

Marin is an oriental, and he understands wine table culture very well. And the German side is not bad, everyone also likes to drink. The only difference is that people in the East drink white, but here they like to drink beer. In addition, the Chinese cuisine in the East is much, much better than the German cuisine in this era. Even in later generations, it is still too strong.

Marin sent people to fly pigeons to pass the letter, and asked his subordinates to instruct the agents who came forward to hold banquets every now and then, entertaining heroes from all walks of life in the mountains, drinking in big bowls, eating meat, and connecting with each other. At the same time, they bragged to each other at the wine table, saying that they would do something big in the future. That posture is like the heroes on Mount Liang agreeing to do justice for the sky. During the dinner, under the suggestion of the "messenger" in the dark, the agents implicitly stated that they would form a mercenary regiment and go out to "do something big."

The mountain people are already poor and have enough to eat, so don't be too happy to be able to have a feast. With gratitude in my heart, I naturally agreed. And the timid ones will hesitate. After all, going out to serve as a soldier is desperate. And these people will be recorded in the small books by the "messenger" who are peeping in the dark. They won't be part of the next banquet. After all, wine and meat can't be wasted, it's also an expense.

However, the mountain people are generally aggressive, and there are only a few who are afraid of death. If it was among the serf groups in the plains, those who were timid and afraid of death would probably account for the majority. People in the mountains are different, they are relatively free. Although it is inevitable to be exploited by the lords, they will not be forced to do farm work by the lords all day long, nor will they be worn away by the supervisor's whip.

These mountain people who still have their edges and corners often hunt in the mountains and fight against wolves, wild boars and bears in the mountains. Many of them are very brave. Otherwise, Marin wouldn't hit their minds.

Of course, when the mountain people are invited to dinner, the dishes they eat cannot be braised pork and stir-fried vegetables from Beihai. Because, this is too representative. Others will know that it is the handwriting of Beihai Kingdom at a glance.

Therefore, at these banquets, all the common beer produced nearby was served in wooden barrels. Most of the food they eat is boiled meat and barbecue, which means they have enough salt. After all, Marin is a big salt lord, not bad for salt. And this is very good for the mountain people.

Because the people in the mountains are poor and cannot afford salt. Because of frequent hunting, they are not short of meat, but short of salt. Many times, when they cook meat, they sprinkle a little salt. And the boiled meat with enough salt is considered delicious to them.

It's very interesting to say that the agents are treating guests to dinner, but many mountain people in southern Germany who were invited to come here did not come to eat empty-handed, but came with their prey. For example, a hare, or a leg of wild boar, a large piece of venison or something. There are also wolf meat and bear meat, and they bring their own meat. The agent mainly provides cooking utensils and seasonings. And, a lot of firewood felled in advance. Of course, the big head is still beer. After all, cooking utensils and firewood are not rare in the mountains... Well, that's not true, iron pots are also very expensive in the mountains... And the beer is brought in from outside the mountain by the agent with a group of friends.

Therefore, it is said that it is a big show, but it didn't cost much. It is mainly the beer money, plus some salt expenses and iron pot expenses. But salt doesn't cost money, and iron pots are nothing in Beihai. There are a lot of beer in Beihai, but they will not be shipped over long distances. Because beer is very cheap. If it is transported from the northernmost Beihai country to the southern mountainous area, the freight alone will far exceed the value of the beer. It is better to purchase it locally.

After eating and drinking, apart from bragging and looking forward to the future, everyone is doing activities, that is, competing.

After all, they are all men from the mountains, and they can do some superficial fighting, which are all tempered in the hunting process. After the banquet ended for an hour or so, when everyone's stomachs were more digested, they would propose to compete with each other. Generally, it is a fight with fists and feet, and those who can use weapons use wooden sticks to fight. Don't use weapons, so as not to hurt people.

At this time, the "messengers" who have been hiding on the sidelines and peeping will get busy again. What are you busy with? Record the evaluation of the competition!

The same as the selection criteria of the Beihai Kingdom, the "envoys" do not record victory or defeat, but only the determination of victory and defeat and the degree of bravery. Even if you fail in a fight, as long as you have a strong competitive spirit and are not afraid of getting hurt, you are a good soldier. In the competition, even if you win, you are afraid of getting hurt and show timidity, which is not a priority. Those who show obvious timidity will be crossed directly, and will not be considered in the future. Even, the next banquet will not be invited again, and he will be directly kicked out of the "circle".

...

In this way, through frequent banquets and competitions, the "envoys" sent by Marin used up a lot of notebooks. The notebooks are densely packed with lists and evaluations of each person, for future reference for recruiting soldiers.

And through banquets and competitions, the number of young and strong mountain people who have reached an oral agreement with the agents to "go out together" has reached more than 40,000, and it is still increasing in the banquets and competitions. Presumably, when the news of the defeat of Poland and Lithuania comes, the number should be able to reach 50,000.

It's just that a verbal agreement is a verbal agreement and doesn't count. Perhaps, some people are just lip service. After all, if you eat and drink for nothing, you have to say something nice. Although the mountain people are simple and honest, it is inevitable that some people will be like this. Therefore, through Kohler, Marin instructed the spies who performed the mission to clear the way with money and wine, continue to develop the number of offline agents, continue to entertain and compete, and increase the number of candidates. In this way, when the actual recruiting begins, there will be more room for choice. Even if some people choose to retreat in the end, it is guaranteed that about 50,000 people will be recruited in the end.