Chapter 555: Unexpected Good News

The sun was setting slightly in the west, reflecting the rays of light in the cloudy sky. The cheers of the warriors dissipated on the high pyramid, and accompanied by the royal flag patrolling north, sounded all the way in the city.

King Avit looked majestic. He first inspected the pyramid temple and the divine sacrifices, and then went to the granary in the north of the city to check the grain stored in the Tree Snake City.

The size of Tree Snake City is not very large, but the area of ​​the granary is indeed quite large, even larger than the average noble residence. The gray granary is built of bricks and stones. The exposed part is only two or three meters high, while the main underground part is three times as high as the ground!

"Huh? The entire granary is built with volcanic rocks and reinforced with corn mortar?"

"Exactly, Your Majesty! The entire granary is dug very deep, including the cellar, which is paved with rock bricks and moisture-proofed during the rainy season. In such a dry and low-temperature granary, the air-dried corn and dried meat, and even How many years can it be stored? I asked the old craftsmen in the city. Over the years, Shushe City has expanded its granaries several times to prepare for war, and the storage of food in the city has been the most important concern of the city lords."

Chief Intelligence Officer Gillim saluted respectfully and responded in detail. After the fall of Tree Snake City, he immediately sent men to take control of the city's granary and inspected it twice personally.

In fact, in this city-state of the Tlaxcalans, what he cares about most is not the temple, let alone the descendant of the god, but the granary and food. The Alliance army is on an expedition, and the storage of food is a matter of life and death, so we must be cautious and keep it in mind at all times.

"Well, what a well-intentioned military city!"

Avitt stretched out his hand and touched the solid outer wall of the granary, sighing like a winner. Later, he observed that there were traces of flames burning on the surface of the granary wall. The king's expression suddenly became solemn.

"Gillim, how much food did the army seize in Tree Snake City?"

"Your Majesty, there are originally 20,000 Dingkou's family members in Shushen City, and there is also a year's supply of food for 20,000 people."

Gillim looked solemn and spoke eloquently.

"The Alliance has besieged the city for half a month, and the siege lasted for nearly a month, plus several days of washing the city. Now it is the end of July and the beginning of August. When the city fell before, some Tlaxcala defenders set fire to the granary. It's just that God Bless the Alliance, the heavy rain fell and only part of the food was burned. Apart from the consumption and burning of the defenders, the food stored in the warehouse can still feed the 40,000 troops for four months!"

"Yes. The heavy rain delayed the fall, giving the alliance more time to attack the city, and extinguished the fire in the city. It is indeed the Lord God's blessing!"

Avitt smiled. Then, when he heard the numbers reported by Gilliam, his smile turned into surprise.

"There are actually 40,000 people, eating four months' worth of grain? Gillim, have you ever checked?"

"Your Majesty, I led the secret guards and personally inspected it twice. The amount of grain in the granary should not be much different from this number."

Gillim's face also had a rare smile.

"The people of Tlaxcala have indeed been preparing for this war for a long time. However, God bless! These reserves are now cheaper for the Alliance. The rainy season is at its peak, and food transportation is difficult. With this batch of food reserves, the Alliance's logistical pressure will be reduced. It can be reduced a lot.”

"That's right! There are enough grains for 40,000 people in the Feathered Serpent City for more than two months. Plus this batch of seized grains. After I lead the royal army to leave, more than half can be left for the south route army heading north!"

Avitt smiled and nodded. Both he and Gilliam agreed to use the figure of 40,000 people to estimate food consumption.

The reason is that after two tragic sieges, the main force of the Northern Route Army, which once consisted of seven full regiments and nearly 60,000 people, was left with only about 40,000 people. Of course, more than 60% of the casualties were cheap militiamen, and only 40% were samurai who needed pensions. Among the eight thousand warriors who were injured or killed, city-state warriors accounted for 60-70% of them. This disparity in casualties is naturally inseparable from the king's arrangements since the Eastern Expedition.

"The Lord God bless the alliance!"

Avitt prayed and felt a little worried. The food reserves in Tree Snake City are so abundant, so the White Snake Qiu City and Yunshe Mountain City that have not yet been captured should also have large food stores. Next, if Xiulote wants to capture these two cities and completely wipe out the Tlaxcala people, it will probably take a long time and will not be easy.

"Gillim, during the past few days when the Alliance was sieging the city, has anything happened in the other two Snake Cities?"

"Your Majesty, Yunshe Mountain City is built in the mountains. It is difficult for the army to enter, and it is also difficult for the warriors inside to come out. The mountain army has blocked the mountain pass, and the Tlaxcala warriors in the mountains have harassed it several times, but to no avail, so nothing has been done."

Although this kind of mountain city built in the mountains is dangerous, it often has little impact on the overall strategic situation. Because the attacker does not need too many troops to block the mountain pass and block the mountain city's channel for projecting troops to the outside world. And as long as these passages are cut off, the besieged mountain city will be a dead city, and sooner or later it will run out of food and fall.

"As for White Snake Hill City, it is located behind the army."

The chief intelligence officer paused and looked solemn.

"The warriors in the city came out to attack. They made several sneak attacks on the army's food road, killing and wounding hundreds of alliance militiamen, and also burned some food."

The army's food pipeline is not stable, which is why the general intelligence officer always prioritizes the storage of food in the army.

"Well White Snake Qiucheng"

Avitt narrowed his eyes and looked toward the northeast, murderous intent rising in his heart. After thinking for a while, he lowered his eyes again and shook his head.

"No. The rainy season is at its peak, which is not the time to attack the city. I don't have much time to stay here and waste my time. The main force of the royal family must return as soon as possible and sit in the capital. I also want to hold a grand ceremony to appease the hearts of the alliance!"

Gillim raised his head slightly and looked at the king's expression. Then, he nodded secretly, knowing that the king had made a decision, so he said no more.

"Gillim, the king ordered: Send an envoy to the south route army!"

Avitt pondered for a while, looked at the sturdy granary, and issued the latest royal order.

"There are five major things that happened when the envoy went south! First, the high priest went to the Kingdom of God and asked Shusoke to write a letter to the family, so as to appease Shulot. Second, he informed him of the progress of the Northern Route Army. Tree Snake City has fallen. The main force of the royal army needs to return to the capital as soon as possible. Thirdly, ask him about the situation of the South Route Army and ask him to detach at least 20,000 troops and personally lead them to take charge in Shushen City. I will wait for him for a month and hand over to him in person! , face-to-face instructions. Fourth, let him draw a thousand and three level warriors from each legion of the Southern Route Army to serve as the expanded Duanfa Guards Battalion."

“As for one last thing”

Having said this, Avitt's face showed a bright smile that he had never seen before. He is so happy today not only because of the conquest of Tree Snake City, but more importantly, because he received this good news!

"Haha! Tell Shulot that the messenger from the capital has brought good news of divine blessing! Just ten days ago, when the warriors were fighting on the Tree Snake City, the Lord God sent a divine blessing and gave the royal family the grace of prosperity. !”

Upon hearing this, the chief intelligence officer suddenly frowned, trembled all over, and rarely lost his dignity.

He has already guessed what the news is! Counting the days, it is indeed this month. Judging from the king's expression, there should be no surprise. However, I don’t know whether it is a man or a woman. In this matter, the king arranged for another group of people to isolate all news and be responsible to him independently. Even the secret guards who oversee the alliance do not have any power to inquire. Of course, he did not dare to disobey the king in this matter, even in the slightest.

"Ha ha!"

Avitt laughed heartily, his eyebrows arched. His face lost its usual coldness and severity, and even became a little kind. He declared with a smile, just like announcing the victory of the Eastern Expedition, with joy from the bottom of his heart.

"Tell him, God bless the royal family! Ten days ago, he became a father! And I became a grandfather!"