Chapter 271: Recruiting Captives
The 100,000 captives in the city are the most important spoils of the three-province coalition.
According to the unspoken rules of the Grant Kingdom, and the contributions of the soldiers of the Harland Territory, who played a key role in the war, Richard can get about 60%.
60,000 people, worth 300,000 gold coins.
Such a huge fortune is crucial to the development of the Harland Territory.
But it is not an easy task to feed these 100,000 people now.
Because of the destruction of the war, the farmland near Nero Castle has been deserted, and about 3 million acres of land have no harvest.
In order to save the population in Nero Castle, they must be moved away to survive in areas with abundant food.
There is only one month's food left in the city, which is not enough for all the population to move back to the three northern provinces.
In the past two months, the communication between the front and the rear has not been cut off. Both the Harland Territory and the Second Battalion led by Lost have sent some letters to Richard intermittently.
Richard has received the news that the Duke Edward suddenly made things difficult.
Last time, I relied on the power of the Dawn Church to solve the problem. This time, I can't ask for help from the church again. As a great noble, the most difficult thing to repay is favors.
If you owe too many favors, the Harland Territory will inevitably be involved in a religious war.
The religious war in the Dawn plane is not only large-scale, but also very cruel, and the intensity is no less than that of the racial war. As a noble lord, you can't get too close to the Dawn Church.
So this time when escorting the population, Richard will definitely bring enough food and won't continue to ask for help.
But there are only 1,900 tons of food in the city. Even if all the food is taken away, at most 65,000 people can be relocated.
"Everyone knows the situation. We don't have enough food now. There is a serious shortage of food near Nero Castle. We can't stay here for too long. I order the Sixth Brigade of the Harland Territory to escort 60,000 people back to the three northern provinces. Jennings, you will set off tomorrow and take all the 1,900 tons of food away."
Escorting the population is a very important job, and Richard is not at ease to leave it to others.
But after Jennings left, Richard's direct line was less than 2,000 people, which was not enough to control the coalition forces of the three provinces. However, according to Richard's estimation, there was no big enemy in the west. It is estimated that there will be no fierce battles in the short term. In another month, the first and fifth battalions will be able to rush to the battlefield to replace the gaps left by the second and sixth battalions returning to the territory.
The most critical issue now is whether we can grab enough food and stabilize people's hearts after going west.
There are a large number of slaves from the Grand Duchy of Stanik in the Harland territory. Now many of these slaves from the Grand Duchy of Stanik have joined the army. These soldiers are proficient in the language of the Grand Duchy of Stanik. They participated in the transformation of prisoners, which helped Richard a lot and temporarily stabilized these prisoners.
But if the problem of food shortage is not solved, these prisoners with war experience will eventually be a time bomb.
In order to control these prisoners, Richard adopted two strategies. The first was to confiscate the bows, crossbows and armor of the prisoners of war and replenish the equipment of the noble coalition. The second was to identify the families of the prisoners of war and organize them into the old camp, let the soldiers of Harland territory guard the old camp, and use the relatives of the captives to control them.
With the restraint of wives, children and elders, as long as they are not pushed too hard and have sufficient logistical supplies, the prisoners of war are willing to obey orders.
After recruiting the prisoners of war, Richard selected a group of officers from the reconnaissance brigade and the Warcraft cavalry, and ordered Morgan to be the commander of the captive soldiers, and the captain of the Warcraft cavalry, Baggett, and Valentine, to assist Morgan in managing the team.
It took seven or eight days to recruit the prisoners of war and form the old camp. Seeing that there was not much food left, Richard immediately led the soldiers to the northwest of Stannik.
After walking for another six days, the troops walked about 300 miles and entered Linus County, only then did they find a large number of farmlands being cultivated.
At this moment, it was already mid-June and the summer harvest was about to come.
Looking at the heavy ears of wheat in the farmland, Richard finally put his worries aside.
Richard dispatched the magic balloon squadron to scout the enemy situation nearby.
In less than an afternoon, the magic balloon squadron sent back intelligence.
Through high-altitude reconnaissance, it was found that this place was not far from Linus Castle, about 200 miles away.
During the reconnaissance, the magic balloon squadron also found the cavalry under Duke Jonathan, and the distance between the two armies was only 150 miles.
Through the scouts' story, Richard had roughly figured out the situation on the northern front.
Linus Castle was surrounded by the Nit River on three sides. If Duke Jonathan wanted to attack the city, he needed to cross the fast-flowing Nit River.
Twenty-six days ago, Duke Jonathan seized the weakness of Baldwin and Holden's uncle and nephew guarding against each other, and took the opportunity to severely injure Baldwin on the north bank of the Nit River.
Without the containment of Baldwin's troops on the north bank, Holden's troops fell into a completely passive situation.
Now that it is summer, the water is turbulent and it is difficult to cross the river. The Haldan army barely managed to maintain the front line and blocked Duke Jonathan on the north bank.
Haldan's army now has about 30,000 troops, including 2,000 elite Warcraft cavalry.
These 2,000 Warcraft cavalry are a great threat to both the main force on the northern line and the southern line where Richard is.
Duke Jonathan did not dare to cross the river on a large scale because he was afraid that the Warcraft cavalry would attack him halfway across the river.
Although the southern army led by Richard seemed to have a large number of people, plus 16,000 prisoners, the second and sixth battalions were escorting people, and the army now lacked backbones who could fight hard battles. If these 2,000 Warcraft cavalry rushed in, it would probably collapse immediately.
As long as the enemy attacks, the coalition forces of the three provinces are no match at all and cannot stop the charge of the Warcraft cavalry.
Now there are two lines of defense in the north and south of Linus Castle, and the northern line is still the focus of the defense of Holden's troops.
Duke Jonathan now has a total of 60,000 soldiers.
After entering the Grand Duchy of Stannik, Duke Jonathan fought several battles with the Linus family, and the casualties were not low, adding up to about 8,000 people. The original 60,000 troops are now only 52,000.
But now the army under Duke Jonathan is close to 80,000, and its strength is stronger than when it entered the Grand Duchy of Stannik. The extra 20,000 troops are all vassal troops in the northern part of Stannik supporting the Jonathan family.
These small northern nobles realized that the Linus family was in great trouble, and they took the initiative to send troops and organized a noble coalition to help Duke Jonathan fight. They also provided Duke Jonathan with a lot of food, reducing the pressure on the logistics supply of the northern army.
The joining of the northern nobles of Stannik is also a key factor in Duke Jonathan's victory.
The three-province coalition led by Richard on the southern front has a total of 16,000 troops, of which 5,000 are prisoners.
These prisoners are now only thinking about eating, and they are not willing to fight with their own people. The old troops from the three northern provinces now have only 11,000 people.
The three-province coalition is already a well-plundered army, and the morale is not high. In this situation, it is difficult to bear the hard battle.
After analyzing the situation, Richard knew that the top priority was to find a stronghold immediately.
The current situation of the three-province coalition is that it is simply unable to fight a field battle with the Hordan troops.
But if a solid foothold is taken, the coalition can hold on.
Now the nearest Ria Castle to the three-province coalition is less than 20 miles away.
In a flash, Richard decisively issued an order, requiring the reconnaissance cavalry and the Warcraft cavalry to assemble immediately, attack Ria Castle, and seize a foothold.
The war has been going on until now, and Linus Castle has become very empty.
The castle of Ria originally had 1,500 city defense troops, but because the northern line was tight, they were all transferred to the front line to assist in the defense.
Originally, the castle of Ria was a region directly under the royal family, not the focus of the Linus family's defense. There were not many armed personnel in the castle, and now the garrison was transferred to the banks of the Nit River to guard the ferry, and the defense of the castle was almost empty to the extreme. Now facing the cavalry raid, there are only one or two hundred armed personnel in the city to maintain order.
In just one stick of incense, the cavalry of the three provinces' coalition forces conquered the city gate.
Upon receiving the news of the capture of the castle of Ria, Richard immediately ordered the soldiers to gallop. Before dark, he led the army to the castle of Ria.
After entering the castle, Richard immediately ordered: "The logistics staff will work overtime tonight and quickly count the grain in the castle. The guard squadron will seal off all the grain stores and restaurants in the castle. Immediately seal the city gates, and from now on, not a single grain of grain will be allowed to leave the city.
The stored grain of the residents in the castle must also be confiscated and counted, leaving them with seven days of rations, and then the residents in the castle will be driven out, telling them that the city of Riya is already a battlefield, and asking them to rely on relatives and friends, and go as far as they can to find a way to survive outside."
After entering the city, it was already late at night after arranging military affairs. Richard took a nap, and the next morning he summoned the logistics officer with full energy.
"Did you count it clearly last night? How much grain is there in the city?"
"It hasn't been counted yet."
Before the logistics staff finished speaking, Richard's face showed some joy. "Is there a lot of food in the granary?"
The logistics staff nodded and said, "The Earl guessed correctly. We counted about 2,000 tons of food in the granary yesterday. In addition, there are six grain stores and dozens of restaurants in the castle of Ria. Together with the rich families in the castle, at least 1,000 tons of food can be collected."
After getting a positive answer, Richard finally put his worries aside.
Although the coalition forces of the three provinces cannot fight field battles now, they can defend the city. Although Holden's magic beast cavalry is powerful, it is impossible for it to fly to the top of the city. With the protection of the city defense fortifications and relying on the power of numbers, Richard is no longer afraid of Holden's magic beast cavalry.
Now Richard has 16,000 soldiers and 35,000 families of captive soldiers. Soldiers consume three kilograms of food every day, and most of the families of captive soldiers are the elderly, weak, women and children, who consume about one kilogram of food every day. Adding the consumption of war horses and pack animals, the daily consumption of food is about 50 tons.
The food collected in the castle is enough for two months, and the three-province coalition now has more than 20,000 sheep and more than 600 tons of food, which can last for about 20 days.
If they save a little, this batch of food can last for three months. In three months, according to the development of the situation, Duke Jonathan will definitely attack the Castle of Clenus and end the war.
Everyone took Richard to the warehouse and saw the mountains of food. The logistics staff smiled and said, "This castle is really rich. We not only found a lot of food, but also found the treasury, got 50,000 gold coins, and even precious magic crystals, about 1,000 pieces."
"This castle is already the capital, and its location is equivalent to the Nolan Administrative District of our Grant Kingdom. Of course, it is very rich." Richard said with a smile.
After leaving the warehouse, Richard took the officers to the top of the city to check the city's defense. He looked at the large tracts of farmland outside the city and said to the officers around him, "There are more than 100,000 acres of farmland outside the city, which will soon usher in a bumper harvest. After the wheat is harvested, we will finally have no worries about food shortages."
The area near the Ria Castle was not affected by the war, and the bureaucrats did not issue orders to clear the fields. Production was not affected, and more than 100,000 acres of wheat were harvested, which could produce at least 8,000 tons of grain.
In addition, there were 70,000 to 80,000 acres of grain planted with autumn crops such as black beans and potatoes. If this part of the grain was controlled, the food of the Central Army would be completely worry-free.
Richard led the three-province coalition to capture the Ria Castle, and the news was delivered to Holden's desk the next day.
Holden's mood suddenly became particularly bad after receiving this bad news.
Linus Castle is the capital of the Grand Duchy of Stannic, and there are many unproductive people in the city. Including the families of the city defense army, the population in the city is about 300,000.
Such a large city is very difficult to defend.
Although Linus Castle has a geographical advantage and is surrounded by the Nit River on three sides, it depends on the rich land on both sides of the Nit River to feed 300,000 people.
The northern shore area was affected by the war and is now completely controlled by Duke Jonathan. The reason why Linus Castle can hold on now is that it relies on the support of the south bank of the Nit River.
Now that the granary in the rear has been attacked, the situation has changed suddenly. If the summer and autumn grains are taken away by the enemy, Linus Castle will also face the worry of food shortage.
However, the main force is tied up by Duke Jonathan on the north line. If the troops are transferred to the south, they will definitely reveal their flaws. Duke Jonathan is experienced in battle formations. Once the flaws are revealed, he will definitely launch a general attack.
If the enemy troops on the north line are allowed to cross the Nit River smoothly, the Linus family will lose all their chips in this battle.
However, if the enemy troops on the south line are left alone and cannot control the grain-producing areas, the 30,000 troops will soon be worried about food shortages and will not be able to hold on for too long.
For a while, Haldane was in a dilemma.
Looking at the gorgeous palace, Haldane suddenly regretted: "Everything today is really terrible. If we can cooperate with Baldwin and not undermine each other, the situation will not evolve to this point?"
Although Haldane had a taste of the king's addiction, he also led the Linus family to a dead end. He was a powerful legendary knight and the pillar of the Linus family.
Now he has become the king of a fallen country, which makes the proud Haldane unable to accept the reality.
"It's all the fault of the damn Solaman, who rashly provoked the internal fighting of the Linus family, causing family members to slaughter each other. Of course, the stupid James should be more responsible. He did not set a clear heir and died irresponsibly in the court. Baldwin is also a stupid fool. He was still unwilling to cooperate at the critical moment, and was caught by the enemy and lost a large army. But the king of the fallen country of the Linus family turned out to be my great legendary knight Haldane. What a terrible fate is this?"