Chapter 342 Map

There are two wooden houses in the yard, one is for people to live in and the other is used as a warehouse. After walking a few steps, Lieutenant Colonel Elek took a look inside and outside the two wooden houses.

Apart from a simple table, chair and chest of drawers, there was no furniture in the room. It's obviously indoors, but it's as empty as a wilderness.

The oil lamp covered with cobwebs was thrown in the corner, and the lamp had long since dried up. The sun was setting in the west, and there was no light source in the wooden house. It was as dark as a cave.

Lieutenant Colonel Elek couldn't help frowning and asked, "Why do you live here?"

John Jessica held on to the wall, moved little by little, and finally sat back on the square stool beside the dining table and asked, "This is my home. If I don't live here, where would I live?"

"Is this the kind of place where a school officer lives?"

"You can only receive half salary if you are injured." John Jessica replied without emotion: "Besides, I haven't received half salary for three quarters."

Winters looked sideways at Lieutenant Colonel Elek, whose face turned a little dark.

"How is it possible?" Lieutenant Colonel Elek asked impatiently, half surprised and half doubtful: "How is it possible that you have not been paid for three quarters?"

John Jessica snorted coldly and did not answer, but his contemptuous expression was the most straightforward answer - believe it or not.

To be honest, before he stepped into this small courtyard, Winters didn't know what it would be like to see Lieutenant Colonel Jessica again.

To avoid making the scene awkward, Winters envisioned much of the dialogue. But when he really saw Lieutenant Colonel Jessica's dark eye sockets, he couldn't say anything.

John Jessica "looked" at Winters and asked stiffly: "What do you want to drink?"

"Just water."

"Nothing else." John Jessica tilted his head: "There is a well in the yard. If you want to drink, go dig it yourself."

Winters picked up the water jug, walked out of the cabin, filled a fresh can of well water, and washed the cup. When dealing with Lieutenant Colonel Jessica, he habitually omitted those false politenesses and etiquette.

Back at the cabin, Winters poured a glass of water each for Lieutenant Colonel Jessica and Lieutenant Colonel Elek.

"He was your subordinate before?" Lieutenant Colonel Elek regretted it as soon as he said this. He shook his head mockingly: "What kind of stupid question is this? Otherwise, why would he take a detour to visit you... Oh, that's right, since he is your subordinate, it makes sense to draw wherever he goes. "

"Oh?" John Jessica became slightly more interested.

Surveying and mapping is a difficult subject. Winters thinks he has not even touched the threshold and does not want to talk more.

Winters pretended to be relaxed and asked: "The well in the yard doesn't even have a fence. Do you usually fetch water by yourself?"

"There is a farmer couple on the other side of town. They come to me once a day to get me some food and drink." John Jessica explained succinctly.

The former Army Lieutenant Colonel was obviously more concerned about other things than his daily life: "The information here is not very good. Until just now, I thought you died fighting on the west bank of the River Styx. Tell me, tell me something I don't know. "

"It's a long story."

"Then say it slowly." John Jessica disagreed: "The most important thing I lack is time."

"Lieutenant Colonel, let's wait until the right time to talk."

"When is the right time?" John Jessica frowned. Although the former Army lieutenant colonel has a reputation for being straightforward, that doesn't mean he's slow-minded.

"It's not convenient for you to talk about it when there are outsiders watching?" John Jessica laughed a few times and directly issued an expulsion order to Lieutenant Colonel Elek: "My eyesight is bad, so I won't send you off."

Even though Lieutenant Colonel Elek had long heard of [One-Eyed Jessica]'s reputation as being difficult to get along with, and even though Lieutenant Colonel Elek was born with a good temper, he was still choked and couldn't get off the stage, and his face turned blue and white.

Winters had to defend his former superior: "Lieutenant Colonel Elek is not an outsider. If it hadn't been for Lieutenant Colonel Elek's help, I wouldn't have found you here."

"Oh, that's right." John Jessica responded indifferently.

According to Winters’ understanding of his former superiors: Even if John Jessica makes objective comments without emotion, others will sound like they are mocking; this is John Jessica’s talent and instinct, not targeting anyone or anyone individually. thing.

Winters nodded apologetically to Lieutenant Colonel Elek, apologizing on behalf of Lieutenant Colonel Jessica.

Lieutenant Colonel Elek took a deep breath, sighed helplessly, and said half sarcastically, half admiringly: "It seems that overseas dispatch has not changed you at all."

John Jessica snorted slightly, unmoved. He picked up the semi-finished wooden mold on the table and continued to cut.

"What are you doing?" Lieutenant Colonel Elek asked curiously.

"Earn bread," John Jessica replied coolly.

The sky was dark, and Lieutenant Colonel Elek observed for a long time before he saw that the opponent was carving chess pieces: "It's too dark in the room, so you don't get a lamp..."

Lieutenant Colonel Elek's voice stopped abruptly. Although John Jessica's knife was slow, it was extremely accurate, so precise that Elek forgot that the opponent could no longer see him.

"Why don't you get a lamp?" John Jessica's mood was so calm that it was almost cruel: "It's better to be blind and save money on lamp oil."

The wooden house became quiet, and the only sound that could be heard was the sound of wood chips and wood tires being separated.

"I still can't figure it out." Lieutenant Colonel Elek slapped his knee and couldn't help but ask: "How can it be possible not to pay you a salary? General Arpad issued a special order: For officers who retired due to injuries and died in battle in the expeditionary force, The officer's family members gave him generous support. Something must have gone wrong, it shouldn't have been like this... I'll find out when I go back."

John Jessica seemed not to hear anything, concentrating on carving the chess pieces.

Winters fiddled with the water glass without saying a word.

In the silence, Lieutenant Colonel Elek gradually came to his senses. He stood up slowly, narrowed his eyes and looked down at his contemporaries, and asked hesitantly, "Could it be that you... didn't sign the affidavit?"

John Jessica sneered disdainfully.

The truth is revealed! Signing an oath and drawing a clear line with the Zhuwangbao puppet government is a process that all officers serving in the new military government must go through.

Under the military government, the consequences of refusing to take the oath of allegiance are not just as simple as "suspension of pay".

John Jessica was not imprisoned, tried, or executed, perhaps because of the preferential treatment given to him because of his blindness.

Lieutenant Colonel Elek simply didn't know what to say: "It's just a piece of paper. Do you need to be more serious about your crime? Why bother? Alas, you are lucky if you don't get executed..."

John Jessica put down the carving knife and wooden tire in his hand, stood up as well, "looked levelly" at Lieutenant Colonel Elek, and expressed his attitude word by word: "First of all, I am loyal to the Republic of Plato, and only to the Republic. "Secondly, I do not believe that Arpad Duyomu and his leading political faction can represent the Republic of Plato."

"Can those fat-headed MPs in the Great Council of the Kings' Castle represent us?" Lieutenant Colonel Elek retorted: "Believe it or not, right now - at this very moment, those fat pigs are busy discussing how to take down Plato. Package it up and sell it to the federal provinces!”

"If you don't split Plato from within, how can you give the United Provinces an opportunity?" John Jessica's voice was cold and steady: "No matter what the reason, Arpad's behavior is rebellion."

"Obviously it was the King's Castle who betrayed us!"

This argument is meaningless because no one can convince the other party.

John Jessica picked up the carving knife again and continued to carve the chess pieces. Lieutenant Colonel Elek sat down angrily and drank the entire glass of cold well water in one go, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

There was another moment of silence.

Lieutenant Colonel Elek slapped his thigh and stared at the same man angrily: "Forget it! It's up to you. But you have to come back to Oak Forest Castle with me. I'll find a place for you to live."

Lieutenant Colonel Elek took out a handkerchief and wiped his forehead, looked around the empty room, and said bitterly: "Since you believe that the military government is a rebel party, why not let's see who can have the last laugh! However, it can't be here - living here If you destroy the place, you won’t be able to survive this winter!”

John Jessica did not appreciate the kindness of his contemporaries and comrades-in-arms. He asked tit-for-tat: "Then can you survive until next winter?"

"What do you mean?" Lieutenant Colonel Elek had a cold face.

John Jessica cleared the table with a wave of his arm and traced it with his finger dipped in the water in the cup.

The sun was about to sink below the horizon, and the rays of light hung high, but inside the wooden house it was almost impossible to see the five fingers.

John Jessica was drawing one stroke after another in the dark. He was not drawing for others, but for himself. Each stroke is extremely serious, as if the mountains and rivers are projected onto this small wooden table.

Although he couldn't see the specific lines, Winters judged from the general outline that Colonel Jessica should be drawing a map of Plato.

"New Reclamation Province, Xilin Province, Jiangbei Province..." John Jessica picked it up at random and marked the map in the dark: "Going north is the Monta Republic, and going east along the Jinliu River is the United Provinces. and Venetta.”

John Jessica's map was very large, including not only the Republic of Plato, but also the other four countries of the Alliance.

Maps that outline thousands of miles of territory within a small area and maintain a considerable degree of accuracy have probably only appeared on the emperor's desk before.

With this intangible and tangible map, Winters also took a macroscopic and intuitive look at the internal and external situations of Plato for the first time.

"The Ember River, the Ember River is the key to everything." The traces of water have dried up, but John Jessica still accurately pointed out the flowing Ember River and the rushing river that runs through the land between the two mountains: "Without a breakthrough Jinliu River, no matter how sharp General Arpad's saber is, he can only be trapped and die in the northwest corner of Jiangbei Province. Am I wrong?"

"That's right." Lieutenant Colonel Elek readily admitted.

"Then have you broken through the Jinliu River?"

"No."

"If you can't break through the Jinliu River, you can only attack eastward along the north bank of the Jinliu River." John Jessica took out the chess pieces and placed them one by one on the invisible map. There was no light in his eyes, and his body was trapped in the cell, but his mind had never been so free.

John Jessica stated sternly: "From ancient times to the present, the country of galloping horses has been [poor on the north coast and rich on the south coast]. Even if you fight all the way to the border with the United Provinces, the land you can control will never exceed Para. One-third of the map. And the best part of Plato - the towns on both sides of the Jinliu River, you can't get your hands on either. Am I wrong?"

"That's right." Lieutenant Colonel Elek nodded slowly.

"That is to say, even under the most ideal circumstances, the Kings' Castle controls twice your land and three times your population. As a professional officer, do you think you have a chance of winning?"

"Population, land, wealth...you only calculate these, but ignore the most important part." Lieutenant Colonel Elek retorted bluntly:

"Wars rely on people! One lion can subdue a hundred sheep! The Fifth Army and the Sixth Army - the most elite standing army of the Republic are all in the hands of the military government. Not to mention that most professional officers also stand with us Over here. Those stupid pigs in the King's Castle only know how to fight for power, how can they win?"

John Jessica laughed hoarsely, and Winters even heard pity in his laughter: "As long as there are enough money, weapons and people, soldiers can have as many as they want; as long as there is sufficient training, recruits can also It can be forged into an elite standing army. This is how the old marshal won the sovereignty war thirty years ago. Don't you understand this truth?"

"[Armed civilians are not the army, armed civilians are just the raw materials of the army]." Lieutenant Colonel Elek also quoted a famous saying of the old marshal: "Can an army be forged overnight? Don't forget, The King's Castle doesn't have many officers, and even fewer veterans."

"But they have one person, and that person is enough."

"who?"

"Sackler...Brigadier General." John Jessica spat out a name heavily, and he said decisively: "With more than twice the number of troops, land, and wealth, as long as Sackler's brain is OK, he will win this battle. It is impossible to lose! He will definitely turn this war into a cruel war of attrition, tightening the noose around your necks little by little until you are finally strangled. He will win...but Plato will lose."

Lieutenant Colonel Elek was startled for a moment, then suddenly burst into uncontrollable laughter. He was laughing so hard that he was out of breath, and his tears and snot continued to flow out.

Even John Jessica, who was always calm, felt baffled by the other party's sudden laughter.

John Jessica gradually changed from surprised and puzzled to serious: "Why are you laughing?"

"What are you laughing at? I'm laughing at you because you only know how to settle military accounts, not political accounts. This is your problem and Sackler's problem." It took a lot of effort for Lieutenant Colonel Elek to stop his smile, and he wiped From the corner of his eyes, he cruelly told the truth: "Sekler is dead."

The water glass landed on the ground, and because it was made of wood, it bounced a few times.

John Jessica's breathing became heavier, and after a while, he finally spoke with difficulty: "How did you die?"

Winters coughed lightly: "It's a long story."

"Who knows how he died? We don't know either, but he is indeed dead anyway." Lieutenant Colonel Elek said nonchalantly:

"Perhaps he died of a political conspiracy--after usurping the throne of the Grand Chancellor, Magnus' next step is to control the army, and he must regard Szekler as a thorn in his side and a thorn in his flesh; or he may have died of an assassination--after all, he betrayed the Republic. All soldiers; he might have died of illness, who knows? Anyway, he is dead, there is no doubt about it. As for how he died, we don't care."

"When did you die?"

"It's been a while."

John Jessica spent a long time digesting this bolt from the blue. He sat motionless, as if mourning Sackler.

After a while, John Jessica raised his head and said a little tiredly: "Please go, I have learned enough things today. I won't send you off."

Lieutenant Colonel Elek stood up and sighed: "I know that your relationship with Sackler is unusual... Why don't you come back to Oak Forest Castle with me? As long as there is a roof over my head, you will definitely be able to live there." Place. You really can’t spend the winter here—you can’t even light a fire! If you’re reluctant to leave your hometown, I’ll send you back when spring comes, okay?”

John Jessica shook his head, as if repeating: "Let's go, leave, let me stay by myself for a while."

Lieutenant Colonel Elek put on his hat helplessly and called to Winters: "Then let's go and come back to visit tomorrow."

Winters made no move.

"What's wrong?" Lieutenant Colonel Elek asked.

During the heated debate between Lieutenant Colonel Jessica and Lieutenant Colonel Elek, Winters did not say a word. He stared at the invisible map on the square table for a long time, like a stone sculpture.

Jiangbei Province, where the Plato military government is located, is wrapped in the Plato Republic, the Monta Republic and the Great Wasteland. It is besieged internally and externally, and is surrounded by enemies on all sides. It seems to be a dead end.

However, the dead end is not without opportunities, and the Jinliu River defense line is not impregnable. The new reclamation province across the river from the western section of Jiangbei Province is likely to be the key to turning things around.

If we go upstream and circumvent the new land province to cross the Jinliu River, then the defense lines along the river of the kings' forts will be ineffective, and the military government's sword can penetrate directly into the heart of Red Rose.

The "political accounts" and "military accounts" mentioned by Lieutenant Colonel Elek gave Winters a wake-up call.

The Civil War in Plato was no longer just a military struggle, and it was not just the Red Rose and Blue Rose factions participating in the gladiatorial battle.

The United Provinces are ready to make a move, and Veneta is on the verge of making a move. The attitudes of Monta and Varn are ambiguous, and even the empire on the other side of the Shade Mountains may be watching with covetous eyes.

Simply using military as the starting point is too simple.

But in the final analysis, the outcome still has to be decided by a battle of arms on the battlefield.

Winters' thoughts returned to his body. He looked at Lieutenant Colonel Jessica and said sincerely: "Before I came to visit you... I actually thought that if you are not doing well, I will pick you up."

"Pick me up?" John Jessica laughed dumbly: "Where? To Veneta?"

"Not to Veneta - of course, if you want to go to Veneta, we can arrange it for you."

"I finally got home, and I don't want to leave again."

"How about going to Xincheng Di? Xin Xin Di Province, Tiefeng County." Winters paused for a moment and added: "My place."

John Jessica chewed the word "my place" and suddenly sneered: "Your place?"

"That's not quite an accurate description, but it's close."

John Jessica's expression became serious and veins appeared on his hands.

He straightened his body, stared at Winters with his dark eye sockets, and uttered the words decisively, word by word: "Me! No! Go!"

The small wooden house fell into silence again, this time quieter than the previous times. The sounds of breathing and heartbeat were clearly audible, and the wind whistled across the roof.

Winters held the hand of his old superior: "I can't go."

[The map... is being drawn]

[Enter the backend and saw the following content: "Updated for two days this month, with a cumulative update of 15,000 words", I was so ashamed that I wanted to hit the wall]

[Donkey Sauce failed to break the millstone, but Donkey Sauce was broken by the millstone]