Without any warning, Machi Khan's 200,000-strong army, led by two famous generals, launched a surprise attack on the neighboring countries with lightning speed. In just one week, the two neighboring countries were included in his territory. The surrounding big countries didn't even have time to react. They could only watch the army of Mach Khan wreaking havoc on the lands of neighboring countries.
On October 26, Nottingham, the Foreign Minister of the Macchi Khanate, arrived in Zhongzhou, the capital of the Tanghe Empire. He met with the Imperial Foreign Minister Salidon and briefed him on the basic situation of the military actions taken by the Macchi Khanate against its southwestern neighbors and discussed the military actions. The reason was explained, hoping to get the understanding and support of the Tanghe Empire.
The empire had only just learned of the large-scale military actions taken by the Macchi Khanate against neighboring countries, and was not clear about the specific situation. On the one hand, Salidan expressed strong indignation at the Macchi Khanate's blatant defiance of the existence of the empire, and on the other hand, he was also very angry with the Macchi Khanate. The khanate strongly protested against this behavior of ignoring international conventions, trampling on relevant agreements between sovereign states, and using despicable means to carry out sneak attacks, and demanded that the khanate immediately stop military aggression, immediately return to the original borders of each country, and use political and diplomatic means to means to resolve disputes between the two countries. Nottingham said it was unacceptable and sincerely expressed its unwillingness to affect the healthy development of relations between the two countries. Salidon said that the matter was serious and could only be confirmed after reporting to His Majesty the Emperor, and the two parted on bad terms.
On October 27, the Kingdom of Milan, the countries of the Nanyang Alliance, the Grand Duchy of Mahad, and the Principality of Andako all lodged the strongest protests through their diplomatic departments to the envoys of the Macchi Khanate in their own countries, demanding that the Macchi Khanate immediately cease military operations. , adopt other means to resolve conflicts between countries. King Louis XI of the Kingdom of Milan even issued a national mobilization order, declaring a national state of emergency, recruiting reservists to join the army, and dispatched the Royal First Cavalry Infantry Mixed Corps to quickly move to the border with the Macchi Khanate, and the Royal Second The infantry regiment also quickly entered a state of war preparation and assembled towards the capital. At the same time, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Milan made an emergency visit to the Tanghe Empire to discuss the worsening severe situation in the southern part of the Eastern Continent.
The small neighboring countries to the west of the Macchi Khanate were even more frightened. They did not dare to openly protest to the Macchi Khanate for fear of angering the Macchi Khanate and drawing the war to their own countries, so they sent envoys to visit Tanghe one after another. The empire, as well as Sanjiang County and Tiannan County, on the one hand hope to seek the empire's intervention through diplomatic means to stop the aggression and expansion of the Macchi Khanate, on the other hand they also hope to obtain help from other local forces with strong military strength adjacent to themselves.
On October 28, the Central Committee of the Tanghe Empire held an emergency meeting to discuss the invasion of Ankun City-State and the Kingdom of Jemelo by the neighboring Macqi Khanate.
"At present, Lopez, the lord of Ankun City, has surrendered, and the Machi Khan army has also occupied all the territory of the Kingdom of Jemelo except the capital Jemei City, and is launching an attack on Jemei City. It is estimated that Jemei City Meicheng can't support it for much longer." Ma Zhengfeng, director of the Intelligence Bureau of the General Administration of Military Affairs, seemed a little lacking in confidence and his voice was a little hoarse.
"Why is our intelligence service so slow? The Macchi Khans carried out such a large-scale military operation and we were not aware of it?! What on earth did the Imperial Intelligence Service and the Military Intelligence Service do? Every year you clamor for insufficient funds and personnel Scarcity, but look for yourselves, what work have you done? Even I blush for you!" Situ Mingyue, who is sitting here, is obviously very angry about this matter. Although the military operations of the Macchi Khanate are against other countries, as a It is indeed unreasonable that such an important country in the Eastern Continent did not know about such a big move in advance.
Everyone in His Highness was speechless, Imperial Intelligence Minister Tie Neng lowered his head, and Military Affairs Minister He Zhiqiu also felt his face burning and uncomfortable.
The Imperial Intelligence Department is divided into two systems, which belong to the Imperial Intelligence General Administration and the Military Affairs Administration. The Imperial Intelligence Service is responsible for the collection and analysis of political, economic, diplomatic, military, ethnic, religious, cultural and other information on various countries in the continent, while the Military Intelligence Bureau is mainly responsible for the collection and analysis of intelligence on various political affairs in the mainland, focusing on It is military information about countries in the Eastern Continent that have close relations with the Empire and that endangers the security of the Empire.
Due to the proactive measures taken by the Mach Khanate to ease relations with the empire in the early stage, there was a short honeymoon period in the relationship between the two countries. In addition, a large number of elite troops of the Mach Khan that were originally stationed at the border with the empire were withdrawn, leaving only The small number of regular troops stationed has greatly reduced the military pressure on the empire in the south. However, the northern and western parts of the empire and the two major vassal towns in the country have acted abnormally, attracting a lot of energy from the imperial intelligence department. In addition, the Macchi Khanate has adopted domestic measures. Strict confidentiality measures, and the use of diplomatic means as a cover before the war, distracted the vigilance and attention of all countries, and finally succeeded in hiding it from the intelligence organizations of surrounding countries.
"Huh? Why are you all mute? Aren't you always eloquent?" Situ Mingyue continued to ridicule His Highness's ministers in a contemptuous tone.
Seeing that the conversation had reached this point, He Zhiqiu really couldn't sit still. He bit the bullet and went out to report: "Your Majesty, I have an unshirkable responsibility for this matter. Please punish me."
Seeing He Zhiqiudu come out to plead guilty, Minister of Intelligence Tie Neng also quickly came out to ask His Majesty the Emperor to punish him. Situ Mingyue took a deep breath and slowly sat back on the throne. "We will wait for your punishment later. Let's first talk about how to deal with the current severe situation."
Seeing that His Majesty the Emperor's tone gradually softened, His Highness's ministers secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Ning Aiqing, please tell me your opinion first." Situ Mingyue turned her attention to Ning Yuanping, the Imperial Deputy Minister of Administration who was the first on the left in the palace. He now presides over the work of the Imperial Administration and can be said to be the No. 1 imperial civil servant. one person.
"Reporting to your Majesty, in my humble opinion, this military action of the Machikhans should have been planned for a long time. They deliberately made good friends with our country in the early stage, vigorously improved relations with our country, and at the same time transferred their military power to other areas. This should be a strategic This major adjustment in direction is by no means a sudden whim. I judge that they will continue to use troops against the surrounding small city-states. This is not only a challenge to our country's authority, but also the biggest disaster that will cause the Eastern Continent to fall into war. I believe that effective measures must be taken to stop them. Otherwise, our country's prestige will be greatly damaged by such a bold action, and it will also encourage the arrogance of the Machihan people." Ning Yuanping's words immediately won the approval of most of the ministers present, and they all nodded in support. Ning Yuanping’s opinion.
Situ Mingyue also nodded, "Lu Aiqing, tell me what you think."
"My views are similar to Lord Ning's. The Machi Khans had made careful preparations for this military operation in advance. Not only did they hide this from the target country, but also the surrounding countries, including our country, were kept in the dark. Their confidentiality The degree of rigor can be seen from this. Although Ankun City is small in area, it is rich in copper resources. The occupation of this place by the Machihan people will greatly promote their industrial development and provide immeasurable support to their national finances. Most of the territory of the Jemelo Kingdom belongs to plains, and the territory is flat. It is not only suitable for the cavalry operations of the Machikhan people, but the most important thing is that it is an important grain-producing area in the southern part of the Eastern Continent. Everyone knows that although the Machikhan people are nomadic people However, a considerable number of its people have gradually adapted to farming life. The country has a considerable demand for food. The central part of its territory is desert, and the desert is surrounded by grasslands and forests. Only the north is close to our country and their eastern and southern border areas. Only there is land suitable for farming. In the past ten years, their population has increased rapidly and their economy has developed rapidly. However, the food problem has never been solved. They have to import a large amount of food from my country and other surrounding countries every year. This is why Machi Khan originally This is the main reason why the country has always been eyeing Wuhu County in our country."
After a pause, he continued to express his opinion: "Importing food not only costs a lot of money, but is also easy to be manipulated by others. Bi Xili and Lei Juetian are both forward-thinking people and must have seen this. To solve this problem The only way to solve the problem is to think of another way. Among the neighboring countries that are rich in food, apart from our country and the Kingdom of Milan, there is only the Kingdom of Gemelo. Needless to say our country, although they are developing rapidly, they are far from enough to compete with our country; the strength of the Kingdom of Milan Although it is not as good as them, it should not be underestimated, not to mention that the Kingdom of Milan has a close relationship with our country. If we use troops against Milan, our country will never sit idly by and do nothing, so the only target is the Kingdom of Gemelo. And our country is different from the Kingdom of Gemelo. The border is bordering and the relationship is average. As long as special measures are taken to solve it quickly and create a fait accompli, the Machi Khans probably think that we will not go to war over this, and other countries cannot pose a threat to the Machi Khans at all."
Finally, Lu Wenfu sighed and said: "I believe that based on the current actual situation in our country, we should adopt various ways and means to negotiate with the Machikhans and force them to withdraw." These last few words, Lu Wenfu himself I feel that it is too weak, but the actual situation of the empire is there. Although the southern military region has more than 200,000 troops, it is not prepared for war at all. What's more, there is a serious enemy in the empire, the Lin family of Sanjiang County, and the Tiannanlang family. The ulterior motives are unpredictable, and the Machikhans have an army of 400,000. In addition to the 200,000 troops on the expedition, there are also 200,000 troops stationed including 100,000 elite Royal Guards. Once provoked, The consequences of war are really unpredictable.
Situ Mingyue also heard the implication of Lu Wenfu. As the emperor of the empire, he did not understand the current situation of his country. If he wanted to use force to solve the problem or threaten the Machi Khans to withdraw, it would be difficult to achieve their goals. The Machi Khans deliberately took these measures. Various methods are used to achieve the goal of occupying Ankun City and the Kingdom of Jemelo. Now it is a done deal. It is indeed difficult to get them to spit out the fat in their mouths. But if the empire ignores this matter, it is equivalent to giving the green light to the aggression of the Machikhans. Then, the Machikhans are likely to become more aggressive, and neighboring countries will suffer their aggression, and the empire is The prestige of this region will no longer exist, and this is something the empire will never tolerate.
"He Aiqing, what do you think we should do now?" Situ Mingyue's eyes finally fell on He Zhiqiu. Although there were omissions in the military intelligence bureau this time, He Zhiqiu had certain leadership responsibilities, but he was responsible for the operation of the entire imperial army. With such a heavy responsibility, it is impossible to cover every detail, and it is impossible to talk about specific responsibilities, not to mention that there are more important things that need to be solved now.
In fact, when His Majesty the Emperor asked Ning Yuanping, He Zhiqiu was already thinking about how to deal with this sudden change in the situation. It would definitely be quite difficult to take military action, but if it was just to adopt other means such as diplomacy and economics, let alone let It is difficult to say whether the Machi Khans' withdrawal of troops will prevent the Machi Khans from continuing to use troops against neighboring countries. This is indeed somewhat difficult to do.
Seeing that His Majesty the Emperor had asked him, He Zhiqiu hurriedly stepped out and said, "Reporting to Your Majesty, I agree very much with the opinions of Master Ning and Master Lu. At present, the Machihan army has basically occupied Ankun City and Jiemeluo. For most of the kingdom's territory, I believe that the fall of Jemei City will happen sooner or later. We still don't know where their goal is. And we are not ready in all aspects, so we need a period of buffering. The diplomatic mission of the Machikhans has arrived in Zhongzhou and paid a visit to our diplomatic department, which shows that they still have concerns about our country. Therefore, I suggest that the following measures can be taken. First, the diplomatic department immediately lodges a protest and issues an ultimatum. Ask them to immediately stop military operations; second, the Fifth and Sixth Legions of the Southern Military District immediately enter a state of emergency, step up military preparations, and exert pressure on the Machi Khans; third, they can cooperate with the Kingdom of Milan, the Nanyang Alliance, and the Grand Duchy of Mahad When contacted, ask them to cooperate in military preparations. I believe they are not willing to see such a big change in the political structure of the region. Fourthly, Sanjiang County and Tiannan County can be ordered to also carry out military mobilization to cooperate with the central government of the empire on Ma The Qi Khans exert pressure; fifthly, order all customs offices to immediately stop exporting food, medicine, cloth, weapons, armor and other military strategic materials to the Maji Khans. In addition, His Majesty can also send special envoys to visit the Maji Khanate to communicate with the Maji Khans. Bi Xili and Lei Juetian will have detailed discussions." He Zhiqiu finished in one breath and told everything about his response plan.
He Zhiqiu's plan immediately won the unanimous support of almost all the ministers present. Situ Mingyue also nodded with satisfaction, "Very good, He Aiqing, your plan is very practical. I agree, and everything will be handled according to your opinion." , all departments immediately arrange deployment without any mistakes. In addition, Jing Zezhong (Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Empire) will serve as my special envoy and immediately visit Machi Khan."
Although the meeting was over, He Zhiqiu did not let go of the stone in his heart. Lei Juetian was not a mediocre person. He must have considered all aspects before taking action. Since he dared to implement it, it means that he must have thought about how to deal with the possible consequences. We can only take one step at a time.
"Princess Sophia, please calm down. His Majesty the King has gone. I hope you can express your condolences and stop by." In a magnificent mansion in the center of Siam City, the capital of Siam Kingdom of the Nanyang Alliance, this is the villa of Xihe, a famous member of Siam Kong Kingdom. , the speaker was a well-dressed young man, and a middle-aged gentleman with extraordinary bearing stood beside him, with a look of regret on his face looking at the chestnut-haired girl sitting on an exquisite rattan craftsman chair and crying sadly.