On January 25, the first year of the Holy Light Calendar 600, the 72,000-strong First Division and Second Division of the Panshi Corps under the Overseas Autonomous Territory Military Region arrived at Bailu City and were warmly welcomed by the temporary royal court. However, although the welcoming atmosphere was warm, the officers and soldiers of the Rock Legion who got off the ship were immediately criticized by the senior officers sent by the Kingdom's Army Department to welcome them. The reason is simple, because the new military uniforms worn by the soldiers of the Rock Legion are not the traditional bright red of the Kingdom of Overas...
"The color of this military uniform is really ugly, it looks like shit..."
"Hey, look, they have an iron pot on their head, it really looks like a turtle shell..."
"Why do I think the style of this military uniform is so beautiful?"
"Although the colors and styles of the military uniforms are weird, these soldiers look very capable..."
The lively crowd watched and commented on the soldiers who had disembarked from the ocean transport ship and gathered in formation. Indeed, most people who are accustomed to seeing the color of red military uniforms always feel that the new brown-gray military uniforms of the Rock Legion are very rustic and inconspicuous. Several senior officers of the Kingdom's Army Department directly questioned General Bolognik and General Beach Kerin who had just disembarked from the ship.
"General, I'm very curious as to why the colors and styles of the military uniforms of your overseas dominion regiments are different from those of our kingdom. Are you preparing to stand out on your own, or are you trying to separate from the kingdom and stand on your own?"
General Bolognik smiled gently: "The overseas autonomous territory is the autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Overas. It is autonomy, not self-reliance. We still have to serve the kingdom, pay taxes, and fight the enemy together. The legions under the autonomous military region are just It belongs to the local garrison armed forces and can decide the color and style of military uniforms on its own.
In fact, the real reason is very simple. The Kingdom has been unable to support overseas autonomous territories for many years, so we have been short of bright red military uniform fabrics. The colonial wars brought us countless casualties, forcing us to consider alternatives to bright red military uniforms when rebuilding our legions. In the end, we could only choose brown gray, the cheapest and most common fabric, to make military uniforms. "
"Uh..." The senior officers were immediately speechless. General Bolognik admitted that the overseas autonomous territories did not have the fabric to make the red military uniforms, so he had no choice but to use this ugly brown-gray fabric instead. This reason is very good. You can't let others go into battle naked without the red uniforms. Why has the kingdom not supported the overseas autonomous territories with military supplies for so many years
"Haha, it's okay. The Rock Legion and the Thunder Legion are local garrison corps of overseas autonomous territories. They have the right to customize the color and style of their military uniforms. There is no need to follow the rules and regulations of the regular legions of the Kingdom..." Several people came next to them. The senior officials who attended the welcome ceremony quickly came to smooth things over, and finally the senior officers of the Army Department were allowed to step down.
The welcome ceremony was carried out in a very orderly and measured manner, and the atmosphere was warm. Except for the onlookers from the Kingdom who expressed their welcome excitedly, the senior officers from both sides who participated in the ceremony had tense faces and did not talk to each other much. At most, they just He looked at the other person politely and awkwardly. For the officers of the Rock Legion, they looked down on these friendly forces who only wanted to defeat the enemy and asked for help, and regarded themselves as superior to others. However, the senior officers of the Kingdom's Army Department felt that the officers of the Rock Legion were arrogant and looked at them with contempt, which was simply unreasonable.
The welcome ceremony ended quickly. The generals from both sides took the stage and casually praised each other, reiterated their confidence in the final victory of this resistance war, strengthened the belief that our army will win, and boosted morale. It's almost over. The soldiers of the Rock Legion who disembarked went to the campsite that had been prepared long ago. They would rest here for a short five or six days and resume the hard work of the sea voyage in the second half of the month before setting off for the front line.
General Bolognik and General Buechlin went to the temporary residence where Frederick I stayed to see His Majesty the next morning, and then quarreled with the Kingdom's Minister of War at a military meeting chaired by His Majesty. The reason was that the Kingdom's Minister of Army suggested that the Rock Legion be sent to the second line of defense to strengthen the garrison there.
However, Bolognik rejected this request. He requested to go to Ambriz County to set up defenses and reset and build a new defensive front to prevent the second defensive front from collapsing again after encountering the enemy's superior force attack and causing the enemy to advance straight in. At the same time, he wondered why he did not abandon the five local counties that had been beaten to pieces and insisted on using weak troops to fight the enemy to the death.
As a result, General Bolognik was collectively attacked by the old aristocratic families in the royal court. They believed that not even an inch of the kingdom's land could be easily given up, and the Rock Legion went to Ambriz County to set up defenses because they were afraid of death and wanted to hide behind the second line of defense and watch the front line. The soldiers fought for their lives and had ulterior motives...
General Beach Green joined the debate. He only pointed out one fact. If all the kingdom's current troops were buried on the second line of defense for the sake of these kingdoms' lands, then the kingdom would no longer have any hope of saving the defeat. The Rock Legion deployed its defenses in Ambriz County to give the King's team on the second line of defense a chance to evacuate. After the defense line is deployed, the king's team on the front line can retreat to the rear to rest and reorganize, and the Rock Legion will face the attacks of all the legions of the Eastern Region National Alliance alone...
Perhaps it was General Bichklin's big words that shocked the noble officials at the royal court. Although they doubted the combat effectiveness of the Rock Legion, they were unwilling to give up this opportunity to cause the Rock Legion to suffer a big loss. After private discussions, they agreed to the proposal of General Bolognik and General Beachlin, allowing the Rock Army to go to Ambriz County to deploy defenses, and mobilized the people to help the Rock Army set up and build various defensive positions. It’s just that they asked General Bolognik and General Bichklin to make a guarantee that if the Rock Army could not hold on to Ambriz County, the Royal Court would deprive the Overseas Dominion Military District of its independent combat rights and command rights...
The ocean-going cruise fleet of the overseas dominions parked in White Deer City for five days, finally unloaded all the supplies, and then immediately set sail back to the Nubicia continent. Next, the three divisions of the Thunder Legion, with 120,000 men, boarded ships and headed to Florik Harbor in the Principality of Rimodra to implement the crescent hook plan and deal a fatal blow to the Alliance of Nations in the Eastern Region. There is still one and a half months left for the round trip...
On February 16, 600, the first year of the Holy Light Calendar, soldiers from three divisions of the Thunder Legion boarded a ship at the Port of Corbichus in Tilsim State, and were crowded with members of the Dominion Parliament and military families who came to see them off. After arriving at the pier, he waved a yellow handkerchief to see off the soldiers who were going on an expedition. The pier is crowded with people, and several bands are playing cheerful and melodious music. There is a roar of people and gongs and drums.
"It's too noisy." Claude said. Opposite him was General Skree, who was staying behind. Next to him were his mother, Kefni, their two sons, and the maid holding their one-year-old daughter.
"The morale of the soldiers is very high. Listen to what they are shouting. Don't worry, parents, I will bring you a daughter-in-law..." General Skerry laughed: "Come on. The joke about going on a blind date has been circulated in the military. Many officers and soldiers indeed went to war with the idea of finding a wife for themselves. You should pay attention to this, so as not to capsize in the gutter. At the same time, Emphasize discipline and don’t take things too far.”
Claude smiled: "I'll pay attention, I'll leave this to you. No more words, it's time for me to get on the boat..."
After kissing his mother, wife, and three children goodbye, Claude was the last one to get on the boat. There was a trumpeter standing on the bow of more than two hundred ocean-going transport ships. They blew the horn together. The sound of the horn echoed in the harbor, and each sea-going ship pulled anchor and set sail. The more than 20 armored ships that guarded the fleet also started their steam engines. Black smoke came out of their chimneys, and a low "rumbling" sound sounded, and they began to sail across the waves on the sea.
Claude was naturally on board the new flagship "Bald Eagle" cruiser of the Ironclad Fleet. This was the second improved ironclad cruiser produced by the overseas dominions. After the sea trial was successfully accepted, it was immediately taken over by Fleet Admiral Mourier. The German general designated it as his own ship and the new flagship of the armored fleet. Compared with the first iron-clad cruiser "Golden Claw Sea Eagle", the "Bald Eagle" cruiser is more habitable. At least the starting noise of the marine steam engine in the bottom tank is not that loud.
Fourteen days later, in the stormy sea, it was only a day and a half's voyage from Bailu City.
"Should our fleet dock at White Deer City to let the soldiers rest for a few days?" Murray Ed asked Claude who was looking at the sea view.
"That's not necessary." Claude shook his head: "If we dock in White Deer City, then when we set sail again, our whereabouts may be leaked. Just turn here and hold on for more than ten days. , we will arrive at our destination, the port of Florik, and then rest and recuperate. Now the soldiers on every ship are undergoing training. They must not be soft-footed shrimps. Once they land, their feet will be weak and unable to stand. Our trip this time The operation is a quick one. Once ashore, we will continue to fight until the crescent hook plan is completed... "
Murray Ed let out a long sigh: "I'm starting to regret now, should I not be in charge of this ocean cruising fleet? As a soldier, destroying the enemy's country and capturing the enemy's royal city is a lifelong honor. But I am in the navy now, I feel a little regretful that I can't follow my boss to fight on land. These two boys, Belklin and Diaverde, have been showing off in front of me these days. Sometimes I really want to beat them up. What are you doing?"
Claude laughed loudly: "Sacking cities and destroying enemy countries is indeed the glory of the army, but being powerful and invincible is the glory of the navy. This crescent hook plan, you have a heavy burden, not only to escort When we reach our destination, we must also destroy the Sea King Fleet of the Kingdom of Hicks, blockade the North Gulf of the Principality of Karrnath, annihilate the cruising squadrons of the Kingdom of Nasseri and the Kingdom of Karrnath, and capture the enemy's ocean-going transport ships. .. ...
To be honest, I have been worried that the number of battleships in the Iron Armored Fleet is too small. There are only twenty-two ships now, which is less than the number of the enemy's cruising squadron. The Xianghai King Fleet has more than a hundred sailing battleships. Although I believe that the armored fleet will win, I don't want too many battle losses to affect the subsequent escort plan. You should know that the subsequent escort plan is the key to the entire operation. Once our Thunder Legion runs out of ammunition supplies, it will be in trouble... "
"Don't worry, boss." Murray Ed said confidently: "Didn't we encounter pirates when we escorted a transport fleet to the west coast at the end of last year? As a result, the two armored destroyers we escorted attacked and sank the pirates. Seven warships captured fifteen ocean-going ships. The Bordo pirate gang, which was well-known in the waters of the Nubari Islands, was completely wiped out. The heinous pirate leaders had been hanged on the dock of Vibato Port. The remaining four to five hundred pirates were also escorted to the Rocky Mountain State to mine.
Although the Hicks Kingdom's Sea King fleet has many battleships, they are all old sailing battleships. And we are now equipped with white phosphorus artillery shells. As long as one shot is hit, they will not be able to put out the fire, and they will have no way to escape. They can only watch the battleship burn into a torch. And we are all iron-clad warships, and the solid iron projectiles fired by their old-fashioned naval guns are simply tickling us. Don’t worry, boss, we will definitely send the Hicks Kingdom’s Sea King fleet to the bottom of the sea. Even if we miss, we can definitely knock their warships to the bottom of the sea..."
What Muired said was correct, just like the two armored destroyers that encountered the Bordo Pirates at the end of last year. They were hit by countless solid cannonballs from the pirate ship, and only had nearly a hundred small holes on the ship's board. Of the seven pirate ships they sunk, only three were actually sunk by artillery, and the remaining four were hit by their sharp collision angles and hit the bottom of the sea.
Therefore, Muriel was very confident and did not think that the more than 100 sail warships of the Sea King Fleet could pose any threat to the Ironclad Fleet. In the past two years, the Port of Patres in the Overseas Autonomous Territory has built a total of four batches of armored warships, each batch of four to six ships. It already has 14 armored destroyers, two armored cruisers and six armored armed transport ships. Each batch All have been improved, and by the time the last batch of armored destroyers were produced, they could be truly finalized.
On March 14, Year 600 of the Holy Light Calendar, two hundred and forty-eight ocean-going transport ships escorted by the ocean-going cruise fleet and the iron-clad fleet arrived in the outer waters of Florik Harbor in the Principality of Rimodra. The armored warships seized all fishing boats and passing cargo ships within the sea area. Then the disguised Wolf Fang Brigade, led by Major Blovik, took these fishing boats and cargo ships and sneaked into the harbor in the middle of the night, quietly controlling The Xinying Communications Office, the City Lord's Mansion, the local garrison station, the patrol department, the city gate and the checkpoint outside the city.
With torches waved at the docks, the massive landing began. When the sky turned pale and dawn arrived, the residents of Florik Harbor City discovered that the entire city had been unknowingly occupied by the enemy. Even if anyone wanted to go out and deliver messages, they could no longer do so.
"I will seal the city for three days to prevent the news of our occupation of Florik Harbor from spreading." Claude held an emergency meeting: "But I will only give you one day to rest. Belklin will be the first to attack. Main force, you lead the first division to attack the Royal City of Polyvisia in the Kingdom of Nasseri. Don’t use the banner of our kingdom, just use the banner of the overseas autonomous territory. Apart from collecting supplies along the way, don’t tell others your number and destination. Everything. They all said it was a secret operation, leaving the enemy confused..."
The reason why Claude said this is that after occupying Florik Harbor, residents in the city often mistook the Thunder Legion for the newly formed troops of the Eastern Region National Alliance. Because of the brown-gray military uniforms and steel helmets worn by the Thunder Legion soldiers, no one ever believed that they were the army of their enemy, the Kingdom of Ovelas.
Even if some soldiers told the residents of the city that they were from King Ovelas and they came to regain the lost territory this time. But the city residents still thought it was a joke. As we all know, the soldiers of the Kingdom of Overas always wear military uniforms with red tops and black trousers, red straight military caps, black leather boots and black belts. It is clear at a glance that they are definitely not this brown-gray military uniform. So the residents of these cities happily said, I understand, we all understand, are you doing this to keep it secret...
When McJack told Claude the reaction of these city residents as a joke, Claude fell into deep thought, and then ordered to collect and forge official documents and certificates from the Eastern Region National Alliance, pretending to be the enemy's newly formed legion to reinforce the front line. Then he gave these forged documents to Belklin and asked him to lead the first division to quickly attack the Royal City of Polyvisia in the Kingdom of Nasseri. The forged documents allowed him to collect supplies such as grain, grass and horse materials from the towns along the way.
"You don't need to worry about the towns you left behind and the capital of the Principality of Sidings, Fort Afina. These can be left to our follow-up troops to take care of. Your only purpose is the Royal City of Polyvisia, and use the best Arrive as quickly as possible, occupy the royal city, defend the royal city, and wait for our arrival. Do you understand?" Claude looked at Belklin and asked.
"Understood, General, I will fulfill my mission." Belklin stood up and saluted.
"McJack, your mission is to lead the third division to sweep across the territory of the former Eskiline Principality and retake the enclave occupied by the Hicks Kingdom. The focus is to maintain the military industry in the three southern counties. , and integrate it as soon as possible. Establish a manufacturing workshop that can produce the artillery shells and bullets we need. If the ammunition transportation and supplies at sea are interrupted, we will need to rely on the ammunition produced here to fight... "
McJack stood up: "General, promise to complete the mission."
"Colonel Anders." Claude looked at his former adjutant again: "Your 1304th Regiment is stationed here to maintain order here and wait for the ocean-going fleet to arrive again to deliver ammunition and supplies to us. .Do you understand your responsibilities?”
"Yes, General, the city is as long as the people are, and I will never let the port of Florik be lost in my hands," Colonel Anders stood up and saluted, shouting loudly.
"Okay, let's get over with everyone and make preparations for the war. We will set off immediately in three days." Claude said.