…
Roland walked into the ruined castle. Peiro and Earl Hermon were already on one knee in the hall to welcome their arrival.
All the corpses on the ground had been removed, but the smell of blood still lingered. Broken furnishings and broken weapons could be seen everywhere. He could almost imagine the scene where the two sides fought repeatedly here during the battle for the castle.
"Get up," Roland walked up to him, bent down and took his arm.
"Yes," Pei Luo's voice was a little choked, "Your Highness, you are finally here."
"You have done a good job," he said solemnly. "The four major families will pay their due price for this, and the murderer will surely be brought to justice."
"I failed to keep Longsong Fortress for you..."
"You've done your best, it's not your fault," Roland sighed. Pei Luo is not a manager who can conquer and fight well. It can be seen from the previous light cavalry capture of the city and this noble rebellion. He is good at managing territories, proficient in trade, and good at seizing opportunities, but he is not a strategist, right Fighting and intrigue are not good. This time, if the Second Army hadn't been stationed in the castle according to emergency measures, I'm afraid he wouldn't be able to hold on for two days.
But that doesn't mean Peiro Hermon is not a good manager. If he is not good at fighting, he should give him a territory where he does not need to fight. Compared with talents who can fight, Roland prefers operators with businessman's mind.
"I believe there must be an incentive for this riot," he looked around at everyone present. "This is a complete conspiracy. The enemy is trying to subvert the order of the Western Region and seek interests that do not belong to them!"
The scene fell silent, and both the soldiers of the First Army armed with guns and the wounded knights behind Peiro all looked at His Royal Highness with burning eyes.
"For this reason, they committed serious crimes, murdered nobles, and killed the people. After the first war today, I don't know how many people will lose their families and how many houses will be looted. But in the end, their conspiracy failed. Your unyielding resistance prevented the fortress from falling into a greater tragedy, your performance is heroic, and your will is commendable!"
The knights unwittingly raised their chests a little higher.
"But the battle is not over yet, these rebels are fleeing in a panic, and the next moment is our revenge! I swear, no matter where the enemy hides, there will be no escape from the judgment that will come, no matter in the territory of the four major families... It's still in the capital!" Roland paused and said decisively, "And the culprit who caused the rebellion will definitely be punished! Your blood... will not be shed in vain!"
"Long live Your Highness!" Peiro and Earl Hermon knelt down again.
"Long live your highness, long live!" followed by the surviving knights and soldiers of the Second Army.
Soon everyone knelt down on one knee, stood up straight, put their right hands on their chests, and chanted a slogan in unison.
"His Royal Highness Roland, long live!"
…
After appeasing the people present, Roland recruited Peiro, Vanna, Brian, and Iron Axe to the study on the third floor of the castle. This was the only place that had not been invaded, and all the furnishings were basically intact. He knew that he would probably spend the next few days here.
The first was to understand the battle situation in the city. He looked at Iron Axe, who immediately went out and reported: "The north gate and east gate occupied by the four major families have been recaptured by the witch, and now the first army is under the guidance of Miss Sylvie. Clear up the rebels in the city, and it should be able to restore order in the city by tomorrow morning."
"What about casualties?"
"Six people have been injured so far, all from the Rifle Battalion, but they have been treated by Miss Nana."
"What about the Second Army? Are there statistics?"
"Not yet... But based on the information I have learned so far, the casualties are relatively heavy," Brian hesitated. "The two teams that went to support the city wall were defeated and have not been gathered up yet. Among the fifty people stationed at the castle, some Eleven people were killed, and almost none of the soldiers patrolling the city walls survived."
Roland nodded. The fact that the hundred or so people could last for two days was also due to the low intensity of war in this era, especially when the enemy lacked effective offensive weapons, the defending side often had a greater advantage. If the other party hadn't also used firearms, relying on the flesh and blood of mercenaries and personal guards, I'm afraid it would be difficult to break through the lord's castle - at the beginning of the design, this building fully took into account the prevention of enemy attacks.
Thinking of this, he instructed Iron Axe, "Go and show me some firearms used by the rebels."
Roland was quite concerned about the new hot weapons in this era. Although he knew that this day would come sooner or later since the birth of Snow Powder, the speed of research and development of Tifeco really surprised him.
The iron axe quickly executed the order, and after half an hour, several long-barreled weapons of different lengths and shapes were moved into the study by the soldiers.
After seeing the real thing, Roland quickly understood why the other party could create these weapons in such a short time.
These long tubes cannot be called muskets in a sense, they have no trigger, no firing mechanism, just a piece of metal tube with holes at both ends. One end is deep, used for filling gunpowder and projectiles, and a small needle-shaped hole is left at the end for ignition; the other end is shallow, and it is the handle after inserting a bamboo pole or wooden stick.
Structurally, it is very similar to the archetype of the musket, the musket.
This primitive firearm is loaded in the same way as a flintlock, but it is more troublesome to fire, requiring the gunner to hold a wooden pole under his arm while the other holds an open flame to light the gunpowder. Due to the limitation of the posture, it is impossible to even aim when shooting, and it can only point roughly straight ahead.
But it is still an out-and-out hot weapon. Aside from all kinds of inconveniences, its firing principle is exactly the same as that of a flintlock gun, and its barrel and projectile are no different from those of later generations. Therefore, its power is far greater than that of a bow and crossbow. , Knight armor can not stop its blow.
Moreover, these fire door guns with different shapes can clearly see the effort that Tifeko has spent in the transformation. Some of them are rolled from iron sheets, and there are still clear marks of beating on the barrels. Copper casting, the appearance is relatively smooth. Considering that this was only an experimental product for the four major families, the firearm for Tifeco's own use should be better.
It's just... No matter how good a musket is, it's still a musket.
When the spring offensive was launched, Wang Duo had no chance of winning against the western army armed with revolving rifles, bolt-action rifles and heavy machine guns.
Roland turned his gaze back to the four of them, "Starting tomorrow, the First Army will recover the outskirts of Changsong Fortress one by one, and any nobles who resist can be killed on the spot. I hope that in a week, the entire Western Territory will be unified!"
"Yes, Your Highness!" The four responded in unison.