Black Iron’s Glory

Chapter 453 Post-War Summary

Twenty days later, Claude, General Albert and General Beechlin returned to Lake Lang town with their regiments temporarily forming a regiment. It took another five days for Claude to finally get a day's rest after a grand funeral ceremony for the soldiers who had lost their lives in the mountains not far from Lake Lan town. Several more visiting friends were then received at home, and the following day they went to theatre headquarters for a post-war wrap-up session.

First, Colonel Fordless, the head of the War Zone Intelligence Service, gave an intelligence debrief on the Hicks, and based on intelligence and information received from undercover agents in the Rodex Bay colony, it can be concluded that the three and a half standing legions of the Hicks kingdom currently in the Rodex Bay colony are no longer in a position to launch an offensive, and what they need is self-preservation and the collection of a large amount of weed.

Claude led the Thunder Legion's First Division in raiding the Hicks General Logistics Base camp near Rodex Bay City, despite handing over low-cost weapons and equipment produced by the Kingdom of Hicks to United Kingdom officials in Rodex Bay City in exchange for millions of gold crowns.

But Claude did not resell the large quantities of grass stored in the General Logistics Base camp, but took away the fine grain that could be taken away and the high-end ingredients that senior Hicks officers enjoyed, as well as the live cattle, sheep and other fresh meat that could be slaughtered at any time, and then set all the stores of grass on fire...

The Hicks had a total of three battalions in the Rodex Bay colony and, in addition to the General Logistics Base battalion near Rodex Bay City, had built defensive battalions along the northern mountain border, stockpiling enough grass for two Standing Regiments for three months.

The battalions built on the eastern mountain border were the starting point for the offensive and served as trans-shipment points, with little grain reserved to sustain the daily consumption of the three Standing Regiments. Of course, this has a lot to do with the Hicks' willingness to attack the Nikanca colony and collect grass locally.

Five standing regiments, mostly composed of veterans of the Hicks, with a strength of more than 300,000 troops, launched an attack by three standing regiments of veterans of the Hicks on the eastern mountain border, in addition to two standing regiments guarded on the northern mountain border. Unfortunately, the nearly 200,000 men and horses with strong fighting power, who had only begun to flourish for a month, could not go any further after the capture of the first defensive front built in the central eastern mountains of the direct territorial war zone.

There was little use for the Hicks in the death of more Nikanchas, who had even been ordered by the Command not to be included in the registration of the war effort. For the Hicks, the real, only major enemy is the two immediate regiments in the immediate battlefield, whether they encounter the Thunder Legion or the Rock Legion, who get disappeared badly, and even a slight closer proximity to casualties becomes a luxury, even if they can't do it two to one to three.

Sometimes the commanders of the Hicks are surprised to be able to fire firearms without a flare rope, to aim precisely at guns with a range of more than 150 meters, to use projectiles that do not need to light a flare rope during rainy days and do not expose the throwing place at night, and eventually to even encounter explosive weapons buried on the ground that explode flat, all of which is a refresh of the new knowledge of weapons among the Hicks...

Senior Hicks commanders, who are not incompetent, are acutely aware that there can be no victory in this colonial war if there is no way to suppress these new and endless layers of weapons in the war zones of the direct administration.

It is only depressing to them that the investigation report on all new weapons in the area of direct jurisdiction was sent back to the Kingdom and that the response received was ludicrous. McGidd III even wrote a letter back to the senior commanders who were going to stay in the Rodex Bay colony, cursing the bloody hell out of them, telling them not to make excuses for their failures and fabricate lies that nobody believed!

King Machid III of the Kingdom of Hicks and the Royal Ministry of the Army certainly do not believe that the areas of direct jurisdiction will possess what the senior commanders of those regiments call new weapons. The simple truth is that two princes from the mainland of the kingdom of Orvillas have killed the blood of the kingdom in order to compete for the throne, and if there were a new weapon, it would have already been used.

No kingdom on the Farea continent could equip new weapons only to the guard forces of overseas colonies and not to the forces of the kingdom itself. The forces of the two princes in the protracted civil war in the Kingdom of Ovieras did not show up with any new type of weapon other than the first-sighted projectiles, otherwise they would have been imitated by other kingdoms.

So McKid III and the Royal Hicks Army believe that the senior officers of these regiments who fought in the colonial war are more than shirking their responsibility for failure. Five standing regiments against two regiments in the Overseas Territories of the Kingdom of Ovieras have resulted in the loss of much of the occupied eastern mountainous area, with even the rear General Logistics Base battalion being manned.

The two standing regiments stationed along the northern mountain border, the Hicks veterans, who had strong defensive battalions and waited for their help, were extinguished with ash and smoke under the attack of the Thunder Regiment in the directly administered war zone, leaving only 10,000 wounded. And the three Hicks veterans of the Eastern Mountain Regiment, nearly 200,000 troops, could not break the second defensive front guarded by a division of the Enemy Rock Regiment, it was a disgrace to the soldiers!

It was named the first colonial war in the Gulf of Rodex, and it was also the fourth colonial war between the Hicks and Ovillas kingdoms. The outcome of the war was somewhat unexpected, with the Overseas Territories of the Kingdom of Ovieras once again victorious with weakness. And the five Standing Regiments of the Kingdom of Hicks left only one and a half standing legions after the end of the war, even counting all the wounded as less than the two standing legions, can be said to have suffered another great defeat.

But the Kingdom of Hicks still has the strength to succeed, and as long as all the standing legions are transported to the colony of Rodex Bay and some recruits are recruited, and soon more than 400,000 men and horses of the seven standing legions can be assembled, they have a chance to defeat. After all, on paper, the strength of the Kingdom of Hicks is much greater than that of the Overseas Direct Territories of the Kingdom of Ovieras.

Only King Machid III of the Kingdom of Hicks and the Royal Ministry of the Army did not know the true story of the war, but believed that the incompetence of those senior commanders had led to its failure. So while McKid III wrote himself to denounce the senior commanders of these regiments, he also appointed a more courageous and loyal kingdom to come to the Rodex Bay colony to replace the old Mai, incompetent, cowardly Army Admiral, Nobleton. Count Pont Belondi.

Now the Hicks Standing Army in the Rodex Bay colony barely counts as four, and because two Hicks Standing Army regiments in the northern mountain border camp were largely destroyed, the reserves of grass temporarily maintained a half-army that had retreated from the eastern mountain front, as well as the new Light Rider regiment that disembarked to rescue it for about two months.

And the same standing regiment that stayed near Rodex Bay City, which had just arrived, had fallen prey to food, and in addition to purchasing food at high prices in Rodex Bay City, the regiment mobilized Hicks soldiers to fish directly in the bay and pick up seafood such as shells on the beach to address the lack of food.

Most ridiculously, the inhabitants of Rodex Bay City are greedy with high food prices, selling everything in their homes. The entire city of Rodex Bay also has more than 20,000 inhabitants, while the strength of a standing army of the Kingdom of Hicks amounts to more than 63,000. So the three months of food reserves in the homes of the inhabitants were only enough for one month for the Standing Army of the Kingdom of Hicks, and the entire colony is now trapped in food shortages.

Agents at a buffalo mall lurking in the city report that, basically, lunch and dinner in the city are now served with a glass of wheat wine accompanied by a sea fish, no meat or bread, and that finding a few potatoes would be a rare delicacy. Compared to before the war, the price of food had doubled tenfold, and poor city dwellers sold their reserves for five times the price, which would have to be bought back tenfold...

Since the bison comptoirs in the Territory's war zone were constantly shipping wheat to the Rodex Bay colony to complete the Hicks' order for wheat wine, even the colonial administrators of the United Kingdom of the Fox Islands were asking privately if the bison comptoirs could smuggle some food from the Territory's war zone to them in the past, and they were willing to buy it at a high price to solve the food shortage.

The Hicks, on the other hand, were on an emergency trip to the colonies of the western continent to prepare for a high-priced food shipment to resolve the crisis, but it would only take time to get back and forth, and it was estimated that the food shortage would last for another month. Colonel Bockard, the director of the business of the Buffalo, has officially applied to Ward Command for a shipment of food to the Rodex Bay colony, which is ten times more profitable! General Skerry and General Bolognick are still under consideration.

Colonel Fordless, who is in charge of intelligence, concludes that, according to all the current compilations, the Hicks will not be able to pose a threat to the theatre and to the Nikanca State in the next six months. They likewise need to heal the wounded, restock armaments such as food, and await the arrival of the next three Standing Legions. If nothing unexpected happens, it is estimated that it will not be until next June or July for the Hicks to launch another offensive.

Such a conclusion was reached because, in accordance with the transportation plans of the Kingdom of Hicks known in the theatre, it was learned from those administrators in Rodex Bay City, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, that the Hicks would transport the last three standing legions to the Rodex Bay colony in April next year. And with the lessons of this first colonial war in the Gulf of Rodex, the Hicks need these three last arriving standing regiments to rest before they can launch an offensive in order to maximize their power.

It is now October of 592 Holy Lights, and by June of next year, the immediate battle zone will have nearly eight months to rest and replenish its troops. During the three months of front-line fighting, Claude et al., General Bolognick and General Skerry of the rear were also unavailable, and they recruited a new member of the reserve corps to start recruiting.

The balance and loss of combat power that the Thunder Regiment and the Rock Regiment lost in the war will be filled by the best of the non-combatant direct troops, the local guard corps and this reserve corps recruit.

Colonel Fordless of the Intelligence Service completed his briefing, followed by a speech by General Bolognick, whose main purpose was to enhance the confidence of the senior officers of the participating theatre in the final victory of the colonial war. The war in the Nikanca Nation and the colony of the Gulf of Rodex did not have any negative impact on the entire Overseas Territories, but rather greatly contributed to the development of the civilian production industry.

The absence of all kinds of armaments supported by the Kingdom's mainland has made it necessary for the theatre to meet all the material and equipment requirements for the development of its forces on its own, and a large number of orders have sparked a surge in the establishment of various production workshops in the various jurisdictions. As long as the quality meets the requirements of the war zone, the small factory that produces the socks will be able to reap substantial benefits.

In addition, the establishment of the overseas Minsheng Bank has lifted the kingdom's domestic use of the National Bank to restrain the economic development of overseas jurisdictions, while the issuance and smooth promotion of banknotes have eliminated the difficulties faced by the various jurisdictions in facing a low denomination currency shortage. General Bolognick was excited to tell the senior officers in the war zone participating in the conference that the Overseas Minsheng Bank had successfully issued 10 million gold kroner in low-denomination banknotes, while lending more than 10 million gold kroner in private loans to support the economic development of the various jurisdictions.

This is also the main reason why General Bolognick and General Skerry have the bottom line to re-recruit and form a reserve corps within the theatre, and the development of the Overseas Territories' economy will naturally bring great benefits to the theatre, and the tax revenues earned this year alone will suffice to cover the war's military expenditures. As long as such economic development lasts for three years, the theatre can fully achieve self-sufficiency in military expenditures.

Following General Bolognick's speech, General Skerry reported at the meeting on the stockpiles and funding of armaments in the theatre against this colonial war against the Kingdom of the Hicks, thanks to the clearance of the entire Hicks inland colony by two major battlefields of the Legion of Thunder by Claude before the war, which was worth more than 13 million gold and silver ingots from the loot seized.

At present, the headache in the war zone is what to do with these gold and silver ingots, and it seems unnecessary to cast all the gold and silver coins. In the treasury of overseas Minsheng Bank, 8 million gold and silver tall gold and silver coins were stored. After issuing 10 million gold and silver banknotes, few people came to the bank to exchange paper and silver coins for gold and silver coins. Instead, casting more gold and silver coins would burden overseas Minsheng Bank with certain financial costs.

The problem was actually well solved, and Claude came up with an idea to re-refine all these ingots of gold and silver, casting the standard gold and silver squares that required two people to lift, and then printing the numbers on them. For example, based on the weight of a hundred kilograms, then build an open room at the Overseas Minsheng headquarters, filled with this standard type of gold and silver square.

This large room filled with standard gold and silver squares can be seen through glass and iron railings by all visitors to Minsheng Bank headquarters overseas, and even dignified people can invite them to visit. The purpose of doing so would greatly enhance the credibility of banknotes issued by overseas Minsheng banks, and all those who use banknotes would not lose confidence in the banknotes on hand if they knew that overseas Minsheng banks had sufficient reserves of gold and silver.

Claude's suggestion was indeed a good approach, but there was a need to bring together bank managers and various shareholders in the theatre for discussions. As for security, Claude had no fear that even robbers who broke into banks could not take such heavy gold and silver squares. In an age when no car is used as a vehicle, trying to take away a piece of gold that big is purely a search for death, so to speak, a piece of gold and silver around is the biggest burden.

After General Skerry's presentation, it was the three generals on the front line who issued comments on the performance of the participating forces in the war zone and a post-war summary. Claude gave the floor to General Albert and General Beachcline. The two generals concurrently praised the excellent performance of the new rifles in the war, believing that if the troops were fully equipped with the new rifles, they would be able to hang the ten standing regiments of the Kingdom of the Hicks.

Unfortunately, the Blackstone Firearms Manufacturing Workshop now produces up to 30,000 new rifles a year, and it will take several more years to meet the equipment needs of the various units operating throughout the theatre.

General Bitchklin also praised the performance of the new weapon landmines in war as an instrument of defence and siege to the enemy, hoping for more stockpiles in the theatre. At the same time, General Beechlin criticized the projectiles produced in the theatre, arguing that they were completely downwind in terms of throwing distance and explosive power compared to the iron pumpkins produced by the Kingdom of Hicks, so that the Rock Regiment suffered a huge loss in the initial defensive battle...

In addition to summarizing their strengths and weaknesses, the two generals similarly commented on the performance of veteran Hicks in this war, the resilience of the will to fight, the courage not to fear life and death, etc., while the Hicks kingdom was in charge of the overall command of this war, the hereditary count, Nobleton. Admiral Pont Belondi is indeed not an easy-to-deal veteran soldier. He is a cunning old rapist, and it is difficult to find a missing spot in which to respond to the offensive performance in the theatre.

Had it not been for the preponderance of advanced weapons, such as new rifles, in the direct territorial theatre, the five standing legions of veterans of the Hicks kingdom who had launched the attack would have been opponents of even forces in the direct territorial theatre, and they would not have been weaker than the thunder and rock regiments. Fortunately, the Thunder Legion and the Rock Legion, despite their heavy casualties, still wiped out their three Standing Legions, causing the Hicks to lose their strength, making the next war much easier to deal with.

Commenting on the performance of the Legion of Thunder and the Rock Legion participating forces, General Bitchklin focused on the performance of the Rock Legion's division in the defensive battle in the central eastern mountains. As a result of the transfer of large numbers of veterans to the local guard corps, newly recruited recruits continued to perform somewhat prematurely on the battlefield, vulnerable to adverse situations on the battlefield and lacking confidence.

The failure of the first line of defense, for example, had a lot to do with the panic of the Rock Corps recruits in the midst of night raids and bomb drops. Ultimately, the collapse of the Nikancha flanking prevented the entire defence front from being maintained, and all recruits were forced to retreat autonomously following the Nikancha defectors.

In fact, if a wave of counter-attacks were organized, the flanking Hicks enemy could be repelled, but by then General Birchclin's orders would no longer be delivered to the front line. General Bitchklin therefore hopes to replenish the force once again, preferably by recalling a group of veterans from the local guard corps as the force's backbone at the grass-roots level. Like the veterans of the local guard regiment that Claude took to the second defensive front, their arrival soon stabilized the situation on the front line.