If Archduke Buck hadn't arrived at the military camp first, he would have even prepared to send out an army to greet them.
"Please forgive me, Your Majesty." When Akmesser saw Archduke Buck, he immediately raised his command sword above his head and knelt down to apologize.
It is unclear whether the invitation was due to the failure of the Kingsley family's Eastern Expedition against the Crocodile Tribe, or whether the invitation was detrimental to the protection of Archduke Buck.
Anyway, at this moment, it is only right to apologize.
"Get up, it's my own fault, I can't blame you." Whether Grand Duke Buck could distinguish right from wrong or win people's hearts, the current war situation cannot be separated from Akmeser, so he directly took the responsibility on himself.
Grand Duke Buck paced back and forth: "I thought I paid enough attention to the Yong Ye Army Leader, but in the end, I still suffered the consequences of not paying enough attention to it. I was frustrated and passive at every turn. Until now, we have not been able to fully understand the opponent's accurate strength.
How does the Marshal plan to proceed?"
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Akmeser stood up again and said that he was responsible for this area. He basically spoke without thinking. In other words, he has been thinking about this issue for a while.
Akmeser pointed to the sand table in front of him and said: "Your Majesty, please see, it is inevitable that the Yongye Army Leader and the Crocodile Clan will merge. From now on, the enemies we need to deal with are not only the Crocodile Clan people, but also the Yongye Army Leader.
"
"I think this is not a purely bad thing. After all, the Eternal Night Army has always existed before taking the lead. It was just in the dark, and some methods were harder to detect. Now it has been pushed into the open, and some behaviors are easier to predict."
"The enemy's presence is indeed a problem, but one thing is certain. The Third Fleet led by General Stubin has an absolute advantage on the Donau River. They will definitely not dare to engage in a decisive battle on the water with us again. Their defense line is even more
It is possible to place it on the east bank of the Donau River and use the terrain to fight us in positional warfare."
"At that time, General Steubin's third fleet will be unable to do anything. We will once again be in a situation of fighting alone, and we will also face the coalition forces of the Yongye Army and the Crocodile Tribe."
Like peeling an onion, Akmesser analyzed the situation in front of him layer by layer for Archduke Buck.
"What are you going to do?" Lord Buck nodded approvingly.
He is not pretending to understand. Ever since Shanying sent the message, frontline information will be put on his desk immediately. He knows the situation of the Eastern Expeditionary Army very clearly.
"Brother's Port." Akmeser said heavily on the sand table, "This Brother's Port jointly built by the Yongye Army and the Crocodile Tribe is the core of breaking the situation. As long as the Brother's Port can be captured, General Steubin's third
The fleet can directly cut off their connection with the Yongye military leader. They will become rootless duckweeds in the Despair Swamp and can only rely on the Crocodile Tribe as the main force to compete with us. When the time comes, we will have nothing to fear."
"Isn't General Steubin a problem?" Archduke Buck asked rhetorically.
"Your Majesty is wise." Akmesser said with a long sigh, "This is the key to this strategy. The main force will be General Steubin's third fleet. Let's not say whether General Steubin is willing.
Taking such a huge risk to charge into battle is also extremely detrimental to our interests. The more we rely on the Commons family fleet, the more stringent the conditions they will offer. The number of times I have contacted General Steubin
Although it's not much, you can feel that he is by no means the kind of master who is easy to get along with. He has the unique pirate atmosphere of the Commons family in his bones, and he will definitely be blackmailed by him when the time comes."
"You and I originally had the same idea." Archduke Buck looked at the endless water outside the camp. "We always wanted to take over the Swamp of Despair. But from another perspective, if we lose the war, we will lose our troops and gain nothing.
The existing territory will also be seriously threatened. Therefore, the most important issue for us to consider right now is to securely occupy the swamp of despair. No matter how big the appetite of General Steubin is, it is nothing more than a matter of occupying several trading ports and trading rights. In the past,
No matter how big it is, it’s just a matter of the Donau River and the coastline ports. Is it possible that he can transport a large number of people from the West Sea, thousands of miles away? In the final analysis, we are the local snakes, and it is us who will take the majority in the end.”
Archduke Buck showed a meaningful smile and said: "When we need to use him now, what's the harm in letting him raise prices all over the place? When we get this big cake, it's time for us to sit down and pay back the money. Before that,
There is no point in worrying about the uneven distribution of the spoils.”
"Your Majesty is wise." Akmesser praised him sincerely. As long as Archduke Buck could think of this, he would be able to let go of many things.
"You only need to prepare for the battle with peace of mind. General Shitubin will be in charge of me." Archduke Buck did not intend to directly take over the military power of the entire Eastern Expedition Army.
Just because he is on the front line does not mean that he must personally command.
In terms of political skills, he may be better than Akmesser by a few margins, but in terms of military command, he is probably not as good as his opponent.
After all, most of the time, he only talked about military affairs on paper and personally led the army, which never exceeded 10,000 people. Even the remote control of the Eastern Expedition Army in the past was done through Akmesser.
If he were to suddenly take over the entire Eastern Marching Army, he would be completely confused and not know where to start.
Archduke Buck still had this self-awareness.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Akmesser also breathed a sigh of relief, saying that he was not worried about Archduke Buck taking away his military power, which was a lie.
It involves not only the issue of the gain and loss of one's own rights, but also the fear that Archduke Buck will blindly direct the game and ruin the whole game, and there will be no way to save it.
Fortunately, although Archduke Buck was very concerned about the gains and losses in the Swamp of Despair, he did not lose his mind and make wrong decisions.
Archduke Buck's personal visit to the Swamp of Despair had a considerable impact on the morale of the Eastern Army.
Although he did not take over the military power of Akmeser, he still frequently visited the military camp and praised the achievements of the Eastern Expeditionary Army in recent years, especially the desperate and bloody battle with the Crocodile Tribe at the mouth of Wuyin Lake.
Youjia didn't even mention that it was their last stand.
In addition to verbal praise, Archduke Buck used his usual trick-heavy rewards with large sums of money.
It is also a trick that has been tried and tested. These big soldiers fight for the glory of the family. After all, they are only a few. Most of them are here for the golden and silver.
Ten thousand good words are not as valuable as a piece of gold.
Under the heavy reward, their morale recovered very quickly, almost breaking the limit. If we didn't consider that the elites could not be replenished in a short time, even if there was another bloody battle on the river, they would have nothing to fear.
General Steubin, captain of the Commons family's third fleet, did not need to find Archduke Buck himself. Two days later, he arrived at his door. Naturally, the purpose was to ask for the supplies promised by the Kingsley family.
The Third Fleet led by Steubin just transferred from the West China Sea and floated on the sea for two full months without any suitable supply points along the way.
The Huayu Plateau stuck there like a pier, leaving Ashan's southern coastline in a very bad condition. Contrary to the bustling coastline, there are only scattered peninsulas hanging there, lacking both natural ports and material production.
, it’s troublesome to supply supplies.
This is why the Commons family used to just hang around the West Coast and rarely go here - it was not profitable.
What Steubin's fleet really lacks now is not food. Whether it is the sea or the Despair Swamp, there are abundant fisheries, and it is completely self-sufficient.
What they really lack are fruits and vegetables. Food that is too monotonous will cause an imbalance of trace elements in the human body, leading to severe sepsis. Now many sailors have begun to show symptoms.
They may not know the principles, but with rich navigation experience, they know how to solve problems.
If the Kingsley family's supplies haven't arrived yet, they will really consider the possibility of robbing them. As for who to rob, it's hard to say.
The attack on the grain road led by the Night Leopard Marines led by the Yongye Army was at best one-third successful.
According to their original plan, they used snowballing coordination in the first half of the material transport team to burn and destroy, and then appeared in front of the escort in the most tyrannical manner.
As long as the escort troops rush out of the camp and try to stop the Night Leopard Marines.
The Night Leopard Marines were preparing to use black powder grenades to teach them how to behave, but Sean used them to bomb Archduke Buck's black powder cluster bombs, which were prepared for the escort.
Faced with this brand-new attack, coupled with the surprise cover-up by the Night Leopard Marines, the collapse of the Guards was inevitable.
At that time, the Night Leopard Marines only need to chase the collapsed escort army like a duck, attack the second half of the material transport team, and drive them all the way back to their hometown, completing an incredible and glorious victory.
It’s just that plans can’t keep up with changes.
Because of the presence of Archduke Buck, the escort took their own safety as the top priority, and even ignored the burning of the first half of the material transport team and stayed tight to the camp.
Fighting encounters and attacking battles are two completely different things.
In addition, the elite cavalry of the Kingsley family led by Sir Crest unexpectedly came to the rescue.
The Night Leopard Marines had to abandon their original combat plan.
Therefore, this night attack had a certain impact on the Kingsley family, but it was not fatal, because the amount of supplies transported this time was large enough, and even if half of it was left, it would be enough for them to hold on until the next batch of supplies arrived.
The tactic of attacking the grain road is indispensable.
The Kingsley family will definitely fully absorb this lesson. The next time they transport supplies, they will definitely take stricter precautionary measures and a more scattered transportation method. They may even place bait in it to lure the Yong Ye army leaders to take the bait.
.
War itself is a process of intrigue.
It is inevitable that the Kingsley family checks and balances the Commons family through material supplies.
But that was not the case now, so Archduke Buck happily delivered this supply to Steubin.
Seeing the supplies being transported to his warship in small boats, Steubin's tense face finally showed a smile and said: "Your Majesty's visit in person is really unexpected. It seems that you are determined to win the Swamp of Despair."
"This is natural." Archduke Buck said with a smile, "General Steubin led the fleet and came all the way, isn't it because he has full confidence in us?"
"I don't have confidence in you." Steubin said seriously, "but with my fleet, I have full confidence."
"Haha... General Steubin really knows how to joke." Grand Duke Buck said with a smile, "As long as you have confidence, that's the best. I think we can further discuss cooperation between the two parties."
"Oh? How are you going to cooperate, Your Majesty?" Steubin showed an interested expression.
In fact, what really scared him was not the war, but Akmesser's previously indifferent attitude towards them.
They have traveled thousands of miles to the Swamp of Despair, not just for a picnic. Only by fully demonstrating their use value and force can they better negotiate terms with the Kingsley family.
"Capture Brother Port, completely block the source of the Donau River, and block the Yongye Army back to the mountains. The rest is our business." Archduke Buck did not beat around the bush with Stubin and said straightforwardly.
"Oh..." Shi Dubin's fierce eyes narrowed into a straight line, and his eyeballs moved rapidly, obviously planning something.
What he is waiting for is this moment. If the conditions are not opened at this time, he will open them at any time.
Archduke Buck did not give Stubin any more time to think and said: "After taking over the Despair Swamp, the Commons family has the priority to develop and lease the coastal areas of the Despair Swamp, the right to freely enter and exit the Danube River, and the priority to trade with the Kingsley family.
, this is the limit of what we can do, if the general is still not satisfied, then we can only break up."
Priority coastal development lease rights!
Free access to the Donau River!
The Kingsley family has priority in trading!
Every time Archduke Buck uttered a word, Steubin's eyes widened, and his mouth grinned to the back of his head when he heard it.
It wasn't that Archduke Buck's conditions were too harsh, but that they were too generous.
According to their original expectations, being able to win two of the three items was already the limit.
The easiest thing to get is the preferential trade rights with the Kingsley family, and the hardest thing to get is the right to free entry and exit of the Danube River.
Because once the Kingsley family completely takes over the Swamp of Despair, the Donau River will become the hinterland of the Kingsley family.
I didn't expect Grand Duke Buck to be so grand. He threw everything away with a wave of his hand.
As for the land in the Swamp of Despair, it's not like the Commons family doesn't keep a close eye on it.
But they know that the Kingsley family will never give in on this, and it is extremely difficult for them to develop it. Going across the ocean these days is an extremely dangerous thing in itself. Carrying people across large oceans has a higher risk factor than reaching the destination.
In the end, if half of the people survive, it will be a great blessing.
The greatest threat is not the changeable weather on the endless sea, but scurvy caused by nutritional imbalance.
They can only settle for the next best thing and make a fuss about the maritime field where they are best at first.
Shi Dubin laughed and gave a thumbs up: "I have long heard of His Majesty's generous skills. When I saw it today, it was indeed well-deserved. Just because of this, how dare you refuse to serve? But before that, shall we sign the contract first?
.”
"It has been prepared for a long time. I would like to ask the general to take a look at it." Archduke Buck waved his hand, and someone brought up two simple-looking parchment scrolls.
After unfolding, it is more than two meters long.
The three rights are simple to say, but they involve many things and naturally cannot be described clearly in one or two sentences.
It can also be seen from here that Archduke Buck did not throw out these three rights impulsively, but after careful consideration.
You want the horse to run, but you don't want the horse to eat grass.
There is no such good thing in the world.
If you want to mobilize Steubin's enthusiasm for war, you must let him see enough temptation.
"Then I'm not welcome." Shi Dubin waved his hand, and two people who could be seen as well-educated people came up immediately.
Lying on two parchment scrolls, he chewed out the meaning of each sentence.
Of course, such a far-reaching contract requires repeated consideration. Who knows if there are any literal traps in it.
This is a common tactic among lords and nobles and must be guarded against.
"Please." Archduke Buck was not surprised. No agreement was signed at once. Even if the conditions he offered were generous enough, both parties still needed to argue over words in order to maximize their own interests.
What's more, Archduke Buck was also confident and did not do anything with the writing.
The most important thing is to sign an agreement with the Commons family as soon as possible and capture the Swamp of Despair.
It is the most stupid thing to lose the whole piece of cake just because you have not eaten the meat in your mouth.
Rao is so.
It still took nearly a week to sign the offensive and defensive alliance agreement.
Professionals from both sides were at loggerheads in this regard, line by line, word by word.
Try to avoid any ambiguity in every sentence and maximize your own interests.