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(Today's update is here ~)
Chapter 274 "Imperial Family's Politics"
In the blink of an eye, summer has passed and the west wind is starting to pick up. In October, after the end of the busy farming season, several cities and towns along the border of Desa Province and Nuling Province posted a conscription notice. The announcement was a joint conscription order signed by the Duke of Tulip and Governor Bohan of Nuling Province.
The Duke of Tulip has received permission from the Imperial High Command to cross the border and recruit soldiers. His plan is to recruit two Infantry Divisions and one Cavalry Division for a total of sixty thousand soldiers.
Such a large scale conscription notice sent the entire Northwest into an uproar!
To everyone's surprise, the Duke of the Tulip Family's private army's pay was set to be even better than the official army's. Under such circumstances, the situation in the Northwest that was gradually calming down once again became lively!
This is the first time in many years that such a large scale conscription is happening. Enlisting 60,000 people at once, even if the population of Nuling Province was twice as much as that of Desa Province … … it was still a heavy burden.
But what surprised the outside world is that Governor Bohan of Nuling Province seems to be quite supportive of this matter. He didn't even hesitate to sacrifice a lot of his population. He even put aside a lot of government affairs before the winter and transferred a large number of officials and garrison troops to maintain order at the various conscription sites.
As for Du Wei's side, the one in charge of the conscription is the one known as "Little Two Hundred and Fifty" Guetta. Although this guy is a bit rough around the edges, he's an expert at leading cavalry. The one in charge of assisting Guetta is the commander of the Tulip Family's Infantry Division, Knight Robert.
According to the secret deal between Du Wei and Governor Bohan, the two infantry divisions will be one for each family. As for the cavalry division, they will be equally divided.
Close to the border between the two provinces, a camp has already been built in Du-Wei's territory. In the coming year, this camp will be further expanded and built into a permanent military fortress. It's enough to house a hundred thousand soldiers. From a geographical point of view, this military fortress will also play a certain role in suppressing the Northwest Army.
The work of conscription was very busy and complicated. Du Wei had given the order to strictly follow the procedures, to the greatest extent to prevent the enemy forces from infiltrating his army. With the cooperation of Governor Bohan, every conscripted soldier must be carefully investigated for their origin and background.
Fortunately, Bohan has been operating in the Nuling province for many years, so he has a good foundation in this field.
In addition, Du Wei welcomed another piece of good news.
Du Wei's old friend, the leader of the Snow Wolf Mercenary Group in the north, Beinrich, also came to visit Du Wei with the latest batch of goods a month ago. At the same time, he expressed his wish: Many old mercenaries who retired after a lifetime of adventuring, after quitting their adventuring career, these men who had licked the blood on their blades often had a miserable life. Although some of them have quite a bit of savings, but most of them aren't good at managing money. Or after years of adventuring, they developed the habit of drinking, gambling, and so on.
After all, these people are old mercenaries with a skill. Although most of the retired mercenaries are old and disabled, but after all, these are experienced old mercenaries. Leaving them to fend for themselves is a pity.
After hearing Beinrich's words, Du Wei immediately made a decision: From now on, all the retired mercenaries of the Snow Wolf Mercenary Group will be accepted by Du Wei.
After all, these people have been adventuring for a lifetime. Although they are old or disabled, they still have their martial arts. Even if they can't be used as soldiers, they can be sent to the barracks as instructors to train the new recruits. This is absolutely perfect!
Beinrich was extremely grateful for Du Wei's generosity. After that, he immediately contacted several small mercenary groups he was familiar with and sent over some of his old friends.
In this way, although Du Wei did a favor to the other party, but in reality, it also solved the problem of his own manpower shortage.
Governor Bohan's recruitment of soldiers was in full swing. And Du Wei's side wasn't idle either.
According to the imperial military's order, the 20,000 cavalrymen stationed in the grassland finally arrived at Loulan City and set up camp outside the city.
Du Wei handed this matter over to General 250 Longbottom. According to the secret agreement between Du Wei and Prince Son, Du Wei can keep 6,000 cavalrymen!
Du Wei has high expectations for these 6,000 cavalrymen! After all, these people are not new recruits, but experienced and well-trained elite cavalrymen. Moreover, many of the officers were Longbottom's old subordinates. After receiving them, they will be able to form a fighting force in a short period of time.
In this matter, Du Wei didn't hold back at all with Prince Son. He let Longbottom take the military order to the barracks outside the city and ordered the 20,000 cavalrymen to line up. Then, Longbottom went through the teams one by one to select the best of the best. After selecting the best of the best, 6,000 of the 20,000 cavalrymen will definitely be an elite force!
Finally, with a stroke of the pen, Du Wei took out all the names of Longbottom's old subordinates and removed them from the list. In this way, although Prince Son still has 14,000 men, the real strongest fighting force will be under Du Wei's command.
As for the horses compensated by the grassland natives and Du Wei's share, they were all given to Longbottom to replenish the cavalrymen.
As for the 10,000 pieces of leather … … Du Wei sent someone to deliver them to Anglia City.
Less than five days after the ten thousand leather hides were delivered to Anglia City, the first batch of hot-air balloon airships officially took off from Anglia City.
Hot air balloons were something that Du Wei had done back in his hometown in the Rollin Plains. But at that time, the so-called hot air balloon was far from mature and could only be used to transport some letters or valuable items.
The main problem was that the dye used to burn the hot air wasn't of good enough quality. After the research of several Magicians in Anglia City, coupled with the formulas provided by Du-Wei himself, they finally settled on the final dye formula: Using 16 different types of magic potions to extract the solution and then diluting it with a special amount of dilution, the dye can be produced in batches.
The hot air produced by the combustion of these dyes has the best effect in terms of buoyancy and stability.
The formula of this dye was also kept as a top secret by Du-Wei. Even the production process was strictly separated into several processes, without any connection between them.
Du Wei knows that he may not be able to monopolize this technology for long, but if he can monopolize it for one more day, then he will have the advantage for one more day.
Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem 10,000 pieces of cowhide were urgently made into balloons. According to the previous plan, this batch of airships would be used as transportation tools. Given the carrying capacity, the current largest airship could carry about 4 tons.
Du Wei is very clear about this kind of thing. Whether it's speed or defense, the airships are extremely weak. They can't be used as a combat force on the front line and can only be used as a logistical transportation tool.
However, at least he has an additional air force. It can be considered as a supplement to his idea of an "air force".
After Du Wei's letters were sent out, the "FedEx" created by Du Wei in the Rollin Plains opened a branch in the Northwest. The first branch was set up in Loulan City.
After that, the hot air balloon airship became the hottest topic in the Northwest.
Unfortunately, Du Wei doesn't know anything about steam engines. Otherwise, he would really want to start an industrial revolution.
However, even if he didn't do it to that extent. Du Wei finally calculated the strength in his hands. After the conscription, his total military strength has reached 60,000 people, including a cavalry division. Moreover, their combat strength is not weak.
In addition, there is also the only air force in the continent. This is the only air force so far, and it's even in a state where it has no opponents.
Looking at his own men, it can be said that there are many experts. Two Paladin, plus several outstanding magicians (including Gandorf and Medusa).
With this kind of strength, he can gradually gain a foothold in the Northwest. Whether it's the Northwest Army or the prairie people, he can be considered to have a certain amount of confidence.
The only thing that worries Du Wei is Ruo Lin, who brought the entire fleet to the Southeast. Since the female Knight went to the Southeast last year, there has been no news about her … Could it be that the United Kingdom in the Southeast turned hostile? Leaving one of his fleets behind in Nanyang? However, this possibility isn't big. Du Wei knows that with the broken ships of the United Kingdom, it's almost impossible to intercept Ruo Lin's fleet. With Ruo Lin's alertness, even if she encountered danger, it's not like she can't even send a messenger back.
Day by day, it's getting closer to the end of the year. As the northwest wind gets colder and colder, people finally realized that winter is coming.
This year, although Du Wei didn't perform a miracle and produce a huge grain harvest, but after a year of preparation, this winter won't be too bad. The grain reserves are still very sufficient.
However, Du Wei encountered a new problem.
Count Biliaibuer and that fatty from Delanshan have sent people to deliberately probe Du Wei. They are very interested in the hot air balloon airship that Du Wei made!
Hot-Air balloons and airships did not require too much technology to build. The biggest key is the dye! It's not something that can float a balloon just by burning it! Du Wei strictly kept the dye formula and dilution ratio a secret in order to monopolize this technology.
He doesn't want to share these things with others right now. Although he has a good relationship with Count Biliaibuer and Delanshan, he also received a lot of benefits from them. But … … the sky … …
For the time being, Du Wei still has the idea of monopolizing the sky of the Roland Continent!
Since he can't refuse the people sent by Count Biliaibuer and Delanshan, he can only find a few excuses to delay the matter.
The 961 year of the Empire will soon be over. According to Prince Son's order, Du Wei will be leaving for the capital to participate in the New Year celebration. However, Du Wei is very clear about what is waiting for him when he returns … … Prince Son's marriage proposal is still pressing on his heart.
Finally, before returning to the capital, Du Wei called for his subordinates.
He decided to formally talk about this matter.
After the announcement of Prince Son's marriage proposal, the reactions of his subordinates were different. Longbottom's face was indifferent, meaning: What does this have to do with me?
Dadaneier was somewhat happy for Du Wei, but there was also a trace of regret: This guy is purely happy that Du Wei can take this opportunity to enter the royal family, but there is also a trace of regret. He originally hoped that Du Wei could marry into the Lister Family.
The other generals simply expressed their congratulations to Du Wei.
The only one who remained silent was Philip.
After everyone finished speaking, Du Wei's number one aide was the last to speak!
"Your Excellency the Duke." Philip sighed: "Although these words are a bit ….. Hmm, it's a bit disgraceful, but since everyone here is your Excellency the Duke's most trusted subordinates, I'll be frank." Pausing for a moment, he looked around and then said word by word: "This matter is definitely not a blessing. On the contrary, in my opinion, I'm afraid it will bring endless trouble to your Excellency!!"
Many of the generals were a little surprised, but Du Wei's eyes lit up: "Go on!"
"Your Excellency." Philip slowly said: "When you were in the capital, His Highness Prince Son didn't show the slightest intention of marrying you! Therefore, I concluded that this matter must be a recent idea that the Regent had just come up with! Then, why don't you all take a guess? His Highness Prince Son can be considered as one of the few outstanding emperors in the recent history of the Empire ….. Hmm, although he hasn't officially ascended the throne yet. But from his various actions, compared to Augustine the 6th, he's not just a little bit better! Proposing at this time ….. Hehe! Of course, our Excellency has always been favored by the Regent, this is something everyone knows. But of all times, it's only been a year since His Excellency came to the Northwest and gradually stabilized his footing. His intentions are worth pondering over. His Excellency's strength is gradually growing stronger. In the Northwest, you've been resisting the Northwestern Army in the East and the Prairie Invaders in the West. Yet, His Excellency's perseverance is still lacking. This is enough to make everyone understand your talent and strength! In Prince Son's heart, his evaluation of you must've gone up another level! Proposing at this time is not only to rope you in, but also to test you! I'll try to rope you into the royal family and strengthen your loyalty to the Duke. As for testing ….. Hehe, I don't need to say more! The most subtle thing is, your Excellency, regarding the matter between you and the Lister Family, the Marquise's feelings towards you are probably known even by the roadside merchants! Don't tell me Prince Son in the capital doesn't know? Then he clearly knows that the Lister Family intends to marry you, yet he still proposed for his sister. This intention is worth pondering over! At least one thing is clear: I'm guessing that Prince Son probably doesn't want to see you marry the Lister Family!! "
Du Wei nodded and asked back: "What if I directly refuse the Regent's good intentions?"
"Then … …" Philip sighed: "Then, I'm afraid the Regent's heart will have some estrangement or even suspicion towards you. After all, you now have tens of thousands of troops in your hands and you're in a complicated place like the Northwest. Most importantly, the Empire's control over you is too little! Everyone, haven't you noticed? The Imperial Capital has almost no means to control us! It can be said that if His Excellency has a rebellious heart ….. Hehe, even if it's not a real rebellion, as long as His Excellency is willing to learn from Rugaard and ignore the Imperial Capital's orders from today onwards, what can Prince Son do to us? "
When this last sentence came out, everyone's face suddenly turned cold!
Thinking about it carefully, it seems that the Imperial Capital really doesn't have many means to control the Desa Province! Almost everything in the Desa Province is independent and doesn't rely on the Imperial Capital for help. Finance, military, and politics are all self-contained. If Du Wei is willing, he can become the second Northwest Army at any time!!
Looking at the silence of the crowd, Philip sighed: "My Lord, I've been thinking about it. No matter how much Prince Son appreciates you, as an Emperor, having a force like you under his command, no matter how magnanimous he is, he will still have doubts!"
Du Wei's expression also became very serious: "Philip, so you think I should agree to Prince Son's proposal to ease his heart?"
"No!" Philip suddenly denied Du Wei's question and then confidently said: "My Lord, no matter how you look at it, I firmly oppose your marriage with the Imperial Family!!"
Du Wei's spirit was lifted, and the generals next to him also looked at Philip in surprise. Dadaneier was the first to ask: "Mr. Philip, but you just said that if we don't marry, then I'm afraid the Imperial Capital will be suspicious of the Duke … …"
"To eliminate suspicion, marriage doesn't have to be the only way." Philip smiled, then his expression turned cold: "Daren, the reason why we can be so free in the Northwest is because we are far away from the turmoil of the capital. Here, the political situation is relatively simple. Although the Northwest Army and the prairie people are under a lot of pressure, it's still in the open. But once the Imperial Family is involved, then the problem will become troublesome! My Lord, you should understand that although the Regent is in power now, he still has a lot of problems to solve. First of all, there is the struggle between the Imperial Family and the Divine Family that hasn't been resolved for hundreds of years! In the last coup, the Shrines supported His Highness at a critical moment, but there must be some kind of deal between the two sides. Anything that involves the struggle between the Imperial Family and the Divine Family will become complicated! My Lord, you may be free in the Northwest right now, but once you are pulled into the Imperial Family's system, then you will become an important figure in the Imperial Family! At that time, you will be inexplicably listed as an important figure on the Shrines' list … … Is this worth it? Secondly, in the long run … … My Lord, I'll say something disrespectful! Let's say you marry the Regent's sister and the little princess. Then, even if you don't forget your old love and marry Vivian … … Hmm, then, even if you treat both wives equally … … What about the future? In the future, once your wife gives birth to a child! According to the status and identity of the little princess, no matter how much you dote on Vivian, no matter how you look at it, you will be forced to make the child the heir!! "
Du Wei nodded.
Philip smiled faintly: "But then ….. Duke, after a few years, when you and everyone here are no longer in this world, can the Tulip Family continue to exist? If the Duke and the Princess give birth to a child and inherit the Duke's family business ….. Heh heh, in terms of bloodline, they will be one step closer to the Imperial Family! Then, as long as the Imperial Family cleverly works, the next generation will marry again ….. I'm afraid in less than two generations, the Tulip Family will be incorporated into the Imperial Family!! "
At this point, Philip said in a low voice, "I'm definitely not exaggerating to scare you. Historically, this is a common trick used by the Imperial Family. When faced with a powerful external family, they can't eliminate them and have to be on guard against them. Most of the time, they will use this kind of 'soft knife' to slowly grind! If thirty years is not enough, then fifty years! If fifty years is not enough, then a hundred years! In the end, the other family will be swallowed whole! In the history of our Empire, there are several examples of this! This is one of the Imperial Family's methods! "
Suddenly, Philip looked at Du Wei with a strange expression. He hesitated for a moment and whispered: "Let's not talk about the distant examples, let's talk about the recent ones! Duke, your original Rowling family is a living example! "
Du Wei was surprised: "Rowling family? What's wrong with Rowling family? "
Philip smiled bitterly: "This ….. Sir, you don't know?" Looking at his expression, he seemed to be somewhat embarrassed, as if he deeply regretted his words.
Du Wei took a deep breath, his eyes flashing: "Philip, speak directly. Since I gathered everyone to discuss this matter, there is no need to avoid this topic! Speak! "
Philip sighed, his hands were hidden in his sleeves. He took half a step back, slightly bowed, and said in a gentle voice: "Then, forgive me for speaking nonsense."
After he stood up straight, he slowly said: "The glory of the Rowling family began at the beginning of the Augustine Dynasty. Duke, your ancestor was a hero of a generation. He fought in all directions and saved the Empire from difficulties. He was given the title of Marshal of the Empire! At that time, the Emperor granted the entire Rollin Plains as his territory! I won't go into the story of the Rowling family's ancestor being given the title. Think about it, how glorious is the title of Marshal of the Empire? At that time, the Rowling family could be said to be the most powerful family in the Empire! But after that, until now ….. Although the previous head of the family, Earl Raymond, also entered the military command, but in terms of prestige, it is far from what it used to be ….. I have to say, this is the result of the Royal Family's deliberate actions! "
"Duke, I know that you are proficient in the study of emblems and heraldry. Then, the original Rowling family's emblem, you should know the meaning of the crown symbol, right?"
"Of course." Du Wei replied: "That is the symbol of the Royal Family. At that time, my ancestor, Marshal Rollin, made a great contribution, so the Emperor married a princess to him ….. Because of this marriage, the Rowling family was accepted into the Royal Family's branch family, becoming part of the Royal Family."
Philip smiled faintly and then said indifferently, "Look … It's so similar to today's situation."
Du Wei frowned, he still didn't understand Philip's words.
Philip continued: "This is the Royal Family's first move against the Rowling family! First, they formed a marriage alliance. In any case, Marshal Rollin's loyalty to the Royal Family is known by everyone, so the Royal Family is not worried that he will have any rebellious thoughts. So, they used a long term soft knife to deal with the Rollin family ….. because, the Royal Family will absolutely not tolerate any other family that is too powerful. The first princess married into the Rollin family, so in name, the Rollin family has a relationship with the Royal Family. Marshal Rollin's descendants all have the bloodline of the Royal Family ….. From this point of view, Duke, you also have a certain amount of the Royal Family's bloodline. "
"Go on!" Du Wei vaguely guessed a bit.
"From the point of view of bloodline, according to the current commonly accepted standard, it is three generations! In other words, the son of Marshal Rollin and the princess became the successor of the Rowling family's head. But in terms of bloodline, that head already has half of the Royal Family's bloodline! Then, according to the Royal Family's plan, if the second Earl Rollin marries into the Royal Family, then the third Earl will have three quarters of the Royal Family's bloodline!! My Lord ….. if a person has three quarters of the Royal Family's blood, and only one quarter of the Rollin's blood ….. then, can you all tell me, is he a member of the Royal Family? Or is he a member of the Rollin family? Good, if this is not enough ….. then in the next generation, what if the Royal Family marries him?! Then in the future, how much of the Rollin family's blood will be left in the body?? "
This question made everyone feel a chill in their hearts!
Finally, Philip smiled: "As long as the Royal Family marries into the Royal Family for three generations, in the end, this family will naturally be merged with the Royal Family!"
Du Wei's face gradually became gloomy, he faintly remembered something!
Sure enough!
Philip's face also changed as he whispered: "That year, if I didn't guess wrongly, the Rowling family's military achievements were too great, and their influence in the military was also worrying. So the Royal Family used this soft knife to deal with the Rollin family. At most, after three generations, the Rollin family would be swallowed up by the Royal Family. But ….. who would have thought that in the end, a problem would appear, and the Royal Family's long term plan would be disrupted. "
At this point, Philip raised his head to look at Du Wei and smiled: "My Lord Duke, I have read up on history and know that there was a Earl among your ancestors. Originally, he should have married into the Royal Family, but in the end, this Earl Rollin was a sentimental person. He ignored the opposition of his family and outsiders, and fell in love with an extremely famous female astrologer! In the end, he even married that female astrologer as his wife ….. Am I right? This action made the Royal Family very unhappy, and after that, that Earl ….. died in his prime. His successor was still young, but in the end, the large Rowling family declined for a period of time. It was only after a few more outstanding people appeared in the family that the family rose again. "
Fell in love with a female astrologer? Married a female astrologer as his wife?
Of course, Du Wei knew who Philip was talking about!
But now that Philip was talking about this matter, he vaguely felt that there was a deeper meaning behind it.
Died in his prime? Could it be ….. that there was a conspiracy behind this?
With his mind in such a mess, Du Wei did not hear the rest of Philip's words clearly. He only vaguely heard Philip say: "….. The rejection of the marriage made the Royal Family very unhappy. I heard that the decline of the Rowling family for more than ten years was the result of suppression from all sides. In the end, because the power of the Rowling family no longer worried the Royal Family, they had a chance to rise again. Although the Rowling family of the future is still known as a military family, it is far too far away from the power of Marshal Rollin's era ….. "
Du Wei's face stiffened, but suddenly he heard a faint sigh in his mind.
….. Saimel!
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