The wooden rafts that had been inserted into the trench as a partition had been pulled up before the water came, forming a solid wooden bridge over the trench. If the defending generals of the Flondor Principality knew that the idea of using wooden rafts to block the trench was just a brainchild of a heavy-armored soldier, they would probably vomit blood in anger. The second prince had ordered the soldiers who had occupied the front position to transport the wooden rafts up just so that they could build a simple camp to defend at night. He also intended to demolish the camp when the water flooded the trench and quickly use the wooden rafts to build a wooden bridge across the trench.
A captain of the White Lion Legion, who was ordered to garrison, had a headache looking at the trench that extended in all directions. At that time, the situation was that the attackers were in charge of the day, and the defenders were in charge of the night. The captain believed that if these trenches were not blocked, even if they used wooden rafts to build a temporary camp, they would still be attacked by the local rats of the dukedom at night. With some oil and fire arrows, everyone would be able to spend a sleepless night burning. But His Highness's order was very clear: they were not to do anything to block the trench.
Although the captain did not know that His Highness was about to carry out a plan to flood the trench, he still did not want his soldiers to lose their lives in the night attack. In distress, he gathered the platoon jarls and squad jarls under him to discuss how to deal with the Duchy's soil rats' night attacks and sneak attacks. Just as the large group of people were scratching their heads and trying to come up with a good plan, a soldier who was standing guard at the side interrupted. The width of these wooden rafts was about the same as the width of the trench. Why didn't they insert the wooden rafts into the trench as a partition?
The captain was overjoyed and asked the soldier how he thought of this idea. The soldier said embarrassedly that he made a mistake while carrying the rafts and startled the pack horse. As a result, the rafts all fell into the trench, and it took him a long time to pull them up again. So the squad jarl punished him and made him stand guard here. Just now, the captain brought so many platoon jarls and squad jarls to inspect the position and discuss how to deal with the Duchy's soil rats' night attacks. He remembered the difficulty of pulling the rafts up the trench, and some of the rafts were stuck in the trench, so he interjected.
This was the wooden raft tactic that gave the defending generals of the Flondor Principality a headache and a great deal of pressure. They had neglected the most threatening tactic to the trench defense, the water attack. If they had not been deceived, they would have found out what the second prince was up to as long as they strengthened the scouting. After all, whether it was Lulest recruiting the poor to build a small reservoir or digging a trench that was four or five miles long, these were not small movements. No matter how strict the precautions were, they would still be able to detect some movements. Unfortunately, they were all led astray by this wooden raft tactic.
The sky was already bright. Following the flooded trench, the soldiers of the White Lion Legion had successfully reached the place where the Second Garrison Regiment of the Flondor Principality was preparing to launch a counterattack last night. Here, they had captured more than ten thousand soldiers of the Second Garrison Regiment, who were drenched to the skin. Almost all of these soldiers were empty-handed, and even if they had weapons, they had lost the will to resist. They had been frightened by the sudden flood in the early hours of the morning, especially when the corpses of their companions who had drowned in the trench appeared in front of them. The boundary between life and death was between above and below, only half a meter apart …
After receiving the report, the second prince, Laurist, and Duke Fisablun had already rushed over. Seeing the large trench full of corpses, everyone was shocked. Even if the trench was flooded, they thought that it would only drive the defending Duchy's soil rats to the surface, but drowning nearly ten thousand soldiers was an unexpected result.
But when they heard the report that the Second Garrison Regiment of the Flondor Principality was preparing to launch a major counterattack last night, they suddenly realized that it was really a freak accident. They could only blame the enemy for being unlucky, and they just happened to go easy on them. Eight trench squares had now become ponds, and nearly twenty thousand soldiers had escaped. Except for the trench square that was slightly higher, almost half of the soldiers had drowned. The trench square where Viscount Zhang Sanskro was located was the most miserable. Only five hundred and twenty-four soldiers had escaped.
The body of Viscount Sanskro, who had committed suicide and fallen into the water, had been fished out. In order to show his condolences and respect, the second prince had ordered the enemy commander to prepare a good coffin for him to be sent to his relatives in the future. Now, the soldiers of the White Lion Legion were still searching for survivors in the trench squares, and were preparing to organize the captured garrison soldiers to salvage the bodies of the drowned.
On the other side of the camp, four-wheeled carriages loaded with wooden rafts were struggling to move forward on a wooden path formed by two wooden rafts side by side. On the side, many soldiers were using wooden planks to fix the gaps on the wooden path, so that the wheels of the carriages carrying heavy loads would not sink in. These wooden rafts would be sent to the front, and the wooden raft road would continue to extend into the distance …
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty …" A chiliarch of the White Lion Legion hurried over and saluted. "The water in front has stopped …"
"Hmm? What happened? "asked the second prince.
"Your Majesty, the trench in front has reached its end. The water is no longer flowing forward, and some low-lying areas have begun to overflow. According to the scouts, there is an open plain in front of the trench area, more than three miles wide. But after that, there is a large trench defensive position, "replied the chiliarch.
Oh, everyone understood. The trench defensive area set up by the Flondor Principality was not connected to the front and back, or rather, they did not have the time and energy to dig a communication trench. It was also possible that the flat area was used for training or gathering of troops.
"Let's go take a look." The second prince waved the whip in his hand and urged his horse to gallop forward along the wooden raft road. Laurist, Duke Fisablun, and the others followed one after another.
"What should we do?" asked the second prince after looking at the position.
"Haha, dig the trench and connect it, but first block the small reservoir at the back to prevent the position we occupied from turning into a swamp. We will continue to attack the position in front. Once the trench is dug and the water is released, the position will fall into our hands. But now that the enemy is prepared, it is impossible to have a scene like last night where nearly ten thousand people drowned, "replied Laurist with a smile.
"Haha …" Duke Fisablun grinned. "In the past, they dug the trench vigorously and built so many earthen walls. Now, they are busy knocking down earthen walls and filling the trench to prevent it from being flooded. If they had known this would happen, they would not have gone through so much trouble. It is ridiculous to think about it in vain! I believe they are regretting it now … Haha … "
Everyone present laughed. The world was changing in a strange way. Originally, the attacking side was desperately filling in the trenches, while the defending side was desperately digging the trenches. Now, everything was reversed. The attacking side dug the trench to divert water, while the defending side had to fill the trench to block the water. The switch between attack and defense was really ridiculous.
The second prince nodded. "Alright, let's do it this way. Duke Kenneth, let your family's two heavy armoured troops continue to cooperate with the White Lion Legion to attack the trench defense position in front this afternoon. First, occupy the trench in front. By the way, that soldier from your family's heavy armoured troops came up with the tactic of using wooden rafts to block the trench. It is very effective in dealing with the Duchy's rats running around in the trench. It is worthy of a heavy reward … "
Duke Kenneth's face was full of smiles. "Of course, I have already ordered to record the soldier's merit. The family will promote and put him in an important position."
The second prince nodded and continued to give orders to the guards beside him. "Order those in charge of logistics to speed up the transportation of materials and wooden rafts. While the soldiers attack the trench defense area in front, build a temporary camp in this open space so that the White Lion Legion and the heavy armoured troops can take turns to rest. At the same time, strengthen the defense to prevent the enemy from mobilizing their troops to launch a last-ditch counterattack. "
"Yes, Your Majesty."
… …
The Grand Duke of Frendor gazed at the palatial castle in front of him for a long time. The walls were covered in moss. This was the family castle that his ancestors spent seventeen years to build. It was named the Summer Palace. In the previous era of the Crimson Empire, the Summer Palace was one of the ten most famous palaces in the Empire. He had lived here since he was a child. Every corner and secret place of the Summer Palace and its attached castle and gardens was left with his shadow and laughter …
"Your Highness, we should go …" the guard beside him reminded him.
The Grand Duke of Frendor withdrew his reluctant gaze and sighed. "I must be the most unfilial descendant of the Frendor family. To think that I would give up my family's territory and glory for two or three hundred years to seek refuge in the Handa Principality. If my ancestors knew about this, they would definitely curse and roar at me in the Kingdom of the God of War. "
"No, Your Highness, this is not your fault. The only one to blame is the cunning king of the Andinac Kingdom. He actually used water to drown our trench defense line, causing the trench that we dug with all our strength to lose its ability to stop the enemy …" The guard felt that his words were really clumsy. He clearly wanted to comfort the Grand Duke of Frendor, but in the end, he did not know where he was going with his words.
The Grand Duke of Frendor smiled bitterly. "Don't say anymore, Rikel. Now everyone knows that we spent three months to recruit all the people of the Duchy to dig so many trenches for defense. It has become a big joke. Why didn't we think that a simple water attack would make all our efforts go to waste? It's a pity that Sanskro died. He should know that I won't blame him for coming up with the idea of digging trenches. He shouldn't have committed suicide. "
"Your Highness …"
The Grand Duke of Frendor waved his hand, gesturing for his guard not to speak. He turned around and looked at the empty and quiet summer palace, which no longer had the bustling scene of the past. He sighed again and withdrew his nostalgic gaze. He said to his guard, "Let's go, Rikel. I don't know if I can return to this summer palace built by my ancestors in my lifetime …"
As they walked out of the gate of the summer palace and mounted the white horse that was already waiting at the gate, they heard the sound of galloping hooves. A guard rushed over and jumped off the horse, kneeling on one knee in front of the Grand Duke of Frendor's horse. "Your Highness, Lord Noori refused to lead the army to retreat to the Handa Principality. He asked me to tell Your Highness that the army of the Andinac Kingdom can't do anything to the army in the Pederona Hills. He said that he has decided to continue the resistance and guerrilla warfare in the Pederona Hills. He wants all the people of the principality to know that Your Highness has not given up on them, and that the army of the principality is still resisting the enemy's invasion … "
The Grand Duke of Frendor seemed to be unsurprised as he waved his hand and gestured for the guard to stand up. "I don't find it strange that Noori has such an attitude. Forget it, it will be winter in ten days. It's impossible for the second prince to attack the army in the Pederona Hills. Even if it's until next year, Noori will have enough space for him to maneuver. Furthermore, the army has sufficient supplies. If he doesn't want to retreat to the Handa Principality without fighting a few battles, then let him go."
"Rikel, has everyone left?" The Grand Duke of Frendor turned around and asked his guard.
"Yes, Your Highness," the guard replied respectfully. The guard replied respectfully, "The eldest prince was the first to set off with his family, escorting the supplies and the first garrison legion seven days ago. The second prince and the great swordsman, Lord Rimard, are leading the third garrison legion in Town Kurd, waiting to meet up with Your Highness. We are the only guards left in the city now. "
"Alright, let's go. By the way, has there been any messengers from Belias? "
"No. Didn't Lord Belias send a messenger yesterday? He said that they could only hold on for two more days. The Andinac Kingdom's army is unstoppable. The fifth garrison legion, which was formed by the garrison of each town, could not resist the enemy's attack at all. They suffered heavy casualties. Lord Bielias had used the military law of supervising the troops and severe punishment to suppress the soldiers' attempts to escape. That's why he wants you to leave Pederona City as soon as possible and head to the Handa Principality … "
The Grand Duke of Frendor smiled bitterly and shook his head. "Alright, Rikel, let's go. I only hope that Belias can come back safely … "
After exiting the gate of the castle, they arrived at the central street of Pederona City, the capital of the principality. More and more citizens began to gather on both sides of the central street. Now, everyone knew that the Andinac Kingdom's army was about to arrive. The trench defense that the citizens of Frendor took three months to dig could not stop the enemy's attack. For the past 20 days, there had been urgent letters asking for help almost every day. In order to prevent the citizens of Pederona City from getting hurt, the Grand Duke of Frendor decided to abandon the city and leave for the Handa Principality.
Some of the citizens gathered on both sides of the street began to wipe away their tears. The atmosphere was extremely depressing and desolate. Most of the citizens just silently watched the Grand Duke of Frendor and his guards leave …
When they were about to reach the southern gate of Pederona City, the Grand Duke of Frendor finally pulled the reins and stopped his horse. A fat figure walked out from the crowd on the right side of the street and came to the side of the Grand Duke's horse.
The Grand Duke smiled and nodded at the fat man in his fifties. "Marit, my friend, I'll leave this city to you after I leave. I hope that you can protect the safety of the citizens of this city. I hope to see you again in the near future. "
"Your Highness, I'll definitely do my best," the fat man called Marit replied with a bow. He was a merchant who had dealings with the Snow Salt Merchant Guild and Duke Kemus. The Grand Duke of Frendor had asked him to represent the citizens of the city and surrender to the Andinac Kingdom's army, hoping to maintain military discipline and not harm the citizens of Pederona City.
"Marit, there are two-thirds of the food reserves in the warehouse behind the Summer Palace. You can take the Andinac Kingdom's army there," the Grand Duke of Frendor said.
Marit was stunned. "Your Highness, what are you …?"
The Grand Duke of Frendor smiled bitterly. "Marit, the Andinac Kingdom's army this time is as high as 300,000 people. If they don't get enough food, they'll rob the citizens of the duchy. With these rations in reserve, they won't be able to cause too much harm to the people of our dukedom … "
Marit bowed again. "Thank you, Your Highness."
…
At the same time, in the southern suburbs of Falemose City, the capital of Falemose Duchy, Grand Duke Falemose's eyes were bloodshot. "They've already been chased out. Why aren't you doing anything? Hurry up and burn this place to the ground! I'll never allow that damned second prince to enter my city and my palace! Burn! Hurry up and burn! "
The wind fanned the flames, and soon, the entire Falemose City was engulfed in a sea of fire. The tens of thousands of citizens who were chased out of the city looked at their burning homes, and their cries shook the heavens …
Grand Duke Falemose turned his horse around indifferently and ordered, "Let's go to Handa Duchy. We still have an army. When we reach Handa Duchy, we'll slowly compete with that damned second prince. It won't be that easy to destroy the four central duchies! "
…
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