The Universal Gate is like a landmark into Epirus, standing thick and resolute at the exit of the Forest of Combrigne. The two blockhouses facing each other not only gave the Universal Gate a strong religious atmosphere, but also served as the strongest line of defense on the outskirts of Epirus.

After leaving the gates of the world, there is the endless mountain range of Epirus. The trees here shade the sky and the roads are rugged. It is known as the Path of Training for refugees who seek refuge in Epirus.

"His Majesty ...... John"

"Since the gooseberries are not happy to fly, send a few more outposts." John touched the drenched falcon, the weather was not suitable for the little one to fly.

He glanced up at the twilight sky, which was completely obscured by the shade of the trees.

This rare rainstorm, although the rain is much lighter, still has no tendency to stop. Because the mountains of Epirus have been washed away by rains for a long time, the structure will become very unstable. For the safety of the miners and geologists, John temporarily halted work at the Gombryne gold mine and built improvised embankments along several rivers that could easily burst. This was indeed a short-term economic situation for the Empire, without which the date of the loan to Venice would have been several days in advance.

What's even more difficult is that the heavy rain will undoubtedly reduce this year's grain production, and if the Moreah granary can't withstand the pressure, it will be a huge expense to import grain at that time, and those Westerners don't care if you are an empire or a heretic.

"This is still the border of the Empire, but it is true that the possibility of a small Ottoman army infiltrating cannot be ruled out, and I have suffered a loss." John jumped off the back of his mare Jobs, "Rest under the gate of the world today, don't go deep into the forest until the sentinel returns." ”

"As you wish, Your Majesty." Giovanni greeted John slightly. John's composure is a significant improvement from when the two of them first started, and although there is still much to be improved in the field command, Giovanni can assert that John will definitely become one of the most powerful rulers of the empire in the future.

The army was not in a hurry, and once Albania and Hungary had attracted enough attention from Muhammad, the Phoenix Legion could charge behind the Ottomans or flexibly support the Edirne battlefield. Such a sharp knife was definitely worthy of Muhammad's fear.

There were a lot of fortress attacks on the Hungarian-Ottoman border, and it was certainly an uphill battle for Hungary. Although the Ottomans did not defend the border, the strong fortifications were enough to trap the Hungarian soldiers, who were not very demoralized today, for a long time.

As for Derj, this guy lost his news after leaving Constantinople. At the dinner, he vowed to surprise the Empire, but John couldn't figure out what the purpose of this man was to break away from the battle sequence and cut off all contact.

For this reason, John even speculated about the possibility of his betrayal of the Holy Covenant. However, the idea of sending troops to garrison the border between Albania and Epirus was dissuaded by Sophia.

"General Giovanni, the supply lines can be quite lengthy, and the army's supplies are not easily transported between the mountains. Transporting food from the Morea to the port of Avelle along a rugged mountain road can not only spoil the food from moisture, but also risk plunder. ”

Under the fortress of the mountain gate, the Phoenix Legion camped along the forest line. The tents are connected in series for nearly a kilometer, which is extremely spectacular.

"Your Highness Princess, we have distributed to our soldiers hard jerky and grape leaf burritos, as well as finely ground meat floss, which are sufficient to gain sufficient strength in a short time. However, the problem of grain and grass is indeed quite tricky, and if there is a way to quickly transport food and pay in the steep mountain paths, I am afraid that it will be of great help to the war. ”

John stared at the detailed map drawn by hand by the guard guards and said casually, "If it works, we can hire some people." It doesn't have to be a man, as long as you can build an assembly line between the mountain roads, it will be much easier to transport food than a truckload of people to the end. ”

"Wait, Your Majesty, what did you just say...... Water...... Line? ”

Saying the word in Greek was quite awkward for Giovanni, and it was certainly a completely new word for all of you. Even Sophia pulled attention back from the Hadrian Polis Chronicles in her hand.

"Ah...... It's okay, it's just a metaphor. John hastily explained, "Look at the gurgling water beside Fort Combrigne, if there is a break in it, it will dry up, but as long as the water is uninterrupted, it will never dry up." ”

"Brother, so you said it...... Water...... Line, what exactly is it? Sophia asked.

"By conscripting the people of the villages along the route, the distance of each section of the transportation of food is shortened, and in this way, a lot of time and military experience will be saved. The soldiers who escort the grain and grass only need to be responsible for guarding the surrounding security, and do not need to waste extra physical strength. In the absence of a better tool to take on this task, the assembly line is the best choice. ”

John wanted to study the so-called wooden oxen and horses, but unfortunately it was a great suffering and torture for him.

"Your Majesty...... It sounds great, but does it really go that smoothly in practice? It sounds like we need to recruit a lot of people, and if we do this kind of work on a rainy day, the civilians may be vulnerable to disease, and there may be a new outbreak of plague. Our soldiers also had to prevent civilians from stealing the army's salaries...... These are all issues that need to be addressed. ”

"If the food guards can't even manage the civilians, what is the need for the empire to pay them for provisions? As for the civilian population...... Write a letter to Jeffrey and ask him to deal with the matter, since we have built many watchtowers in the mountains and forests of Combrigne, let us not waste it, and provide the civilians involved in the movement with stew and a small amount of money in exchange for their work. This should not be difficult, in times of war, it would be a waste of power for civilians to just sit on the sidelines. John tossed around the map, and the dense signs of mountains and cliffs made him a little dizzy.

"Civilians only need to provide taxes...... Can they help us do more? "Giovanni, who was deeply influenced by the education of the aristocracy, although he was superior in warfare, his views on the commoners, like those of the traditional aristocracy, did not change much.

"You can see, I'm sure of that, old Jeffrey will understand more than you do."

With that, John took a pen and paper from his desk and transcribed the letter to Fort Gombrine.