Money opened the way, the purchase of grain began to go very smoothly, and the neighboring countries were quite rich in grain, and even if they were sold to Eugen at an average price, other countries could make a lot of profits.

However, only two days later, the situation changed, and it turned out that the nobles of various countries were aware of the shortage of food in the Holy Roman Empire, and even issued orders to force the reduction of grain exports.

All the merchant ships that sailed from the Holy Roman Empire to various countries to buy grain were actually seized by them, and the funds used to buy grain were also robbed, obviously a group of nobles, but they were even more shameless than robbers.

The food could not be brought back, the money was gone, and even the people who were sent out were detained.

A series of news reached Eugen's table, and Eugen was immediately furious, slamming the table and shouting: "What do these guys want to do? We also helped them stop the Black Death, knowing that it should have been allowed to spread in their country. ”

Of course, these words are just words, and Eugen can't do such an angry thing.

Eugen had just returned to Lebor the day after returning from the trade fair in San Marino, when he heard such news, which naturally made him very angry.

Parma and Allen, who participated in the meeting, glanced at each other, and they could also see that Eugen was really angry, but in this kind of business game, the most important thing is to stay calm.

Then Parma stood up and said, "Lord Eugen, let's not be in a hurry about this matter for now, it is better to send an envoy to the surrounding countries to see what they mean. ”

After Parma finished speaking, Allen on the other side also stood up, and then Parma's words said: "Yes, and we are not qualified to send envoys, even if we send them, the weight may be a little insufficient, it is better to contact Vienna for this matter, and the royal family will send envoys, so that it can also represent the majesty of the royal family, and the weight is naturally different." ”

Hearing the words of the two of them, Eugen also calmed down, pondered for a moment, he still nodded and said: "It can be, but I don't know if our current food can still support a few days, if these things are delayed for too long, there may be some unexpected problems." ”

Grain storage has always been managed by Parma, and when he heard Eugen's question, he said: "Although there is a shortage of food, but as far as the current situation is concerned, it should be enough to maintain the normal supply for about half a month, and after half a month, the price of grain will rise sharply, but it can also be barely maintained, and in the current situation, it will not break out until a month later, the real famine will break out." ”

It's only mid-July, and the autumn grain harvest is still about three months away, which means that if this problem is not solved, the whole empire will fall into a two-month famine.

In this era, famine was second only to the Black Death in a terrible way, and presumably it had a greater impact on the ordinary poor.

If the poor die because they don't have enough to eat, it will cause the population of the empire to drop sharply, and the population is a vital resource for that country, and without the population, there will not be enough labor, and production will naturally slow down.

It is only after a long period of time that the population can gradually recover.

"Well, one month, it should be enough, then I will write a letter to His Majesty Emperor Charles VI to explain the situation and ask him to send an emissary." Eugen nodded and agreed to the plan proposed by the two.

But on the other side, he spoke again: "Even so, we must be prepared for the second hand, Allen, how big is the current army of our Lebor City. ”

Although Alan retired from the army due to a wound in his left arm and took up clerical work, his current work still has a lot to do with the army, and when he heard Eugen's question at this moment, he replied directly: "My lord, the current standing army of Lybor City is only one kind of Longxiang Army, and if you include the garrison soldiers from all over the country, the total number should be about 17,000." ”

After a pause, Alan continued: "However, the garrison soldiers in various places are not easy to transfer, so the soldiers who can fight freely are still maintained at around 10,000 as before, and these 10,000 people are all Longxiang Army, which has experienced many battles, and the combat effectiveness is sufficient to guarantee." ”

"Hmm, 10,000?"

Eugen spoke softly, with a thoughtful look in his eyes, and after a while, he spoke: "Not enough, far from enough, so let's start recruiting soldiers, and increase the welfare of soldiers again, and the number of the Dragon Hidden Army must be maintained at least 50,000 to be able to cope with the next things." ”

Hearing Eugen's words, Allen's face was embarrassed, he hesitated for a moment, and finally spoke: "My lord, 50,000 people, will the number be a bit much, at the moment our various departments are in the development stage, and there is really a shortage of manpower, if 50,000 soldiers are recruited, there may be problems in the development of other aspects." ”

What Allen said is also true, although some of the refugees on the Bo River defense line were absorbed before, the number of people in Lebor City was still on the small side, even if you count the population of other surrounding cities and villages, the total number is only about one million.

Don't look at this number as if it's a lot, but it's only when you count all the other people, including children, women, and the elderly, that you can reach this number.

Among them, the number of young and middle-aged people who can become soldiers is only 300,000 at most, and at the same time, young and middle-aged people are the necessary labor force for people in various industries.

In this case, it would be too difficult for the city of Liber to transfer one-sixth of the number of soldiers to become soldiers, even with sufficient financial support.

Hearing Allen's words, Eugen also showed a contemplative look on his face, he also knew some about these situations, but he also had his own worries, in fact, 50,000 soldiers were a bit insufficient in his opinion.

After all, if the situation continues to deteriorate, it is very likely that the city of Lybor will go to war with all the surrounding countries at the same time, whether it is the French Empire or the British Empire, it will be a difficult opponent to deal with.

And Eugen predicted that it would be difficult for him to get support from other nobles, after all, the Wittelsbach family had been crippled by him, and there was not much left of the Papal coalition.

As for the Habsburgs, there is no way to count on it, after all, after the previous war, the Habsburgs' military strength is still far from recovering.

The only thing to count on was the scattered aristocracy of the southwest.

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