Canglan City.

After the alliance reinforcements arrived, the orc army retreated, and the news of the completion of the mission reached the palace, not only did not smile on the faces of the princes and nobles, but their faces were gloomy and terrifying.

It seems that everything is developing for the better, but the casualty figures in their hands can't make them happy.

Nearly 600,000 troops remained in the orc steppe forever, the vitality of the Alpha Kingdom was greatly damaged, and the aristocratic group was almost crying and hanging white sails from every house.

As in previous wars, decades of wealth and military power accumulated by the kingdom were exhausted in the war.

"Why don't they talk anymore? Crying and clamoring to break through in front, the result now is what you want! ”

Caesar III said angrily.

Obviously, the last time the ministers jointly forced the palace, he still hasn't been able to let go.

The king is angry, and naturally no one goes up to touch the mold. At the moment, everyone's mood is not very good, and they want to dump the pot but can't find the backstabber.

Marshal Campbell died in battle, and if he threw the black cauldron again, Caesar III would definitely not agree.

As the initiators, the five major families of the Northland are the proper and powerful factions in the kingdom, and there is no lack of power in the court, so let them take responsibility, it is another endless fight.

The Terran Alliance is too extensive to provoke. Let them take the blame, that will lead to an international conflict.

Hudson, who is the best bully, just reached out and pulled everyone to a handful, and at this time he threw the black pot over, and the appearance was too ugly.

Everyone is a decent person, and you have to leave three points of leeway when doing things, otherwise it will be difficult to see each other in the future.

If there is no scapegoat, then you can only curse the orcs. But this is the Imperial Council, so there's no need to be so rude, and it's never too late to go back and scold the propaganda below.

"Your Majesty, orcs have always been cunning, and they may come back at some point. Now that the mission has been completed, let's get the army back! ”

Ephiero said openly and persuasively.

The Alpha Kingdom, which has suffered heavy losses, can no longer withstand the toss. In any case, the remaining elite of these kingdoms must be preserved.

Compared with previous wars, in this war, the Alpha Kingdom was beaten for the shortest time, the least land it had conquered, and the civilian casualties and domestic economic losses were also the lowest in history.

As long as the elite seeds are kept, it will take less than ten years for the kingdom to regain its strength. If production in the newly recovered provinces can be resumed, there is even hope that the national strength will go further.

Even though the losses are heavy now, among the Northland Terran kingdoms, the Alpha Kingdom is still the strongest.

As long as the Terran Alliance can give some strength and cripple the Orc Empire, the Alpha Kingdom will have no foreign threat in the next few decades, and it can farm with peace of mind.

From an overall strategic point of view, the Alpha Kingdom is actually the winner of this war with heavy losses. It's just that the price paid is a bit heavy, and it looks like it's about to die.

"Then let them withdraw!"

Caesar III nodded slightly.

There are priorities, and anger can arise at any time, but major military affairs must be dealt with immediately.

Not bringing emotions into decision-making was also an important factor in Caesar III's ability to firmly control the government. Even if he broke a pillar in the army, it still did not affect his status.

"Your Majesty, the reinforcements of the Terran Alliance have set out, and it will not be long before they will enter our country one after another, and then it will be our turn to launch a counteroffensive.

Considering the geographical location, we continue to deploy defenses on the front line of Bauhinia Pass and Helan Fort, which can no longer meet the needs of the next war.

With the first reinforcements from the alliance and the Duchy of Moxi coming to their aid, it's time to think about re-establishing a defensive line and stockpiling supplies on the newly recovered seven provinces of the Northlands in preparation for a major counteroffensive! ”

The Chancellor, the Archduke of Newfoundland, took the opportunity to suggest.

Originally, this was not in the plan, according to the previous concept, the Northern Expeditionary Army directly followed the "old knights" in the orc empire, and they could bring the enemy down.

It's a pity that the mentality of those old men is not very good, and after learning that Emperor Beamon died from the backlash of the secret method of immortality, one by one's mentality collapsed.

Except for the powerhouses who were originally in the Alpha Kingdom and still stayed in the army, the rest went back to their own affairs one by one.

Everyone knows that people who are dying can't be provoked. Even if he knew that these people had breached the contract and made the Northern Expeditionary Army miserable, the kingdom could only swallow the grievances in his stomach.

Running to the hinterland of the orc empire to make a fuss is not completely ineffective. The orcs slaughtered along the way were also in the millions.

The most important thing is to strike at the position of the five royal families in the hearts of the orcs, laying the foundation for the civil strife in the next orc empire.

"Prime Minister, restoring the defense line of the seven provinces in the Far North is not something that can be done overnight. The amount of manpower, finance, and material resources that need to be invested is an astronomical amount.

What's more, it is also necessary to consider that the enemy will come and destroy at any time, and the construction site will become a battlefield if you are not careful. Destruction can be done much faster than the speed of construction!

With the kingdom's current financial situation, it simply cannot afford such a large project. As for advancing the front and preparing for a major counteroffensive, I think it is better to postpone the discussion. ”

Delgado decisively refused.

It's not that he doesn't have strategic vision, it's that the Alpha Kingdom is too poor. The war has been going on so far that the treasury is empty and can run mice.

There is no money in his pocket, which makes him, the chancellor of the exchequer, very helpless.

Even if all the materials used to build the defense line were taken locally, the people always had to eat. Affected by the war, domestic grain production plummeted, and it was no longer able to meet the needs of the whole people, so it had to be purchased from overseas.

A penny is hard to beat a hero, not to mention that the Alpha Kingdom is not lacking a star and a half. The Kingdom's funding gap is tens of millions, which is more than a year's fiscal revenue, and it is not something that the Ministry of Finance can squeeze out if it wants to.

"Delgado, don't be in too much of a hurry. As for the money, didn't we just levy a war tax?

Grit your teeth and persevere, and you can always figure out a way. For the sake of the overall situation, everyone tightened their belts together and lived a hard life for a few years.

I'll take the lead and I won't be paid until the Kingdom's finances improve. The salaries of high-ranking officials in the Kingdom will be suspended, and the salaries of middle- and lower-level officials will be reduced by three to fifty percent as appropriate.

The budgets of various departments have also been pressed down; The bounty of the meritorious man is only distributed to the minor nobles, and the rest is owed first! ”

The Chancellor, the Archduke of Newfoundland, pretended to be determined.

There is no doubt that this is an offer to offend people. Since the outbreak of the war, the various benefits of officials have been greatly reduced, and even fewer have been reduced in this way.

departmental budgets, not to mention. After the outbreak of the war, except for the increasing expenses of the Ministry of Military Affairs, other departments were tightening their belts to get by.

On the contrary, it is the problem of military merit bounty, which is the easiest to solve. Because of the war, not only did the bounties stay on the books, but even the pensions of the fallen nobles did not have time to be paid.

Knowing that it was thunder, he had to step on it, who made him the prime minister of the kingdom?

As the head of a hundred officials, at such a critical moment, if he doesn't dare to come out and offend people, he can't let King Caesar III personally end up to pull hatred, right?

"Prime Minister, this is still far from enough.

Most of the officials of the kingdom are obligatory, and there are not many who need to be paid by the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Finance has already owed everyone two months of unpaid salaries.

The budgets of various departments are also pressed again and again, unless you can press down on the expenses of the Ministry of Military Affairs, at most you will squeeze out hundreds of thousands of gold coins.

The bounty of the aristocracy has long been embezzled by the Ministry of Finance. The millions of gold coins left in the account are still used for emergencies.

The crisis we are facing now cannot be solved by throttling. The only way to do this is to open source, for example: another war tax, or borrowing from the countries of the alliance!

Frankly, none of these are good options.

Last year alone, we collected the war tax three times, and again at the beginning of the year, and if we collect it again, many small nobles will not be able to support it.

In the case of foreign debt, I think Count Francis has more say. ”

Delgado said with a shrug.

The kingdom's finances have been able to hold on until now, and there has been no bankruptcy, and he, the chancellor of the exchequer, can proudly declare that he is worthy of the kingdom.

"The Chancellor of the Exchequer is right when he says that borrowing from countries is not a good option. Referring to our previous borrowing practices, the process is not pretty.

A few days ago, there was a kind of war bond in the Duchy of Moxi, and I think the Ministry of Finance can follow suit.

In fact, it is easier to raise funds by selling interest-bearing war bonds directly to the big nobles at home and abroad than by negotiating with governments. ”

Count Francis said with determination.

The Duchy of Moxi peddled war bonds everywhere, and it had long been in a uproar on the mainland. didn't sell the war bonds to the Alpha Kingdom, that's because everyone is a "rotten brother", and no one has a hard time.

As a foreign secretary, Count Francis naturally wanted to know about what happened in a neighboring country.

"We now have a funding gap of more than 30 million gold coins. So much money can be borrowed by issuing war bonds?

Be the first to state that usury is impossible. The kingdom's financial resources are limited and it is impossible to afford more than too high an interest rate. Even if it is a normal private loan, we can't afford it! ”

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Marquis Delgado, said solemnly.

Wanting to borrow money, but not being willing to bear high interest, is itself a set of contradictory propositions.

The great nobles do have patriotic feelings, but it is still unknown how much gold they are worth.

What's more, since the war has been going on so far, the nobles' family funds have also been consumed a lot, and they may not be much richer now.

Even if everyone is willing to support the kingdom, it will be difficult for them to come up with large sums of cash to buy war bonds, after all, people also have to save money for post-war reconstruction.

"Referring to the interest rate set by the Moxi people, combined with our actual situation, we printed a batch of war bonds and sold them for emergencies.

However, the specific figures, the Ministry of Finance must strictly control them, and they cannot exceed the kingdom's ability to repay! ”

Caesar III immediately made a decision.

The money that should be spent must be spent, even if there is no expedition of the Terran Alliance army, and the newly recovered seven provinces will also need to be included in the kingdom's defense line after the war.

Even now, you can move the border line a little north. Anyway, after so many years, the specific boundary line has become a mystery.

If you don't rely on the momentum of the Terran Alliance and occupy as much territory as possible, you will be a fool.

As long as the Terran Alliance recognizes it, it will become the legitimate territory of the Alpha Kingdom.

There is no need to worry about this kind of thing, the mainland overlord also wants to save face, and letting his younger brother give up the benefits that he has eaten in his stomach will not make all ethnic groups look down on the human race?

As long as you don't play too much, exceed the limit of your own digestion, and attract the jealousy of your allies, then it's not a big problem.

……

"Your Majesty, Marshal Campbell has unfortunately been killed, and there are so many troops gathered at the front, it is necessary for us to appoint a new commander-in-chief, who do you think is appropriate?"

Archduke Ephiero asked tentatively.

Frankly speaking, there are not many generals in the Alpha Kingdom Army who are qualified to be front-line commanders.

The great nobles of the south were basically excluded from the candidate list, and the reason was very simple - they lacked enough military exploits.

On the contrary, the nobles in the north, because they have been fighting with orcs all year round, have accumulated more military merits and have greater influence in the army.

This is their strength, but also their disadvantage.

From the king's point of view, it is not who has the most military achievements and the highest prestige, but who is the most suitable commander, but also the balance of all aspects.

"Who are the candidates for the Ministry of Military Affairs?"

Caesar III asked with concern.

This kind of procedure is necessary, even if you have your own candidate in mind, you have to see the reaction of the ministers first.

It's best to let your subordinates do it, and if the generals who nominated in person are denied by the ministers, it will be embarrassing.

This kind of thing is nothing new in the court. Caesar III is a powerful monarch, but he still needs to consult with everyone on important personnel appointments in the kingdom.

"The Ministry of War has drawn up six men, namely the Duke of Pias, the Duke of Argilon, the Duke of Dias, the Duke of Cavadia, the Earl of Hudson, and the Marquis of James."

As soon as the words of the Grand Duke of Ephiero fell, Caesar III's brows furrowed. There are a total of six candidates, and the first four are all members of the five major families of the Northland.

If it weren't for the fact that Duke Aarondo was killed by the orcs, and the prestige of the heir was insufficient, it is estimated that the five major families of the Northland would have been shortlisted together.

Almost without thinking, he ruled out the first four for the first time.

There is no way, the influence of the nobles in the north is too great in the army, if they let their people serve as commanders, then will the position of commander-in-chief of the standing army also be given to them in the future?

Originally, the standing army was stationed in the north all the year round, and the influence of the northland nobles in the army was very great, if another northland nobleman was appointed as the commander, in the long run, the military power was afraid that it would completely fall into the hands of the northland nobles.

There is no doubt that this kind of situation is something that no monarch wants to see.