Lavati is located south of Santiya, a day's journey away. On the wide and flat carriage road connecting Lavati and Santiya, a team of two hundred cavalry and three hundred infantry escorted more than two hundred carriages loaded with food, baggage, military supplies and ordnance, heading north in a mighty manner.
The commander of this large army was Angus Doyle, the deputy commander of the Welsh Army.
On the day that Santía was captured, Angus personally led the cavalry and elite mounted infantry southward, taking advantage of the fact that the large baggage battalion behind the Lombard Guards Army could not react before decisively attacking.
The Welsh Army went south to fight, and the war wasted a lot. However, until now, they have not mobilized much food and supplies from the Wells Province in the rear. A large amount of weapons and equipment were seized in the Battle of Rock Castle, and a lot of food baggage was also harvested from the enemy camp in the market town. Now that they have defeated the Patriot Army of Von Bilen, the food baggage of thousands of Patriot soldiers in the large baggage camp in the north of Lavati City has naturally been collected. Fighting to support fighting is the benefit of fighting in enemy territory.
Angus also encountered sporadic resistance along the way south from Santia, especially those strong fortresses dotted on the Po River plain that always had a few hard stones.
Angus was anxious to go south to seize the baggage left by von Bilen outside the city of Lavati, but he really did not have the time or energy to collect it one by one.
However, the Po River plain was flat enough. Angus captured two small castles with empty defenses along the way, and then bypassed the strong castles where most of the troops were stationed. Anyway, the Lombards who were huddled in them did not have the courage to leave the city to stop them.
Because of some detours, by the time Angus led his army to the Great Guard's baggage camp outside Lavati City, the hundreds of miscellaneous soldiers who had been left behind had basically fled. Only some greedy money-seeking guys were left who worked hard to carry the valuables in the military camp, and were killed by Angus's cavalry.
"It's a pity that the military pay and valuables have been swept away by those deserters, otherwise we could have gained hundreds of thousands of pfennigs." The cavalry company commander Lusignan, who was following Angus on horseback and holding a sword, sighed with regret.
Angus glanced at the wheat, bread, bacon, wine, livestock feed, tents, tools and other items that were piled in the carriage behind him. In fact, the harvest was abundant enough.
"Now we are not short of money and food. What we need most is sufficient soldiers. To capture the city of Santia, more than 20 castles and countless villages and estates in six counties on the Po River plain will become our occupied area. How many soldiers are needed to guard and manage such a large piece of land."
"That's why your Excellency will spread the security notices widely and try to contain the enemy soldiers as much as possible..."
Angus stopped and turned his head to look behind him, "Lusignan, let Jafar lead a team of cavalry to drive away the tail behind you. Don't let these worms follow for too long, it will make people sick."
“In addition, let Weitz send two squadrons to carry enough food and supplies to reinforce the two castles captured yesterday. I guess you will go south again in the near future. These two castles guard the main transportation routes going south. It is safer to hold them in your hands... .."
As the team headed north, a group of more than twenty cavalry followed them until they were driven away by dozens of light cavalry who rushed out of the team.
That is the sentinel sent from Lavati City.
When it was learned that hundreds of Burgundians were approaching Lavati on horseback, this autonomous city that had been quiet for a hundred years fell into extreme panic.
Lavati is an autonomous city with a high degree of autonomy in justice, administration, commerce and even military affairs. The wealthy businessmen in Lavati used tens of thousands of pounds of gold to buy the city's autonomous area from the Duke of Lombardy. In addition to paying symbolic business taxes to the Lombard court every year, it has almost become a state within a state in Lombardy for a hundred years. This is why they dared to ignore von Bilen's call-up order and even refused to allow the Patriot Army to enter the city.
But now they were scared. How could they have imagined that a group of barbarians who sprang out from the northern mountains could easily defeat thousands of von Bilen's Patriot troops.
Now that Santiya has been lost, Lavati has become the front line of fire facing the enemy.
Just when the city seemed to be facing a formidable enemy, the hundreds of Burgundian cavalry only occupied the main baggage camp of the Guardsmen outside the city and looted all the baggage, but did not attack Lavatiqiu.
This is Yate's strategy. Lavati is different from ordinary Lombard castles. It is not only an autonomous city-state of the Lombardy Principality, almost independent of the entire principality, but also the closest commercial city-state to the Province of Wales on the Po River Plain. It is an important commercial hub for transactions between the southern coast and the interior.
· If Art wants to establish a trade route that runs from north to south, he must preserve this city-state intact and take it into his own...
· · ........................
· At the Wells Army garrison camp, a unique prisoner-of-war interrogation is underway in a tense and lively manner.
In the camp where ordinary surrendered soldiers were detained, five dilapidated wooden tables moved from the market town were lined up. Behind each wooden table sat an official holding a quill. In front of the wooden table, five long teams lined up in a crooked queue, waiting for the official's inquiries.
…"Have you killed any Burgundian soldiers in the battle the day before yesterday? Did any relatives or friends die in the battle?" The official asked a question in fluent Lombardy, then raised his head and stared at the sturdy Lombard soldier in front of him.
"No, no, sir. I was forced to the battlefield by the lord. I didn't dare to kill. I just knocked over a Burgundian master's horse with a hammer, but I didn't dare to kill. Well, I have no friends in the army. They all dislike me for eating too much and hate me."
The official nodded with satisfaction and wrote after the name of the surrendered soldier: "He is physically strong, has not killed our troops, has no personal grudges, and is a little dull, so he can be classified as second class."
The official asked Jiang Bing to stretch out his palm and draw a circle on the palm of this simple-minded Jiang Bing with well-developed limbs. "Okay, go to the kitchen and show this pattern to the soldiers, and you can get a large piece of bread."
The big Jiang Bing took back his palm and looked at it in disbelief. He couldn't figure out why the circle in his hand could be exchanged for a piece of bread.
"Next."
"What's your name?"
"Hammer Marin."
"Have you ever killed a Burgundian soldier? Have any relatives or friends been killed by Burgundian soldiers?"
「我碰到了铁桶重甲，没能杀掉勃艮第人，倒是有一个伙伴被你们干掉，不过佣兵从来都是提着脑袋求食，生死不由己。」
「每月六十芬尼，食宿统管，可愿意加入我们？」
"You are quite capable, and the treatment is good, I have no reason to refuse."
The official lowered his head and began to write after "Iron Hammer Marin" "Mercenaries, with murderous intent and no personal hatred, can be classified as the same class."
The official asked this Hammer Marlin stretched out his hand and drew a cross on his palm, "It will bring you good luck, don't wipe it off in a hurry. Show this to the kitchen attendant, and you will get a delicious lunch and a large glass of Welsh beer..."
"Quick, next one..."
…..
… The task of screening and selecting prisoners of war has ended. After statistics and classification by Chinese army officials, there are 465 people suitable to be incorporated into the Welsh Army as front-line soldiers. Most of these people have some combat capability, and many of them have even participated in several battles."
"A total of 890 people can be incorporated into the second-line army to assist us in garrisoning and ruling the occupied areas Six people, most of whom are from common people, are young and relatively simple, and do not have much hatred towards us. They expressed their willingness to be loyal to the Wells family and restore the family honor and territory for the Baron of Wells."
"Cunning and cunning. There are more than four hundred people who are cunning, timid, harboring hatred and unwilling to be loyal. Half of them are von Bilen's personal soldiers, and the rest are just mud.
Bob, the secretary of the Welsh Army Corps, closed the papyrus in his hand and waited for Art's next words.
"There is nothing to arrange. The first batch of people are handed over to Kazak, and he is asked to form the Lombard branch of the Welsh Army immediately after a little training. He selects some veterans from the first branch to serve as officers, and then assigns them a few interpreters who understand Lombardy."
"Obot is about to lead the reserve regiment to fight south, and select 400 stronger ones from the second batch to strengthen their strength. The remaining surrendered troops in the second batch are handed over to the administrative officer named Ian, who seems to still have the military title of captain of the garrison flag. These more than 500 Lombard surrendered troops are suitable as garrison troops in the occupied area, and are dispersed to various places to control the occupied area for us. With Lombard soldiers ruling the Lombard people, the resistance will be smaller."
“In addition, there is a group of Christopher’s tribe in Obote’s reserve group. They are all people who fled north from Lombardy. They are loyal and brave enough and can speak Lombardy. He asked Obote to transfer a few to Ian to help him control the new people under his command. "As for those who refuse to be loyal or are of no use, let Obote send people to escort me back to the Wells Valley and punish them as war slaves."
h Are there any nobles and officers under Von Bilen who are willing to be loyal? "
"There are five junior officers who are willing to be loyal to you, and the rest are..."
"Very good, all five officers will be promoted to the first level and incorporated into the Lombard Division as officers. The rest who are unwilling to cooperate will be taken back to the Province of Wales together with Von Biron, and they will be temporarily imprisoned. If they are unwilling to cooperate, then let them bleed."
Bob quickly wrote down Art’s military order on the papyrus paper.
At this time, Ron broke into Art's camp with a piece of information. Seeing the secretary Bob in the camp, Ron did not shy away, "Sir, important military information has been reported back from neighboring countries..."