Chapter 278: William's transfer
has entered March, and the Harland family has received good news again. William's strength has taken a further step, rising to the ninth level. Although the strength of warriors is much different than that of knights, ninth-level warriors can already compete with eighth-level golden knights.
The strength of a deputy legion has been promoted to the ninth level. He has repeatedly achieved military exploits and is already qualified to take a step further and serve as the commander of the main legion. For ordinary second-line legions, seventh-level warriors can be qualified as legion commanders, and even fourth- and fifth-level noble knights have served as second-line legion commanders. However,
for the eight main legions directly under the central government, the requirements for serving as legion commanders are very high. Only eighth-level golden knights and ninth-level warriors are eligible to serve. If the strength is insufficient, it will not be able to suppress the arrogant and powerful generals below, and it will not be able to convince the crowd.
Three of the eight main legion commanders of the Grant Kingdom are ninth-level epic knights, and three are eighth-level golden knights. The commander of the Grizzly Bear Legion is temporarily vacant, and only one is a ninth-level warrior. Such important positions are basically held by powerful noble knights.
Of course, although the warriors are weaker, as long as they have strong command skills and are valued by Nolan's upper management, they still have the opportunity to serve as the commander of the main army.
Donny Martins, the meritorious commander of the Northern Legion, is a ninth-level warrior. He once severely injured the orcs, led the team to kill the legendary wild boar, and gained the reputation of the pig hunter.
Although Earl Martins died in the battle, he was the founder of the earl family. His reputation in the Grant Kingdom was not inferior to that of Richard, and he had a very high reputation.
More than ten years ago, Count Martins planned to marry his granddaughter to Richard.
Although William was promoted to a ninth-level warrior, it was impossible to squeeze out the legion commander Rab and take over as the commander of the Northern Legion. Rab and William were both old men of the Northern Army. One of them had served as the captain of the Sixth Brigade and the other as the captain of the Cavalry Brigade. In terms of prestige in the Northern Army, Rabb was somewhat stronger than William.
In the past ten years, the Northern Army has had four commanders. Martins and Zachary have both made great achievements in combat. Stein was unable to assume the important task due to lack of ability. Although Rab's commanding ability was not as good as that of Martins and Zachary, he was still a qualified commander of the main army and was valued by King Roger.
In addition, Rab has advanced to a ninth-level epic knight, is very good at charging into battle, and is an excellent offensive general.
Rab was three years younger than William, and his strength and prestige were somewhat higher than his. With him standing in front of him, it would be impossible for William to develop in the Northern Army.
After advancing to the ninth level warrior, William wrote a letter to Marquis Allen, hoping that the Marquis would recommend William in front of the king and find an opportunity to transfer him.
Of the eight main legions of the Grant Kingdom, four are the Royal Guards.
Although the Royal Guards are better equipped, their actual combat effectiveness is somewhat weaker than the Border Legion, which faces orc invasions all year round. There is an unspoken rule among the Guards, and it is easier for people with Grant family blood to climb to the top.
The commanders of the Royal Guards are basically selected from within the system and will not be transferred from outside at all.
Moreover, a proud and arrogant person like William still wants to continue to accumulate merits and has no desire to join the Royal Guards.
Each of the four central provinces in the north has a main army. The Iron Lion Legion in Grotta Province was expanded from the coalition of nobles under Zachary. This legion has been in the flames of war for many years, and its combat effectiveness has steadily improved over the years. Zachary has been under the command of Zachary since the Atonement Legion. Zachary has extremely high prestige in this legion. It is impossible for William to squeeze out the old commander and take over in the Iron Lion Legion.
Even if King Roger doesn't like Zachary, he doesn't dare to take the risk of replacing him.
The Iron Lion Army, an army that rolled over in the flames of war, would probably not be able to take command if a stranger took over.
King Roger has served as a front-line commander for many years and understands military morale very well. Compared with King Charlie, Roger is also a person who takes the overall situation into consideration and knows how to compromise.
The Mad Lion Legion participated in the rebellion that year, and the command system underwent a major change. The legion commander gained the trust of King Roger, so it was naturally impossible to replace him.
Only the Grizzly Bear Legion was severely damaged by the orcs two years ago, and the legion leader was seriously injured. After recuperating for a period of time, he could no longer bear responsibility. He resigned two months ago, leaving the corps commander temporarily vacant.
The political status of the commander of the main army legion is very high, which is also a big advantage. Several qualified noble officers and the two deputy commanders of the Royal Guards all wanted to transfer people and asked people to work in Nolan.
The Grizzlies are located on the front line and are under heavy defensive pressure.
Because Duke Jonathan deployed two legions into the Grand Duchy of Stanek, despite the expansion of the Iron Lion Legion, the Harland Territory legion has expanded, and the number of troops stationed on the northern front of the Grant Kingdom has also been reduced by 20,000.
If you have insufficient war experience and poor command skills, even if you are very strong, you will not be able to assume the responsibility of the commander of the main army.
None of Nolan's candidates had much war experience. King Roger's opinion is to transfer people from experienced officers in northern Xinjiang.
William had reached this point, and of course he did not want to command the second-line army. After receiving the recommendation from Marquis Allen, he obtained the approval of King Roger.
In late March, William received an invitation from King Roger to report on his duties at Nolan. After a long talk with William, King Roger finally made up his mind, promoted William's military rank, and appointed him as the commander of the Grizzly Bear Legion.
William was transferred to the Grizzlies, and the Harland family's influence increased again.
Although the Harland family has developed rapidly, it does not have much foundation. It is not as powerful as several duke families and will not be feared by the Grant royal family.
With Jonathan, York, Edward and other ducal families at the front, the Harland family's external environment is very stable.
Because the war in northern Xinjiang is tense, King Roger even wants to continue to support the Haaland family to share the pressure on the northern region.
After expanding a central corps, military investment increased by about 400,000 gold coins. The financial pressure caused a headache for the Grant royal family.
If the Harland family can play a greater role, the Grant royal family can reduce military expenditures in Northern Xinjiang with ease.
After William was transferred to the Grizzly Legion as the commander of the Legion, the Haaland family's influence in the Lach Province has been greatly improved. The commander of the main legion was the number one figure in the province. In a state of war, the provincial governors had to listen to William's military orders.
March is the season of spring plowing. After entering the Dawn Calendar 3266, Harland Territory has been busy with two major events, army expansion and spring plowing.
By late March, all recruitment tasks had been completed and the new recruits were busy training. The fourth Warcraft Cavalry Squadron has also been trained, and the second Magic Hot Air Balloon Squadron is still being formed.
The territory increased by about 250,000 people last year, and there were 250,000 more mouths. The food in the Harland territory was no longer enough.
Grain production must be increased this year. The best way to increase grain production is to expand the cultivated area. The task of opening up wasteland is imperative.
Compared with other areas of the Grant Kingdom, the agricultural development in Harland Territory was relatively advanced. Richard invented the curved shaft plow, which improved the efficiency of plowing. The use of composting has also increased food production. In addition, several reservoirs have been built in the territory to ensure the stability of the irrigation system and greatly increase the Haaland territory's ability to withstand floods and drought risks.
This year's spring plowing and land reclamation, in addition to developing Graveson and the Marsh Basin, will focus on areas near Salt Lake Castle and Norman Castle. After the land reclamation is completed, Richard will also immigrate to Salt Lake County and Norman County on a large scale. When engaging in immigration work, the construction of infrastructure is a top priority. There is enough labor in the Harland territory, and spring plowing and construction of houses and roads can go hand in hand.
After entering March, a large amount of bricks, cement, glass, steel bars and other building materials were transported to the vicinity of Salt Lake Fort and Fort Norman. Richard not only wanted to build barracks and dormitories for the indentured slaves, but also renovated and expanded the two castles.
In order to support the construction of the two counties, Richard transferred many people from the original old factories and mines to build brick kilns, lime kilns, glass kilns, etc. in Norman County.
The Salt Lake Fort area has been developed for three years, and now the road from Flower Castle to Salt Lake Fort has been built. After the road was built and Richard brought in enough labor, the development of salt lake minerals accelerated by leaps and bounds.
Now the Harland territory can not only produce a large amount of salt, but also produce natural potash fertilizer every year. Without increasing manpower, the potash fertilizer produced this year will exceed 5,000 tons.
Five thousand tons of potassium fertilizer will benefit hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland. With a large amount of natural fertilizer, if the weather goes well this year, grain output will be greatly improved.
Nowadays, the labor force is abundant and there is no need for the army to participate in land reclamation and spring plowing.
From early March to early April, approximately 400,000 acres of farmland were opened up in the Harland Territory in one month. Now, the farmland in the Harland Territory exceeds 2 million acres. This year's food production will see a huge increase.
Spring plowing had just ended when a strange disease suddenly appeared in northern Xinjiang.
The deceased was first discovered in Villa Castle. Black spots appeared on the body of the deceased, his teeth fell out, and a large amount of black internal organs was coughed out of the corner of his mouth. In just a few days, more than a hundred people died in Villa Castle.
Panic spread instantly, and the residents of the castle fled in all directions.
Villa Castle is the second largest castle in the Dukedom of Edward, with more than 80,000 residents. These 80,000 people moved around, causing the epidemic to spread throughout northern Xinjiang in an instant.
In order to avoid the plague, countless indentured slaves fled their hometowns and entered the Eagle Mountains to become refugees.
Although there are some priests in major cities who can treat diseases, compared to the huge number of sick people, a small number of priests are a drop in the bucket.
In mid-April, the first case appeared in Haaland Territory.
After receiving the information, Richard immediately issued a strict blockade order.
Doctors from the Harland Territory have mobilized their core strength and stationed themselves in the epidemic area. The Territory Mage Tower has also mobilized its strength and organized a magic treatment team to be on call at any time.
After the first case appeared, the epidemic spread very quickly. In just a few days, more than hundreds of people were infected with the plague. Some of them were even doctors who were exposed to the plague and soldiers who established a blockade.
Nine days after the first case, the first patient died in Halland Territory.
In the face of a sudden crisis, Adrian, the top leader of Haaland Medical System, withstood the test. He personally performed an autopsy on the deceased and used a microscope to find bacterial samples in the fluid accumulated in the lungs of the deceased.
Through microscope observation, Adrian discovered several strange-looking bacterial creatures swimming in the liquid. After further research, doctors from the Harland Territory discovered that this bacteria was actually highly resistant to magic.
This discovery almost proves that the plague was caused by the Necromancer.
After discovering the problem, Richard immediately arranged for Audrey to ride a griffon to pass the news to Nolan, and notified the pastor of Dawn Church to let everyone be careful.
After the Morningside Church received the news, Archbishop Senna Walton personally arranged for two senior priests to station in the Dukedom of Edward to investigate the cause of the plague.
Just as the top leaders of the Dawn Church were chasing down clues, the Harland territory ushered in the first wave of the epidemic.
Because of the effective sealing and control of the Harland Territory, although the first wave of the epidemic came violently, infecting more than 1,200 people in just seven or eight days, the Harland Territory has strong medical treatment capabilities, and many mages have learned plague treatment techniques. , the magic healing ability is very strong. In the first round of the epidemic, only nine people died in Haaland Territory.
Although he blocked the first wave of the epidemic, Richard still did not dare to relax the lockdown.
Now that the epidemic is very serious, people in various gathering places hate outsiders. As the noble lords and local bureaucrats become more and more strict on immigrants, the population gradually becomes afraid to move.
After the population stopped moving, the ability to spread the epidemic gradually weakened. After several iterations of the magic bacteria, the disease-causing ability became weaker and weaker. After June, this wave of plague has come to an end.
After the first wave of the epidemic ended, the Harland territory relaxed restrictions, and Richard sent a demon hunting team into the Eagle Mountains to collect the refugees who fled into the mountains.
In just one month, 43,000 people were recruited into the Haaland territory.
Although Richard established a strict isolation system, a large number of people poured into Harland Territory, which actually brought a second wave of epidemic.
This time, more than 3,000 people were infected with the plague.
Fortunately, the lethality of the germs has weakened a lot, and with the effective treatment in the Haaland Territory, fewer people died in the second wave of the epidemic, only three people.
After autumn, the Harland Territory ushered in the third wave of epidemics. This time the plague came fiercely, infecting more than 20,000 people, and even appeared in the territory in a multi-point spread, almost overwhelming Haaland. The isolation policy of Rand Territory broke down the medical system.
During the most serious days, mid-level magicians such as Richard, Sophia, and Wendy personally took action, spending a lot of magic power every day to release spells and treat patients. They worked for more than 20 days before we passed the peak of the epidemic. .
This year's plague killed more than 60,000 people and caused hundreds of thousands of refugees in northern Xinjiang.
The damage caused by the plague to the northern region was somewhat more serious than the orc invasion. It is precisely because of the continuous plagues and wars that although the fertility rate of northern Xinjiang is high, the population has not increased for so many years.
(End of chapter)