277: Chapter 153: Mobilization_1 277: Chapter 153: Mobilization_1 “Provide people.”
“Provide grains.”
“Provide money.”
The King’s order can be summarized in these three simple words.
Even the specific amounts have been clearly defined, evidently the result of prior communication among the major powers.
As an intermediate aristocrat, I barely made it into the heart of the kingdom’s power.
There is still a long way to go from the real decision-making layer.
The big shots have discussed it, this king’s order is obviously not to be discussed with everyone.
The content requested above must all be completed.
But when it comes to specific details, the task-sharing within the provinces is bound to be met with pushback.
Relatively speaking, the situation in Southeastern Province is good.
As the kingdom’s rear areas, the primary task is to ensure the supply of funds and grains for the frontlines, followed by providing qualified soldiers.
The thirty thousand soldiers are easy to solve, the unlucky aristocrats who were punished contributed half of the quota.
The remaining each county only needs to provide a thousand people, distributed to each Lord, there is no pressure.
These soldiers are all to be supplemented into the border guards.
Throw in more than a hundred Knights, fewer officers, and there should be no problem.
Governor Piers did not suggest who should lead the team, so chances are some unlucky aristocrat, who has been betrayed by his own son, will be in charge.
The issue of “war tax” is somewhat tricky.
On the whole, it’s still within controllable limits, just have to cough up the money.
If there’s no money, real objects will make up for it, or more people can be sent to fight, and that can be coordinated within the province.
The most troublesome thing is still the supplies.
The Southeastern Province needs to provide a variety of strategic supplies, including food, amounting to as much as 15,000 tons.
For a province, it doesn’t seem much to share.
But the key problem is that everyone has to not only gather the supplies but also organize manpower to deliver them to the front line.
Other materials are not easily lost on the way, just an increase in a few points worth of losses would do.
But food alone is the exception, and the Southeastern Province mainly provides food.
From Southeastern Province to the front line, there are more than a thousand kilometers.
Although a section of the route can be transported along the sea and river, there are still more than four hundred miles that require manpower transportation.
This is the most optimistic estimate.
Many times, it’s not enough to get the grain to the nearest point, it may also change with the change in the battle situation.
Hudson, well off in mathematics, figured it’s inevitable to lose at least a third along the way.
This is because Alpha Kingdom has had many battles with the Orcs, the transport infrastructure along the way is relatively complete, and there are several granaries along the way for transfer.
One-third of the transport loss in peacetime, half the loss of food during the eruption of war, Hudson would not be surprised at all.
No wonder the Southeastern Province has to be put at the back of the mobilization sequence.
Without these noble lords in charge, how could they gather the supplies and deliver them to the front line?
In Hudson’s view, in every invasion of the Orcs, the Allied Human Army returned home quickly after defeating the Orc Army.
It’s not because of the disunity of the human nations, nor the lack of ability in the Allied Army.
It’s more due to the horror of consuming supplies on the battlefield.
The consumption of supplies is so large even when fighting in the Alpha Kingdom.
Once the front extends to the Orc Empire, ten people providing supplies for one soldier might not even be enough for the front line.
In this respect, humans can never learn from the Orcs.
The Orcs can mobilize large armies, not because their logistics abilities are strong, but because their logistics are so bad they can’t even be described.
The ability to marshal hundreds of thousands of troops on the front line is entirely due to their lack of bottom line.
When the food in the army is not enough, their dead comrades become their food.
Many times when the human army and the Orcs fight to the death, it’s not because they’re all so brave, but because they don’t want to become food.
…
“Your Excellency Governor, it’s easy to solve the tasks of manpower and tax collection by dividing them into county units, but the supplies are problematic.
Although the Southeastern Province is all fertile soil, the specialties of each county are different, and some supplies are not even available in some counties.
Assigning tasks directly by county, I’m afraid it’s going to be difficult for everyone to complete.
It’s better to devalue all the supplies, and everyone complete the supply gathering according to their own specialties.
As long as the total amount can roughly match, even if there are discrepancies in details, the kingdom probably won’t say anything.”
Hudson was the first to propose.
When it comes to personal interests, he must strive for it at this time.
Otherwise, a bunch of supply tasks will be mechanically divided, and he won’t be able to gather them even if his head hurts.
In name, the Prefectural Governor is Viscount West, and these problems should be his headache.
But this guy has been silent since he entered the conference room.
I don’t know if he has self-awareness, knowing that he has no say here, or if he’s unhappy about being marginalized by Hudson and is determined to slack off.
If the Prefectural Governor slackens, the task still needs to be completed.
Concerning the major issue of front-line strategic supplies, if there is a problem, all the nobles in Layton County will be implicated.
Being executed for the crime of “traitor” is unlikely, but being sent to the battlefield to serve the country is a high probability event.
The noble children who committed crimes against the wind in front are examples.
Hudson doesn’t want to go to the frontline with the hat of “merit by crime”.
“Viscount Hudson’s proposal is very good and very practical.
The tasks are still divided by county, but the Governor’s Mansion will give a conversion ratio, and everyone will convert their own supplies.