Data Wasteland

In mid-January, Ambergris and the valley are in deep winter. The river embankment is frozen layer by layer, and the surface of the river is floating with snow, but the water is still turbulent, rushing towards the outlet of Jinfengang.

The fertile land on both sides of the river is covered with thick snow, the soil freezes, and vitality is blocked.

A family of farmers in the suburbs was surrounded by the fire, with snowflakes floating outside the windows. The host complained about the cold this winter. The hostess knits a sweater and yells at the frolicking children from time to time, so that they don't make too much noise. A big dog and a fat cat lay lazily on their feet, warm and peaceful.

The floor suddenly vibrated. At first it was very small and no one noticed it, but it grew bigger and bigger behind it. First, the windows vibrated, and the snow on the edge of the windows fell one after another, and then the ice cones on the eaves fell smashingly.

The farmer's family stopped what they were doing and looked at each other.

"I'll go out and have a look."

The host walked to the cabinet in a few steps, opened the cabinet door, and took out the rifle inside. This is usually used to fight wild ducks, and occasionally to prevent gangsters. However, this is an area covered by satellite signals, a place under the rule of law, and there is basically no danger.

"Be careful!"

The host nodded to the hostess, held the gun and pushed the door out.

"Woo..."

The north wind howled, and snowflakes came. The sky and the earth are vast, and the visibility is very low, only about a dozen meters.

Facing the wind and snow, the host walked seven or eight meters away, and groups of gray shadows appeared in his sight.

The orange-red spotlight shone forward, and the roar of the engine was mixed in the snow.

A few steps closer, I saw trucks full of soldiers passing by outside the farm, followed by mechas and infantry.

The host was shocked, turned around and ran back into the house, closed the door heavily, and plugged all the doors.

"It's the army of the Northern Alliance, they are coming here!"

The hostess stood up abruptly, and the sweater she was knitting fell to the ground, scaring the cat and dog away.

"Fast forward to the cellar!"

The hostess rushed to the corner of the room and pulled away the wooden planks on the ground to reveal the entrance to the cellar.

At this moment, the broadcast sounded outside.

"The troops pass by the farmhouse and shall not disturb the people. Violators shall be dealt with by military law!"

"Retrial, the offender will be dealt with by military law!"

The host and hostess glanced at each other, and both heaved a sigh of relief. As the Expeditionary Army advertises, soldiers must not harass or rob civilians.

On this day, Chen Xing led an army of 150,000 and besieged the silver eagle collar.

The policy of not disturbing the people is what he learned from his ancestors, and it is called "not taking the masses one by one".

It is now an internal war in the United Kingdom of Ambergris River. It is very important to win popularity. Perhaps the land changes and these civilians will become new citizens.

Of course, even if the Silver Claw Principality was laid down, Chen Xing would not be able to get too many fiefs.

According to the aristocratic laws of the Ambergris River United Kingdom, it is not a simple matter to change the territory and the royal family. Only the king has the right to take back the fief of the great nobles. As long as the Silver Claw royal family does not betray the kingdom, even if the civil war is fierce, the land will still be left to their descendants.

The victors can only influence the income of this land by supporting the bloodline of the Silver Claw royal family.

But then again, if Aaliyah insists on entrusting him with the land that Chen Xing lays down, it is not impossible, but the premise is that Triliss on the other side of the river also does the same, otherwise all the neutral nobles will fall to Cui. Lisi's side.

Changing the rules of the game at the lowest level means shaking the foundation of the kingdom. Unless there is preparation for a major exchange of blood from the nobles, it is still necessary to follow the rules.

Neither Aaliyah nor Triliss would do such a thankless thing.

Land was laid down, but no ownership was obtained, and no corresponding people were obtained. Therefore, looting of civilians during the Kingdom's civil war was very common. Even if the Human Survival Committee has repeatedly called for no harm to civilians, the military is still keen on this because it is the fastest and easiest way to obtain military spending.

Chen Xing is short on military expenses, but there are three reasons why he does not rob civilians.

First, the ideal of building a nation by mercenaries needs popular support as support, and no people would be willing to support a tyrant to build a nation.

The second is that some people in the expeditionary army cannot accept the looting of civilians, such as those from Huozui and Leliangka.

The third is that the looting of civilians will affect the combat effectiveness of the troops. In the process of looting, soldiers will inevitably hide some of their belongings, and if they make enough money, they will naturally go home and buy a car, buy a house, and marry a wife for a happy life. Who still wants to fight?

So the wisdom of the ancestors still needs to be learned.

Just three days ago, Chen Xing sent someone to **** Wei Qinghai, the three silver claw prince, back to the silver eagle collar.

The reason is simple, he charged Wei Haitang a ransom of one million gold coins.

The purchasing power of one gold coin is equivalent to one thousand soft sister coins on the earth, and one million gold coins are equivalent to one billion soft sister coins.

It's still very cost-effective to exchange so much money for a piece of waste. Wei Qinghai's body is disabled and character rubbish, it is difficult to become a big weapon, even if it is put back, it will be troublesome for eating rice, and it will not pose a threat to the next siege.

On the other hand, Chen Xing is really short of money.

In the previous battles, the expeditionary force was reduced by more than 80,000 people. According to the minimum standard of 200 gold coins per person, the pension was as high as 16 million.

Although the military department of the Red Dragon Principality is responsible for most of the pension, it is only the number on the document for the time being, and no actual payment has been made.

If Chen Xing successfully lays down the silver eagle collar, money will naturally not be a problem, as long as the middle and upper nobles of the silver claw are scraped once, all problems will be solved.

But if it can't be beaten, maybe Aria must think of a way.

In addition to pensions, military expenditures are also part of it. Among these 150,000 people, in addition to the remaining 120,000 before, the additional 30,000 are mainly mercenaries and young people from the red dragon and black feathers who come from all over the world.

Reorganizing troops, purchasing ordnance, and replenishing supplies all require a lot of funds.

Chen Xing used to watch the news. Experts and scholars always said that money is what fights wars. Now it seems that it is simply a well-known saying.

During this period of time, he was like a rascal, rip-offs everywhere to collect protection fees. This was enough to fill up the funding gap and reorganize the 150,000-strong army.

This force has gone through large-scale wars and has matured a lot. Although the number of troops is not as large as that at the beginning, its combat effectiveness is stronger than before.

The difference between recruits and veterans is only after a brutal war. For example, although there are only more than 6,000 left in the Zuo army, these 6,000 were all fought in the cruelest battlefield, and a large part of them can be promoted to grassroots officers. As long as there is a sufficient source of troops, the combat effectiveness will recover quickly, because the combat effectiveness of the army mainly depends on the command ability of the grass-roots officers.

And as Chen Xing's expeditionary force approached the silver eagle collar, the major armies of the Red Dragon and Black Feathers also began to move, restricting the troops of the Red Rock, Cold Ridge, and Black Spear.